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Bonaveri Presents the First Biodegradable Mannequin

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The Italian company has developed a bio-based polymer, comprised of 72% natural materials, and paint 100% made from natural substances to produce biodegradable mannequins

LONDON, 18 September 2016 – Bonaveri, the leading Italian manufacturer of artistic mannequins and bust forms, has chosen the 2016 Green Carpet Challenge (GCC), a dynamic platform, pairing glamour and ethics to raise the profile of sustainability, ethics and social welfare, founded by Eco-Age and its Creative Director Livia Firth, to unveil the first biodegradable mannequin.

The new mannequin is a totally innovative product: the body is made of B Plast®, a bio-based polymer consisting of 72% sugarcane derivative and finished with B Paint®: made solely of renewable, organic substances.

Already acknowledged as a leader in the field of high-end mannequins, with its B Plast® and B Paint® products, Bonaveri is now able to deliver a product that has undergone a full Life Cycle Analysis.

The GCC uniquely pairs glamour and ethics to raise the profile of sustainability, ethics and social welfare all over the world. It is part of Eco-Age.

The new mannequins, dressed in couture creations by William Vintage, were unveiled during a special evening event, in partnership with BAFTA – the British Academy of Film and Television Arts – and the British Fashion Council.

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In 2012, Bonaveri launched an ambitious research project, when it appointed the Politecnico di Milano to undertake a Life Cycle Assessment on their entire mannequin production.

The study documented the environmental impact of each phase of the manufacture, from design to the product’s end-of-life processing. It was through this in-depth analysis that Bonaveri identified the base material as a critical element in the mannequin’s end-of-life process and the revolutionary motivator for developing the new product.

Bonaveri has then worked with research institutes specialising in bio-based polymers to develop a bioplastic for its mannequins that contains a high percentage (72%) of purely natural materials. Through detailed analysis and research, Bonaveri is proud to have produced a material that is a truly biodegradable natural plastic from renewable sources.

At the final lifecycle stage, the B Plast® mannequin biodegrades, releasing only water and the equivalent amount of CO2 that the sugarcane absorbed during its vegetative phase.

Bonaveri’s manufacturing operations were assessed against Eco-Age’s GCC Principles of Sustainable Excellence, covering social welfare, environmental protection, training provision and security for workers.

It was a difficult road and filled with surprises”, said Andrea Bonaveri, CEO of the company he leads together with his brother Guido. “But thanks to dedication and skill, we can now offer our clients a product that is environmentally conscious and aesthetically impeccable. For Bonaveri, the word “quality” has just one meaning: whether applied to aesthetics, manufacturing, service or environmental sustainability. That is because fashions come and go, but nature will always remain”.

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Technical Information

B Plast®

Four years of research led to the selection and registration of a PLA biopolymer as the most appropriate material for manufacturing Bonaveri mannequins.

B Plast® is a bioplastic consisting of 72% sugarcane derivative. It has obtained 3-star OK BIOBASED certification from Vinçotte of Belgium.

Compared to commonly used petrochemical plastics, manufacturing mannequins in B Plast® makes it possible to reduce CO2 emissions significantly.

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B Paint®.

B Paint® is the first-ever biocompatible paint made solely from renewable organic substances.

B Paint® consists of 100% natural, raw materials.  It does not contain any petroleum derivatives, not even in low concentrations. This product is a total innovation: it offers the same performance levels as petroleum-based paints while using only natural substances.

B Paint® contains:

– plant resins and oils;

– plant-based surfactants that do not contain phosphorous;

– 100% vegetable solvent obtained from orange peel using physical processes;

– cobalt-salt- and naphtha-free desiccants based on a new water technology.

Life Cycle Assessment

The Politecnico di MilanoGruppo di Ricerca DIS – Design and system Innovation for Sustainability – Dipartimento DESIGN LeNS – the Learning Network of Sustainability – conducted a life cycle assessment of Bonaveri mannequins. The evaluation measured the mannequin’s environmental footprint which helped the organisation to compile guidelines for reducing future lifecycle impact.

The research team coordinated by Professor Carlo Vezzoli, worked according to the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA | ISO series 14040, 14044, 14045, 14047, 14048, and 14049 standards) method that makes it possible to identify impact in relation to the phases and processes involved in the product’s life-cycle.

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ABOUT ECO-AGE AND GREEN CARPET CHALLENGE

The Green Carpet Challenge unites BAFTA and the British Fashion Council at London Fashion Week to celebrate movies and fashion and their growing commitment to the values of sustainability in everything that they do.

The Green Carpet Challenge uniquely pairs glamour and ethics to raise the profile of sustainability, ethics and social welfare all over the world. It is part of Eco-Age.

Eco-Age is an ideas consultancy which powerfully aggregates global thought leaders and influencers to address the compelling issues and opportunities of our day by delivering solutions, through ethical and sustainable values.

Eco-Age have a market leading track record for addressing sustainability issues across complex supply chains, in broad industry sectors, for the mutual benefit of people and planet.

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About Bonaveri

Established in 1950, Bonaveri is the world’s leading manufacturer of high quality mannequins.

The ability to combine manufacturing excellence with visionary research on form and shape has allowed Bonaveri to participate in and influence the birth, definition and growth of the fashion industry in Italy and around the world.

Bonaveri produces around 20 thousand mannequins a year; the two lines Bonaveri Artistic Mannequins and Schläppi cover the entire scope of this merchandise category.

The company is based at Renazzo di Cento (FE). The manufacturing facility combines craftsmanship with automation. A tour of the plant will take you. to the laboratories that use sophisticated digital scanning techniques, and others dedicated to computerized studies of shapes and volume and then to the workshops where sculptors, working with clay, gesso and resins, complete the processes that lead to the finished mannequin.

This dual creative approach has a single goal: to develop equally elegant and poetic expressive canons as it searches for the soul of the mannequin.

The company has representatives in New York, London, Paris, Dusseldorf, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Zurich, Athens, Singapore, Tokyo, Melbourne, Milan, Seoul, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

 

Press Office

Nemo Monti

nemo@nemomonti.com

Via Lazzaretto 8

20155 Milan

T. 334 6611250

 

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