Julius Blum

How might we design and enhance the functionality of a future proof waste management system for the household and the kitchen?

Challenge Brief

Julius Blum GmbH is an innovative furniture fittings manufacturer from Hoechst, Austria. Blum is a family-owned company that operates worldwide, specialising in the manufacture and distribution of furniture fittings. Its main product groups are lift, hinge and pull-out systems for furniture, predominantly in kitchens. Worldwide clients include furniture manufacturers and authorised dealers. Blum has roughly 7,600 employees all over the world today, 5,800 in Vorarlberg alone. The fittings manufacturer operates seven plants in Vorarlberg which all have state-of-the art workplaces and high-tech production facilities, production sites in Poland, Brazil and the USA and 30 subsidiaries and representative offices. The company supplies more than 120 markets around the world. Blum strives to achieve perfect motion with all its fittings solutions. Blum products make opening and closing furniture a mesmerising experience and increase the quality of motion and user convenience to the entire home.

Everyday there are 3.5 million tons of waste produced by society. A huge proportion of which is wasted food due to the fact that a third of all produced groceries are dumped. This leads to serious problems for our society and environment as garbage is incinerated or landfilled and only a fraction is recycled.

Our household faces several challenges concerning trash as well. Abundant packaging and wastefulness lead to crammed bins, and food waste causes an unpleasant smell and attracts bugs. Today, waste is handled differently around the world as infrastructure varies. Available systems allow for waste separation amongst different bins, while in many households waste management systems do not exist at all.

This is where you come into play: Together with you, we are looking for product ideas, inspirations, solutions and designs to face these challenges within our households and kitchens. There is no limit to your creativity! Every idea for tackling a problem before, during, and after the accumulation of waste is exciting. What are diverse approaches for handling trash, whether it’s by reducing, reusing, recycling or rotting? Turn your ideas into innovative prototypes to show how our kitchens and households can be more sustainable because of your waste management system of the future.

Join us and together we will create a new waste management system for kitchens and households. We look forward to working with you!

Collaboration Incentive

The team(s) with the best solutions are invited to an action day with the whole group, let yourself be surprised. For one of the team-members a paid internship or the opportunity to write a bachelor’s or master’s thesis together with the company is offered, continuing the outcome of the innovation challenge.