Spec Finish

Innovation Awards 2023 www.thefis.org 27 Judging panel - Flavie Lowres, Sustainability Champion, FIS - Elina Grigoriou, Design and Sustainability Director, Grigoriou Interiors - Joe Croft, Head of Environmental and Sustainability, Overbury and Morgan Lovell - David Wakelin, Director of Sustainability, Gleeds Winner: Adaptavate Product: Breathaboard Breathabaord is a direct, drop-in replacement for plasterboard. It has been developed to be installed in the same way on non-load bearing partitions and other applications and is a key part of building materials in mainstream markets in achieving a cost effective, circular, decarbonisation of the global built environment. Developed over the last seven years in response to decarbonisation, the product doesn’t use gypsum, but instead uses an entirely ecologically regenerative process transforming food-crop wastes into a product that absorbs waste carbon dioxide through the industrial process, making use of low- grade CO2 emissions. This results in a c.3kg CO2 eq lower than plasterboard per m2. It is also 20% lighter and has two times the thermal performance. It is called Breathaboard, as it breathes with the people in the building, helping to reduce mould and condensation in the built environment. There is no waste or cost of disposal at the end of life or from off-cuts as it is entirely compostable and can be used to restore soils or create renewable energy. Breathaboard is a revolutionary innovation to address the waste, resource security and health of the construction sector. Adaptavate is currently working hard to validate and test the scalable and continuous production process so that it can hit the market at scale, to ensure the impact that it set out to achieve. Judges’ comments The judges commented that the Breathaboard product and process of innovation are both breaking barriers with industries coming together, solving a waste problem, creating circularity and bringing in science. With no real route for recycling plasterboard, this ‘eco-friendly’ lightweight, low embodied carbon product, which is compostable, ticks all the sustainability boxes. To find out more visit: www.adaptavate.com Sustainable innovation – sponsored by Protektor Shortlisted: Architectural Wallsz Product: AWallsz Prefabricated Solutions Architectural Wallsz designs and installs specialist prefabricated wall systems for the healthcare, educational and the commercial sector. It uses innovative offsite fabrication techniques to manufacture partitioning, allowing the walls to be fully relocatable and reconfigurable in line with any future changes to their application. This gives the product a longer lifespan, meaning the materials and fixings are prevented from entering landfill and reducing the overall lifespan cost. It marries technology and construction through a software called ICE. ICE is a unique programme that carries clients’ intent right through to jobsite installation; any changes made to the design can be instantly drawn in, automatically updating - in real time - a rendered 3D view, bill of materials, project cost and engineering/installation reports. To find out more visit: www.awallsz.com Shortlisted: Tarkett UK Product: DESSO Origin The DESSO Origin carpet tile collection is made to be remade. A truly circular product, it has been designed to be disassembled so its components can be easily recycled into raw material for new carpet tiles. The result: a collection that combines technical expertise with tactility and textural beauty. Tarkett is currently the only carpet tile manufacturer with a closed-loop recycling system in Europe, limiting the use of virgin raw materials for new products and avoiding common, carbon-emitting options such as incineration and landfill at products end-of-life. DESSO Origin’s fully recyclable carpet tiles are manufactured using 100% green energy. The EcoBase 100% recyclable Cradle to Cradle Gold-certified™ carpet tile backing is made from polyolefin granulates and contains on average 80% recycled chalk from the local drinking water industry in the Netherlands where the tiles are manufactured. The Polyamide 6 (PA6) ECONYL® yarn is a 100% regenerated nylon yarn developed from nylon waste such as discarded fishing nets. To find out more visit: www.professionals.tarkett.com Installation of Breathaboard Recognising outstanding innovation by contributing to demonstrable improvements in sustainable outcomes related to interior systems. To read more about the FIS Innovation Awards and the winner of the Innovation of the Year visit: www.thefis.org/membership-hub/fis-awards/innovation