As you may know, isla’s stand at The Meetings Show looked a little different this year. We partnered with Paradigm, The Bulb, Informa, and The Meetings Show to produce a world-first: a fully reusable, zero-waste stand, made from waste exhibition carpet and repurposed metal frames. This means that we diverted 100% of potential waste to landfill and incineration. We recently published an article which contains more details about the mission behind the stand.

Measuring an exhibition stand using TRACE

As with any exhibition stand, there were multiple materials that went into forming the stand’s structure and with TRACE we were able to measure the emissions generated from each counterpart. In the infographic below, you’re able to see that we measured the amount of materials used and also the distance that each of these materials travelled, in order to reach Paradigm’s Surrey HQ, where the stand was constructed.

To create the tiles that form the stand, carpet from Cheltenham Festival was collected by Innovate Recycle and transformed into pellets. The pellets were then injection moulded  to form the tiles. We were able to measure the total emissions generated by measuring the amount of carpet used and the emissions from the process taken to create the tiles. 

When transporting the stand to exhibitions, or storing it in between events, the stand doesn’t need protecting with plastic wrap, due to the durability of the titles and when the tiles finally reach the end of their life, they can be reprocessed and remade into tiles again, extending longevity of the product and ensuring a circular lifecycle.

When it came to flooring, a variety of options made from post-consumer materials – like ocean plastic – were available, as well as products that can be used over and over again such as Karndean Loose Lay, a different kind of tile to the one used for the stand walls. 

In total, the stand’s total carbon impact from production through to arriving at The Meetings Show was 1.4 tonnes, with our biggest impact areas being production, transport and energy.

Due to the fabrication approach, this stand can be used over and over again, which means that in the future, organisations who use this stand will not need to account for the emissions generated during production, just the ones from transportation and energy used on-stand.

If you are interested in hiring this stand for your organisation, please contact Paradigm. The stand can be customised with bespoke tiles created specifically for your brand, which can be indefinitely.

You can measure the carbon footprint of your own event using TRACE.