Climatex
Climatex is in part designed by MDBC, the consulting vehicle of Bill McDonough and Michael Braungart who coined the term ‘Cradle to Cradle’ in 2002. At the core of the product is the concept that waste does not exist, everything must be useful beyond its first life.
Waste equals food
Roehner Textile’s first generation fabric, Climatex, combined wool, ramie (the fiber of an Asian nettle plant) and polyester to create a fabric ideal for climate control seating. It was successful in the market, but Roehner wanted to next develop a completely biodegradable product that would meet the flame-retardant requirements of the North American textile and aviation markets.
“In a mature industry in one of the most expensive countries, innovation and leadership are the only survival strategies.”
Roehner worked with Austrian manufacturer Lenzing to develop a beechwood-based cellulose fiber that would replace the polyester. In 2001, Roehner introduced Climatex® LifeguardFR™, “redesigned for safety”. The new textile includes a flame retardant that is locked inside rather than coated. Climatex Lifeguard uses dye chemicals that are certified ecologically safe; the dye product is rated as a biological nutrient that replenishes soil and ecosystems after its use as fabric.
Climatex is considered one of the world’s best commercial fabrics, and exemplifies the objective of many companies pursuing sustainable business innovation: a successful product that is better than its competitors and better for the environment.
Case Study
RoofRay
RoofRay
Plan your solar roof with a mash-up of Google maps and weather data.
NextPlays blog
#SB10 - Biolite wins Sustainable Innovation award
We're stoked that Biolite won SB10's Sustainable Innovation award, announced on the last day of the conference. Jonathan Cedar, co-inventor and the nascent company's CEO delivered a great presentation that made clear the significant impact that could be achieved if Biolite (and stoves like it) replace traditional wood-fired stoves in the developing world. The Biolite stove reinvents stoves used for home cooking in Asia, Africa and Latin America by making the burning process more efficient. The greater efficiency the less fuel is used and less smoke is generated. Less smoke, the less harm to the health of the cooks. Biolite has an additional feature; they've developed a process that converts a small part of the thermal energy into electricity. This means that users can recharge electrical devices while cooking, and that's got to be good for developing world users facing regular megacity brown outs, or for those who are off the grid completely.
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