GROHE JAL Academy Wins Innovation Competition of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development

NEW DELHI, December 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

"GROHE JAL Academy", the CSR project in India initiated by GROHE AG, Europe's largest and the world's leading single-brand manufacturer and supplier of sanitary fittings, was honored with the "Innovation competition for professional education projects in developing countries" prize launched by Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The concept of 'Helping people to help themselves' has been put into action by the GROHE JAL Academy in this project, which was undertaken as a CSR initiative of GROHE AG in India wherein complete support was extended to the Don Bosco Centre for Learning in Kurla, Mumbai for the purpose of educating underprivileged youth and training them as qualified sanitary fittings installers. The training workshop at the Don Bosco Learning Center qualifies young people from economically challenged backgrounds, many of whom have lived in the streets, to become professional plumbers. This gives them the opportunity to start their career as skilled tradesmen and to earn their own livelihood.

The prizes were handed over to the winners by Parliamentary State Secretary Gudrun Kopp at the Berlin Representative Office of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit. The jury singled out projects which support professional education in developing countries in an especially innovative and successful manner and particularly highlighted the creative model of the successful development cooperation between the corporate sector and society in the case of the GROHE JAL Academy of GROHE and Don Bosco Mondo.

High participant numbers and good exam results

Established at the end of 2009, the GROHE JAL Academy has already achieved great success: by the end of September, as many as 418 apprentices had attended the training workshop, 36 of whom are still enrolled in on-going courses. Another 40 youths are attending the preparatory course for the plumbing training, with another 100 apprentices about to start their training before the end of the year. This adds up to a total number of roughly 550 successful graduates and current participants.

On this achievement, Renu Misra, Vice President, GROHE India said, "We are very pleased with the achievements of the GROHE JAL Academy. India, being a fast growing market for the plumbing industry, is increasingly in need of professionally trained and knowledgeable plumbers. The young people are really interested in the plumbing training courses and their ambitions reflect well in the excellent exam results. Thanks to our direct cooperation with local companies, nearly all apprentices have found a job after the completion of their training. Some have even started higher-level training."

Project strengthened by positive changes

Training in the field of water installation is a two-stage process, i.e. it comprises the basic plumbing training and subsequently the foreman training. According to Indian standards, the qualification measures take between three and twelve months. The degrees are private training certificates issued by the Don Bosco Learning Center. Referring to the GROHE JAL Academy opens up a lot of opportunities for the young graduates. Since 2012, the exams have been carried out in cooperation with Godrej Construction, a large Indian building corporation, which also hires graduates after their exams. The Learning Center has applied for official certification of the training course with India's national certification authority, which is expected to be granted in early 2013.

"We are very happy that the GROHE JAL Academy project has met with such an excellent response," said Michael Mager, Head of Human Resources at GROHE AG. "From the very beginning, we found it important to not just make a one-time donation to an aid organisation but to be personally involved. The special advantage of the project is that it not only benefits the young apprentices but that the growing pool of qualified installers will open up further growth opportunities for GROHE in India as well."

Long-term commitment supported by employees

GROHE has equipped the training workshop, installed a sample bathroom and fitted the classrooms in Mumbai with new faucets. Regular visits reveal if and where the company can provide additional support, e.g. in terms of GROHE employees who travel to India during their vacation to pass on their knowledge to the apprentices. At present, demand from interested youths still outstrips the number of available apprenticeships. To change this, it is planned to optimise the use of the classrooms, the workshop and the laboratories through more efficient class scheduling and by working two shifts in the workshop building.

The successful cooperation with GROHE in the field of plumbing training has had another positive effect, as Mahanagar Gas, a partner of British Gas in India, now also cooperates with the Don Bosco Learning Center. The company supports the latter in the fields of gas installation in private homes as well as special welding and installation of gas pipelines.

About GROHE AG:

GROHE AG is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany and is world's largest manufacturer of single brand sanitary fittings. It employs close to 5100 employees worldwide, out of which 2600 are based in Germany. GROHE has six production plants of which three are located outside Germany, namely in Portugal, Thailand and Canada.

About GROHE India Pvt. Ltd. (GIPL):

GROHE India Pvt. Ltd. (GIPL) is a wholly owned subsidiary of GROHE, Germany and has completed five years of direct operations in India. In this time has acquired a significant position in the Indian market as one of the largest selling foreign brands. GROHE recently launched the GROHE Live Center at Mumbai, India. This is the second Live Center GROHE has launched in India. The GROHE Live Centre in Bangalore was opened in 2009. The Live Centre is a great opportunity for people to come and experience the world of GROHE. Besides featuring the entire range of GROHE products, the Technology Centre also showcases the GROHE pillars of Quality, Technology and Design. Website: http://www.grohe.com/in/

Primary Media Contact: Mriga Arora, mriga.arora@2020msl.com, 91-9899605473