Father of the Industrial Revolution Abraham Darby back to witness how Midlands innovation and design can heat up the UK economy

Among the audience fascinated by the 150 exhibits on display at The Mailbox were former Minister of State for Trade and Investment Lord Digby Jones, Emma Bridgewater and Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham City Council.

And also there was Abraham Darby, who in 1709 at the Coalbrookdale foundry ignited the worldwide Industrial Revolution by being the first to smelt iron ore with coke to make cooking pots.

Abraham Darby was also there to explain the new AGA iTotal Control cooker, which is manufactured at the very same historic Coalbrookdale foundry.

From the outside, the AGA iTotal Control looks exactly like a classic AGA range. But beneath its sleek cast-iron exterior lies a state-of-the-art touchscreen control panel. It's this new technology that enables owners to operate the cooker in a way that suits them.

Each of the three ovens and two hotplates can be operated independently - or together - and the innovative new cooker can even be turned on or off remotely by text message from a smartphone, tablet or PC.

Pointing at the all-new AGA iTotal Control, Lord Jones - a long-time campaigner for British manufacturing - said: "That's value added."

AGA has been shortlisted for the award of Best Midlands Brand 2012 and the AGA iTotal Control cooker itself has been nominated for Best Midlands Innovation and Radical Design 2012 in the inaugural Birmingham Made Me Design EXPO and Awards. You can vote for AGA by clicking here.

The Design Expo will continue until Friday 22nd June at The Mailbox, Birmingham. You can find AGA in the Interiors & Lifestyle Zone 1, Level 3.

Image: AGA Rangemaster Chief Executive William McGrath (left) with Lord Digby Jones and Abraham Darby