Kettal’s Exemplary Use of Design and Innovation
Kettal has won the National Design Prize 2010 from the Ministry of Science and Innovation, which is the highest recognition awarded in Spain to companies that successfully use design as part of their innovation strategy. The award ceremony will take place in the coming months. Since 1964, Kettal has had an international calling to design and innovation. In the first years of the 21st century, Kettal acquired the brands, Hugonet, Triconfort and Evolutif, which came together to form Grupo Kettal. Today, Kettal works with the most important names in international design: Patricia Urquiola, Marcel Wanders and Emiliana design studio.
The National Design Prize, honorific in nature, was created in 1987 by the, then, Spanish Ministry of Industry and Energy, and BCD, Barcelona Design Centre. Currently, the Ministry of Science and Innovation, and BCD are the entities responsible for organizing the awards, handed out annually by a member of the Royal Family. The main objectives of the National Design Prizes is to spread and foster the culture of design; promote all aspects of design including the essential relationship between design and enterprise, focusing on its cultural and social impact; and to play a pedagogical role in the correct assessment and understanding of design by society.
In the 19th edition of the prizes, the jury of experts and professionals chose Kettal “for their exemplary use of design in their business strategy and for their commitment to the environment and sustainability, and for innovating their products and industrial processes.” The importance of research, both scientific and technological, has always been key to their product development. The highly innovative nature of the brand means that one can obtain a high-quality product that in 2004 received ISO 9001 certification. Kettal, loyal to its philosophy of respect for the environment, uses eco-friendly paint. Almost all of Kettal’s furniture paints are now 100% ecological and recyclable, and the wood used is protected under Perhutani certification.
Kettal’s raison d’être is the creation of timeless furniture, functional and expressive, which represents a contemporary culture and provides solutions to their needs, based on creativity, customization, innovation and modern production. As a result of its passion for art, Kettal has established the Alorda-Derksen Foundation in Barcelona as a design headquarters, a new international point in contemporary art. For more information about Kettal and their products, visit www.kettal.es.
—Sonja York
