Sustainable Hungarian design products made for success

The Hungarian Fashion & Design Agency (HFDA) launched its design LAB incubational programme for the second time in the spring of 2021. Its new products were ready by the first quarter of 2022. Thanks to the programme, seven manufacturer-designer pairs received support to combine manufacturing experience and product designer creativity in new products. After the six-month manufacturing process, decidedly innovative, production-ready creations were made, including a clothes rack of recyclable elements, a furniture line with banana leaf covers, a carbon fibre reinforced composite table, and public seats, which are not only sustainable but can be competitive in the Hungarian and international markets.

The design LAB incubational programme’s primary goal is to facilitate collaboration between sector players, producers and designers and strengthen and modernise the domestic manufacturing background. The programme puts great emphasis on manufacturing development, increasing the industry’s competitiveness, and incentivising export. The design LAB’s creation was preceded by a roundtable discussion, during which the sector gave feedback on the need for project-based cooperations in which talented and promising designers’ ideas meet professional manufacturers, and they can create unique and competitive products together.

The designers and producers could apply to the programme with a joint project. The Agency aided the creation of successful cooperations by organising a networking event, Speed Dating. Finally, 35 projects were submitted to the design LAB programme, most of them focusing on sustainable design product ideas. Based on the professional jury’s decision, seven designer-manufacturer pairs received financial support and could start manufacturing their products.

The cooperation between Árkossy Bútor Kft. and Máté Horváth, Forms Design resulted in the JEAN clothes rack, the reinvention of a forgotten piece of furniture. During its creation, they aimed to design a piece of furniture that stood its ground in the household, commerce, and tourism as well. Sustainability was crucial for them: the metal pieces can be made from recycled materials, and some wood elements can be produced with minimal waste.

Flaar Mérnöki Tervező és Szolgáltató Kft. and Lehel Juhos created the HORIZON carbon fiber reinforced composite table. An important characteristic of carbon fibres is they are light, still stronger than steel, for instance. For this reason, they are used for creating car body parts, hulls, bicycle and motorcycle crossbars. By making the table, they aim to fully exploit the potential of the alternatives provided by the composite material and the particular technology in the case of a piece of furniture with unusual proportions and characteristics.

Kárpitos Partner Group Bt. and Annabella Hevesi brought to life the Dedas modular seating furniture line, inspired by Ferenc Lantos enameller. The furniture line was planned to be a spectacular furniture element in public spaces so they can be made in any length. Due to their sustainability, they can be dismantled and repaired at any time, thus extending the product’s life cycle. During designing, a unique tapestry was used, a durable material following the “cradle-to-cradle” principle that is flexible enough to allow seamless upholstery.

Meshlin Composit Zrt.’s and Apol Temesi’s SOUND WOOL acoustic panel revives Hungarian and regional wool residues using their own technology. The new technology enables full recycling, resulting in more efficient manufacturing. During the process, earlier, they recycled wool residues from the textile industry and now clothing industry waste. The product’s three-dimensional surface specifically aids acoustic performance, and the custom-pressed panels also provide excellent damping.

The joint project of Rotte Kft. and Sára Kele is the CoTangens furniture line, the little brother of the successful Tangens furniture line designed for outdoor use. The Tangens furniture line has received numerous international awards, including the Best of the Best Award of the Red Dot Award 2021. The CoTangens product line is characterised by curved shapes, variability, mobility, and sustainability. The designer and manufacturer dedicate their work to community spaces where valuable human encounters and discussions can take place freely. In addition, the creation’s speciality is that it includes banana textile, a natural material made of banana leaves. 

The collaboration between SIXAY Bt. and Máté Horváth, Forms Design, UPP! is an ergonomic office furniture line aiming to create an ecological, ergonomic, friendly work environment close to people and nature where office work takes place in a healthier and more pleasant atmosphere. The office furniture line is made of 100% recyclable materials such as solid wood, and the table’s covering is made of natural materials, while the surface treatment comes from a natural source as well.

Üvegmanufaktúra Kft. and Position Collective created the CEL lamp line consisting of suspenders that are based on handmade, blown glass technology in Hungary and made in one of the last glass manufactories in the country. The project intends to emphasise the translucent nature, colourability, and layerability of glass. The concept’s starting point was single-celled algae, diatoms. An essential characteristic of diatoms is their outer hard cell wall containing silicon dioxide, which constitutes a significant part of the quartz mineral and sand that form the basis of glass production; thus, this inspired the product.

“It is exhilarating to see the programme evolve since almost twice as many products were created during the second design LAB than in the first one. We presented last year’s products in Budapest and at two international design fairs, where we could see that they reach or even surpass the quality presented by their international competitors. We proudly state that last year’s and this year’s creations clearly strengthen Hungary’s design industry position and positively add to the country’s image. Besides its huge added value, the creative sector is exemplary with its innovative technologies in innovation and the creation of a sustainable economy. I believe the more than 80 design products created are a great example of this principle and demonstrate how creatively Hungarian manufacturers and designers can think.” – said Zsófia Bata-Jakab, HFDA’s CEO.

The HFDA not only supports manufacturer and designer pairs in product development but wants to assist their afterlife. The goal is to provide wide-range visibility and export possibilities for collaborations; thus, the Agency keeps working on providing more and more opportunities for the creations born during the programme for an appearance at domestic and international exhibitions and design platforms. The success of the design LAB incubational programme is shown in the fact that, besides the Hungarian 360 Design Budapest, the Maison & Objet in Paris, and the Dubai Downtown Design fair in the Middle East, VIA – the French design institute – offered to exhibit the products on the Paris Design Week, which was an exceptional opportunity for the creators.

In connection with the second design LAB incubational programme, we can state that most of the pairs ended up producing more products than they had previously overtaken when applying to the programme. The more than 80 creations realised all prove the successful collaborations since they could create valuable professional connections besides the effective joint work.