“What led me to the development of environmentally friendly materials was a responsible approach to what a designer creates,” says Inga Valentinienė, an interior and furniture designer and a researcher in the field of design at the Vilnius Academy of Arts.

The designer is currently intensively developing the use of plant panels and their methodology in eco-furniture design elements. Due to the specificity of interior objects – functional and ergonomic requirements, as well as the country’s production base – it is not possible to produce 100% eco-friendly products. So her project aims to produce interior objects herself.

By selecting eco-materials sourced only from local raw materials and with minimal use of bio-based binders, the designer creates an ecological product. The objects are constructed from one or two materials and do not require a need for complexly sorting and recycling various elements at the end of the products’ lifecycle.

A breakthrough in the furniture and furnishing industry

Hemp fibre composites are currently on the market, developed for the production of aerospace automotive and aeronautical components. These are closed and inaccessible technologies and are too expensive for the mass production of household products. Also, new challenges are posed by ever-tightening ecological and circular manufacturing requirements. The use of recycled or naturally degradable materials in the design of new products is encouraged.

Businesses are therefore interested in innovative new product designs that meet environmental requirements. The use of eco-fibrous materials developed by the designer would create a breakthrough in the furniture and furnishing industry. The development of these products would contribute significantly to the company’s reputation as a sustainable company promoting the circular economy.

Flax, nettle and hemp fine biomass

Inga Valentinienė makes innovative use of existing wood pulping technologies to develop materials for furniture production. For the production of eco-panels, the designer prepares biomass from flax, nettle and hemp shreds – materials that grow easily in Lithuania. Only organic binding materials of organic origin are used for the production of the panels and spatial shapes.

An entrepreneurial programme helps commercialise the materials

The designer is pleased that the ongoing training and consultation of marketing, copyright and new product development during the Entrepreneurship Project has helped to develop and commercialise the materials that have been developed. The products were prepared for presentation to potential customers and the support of a project manager helped her to carry out real experimental studies in existing furniture manufacturing facilities. Inga Valentinienė’seco-panels were presented at the Stockholm Furniture Fair and attracted a lot of attention from visitors.

According to the designer, entrepreneurship is a form of business that helps her to choose the most appropriate measures, in the current business and economic conditions, to realise an idea. This is an important skill for anyone developing new products or services, or discovering new materials or properties, as innovations need to be brought to the market or communicated to society in other ways.