Project aiming to make surfboard fins from recycled plastic

The design agency Outercraft is working on the possibility of developing surfboard fins from recycled plastic waste collected on the beach. The first prototypes were tested this September. 

“It’s an idea that I started to work on over a year ago. My aim is to make surfboard fins from plastic waste collected on beaches. First, I joined the Precious Plastic Community, which aims to transform plastic into a resource using open-source machines, allowing everyone to recycle it locally. I made a machine, but it wasn’t advanced enough to produce the fins. So, I contacted Outercraft and asked them to design a solid fibre-free model of the fins, aimed at beginner or average surfers. Of course, the idea is to be able to recycle the fins afterwards,” explains Bastien Mével, who is behind the AdaozWave project.

Outercraft was created on the Technology Park site in March 2017 by Florian Auger, and offers strategy, design, engineering and prototype services to help simplify and accelerate a product’s design process. For Bastien Mével’s project, the company has not only helped design the fins, but also helped with the mode of production, offering both an innovative solution of 3D printing and the more traditional option of injection moulding. Although the manufacturing method has still not been determined, prototypes of the fins have been made. Tests will be carried out this autumn and Outercraft will then analyse the results. “Together, we will study the most suitable production method by using a supply of recycled plastic from the industrial sector that’s already in place, as it is too early to try and use plastic collected from beaches,” explains Bastien Mével.

Website: https://outercraft.fr/en/home/