BAUX and Tarkett Prove Synergy Is the Future of Circular Design

What if circularity was prioritized as a market need? What if companies stopped treating recyclability as non-value added? And what if floors, walls, and ceilings could play to provide a multisensorial experience for the sake of our health? In what could be the biggest advancement in circular design for indoor architectural materials comes a collaboration between BAUX and Tarkett – pioneers in acoustic panels and commercial flooring, respectively. With a shared ethos for well-being, environmental responsibility, and beauty, the two companies synergize to launch a collection of multi-textural flooring, wall, and ceiling surfaces nuanced in a corresponding colorful language developed by international design studio Form Us With Love.

BUILDING BLOCKS

Though the trade has seen greater interest in sustainability, the industry has been missing a significant link between specialty goods that would allow designers to easily and effectively craft their visual narratives with materials inherently health-conscious while prioritizing circularity. A symphony of vivid hues, geometric patterns, and varied textures harmonize to mitigate sound and air pollution as entire rooms can now be outfitted with color-coordinating products from each company in an effort to realize more spaces for thought, rest, and focus. Used in tandem or à la carte, these offerings are especially useful for delineating spatial programs in open plan interiors.

BAUX Acoustic Wood Wool comprises two of the world’s oldest building materials – wood and cement – for a high-functioning, physically strong compound that boasts sound-dampening, insulative, and fire-protective properties while being moisture resistant, fully recyclable, and suitable for all climates. This multi-hyphenate line is high-functioning and low impact, available in 11 varieties of tile at three scales, seven wall panel patterns, and three ceiling surfaces. Equally as laudable is Tarkett’s line of DESSO brand AirMaster carpet tiles engineered to clear the air of fine dust using a unique fiber and a carefully calculated pile, which captures and retains particles between regular cleaning despite foot traffic. In addition, a felt backing on the underside enhances the textile’s acoustic properties.

BOLD COLOR

Confluence of aesthetics and creativity continue in the expansive color ranges available in both product categories. “We started the color work for our own new collection, and then Form Us With Love built on that development process,” says Thomas Leneveu, Vice President Benelux and Carpet Business Unit EMEA at Tarkett. “They have a strength for play in color. They insisted, ‘let’s go bold and we do exactly the same color. And then you can really mix and match with strong color and create bold designs,’” he continues. “Now, buyers can of course choose more toned down colors as well. Everything is available in the palette.”

Organized into six themes – Midnights, Minerals, Neutrals, Oceanic, Florals, and Forests – each grouping offers three hues of wood wool with a corresponding trio of carpet options in a precise matching color. The tone-on-tone quality creates an evenness of field, as if to recalibrate the eyes, which better articulates material texture and pattern. Spaces can be subdued or energized further through unique compositions by utilizing line work, shape, and scale found in the individual tiles.

BRING IT BACK

But building a truly sustainable future means more than innovative manufacturing. It requires intentional lifestyle change taught by example. “One takeaway regarding the implementation of circular practices is to make companies responsible for their actions. And reduce the number of stakeholders, for instance,” says John Löfgren, founding partner of BAUX, as well as co-founder and creative director at Form Us With Love. “If you are engaged in a take-back program, everything is a smoother operation with fewer entities. And we most definitely do that with this collaboration.”

Circular policies offer near-limitless opportunities for brands to reimagine products, deliver exclusive color collections, and imbue products with multiple lifetimes, all the while designers and clients can create spaces with storied histories. The BAUX Circle and Tarkett ReStart programs both simplify the refurbishing and recycling procedures for customers with materials approaching end of life. “There are a number of areas where you can actually use waste material or material that you otherwise just burn,” says Fredrik Franzon, Baux founding partner. “And actually, often when you do so, you can get quite amazing design results as well. So you can come up with a beautiful product that tells a story that is quite exciting.”

BIG MOVES

An entrepreneurial spirit and the unadulterated sense of play, co-conspirators behind the success of this launch, now flirt with aspirations for more collaboration and a future release in the Americas – a market in desperate need of an attitude adjustment. “Our partners at Tarkett are leading among other corporate manufacturers that take this seriously. And BAUX is at the forefront of the [circular] movement giving us a different mindset,” adds Franzon. “I think that could help push this in the right direction. We have a long tradition of design and craftsmanship. The foundation of the furniture and interior industry in Sweden and Scandinavia is quite strong, and everything revolves around nature.” So the question is, why hasn’t everyone else?

To learn more about the brand collaboration visit BAUX.com.

Photography courtesy BAUX.

Source: design-milk