By James Wells
SYDNEY: Smeg today announced the release a world-first 12-place 90cm dishwasher which Harvey Norman recently described as having the potential to be as big as Fisher & Paykel’s DishDrawer.
The un-named Italian dishwasher, which is on display at the DesignEx exhibition at Darling Harbour until Saturday, is manufactured in Smeg factories and will only be available as a built-in product in two configurations – either with stainless steel baskets and halogen lighting and another model with standard grey rilson baskets.
The 90cm dishwasher will feature 10 functions, 12 standard settings and a height of 58cm. The product features a door height of 34cm, which is half the size of a standard dishwasher, resulting in less obstruction when loading and un-loading.
Harvey Norman will be selling the product exclusively for six months when it is released in Australia in June.
At a recent Harvey Norman half year profit announcement, Harvey Norman director and general manager – electrical, David Ackery, discussed the possibility of the retailer taking on exclusive distribution of a new dishwasher product from Italy.
“This could be as big in the market as DishDrawer,” Ackery told financial analysts at the briefing.
“It presents a huge opportunity,” he said.
At the briefing, Ackery confirmed he hopes to test the dishwasher through four or five franchisees before potentially releasing it to other Harvey Norman retailers.