FAD/Materfad training sessions
Basic information
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Project Description
We are MATERFAD, the Barcelona Materials Centre, created and driven since 2008 by the FAD, Fostering Arts and Design (Barcelona, Spain, 1903). Among other services, at MATERFAD we provide institutions, professionals and students with exhaustive knowledge of both technologies and materials of the latest trends, allowing us to generate inspiring content, curating and producing exhibitions in the field of advanced materials or offering bespoke training packages, including at university level.
Project Region
EU Programme or fund
Which funds
Other Funds
1. DATEMATS is an european project that aims to transfer and implement a unique design-led teaching method for students with a mixed background (design and engineering) in the field of Emerging Materials and Technologies (EM&Ts), and to boost knowledge and technology transfers from academia and research centres to industry.
New materials and technologies represent a key-factor not only to obtain better performances and innovative solutions, but also to enhance the product language in terms of new experiences and original expressive-sensorial dimensions.
EM&Ts are at the leading edge in several sectors and are one of the key-elements through which industries stimulate innovation processes and foster creativity. The landscape of EM&Ts requires new interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches in education, industry and business.
By focusing on design methods, entrepreneurial skills, socio-cultural factors, and innovation potentials of EM&Ts, Datemats project contributes to fulfil the university’s third mission, strengthening the ‘knowledge triangle’ by linking education with research and innovation, stimulating social and economic development.
MATERFAD is part of Datemats' partners, an interdisciplinary consortium to support the exchange of good practices, mutual learning and the development of joint results, involving a total of ten partners connecting six countries from Europe’s North to the South: Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Spain and Portugal.
2. THE MATERIALS FARM. Project supported by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) of the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness technological science and of innovation.
The Materials Farm proposes an unprecedented vision in Spain of the development of new non-conventional materials with great potential for innovation in the different disciplines of design and, consequently, for making a direct impact on society. Through the technical surveillance task undertaken by Materfad, Barcelona’s materials centre, we have identified the most relevant working lines in this field and have established the need to advance them in order to achieve a real impact on industry and on society.
From the development of materials based on organisms such as fungi and bacteria, surpluses and waste derived from human activity or non-conventional organic fibres such as human hair to the use and modification of natural processes, these initiatives open the door to a new generation of more responsible and sustainable materials, products and consumption modes.
Description of the project
Summary
FAD/MATERFAD Barcelona connects the technical knowledge of new materials with the businesses and the creative disciplines represented by professionals from the fields of design, architecture and arts that comprise the FAD. The technical, creative and economic disciplines need to establish a dialogue between them, so as not to make the same mistakes ever again. It provides various training and knowledge dissemination services:
1. Group training (on-site distance/presential): With explanations provided by by Robert D. Thompson, Scientific Director of MATERFAD. A selection of the most relevant samples present in the physical library is presented and after that, a discussion is held with the materials technician to deepen their knowledge and applications.
2. The support for tutorials is aimed at master’s or thesis students in need of micro-consulting related to their final project. The session focuses on solving a specific challenge through practical knowledge and active mastery of new materials and technologies.
3. Bespoke training: Tailored training programmes in any field of materials intended for updating knowledge on advanced materials and their associated technologies. They are designed for meeting the specific needs of a company or professional association.
4. Customised reports on trends: Exploration of markets associated with materials in different industries as well as detection of future opportunities through materials and communication.
5. Curating of exhibitions, events and forums: As a result of the ongoing activity in technological surveillance of new materials and their innovative potential in sectors such as design, architecture or engineering, MATERFAD Barcelona curates and produces different exhibitions, events and forums with advanced materials as the pivotal theme, disseminating knowledge on materials and associated technologies for institutions and businesses. (Stories)
Key objectives for sustainability
The correct functioning, the environmental impact, the quality of the manufacturing processes and, to a large extent, the relevance of products depend on the materials.
The demands of the current scene mobilise the agents of the design ecosystem as never before, as the scientific world, universities and centres such as MATERFAD have been doing for years. The industry is already incubating solutions to create new products that propose alternatives to materials derived from petroleum or animals and MATERFAD is aligned with these aims, organising specific training sessions, workshops and exhibitions that highlight the need to find and apply sustainable materials and processes.
The latest examples are:
1. The exhibition “Neomateria”, new materials for the crafts (open in Lleida, Spain, until the 21st June, after being in South Korea). This exhibition seeks to give a voice to some of the materials that embody this change, in a journey encompassing from a new view of the natural world to the new paths being opened by science and technology.
2.The workshop Biomaterials design, an immersive demonstration of biomaterials, held in our headquarters on April 2021 as part of the exhibition Remix El Barrio, Food Waste Biomaterials Design. This exhibition was born with the ambition to propose a learning place that promotes and enables new practices based on neo-craftsmanship with food waste. The exhibition was the result of a european pilot program where designers learn about biomaterial design and explore projects with food scraps using artisanal techniques and digital fabrication.
3.Workshop Taboo Materials for a New Reality (Madrid, Spain, February 2021; Sevilla, Spain, next June 2021) Can we imagine a future world where organic-type waste such as hair, fingernails or blood can be used for making more sustainable and efficient objects? At this workshop we learn to look in a radically new way at a whole series of unconventional materials.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
In 2006, FAD organized an exhibition called "Mater in progress". It consisted of 100 projects, selected by a committee of experts that were representative of the innovation and new technologies applied to materials produced by Spanish companies.
While organizing this exhibition, FAD detected the need for designers to have a space where they could consult materials applicable to their designs, so the show gave rise to the creation of MATERFAD, the materials centre of Barcelona. FAD, through its extensive background in the world of design, created and provided MATERFAD with the perspective and language that still act today as a connector between the aesthetics of design, its functionality and the suitability of the materials used to produce it. Thus, we can say that MATERFAD (2008) is the result of the increasing role played by materials in the development of our society, both from an aesthetic and functional point of view.
This is reflected in the different workshops, forums and exhibitions that MATERFAD has been organizing (or cooperating with) since 2008, where the projects shown are a clear example of the application of advanced materials in both aesthetically and functionally compatible products. Reshape; Future Woods; Remix; Neomateria... are the latest examples of exhibitions where the responsible use of materials and aesthetically attractive shapes or products coexist.
If we should talk about our project "in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience beyond functionality", we should probably focus on the artistic side of design. The 10th edition of «The Best Design of the Year» (2nd June - 28th August 2021), features the shortlisted and prize-winning works, from professionals and students, of the awards organized by the FAD associations. The 12th Art FAD Awards, for example, aim to recognise the art pieces that stand out because they are using new contemporary art expressions, especially on the concept, techniques and innovative use of the materials.
Key objectives for inclusion
In 1903, FAD was founded through a desire to act, and it is maintained as a commitment to excellence in the design of everything that surrounds us: wether it is urban planning, architecture, interior design, handicrafts, industrial design, graphic design, fashion, jewellery-making, etc. What FAD's members desire, and have done since FAD was founded, is to improve our surroundings, to make people's lives easier, not just functionally but also emotionally and symbolically or, in other words, to make people a little happier.
During its early years, FAD was closely involved with the applied arts; later, it represented the introduction of design and when FAD moved to Barcelona's historical centre in 1999, it welcomed the arrival of the XXIst Century with a more open approach, operating at a street level, alongside and at the service of people. We could say that it went from the decorative arts to discovering design as a profession and later, to promoting design that is skilled and socially-committed.
We work together to exchange knowledge and provide solutions for the challenges our society faces, coming up with answers through design in its broadest sense, with projects such as Ensayo General (General Rehearsal), an activity which each year puts the citizens to the test in a subject that concerns us as a society.
In one word, FAD is an open space for all members of the public who wish to:
INVOLVE themselves actively in the city’s cultural activity and support innovative, experimental initiatives
EXPERIENCE at first hand the latest trends in creative disciplines
RECEIVE direct, up-to-date information concerning disciplines linked to architecture, the arts and design in its broadest sense
SUPPORT the work of young creators
ENCOURAGE contact between students, professional designers, businesses and cultural institutions
PARTICIPATE in an organised way in the development of our society
Results in relation to category
Regarding FAD/Materfad's training sessions (both online and on-site guided tours) exhibitions; conferences; forums... and taking into account the restrictions and limitations experienced as a result of the COVID19 global pandemic in 2020, we offer a balance of those performed in 2019 and 2020 together:
185 guided/online tours = 3.830 students/teachers = 72 companies/schools/universities (both national and international)
4 specialised training activities and 9 conferences = more than 2.000 participants
Regarding Materfad's free access online database (where more than 3.000 references of advanced materials can be consulted) we received more than 130.000 visits to the web and blog
Exhibitions: More than 300 advanced materials /projects exhibited = more than 15.000 visitors
How Citizens benefit
FAD is a non-profit association of professionals and businesses connected to design. We believe that design can improve the lives of people so we work together to exchange knowledge and provide solutions for the challenges our society faces, coming up with answers through design in its broadest sense.
Right from the start of the health crisis, MATERFAD has been working intensely on identifying materials and the manufacture of solutions to deal with COVID-19. In responding to the call of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, we have facilitated a valuable resolution to the pressing need for procuring materials through COVID Warriors collaborative platform. We have been actively collaborating in identifying and selecting businesses that could provide materials for manufacturing single-use healthcare products such as gowns, clogs and face masks, among others.
A group of experts from Barcelona-based entities hailing from different fields, such as MATERFAD (materials), Barcelona’s Hospital Clínic (healthcare), Leitat (technology) and the FAD (design) have pooled their expertise to come up with innovative solutions, such as:
The Barcelona Mask project: It seeks to promote the design of a family of face masks and protection elements for the general population to meet the needs of safety, sustainability, usability, comfort, inclusivity and affordability. In addition it seeks to be an attractive product or family of products for the different population segments, one that can be produced on a large scale through local business networks.
The first step in carrying out this project is for a large number of people to complete a survey on face mask use, the result of which will be the starting point for drawing up the conditions of a multidisciplinary competition involving design, materials, science and technology, aiming to produce pre-industrial prototypes of a family of face masks that meets the needs of the citizens. This project is still on-going.
Innovative character
2006: FAD organized an exhibition called "Mater in progress". It consisted of 100 projects, selected by a committee of experts that were representative of the innovation and new technologies applied to materials produced by Spanish companies.
Although FAD has been exhibiting products from the design perspective for years (we seek and promote excellence by organizing awards, some of them highly prestigious with more than 50 years behind them), it was the first time that we placed more emphasis on the materials used than on the product itself. As proof of the success of this new approach, the exhibition was requested in Madrid and Zaragoza (Spain) and was key to the FAD's decision to give rise to the creation of MATERFAD, the materials centre of Barcelona, as it detected the need for designers to have a space where they could consult advanced materials applicable to their designs.
Since 2008, (the materials Showroom opens) we offer training services on advanced materials and have organized more than 1.000 guided tours = more than 20.000 visitors (students, teachers, professionals). The MATERFAD Showroom offers a unique experience thanks to the free and inspiring contact with thousands of samples of materials from all over the world and all economic sectors, selected from a design, innovation, sustainability and good practice point of view.
We also started the first database in advanced materials in Spain and Latin America: open, free and the world’s only one in Spanish, based on the permanent efforts made to locate marketed materials, technical data and suppliers. MATERFAD compiles more than 3.000 items in its database, which features a powerful search engine with 157 search criteria.
Since 2012, MATERFAD is considered an Innovation Support Centre by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. Secretary of State for Research, Development and Innovation (General Secretariat for Science, Technology and Innovation) of the Government of Spain.
