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5 ways to make your displays more sustainable.
The exhibition and conference industries have the biggest battle against sustainability with structures, prints and designs often being temporary. Luckily for you, we’ve curated a list of strategies to help alleviate some of the pressure of ‘going green’.
Sustainable Planning
The first step of sustainable design is to plan. From the initial mood-board to the final display, sustainability has to be in the forefront of your intention. Consciously leaning to natural materials, less plastic, waste reduction or recyclable materials.
Doing your research is crucial, as with any modern marketing methods, greenwashing is hidden in every corner. Each decision you make, makes an impact.
Knowing your products, materials and suppliers before you even start to design will help you make the most of your resources. For example, SwedBoard is a 100% recyclable paperboard made from virgin fibre, light weight, strong and perfect for commercial exhibition stands, knowing about these products is great, but is there a local alternative that is equally sustainable?
Design for Deconstruction
“How can you design for it to be recycled in the first place? You know, don’t use glue, don’t use laminate, use stuff where the materials can be split back out to the component parts.”- Andrew Lock, associate director of museum and exhibition design studio Event Communications.
Avoid damaging your displays at all costs! Its time to ditch the glue and nails, switch them to screws and clips. Keep it in good condition to reuse, which leads us swimmingly to the next point…
Repurpose for a purpose
Recycling; a term we hear all the time but often do little about.
Going modular… because why start again from scratch every time? Units and displays that easily pack down make moving your display much easier, reusable and consequently more cost effective. The more you can reuse them, the more $$$ you save. Opt for durability, so that your long-lasting displays will be used time and time again.
In terms of museum exhibitions, this could be using display cases made from recycled materials, or designing a display in such a way that most elements can be reused. Some museums will keep a hub of their own plinths, display cases and other assets for repurposing.
Green Choices
By curating a list of carefully considered suppliers, you not only invest in brands that are actively working their way to net zero, but this will also positively impact the sustainability your business too. Reducing waste across the entire supply chain.
For those businesses that still need paper displays, signage and travel, offsetting can be the next holy grail. Why not endeavour in offsetting with a tree planting campaign? Replanting trees that are equivalent to the paper used from promotional materials.
Joining the digital revolution
With increased accessibility to green electricity and low energy-consumption digital displays, it’s the ‘sometimes’ interactive, no-brainer for all exhibition, events and experiential brands. Easily updateable, adaptable, and sometimes even portable.
Wrapping up with our final thoughts; the best way to take accountability, is to measure your impact and make REAL changes to your process. URGE Collective have put together this helpful google drive tracker, to support others Exhibition designers in the implementation of this.
Ready to switch things up?
We’re mustardUS and we’re specialists in the staffing for the Creative Industries, covering Architecture, Interior Design, Events, Exhibitions, Experiential, Marketing, Graphic Design, VFX, TV, Animation, and Gaming.