HFDA Academy design DIALOG – High-tech & design: achievements in material usage

For a designer’s idea to become an actual physical object, materials are needed, be it a garment, a utility product, or even a means of transport. Perhaps not many people know it, but almost 70% of new products are based on material or technology innovations. Designers usually do not invent the chair and the wheel but how we can make a cheaper, more durable, more beautiful, better, more sustainable version of it.

In cooperation with Moholy-Nagy University, the Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency created the Budapest Design Material Library based on international examples to collect the samples of the newest and most innovative materials from all around the world and make them widely available in the form of a database. This material library can be found at MOME in its physical form, which provided the apropos of making it the venue of the design DIALOG discussion about material innovation. The primary goal of the design DIALOG programme series realised in the framework of the HFDA Academy is to provide a forum for the design industry and those interested in the profession where they can access up-to-date, fresh information on topics not yet discussed or presented from an unconventional perspective connected to the area of design.

Dr Norbert Grasseli, managing director of the Bay Zoltán Alkalmazott Kutatási Közhasznú Nonprofit Kft., has already visited the material library twice, and, as he put it, “it is like opening a recipe book – even for non-designers, it is inspiring to walk through it and see the materials”. They work on various material innovation projects, such as unique composite materials like metal foam, where sustainable aspects are more and more important. In the light of this, a tire recycling plant has been established near Szolnok – since old tyres can be reborn, for example, as a cycle path.

The three designers participating in the discussion could also absolutely connect to environmental consciousness and the circular economy. Dóra Papp-Vid, textile and garment industrial designer, associate professor of the Institute of Industrial Design Engineering at the University of Óbuda, said that today “from designing on paper to wear and tear, students designing objects and products think through the whole life cycle of the product, they think in terms of sustainable solutions, they have a better sense of the importance of knowing the materials”. As she highlighted:  “if you buy a dress, but in time it will tear, you can make a headband or pillowcase from it. And finally, it becomes a dust cloth - but the goal is to take the product to the end of its lifecycle”.

Lilla Majer, co-founder and leader of 878co. sportswear brand also agreed. Although she called our attention to possibly avoid shopping in fast fashion stores, she admitted that these brands also realised the importance of environmental consciousness, so even in these stores, we can find organic products or products made of recycled material.“Today it is unavoidable – a manufacturer who does not care about it will be of disadvantage on the market since consumers are more and more conscious.”

Máté Koroknai, a Senior Industrial Designer of YT-Industries GmbH, who designs bicycles in Germany, is committed to this as a private person and as a designer as well. Although he likes objects, lately, he has been trying to surround himself with fewer and fewer commodities and tries to look for solutions in his work as well – for instance, in the case of packaging boxes – that will not be thrown out after one use but can be used, e.g. as a transportation device later on. He believes it is important to “purchase good quality objects that we use for a long time, or if we can see that an object’s life cycle will not be too long, we should try to pick a recyclable one”.

Moderator of the roundtable discussion:

Brigitta Kocsis-M.

innovation presenter

Participants of the roundtable discussion:

Lilla Majer

leading designer, founder of the Liamaar sportswear brand and co-founder of 878co. sportswear brand

Dr Dóra Papp-Vid

textile and clothing industrial designer, Associate Professor and Deputy Director of the Scientific Institute at the Institute of Industrial Design Engineering at the University of Óbuda

Dr Norbert Grasselli

Managing Director of Bay Zoltán Alkalmazott Kutatási Közhasznú Nonprofit Kft

Máté Koroknai

Senior Industrial Designer of YT-Industries GmbH