Tokyo Design Awards Gold Winner

2026 | Professional

Flex 1 Manifold Gauge w/HD Color Graphic Interface

Entrant Company

NAVAC Inc

Category

Product Design - Eco / Green

Client's Name

Country / Region

United States

In a full day of HVAC work, a technician reaches for the same manifold gauge dozens of times — in attics, on rooftops, behind condensers, and inside cramped or poorly lit mechanical closets. It is one of the most-handled instruments in the bag, yet for many technicians it has remained one of the least evolved: a pair of analog needles on a printed dial, read by squinting and interpreted by memory.

Flex 1 was created to modernize this everyday tool while respecting how technicians already work. Rather than turning the gauge into something unfamiliar or overly complicated, Flex 1 keeps the directness, posture, and simplicity of the traditional manifold gauge and improves its weakest point: the analog dial.

At its core, Flex 1 is built around a simple idea: a gauge exists to communicate, and the clearest communication is visual. Its HD color graphic display turns live system pressure into clear, instantly readable information. Where analog gauges require technicians to estimate between crowded markings, Flex 1 states the value directly, making the reading faster, clearer, and easier to trust.

Its compact, palm-sized form makes it especially useful in real field conditions. Small enough to fit into a pocket and light enough to carry without thought, Flex 1 can slip behind equipment, sit naturally in one hand, and remove friction from countless small moments in a technician’s day. It is designed to be the gauge technicians reach for repeatedly because it is easy to carry, easy to read, and ready to use.

Credits

Director of Product
Zhuk Zhang
Product Manager
William Zhang
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