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CategoriesSustainable News

“We can’t detox buildings by swapping fossil-fueled materials for timber”

The way we build must fundamentally shift to harmonise with tree and carbon cycles in order to realise the Timber Revolution, writes Smith Mordak.


There’s an argument that’s often trotted out against building with timber: there isn’t enough of it. The fear is that if we built everything out of wood there wouldn’t be a tree left standing.

This fear seems to be rooted in the idea that sustainability is about substitutions. For example, swapping out concrete, steel, and masonry for timber, but otherwise carrying on exactly as we have been. If we did that, we could well deforest the earth; meeting our targets while catastrophically missing the point. The pursuit of sustainability shouldn’t be to find a ‘green’ way to destroy ecosystems – yes I’m going to poison you, but don’t worry, the poison is organic – it should be about finding a way to live as part of a healthy, regenerative ecosystem.

The pursuit of sustainability shouldn’t be to find a ‘green’ way to destroy ecosystems

I sometimes detect an accompanying undertone to the not-enough-trees argument that almost suggests building buildings out of living things is somehow wrong; that exploiting bio-based materials is worse than exploiting ‘dead’ stuff; some kind of extreme architecture veganism. I wonder whether this comes from the idea that what would be best for Earth is if humans buggered off: put a big KEEP OUT sign at the edge of the atmosphere and divert humanity into little uber-urban enclaves on other planets.

Some might accept the premise of not-enough-trees and tackle it with supply and demand logic: sure, humanity is demanding too much stuff, but that’s okay – we just need to innovate on the supply side by finding ways to grow more trees faster, thereby permitting us to take more trees faster. It’s tempting to accept that argument and leave it at that, because then we don’t have to confront this deep-seated ideology that nature gives and humans take.

There’s a very seductive myth around trees being the original givers in this dynamic: that trees evolved and promptly forested the world to create a cosy oxygen-rich environment that allowed humanity to come forth. However, despite so many sexy tree-woman depictions of Mother Earth (just google it, you’ll see), I don’t buy that trees’ destiny is to provide for us.

Yes, wood is pretty amazing stuff: from a structural engineering perspective it works in compression, tension and bending making it super versatile, and it’s got a strength-to-weight ratio any gladiator would dream of. Combining these properties with its ability to suck up and store carbon from the atmosphere, it’s no wonder wood is hailed as the superfood of the built environment salad. But using timber needs to be more than a fad diet. We’re not going to address the long-term sustainability of creating habitats for humanity with the engineering equivalent of a juice cleanse.

Trees do have form when it comes to calibrating the atmosphere, but they didn’t create Earth for our liking. Early plants colonised land from around 470 million years ago, and sucked up so much carbon from the atmosphere it was never the same again. Within 50-ish million years, oxygen reached present day levels such that it was possible for large, breathing animals to evolve. This incredible feat was achieved in collaboration with fungal mycorrhizal symbionts. The plants’ fungus buddies could access the rock-bound nutrients that made all that lovely growth possible.

But this was a big change for those early plants. They were used to getting lashings of carbon dioxide through their open stomata without having to worry about drying out. In the now-carbon-dioxide-depleted environment, they were losing water fast so needed a better system of sucking up moisture from the soil. Enter lignin. Lignin is what makes your barbeque taste like barbeque, and also, one of the forms of organic polymer that create robust drinking straws for woody plants. It’s these tough, dead cells that allowed plants to evolve into towering forests.

Using timber needs to be more than a fad diet

Which brings us to another myth. This is lesser known, but you might have heard the theory that there was a lag between the evolution of lignin and the evolution of microbes and fungi that could break it down, resulting in billions of trees growing, falling over, not rotting, piling up, and eventually being squished down to create great fat seams of coal. It’s a great story, but the evidence doesn’t back it up.

There are indeed fat seams of coal that were all deposited at around the same time, but this peak actually occurred because wet tropics coincided with nice big basins for collecting the future-coal as part of the assembly of the supercontinent, Pangea. And yes, all that carbon sequestration did cool temperatures. It was an important factor in bringing about the Late Paleozoic Icehouse.

We started extracting from these thick ‘Carboniferous’ coal seams a couple of hundred years ago, and have since been making quick work of transferring all that sequestered carbon back up into the atmosphere under the auspices of ‘nature gives, humans take’. The last few decades we’ve been worrying that there’s not enough for us to take. Not enough coal, not enough oil, not enough timber, not enough ecosystem services.

We don’t seem to appreciate that we’re never really taking stuff, we’re just breaking it down and moving it about, often making it useless to the ecosystem in the process. We never really consumed that carbon, we just shifted it into the atmosphere and a few people amassed great privilege in doing so.

We characterise emissions and other toxic effluents as pollution; as stuff that’s leaked out from where it’s supposed to be to where it isn’t supposed to be. We seem to think that the solution to the climate crisis is to tackle this pollution by working out how to stop things from leaking. We seem to think that we have that much control! But we can’t detox our built environment by swapping out fossil-fuelled building materials for timber any more than we can detox ourselves by swapping out our lignin-flavoured barbeque for a juice cleanse.

What if, instead, we stopped trying to solve the problem of an unhealthy ecosystem by trying to build impenetrable walls between the ‘good’ parts and the ‘bad’ parts: walls between nature and humanity, between humans and polluting industrial processes, between polluting industrial processes and the atmosphere? What if instead we accepted that we are continuous with everything on Earth and, like those early plants, need to nurture our relationships with our buddies – fungus and otherwise – to ensure we slot into an ecosystem that can support life as a whole?

We should definitely build with timber, but not because nature is there for us to pilfer

It’s just like skipping (or jump rope). You’ve got two friends spinning the rope and you want to jump in. You don’t just career in and steal the rope. You watch, you listen, you internalise the rhythm, and then at a carefully judged moment you make a dash, and keeping pace with the rotations you jump, jump, jump as the rope goes round, round, round. It’s true for the rotations of the skipping ropes and it’s true for the water cycles, carbon cycles, nutrient cycles, rock cycles – all the cycles. We need to observe, understand the rhythm, and then keep pace.

We should definitely build with timber, but not because nature is there for us to pilfer and not because it’s a silver bullet for balancing the carbon budget. We should build with timber because we and trees evolved in the same oxygen-rich environment, so we can cohabitate; we can share our water and nutrients and carbon and lifecycles.

This means slotting our buildings into the big game of carbon jump rope in such a way that respects and keeps pace with the rhythm. This means building buildings such that the resources we use to make them can regenerate within the building’s lifetime. We should cohabitate with trees because they’re the best Earth-mates a human could dream of.

Smith Mordak is a multi-award-winning architect, engineer, writer and curator and the incoming chief executive of the UK Green Building Council.

The photo is by Jason Leem via Unsplash.


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Illustration by Yo Hosoyamada

Timber Revolution
This article is part of Dezeen’s Timber Revolution series, which explores the potential of mass timber and asks whether going back to wood as our primary construction material can lead the world to a more sustainable future.

Reference

Wonder Wood: Black Label Sets a New Standard for Sustainable Materials
CategoriesArchitecture

Wonder Wood: Black Label Sets a New Standard for Sustainable Materials

For architects specifying materials for their projects, it’s hard to look past the building envelope as the most important element to consider. Not only is it one of the most visually significant aspects of a building, but it can also make or break a project’s sustainability credentials, given the potential environmental impact of sourcing, transporting, constructing and maintaining materials used for exterior surfaces.

Enter Black Label by Tropical Forest Products, one of the world’s most sustainable building products for decking, cladding and more. This forward-thinking manufacturer has refined its process to minimize the environmental impact of its products without compromising on the durability and incredible aesthetic qualities of its collection. The results are stunning: the warm, rich tones and resilient nature of tropical hardwood makes it a fit for a wide range of contemporary architecture projects, including hospitality, commercial, residential and landscape design typologies. Black Label Sustainable Lumber topped the popular choice vote in the Landscape Design category for the 2022 A+Product Awards.

Architizer spoke with Tropical Forest Products about their products, their processes, and how they see their work evolving in the future.

Congratulations on winning a 2022 A+Award! What does winning this accolade mean to you and your brand?

We are thrilled to have Black Label sustainable lumber named a winner in the world-renowned Architizer A+Awards. This prestigious recognition proves that the architectural community appreciates our efforts to bring high quality and organic tropical hardwoods to market.

The fact that we were awarded by People’s Choice makes it even more special. We would be equally thrilled if this was a jury award, but the fact that this came from architects, designers, contractors and homeowners who have been using Black Label wood confirms the great acceptance that the industry has given to our sustainable, architectural grade products.

What inspired the design of your product?

We are inspired by nature. We believe that natural hardwoods are not only the most sustainable and renewable building product in the world, but they’re also the most exquisite. So we keep our interference as minimal as possible. That means that Black Label hardwoods have no chemicals, additives or toxins – nothing is added. Our products are already what the engineered industry has tried to mimic for years, with no success.

From natural one-of-a-kind designs to unmatched structural strength, our hardwoods are born nearly impeccable. Our role is selecting the optimal boards – Premium Architectural Grade on all sides and edges, with no knots – and kiln-drying them in state-of-the-art Italian chambers.

Using advanced sustainable forest management techniques certified by the Forest Stewardship Council or Unfloresta, we go deep inside the forest and hand pick a limited number of trees with potential to become a piece of art in the hands of architects. Our mission is to give professionals the ability to create stunning, meaningful work that not only delights people, but that also reconnects them to nature.

Add to that the design of specific product profiles, along with the product testing and engineering into a system-based approach consisting of CAD details and CSI based specification language, and you have the essence of the Black Label brand.

Tell us about the manufacturing process — What are the key stages involved, and how do these help ensure a high quality end product?

Manufacturing sustainable wood products goes way beyond what meets the eye. Kiln-drying every board in Italian-made chambers until they meet precise humidity levels is a challenge, as is the world-class millwork we do with our state-of-the-art German-built planers. But it’s when we go into the forest to source our wood that we really set ourselves apart.

To craft every piece of Black Label hardwood, we use the most stringent forest management protocols, guaranteeing forests forever for all future generations. We remove less productive trees (that no longer store carbon) and make room for new trees to flourish.

Think of it as a garden, but on a bigger scale. We prune aging trees the same way you prune old branches in your backyard, allowing new life to grow. And not just any aging tree. From an area as big as a football field, only four to six trees are carefully selected, leaving the remainder intact. And for every one we harvest, up to 25 new trees benefit from the opening in the canopy of leaves and have a chance to flourish.

We go out of our way to keep our products not only sustainable and organic, but to make sure they bring a positive impact on both nature and people. Our multiple certifications with world-class organizations like FSC and Unfloresta only prove how seriously we take sustainability at Black Label.

What detail of your product was the biggest challenge to design, and why? How did you resolve it?

Solving design challenges are at the core of Black Label. Wood, by its very nature, is an incredibly flexible building product, and we take that to the next level by bringing unlimited profile options with state-of-the-art molders and CNC platforms. There’s nothing a commercial or residential project would need, no matter how big or small, that we could not provide.

We also have a dedicated department to serve designers and architects in their specification development process with all of the tools and data they require available on our website. Additionally, we always love to hear from designers directly so we can match their needs, from product sampling to our mill shop.

What makes your product unique and of great value to specifying architects?

Tropical hardwoods are the best in the world for a wide range of residential and commercial applications, and Black Label heightens this aspect. Black Label wood products such as Ipe, Garapa, Tigerwood, Jatoba, Cumaru and Bulletwood — the world’s most appealing species — are sustainably sourced and perfect for all climates. Besides, all of them have unmatched durability and require low maintenance, without the use of chemical treatments. They represent the perfect mix of beauty and unrivaled performance.

Black Label hardwoods have almost twice the strength of Generic FAS grade lumber, and because of the establishment of definitive grading rules, Black Label offers lifestyle products with Premium Appearance on all four sides and edges of each board. Our hardwoods are 100% organic — with absolutely no additives — harvested from sustainably managed forests, and some species have an impressive lifespan of up to 75 years. Hardwood last longer than other materials, and therefore does not have to be replaced nearly as often, making it even more sustainable. Plus, every piece of wood has enhanced stability, made possible by an optimal temperature control system that increases the structural performance by hardening the cell walls. It’s what the industry has been trying to match for years by using chemicals and toxic additives, with no success.

Combine this with FSC, Unifloresta, and even our own Legal Lumber certification program, and designers have a validated and comprehensive approach to biophilic design within the wood product category.

What has the reception to your product been like from architects/clients/consumers?

It has been amazing to watch the incredible reception for such a young brand that has been on the market for less than two years. Dealers all over North America are working with Black Label products every day, and we were awarded by People’s Choice at the Architizer A+Awards. On top of that, we received additional prestigious recognition, which made us the most awarded hardwood brand in our industry in 2022.

Technically, the architects and designers are astounded by the breadth of resources that are available to them to assist in specifying naturally durable hardwood products from our resource library and our availability to work through design challenges with them.

Both designers and consumers are reassured by our comprehensive environmental compliance certification programs, including FSC certification. But the real challenge remains in the continuing education about the Life Cycle Benefits of renewable wood products over non-renewable building products. We are extremely grateful to have received the Architizer A+Award and for any attention it brings to this most important environmental initiative.

How do you see the product evolving in the future?

We have just recently introduced prefabricated deck tiles into our Black Label roof deck system. And for the first time ever in our industry, they are kiln-dried, providing a resistance only similar to that of steel.

But only offering wood sometimes isn’t enough for a brand that aims to support architects and builders with everything they need to deliver world-class projects. So, we’re excited to announce the evolution of the Black Label brand into a wide range of accessories from deck and clad clips to tool kits to stains and beyond.

This evolution is how we guarantee our builders will always find the same quality standards we stand for, from the wood all the way down to the smallest screw.


To find out more about Black Label Sustainable Lumber, visit their website, and reach out to one of their experts to learn how to implement the product in your next project.

All images courtesy of Tropical Forest Products

Reference

Mission Invisible: Door Details That Blend Seamlessly With Modern Interiors
CategoriesArchitecture

Mission Invisible: Door Details That Blend Seamlessly With Modern Interiors

There isn’t much an architect loves more than clean lines, seamless details and high quality materials, but successfully combining all three is an endless challenge. As many of their clients seek increasingly streamlined spaces in which to live and work, designers are being tasked with perfecting the art of Minimalism  — and it’s only made possible in collaboration with manufacturers that appreciate the complex technical considerations behind this goal.

Led by Isabel & Jan Karcher, door furniture business Karcher Design embraces this challenge. This innovative German company designs and manufactures door hardware with incredible rigor, constantly considering how its products will fit with the wider context of a project. Their latest lever set, entitled “Mission Invisible”, takes their vision of minimalism to another level, reducing the door handle to its purest form and providing architects with the perfect solution to their clients’ needs. The product topped the jury vote in the 2022 A+Product Awards.

Architizer spoke with Karcher to learn more about the inspiration behind Mission Invisible, how its design was developed, and the company’s plans for the future.

Congratulations on winning a 2022 A+Award! What does winning this accolade mean to you and your brand?

As a leading manufacturer of door and window levers in the European market, this award and the recognition it brings will help us bring even more of our modern but timeless style to America and expand our market there.

What inspired the design of your product?

Drawing on our European roots, we are always developing designs that are a little smaller, a little more sleek, a little more elegant. Mission Invisible is the pinnacle of minimalism, reducing the lever set to its bare essentials without compromising on quality. This trend can be seen everywhere in modern design, and we wanted to offer architects a product range which can blend seamlessly into their minimalist design concepts.

Tell us about the manufacturing process — What are the key stages involved and how do these help ensure a high quality end product?

Our company motto “Edles aus Stahl” is a bit of a German play on words – Edelstahl, meaning stainless steel, directly translates as Nobel Steel. We recognized decades ago the value of using high quality materials — where brass and aluminum are cheap and easy to manufacture, stainless steel is more durable and adds that extra hint of quality and luxury.

Because of this, our Mission Invisible set (and many of our other lever sets) is made entirely of high quality stainless steel. Through precision investment casting and CNC machining processes, we ensure that our parts fit together every time and with as little play as possible. Combined with our European mortise locks, we ensure a long lasting, good-looking door opening experience.

What detail of your product was most challenging to design, and why? How did you resolve it?

The standard door preparation for a lever set is a 2 1/8” diameter hole which is bored through the door. A standard lever set is designed to make use of this space. Now, imagine you have only a 1” diameter hole in the door, but you have to fit the same technology into less than half the space. Everything has to be thinner and smaller, but it can’t be more fragile.

The secret was to develop a lever rose which wasn’t fixed onto the door, but one which integrated itself into the door itself. The stainless steel rose has an array of flexible hooks which balance out any misalignment between the latch and the door. Once the handle is inserted into the rose, these hooks are pressed into the wood of the door and provide an incredibly stable base for the lever set. A small, but precision-cast, nylon bearing sits between the lever and the rose, ensuring a long life and silent operation.

What makes your product unique and of great value to specifying architects?

First and foremost, its minimalistic design and clean look is unique. Mission Invisible is also compatible with various different designs and finishes, so there are many possible applications. Then there is the size: Compare a standard lever rose (2 5/8” diameter and 7/16” thick) with the Mission Invisible mini-rose (1 3/16” diameter and 1/8” thick!).

Architects don’t have to accommodate the size of a Mission Invisible lever set; it blends into its surroundings. Combine this with a range of durable, powder coated finishes and lever designs specifically made for the Minimalist look, and you have a product which fits in anywhere. You don’t have to stand out to make a statement!

What has the reception to your product been like from architects/clients/consumers?

Architects have said that Mission Invisible opens up new ways to unify the look of a door within a room. They love how it combines with invisible hinges for a complete look, and is very easy to install. The overall reception from both architects and their clients has been very positive.

How do you see the product evolving in future?

Developing an even smaller system isn’t really realistic, but if the minimalist trend in architecture continues, we might develop more products which compliment seamless transitions between design components. We’re also slowly introducing our range of European products to the USA. These are a great compromise for those who want something a bit more elegant, but aren’t quite into the full minimalist aesthetic.

To find out more about Karcher and Mission Invisible, visit their website, and reach out to one of their experts to learn how to implement the product in your next project.

All images courtesy of Karcher Design

Reference

Locally Sourced Materials Define the Tomo Experience
CategoriesArchitecture

Locally Sourced Materials Define the Tomo Experience

 

Tomo – is a restaurant in White Center, just south of Seattle, WA. The client named the restaurant after his grandmother, Tomoko, and the Japanese word “tomodachi”, meaning ‘friend’. Embracing these warm roots, wood became the centerpiece of the space. Nearly every piece of the interior was created locally, bringing down the carbon footprint of the project, and amplifying the local economic impact. The 80’ wooden light fixture, pendant lighting, bench seating, chairs, bar stools, tabletops, slatted wall panels and shake cladding were custom designed and fabricated by our team just five miles away.

Architizer chatted with Seth Grizzle, Founder & Creative Director at Graypants, Inc., to learn more about this project.

Architizer: What inspired the initial concept for your design?

Seth Grizzle: Our initial concept was inspired by the idea of a space to enjoy great food without the trappings or stiffness of traditional fine dining. We wanted to create a lot of warmth, so wood is a centerpiece of the space: Referencing shou sugi ban, much of the interior wood has been stained a deep ebony, while oak shingles arranged like scales clad a wall running the length of the space, and contrast the strict geometry of the vertical ash slats that wrap the opposing walls.

This project won in the 10th Annual A+Awards! What do you believe are the standout components that made your project win?

I think what stands out about Tomo is that nearly every piece of the interior was created locally, bringing down the carbon footprint of the project, and amplifying the upfront, local economic impact of the project. The 80’ light fixture, pendant lighting, bench seating, chairs, bar stools, tabletops, slatted wall panels and shake cladding were custom designed and fabricated by our team just five miles away. As well, nearly all of the lighting is directly integrated into the architectural elements–the wall panels, the bench seating, the bar shelves– the lighting is felt but not seen.

What was the greatest design challenge you faced during the project, and how did you navigate it?

The space is narrow and deep, posing a risk of feeling cold, tight and confining. Code restrictions meant fixed walls, plumbing and bathrooms. With these lines already drawn in the space, we worked with softening elements; wood, integrated light, a neutral pallette to create a dining experience that is refined but not extravagant, and elevated by light.

How did the context of your project — environmental, social or cultural — influence your design?

The context highly influenced the project. The client chose Tomo’s neighborhood, White Center, very deliberately as it has been on a slower path to economic growth and becoming more inviting to visitors. As a chef with a long list of accolades, and a community curious to learn his next endeavor, the client deliberately rejected the idea of another anticipated restaurant within the city of Seattle, in hopes of speeding the trajectory growth in White Center with a space to enjoy great food without the trappings or stiffness of traditional fine dining. With the design, the team responded by creating a space remarkable enough to feel like a destination–a place worth traveling to- for both food and ambiance.

What is your favorite detail in the project and why?

One of my favorite elements in the project is a custom, handmade 80-foot linear wood fixture that traces the entire length of the restaurant. The layout of the restaurant invited a reference to an evening in one of the endless alleyways of Japanese cities; the custom fixture beautifully connects this space without cluttering it.

How have your clients responded to the finished project?

We loved seeing that since opening, the restaurant has immediately begun outperforming their projections, with a booked solid calendar bringing hundreds of people to the neighborhood every single evening.

How do you believe this project represents you or your firm as a whole?

Tomo is a reflection of Graypants’ emphasis on the interplay between light and architecture. They always inform one another, and in Tomo, the lighting is felt much more than seen. With the exception of the linear fixture, which is very visible even as it is quite understated.

Is there anything else important you’d like to share about this project?

The cost per square feet of this project is, conservatively, 35 percent below the benchmark, largely due to the team’s ability to make simple, touchable materials feel chic in a monochrome palette. The team used a design/build approach for the project, fabricating much of the primary design elements such as fixtures and furnishings, cutting out suppliers and shortening the timeline significantly.

Team Members

Seth Grizzle, Bryan Reed, Caleb Patterson

Consultants

Fin Design Shop

For more on Tomo, please visit the in-depth project page on Architizer.

Tomo Gallery

Reference

A green process for recycling materials from spent lithium-ion batteries
CategoriesSustainable News

A green process for recycling materials from spent lithium-ion batteries

Spotted: Lithium-ion batteries form the basis of today’s electric vehicle (EV) technology, and their production is ramping up rapidly. According to one estimate, the global production of lithium-ion batteries is expected to increase five-fold between 2001 and 2030. But as more batteries are produced, the question of what we will do with the leftover waste becomes more pressing, as currently only a small percentage of used lithium-ion batteries are recycled (5 per cent is an often-quoted, but disputed, figure). 

Now, researchers at Rice University have found a way to recycle one of the key components of a lithium-ion battery: the graphite anode. Today, used anodes are either burned for energy or sent to landfill. 

Rice researchers developed a process called ‘Flash Joule heating’ back in 2020 to produce graphene, a ‘wonder material’ that can enhance plastics, paint, metals, asphalt, and cement. Now, a team of chemists, led by James Tour and Weiyin Chen, has re-configured the process for use in battery recycling. In the latest iteration of Flash Joule heating, a sudden and powerful jolt of energy, lasting just a few seconds, decomposes inorganic salts, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese, found in spent anodes. These can then be recovered using dilute hydrochloric acid and re-used in anodes for new batteries.  

The team estimates that it would cost roughly $118 (around €110) to recycle one tonne of untreated anode waste using the new process. And, the researchers estimate that the ‘flashed’ anodes retain 77 per cent of their capacity after 400 recharge cycles. 

Springwise has been tracking the development of Flash Joule heating for several years and has previously spotted it being used for recovering metals from electronic waste, and turning plastic from old cars into graphene.  

Written By: Matthew Hempstead

Reference

Bringing the Outside In: Using Biophilic Design Principles to Transform Commercial Interiors
CategoriesArchitecture

Bringing the Outside In: Using Biophilic Design Principles to Transform Commercial Interiors

Modernism was all about clean lines, raw surfaces, and celebrating the uncompromising rationality of the machine. The vision of LeCorbusier was revolutionary in its time, and caught on in ways he would likely not have expected. Today, most of the public spaces we move through, from offices and schools to hospitals and transport hubs, owe something to the modern movement and its penchant for no-frills design.

Not everyone is happy with this state of affairs. Today, there is a renewed interest in the textures, patterns, and curves, the very features of classical architecture that modernists once avoided. Design-thinkers have learned that natural forms, from the vein patterns in leaves to the curves of the human body, are based on fractals rather than grids. As human beings, we find fractals pleasing to the eye and emotionally restorative. Right angles, in contrast, are harsh and even exhausting. This is why so many people describe modern spaces as feeling grim, sterile, or anxiety provoking.

Wall art by Inpro

For architects that are looking to warm a space with natural forms, bringing in some of that fractal energy people literally crave, the experts at Inpro are providing new, high-tech solutions. They create high-end, digital artwork optimized for spaces such as offices, schools, hospitals and more, bringing vitality to spaces that would otherwise be merely functional 

Through their critical design research into art and biophilia, and from the inspiration that guides it, Inpro is looking to make art “work” for the occupants in any commercial building. How art, working through digital imagery or printed on an architectural product, can bring a brand, an idea or even a feeling to life.

Nick Cotter, Creative Director at Inpro, says: “The right image can have a calming effect, especially in healthcare environments where patients might be experiencing anxiety, fear or pain. Images of nature offer serenity in an otherwise sterile space, while bright and colorful artwork can stimulate interest and put smiles on faces.” Studies have shown that looking at images of nature is healing, much like spending time in nature. Art, then, is a crucial component of any healthcare space. 

As the company explains in their Imaging Products brochure, “North Americans spend nearly 90% of their time indoors. . . Whether it be promoting healing in healthcare, productivity in office environments, stimulating creativity in education, triggering brand recognition in hospitality or reinforcing positive transactions in retail and restaurant, the use of imagery, pattern and color can have an influence. . . these influences are seen even in our sleep, diet and mood.”

Inpro offers six product types for people looking to bring art and photo prints into their office, including Aspex® Printed Wall Protection, a printed, protective wallcovering that can be applied directly to the wall at virtually any size, and printed wall art, which hangs on the wall just like a painting. The brand also produces printed signage, which allows art to be integrated in creative ways throughout the space, durable wall panels that can be used in high traffic spaces like elevator interiors, and printed window shades, which can turn any office into a room with a view. Made from fiberglass, polyester, vinyl, and acrylic, these high-tech Solar Shades help to block glare and unwanted heat while still allowing a degree of natural light.

Elevator interior with prestige gold trim and Aspex panels showcasing local artwork.

Each of these products is durable and super high resolution. Furthermore, they are fully customizable. Inpro works with clients to select imagery suited to their brand. If no stock images fit the bill, the brand can help facilitate collaborations between clients and local artists to curate unique artwork for their space. In 2023, Inpro is also launching curated art galleries that can be printed on products based on moods, including categories like “comfort”, “focus”, “restore”, “inspire” and “energize”.

 The key is to think about your design needs, choose a theme, and stick to it. Like a real natural landscape, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and artworks function better when they are placed in harmonious relation to one another. Through the careful selection of Inpro products, shades can be integrated with wall coverings, art, and signage, creating a fully integrated space.

Personalized dorm room window shades by Inpro

“Adding imagery throughout your spaces brings continuity throughout your building and how people experience it,” Dan Roller, Product Manager at Inpro, explains. “For example, use an overall nature theme and create variations on each floor to help people remember different locations and change up the scenery.” This type of cohesiveness will strengthen your brand, whatever industry you are in, and elevate the experience of clients or other visitors to your professional space.

If biophilia isn’t your thing, Inpro can also create graphics that have a more streamlined, minimalist look. The key thing to remember is that with new digital imaging and printing techniques, the possibilities are endless when it comes to wall coverings. One is not limited to solid colors or patterned wallpaper. Any image you can think of can find a place on your walls, your signs or your window treatments.

Coordinated window shades and wall art by Inpro

Art is no longer something that hangs on the wall – an ornament for spectators to gaze at – but something that is ultimately functional, helping spaces work better for everyone. This sounds like something even LeCorbusier would approve of.

To learn more about Inpro’s extensive range of architectural products, check out their website and their brand profile on Architizer, or download their visual inspiration guide here.

Reference

New materials to accelerate the green hydrogen transition
CategoriesSustainable News

New materials to accelerate the green hydrogen transition

Spotted: Hydrogen is one oft-touted ‘green’ alternative to fossil fuels. Yet in order to produce green hydrogen, solid oxide and alkaline electrolysers are needed to increase the efficiency of water hydrolysis (splitting H2O into oxygen and hydrogen). While solid electrolysers use common materials such as Nickel or Zirconia, the more eco-friendly proton-exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers use Iridium and Platinum. These are not only expensive, but also relatively scarce.

Naco Technologies, however, has now developed a way to reduce the materials needed to produce PEM electrolysers. The company has created a magnetron that can ‘sputter’ precious metals onto a surface using ‘targets’ as small as one inch in diameter and 0.5 mm thick. The process enables the creation of composite nano-coatings for use as PEM catalysts at a lower cost than previously possible.

Naco’s technology can also be used to decrease erosion, therefore increasing the efficiency of the coated material. According to the company, its solution uses 10 times fewer raw materials to create an electrolyser, decreasing costs by 30 to 50 per cent. Equipment based on the Naco designed magnetron system is also more compact and productive when compared to similar competitive solutions.

Naco recently received €1.5 million in a seed round of funding led by Untitled Ventures, with participation from Buildit Accelerator and others. Oskar Stachowiak, managing partner at Untitled Ventures explains that, “As the world looks to move towards a low-carbon future, hydrogen is now seeing increasing interest from companies and governments alike. Naco is an incredible example of a startup company that has a unique deeptech solution for a growing industry.”

Springwise has spotted an increasing number of innovations to aid in the production of green hydrogen, including hi-tech yachts that serve as mobile hydrogen plants and oil-eating microbes which produce ‘gold’ hydrogen.

Written By Lisa Magloff

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Interior of Apricity restaurant by Object Space Place
CategoriesInterior Design

Object Space Place uses reclaimed materials to revamp London restaurant

Interior design practice Object Space Place has revamped the Apricity restaurant interior in London with second-hand furniture and reclaimed materials.

The project has been shortlisted in the sustainable interior category of Dezeen Awards 2022, which will announce its winners next week.

Interior of Apricity restaurant by Object Space Place
The restaurant is furnished with second-hand tables and chairs

Part of the refurbishment involved removing a timber staircase to maximise usable floor space in the basement.

Object Space Place retained the staircase’s treads to reuse them for a new staircase and repurposed the rest of the usable material into decorative timber block wall cladding.

Decorative timber block wall
Material salvaged from a timber staircase was used as statement wall cladding

“We saw the old staircase as a materials bank full of wood that we could reuse, so we worked with the contractor to take the staircase apart carefully, grade the timber that was usable and create a repeating block pattern that could be made from these timber components,” Object Space Place told Dezeen.

“The timber wall finish has also been installed on a split batten system, so even if someone wants to change this in the future it can be done relatively easily.”

Front of bar at Apricity restaurant by Object Space Place
Skirting boards and architraves were reused to decorate the front of the bar

Architraves and skirting boards removed from the interior were reused to cover the front of the restaurant bar, creating a vertically grooved surface.

The practice overhauled the space to expose some of the original finishes, including brickwork, timber floorboards and aged walls.

“Customers really love the walls, which is interesting as these are simply what we found when we removed the blank white plasterboard wall linings on the ground floor,” said Object Space Place.

“This really epitomises what we discovered about working with waste and the circular economy – the extra effort you have to put in rewards you with a space rich in stories and these stories help add to a dining experience that exemplifies going the extra mile.”

Interior of Apricity restaurant by Object Space Place
The interior features pendant lights made from waste coffee grounds

Mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) equipment was retained where possible and reclaimed furniture, sinks and mirrors were sourced to fit out the restaurant, including second-hand dining chairs that were reupholstered to suit the design scheme.

In instances where reclaimed items could not be acquired, new elements with sustainable qualities were used instead, including terrazzo-like surface material by Foresso made from recycled timber and lampshades made from oyster shells or waste coffee grounds.

Foresso timber terrazzo wine storage at Apricity restaurant
Foresso timber terrazzo was used on the bar and waiter stations

Object Space Place designed the refurbishment according to its Restorative Design Framework initiative, which is based on circular economy principles.

“We developed a true benchmark in sustainable design and fit-out by applying the principles of a circular economy, particularly designing out waste and pollution and keeping natural resources in use,” the studio explained.

Interior of Apricity restaurant by Object Space Place
Plasterboards were removed to reveal aged walls

According to Object Space Place, the project achieved a reduced embodied carbon footprint of 45 per cent compared to refurbishments of similar-sized restaurants where new furniture and finishes were applied.

Other restaurants that feature reclaimed materials include an eatery in Madrid with interior features made from upcycled junk and a restaurant in Bangalore decorated with discarded bicycle bells and cassette tape boxes.

The photography is by Ben Carpenter.

Reference

Floating home concept made from recycled materials
CategoriesSustainable News

Floating home concept made from recycled materials

Spotted: Floating homes are increasingly seen as a viable housing option. Copenhagen-based MAST architecture studio’s concept of modular structures makes the idea sustainable by building with recycled materials and incorporating marine-friendly shapes into the design.

Called Land on Water, the studio’s concept uses flat-packed modules made from recycled plastic to create the floating base. Designed to be easy to ship and assemble, the system is customisable. Once the bases are built, they can be connected in a variety of configurations, providing everything from a floating pool to homes and recreation space. More or less support can be added as needed as a community develops and changes.

MAST uses gabion construction for the bases, which is a series of mesh cages filled with flotation supports. In this case, the studio recommends locally sourced, recycled materials. Sea creatures can live safely in, on, and around the cages, and the studio explicitly eliminates harmful chemicals and other materials from the design in order to better support and live in partnership with marine life.

Currently working on a prototype, the studio seeks partners interested in developing the concept for a range of projects.

As well as floating homes, Springwise has spotted floating work pods and floating solar farms taking advantage of the flexibility of working with water, rather than against it.  

Written By: Keely Khoury

Reference

Material Trends: “Eunomia” Depicts a Bold Future of Design in Balance With Nature
CategoriesArchitecture

Material Trends: “Eunomia” Depicts a Bold Future of Design in Balance With Nature

A new series of reports on macro design trends reveals fascinating insights into the direction in which architects and designers are traveling — and harmony lies at the heart of the first publication. In collaboration with The Prospectivists and Broadside Studios, material research and resource platform Material ConneXion has released its first major trend report, entitled Eunomia, which can be interpreted as “Fair Measure or the Good Norm.” Originally coined for a period of societal reform in Ancient Greece, Eunomia aimed to impose harmonic rules to counterbalance the consequences of human excess.

Learn More and Access the Full Report

This macro trend has clearly been catalyzed by the global pandemic. “As a reaction to months of lockdown, the fascination for the great outdoors, wellbeing and extreme sports have become deeply rooted in urbanized populations that increasingly aspire to experience a very specific and direct relationship to Nature,” states the report.

This phenomenon is linked with a rise in subcultures that recognize and embrace society’s interdependence with the natural world, developing new systems and products that are deeply informed by biological systems. Eunomia presents a diverse range of case studies to illustrate how this trend can be seen in action, from tree-bark-inspired wearables and moss-covered furnishings to bacteria-grown paint and 3D-printed waste wood tiles — complete with in-built planters.

Eunomia’s themes evoke images of numerous projects from last season’s A+Awards, including The Living’s “Alive” installation, which won a Finalist accolade in the Experimental Design category. “Alive” is an experiment in multi-species architecture: a room made of porous, organic material with both macro-spaces for humans and micro-spaces for microbes, with interfaces for exchanges among different species. Photos courtesy of The Living

For architects, the report is a veritable goldmine of inspiration. Biophilic design, resilient architecture, eco-conscious materials and sustainable construction processes are all touted within the ‘Innovation Concepts’ section, with stunning case studies of these concepts being put into practice. Standout examples include Casa Merida, a house designed by Ludwig Godefroy to “withstand the local climate, using locally sourced materials and traditional Mayan features: tall air paths and punctual green areas freshen the circulating air, providing a natural cooling sensation.” 

Meanwhile, Tanya Rey’s Verdant Project presents 3D-printed ceramic columns that are designed to allow moss to grow across every surface, forming a new type of architectural ‘coating’ that blends manmade materials with nature. Additionally, Brigitte Kock and Irene Roca Moracia’s “bio concrete” material is made from invasive species such as Japanese knotweed and American crayfish, providing an “example of how polluting building materials can be transformed into new ‘economic and ecological’ value enhancing natural aesthetics, while helping to restore local biodiversity.”

The report brings to mind projects such as Querkraft Architekten’s A+Award-winning Austrian Pavilion for the 2020 Dubai Expo. Combining local building traditions and intelligent Austrian climate engineering, a series of 38 clay plaster cones enables conventional air conditioning technology to be largely avoided, saving three quarters of the energy needed for a comparable building. Photo by Dany Eid/Expo 2020 Dubai

The report wraps up with ‘Design Ideations’, a series of vibrant, complex mood boards tied together along both aesthetic and thematic lines. These diverse yet cohesive palettes should provide architects and designers with fertile ground for continued exploration of the concepts found throughout the report. The biggest takeaway? The power of Nature is only building, and creatives must surely work with it — rather than against it — in order to thrive in the upcoming decade.

To see the full trend report and receive new material insights each month, become a member of Material ConneXion. Learn more >

Top image: Austrian Pavilion for the 2020 Dubai Expo by Querkraft Architekten

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