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d68 FUTURE THINKING


The panel discussion was chaired by Peter Murray, Chairman of New London Architecture


Ehab Sayed, Founder and Director of Innovation at Biohm and PhD Researcher at Northumbria University, added further revelations to this glimpse of a new world ahead, by showing the audience some of the new material his company is making from living organisms and waste products. Sayed and his colleagues are driven by a vision of mutual integration between the built and natural environment via a circular economy based on a clear ethos of mutual benefit and doing what is right for the planet. He explained the background to his new form of carbon-neutral insulation developed using the fungus mycelium which feeds on organic and synthetic waste to grow into desired shapes.


Both Armstrong and Sayed are at the forefront of innovation in their fields and advocate that changing how we build our cities and lead our lives has to – and will – happen. Gielgun picked up the point that however desirable, change is restricted in the current construction industry because it is driven by giants, the big house builders and investment companies, adding that it is hard to challenge


MAR 2015


AUG 2019


the status quo but it has to be done. He said there are so many standards in the construction industry that have to be adhered to that it is hard for new products to break through the barriers.


Panelist Leonne Cuppen, curator and founder of Yksi Connect, feels very strongly about giving our architects of the future the space and opportunity to develop new ideas and more sustainable products. Her work connects designers with industry, bringing all the parties together, focussing on social issues, sustainability, and circularity in relation to design. In her eyes, young people are highly connected with technology and motivated to make the world a better place in which to live. She called for big companies to work with young designers to create something new. She recognised how hard it is for big corporate organisations to change but feels optimistic it can happen.


The event finished off with some pertinent questions from the audience about the ethics of bio-technology and also the difficulty for architects to specify new


designer kitchen & bathroom designerkbmag.co.uk


products and materials that do not meet construction standards. The final question touched on the lifespan of things in a throw-away society. It led to further discussion about making products that last a long time, and whether we should instead be looking to create products that are temporary but also do not need recycling.


Gielgen posed one of the most thought-provoking prospects, suggesting that all manufacturers could be facing a major disruption to the status quo in the not too distant future. “We are likely to see a ban of artificial materials and that will be the biggest shock to all of the producers worldwide. I believe we will see a plastic ban, coffee cup ban, all of these things will only expand into other areas as time goes on so manufacturers will have to adapt to this, and probably faster than many are


currently prepared to believe.”


Peter Murray summarised by suggesting that although the benefits of many of the futuristic ideas for harvesting energy or making better use of natural resources are


pretty clear for people to see, we perhaps still have a long way to go to shift current industry practices and the constraints of building regulations. Getting new material onto the market is clearly challenging but there is a lot of optimism that this can happen, with the right education, investment and creative spaces for new ideas to flourish.


Andrew Laidler, Director of Sales and Marketing at EGGER, thanked the panel for a fascinating insight in to the future of design and architecture and the role that biotechnology companies can play in promoting a new approach to construction. He added: “It’s clear that we all have to change and develop to stay relevant to our companies, and companies themselves have to change, innovate and listen to what the younger generations are asking for: a sustainable economy and a world free of materials that are harmful to humans and the environment.” d


Contacts EGGER / egger.com


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