Från rest till resurs : En materialdriven designprocess baserad på lokala restströmmar

Sammanfattning

The construction and furniture industries are facing increasing demands for sustainable resource use andreduced climate impact. At the same time, these industries generate large quantities of residual materialstreams that often have limited applications. The aim of this project was to investigate how local industrialby-products from manufacturing industries in and around Skellefteå can be utilized to design furniture andother low-impact objects for ACE Powerhouse. The project was carried out on behalf of Interesting TimesGang and was based on the Material Driven Design (MDD) methodology, in which material properties servedas the primary driver throughout the design process. The project included material mapping, literature reviews, benchmarking, material testing, user studies,concept development, and prototyping. Particular focus was placed on the residual materials brewer’s spentgrain, wood waste, casein, lignin, and mycelium. Material experiments were conducted to investigate howthese materials could be combined and utilized in novel bio-based composite materials. The results showedthat several local residual streams have significant potential for use in designed objects and that materials suchas brewer’s spent grain and wood waste are suitable for continuous production. Mycelium-based materialsdemonstrated considerable potential from a sustainability perspective but also presented challenges related tocultivation time and production processes. The project resulted in two final concepts: VinkelRöd and MycStolen. VinkelRöd is based on compressionmoulded residual materials consisting of brewer’s spent grain and casein, featuring a design language inspiredby the cultural heritage of Skellefteå. MycStolen explores the use of mycelium-based composites combinedwith a disassemblable construction aimed at promoting circularity, material efficiency, and future reuse. Bothconcepts were developed with a focus on local material flows and sustainable design principles. The study demonstrates that local residual streams can provide a foundation for products with very lowenvironmental impact while contributing to a strong local identity. Furthermore, the project shows thatMaterial Driven Design can serve as an effective tool for identifying new applications for industrial byproducts and supporting more circular product development. The project thereby contributes knowledge onhow local resources can be integrated into future sustainable design processes.