The Centre for Sustainable Design (CfSD) organises Sustainable Innovation 2011, an international event which provides a platform to discuss the opportunities and challenges related to sustainability, innovation, technology, product and service design and development. Sustainable Innovation 2011 includes invited and refereed papers from academics, consultants, entrepreneurs, investors, technology providers, designers, sustainability, environment and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) managers as well as other business functions. The event represents a unique learning experience, networking space and opportunity for blue-sky ‘out of the office’ thinking.
The Centre for Sustainable Design, established in 1995 in Farnham, Surrey, UK, has led and participated in a range of high quality research projects and has organised more than a hundred conferences, workshops and training courses focused on sustainable innovation and product sustainability.

The topics for the 2011 edition are the following:

Radical change
Collaborations and partnerships
Market transformation
Supply chain management
Sustainable Consumption & Production
Innovation processes
Low carbon economy
Design Strategies
Product policy
New business models
‘Open’ innovation
Tools & Methodologies
Organisational dimensions
Biomimicry
Management systems
Case studies

Sustainable Innovation 2011 will be held from the 24th to the 29th October in Farham (UK); it will provide a range of benefits to speakers and delegates, such as unique forum for new ideas and concepts, leading-edge presentations from leading researchers, practitioners and policy-makers, as well as an opportunity for networking with business, government and academia.

Learn more…

SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION 2011 “‘State of the Art‘ in Sustainable Innovation & Design”

Part of the ‘Towards Sustainable Product Design’ series of conferences

16th International Conference
24th – 25th October 2011
Farnham Castle
Farnham
UK

The handful of A-list designers who descended upon Toronto last March had more than their fair share of work cut out for them. Invited by Azure Magazine, landscape architect Claude Cormier, architect Craig Dykers of Snohetta, designer and consultant Patty Johnson, Swedish architect and designer Eero Koivisto of Claesson Koivisto Rune and interior designer Glenn Pushelberg were tasked with sifting through the 600 entries for AZURE magazine’s AZ Awards.

Submitted from 25 countries, 14 outstanding winners were selected, including our Invitrum Recyclable Kitchen. The sleek and sexy kitchen, made entirely of glass and aluminum goes beyond mere beauty. The material use, assembly and lifeline make it completely recyclable. Firstly, chipboard is replaced with recycled glass. All wood is in fact removed so that only a fraction of the raw materials are used. Further, mechanical fasteners assemble the pieces. Third, recycling glass is essential to glass production and recycling aluminum uses a fraction of the energy required to produce primary aluminum. And finally, there are no emissions.

Experience Valcucine’s Invitrum and the AZ Awards exhibition on display at Harbourfront Centre until September 25th.

AZURE, Canada’s leading contemporary design magazine, revealed the winners of its first annual AZ AWARDS, the international competition recognizing excellence in design and architecture.

“The AZ AWARDS shows the high calibre of Canadian design by pitting it against the best in the world,” said Nelda Rodger, editor-in-chief of AZURE. “This competition is the next step in AZURE’s mission to provide our readers with visionary and engaging coverage of the international contemporary design scene.” These awards are the first of their kind: the only international, multi-disciplinary design competition in Canada. Representing a global snapshot of the world of design, submissions were open to designers, architects and firms of all disciplines, as well as students in these fields. To be eligible, designs and concepts had to be realized by 2010.

An impressive 600 entries arriving from 25 countries to a shortlist of 52 finalists. From there, a selection of 14 winners, included Valcucine.

Here i s the complete list of the WINNERS (*Indicates both jury-selected and People’s Choice Winner)

Furniture Design: Ply Shelves, by Matter Design and CW Keller (USA)*

Furniture Systems Design: Invitrium Recyclable Kitchen, by Valcucine (Italy)*

Lighting Design: Softlight, by Molo (Canada) People’s Choice: Canopy, by United Visual Artists (UK)

Interior Product Design: SensoWash Stark, by Duravit (Germany)*

Residential Architecture: Linear House, by Patkau Architects (Canada) – People’s Choice: 60 Richmond East, by Teeple Architects (Canada)

Commercial and Institutional Architecture: Long Studio, by Saunders Arkitektur (Norway)*

Landscape Architecture: Ballast Point Park, by McGregor Coxall (Australia) – People’s Choice: Trinity College Quadrangle, by gh3 (Canada)

Temporary and Demonstration Architecture: NY-11-18-02-10, by Campaign (UK) – People’s Choice: Ontario Pavilion, by Hariri Pontarini Architects (Canada)

Residential Interiors: Surry Hills Warehouse, by Ian Moore Architects (Australia) – People’s Choice: Crosstown Loft, by Campos Leckie Studio (Canada)

Commercial and Institutional Interiors: Scandinave Les Bains, by Saucier + Perrotte Architectes (Canada) – People’s Choice: DRU Cultural Factory, by M&R Interior Architecture (The Netherlands)

Unbuilt Concepts: Musée National des Beaux-Arts, by Saucier + Perrotte Architectes (Canada) – People’s Choice: Openair, by Jet Architecture, CXT Architects and Archasia Design Group (Canada/China)

Other Unrealized Concepts: Metropolitan Vertical Amusement Park, by Ju-Hyun Kim (USA)*

Student Work: Temporary Mosque, by Alex Josephson, University of Waterloo (Canada) – People’s Choice: Visions of Settlement, by Katherine Kovalik, University of Waterloo (Canada)

For the Jury Award: Hydroelectric Lamp, by Hierve (UK) – People’s Choice: OMS Stage, by 5468796 Architecture (Canada)

The 2011 AZ AWARDS exhibition will be open to the public from June 18 – September 25 at Harbourfront Centre (235 Queens Quay W) in Toronto, Canada.

We are glad to announce that Gabriele Centazzo, president of Valcucine receives the “Premio dei Premi per l’Innovazione” selected from the ADI Design Index 2010 “for the social and ecological awareness with which Valcucine, a company that expresses a business culture based on ethics, environmental friendliness and innovation, has been managed since the eighties .
The prize has been given to this commitment as an example for businessmen and designers to the aim of encouraging attention to sustainability as a method to be adopted, together with formal and functional research, in planning and producing design products.” The privileged location for the prize-giving ceremony is the Quirinal Palace where the prize will be awarded personally by the President of the Italian Republic Giorgio Napolitano. This prestigious prize, established by the Ministry of public administration and innovation, is aimed at sustaining business initiatives in many sectors, rewarding creative activities so that a culture of change and innovation can be developed in our country. The Italian Minister of Public Administration and Innovation, Renato Brunetta, has listed ADI amongst the reference associations for the Prize because of the value of the selections made by the Compasso d’Oro, that has been promoting Italian design for over 50 years, putting the innovative qualities of the project and of the product to the fore.

For us, the “Premio dei Premi” is the crowning achievement at the end of a thirty-year long path paved with genius and passion: an important award for a manufacturing company whose profit is, above all, the consequence of an ethical and cultural process. We have always been guided by Nature that inspires the potentials to be expressed as well as the limits to be respected. Our design is an “intellectual” one in which aesthetics and plenty of creativity go hand-in-hand and in which research into useful and beautiful things combines with respect for Man and for the environment.

Formaldehyde is an organic compound with the formula CH2O

Formaldehyde, a colorless gas with the formula CH2O, is commonly known as dangerous for human health. Important precursor to many other chemical compounds, especially for polymers, formaldehyde is more complicated than many simple carbon compounds because it adopts different forms: it is a gas at room temperature, but the gas readily converts to a variety of derivatives, which are often used in industry in place of the gas.

In 2005, annual world production of formaldehyde was estimated to be 23 million tonnes. Commercial solutions of formaldehyde in water, commonly called formalin, were formerly used as disinfectants and for preservation of biological specimens. In view of its widespread use, toxicity and volatility, exposure to formaldehyde is a significant consideration for human health.

According to the National Institutes of Health the strong-smelling chemical formaldehyde causes cancer as people with higher measures of exposure to formaldehyde are at increased risk for certain types of rare cancers, including those affecting the upper part of the throat behind the nose. The 11th Report on Carcinogens classifies it as “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen” and reported US production at 11.3 billion pounds in 1998. International production was over 46 billion pounds in 2004, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
Formaldehyde is widely used to make resins for household items, including paper product coatings, plastics and textile finishes. It also is commonly used as a preservative in medical laboratories, mortuaries and consumer products including some hair straightening products. Its primary use is in the production of resins and as a chemical intermediate. Urea-formaldehyde (UF) and phenol formaldehyde (PF) resins are used in foam insulations, as adhesives in the production of particle board and plywood, and in the treating of textiles.

Exposures to formaldehyde are addressed in specific standards for the general, maritime, and construction industries. Concerning design and furniture manufacture sector, many wood products, especially the pressed one, off gas formaldehyde and other volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), as well as paints, finishes and adhesives on cabinets and floors. When windows are closed, chemicals concentrate inside the home. Formaldehyde reaches concentrations many times the outside air, especially in newer well-insulated homes. Its concentration in older homes is generally well below 0.1 ppm, which is the level where people start to experience irritation. However, new homes or recently remodeled homes can have more than 0.3 ppm of formaldehyde. Carcinogens do not always cause cancer; that depends on length and type of exposure and a person’s genetic makeup. The American Cancer Society estimates that only about 6 percent of cancers are related to environmental causes and most of that is on-the-job occupational exposure.

However, it is important to be aware that there are several ways to prevent formaldehyde’s dangerous effects on man:

– Open windows whenever possible.New wood products and finishes will off gas more formaldehyde during the first year. After a few years, they no longer release substantial formaldehyde.

– Avoid using air fresheners. Use cleaning products sparingly, especially on high-ozone days, and open windows after cleaning. Terpenes (found in pine and citrus-scented products) react with ozone to produce formaldehyde.

– Never use “air purifiers” that produce ozone.Ozone generated by these machine reacts with terpenes, producing formaldehyde. Ozone is also an irritant by itself. Home test kits with dosimeter tubes are easy to use and much less expensive than professional testing.

– Measure formaldehyde over the seasons and after using cleaning products.

– Ventilate the house to keep formaldehyde below 0.1 ppm.

Also the air we breathe in our kitchen can become polluted by the toxic emissions, such as formaldehyde, from the stains and glues used to make furniture. At Valcucine, we constantly do sample testing to make sure that our kitchen cabinet components do not release volatile substances into the air that can damage your health. We also check to be sure that our products are not contaminated with artificial radioactivity, respecting most restrictive standards of formaldehyde emissions. Chipboard panels contain ureic glue, a substance that emits formaldehyde continuously for years. Even though it is now known to be carcinogenic. Regardless of the fact that Italy and many other countries set no standards for levels of formaldehyde emissions, Valcucine builds there products to meet stringent Japanes standards for emissions called F****(4 stars). Invitrum base units are completely free.

Sources and useful links:

NIH: http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/roc12
http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/cancer/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110611/ap_on_sc/us_cancer_chemicals

We are proud to announce that Valcucine’s Invitrum Base System was chosen as finalist for the category Furniture Systems. Thanks for voting and supporting us!
Do you know Invitrum? Discover more about it…

What happens now?
On June 16 the winners selected by the jury and the public will be announced during a private ceremony and exhibition at Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre. All winners and finalists will be featured in Azure’s Awards Annual on newsstands in June. The AZ AWARDS private ceremony and exhibition opening will take place June 16 at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. The AZ AWARDS winners exhibition will be open to the public June 18 to September 25.

Valcucine Temporary Laundry
11-16 April 2011
10 a.m. to 2 p.m. collection of laundry to be washed and ironed
3 p.m. to 7 p.m. distribution of washed and ironed laundry (distribution of the clothes collected the morning of the previous day)
at Valcucine’s showroom, Corso Garibaldi 99, Milan

Visit the facebook fan page with this event and sign up on-line to take part to Valcucine Temporary Laundry

From April 2011 Milan becomes the world design centre once again thanks to its districts, its circuits and its routes full of initiatives and turmoil. The Brera area stands out as one of the most vital and interesting centres of the Milan panorama thanks to the many galleries and numerous showrooms that enliven its streets.
Convinced of the contribution it can give to the development and growth of this area as a cultural, art and design pole, we are proud to be the main sponsor of the Brera Design District.
In this spirit the Valcucine showroom in Corso Garibaldi 99 is a space unique in its kind and becomes a landmark in the Brera area and for the Fuorisalone, which is a platform and a support system for companies, organizations, private or associations for the development, production, promotion and the communication of Fuorisalone events, offering various services to the world of design and to the townspeople.

Brera Design District is also the launching pad of the Valcucine spirit: a place dedicated to art, to events, to moments in which people can meet and exchange information. At the same time it is a shop window through which one can learn about product novelties, in which one can admire the installations exhibited and consult the EcoBook Shop dedicated to volumes of bio-architecture and ecology. During the Salone del Mobile furniture exhibition it will also be the Brera Design District’s PRESS POINT.

Synthesis, transformation, expression of the possible creative paths of tomorrow: Valcucine offers projects that go beyond the kitchen space giving life to Valcucine Living and to the brand new Valcucine Laundry, the star of the layout that Valcucine has prepared for this edition in collaboration with AEG for the household appliances and davidegroppi for the lighting.
Valcucine Laundry is not just a product but is an additional real service for the design population of Milan: in fact, those who will visit the BDD website will have the opportunity of personally using LAUNDRY during those days!

All these projects are based on the commitment to design in an eco-compatible way: respect for life and for quality that is expressed through industry’s responsibility towards the society of the present and of the future and that stimulates the company to take an active part in the cultural and social promotion of the territory it is based on.

Valcucine was selected for the GREEN GOOD DESIGN AWARD with the Invitrum 100% system, the first fully recyclable glass base unit with recycled aluminium parts and a single, 10 mm thick, structural side panel. This product fully expresses Valcucine’s philosophy, i.e. that of a company whose work method is based on a system that balances the use and the restoration of environmental resources and that saves on raw materials by favouring a design focused on dematerialisation, recyclability and the reutilisation of products at the end of their lifespan. This is a new challenge within the prestigious GREEN GOOD DESIGN AWARD. This International award is an important token to the effort Valcucine has always put into the creation of innovative and functional products in which design, technology and the pursuit of beauty blend with the respect for, and the utmost attention paid to, the environmental emergency: these are some of the winning qualities of this company that has based its philosophy on the aforementioned mainstays and considers these commitments to be real civil and personal responsibilities.