Philips Medical hails award for Sonicare AirFloss

Philips Medical has expressed its delight at winning an International Design Excellence Award (IDEA) for its Sonicare AirFloss.

The device picked up a Bronze award in the new bathroom, spa and wellness category, with the company's chief design officer Sean Carney describing the accolade as "worthy recognition for an outstanding, innovative product".

Working with completely new technology, the designers created an effective product that is both ergonomic and intuitive to use, he claimed.

The Sonicare AirFloss was designed with the intention of being the most user-friendly device of its kind on the market, delivering the benefits of microburst technology.

According to Philips, this innovation – which releases a tiny burst of air and water between the teeth – removes 99 per cent more plaque than brushing alone.

Bart Massee, senior design manager for health and wellness at Philips, explained: "We needed to develop a very specific shape that could be used intuitively to reach all the areas of the mouth."