Another interesting sound machine in the A+R space was Louise van der Veld's Chick-a-dee Smoke Detector (pictured at top). Inspired by the "canary in a coalmine" story of miners relying on canaries' senses to detect and warn of gas leaks, van der Veld created the American black-capped Chickadee to detect and warn of smoke. After winning the Dutch Association of Insurer's competition for new solutions for fire prevention back in 2006, the design was recently approved for use in US homes.

I first came across David Geckeler's work at BER-JFK, DMY's Noho Design District exhibition for New York Design Week. "Fragment," his three-legged metal chair, stood out with its shiny mint green, powder coated finish and the unusual jagged edges and cast notch marks under the seat. I saw "Fragment" again at DMY, where Geckeler showed it as part of the student show for the University of Arts in Berlin. Two days later I found myself looking at prototypes of that chair and others in his sunny Neukolln studio, where we talked about the philosophy behind Fragment as well as his other designs.

Origins

One of the reasons David is able to make a living as a full-time designer right out of school is because he took a much more conscientious and aggressive approach to his education than most students do. After studying for a year and half at the University of Applied Science in Potsdam, he spent a semester at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen before returning to Berlin to finish his degree in industrial design at the University of Arts in Berlin.

While his scattered university track record might seem like a less focused approach than simply staying at one place for four years, David purposefully moved from school to school to get a broader perspective. "It wasn't that I didn't like one school," he explained. "It was more that I wanted to try out different schools and different philosophies of teaching." And while he doesn't play favorites it's clear that his semester in Copenhagen was pivotal to his development as a designer. "For me it was really important, this Danish traditional design thinking and what they're doing there nowadays. It's different from Germany. The whole Danish society is so into design. They have a feeling for it."

After his semester in Copenhagen, David decided it was time to head back to Berlin to start up his own design studio to get a few projects underway before graduation. His first product was the "Nord" chair, or Nerd, in English. Though the chair looks more sleek and refined than geeky to me, David explained that "the detail of how the shells stack together is a bit nerdy to [him]." The unique way the backrest fits into the seat is a result of a class assignment from his Copenhagen days. He had eight weeks to design and manufacture a working prototype, and by creating two basic molded plywood forms that fit together without any extra parts he dramatically simplified the process. The Nord chair was awarded a prize by Becker KG, a German manufacturer specializing in molded plywood. The visibility from the award attracted the attention of several design companies, including the Danish brand Muuto, which will launch the Nord chair for contract and commercial buyers this October. David said he worked with Muuto for a full year developing the design, and that "it was important that a Danish brand make this chair because [he] designed it there."

In April, at Cleantech Forum Europe in Munich, I had the pleasure of moderating a panel on this subject, where we discussed some recent and current company case studies, to draw out the very real financing challenges facing growing cleantech companies and some of the possible solutions.

One of my original invitees, Richard McCombs, was unable to be with us that day, but I recently caught up with him and this inspired this interview-style blog post. Richard recently retired as CEO of MBA Polymers. Through that lens we discussed the financing challenges for growth companies with newer technologies, to draw out some tips for the future.

Richard Youngman (RY): MBA Polymers is the global leader in recycling plastics from end-of-life electronics, appliances and automobiles. What has been your experience in financing its growth journey?

Richard McCombs (RMc):  When we prepared to build our first commercial scale facility, we realized that we could not meet venture capitalists’ expected returns if we built our facilities with 100% MBA equity.  Our first facility was in China. So we structured it as a joint venture with MBA owning >50% and having full management control. We also negotiated that our partner would …

Milk does a body good from the inside out--we know this from those TV commercials that aired in the 1980s--but it’s trying on a whole new identity thanks to Anke Domaske. The German biologist and designer has converted the beloved lactic liquid into Qmilch, a textile--yes, textile--that’s soft as silk, durable as cotton, and incredibly kind to extra-sensitive skin.

Domaske isn’t actually the first to experiment with the physical properties of casein, the phosphoprotein found in milk that can be converted into solids and forms a crucial ingredient in cheese. In addition to forming the base for paints dating back to King Tut’s reign, it also has a significant history as a fabric. “Germans in the 1930s discovered that the protein has the potential to be spun into a fiber, but it was made with formaldehyde,” she tells Co.Design. Italy and the United States each created their own similar materials, but these weren’t particularly hardy and lost appeal once wool rationing was lifted after the war ended. “Over the years, Chinese manufacturers exchanged the formaldehyde for a copolymerization of 75% acrylic and just 25% casein. But the process takes 60 hours and is very resource and water intensive,” she says. There was clearly room for improvement.

“We thought there must be a way to keep a natural resource, such as milk, natural,” she says, and her motivation was equal parts personal and professional. “My stepdad suffered from cancer and received a textile allergy. We were looking for chemical-free fashion but couldn’t find any--even natural fibers are treated with pesticides that cannot be removed completely nowadays.” Domaske developed Qmilch over a few years, using powdered protein direct from dairies, sourced from milk that was otherwise unusable according to the country’s strict regulations (drinkability has no effect on its new incarnation); per the site, the manufacturing process takes about an hour, and uses two liters of water. So when will trendsetters be able to buy the latest frocks from the 1%? “Qmilch is currently delivered to industry partners who will bring their own products to the market when we have our bigger production plant of 1,000 tons per year,” Domaske says. Milk mustaches for all in the meantime, then.

(H/T Trend Tablet)

When I mentioned a project by students aiming to build the greenest house in Canada (by means of the Living Building Challenge and LEED Platinum certification), I noted that students planned to use “prefabricated straw bale walls.” It turns out they finished this portion of the project using BioSIPs from NatureBuilt Wall Systems in Ontario, Canada.

These BioSIPS are 16″ thick with an insulation value of about R35. The walls consist of tightly-packed straw that’s covered in 1″ of cement and lime plaster, according to NatureBuilt.

With the high level of insulation and thermal mass of these walls, NatureBuilt indicates that a homeowner can save money on heating and cooling costs, particularly through the specification of a smaller HVAC unit.

In terms of installation, BioSIPs can be unloaded with a boom truck or crane in about one day, and the actual work to attach the walls to the foundation takes maybe a couple days. Endeavour Centre students shared the process of making BioSIPs and installing BioSIPs online, in case you’re interested in reading more detail.

[+] Follow the construction progress of Canada’s Greenest Home.

Credit: The Endeavour Centre.

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1. Students Build Greenest Home in Canada
2. Prefab Green Home Office in East Bay
3. LEED Platinum Sungazing Home in Utah