Superstudio Più in via Tortona 27 hosts Poliuretano-è from 15 to 21 April, a project in partnership with Materially Now, which sees the first "circular exhibition". No less than 400 square metres of exhibition space are in fact made entirely of flexible polyurethane foam that will be recycled after Milan Design Week 2024, thus giving the material a second life. 

Materially, which for more than two decades has been the point of reference in Italy for the research of innovative materials, has decided to focus on this material, polyurethane foam, for its collective exhibition in full compliance with the concept of circular economy.

A rich calendar of meetings 

The project not only includes an exhibition of innovative products, but also a networking hub with the aim of presenting, narrating, deepening and conveying the uniqueness of the materials of the participating companies. For this reason, 40 seats, also made of natural polyurethane foam, have been placed in the central space to comfortably follow the rich calendar of meetings or, more simply, to rest from the exertions of the Fuorisalone. The seats have different colours and each one corresponds to a different bearing capacity and density in order to create a sensorial path for each visitor to experience the various sensations of comfort.

Polyurethane-is: promoting the material's potential 

There are numerous types of flexible polyurethane foam: each of the manufacturing companies participating in the Poliuretano-è project has more than 100 products in its catalogue with different characteristics that not everyone knows about, polyurethanes with different performances that can be appropriately used for seats, backrests, mattresses and pillows, but also for special applications. 

Poliuretano-è, the project promoted by the main Italian companies producing flexible polyurethane foam (Cires, Nir, Olmo, Orsa foam, Pelma, Sip), aims precisely at promoting the potential of this material. The project is also supported by companies supplying raw materials and additives for production: Covestro, Evonik, BorsodChem Wanhua, Dow, Hutsmann, Shell.

Expanded polyurethane: the latest technological and sustainable innovations 

Poliuretano-è presents at the exhibition all the latest technological and sustainable novelties in the world of flexible polyurethane foam: materials derived from polyols recycled from exhausted oils or plastic bottles, thermosensitive polyurethanes, water-resistant or with high water retention to allow plants to grow on roofs and façades. 

At the end of Milan Design Week 2024, all the seats will be donated to the Kayros community in Vimodrone, run by Don Claudio Burgio, chaplain of the Beccaria juvenile prison in Milan, which deals with juvenile social reintegration. The rest of the material will not go to landfill, but will be given a new lease of life after a mechanical grinding treatment, at the same companies that produce it. Then mixed with appropriate binders it will give rise to new semi-finished products such as underlay carpeting, soundproofing panels, industrial packaging, and insulating panels, thus extending the material's life cycle.

"The quality of Italian polyurethane is recognised at a European level," emphasises Marco Pelucchi, President of Aipef (Aziende Italiane Poliuretano Espanso Flessibile - Italian Companies for Flexible Polyurethane Expansion). "We can safely speak of 'made in Italy' that is rooted not only in the technological production capacity of our companies, but above all in the ability to generate innovative products. We have fully embraced Materially's request to set up an exhibition with the material produced by our members, which will then be recycled or recovered to be returned to circulation as new products because it is a virtuous example and will have to be increasingly taken into account in the future".

Olmo's innovative products 

Let's take a detailed look at the innovative flexible polyurethane foam products on display. 

Olmo presents Visco Pet, a viscoelastic polyurethane made with a minimum percentage of 13% renewable raw materials. The use of a 5 cm sheet of Visco Pet in a double mattress allows the equivalent of 85 plastic bottles to be recovered from the environment. 

AIR VE 45 PET is the first viscoelastic cross-linked polyurethane foam made from polyols obtained from recycled PET with high breathability and drainage characteristics, ideal for outdoor furniture and yachting. 

VIRIdiVITA is the only system that utilises the natural rainwater cycle by retaining it within a flexible, water-retention polyurethane foam and gradually releasing it into the environment, making it available to plant roots, enabling the creation of green roofs and walls.

Orsa foam's innovative products 

Orsa foam presents I-fo@m Th 45 BrVe, a viscoelastic polyurethane with microencapsulated PCMs that remove excess heat and an open cell structure that guarantees high air permeability and breathability of the material. 

RisOrsa 42 VP is a pneumatic visco-elastic polyurethane with reduced environmental impact made using high percentages of natural polyols that replace part of the raw materials of fossil origin, while maintaining the fundamental characteristics of quality and comfort. Ideal for pillows.

Finally, Breeze 50 HR, a polyurethane with an open cellular conformation that guarantees the free passage of air and the rapid dispersion of moisture and heat, giving the greatest feeling of well-being and the most complete rest.

Pelma's innovative products 

Pelma offers Natura®, a medium/high density polyurethane, in conventional, high resilience (HR) and viscoelastic variants, containing renewable raw materials based on vegetable oils.

Thermofresh® is a family of flexible polyurethane foams that brings thermal and hygienic benefits to the finished product. Thermofresh® has the capacity to absorb heat through the fusion of the PCM (Phase Change Materials) microcapsules contained inside, while the special Ultrafresh treatment based on silver ions confers anti-mould and anti-bacterial properties. 

The latest innovative product is Bio Circular with ISCC PLUS certified polyols derived from end-of-life vegetable sources. Bio Circular polyurethanes have the same physical-mechanical characteristics as conventional products, while allowing for a strong reduction in carbon footprint.