Sustainability is the big issue of our time and more and more water sports brands are addressing this topic in the production of their products. Duotone is now aiming to Concept Blue take a further step - Max Pajank, Product Manager for Wings at Duotone, and Klaas Voget, Brand Manager for Duotone Wing & Foiling, explain what's behind this in an interview.
With Concept Blue, the Duotone brand has created its own approach to sustainability. How did this concept come about?
Klaas: A few years ago, Boards & More began a sustainability journey with the campaign Save Our Playgroundswhere we have increased our focus on all aspects of our business. Save Our Playgrounds has a more global approach - from our Clean Beach Day campaigns to greener packaging, optimised shipping and reducing the carbon footprint at our production sites, we are striving to act more sustainably. With Concept Blue we are now looking at the products themselves and the materials used. Last year, we launched the Concept Blue initiative, utilising all available resources. We thoroughly analysed the production process of raw materials to identify the areas with the greatest potential for CO2 savings. Our aim was to explore alternative materials. This task is challenging, as the materials used have to withstand considerable stress and external influences such as wind, salt water and UV radiation. Nevertheless, we can confidently say that we are currently using the best materials available on the market.
What exactly does Concept Blue contain? Which product are we talking about exactly?
MaxConcept Blue means that we want to produce products as sustainably as possible in accordance with current standards. This not only includes the downstream processes at the manufacturers - for example by using solar energy or similar measures in the production process - but also concerns the product itself and the materials used, as Klaas has already mentioned. For 2024, we have started with the Slick Concept Blue - our freeride and freestyle wing, which will be available in eight sizes. But this is just the beginning, in the future we will look carefully at each individual product to see where it makes sense to replace existing materials with more sustainable alternatives - with the best possible performance and without losing sight of the costs. Production may be a little more expensive here and there, but our aim is to ensure that the products are still available to customers at the same price. At the same time, we want to produce as sustainably as possible.
How will the Slick Concept Blue Wing differ from the conventionally produced slick models?
Max: Basically, there are no differences in terms of performance or durability between the Slick Concept Blue and other models. The focus is on the materials and possible improvements in this area. After careful consideration, we have identified three key measures to improve the sustainability of our wings. Firstly, we are completely eliminating colour from all fabrics, including the canopy and Dacron. Conventional dyeing methods use harmful solvents and require thousands of litres of water to rinse - we have successfully eliminated this. Secondly, we use a bio-based bubble which, although not 100 per cent organic, is currently the most sustainable bubble product on the market, offering up to 57 per cent bio-based material and around 30 per cent CO2 savings. The third measure concerns the use of injection-moulded parts: This production process normally generates significant standard waste, ranging from ten to 30 per cent, depending on the part. We actively recycle this waste in our production to produce other plastic components. For example, the discs that house the valves or the cap of the valve are made from this recycled plastic.
If there are no coloured fabrics at all, these wings should be quite pale, right?
Max: We would like to emphasise that we use "undyed fabric", which distinguishes us from white fabric used by other manufacturers for further processing or printing. Unlike white fabric, undyed material does not undergo a regular dyeing process to achieve a pure white tone - therefore we do not apply colour particles in the typical dyeing process. We have discussed this issue at length with manufacturers and firmly believe that undyed material is actually a more sustainable choice than white fabric. Our undyed material still has a relatively white appearance, albeit not completely white. Emphasising this aspect is important to clarify that our Concept Blue wings focus on undyed material and thus aim to completely eliminate the traditional dyeing process.
Sustainability is a process. Step by step, we are getting better
Klaas: When you know the background behind this simple uncoloured look of the Concept Blue wings, it becomes a statement to ride them. We are sure that there will be customers who are willing to use more sustainable products. Apart from that, they also look pretty cool and high quality. The Concept Blue wing has been designed to retain a certain appeal and remain visually appealing even with reduced prints.
In the end, the customers vote at the checkout. How do you rate the potential for sustainable products in water sports?
Klaas: The current plan is to continue with the existing design methods and to press ahead with the introduction of Concept Blue. Ultimately, however, the decision is up to the customer. Some people only shop in organic shops, others in regular supermarkets. You can always argue about taste in terms of design, but as I said, this is also an ideological question. Performance should not be negatively affected under any circumstances. We are convinced that there will be a demand for Concept Blue products. However, we would not switch everything to Concept Blue - we see this as a development process. Step by step, we are becoming more sustainable. This applies not only to Concept Blue, but also to our company's entire sustainability strategy.
