Dualit
 A four-slice Dualit toaster | |
 | |
| Private | |
| Industry | Kitchen appliances |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Founder | Max Gort-Barten |
| Headquarters | Crawley, West Sussex, England |
| Total assets | £8,617,059 30 June 2012[1] |
| Website |
dualit |
Dualit is a British manufacturer of kitchen and catering equipment, best known for their range of heavy-duty toasters. The Dualit toaster is regarded as a design classic.[2][3][4]
The toaster differs from most others in that it is relatively simple in construction, with an electromechanical timer and using a manual lever mechanism to lift the toast from the toasting slots rather than having a "pop-up" mechanism. It is also easily repairable, with replacement elements and other parts available, so it typically has a longer service life than contemporary electronically controlled toasters.
Although it was primarily designed for the commercial catering market, it became trendy in the 1990s as a domestic product[5] and was described by Bill Deedes in The Observer newspaper as a "symbol of the kitchen porn 90s".[6]
Origins
Dualit was founded in 1946 by the German-born inventor Max Gort-Barten CBE (1914–2003) and was incorporated as Dualit Ltd in 1948. The company’s first product was an electric heater.[7][8]
Design
The Dualit toaster, designed in the early 1950s, is notable for its 'large loaf' shape, characterised with cooling slots at both ends of the unit designed to allow it to function for periods of extended use in commercial environments such as a café or canteen. The units are currently available in different sizes, with various slot numbers and are manufactured in a range of colours. The simple hand-built process used in their manufacture, with each part held together with visible screws, makes the toaster robust, yet easy to disassemble and repair. Another distinguishing feature of these machines is the electromechanical timer.[5]
Dualit have marketed a diverse range of kitchenware products in recent years, including smaller imported domestic toasters, kettles and espresso machines, mechanical scales and digital radios.
The commercial-grade Dualit toaster is still made in West Sussex, England. Some of their products have won awards from prestigious organizations and publications such as the Good Housekeeping Institute.[9]
See also
References
- ↑ "DUALIT LIMITED, Free Business Summary". companycheck.co.uk. Companies House. 30 June 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ "Design Classics #22: The Dualit Toaster". madabaoutthehouse.com. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ "Dualit Toasters: Are they worth the high price tag?". http://www.thekitchn.com''. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ "Dualit". royaldesign.com. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Wastson-Smyth, Kate (1 October 2010). "The Secret History Of: The Dualit electric toaster". The Independent. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ Deedes, Bill (12 September 2004). "Still hungry after all these years". Observer Food Monthly. The Observer. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ "Trade Mark Inter-Partes Decision 0/257/07". www.ipo.gov.uk. United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office. 10 September 2007. p. 12. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ↑ "Max Gort-Barten". The Times. 10 October 2003. Retrieved 26 May 2011.
|chapter=ignored (help) (subscription required) - ↑ "GHI APPROVED Products 2013". goodhousekeeping.co.uk. Good Housekeeping Institute. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
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