steam-ez

UX & Product Design | Spring 2013

Steam-ez makes microwave cleaning easy and safe. Steam-ez comes in sets of two pods forming a circle, which the user breaks. Our all-in-one product cleans hard-to-remove debris from the inside of microwaves without harsh chemicals. We developed an all-natural lemon-scented solution that turns to steam in the microwave and loosens caked-on food. The packaging includes a built-in sponge and scraper, designed to help remove food. 

The Problem

There are over 100 million microwaves in the United States. Due to uneven heating, food splatters are a common occurrence and many people wait until this mess has been baked on for months before attempting to clean it, making the task even more difficult and unpleasant. Based on our surveys and interviews of over 120 microwave users, we identified two types of users that are particularly subject to this problem: 1) the Occasional Cleaner - cleans microwave when the task comes to mind every 3-4 months, and 2) the Crisis Cleaners - cleans microwave only after a huge food spill or splatter, maybe once or twice a year. These two segments make up of 72% of the market.

The Process

Our team was comprised of 8 design (RISD), engineering (MIT), and MBA (MIT Sloan) students. We leveraged our diverse backgrounds throughout the product development process, including: product planning, identifying customer needs, concept generation, product architecture/rapid prototyping, industrial design, robust design for experimentation, design-for-manufacturing, and financial modeling for branding and marketing.

Final Solution