Hettich was recognised as an ‘outstanding cooperation partner’ by the Der Kreis Anja Schaible Stiftung foundation for providing technical support and the necessary funds to realise foundation projects.

During the LivingKitchen trade fair, universities in Furtwangen and Wismar were also recognised with the foundation prize. Hettich had supported foundation projects such as ‘The Kitchen of Tomorrow’ and helped develop ideas further to the stage of functional prototypes.

A key objective of ‘The Kitchen of Tomorrow’ study project was to find out more about how people conceptualised the kitchen as a living space. Students from the Applied Health Sciences department in Furtwangen analysed the eating habits as well as the significance of the kitchen today and in the future. Various lifestyles and their impacts on the requirements for kitchen design were also identified.

The Furtwangen students then collaborated with students from the University of Wismar specialising in design and structural composition, and four cooking types were identified from the results with the aim of developing new kitchen ideas.

With Hettich’s support, the students were able to design a kitchen for the cooking type ‘casual cookers’, leading to the development of the mobile service butler and basic station.

Hettich was particularly interested to know during the exhibition whether such changes to furniture design, functions and mobility approach mattered to commerce, manufacturers and end consumers.

Image: Mobile service butler and basic station