The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2025–2026
ABB Niessen's Vega switch family splits one mechanism into two styles — iF Gold 2026
Niessen builds Vega and Alter Vega on one switch mechanism — straight-lined or ergonomic-curved — with up to 95% recycled parts; iF Design Award 2026 Gold.
ABB (Niessen)
What it had to solve
Niessen, ABB's 110-year-old Spanish electrical-interiors brand, wanted a switch collection that let people define a room's style while making sustainability concrete rather than decorative.
How it works
Wall switches are among the most utilitarian objects in a home — touched daily yet rarely given a second thought. Niessen, the Spanish electrical-interiors brand owned by ABB, set out to change that with Vega: a switch collection conceived under the motto 'Define your style'.
The collection is one mechanism, two aesthetics. Vega uses straight, balanced lines for precision and sobriety; Alter Vega adds a curved, ergonomic key that introduces a more sensory, tactile experience. Both share the same frame and finishes, so a single line can mix styles across a project. The range connects to ABB automation systems like i-bus KNX and free@home and even offers battery-free wireless smart switches compatible with Philips Hue and Casambi.
Sustainability was engineered into the product, not added as a claim: painted parts contain up to 95% recycled material, socket and switch mechanisms are 100% recyclable, and the Oiartzun factory runs entirely on renewable energy — cutting CO₂ emissions 93% and reaching operational neutrality in 2025 under ABB's Mission to Zero program.
The result was the iF Design Award 2026 Gold, the top honor of one of the world's most influential design competitions, awarded to just 75 of more than 10,000 entries. Only two Spanish brands took Gold that year, and Vega later added a Red Dot Award 2026.
Why it lands
- Instead of designing one new switch, Niessen created a platform: one mechanism and frame with two complementary aesthetics, multiplying the design possibilities without multiplying tooling.
- Alter Vega's curved key turns a purely functional object into a tactile, sensory moment — a deliberate move to make daily interaction with walls feel warmer.
- Recycled content (up to 95% in painted parts), fully recyclable mechanisms and a carbon-neutral factory made sustainability measurable rather than decorative.
- Compatibility with KNX, free@home, flexTronics and battery-free wireless switches turned a design object into a smart-home hub.
What it did
Vega won the iF Design Award 2026 Gold — the competition's top distinction, one of only 75 Golds from more than 10,000 entries — and one of just two Spanish Gold winners. It later added a Red Dot Award 2026.
What you can take
A mundane category like wall switches can carry real innovation: split one mechanism into two expressive aesthetics, and engineer sustainability into materials instead of claiming it in copy.
Since then
Vega became one of the most decorated Spanish designs of 2026: iF Design Award Gold, a Red Dot Award, and later a Delta bronze in Spain. ABB positioned the collection as proof that eco-design belongs in high-tech products, and Niessen — a 110-year-old brand — used it to reframe electrical fittings as a way to give spaces personality.
Sources
- Vega de Niessen galardonada con el prestigioso IF Design Award
- Niessen presenta Vega, dos estilos que redefinen los espacios
- Basque design triumphs at the 2026 iF Design Award
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