When you\u2019ve been washing dishes the same way for decades, true innovation becomes almost invisible until someone shows you what\u2019s possible. Ian Banes, Product Line Head for Dishwashing at AEG, spent four years deconstructing every aspect of how we clean our plates, from the physics of water droplets hitting ceramic to the behavioral differences between weekday efficiency and weekend entertaining. His team\u2019s obsession with eliminating waste in the cleaning process has produced something genuinely transformative: a dishwasher that operates at library-quiet 35 decibels while using just 8.4 liters of water per cycle and achieving what they boldly claim is 100% cleaning performance in 90 minutes, no pre-rinse required.<\/p>\n
The AEG New Favorit represents the kind of engineering breakthrough that happens when you refuse to accept that \u201cgood enough\u201d is actually good enough. Rather than incrementally improving existing technology, Banes and his team started from scratch, questioning every assumption about spray arm rotation, water injection angles, detergent mixing timing, and even the behavioral patterns that dictate how we load our dishwashers differently on Tuesday versus Saturday night. The result challenges the fundamental compromises we\u2019ve accepted in kitchen appliances, proving that quieter operation doesn\u2019t mean weaker performance, and that sustainability innovations can enhance rather than limit functionality.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Dishwashers have become almost ubiquitous, yet the hype around your new model for IFA 2025 suggests something transformative. What motivated your team to reinvent such a familiar appliance?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> We spend a lot of time with consumer research, including in-home studies, and from there we saw quite a lot of gaps between consumer needs and what was actually on the market. Consumers are looking for more energy saving, more water saving, shorter cycle times, and also better results. We felt there was a significant gap in the current offerings that we could improve on. That was the core motivation. We\u2019re always looking at what consumers are doing; behaviors evolve, needs evolve, and there\u2019s always something in the market that you can improve.<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> The new AEG New Favorit dishwasher promises an ultra-quiet operation at just 35 decibels. Can you explain how your SuperSilent technology and re-engineered hydraulics make this extraordinary silence possible?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes: <\/strong><\/em><\/span>What we tried to do is look at where there was waste in the process. We took away all of the steps that were adding things that weren\u2019t actually helping to clean the dishes. If you\u2019re putting water in too fast or too hard, then it can hit the side of the tub and not hit the dishes. Where you direct the water, when you direct it into the actual tub of the machine is really important.<\/p>\n We worked very hard on the rotation of the spray arm so that we covered different spots of the tub, on the angle of the spray arm, and then the timing with the software and the cycles. There\u2019s a lot about making sure every drop of water was going on the plates and none of it was going on the sides of the machine or on the racks. That\u2019s how we got to a good combination of lower noise, lower water usage, and lower energy. If you are putting extra energy to inject water against the side of the tub, then you\u2019re making noise that you don\u2019t need and using water and energy that you don\u2019t need. By focusing on what wasn\u2019t needed and just what was purely needed for the cleaning \u2013 maximizing that and minimizing everything else \u2013 that\u2019s how we got to the low levels across all three areas.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> The AquaSave system is said to cut water use down to just 8.4 liters per cycle. How does this new water control system work to save so much water, and does it really clean dishes as well?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes: <\/strong><\/em><\/span>Absolutely, it\u2019s exactly the same as we just discussed because what we\u2019re doing is putting all the water onto the dishes and none wasted in the process. We\u2019ve also got the ability to change when we look at our zone cleaning \u2013 we can put more water into certain areas and make sure that we clean more effectively in those areas and let the standard clean work in the other areas. So we can really direct the water in a good way.<\/p>\n The other thing we work hard on is the mixing of detergent, because if you mix that properly then you get the detergent to activate really well. So again, you\u2019re maximizing the effect of the chemistry as well as the effect of the water. It\u2019s a combination of time, temperature, and the moment in the cycle when you do things. It\u2019s a lot of small details and a lot of iterative testing. We spend a lot of time in our test labs working on different cycles and different optimization of when to do what in what sequence.<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Many people struggle with dishes that have burnt-on food or stubborn residues. You claim 100 percent removal in 90 minutes with your SatelliteClean Pro spray arm. What is different about this spray arm, and how does it ensure such a thorough clean?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> We\u2019ve tested this externally, so we\u2019re very confident in the claim. It\u2019s not just ourselves saying this, it\u2019s external institutes. It\u2019s to do with the rotation of the arm \u2013 you can see the demonstration outside on the floor area. It covers all the corners and then it\u2019s the angle as well, and the timing. Again it comes back to all these small details: the geometry of the nozzle, the timing of the rotation, and how much water we put in when. It\u2019s a lot of small details adding up to a big step forward. We tested ourselves quite a lot of times and then we went to external institutes and they came back with 100% in 90 minutes, so we\u2019re very confident in the technology we have.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Many people worry that \u201csilent\u201d appliances might compromise on cleaning power or durability. How does the New Favorit range manage to combine whisper-quiet operation with reliable, spotless performance, and what does this mean for daily life in busy homes?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> For daily life, I think it makes it a lot easier for people and hopefully they\u2019ll use dishwashers more because they\u2019re more water efficient than hand washing. I think that\u2019ll mean less pre-rinsing, less putting things into hand wash and running the dishwasher as well. So hopefully now everything will go in the dishwasher, which is more efficient overall. The technology again comes down to just removing the things that are not cleaning in the process and making sure we get all the details right during the process.<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Loading a dishwasher can be a real puzzle. The EasyFlex Pro Baskets and 4in1 FlexHolder claim to offer more flexibility and secure cleaning for everything. What are these features, and how do they make loading easier and safer?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes: <\/strong><\/em><\/span>We do a lot of consumer studies and see different behaviors of how consumers load dishwashers. We focus quite a bit on consumers during the week versus weekends because during the week you\u2019re running your life \u2013 there might be school runs, jobs, just a lot of stuff going on. You want to be quick and efficient with cooking and cleaning. You might just want to do a quick tray bake for cooking, so then you need to clean a tray.<\/p>\n At the weekend is more family entertainment. You have more time to enjoy things, so maybe you\u2019re cooking bigger meals with more utensils, wine glasses, this kind of thing. So we\u2019ve followed the consumer needs and come up with features. The 4-in-1 for the tray bake \u2013 you can clean the oven tray because it will stand up in the bottom of the dishwasher. You can also fold that feature down and then you can clean wine glasses, beer glasses, champagne flutes because it\u2019s got the right fittings to slot things in and hold them so they\u2019re not rattling around and getting scratched.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve also managed to get a tub that\u2019s both 82 centimeters and 87 centimeters, so with that extra 5 centimeters under the work top you have room to put more things in \u2013 bigger pizza plates, bigger glasses. We worked a lot on the loading and flexibility for both weekday living and weekend living.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> It\u2019s a common practice for people to rinse their dishes before loading the dishwasher. Your new models say they eliminate the need for pre-rinsing. What changes in the design, engineering, or software make this possible?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes: <\/strong><\/em><\/span>It\u2019s everything \u2013 it comes back to the hydraulic system AquaSave, to the spray arm, and then to the software. The combination of everything just allowed us to get rid of the need to do that and then get things 100% clean. Really, a lot of engineering to bring everything to that stage. It\u2019s a huge time-saving, and if you come back to the weekday work, then you want your time to be saved. And at the weekend you want your time to be saved as well because you want to spend it not washing up but with the people you\u2019re entertaining, with your family.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Sustainability is on everyone\u2019s lips. Can you walk us through concrete innovations in this dishwasher that genuinely reduce environmental impact?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes: <\/strong><\/em><\/span>Obviously first is the energy and water because we\u2019re consuming less resources, so that\u2019s the innovation around the spray arm and the hydraulics. The other thing consumers won\u2019t necessarily see straight away, but we\u2019ve actually really stepped up the amount of recycled plastic that\u2019s in the machine. We\u2019re now at 35% recycled plastic in this machine, and I think that\u2019s a big step forward to making the whole industry more sustainable \u2013 so not just the usage phase but also in construction.<\/p>\n That\u2019s been a big tangible step we\u2019ve made because it\u2019s a lot of complex engineering with recycled polymers. They have slightly different mechanical properties than standard polymers, so to do the engineering to get that right has been a big part of the project.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> If you could have users know or appreciate just one thing about this dishwasher that might not be obvious in a showroom demo, what would it be?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> One hundred percent clean in 90 minutes. In the showroom, you will see the energy label, the water performance, and the noise level, but performance is something you have to use the machine to see. I\u2019d really like consumers to know that and experience it from day one.<\/p>\n Yanko Design:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> After all the work that\u2019s gone into the New Favorit range, what\u2019s the one moment or user reaction you\u2019re most looking forward to at IFA 2025?<\/strong><\/p>\n Ian Banes:<\/strong><\/em><\/span> Honestly, it\u2019s the reaction I\u2019ve just been getting now from customers. Showing them the product and getting their feedback, hearing them ask, \u201cWhen can I have it in my shop?\u201d \u2013 that\u2019s a really prime moment. We worked for four years on the technical side, on consumer studies, and on developing solutions to meet their needs. To get that validation from people today is a really proud moment on behalf of the entire team.<\/p>\n Availability:<\/strong> The AEG New Favorit Dishwasher is entering production now, starting in Germany and rolling out across markets, with 2026 expected to be a big year for availability.<\/p>\n The post AEG debuted a Dishwasher that\u2019s quieter than a Library at IFA 2025. Here\u2019s how they made it.<\/a> first appeared on Yanko Design<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When you\u2019ve been washing dishes the same way for decades, true innovation becomes almost invisible until someone shows you what\u2019s possible. Ian Banes, Product Line Head for Dishwashing at AEG, spent four years deconstructing every … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[16],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n