Waste Age and Design
I recently visited the ‘Waste Age. What can design do?’ exhibition at the Design Museum, London.
Here’s my musings.
Why it’s a great exhibition.
It’s an exhibition of two halves. The first — rich in hallowing statistics, the perils of the linear economy and powerful reflection on just how quickly the ‘waste age’ has proliferated in such a short period of time (there’s a fascinating timeline on the back wall explaining the onset and scale of waste since the late 1800’s).
The second — full of hope and exploration. A celebration and showcase of what could be achieved if we rethink both the value of and how we reuse the waste we’re creating.
Is the future of aesthetics changing?
One of the really interesting things the exhibition explores, is how the future of aesthetics is likely to change. We’ve become accustomed to shiny, smooth and clinical nature of plastics and glass, reassuring in their hygienic properties. But as we become more conscious of its permanence and impact on waste, is this meaning shifting?
As we move from linear to circular economy models, what does ‘good’ look like?
Can we retune our brains and emotions to find better nourishment and fulfilment from products that degrade and find their natural place in the earth’s ecosystem. Perhaps ushering in an era where materials that are rough, textured, imperfect and a bit wonky become what we crave?
If we can enjoy useful products because of their relationship with ecology and the planet, celebrating how they decay, decompose or can be reused; it opens up fascinating opportunities for micro-manufacturing where businesses can make the products of the future by working with local specialists or by artisanal means. Moving away from tool based manufacturing that’s currently the status quo.
One thing is clear. Planned obsolescence models have to die. We must design products that can last a lifetime or degrade quickly and ecologically.
If you can’t get to the exhibition in person, I recommend the book ‘Waste Age — What Can Design Do?’ It provides a much more detailed read on the curation and thinking behind the exhibition.
There’s also no shortage of great books available in the gift shop at the end (and online). If you want some real world examples of designers, makers, architects and other clever people using waste to design new products, then you’ll find no shortage of inspiration.
We need our governments and institutions to rethink waste.
In the UK — speaking from experience as a small design business — it’s hard to find local manufacturers who will get out of bed for small-scale projects or who champion the use of recycled raw materials.
This said, we work with an additive (3D printing) specialist who are working in innovative ways and pushing the boundaries. They work with unusual raw materials (for example using fully recycled resins) to create products. But the constraint is the majority of this work is reserved for prototyping or small batches and not seen or promoted as a solution for retail or consumer product manufacturing.
My question here is why not?
(For some fictional fun I wholeheartedly recommend Makers by Cory Doctorow. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6422238-makers
For too long, the way to make a successful consumer plastic based product is via injection moulding processes that require high minimum order quantities (MOQs). The pre and post manufacturing waste is significant and the capital expenditure needed for tooling these types of projects alienates most entrepreneurs and small businesses.
I’d argue this is a key reason we’ve seen the rise in Kickstarter-type crowdfunding campaigns but also why so many of them fail to get to market. Tooling costs can be crippling.
So if we are to rethink aesthetics, do we not also need to rethink how we design for manufacture?
I believe there’s an opportunity to create a community of micro-manufacturers who have the agility and freedom to innovate by using waste and other raw materials in more sustainable ways and as central to their processes.
Perhaps these new entities are the natural evolution of the 3D / Additive printing industry. Making products to order and not to scale. Shifting away from volume and stock based systems. Not having our items delivered the next day and instead appreciating that a ‘thing’ takes time to make and as such has its own value.
If we want less waste, don’t we also need less convenience?
I think governments have an opportunity here. To empower designers, makers, entrepreneurs and organisations by re-thinking the value of waste AND most importantly how we can access it both upstream and downstream to make, re-make or upgrade the products of the future.
So how can we better connect makers with usable waste products?
How do we create the infrastructure to make these materials accessible?
If we accept that waste is now embedded into culture, the opportunity right now, is the tremendous value in waste created at pre and post manufacturing stages AND the things we throw away, ending up in our ‘tips’ or incinerators.
A statistic that surprised me, is that 7% of the worlds gold supplies are currently trapped inside electronics in our waste environment.
This chair by Dirk Van Der Kooij is made from the old plastic husks of recycled fridges.
And this one by Jane Atfield, from HDPE plastic bottles.
We need to think of our recycling and waste environments as the manufacturing centres of the future. Not an end destination for the stuff we no longer want.
There’s a cynical part of me that believes governments just aren’t set up to — nor capable of the change needed — to deal with the waste and environmental crisis that is facing us. The cyclical nature of democracies, combined with the short term social economic issues created by the pandemic makes real change hard. Although I do have my fingers crossed for meaningful progress at COP26.
It’s a big business problem too. As organisations large and small continue to answer to shareholders and meet the needs of the 1000’s of people they employ it’s very difficult to expect organisations to fundamentally shift the way they manufacture their products. Or indeed reduce the volume of what they make.
Most argue that we need systemic change now. So what can we do?
Some ideas:
- Creating the equivalent of food banks but for plastics?
- Creating e-waste DISASSEMBLY plants where the raw materials salvaged are auctioned?
- Subsidise manufacturers and makers who use more than 50% waste materials in their products
- Repurpose unused office spaces into micro manufacturing hubs and train local people
- Provide grants to people who are developing manufacturing techniques to repurpose waste
My view is we need to move away from large scale manufacturing and look at micro-manufacturing opportunities that opens the door and allow studio and passion projects to become viable businesses. We need a proper platform and reward system for this.
Our governments and local councils can pave the way.
Over the years I’ve seen hundreds of ‘studio projects’ or concept work by design agencies that never meet the light of day, because of a disconnect between the product idea and its manufacturability. Square peg. Round hole. (Sometimes literally).
If we can innovate how we manufacture and remove the shackles of volume-based manufacturing (and never ending conversations about BOM cost)), while also using waste materials in more creative ways I believe there’s a place for a micro-manufacturing community that allows us to make things in a better way. Of course people need the tools, resources, time and support to do this.
If you need inspiration. Look no further than Precious Plastic. Starting mini businesses from plastic waste. Genius!
Broadly this approach needs to be more than the reserve of artisans or craftpeople. These need to be businesses that can scale, employ designers to engineers, provide training and retraining and build brands that are loved by the communities they serve.
Humans are best when they’re at the most creative.
Businesses are best when they can tell an authentic, genuine and meaningful story that their customers love being part of.
The changes we’re making at our little start up (Kuba & Leia)
I found the exhibition inspirational.
Having worked for sustainability and social change consultancies, I’m trying to apply ‘good’ thinking into my modest small start-up business that is designing products for cats. We’re called Kuba & Leia.
We’re exploring how to use different materials and manufacturing techniques to create products that are genuinely sustainable and will stand the test of time.
Some things we’re doing include (I’m aware none of these are a perfect solution):
- Ensuring our products have no cross-material bonded parts. So that they’re easily recycled. The exceptions here are electronics (but we’re looking into this for the future)
- Making our products modular and upgradeable. For example our self cleaning litter tray due next year, won’t have a warranty. Instead we’ll upgrade it every few years, adding new useful parts and refurbishing existing ones
- Using materials and manufacturing techniques that are closer to home, low volume, with minimal tooling and using unusual production techniques such as additive manufacturing, water based resins, waste plastics and others
- Designing sub-assembly parts so they’re flat, can be easily stacked and simpler to ship and store as we process made-to-order requests (ideally we’d use a small studio for everything and have no need for warehousing or storage)
- Always asking the question ‘if plastic is the norm for a part, what other sustainable material can we use instead’?
- Avoid the capital expenditure and risk that comes from tooling parts
- Ensuring all our packaging is fully recyclable
- Working with and talking to local and international manufacturers and material specialists who are open to new ways of working
We’re also re-thinking our commercial model. I see an opportunity to build a meaningful business by choosing a ‘made to order’ route using eco-friendly materials, scrapping warranties and instead making products that will last a lifetime and evolve, be refreshed and stay interesting on that journey.
Of course, this will mean we will need to work with our customers to manage delivery expectations. For example we’re not on Amazon, Ebay or other channels. This means we know all our customers, aren’t panicked by the review culture these sites thrive on and doesn’t pressure us into next day delivery models. But isn’t this the change we need?
When I receive a gift, for me it’s always the thought that person has put into it that I relish most. I think it should be the same for the craft and care that goes into what we make for our customers.
While this departure from the old ways always carries risk. If anything, this exhibition at the Design Museum and the broader narratives right now on waste, consumerism and the environment reinforces to me wht it’s a risk worth taking.
Thanks for reading. If unlike me you’re an expert in the above and have any thoughts or ideas any of this to life I’d love to connect. And if you’re a manufacturer or materials specialist looking to do more in this space, we’re actively looking for partners interested in supporting and working in partnership with a young business like us.
James.
Head of Product & Innovation
Kuba & Leia.
