8 SurpriSing and StyliSh The ArTg hAmAm Towels AvAilAble immediATely from sTock www.ArTgshop.com | 010 - 5292925 | info@ArTg.nl model: Bodrun AR055 model: Bodrun AR055 model: Marmaris AR056 model: Marmaris AR056 model: Dalaman AR053 Hippo Poop Lisanne Addink-Dölle is an industrial designer by training, graduating cum laude from TU Delft. She was one of the first to develop a method to use waste streams as raw materials in industrial design. Her graduation project was for the zoo in Emmen, with the most successful product being souvenirs made from hippo poop. She started her own business directly after her studies. Later, her partner, with whom she has been together for about 10 years, also joined the company, called ‘VerdraaidGoed’. Lisanne says, “When I started, the method I developed was the core of my business. I still help companies map their waste streams and look at how we can repurpose them. I always say, ‘a waste stream is a raw material that has temporarily lost its way.’ I try to help these materials find their way back. Often, this is very company-specific. For example, we have been working with NS (Dutch Railways) for a long time, using their yellow route signs as raw materials to make things like trays. We do something similar for a candy manufacturer, using excess candy wrappers to make all sorts of fun products. In many of our projects, we act as consultants, advising on what to do with waste and then executing it. However, we were quickly looking for more generic waste streams, which led us to coffee grounds. I had already calculated during my time at TU Delft that about 20 tons of coffee grounds are used there annually.” Wary of New Materials Back to coffee grounds as a raw material. As mentioned, it's very difficult to mold a cup from coffee grounds. You need a binding agent to strengthen the raw material and ensure that the cup, for example, can withstand heat. And that must all be food-safe. Many people in our industry still remember the bamboo melamine scandal. When bamboo plates or cups containing melamine as a binding agent are heated (above 70 degrees), substances can be released that are harmful to health. This mainly happens with products made from bamboo (specifically bamboo sawdust) and corn. When it turned out that these raw materials were also not on the EU list, the problem became even bigger for people who had stockpiled such (promotional) products. This scandal has made people in the industry wary of products made from raw materials not on the EU list. This is understandable on one hand, but on the other, it also hampers new sustainable developments. Two Years of Development Fortunately, Coffee Based, as the only producer, has all food safety certificates, and the raw materials Coffee Based uses are on the EU’s 10/2011 list. Achieving this took considerable effort. “We have developed two raw materials, both falling under the category of ‘effect-pigment’,” says Lisanne. “I won’t go into too much detail, but we spent over two years working with various laboratories on this. For instance, how do you dry the coffee grounds because they mold quickly? And how do we bind the material, since we wanted everything to be plant-based? Eventually, we succeeded in a lab environment. But then comes the next step: how do you scale up the production of a product with these raw materials? Believe me, the first three injection molders we approached laughed us off. ‘That in my machines? Do you know how much those machines cost?’ Until you find someone who sees it as a challenge and believes in the story.” Effect-Pigment Coffee Based uses coffee grounds and silver skins to create a new material. Silver skins are the husks of the coffee bean that are released during the roasting process. They are extracted at a coffee roaster and compressed together. It’s waste that is otherwise not utilized. “Coffee grounds and silver skins form the basis for the two raw materials we produce,” Lisanne explains. “There are regulations that dictate when and how you must apply effect-pigment in food-safe products. Of course, this must be rigorously tested by major organizations like Intertek and SGS. They test whether such a material is safe for use in products that come into contact with food. Both raw materials—one 51 2024 - number 4 - promzvak.nl
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