17 Q4 2021 BUILD Best Tropical Bamboo Decking Manufacturer 2021 A pioneer of low-carbon smart-manufacturing, African Bamboo has created a platform built on disruptive technology to utilise natural fibres to create high performance products for a construction industry that is striving to be more sustainable. We found out more about African Bamboo’s expertise in innovative deep technologies following its success at the Construction and Engineering Awards 2021. frican Bamboo is a natural fibre company based in the Netherlands and Ethiopia that is revolutionising the production of high-performance materials to substitute steel, concrete, plastic, glass and aluminium, thereby helping industries to make the move towards low-carbon production. Currently, the construction industry is by far the most resourceintensive and environmentally destructive, consuming 40-50% of all primary raw materials and contributing to 23% of the world’s air pollution, 50% of climate change, 40% of drinking water pollution and 50% of landfill waste, according to a study by GoContractor. Changes have to be made, and the urgency of these changes has been highlighted by the Paris Treaty, the EU Green Deal and discussions around the COP26 in Glasgow. The aims laid out on these platforms centre around using 50% less primary materials by 2030 and to be a fully circular economy by 2050 – an ambitious task, but not an impossible one. African Bamboo is maximising the potential of one of the most promising approaches to achieving these goals: the application of renewable, bio-based materials in the built environment and the replacement of traditional, typically cement-based, materials. Amongst the founders is Khalid Duri, who also serves as the CEO and has extensive experience in managerial positions in the timber and the materials production industry. Under his leadership, African Bamboo is well-positioned to change the construction industry from within. The African Bamboo process begins with the development of multiple sources of renewable materials to guarantee supply for manufacturers. The forestry division of the organisation manages bamboo forests of Yushania Alpina - a non-invasive bamboo species that is native to 12 countries of Africa, including Ethiopia - in a way that is socially, environmentally and economically sustainable. African Bamboo works with more than 2,000 smallholders within forest communities of Sidama, Ethiopia and is undertaking the landscape restoration and conservation of more than 12,000 hectares of land across regions of Ethiopia. The firm is then able to source its FSC-certified bamboo from these community, managed forest, and plantation sites, and supply it as products or materials to customers. A Sep21019 Bamboo is a strong, versatile and more readily and sustainably available material that can be used in conjunction with other bio-based materials for greener practices and products. African Bamboo boasts an inaugural low-carbon, smart-manufacturing platform that is fibre agonistic, tech intensified, and PAT-enabled, making for a more efficient and less wasteful system that outstrips that of any other manufacturer currently in the market. The outcome is a variety of products designed for a myriad of uses. Scrimberboard, a strand woven bamboo used for decking, cladding and flooring, is one of the firm’s most notable offerings and has earned its recognition as Best Tropical Bamboo Decking Manufacturer 2021. Owing to the variety of functions that African Bamboo’s clients use its materials for, the firm has created an innovative manufacturing platform that removes variability by enabling users to select the natural fibres that are best suited to their needs, and tailoring them to be stronger, cheaper, cleaner and the perfect fit for their use. BAM-Tech uses machine learning and AI to create a fully transparent, time and resource-efficient production process that results in highly specialised products – thereby positioning itself as a highly valued, if not essential, tool for African Bamboo’s clients within construction. The success of African Bamboo has enabled the firm to look ahead and consider how it can both do and be better as a business for society as a whole. From its initiative to protect the indigenous Bale Monkeys of Ethiopia to its partnership with TU Delft that has facilitated the expansion of its R&D capabilities in the Netherlands and Europe, it is a busy and exciting time for this Dutch-Ethiopian enterprise. And there is little doubt that we can expect significant outcomes from this productive period that will have lasting impacts on the shape of the construction industry and its effects on our planet. Contact: Khalid Duri Company: African Bamboo Web Address: www.african-bamboo.com
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