Grohe was the main sponsor of the recent World Architecture Festival 2017, which took place in Berlin last month with Grohe CEO Michael Rauterkus presenting the World Building of the Year award to the Chinese University of Hong Kong for its Earthquake Prototype House in Guangming.

　　Rauterkus also presented the special award to Lord Normal Foster for his contribution to architecture, acknowledging “his outstanding involvement in architecture and design”, according to the company, which is the founding partner of the festival.

　　According to Grohe, the Earthquake Prototype House was designed following the Ludian earthquake in 2014, which destroyed most of the village of Guangming. The design “unites traditional wisdom with the latest know-how in building technology and offers villagers a safe, economical and sustainable way of rebuilding”.

　　Grohe also sponsored three awards at the festival, namely the Hotel and Leisure, Apartment Complexes and Single Family Houses categories, which were won by Cong Sinh Architects, Marc Koehler Architects and EEA Emre Arolat Architecture, respectively.

　　Pictured left to right: Grohe CEO Michael Rauterkus; Chinese University of Hong Kong's Li Wan, Xinan Chi and Edward Ng; and WAF programme director Paul Finch