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Coffin, Flower pot, & Clarinet bag awards at WPC forum

18 Dec '15

2 min read

Bio-based coffin, flower pot, and clarinet won the awards at the coveted “Wood and Natural Fibre Composite Award”, which took place in Cologne at the biggest international “WPC & NFC Conference”, on December 16, 2015, organized by the nova-Institute (DE).

The award highlights new materials and products from the world of Wood-Plastic Composites (WPC) and Natural Fibre Composites (NFC) that entered the market in 2015 or will soon be launched. More than 220 participants choose the three winning products out of six nominees.

Out of 25 companies that applied, a jury nominated six. Each of the nominated companies introduced its new material or product to the conference participants in a 10-minute presentation on the first day of the conference. The award was sponsored by Coperion GmbH (DE), international market leader in compounding and extrusion technologies, according to a press release by nova-Institute.

The first place was given to ONORA BV (NL), a 100 per cent bio-based coffin with hemp fibre reinforcement in injection moulding technology. The product is injection moulded which allows for great freedom of design and a variety of shapes and colours. The bio-based compound makes the coffin biodegradable and is an example for new large-volume applications of bio-composites. Life cycle assessments show a carbon dioxide footprint that is not only lower than the carbon dioxide footprint of conventional but also other eco-coffins.

Millvision BV (NL), Flower pots made of biodegradable bio-composite with agro rest fibres won the second prize. The third prize was given to Aqvacomp Oy and Flaxwood Oy (FI), Cellulose fibre-reinforced polystyrene for music instruments. Those composites have the potential to replace the use of a number of rare and threatened wood species. Several recipes have been developed for various musical instruments with equivalent property profiles, for example a cellulose fibre composite replacing granadilla wood in clarinets. The components have excellent thermal and humidity resistance, reducing the typical tuning problems of wooden instruments. (GK)

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India