Barent Brings Sustainable Manufacturing to the Masses

Imagine if you could actually see sustainability in manufacturing manifested, immediately and obviously. That's exactly what the team at Circular Economy Manufacturing have done with their creation and launch of the world's first Micro-Factory. The concept is simple: show people what it looks like to build closed loops into manufacturing using a living demonstration.

The visionary behind the project is Barent Roth, a professor, engineer, designer, and sustainability advocate since well before it was hip to be green. Barent has worked in and out of the classroom to bring to life the principles that guide his teachings, culminating most recently with the erection of the Micro Factory. 

The Micro-Factory itself is devilishly simple- you (the student, consumer, human, all of the above) watch as reclaimed plastic bottles are fed into a shredder, broken into pieces small enough to be heated via solar energy into a material that can be molded right before your eyes into something useful. It's self contained, runs on renewable energy, requires no transportation of materials, and is delightfully clever to behold. 

Step into the world of sustainable design as Barent walks us through his methodology, philosophy, and infectious delight with all things sustainable.