Re-boards Ali Khalili (CEO) and Einar Ek (Director Business development) about how Re-board sets of to meet the future with Re-board Technology.
What is new at Re-board?
(Einar) A lot of things are happening at Re-board I can promise but to focus on a couple of important ones I think our new web page is a good place to start, because it is the first visible part of the change.
What we aim to achieve is to move from being a product-oriented production company to a more solution-oriented company which is more open and transparent in the way we talk and the way we act. What we do now is basically adding a communication platform to meet a long-wanted change in Re-board’s approach to the market.
That said, the newly launched web page really is an MVP page, a minimum viable product. It’s a good platform and one that can build where we want it to, but at present its only just enough to underline our direction.
What is Re-boards direction?
(Ali) It’s about continuing what Re-board always has done, which is to showcase to the world what paper can do and highlight the benefits with a material that results in limited environmental impact.
About environment
We consider sustainability as the most important global issue, today and tomorrow. And this is where we believe we can make a difference! Our product is bio-based, renewable and recyclable, making sustainability the very core of what we do! With our products we simply believe we can actually make a difference!
What is an environmentally friendly material?
(Einar) Is there such a thing as an environmentally friendly material? Think about it, as soon as a raw material uses to make another material, something is removed.
The solution must be to understand each material more in detail. Their properties and strengths of course, but also the different environmental footprints they leave behind. Over time we will learn what materials that should be used for a given application not which that can be used.
The overall environmental impact
(Ali) Sustainability is so much more than certain certificates or CO2 reports or percentages of X and Ys. It’s about the bigger picture with clean air, water and energy, responsible consumption and production, sustainably managed forests, conservations of the oceans and, and much more!
There is a complexity here than can’t be diminished with over-simplified statements and fashionable proclamations. We at Reboard are far from perfect, which I think is the case for most organizations. However, by being transparent and continuously working towards the general target of trying to reduce our overall impact, I believe we gradually and step by step move in the right direction.
Designers role
A key component in this journey ahead are the designers, who have always played a key role during the history of Re-board. And we believe they will play an even more important role, guiding us into the future. Hence there’s a need to point the spotlight at the designers.
(Einar) Its important to know that throughout the history of Re-Board, the designer has played a key role, understanding the materials properties, experimenting with cutting techniques, colours and designs to find new ways and improve the usability and discover new areas of use.
The Gallery is updated
The gallery gives us a glimpse of the iceberg and is a way for us to show what paper can do. Early adopters of Re-board started with a handful of designs and now they are making everything from solid retail displays to complex structures. They have inspired many to follow and they still do.
Speaking about the gallery, when you can showcase art and design made by others it does follow an obligation. Its about respect for others work and specially on social media.
Greet the artist!
(Einar) I would claim its normal politeness to greet someone sharing. Also in social media. The best way of showing a designer respect is to credit their work if you post a design. It is very easy just add a link back to the designer and by that show the origin. If you would like to use images, then get in touch with the artist.
Becoming more transparent
A prerequisite for everything discussed is, from my point of view, transparency. With our new communication platform, we aim to increase the transparency and openness on all topics. Hopefully this will not only cater the need of communicating complexity in a better way, but also increase the interaction within the Re-board community.
As an example, we are launching both an environmental and a technical Q&A that will over the course of time steadily grow as we get more and more questions, input and facts on the table.
Only by understanding more and communicate accurately can give the creative environments, brand owners, customers and people what they need to make knowledge-based decisions. The goal must be to drive our businesses in the direction of becoming as environmentally friendly as possible.