The German Innovation Award honours innovations that are not only novel, but demonstrably generate added value for the user. Even when it come to details of an overall solution, the focus must be on radically centring the user, and thereby the human individual.” This is how the German Design Council describes the notion of innovation that it has taken as the basis for the German Innovation Award introduced in 2018. 650 products were in contention for this first presentation of the new award.
Gira Giersiepen GmbH & Co. KG from Radevormwald scored a perfect hat trick, with the independent panel of experts choosing three of the building technology specialist’s products as winners: the Gira X1 app, and both the Gira E2 design line’s stainless steel variant and plastic variant for flat installation. The Gira solutions had been entered in the “Building & Elements” category of the “Excellence in Business to Business” competition class.
The “right mix”
“We are, of course, absolutely delighted to have won three awards at once,” commented Hans-Jörg Müller, Head of Product and Design at Gira.
“This confirms our approach of focussing the development of our solutions on how we can create benefits and attractive added value for our various target groups – electricians, architects, and end users.” According to Müller, Gira’s innovations are successful especially when they embody ‘the right mix of good craftsmanship, useful innovative functions, durability, and a good formal design.’ “Therefore, awards like these are also always a great incentive for us at Gira to consistently prioritize the downstream users and their needs when developing our innovations.”
The jury of the German Innovation Award assessed the submitted products based on a number of criteria, including user benefit, degree of innovation, and cost effectiveness. They also looked at sustainability aspects, quality, and functionality. The jury’s statement shows, for example, that the judges were particularly impressed by the user-friendliness of the Gira X1 app’s interface, as well as its adaptation and customisation options. In turn, the stainless steel variant of the Gira E2 design line scored points with the judges both for its winning combination of pared-down design, functional materials, and intelligent technology, and for its use of stainless steel as genuine material, with its special properties. In the case of the flat variant of the Gira E2 design line, the panel of judges responded particularly positively to the product’s low installation depth and harmonious interaction with a wide variety of architectural styles.
