THE VALUES BEHIND THE HABICAVE
The HabiCave was created to improve people’s lives while protecting the environment
The HabiCave is the first piece of furniture launched by HabiWe, a series of design furniture that, besides focusing on aesthetics, develops research-based, sustainable, industrial and functional designs made for the needs of its users.
The HabiCave is developed with a significant focus on acoustics and reducing stressful noises and is built on sustainability throughout the product’s life cycle. In this way, we are working towards sustainability and quality by combining it with well-being and aesthetics.
SUSTAINABILITY
The HabiCave is developed with a focus on sustainable concepts like:
Co-Creation:
The HabiCave is developed with the direct involvement of our users through “co-creation” and user-involvement workshops. These processes give insights and ensure that needs and wishes are met while the users feel a sense of ownership throughout the development.
Design for Disassembly/Repair
The HabiCave is delivered “flat-packed” and consists of 5 parts and 9 screws. The design makes it possible to replace/divide/sort the modules if they break or after use has ended.
Materials/Mono Materials
The materials used in the HabiCave all have a sustainable background. The primary material is certified felt, upcycled from PET plastics collected from the World’s oceans. The material has a high quality in terms of both tactility, strength and acoustics. All secondary materials are materials that, likewise, do not hurt or strain the environment through their production. Most of the fragments are made of “Mono materials” to ensure the possibility of reuse.
Design for Longevity/Customisation/Production on Demand
Der er i udviklingen af HabiCave In our development of the HabiCave, we worked to create an aesthetically durable design in a robust construction, a strong material and a variety of beautiful Nordic colours. The HabiCave is produced on demand and comes in 8 colours, 2 heights and 3 base/frame varieties. This way, it is possible for the user to customise the furniture to match their needs and surroundings. By doing this, we avoid overproduction and instead produce products that fit the specific user and help to ensure that the HabiCave has a long life with the consumer.
Labelling
All HabiCave furniture is labelled with the production number and product number, thereby becoming traceable – a traceability concept being developed.
With regards to production and logistics, the development of the HabiCave has worked with:
Local Production
The parts that make up the HabiCave are made in Denmark, and all fragments are also processed in Denmark. In this way, we ensure local employment, shorter deliveries and limited transportation. All production locations are focused on the use of green energy and CSR. Since the felt used in the product is only produced in China, it is made there and then further processed in Denmark.
Zero-Waste
The HabiCave’s design is inspired by the Japanese paper folding technique origami. This inspiration makes it possible to manufacture the product’s roof from a piece of wood (standard 122 x 244), which is utilised optimally to limit waste in its production. Meanwhile, the product’s foldability means it can be compressed to take up as little room as possible during storage or shipping.
Logistics
By processing the primary and secondary materials and elements in Denmark, we can shorten the production line, and the subcontractors can produce smaller batches. The product is developed in a way that makes it easy for the user to assemble it themselves. The measurements of the individual parts are modified to minimise the amount of room taken up during storage and ensure that the product can be “flat-packed” on a Euro-pallet.
Furthermore, we have worked on 6 of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in the development of the product (3, 4, 7, 8, 12, 14).
HabiWe will use these same terms in the product development of future products in our product portfolio.
“We are passionate about developing furniture that will ensure the increased well-being of our users.”
WELL-BEING
The HabiCave can be used by anyone who needs a microbreak – children, adolescents and adults, with or without issues with sensory modulation. The cave is developed to create an inclusive space for calmness, comfort, and sensory modulation.
Sensory modulation describes the brain’s ability to receive and process information and impressions from the senses through the nervous system. Many people must reduce sensory impressions to gain calmness and focus on an important task.
If too many impressions need to be processed, the brain becomes distracted and cannot distinguish these impressions, resulting in disruption. On the other hand, if the impressions that do come are not informative enough, the brain can become slow and passive, which can cause inactivity. A microbreak in the HabiCave helps your brain’s sensory modulation.
The HabiCave is designed with a focus on creating a room within the room. An inclusive space that calms the nervous system and gives the user comfort and energy for meaningful activities.
AESTHETICS
The HabiCave is a piece of sculptural furniture designed with inspiration from the Japanese paper-folding technique origami. A cave that, with its aesthetic form and a 3D spatial experience, appeals to the senses.
The HabiCave has a cubist form, warm colours and comfortable materials. This, combined with its soft, inviting expression, appeals to the senses and provides the cave’s user with a sense of comfort, spaciousness, embrace, and calmness.
The HabiCave speaks to the wellness movement with its ability to reduce noise and modulate sensory impressions, inviting one to take microbreaks during the day. It is unique in its expression and comes in 25 different colours. In this way, it can be customised to fit into a stylish home.
The HabiCave is a registered design in the EU.
ACOUSTICS
The HabiCave is a noise-reducing cave. Tests show that the noise level within the HabiCave is reduced by a third, compared to the surrounding room.
As such, the user will experience a noise level inside the cave that is 33% lower than the room outside. Therefore, the HabiCave is ideal for preventing and remedying overstimulation, unrest, and problems with concentration.
Meanwhile, the HabiCave has a noise-reducing effect on rooms with poor acoustics. The cave’s felt material absorbs the sounds and helps reduce the sounds’ reverberation in the room, which is beneficial to the room’s acoustics. As a result, when placing the HabiCave in your home, it can be considered an acoustics-improving material. In this way, the HabiCave can help to improve well-being and create a better working and learning environment.
Too much noise and lack of rest influence our ability to concentrate and stay focused for long periods. The HabiCave, with its noise-reducing capabilities, helps create calmness, cosiness and immersion in its users, young or old.
FUNCTIONALITY
The HabiCave is a room within the room. It creates a cave that can sort out sounds and sensory impressions when you need a break or when your brain is overworked.
The furniture’s felt material reduces noise by a third, thereby removing a significant stress factor when the user is inside. The field of vision is limited to the cave’s opening, so it is still possible to be a part of surrounding activities without being completely isolated, making the HabiCave an inclusive and functional piece of furniture.
The HabiCave can be used by one person alone or by either two children or an adult and a child simultaneously.
The HabiCave is available in children’s and adults’ sizes and with a stationary base or a rocking base that stimulates the equilibrium.