MycoSoles: Exploring mycelium in a sustainable footwear context

MycoSoles exploring mycelium in a sustainable footwear context By: Henrik de Goffau Final Bachelor Project - Industrial Design TU/e Project coach: dr. Oscar Tomico Plasienca - Teacher coach: dr. ir. Emilia Barakova

Introduction & contents

T

his report contains my Final Bachelor Project, done at the faculty of Industrial Design, TU Eindhoven. The MycoSoles project is an expression of my vision on the world and on design, and I hope it will inspire you.

Appendices are not included in this report for the sake of saving paper, but can be found at: https://goo.gl/ OncXYp

Henrik de Goffau

001 Contents Introduction & contents 001 1. Executive summary 002 2. Project goal 003

Initial project goal 003

Defining the project goal 004 3. Project process summary 005 4. Material explorations 007

Growing Mycelium 007 Vacuumforming 010

3D printing 010

Grasshopper software 011 5. Product-service-system development 016 6. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings 021 7. Events/Workshops 023 8. Conclusion 027

Project result 027

Reflection on mycelium in footwear 028

Result in perspective 029

Community platform 031 Future 032 9. Acknowledgements 033

002

1. Executive summary

M

ycoSoles is an exploration of mycelium in a sustainable footwear context. Mycelium is the vegetative part of a fungus, which is being used to grow materials. The final concept can be separated in two interwoven parts:

Lifeforms Get started

mycelium design community

Tutorials

Forum

Welcome to lifeforms!

Here you can find everything about how to grow your own mycelium designs. Do you have experience in growing mycelium? You can now add to our tutorials, to make them even more complete.

Getting started: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In nec suscipit risus. Sed porttitor eget urna eu interdum. Suspendisse aliquam metus nulla, id fermentum tellus gravida et. Etiam a porta velit. Integer sed pharetra magna, vehicula faucibus risus. Etiam in turpis lorem. Sed metus lacus, lobortis vel eleifend eget, consequat at tortor. In quis imperdiet arcu, in volutpat dolor.

Aenean posuere eros vitae erat sodales maximus. Aliquam quam massa, dapibus vel pulvinar quis, condimentum non dui. Donec tincidunt metus eu risus pellentesque, at eleifend erat mollis. Duis malesuada purus a felis posuere ornare.

Theory

1. Explorations in the conceptual shoe, which is made of mycelium as the main component, growing in a 3D printed scaffold, printed with compostable filament.

2. The product-service-system explores the different steps involved in making the MycoSoles in either a professional or DIY context.

Different paths can be taken by the user, depending on the preferences of the user.

It can be concluded that for making high quality footwear, mycelium growing still needs research and

refinement. From the productservice-system, the need for a DIY community for sharing the ins and outs of mycelium growing became apparent.

The next step is to further investigate the need for a community by talking to multiple stakeholders, and to develop a businessmodel.

2. Project goal

Fig 2.1: Generative design for footwear, making insoles using 3D printing techniques, in the Digital Craftsmanship elective.

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Fig 2.2: A street pattern generated with the geographical software QGIS, which can be used to personalize the shoe from Fig. 3.

Initial project goal

T

he initial project goal emerged from a combination of the Digital Craftsmanship elective (appendix 1), and my vision. In the Digital Craftsmanship elective I focussed on the use of natural materials. My vision in short is: “What we design, unavoidably has an impact on the environment it is in. I see it as the obligation of a designer to look

Fig 2.3: Personalized footwear developed in the Digital Craftsmanship elective. The laser-engraved pattern can be linked to a streetmap. The material used is Barkcloth, for more info visit www.barktex.com.

beyond the product, and even beyond the product service system, to see the place of the product, systems and related services in a global context.

Therefore, I focus on designing using systems understanding.“ The initial goal was to see how footwear can be more sustainable, approaching the goal from a life cycle perspective, (appendix 13) in order to see where there is opportunity for

004

2. Project Goal

Activity

Pre-work Digital Craftsmanship

Deadline

Define

Phase

Midterm

Start project

Explore

01/091

Report Showcase

Focus

1/10 - 14/10

Final presentation

28/10

12/1

19/1

30/1 - 3/2

Note: all phases consists of different iterations in research, design, prototyping and reflection Fig 2.4: Semester flow, made up as a part of the Personal Development Plan (appendix 14)

improvement. I would like to define sustainability by using The Natural Step’s definition of sustainability1.

Defining the project goal

D

uring the project, because of different iterations, subgoals have emerged, which in turn have 1 The Natural Step approach. (n.d.).

Retrieved January 11, 2017, from http:// www.thenaturalstep.org/our-approach/

subgoals themselves. These subgoals are in chronological order.

1. Two directions - focus on the meaning of clothes and developing growing, biodegradable footwear.

2. Develop grown footwear using mycelium materials.

3. Use mycelium to grow shoe soles in vacuumformed molds.

4. Develop customizable sole shapes by growing the mycelium in a 3D printed mold, printing with

biodegradable filament.

5. Find a fitting product-servicesystem 6. while making this report, zooming out and defining valuable aspects of the process.

In the succeeding chapters I will show how I worked towards this goals.

005 3. Project process summary

T

he diagram below shows the material explorations done, the customer journeys developed, the Experts / stakeholders / user touchpoints and the workshops / lectures participated in, mapped

Material explorations

out in time. In the consecutive chapters every iteration listed here will be explained.

Lasercutting Programming website

Digital Craftsmanship

3D p Basic version

Customer journeys

Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

Timeline

Workshops / lectures

Multiple meetings with: Oscar Tomico Plasienca (coach) Koen van Os Annika Hupfeld Marina Toeters

Maurizio Montalti Officina Corpuscoli

Holyclothes survey

Maurizio Montalti Officina Corpuscoli

Nicoline van Enter SLEM

Sept 1

nov 1

Oct 1 Circular fasion event H&M & KPMG Visit Textielmuseum Tilburg

First person perspective workshop

Grow Your Own Fungi Mediamatic

Design Ethnography Annika Hupfeld

Draping workshop Marina Toeters

Vis

006 3. Project process summary

3D printing

Modelling with Grasshopper & Slic3r Growing Customer & product journey Rosalie Bak Mediamatic

aurizio Montalti icina Corpuscoli

Bioinspiration (mail)

Demoday questionnaire

SLEM experts

DEc 1

nov 1

Jan 1

Fashion as Performance Talk Pauline van Dongen

n Ethnography nika Hupfeld Visit Artis Micropia Amsterdam

Maurizio Montalti Officina Corpuscoli

Sheen Sahebali Biomedical Technology

Annika Hupfeld Industrial Design TU/e

nter

DIY vs. Professional

Economic value Marina Toeters Koen van Os

Final Demo Day

Feb 1

4. Material explorations

Fig 4.1: Mushroom Farm Kit by Coffeecompany C. (n.d.). [Image of mushroom growing kits by coffeecompany].

Retrieved January 11, 2017, from https://coffeecompany.nl/ uploads/product_visual/visual/51/product_mushroom7.jpg

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Fig 4.2: “Block� of coffee grounds and sawdust inoculated with mycelium in a filter bag, as taken from the Mushroom Farm Kit. The species is Pleurotis Ostreatus, or Oyster Mushroom.

I

n this chapter, the material explorations done are worked out.

Growing Mycelium When growing mycelium, different variables come in to play in the different stages: inoculating, growing, and finishing, and all of these have an effect on the final design. There is no standard recipe.

I have only started to get a grip on

Fig 4.3: 3D printed sample under a UV-c lamp. UV-c light has a short wavelength and is capable of breaking down micro organisms.1

finding the rights methods to grow, understanding the characteristics of the material and my mistakes earlier in the process.

At the start of the process a species of fungi needs to be chosen, in this project this was the Oyster Mushroom. The global growing process is as follows: First you inoculate the substrate, and let it be colonized by the fungi. Second you place the fungi in a shape it can

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Fig 4.4: The HEPA filters of a LAF (Laminar Air Flow). A LAF provides a sterile working environment using filters and UV lights.

fully grow into. Third you finish the product by drying and heating the sample in order to kill the fungi. I’ll now go into more detail for every step.

Starting to grow your own mycelium products can be done in two different ways: 1.

You can let a fungi colonize new substrate

4. Material explorations

Fig 4.5: Incolating samples in a closed room. When not having acces to a LAF, it is important to have as little airflow as possible to avoid contamination by air.

2.

Buy an already fully colonized medium and place it in a mold The first method is used to grow your own substrate. This is very costeffective, because organic waste can be used, but also time-consuming and very difficult, because working cleanly is very important. Otherwise harmful/unwanted fungus and bacteria will grow in your sample.

This method is a very simple way to

Fig 4.6: Closeup of mycelium growing on a 3D printed sample.

grow mycelium, and the only way I managed to do it, but other kinds of characteristics can be grown using other techniques.

Step 1: Pasteurize/sterilize your substrate (pasteurizing means heating between 70 and 80 degrees Celsius (destroys vegetative cells of microorganisms, sterilizing means heating between 110 and 120 degrees celsius, destroying both vegetative cells and spores

4. Material explorations

009

Fig 4.7: Growing tower wrapped in an Fig 4.8: A fully grown sample electric blanket speeding up the growing process.

of microorganisms, but also destroying the microstructure of the substrate). Sterilizing surfaces can also be done using UV-c light.1 (Fig 4.3) Step 2: Place the mycelium starter and substrate in a sterile spawn bag with a filter to allow gas exchange but prevents the passage of 1 Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation [PDF]. (n.d.). Liverpool: The University of Liverpool. https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/media/ livacuk/radiation/pdf/UV_germicidal.pdf

Fig 4.9: Heating the mycelium to make it inert and to Fig 4.10: A finished sample dry it.

contaminants2.

Step 3: Let it grow! In a warm and damp environment the mycelium will grow better. The ideal temperature is 28-30 degrees Celsius, in the dark, and with an air humidity of 97 – 100%3 2 E.G. https://www.mycosupply.com/ cgi-bin/shopper.cgi?preadd=action&key=sbfp01 3 The ideal growing conditions. (n.d.).

Retrieved January 08, 2017, from http://mushplanet.com/cultivation_manual/ideal-growing-conditions.html

At this point you can start growing your actual design Step 4: Take the mycelium from the growing bag and place it in the mold.

Your mold has to be sterilized or at least pasteurized! After doing this, seal it in a sterile bag again. You can use bags with a filter, but this is not always necessary, you can also poke a little hole in a normal bag, because the fungi grows so fast that bacteria often don’t get a chance. If you

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Fig 4.11: Vacuumforming PETG around a lasercut MDF shape.

The PETG forms a negative mold of the shape.

keep the bag closed there should be enough moisture, otherwise you will have to mist it.

Step 5: Let the mycelium grow until the sides are covered in some kind of white sheet. Then you can remove the mycelium and place it inside the oven.

Step 6: Heat the mycelium to 200 degrees, so all mycelium dies. (Fig 4.9) Now you have the end product, and you can add finishes however

4. Material explorations

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 1 mm 200 0,2 0,3 honeycomb rectilinear 60% 4 layers 50 mm/s 1,1 round_honeycomb_ v1.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 0,9 mm 200 0,2 0,3 honeycomb rectilinear 60% 3 layers 30 mm/s 1,1 round_honeycomb_ v2.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 1 mm 200 0,2 0,3 honeycomb rectilinear 60% 4 layers 80% - 30 mm/s 1,1 round_honeycomb_ v2.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 1.1 mm 200 0,2 0,3 honeycomb rectilinear 70% 4 layers 50 mm/s 1,1 round_honeycomb_ v3.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 1 mm 200 0,2 0,3 honeycomb rectilinear 60% 4 layers 25 mm/s 1,1 round_honeycomb_v3 .gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 0,9 mm 200 0,2 0,3 archimedean chords rectilinear 100% 4 layers 30 mm/s 1,1 round_archimedeanchords_v1.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 0,9 mm 200 0,2 0,3 archimedean chords rectilinear 100% 4 layers 30 mm/s x200 1,1 x 0,9 round_archimedeanchords_v1.gcode

Printer Nozzle diameter Temperature (Celsius) First layer height Layer height Infill pattern Bottom Infill pattern Infill density Solid infill every Infill speed Extrusion rate File

Ultimaker 2 1 mm 200 0,2 0,3 octogramspiral rectilinear 100% 2 layers 30 mm/s 1,1 round_octogramspiral_v1.gcode

Fig 4.12: Several 3D prints using different settings.

For a full size image, and 3D printing settings, go to APPENDIX

Fig 4.13: 3D printing a sole using Willoflex compostable filament.

you want.

grow into the shape.4

Vacuumforming Vacuumforming is a technique where a sheet of plastic is heated to a forming temperature, stretched onto a singlesurface mold, and forced against the mold by a vacuum. After lasercutting the desired shape from MDF, I used Vivak PETG material to make clear molds, in which the mycelium could

3D printing In my project, shapes are 3D printed to grow the mycelium into.

The reason for doing this is that the mold can be customized to the specific user, and that no redundant structures (molds) are created in doing so. The mycelium can then 4 J.L. Throne, Understanding Thermoforming, Hanser Gardner Publications, Inc., Cincinnati, OH, 1999

4. Material explorations

011 Insole pattern generator - based on pressure map foot

Output insole shape

Input foot outline curve

Curve Smoothing

Extrusion different layers

Input heatmap picture

Outer sole profile pattern generator

Fig 4.14: A footscan using Solemaker.io5. This footscan makes a heatmap of the pressure points of the foot, and is therefore an ideal means to personalize footwear.

Grasshopper model by Henrik de Goffau, with special thanks to Michiel Braat, who helped me in the process of making this model

Fig 4.15: The Grasshopper model used to generate the footscan. For the full program, see appendix 3

grow into this 3D printed mold, and it stays on when the shoe is being worn. Also, the I have explored in 3D printing using Grasshopper/ Rhino to generate the shapes and slic3r to make the gcode files used by the Ultimaker 3D printer. For 3D printing, I merely used Willowflex, a compostable filament. This filament fits the purpose of the project, because the shoe should be biodegradable. In the appendix you

can find more information on the 3D printing explorations. (appendix 2) Grasshopper software Halfway through the project, I chose to use a scan of the foot to generate a 3D printing shape which was customized to the foot of the user, as an essential part of the productservice-sytem. This shape was compiled of the outline of the foot

Fig 4.16: Model of a sole generated in grasshopper.

in combination with a scan which generates a heatmap of the foot.

For the footscan I used a capacitive foot scanner developed by Troy Nachtigall, and the solemaker.io website5. Grasshopper is software allowing algorithmic modeling in Rhino CAD software. Developing the Grasshopper model was an exercise 5 Nachtigall, T. et al. Solemaker.io. http://solemaker.io/ - The footscan was made using a capacitive footscanner which was developed together with the Solemaker.io website.

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in creating software which can be used to design generatively by using algorithms to process input data.

(Img 4.15, 4.16, appendix 3,4)

4. Material explorations

Mycosole 5. product-service-system development

013

Customer journey

Context

Delivery company

Online

Shop

Customer service

on feet/ in cupboard

Customer journey

st te ra

backend

1. Generate Design

The sole is being 3D printed, filled with mycelium spawn and substrate. Now the user has to wait till the sole finished growing.

Optional: the user can watch the shoe grow live! In the end the sole is dried and baked to finish the product.

- Filament producer - Substrate producer - Mycelium strands She sees the myco shoes and decides to try them producer

Parts

Mila thinks the shoes look awesome! she makes an account and orders the shoes.

- 3D print company

She chooses filament color

Watch live

Context

Product journey

She puts her foot on the scanner, and immediately sees the shape of her foot on the screen!

Mila goes to the shoe-shop

2. Manufacture sole

Product service system

Product journey

Sp aw n

b Su

The mycosole fits in a product service system which focusses on user costumization and local production. A final bachelor project at the Industrial Design Department TU/e by Henrik de Goffau.

Mycosole

Mycosole

The mycosole system

In the shop / at home, the foot of the user is scanned for data about shape and walking style. The user chooses the color of the filament, and the type of mycelium used in the sole. All these features are combined in the design.

Website and live view maintainers Communication person(s)

Shopkeepers

Backend

3D printer

- Mycelium grower - Lab owner - Microbiologist the

Lab

- Incubator space - Incubator Mila follows the progress of the maintenance growing of her shoes online, and shares this progress with her friends

Incubator

The shoes are delivered to Mila’s doorstep three weeks later!

- Grower - Finishing space - Packing -Delivery company

The MycoSoles are delivered to Ivy’s doorstep three weeks later, in minamalistic, sustainable, mycelium packaging

Mila goes to the shoe-shop

Substrate is taken from organic waste

She sees the MycoSoles and decides to try them

- soil - Industrial composter Ivy goes to the shoe-shop

Oven/dryroom/workshop

on feet/ in cupboard

The MycoSoles undergo their final treatment by drying and heating

soil

She chooses filament color

When the shoes are worn out, Mila disposes of them by throwing them in the green bin, or by making her shoes a little grave in the backyard

Product journey

the

The 3D printed MycoSoles are inoculated with mycelium spawn and substrate

Ivy thinks the MycoSoles look awesome! she makes an account and orders the shoes.

By Henrik de Goffau

Biodegradable 3D print filament is manufactured and delivered

Substrate is taken from organic waste

The user wears the sole like in a normal shoe.

If the shoe finally has worn out, the user disposes of it by placing it in the compost bin.

Then the cycle starts all over again.

Fig 5.1: The first version of the product-servicesystem. For a big version, see appendix 5.

Mila goes to the shoe-shop

Context

The shoe outlines are being 3D printed, according to the foot shape and other preferences of mila.

The shoe grows

The shoe undergoes it’s final treatment by drying and heating

backend When the shoes are worn out, Mila disposes of them by throwing them in the green bin, or by making her shoes a little grave in the backyard

Fig 5.2: The second product-service-system, consisting of a customer journey and a product journey

By Henrik de Goffau

User

Shop

Product

Internet 3D printer

Lab

Incubator

On feet/ in cupboard Treatment space

Delivery service

Soil

The shoes are sent to Mila

The 3D printed shoe is inoculated with mycelium spawn and substrate Mycelium spawn is grown

Ivy follows the progress of the growing of her shoes online. and shares the progress with her friends

The shoe outlines are being 3D printed, according to the foot shape and other preferences of mila.

Biodegradable 3D print filament is manufactured and delivered

3. Use and end of life

When the MycoSoles are worn out, Mila disposes of them by throwing them in the green bin, or by making her shoes a little grave in the backyard

Mycelium spawn is grown

She puts her foot on the scanner, and immediately sees the shape of her foot on the screen!

By Henrik de Goffau

I

teratively developing a customer journey connected to the concept has been an integrated part of the project during the whole semester.

All customer journeys are based on the combination of 3D printing and mycelium growing, but during the semester they became more detailed and refined.

The first customer journey (Fig 5.1)

By Henrik de Goffau

• Filament producer • Substrate producer • Mycelium strands producer

• 3D print company

• Mycelium grower • Lab owner • Microbiologist

• Incubator space • Incubator maintenance

• Grower • Finishing space • Packing • Delivery company

• Soil • Industrial composter

By Henrik de Goffau

Fig 5.3: The product-service-system after combining the two product service systems of fig 5.2. For a big version, see appendix 5.

is: first the data of the user is used to generate a shoe, then the shoe is printed, grown, finished, worn, and in the end thrown with the green waste and composted. In a later stage I made the decision to go for the footscan and color as data input, because they fit to the possibilities (different customization per print) of 3D printing.

The next iteration was to define the

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Fig 5.4: The QR code of the movie developed with the product-servicesystem

5. product-service-system development

Fig 5.5: The workshop at SLEM, adding comments to the product-servicesystem.

details of the customer journey. The next customer journeys (Fig.5.2) are based on the concept of the footscan, and involved the user going to the shop to do footscan, and watching the growth of the sole online (because growing is a complicated process, and this makes buying the product less effort. This customer/product journeys involve the context and backend of the product and the user. Using this

kind of customer journey clarifies the steps the concept/user goes through, and makes it easier to reflect on these. The next step was to merge both the product journey and customer journey in one visual as a product-service-system. (Fig 5.3) This was natural because the product and the customer have touchpoints, and these touchpoints show the value (for the customer) of the concept. From this customer

Fig 5.6: From the SLEM workshop, one of the filled in product-service-system with comments. For the others, see appendix 11

journey I made a video (Fig 5.4).

An important feedback moment on this product-service-system moment was at the SLEM stakeholder meeting. During this meeting it became clear that the focus of the concept was confusing: personalization in 3D printing and mycelium both are different focusses. Mycelium is already a complex subject to understand, having this dual focus make it even

5. product-service-system development Modeling / Customizing

3D printing

015

Compiling print & substrate

Growing

Drying & baking

Finishing

3D

DIY

Professional

Personal computer

3D print hubs / home printer

DIY lab

Home

Kitchen

DIY workshop

Description:

The users generate the 3D models themselves, or partially based on community files.

Possibilities: The user is only restricted by skills in 3D modelling, and imagination. Also, the user is not restricted by the possibilities offered in the online STL file generator.

Description: The user finds a 3D hubs printer or prints the shape himselves.

Possibilities: The quality is not professional, but the user can tweak the settings of the printer to suit the needs of the Mycelium. Also, experimental filaments can be used.

Description: The print and mycelium are compiled in the DIY lab.

Possibilities: Setting up a DIY lab requires skills and equipment to avoid contamination of unwanted fungi and bacteria. However, for the real DIYer this is a very interesting excercise to be explore the world of biodesign.

Description: When the print and substrate are compiled, the mycelium can be grown at home, in a closed package, and the user can tweak the temperature and humidity to optimize growth.

Possibilities: The user attaches more to the MycoSoles by growing them at home. Therefore this is an important part in the user experience of the growing product. Also, growing MycoSoles at home is cheaper

Description: A normal oven and other DIY methods can be used to bake and dry the mycelium.

Possibilities: This method is much less costly, because again it can just be done at home. The quality however, can be significantly lower if the user is not an experienced grower.

Description: The MycoSoles get their final treatment (e.g. dyeing) Possibilities: At home, the user can experiment with their own finishes, instead of the preset ones. This gives more freedom, but also takes more effort.

Online

3D print company

Professional lab

Incubator

Professional workshop

Professional workshop

Description: The customization options of the prototype are preset. From the customization an STL file is made for the 3D printer.

Possibilities: different degrees of customization can be used to achieve different degrees of personalisation, adapted to the intended user groups.

Description: In a 3D print shop the compostable Willowflex filament is used to make a professional print based on the personalized STL file.

Possibilities: Professional quality can be achieved.

Description: This lab has all the needed skills and expertise for the compilation.

Possibilities: Professional quality can be achieved.

Description: The incubator is a professional environment where humidity, temperature, light, air composition and substrate are controlled. This causes the mycelium to grow well .

Possibilities: The incubator allows for professional quality products and advanced (liquid) substrates.

Description: With professional ovens and drying rooms, the process of drying and baking can be optimized.

Possibilities: More accurate and optimized equipment and methods ensure better quality prototypes.

Description: The MycoSoles get their final treatment (e.g. dyeing) Possibilities: In a professional workshop skilled workers and tools are present to get the best end results. The finishes have to be standardized, so choices for the user are limited.

Fig 5.7: Final product-service-system, featuring both DIY and professional ways of producing mycelium. See appendix 5 for bigger version

more complicated. Also, making a footscan makes the concept more expensive (footscanning service) and harder to access. (people have to go to the shop or have a footscanner) Because of this, I chose to refocus the product-service-system towards the unique property of the mycelium, which is that it is a growing material, which can easily be grown in a DIY way. However, it was unclear what users would prefer. So, in the last

product-service-system, I left in the possibility for different user paths.

(Fig 5.7 and appendix 5). On the demoday I issued a questionnaire asking which stages of the process users want to do themselves, and which ones they prefer to be done professionally. From this became clear that the preferences vary per person, per personal interest. In the conversations following the questionnaire multiple participants

made clear that they would like to grow a shoe themselves, but that they would like help doing so.

This brings us to the final idea and future plan of developing a DIY community for mycelium enthusiasts and experts, which will be discussed in the discussion.

In u

Desc user.

Poss the s these

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5. product-service-system development

Wearing

Composting

Garden

In use Description: The MycoSoles are being worn by the user. They form part of the users identity.

Possibilities: The user can experience satisfaction for the shoes, or see where they can be improved, and use these to grow better shoes next time!

Description: The MycoSoles biodegrade in the soil, and break down into nutrients for other organisms.

Possibilities: The filament currently used is only compostable in an industrial composter. However, with advancing research, in the future it will be possible to manufacture filament that breaks down in natural circumstances.

Industrial composter Description: The MycoSoles are thrown in the green bin.

Possibilities: The industrial composter has an optimal mix of micro organisms and environment to break down the MycoSoles quickly. MycoSoles take part of the biological cycle!

7. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

Holy Clothes!

Holy Clothes!

Holy Clothes!

Holy Clothes!D Holy Clothes!

Holy Clothes!

Holy Clothes!

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Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes

Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes Fig 6.1: Call for input on the value of shoes to the user.

Fig 6.2: Website for letting people adore their shoes. (and at the same time gathering data on their relationship with shoes.)

Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes

uring the semester, multiple expert, stakeholder and user meetings where held. In this Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes chapter, I will elaborate on the goals and outcomes of this meetings.

Holy Clothes survey Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes

In the first iterations, one of the exploration directions was to focus on the meaning of clothes. For this, Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes I designed a website to see what the meaning of footwear is to users.

Go to www.holyclothes.nl to adore your shoes

(Fig 6.1, 6.2) From this survey, I only got five results, from which I can’t draw significant conclusions. See appendix 8 for the results.

Maurizio Montalti (Officina Corpuscoli) 11-10-2016 Initial skype talk about the needs for growing mycelium and looking for the possibility for a client. We decided to progress on the project and then get back to see what the

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7. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

Fig 6.3: Different samples provided by SLEM to experiment with mycelium growing.

outcome would be.

Nicoline van Enter (SLEM) 17-102016 In this meeting with Nicoline van Enter I explored the possibilities of working with SLEM to develop good prints, and, as she is a trend watcher, about the value of clothes. Nicoline provided me with some test prints to try growing the mycelium on.

Fig 6.4: Mycelium grown by Officina Corpuscoli, as seen at the Dutch Design Week.

Maurizio Montalti (Officina Corpuscoli) 27-10-2016 My goal for this meeting was to propose a plan to start working in a client construction with mycelium for this semester. From this meeting it became clear that I was lacking knowledge in mycelium growing, and that it’s going to be very hard to do this project in one semester.

This pushed me to plan ahead. No client agreements where made.

Fig 6.5: The LAF at Mediamatic, which I intended to use to inoculate new samples.

Annika Hupfeld 15-11-2016 The goal of this meeting was to discuss how ethnographic research can be done without any finished prototypes. We concluded that it would be most interesting to make a video which would make the user understand the product.

Rosalie Bak (Mediamatic) 29-11-2016 The goal of this meeting was to see if I could use the Mediamatic lab for

6. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

Fig 6.6: A 3D printed sample as seen under the Keyence VHX 5000 microscope.

my project. In the end I decided not to do it, because their resources at the lab where not sufficient for the price they were offering.

Sheen Sahebali (biomedical technology TU/e) Sheen guided me in using the microscope to zoom in on mycelium and 3D prints, and to take pictures of it, in order to learn more about their microstructures. (Fig 6.6, 6.7,

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Fig 6.7: Living Mycelium as seen under the Keyence VHX 5000 microscope. The network of hyphae can be seen.

6.8, appendix 12) I hoped to see, on a microscale, how the mycelium connected to the Willowflex, but the enlargement was not big enough to be able to see this. From Fig 6.7 and 6.8, it can be seen that the mycelium forms a thick network of hyphae, which make up the ‘glue’ between the fibers used in the substrate.

From Fig 6.6 the structure of the 3D prints can be seen clearly. Also, Another learning point of actually

Fig 6.8: Dead Mycelium as seen under the Keyence VHX 5000 microscope. Unfortunately, I was not able to get a clear picture of this, possibly due to the petri dish it was in.

arranging a microscope was that it came clear that fungi are really not welcome in most labs. For the future it would be interersting to zoom in even further on the mycelium.

Feedback email bioinspiration (Willowflex filament manufacturer) 13-12-2016 I send an email to the Willoflex Manufacturer to see how compostable their materials are,

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6. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings What is your main occupation?

What is your main occupation?

In each of the stages, would you prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

In each of the stages, would you prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

.......................................................

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

What is your main occupation?

.......................................................

...

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

1. / 2.

3 w 4.

5. b 6

In each of the stages, would you prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

Comments? Write on the back!

Comments? Write on the back!

Comments? Write on the back!

C

What is your age?

What is your age?

W

.......................................................

.......................................................

Fig 6.9: The workshop at SLEM, adding comments to the product-service- Fig 6.10: From the SLEM workshop, one of the filled in Fig 6.11, 6.12: The questionnaire used at the final demo day What is your main occupation?

What is your main occupation? system product-service-system with comments. For the others, What is your main occupation? ....................................................... ....................................................... .......................................................

In each of the stages, would you In each of the stages, would you In each of the stages, would you see appendix 11

SLEM expert meeting 15-12-2016 In the meeting, I presented my product-service-system. I provided

the participants with a big print of the product-service-system, and asked them to edit it to their wishes. (appendix 6, 7) The main conclusion of this meeting that the product-service-system needs only one focus-point, and this is the mycelium.

Nicoline van Enter: “You need to find what is so attractive about the mycelium, then you can find out why people are mainly attracted to this (product-

In pr si

What is your age?

.......................................................

where their materials are sourced and if they see the opportunities to make future, new materials. The materials are certified EU 13423 and ASTM6400. The materials are from non-GMO corn from the US, which is less sustainable because of the transport needed. (appendix 9)

W

.......................................................

prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

prefer to DIY or to let a professional do it?

ProfesDIY sional

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

1. Modeling / customizing 2. 3D printing 3. Compiling print with substrate 4. Growing 5. Drying & baking 6. Finishing

service-system)�. Because of this stakeholder meeting I moved away from the footscan, and watching online and revisited the product....................................................... ....................................................... ....................................................... service-system, looking at making the growing more central in the customer journey.

...

W

...

In pr si

1. / 2.

3 w 4.

5. b 6

Comments? Write on the back!

Comments? Write on the back!

Comments? Write on the back!

C

What is your age?

What is your age?

What is your age?

W

Questionnaire demoday The goal of the questionnaire (Fig 6.11) was to see which customer journey users would like to take. 40

...

6. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

questionnaires where answered. The result, also from the conversations after the questionnaire, is that the preference of the customer journey is really personal, and no pattern has yet been found. What stood out is that the reply was often: I want to do the steps partially by myself, partially guided. (appendix 7) Maurizio Montalti 5-1-2017 The goal of this meeting was

to present the outcomes of the project, and to see if it was possible to follow up on the project in any way. During the meeting we discussed the limitations and possibilities MycoSoles have to offer.

The conclusion of the meeting was that a platform is a current need for the mycelium community, because many people want to learn to work with mycelium, but the people that master the material have little time.

021

Finding partners and developing a businessmodel is an important aspect of building this community.

Therefore I made a first step to develop the platform in the project result section.

022

6. Expert/stakeholder/user meetings

INTRODUCTION

Interview with our CEO

7. eVENTS/WORKSHOPS

market and the strengthening of workers’ rights to collective bargaining are necessary for lasting improvements for workers in the textile industry.

All in all, we want to contribute to a well-functioning process that enables a fair living wage in every way we can.

An important part of our fair living wage strategy is the Fair Wage Method, which has been developed by the independent Fair Wage Network. It focuses on establishing good pay structures as well as strengthening the ability for workers to regularly negotiate wages fairly.

What is your view on consumption?

Consumption is necessary for jobs generating taxes that pay for schools, hospitals and infrastructure, but also for developing countries to become part of international trade and thereby lift themselves out of poverty. If people stopped consuming, society would be affected negatively. H&M wants to continue growing, but we are committed to growing responsibly.

Our growth must always be balanced by sustainable practices.

Like other industries today, the fashion industry, however, is too dependent on natural resources and we need to change the way fashion is made. This is why we are so committed to our mission to reuse garments and close the loop on textiles. By collecting old clothes and turning them into new updated styles instead of letting them go to waste and by investing in new innovation and technology, we are taking important steps towards a circular economy. To further speed up this development, the H&M Foundation has initiated the Global Change Award, an innovation challenge to find great new ideas that help close the loop on textiles.

We are currently in the process of setting new goals that will take our sustainability work to the next level, across various key sustainability topics: circularity, climate, transparency, equality and fair jobs, for example.

We do this in dialogue with our stakeholders, experts, scientists and many others. We follow a science-based approach aimed at setting new standards for the fashion industry.

023

POPULATION ECONOMY

RESOURCES

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Fig 7.1: During the visit to the Textielmuseum, I payed extra attention to Fig 7.2: Hendrik Alpen speaking about H&M’s sustainability strategy at Fig 7.3: Decoupling resource use from growth. natural materials. This is hemp.

Source: H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability the Circular Fashion Event.

Report [Pdf]. (2015). H&M. H&M CONSCIOUS ACTIONS SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2015

D

uring the semester, I participated in multiple relevant events and workshops. In this chapter I will elaborate on the outcomes of events and workshops.

Visit Textielmuseum Inspirational visit by looking at techniques and natural materials, and looking at how these can potentially be applied in the project. No clear project effects, just a refresher.

4 OF 130

Circular fashion event 19-9-2016

By H&M and KPMG A look into the progress in the field of circular fashion. Speakers: Hendrik Alpen (sustainability business expert H&M), Tjeerd Veenhoven (working on algae fabrics and awarded the H&M global change awards). H&M sees the need to move towards a circular economy, and this approach caused them to already source

024

7. EVENTs/WORKSHOPs

Fig 7.4: Draining the Fig 7.6: A mycelium lampshade being grown at the pasteurizing pan, picture by Mediamatic Cleanlab Anisa Xhomaqi - Mediamatic

their cotton more sustainable, and to use recycled resources.1 (Fig 7.3) However, they indicate themselves that this is not enough that they are looking for a way to make their business sustain on the long term.

Also, already some clothes contain a percentage of recycled cotton.

Mediamatic: Grow Your Own Fungi 1

H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability Report [Pdf]. (2015). H&M.

Fig 7.7: The HEPA filters of the LAF (Laminar Air Flow). A Fig 7.8: Acting out mycelium repairing clothes laminar airflow provides sterile air using filters and UV during the first person perspective workshop. lights.

By Wouter Hassing In this workshop, we inoculated a bag of straw with the Oyster mushroom, whilst getting explanation about mycelium. This was the first start of getting to work with the mycelium.

First person perspective workshop

By Wearable Senses Squad Acting out the concept: one person is the object, another one the user, the third one the environment and the

fourth one the observer. The design can be seen in a new light, because all the actors have their ow. I chose to act out the repairing of clothes using mycelium. The outcome was that clothes can be repaired by providing some kind of mycelium repair kit. However, I chose to stick to the shoes, both because of the before indicated project goals, and the stakeholders involved.

7. eVENTS/WORKSHOPS

025

Fig 7.9: Draping on the body with Marina Toeters, stressing the Fig 7.10: QR code to video made after Fig 7.11, 7.12: The Atta Colombica, or Parasolmier, cultivates a fungi for consumption. importance of designing wearables on the body.

As seen in Artis Micropia design ethnography workshop

Draping workshop 14-10-2016

By Marina Toeters Placing the design on the body as early in the design process as possible is key to wearable concept development. Because of this workshop I chose the direction of making a 3D printed scaffold, personalized to the foot.

Design ethnography 21-10-2016

By Annika Hupfeld

An introductory lecture on design ethnography. Design ethnography focusses on observing design in a societal context. During the lecture goals where set on ethnographic research.

Most ethnographic research is based on placing the design in the real world, while my design is limited by the fact that it does not exist yet as intended.

Later in the process, I had an expert meeting with Annika Hupfeld to see

how ethnography can be used in the context of the MycoSoles.

Visit Artis Micropia Micropia is a museum about microbes, where I went to understand the world of micro-organisms better.

The museum featured microscopes where live microbes could be observed. It showed the vast world of micro-organisms, which goes largely unexplored. After the visit,

026

Fig 7.13: The tree of life. We, as humans, are just in a tiny branch of the enormous amount of lifeforms existing. Fungi are part of a huge group of Eukaryotic organisms.

I researched to which realm of organisms the oyster mushroom, the fungi used in the MycoSoles, belongs.

Economic value and Service Design; product-service-system 25-11-2016

By Marina Toeters and Koen van Os Small lecture and advice on economic value in design, stimulating working on the businessmodel of the product.

In this workshop we determined the

7. EVENTs/WORKSHOPs

Fig 7.14: The Final Demo Day setup, showing the different steps with examples.

main economic value of my concept, which is in the combination of locality and personalization. There are however mayor costs involved in both in time and effort, to grow the mycelium, concluding that fully grown mycelium designs can, at this time, only be available for a premium market. Another way to keep the costs down is to DIY, but significant effort of the user is required.

Fig 7.15: The person which is me at the Final Demo Day.

Fashion as Performance Talk; Self and Identity 2-12-2016

By Pauline van Dongen Main learning point: technology needs to be integrated in its environment, and not oppose it.

Final Demo Day 23-12-2016 During the final demo day, there was an opportunity to present the concept at that point in time. In the next chapter the result is described.

8. conclusion

027 B3.2 / DP / Wearable technology Ultra personalised textile service systems

MycoSoles

scan for furhter concept rationale

Footwear has a limited use time, but footwear design is far from temporary. Shoes are made in a way that the materials are not separable or biodegradable. My intentions for this project where to rethink the way footwear is made, using the novel possibilities our time has to offer.

For this purpose I created the MycoSoles concept. MycoSoles looks in future, to see how innovative, sustainable productservice-systems can emerge from the combination of a digital manufacturing technique, and a growing material.

In my exhibition I explore how the MycoSoles concept can be implemented by empowering DIY community, as well as by offering a premium service. I would like to know your preferences, so please, fill in the questionnaire!

Student(s): Henrik de Goffau Coach: Oscar Tomico Main expert(s): Nicoline van Enter (SLEM), Maurizio Montalti (Officina Corpuscoli), multiple other experts involved.

Fig 8.1: The final demo day setup, featuring the different steps in DIY and professional setups

Fig 8.2: Final demo day setup closeup.

project result

T

he end product, as shown on the demo day, is a product-service system called MycoSoles. MycoSoles explores how the uniqueness of the mycelium in combination with 3D printing can be used to create a new customer journey. Although I did not develop a finished shoe yet, I can already determine the process steps needed to get to this end

Fig 8.3: The poster used at the demo day setup.

product, taken from the process I have gone through myself. The process is as follows: Modeling/Customizing > 3D printing > Compiling print & substrate > Growing > Drying & Baking > Finishing > Wearing > Composting ( for more a more elaborate explanation per step, see appendix 5) Interestingly, every step of the

028

8. conclusion

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Home Description: When the print and substrate are compiled, the mycelium can be grown at home, in a closed package, and the user can tweak the temperature and humidity to optimize growth.

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making process has some potential to be executed by the user itself, in a DIY way or in a professional environment. This opens up opportunities for different customer journeys, based on what the user wishes to do themselves and what he/she outsources. The following table shows the differences in DIY and outsourcing to a company. I foresee that, especially when the DIY community is not fully operational e!

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yet, the user will have to pay more for a high quality, well finished shoe, while if the user chooses for the experience of making their own MycoSoles, the price, but also the quality, will be significantly lower.

Money costs

Time costs

Customizability

Quality

Low

High

High

Increasing with experience

professional High

Low

Medium

High

DIY

Reflection

I

n the way I have grown mycelium, it is not yet applicable for footwear. The material is way too hard, and too brittle at the same time. Footwear requires flexible materials that can withstand continuous stress. Because of it’s hardness mycelium is usefull as a building material. Take for example Ecovative, commercially making

8. conclusion

029

Fig 8.6: Ecovative researches mycelium packaging and mycelium chipboard (mycelium as a glue replacement).

Both Images by Ecovative, www.ecovative.com

materials out of mycelium.

It is possible to develop softer materials, as being done by e.g.

MycoWorks1 but this requires quite some refinement in the growing process of mycelium, and in choosing specific fungi.

The

MycoSoles

project

was

1 http://www.mycoworks.com/, Retrieved 10-01-2017

a

synthesis of all things learned during my time at Industrial Design. Even though there were many unknowns: I did not know the material and did not have significant skill in 3D printing and modeling using grasshopper, I was able to set out a design process in these unknown territories, and learn all these skills by doing, building on knowledge and techniques of numerous stakeholders and experts. During

Fig 8.7: Neffa developed a mycelium dress. Image by Neffa, http://neffa.nl/, more project info at http://neffa.nl/nl/ portfolio/mycotex/.

the process I was constantly iterating between working on separate techniques and the complete picture: they shaped each other. My guidance was the end goal –to develop a sustainable productservice-system. I did not succeed in this because in the end I identified that the material was not developed enough yet to already start making footwear for the market. However, I identified the need of a platform to

030

8. Conclusion

Fig 8.7: With the project Bio ex-machina, Officina Corpuscoli, Co-deIT and digifabTURINg are researching integrating biology in design.

Image by Co-de-IT, www.co-de-it.com

combine mycelium knowledge.

Result in perspective

W

e live in a time where digital fabrication techniques2 are becoming more and more common in production processes. These techniques open up new possibilities 2 “What is digital modeling and fabrication? - Definition from WhatIs.com”. SearchManufacturingERP. Retrieved 2016-02-17

Fig 8.8: Eric Klarenbeek developed a mycelium stool, Growing mycelium in a 3D printed shape. Image by: Eric Klarenbeek, www.ericklarenbeek.com

for mass personalisation.

At the same time, our understanding of biology is increasing. Using grown materials in design has been done for a long time (think of growing wood, cotton, leather and dozens of other materials), but advances in science and the desire to stop using finite resources, start to open up new possiblities. We are now beginning to grow materials and applications,

Fig 8.9: In New York, architect David Benjamin designed a mycelium tower. Image by: The Living, www.thelivingnewyork.com

by employing living systems.3 By adapting their environment and/or genetic changes, microorganisms can be used as tiny factories (e.g. algae4) or grow in certain shapes, as 3 2.11.2016 · by Co-de-iT · in code, digital fabrication, Education, inFORMed matter, research, Senza categoria. (n.d.). BIO EX-MACHINA research project.

Retrieved January 12, 2017, from http://www.code-it.com/wordpress/bio-ex-machina-researchproject.html

4 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2307582/Is-algae-super-material-Bacteria-used-create-substance-make-armour-phone-screens.html

8. Conclusion Lifeforms Get started

031

mycelium design community

Tutorials

Forum

Theory

Welcome to lifeforms!

Here you can find everything about how to grow your own mycelium designs. Do you have experience in growing mycelium? You can now add to our tutorials, to make them even more complete.

Getting started: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. In nec suscipit risus. Sed porttitor eget urna eu interdum. Suspendisse aliquam metus nulla, id fermentum tellus gravida et. Etiam a porta velit. Integer sed pharetra magna, vehicula faucibus risus. Etiam in turpis lorem. Sed metus lacus, lobortis vel eleifend eget, consequat at tortor. In quis imperdiet arcu, in volutpat dolor.

Aenean posuere eros vitae erat sodales maximus. Aliquam quam massa, dapibus vel pulvinar quis, condimentum non dui. Donec tincidunt metus eu risus pellentesque, at eleifend erat mollis. Duis malesuada purus a felis posuere ornare.

Fig 8.10: A mockup of the Lifeforms platform

shown with mycelium.

Additive techniques have the potential to make multi-material scaffolds for microorganisms to grow in certain shapes. The concept of printing shapes to grow materials in was explored superficially in this project, but deserves more research in the future.

Mycelium materials have the potential to become a major

renewable resource in the future.

However, research still is fragmented and in an early stage. To boost the material, sharing knowledge and techniques is essential. Therefore I propose to develop a community to build knowledge about mycelium.

Community platform

C

oncluding from this project, growing materials are really

still in a pioneering phase. Multiple companies are working on scaling up production, but the process towards a consistent and affordable material is still long. Also, according to Maurizio Montalti, a lot of people have the intend to work with mycelium, but the knowledge is still premature and it is hard to get started. Therefore there is a need to start a community consisting of enthousiast and professionals of

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different backgrounds, with the ins and outs of mycelium growing can be shared. I expect this will dramatically shorten the time it takes to develop the techniques, because learning to grow mycelium is a process that is complex and takes time (the process of making mycelium also includes the process of growing, which takes time and maintenance.)

In the community, there should

8. Conclusion

be standardized tutorials, as well as possibility for input by the user: editing and commenting on existing tutorials and adding new tutorials.

Future

T

he next step now is to propose the platform to the mycelium maker community. I will do this by having meetings with the relevant people

and companies for this platform. I’m developing a businessmodel where companies working with mycelium benefit from the knowledge gathered at one place, and supplier companies can sell their products at the platform.

9. Acknowledgements

Thanks to all people that helped me during the great months of my FBP, The UPTSS squad dr. Oscar Tomico Plasencia Koen van Os Marina Toeters dr. Annika Hupfeld Troy Nachtigall Bart Pruijmboom especially, for helping me out with the 3D printer.

The squad support SLEM Waalwijk Nicoline van Enter, and the participants to my workshop for showing the footwear designers perspective.

Officina Corpuscoli Maurizio Montalti, for inspiring me, showing the possibilities of mycelium and helping me out in busy times

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Mediamatic Wouter Hassing Rosalie Bak TU/e D-Search Emilia Barakova Msc Sheen Sahebali (Biomedical technology) Michiel Braat, for helping me out with the Grasshopper program.

Bioinspiration

I’m sure I did not mention everyone, but to all of you who helped me out and provided me with feedback: Thank you very much!