You may not know this, but fiberglass has actually been recycled for decades. Fiberglass can only be recycled into more fiberglass products; it cannot be blended in with most other types of plastics. Earlier processes, used mostly in the boating industry, involved grinding up the fiber into a powder and using it as filler in fiberglass production. Today there are many companies throughout the world such as Seawolf Industries that make and distribute machinery that recycle fiberglass with a high degree of efficiency. Seawolf Industries is only one of many companies involved in spreading fiberglass technology to as many industries as possible.

As recycling becomes a necessity and as the costs of raw materials increase, using recycled fiberglass will not only be more commonplace but it actually offers lucrative advantages. Recycled fiberglass is less expensive and can be stronger, lighter and more durable. Recycled fiberglass can already be found in building materials, swimming pools, bathtubs, park benches, food court furniture, bus seating, stadium seating household and industrial recycling bins, public trash receptacles and even boats.

Certain products demand durability. In this era of adopting and adapting to the concept of sustainability, we also have to consider when a high durability material is environmentally superior to a low durability material such as polypropelene. The general consensus is that fiberglass is a better material choice for a product that needs to be long-lasting and wear resistant. That’s why you’ll find fiberglass chairs in areas like bus stations and on trains where polyproelene would wear out quickly.

Learn more and about fiberglass recycling. For more information, please refer to the following links and websites:

http://www.gogreenfrp.com/pdfs/soundings.pdf

http://gogreenfrp.com/

http://americanfibergreenproducts.com/

2008
The spirit of the collection

The multicolored dream of the 2008 collection captures an air of botanic parks, forests, imaginary gardens. An intriguing game of blending and altering elements and emotions, mixing indoor with outdoor atmospheres, combining sunny colors with shadowy tones.
In this playful, imaginary habitat, the complex of textures, motifs, decors and harmonies of filtered colors – the product of a lighthearted alchemy – order themselves into compositions that are balanced and precise, never random.
The secret formula of the MissoniHome style is the coexistence of diversity.
So, metaphysical geometries give way to the impact of pictorial naturalism; the delight of rhythmic, symmetrical motifs with soft, shaded tones alternate with the strong realism of animated botanical reproductions.
A love of natural harmony lies behind the choices of Rosita, who in them subconsciously declares her eco-friendly convictions by surrounding herself with her favorite elements – all pieces in a game that captures the sensations and atmospheres of outdoors and brings them into the home. The floral symbol this year is a very glamorous, brilliantly colored tulip amid crowds of flying butterflies, splashes of polka-dots, stripes and, here and there, a few wild mushrooms – Rosita’s secret passion.
Today, the home is a harmony of forms, tones and enjoyment. It’s still a refuge but also a place to create positive messages and express a warm welcome.

Textures & style
Embodied in the smallest details, emphasized in magnified motifs with balanced clusters of varying intensities and depths, emotions you can see and savor breathe life into pillows and bedspreads, towels and rugs, tables and walls, chairs, lamps and curtains.
Panels in airy, semitransparent fabrics. Bedspreads and pillows in silky soft quilting. Sofas and armchairs in luminous compact and double cottons, specially treated so they’re also suitable for outdoor use.
Prints that are dense, assertive or faded. Relief and layered designs achieved with sophisticated finishing techniques. Innovative details, like light metallic plating on stainless steel and crystalline patinas that imprison embroidered designs.
The fabrics with flower and mushroom prints are like an artist’s palette, with all the wit of a cartoon and the incisiveness of naturalistic tableaux. Individual profiles and silhouettes arranged like elements in a decoupage, interlaced like garlands. Stripes in effervescent and multihued tones crisscross stamps and polka-dots, and shape and edge delicate butterfly profiles.
Solid colors create endless contrasts in combinations of crimson, cream and charcoal as well as two-tone optical effects. Often stripes are invaded by clouds of polka-dots and butterflies that flutter about calmly. Single colors form backdrops to velvety relief motifs.
Printed shadows and kaleidoscopic symmetries multiply. Embroidered designs become denser.
The backgrounds are satin, tulle, taffeta, double, piquet, percale, damask linen and velvet. Plus there’s cotton, linen blends, viscose and wool, as well as terry toweling and velour with reversible jacquard and printed finishes.

The official launch of Missoni 08 will be in June!