In The Loop, 2022
Recycled aluminum, 305mm(w) x 457mm(l) x 457mm(h)
WINNER : LOOP Design Awards 2022 - Products | Furniture Design
Preface:
Furniture accounts for a huge (and growing) proportion of landfill waste and much of it is not recyclable or biodegradable containing a chemical cocktail from dyes and leather-tanning chemicals and flame retardants to polyurethane foam, particle board, adhesives and lacquer.
Commentary:
In The Loop utilizes recent advancements in metal roll forming transforming a modest piece of aluminum sheet metal into a delightfully playful side table. Embodying aluminum’s incredible strength-to-weight ratio, its sinuous curves in ultra-thin aluminum give the table a ribbon-like, weightless quality while its gloss finish captures and contorts reflected light suggesting the highly polished surface of a fine automobile. Influenced by the disposable furniture of Peter Murdoch from the mid-1960’s and by the desire to produce a table which is entirely recyclable, In The Loop is made of 0.9mm thick 100% recycled aluminum from discarded soda cans. Weighing just 2.32kg - or exactly 158 empty cans - its ‘aluminum-only’ construction enables it to be simply discarded without modification at its end of life into any neighborhood recycling loop (hence the name) only to re-emerge from recycled sources sometime later as a new table. Finished inside and out with a high gloss paint similar to that used on soda cans, In The Loop is available in several colors including royal blue, bright red (pictured), citrus orange and lime green reflecting the colors of the popular soft drink brands from which the table was recycled.
Measuring 305mm(w)x457mm(l)x457mm(h), the table’s innovative form was created using an automated multi-roll metal roll former specifically reconfigured to achieve bends of different radii in opposing directions in a single piece, single-pass process. And with supply chain sustainability and energy conservation as self-imposed environmental goals, In The Loop’s 100% recycled aluminum content means that it can be recycled indefinitely using 95% less energy in the process compared to virgin aluminum - decreasing primary energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions by 15%. The end result is a wonderful merging of functionality, technical innovation and sustainability within the time-honored tradition of sheet metal fabrication - a tradition dating back millennia to ancient Egypt and 5000 B.C.
© 2022 atelier Christophe Du Chemin
