Counterfeit sanitaryware seized in Middle East

The company has been committed to combating product and brand plagiarism for many years. The company continues to invest money and resources in defending its rights not only in order to protect its own interests, but also protecting the brand rights and trademarks, safeguarding employees' jobs and ensuring consumer safety.

Because of the damages from product plagiarism suffered by German manufacturers alone, thousands of jobs are destroyed or not even created in the first place. At the same time, poorly made and potentially defective fake products can expose consumers to serious hazards. In the case of faucets, for instance, scalding from hot water or chrome surfaces as well as domestic water contamination can result from product malfunctions, inferior materials and lacking protective features. The company is challenged to protect the brand's reputation and its intellectual property. It invests a large proportion of its annual profits in research and development in order to improve consumers' lives through constant innovation.

Joint operation, shared success

Good cooperation with local law enforcement authorities is a decisive success factor. Joint efforts by manufacturers and government agencies permit to launch major operations, which send a clear message to the product counterfeiters. Good effects have also been achieved by joint walkabouts with custom officials at trade fairs such as ISH in Frankfurt; the monitoring of trademark registrations at local patent registration offices; and the steady expansion of the company's intellectual property rights. Going forward, it will not tire in its anti-counterfeiting efforts in order to ensure that consumers obtain products which fully live up to the company's values in terms of quality, technology, design and responsibility.