Eco Factor: Speakers made from clay.
With the rise in environmental awareness among the masses, manufacturers want to get sustainability attached to their products’ names even if the product is merely a showpiece without much practical relevance. Industrial designer Hanri de la Fontyn thinks different. He believes that any sustainable product shouldn’t only be powered by or made from sustainable materials, but the overall manufacturing process should be as green as the product itself. Keeping “green” manufacturing as the first priority, the designer has come up with a new loudspeaker system he calls the Ceramic Calabash speakers.
The speaker is to be made from the basic natural material – clay, and is to be manufactured using traditional manufacturing methods. The shape of the speakers is derived from the African calabash, which has traditionally been turned into medicine containers, water containers and drums.
Ceramicists produce a clay mold and decorate it in any way the consumer wants. After the design is complete the loudspeaker driver units are tuned with internal electronics. The damping material in the form of wood bundles or any other natural fiber provides for the final tuning for a perfect sound.
