Flokk relying on Hydro EcoDesign’s green initiative launches low-carbon aluminium HÅG Celi chairs

Norway-based Flokk, in partnership with Hydro, has designed a chair with the lowest environmental impact, the HÅG Celi. Flokk has utilized the technological expertise of Hydro in making these low-carbon aluminium furniture series.

Flokk has been making eco-friendly furniture for over a decade though it was officially launched in 2017. Flokk uses recycled materials harbouring the need to conserve natural resources with the aim of downsizing energy usage, residual wastes and carbon emissions.

Even during the inception of the HÅG Celi conference chair's design, aluminium was considered to be the primary material for components like the frame and legs. To embark on this journey, the company has collaborated with Hydro to use aluminium in making its flagship products.

Keeping the initiatives of Hydro EcoDesign in mind, Flokk engaged in production with technical experts from Hydro to produce the perfect amalgamation of lightweight, rigid, yet low-carbon footprint components for its latest HÅG portfolio.

Hydro EcoDesign was officially launched in 2020 with the aim of reducing the environmental impact of an aluminium product. The idea is to make a product with low-carbon aluminium so that it is recyclable and has great applicability but comes with a smaller carbon footprint.

Aluminium is a non-ferrous metal which can be recycled infinitely without losing the original properties of the material, which makes it preferable to run a circular economy.

The senior project manager of Flokk, Morten Kildahl, illustrated: "We initially evaluated several concepts for the frame of the chair, looking for solutions and materials that would minimize our environmental impact, while at the same time answering our demands for visual design, durability, and industrialization."

"It became clear that a welded construction from extruded aluminium would tick all the boxes. However, welding aluminium was a new production process for us, so the cooperation with Hydro was crucial in optimizing the design of the extruded profiles for this process," continued Kildahl.

Hydro CIRCAL is a recycled aluminium material which by far contains the lowest carbon footprint, with a guaranteed 75 per cent post-consumer content at the least. Each HÅG Celi chair contains 2.5 kgs of Hydro CIRCAL.

The senior vice president responsible for Product & Brands at Flokk, Christian Lodgaard, explained: "Our environmental philosophy contains a number of no compromise elements. Maximizing the use of post-consumer recycled material is one of them. With Hydro, we found a perfect match in this thinking, one with the technological savviness and determination to help us bring new sustainable solutions to life at scale."

Lodgaard also claims that with the coming era, Flokk would devise a more sustainable method of producing the HÅG Celi. The company would cut down on the use of excess metal, making the walls thinner, but the quality and toughness of the chair shall remain the same. Similarly, Hydro is also working vehemently to produce aluminium that contains 100 per cent post-consumer scrap.