New European Bauhaus Prizes 2023

Initiative category

Identify the award category for which this initiative is being submitted
Shaping a circular industrial ecosystem and supporting life-cycle thinking

Email user
damir.hodzic@unbi.ba

Basic information
Initiative title
WW Panels

Full initiative Title
Wood panel construction enhanced with wool fibres

Please provide a short, catchy description of your initiative to be used in communication towards the public.
The goal of this project is to create Hardboard with the addition of wool fibers.
Hardboard is a high-density fiberboard, similar to plywood, but it is pressed under
higher pressure and temperature, so it has greater hardness. Sawdust, waste from
the production of boards, slats, beams are most often used for their production, i.e.
all wood processing waste is used. Our idea is to add wool fibers to production in
addition to waste.

What was the geographical scope of your intiative?
Cross-border/international

Where was your intiative implemented?
Location 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina

Location 2
Serbia

Member State(s), Western Balkans and other countries
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If relevant, insert names of region(s)/municipality(ies) involved
Bihać, Prijedor, Kuršumlija

Does your initiative address mainly urban or rural issues?
It addresses urban-rural linkages

Does your initiative refer to a physical transformation of the built environment or other types of transformations (hard or soft investments)?
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)

Has your initiative benefited from EU programmes and/or funds?
No

Has your initiative won an EU prize with a monetary value awarded?
No

Does your initiative has a minimum level of maturity? The minimum level of maturity is exemplified by stakeholder/ initiative promoter commitment to implement the initiative in practice and a clear methodology /approach.
Yes

On whose behalf are you submitting the application?
As an individual in partnership with other persons
Please provide the contact details for the intiative promoter (the individual or representative of the organisation authorised to represent the intiative).
- First name: Dejla
  Last name: Ramić
  Gender: Female
  Nationality: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Ozimice II
  Town: Bihać
  Postal code: 77000
  Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Direct Tel: +387 61 532 515
  E-mail: dejla.ramic@unbi.ba
- First name: Damir
  Last name: Hodžić
  Gender: Male
  Nationality: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Bosanskih šehida LB/2
  Town: Bihać
  Postal code: 77000
  Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Direct Tel: +387 61 795 094
  E-mail: damir.hodzic@unbi.ba
- First name: Atif
  Last name: Hodžić
  Gender: Male
  Nationality: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Otoka bb
  Town: Bosanska Otoka
  Postal code: 77244
  Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Direct Tel: +387 61 145 984
  E-mail: atif.hodzic@unbi.ba
- First name: Hasan
  Last name: Talić
  Gender: Male
  Nationality: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Bužim
  Town: Bužim
  Postal code: 77245
  Country: Bosnia and Herzegovina
  Direct Tel: +387 61 369 210
  E-mail: hasan.talic@unbi.ba
Social Media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
- URL: https://www.facebook.com/tekstilbihac
- URL: https://www.instagram.com/tekstilni_odsjek_bihac/
- URL: https://ba.linkedin.com/in/damir-hodzic-392983183?trk=prof-samenamepicture
In case my initiative is selected as a finalist of the NEB Prizes 2023, I agree to share the name (individual and/or organisation’s), email address, website and social media accounts indicated above with other NEB Prizes finalists. I also agree to publish the name (individual and/or organisation’s), website and social media accounts indicated above next to the public description of my initiative in the channels of the European Commission.
Yes

How did you hear about the New European Bauhaus Prizes?
Social Media

Description of the initiative
Please provide a summary of your initiative
Over 60 million cubic meters of wood-based panels are produced annually in Europe. In the last few years, there has been a noticeable slowdown in production growth, and the biggest reason for this is the lack of quality raw materials. Secondly, for many years in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the countries of the region, wool was perceived as a by-product of animal husbandry and treated as waste. Given that the disposal of wool as waste or its further placement as raw material is not systematically organized, there is a frequent case of irresponsible disposal of wool in wild landfills. Apart from the fact that it decomposes slowly, and in the place where it is left it suffocates the growth of plants, it is also dangerous due to the development of bacteria and favors the multiplication of rodents. In the places under the wool, nothing grows, and burning is not desirable because the wool does not burn, but smolders. For the above reasons, wool must not be disposed of in nature
or at waste disposal sites. By recycling the used natural wool, a significantly cheaper input material would be obtained as a component for the future production of fiberboards. Within the framework of the project, the construction of a hardboard board will be designed by adding a certain amount of natural wool to its structure, a prototype will be made, and the influencing parameters on bending and stretching strength as a function of the maximum breaking force will be tested. The newly
designed construction of the board is lighter than the existing one, which humanizes the work, it is an environmentally friendly product that solves the waste disposal of natural and recycled sheep's wool, and it is an essentially applicable product because it is made in real production conditions.

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with 5 key words.
wood

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
wool

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
hardboard

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
recycling

Please indicate the main themes of your initiative with key words
design

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of sustainability and how these have been/will be met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
The sustainability of this initiative is reflected in the continuous production of wooden structures that contain a certain percentage of wool as an additional material. As wool is a material that is easily available and is currently of little use in our area, its application in the production of panel elements would ensure less waste and recycling of wool, while at the same time sustainability is not in question.
This initiative can be an example because in previous research it is not known that this method of applying wool was used, in our area and beyond. In this way, this
initiative could be an example for others to effectively use this or similar waste.

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience for people (through design, positive emotions and cultural benefits) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
The aesthetic character of the initiative is reflected in the fact that dyeing wool can produce an effect that meets the design parameters. By dyeing wool, different colors of wooden panels are obtained, which can be used in the interior.

Please give information about the key objectives of your initiative in terms of inclusion (ranging from accessibility and affordability for all to inclusive governing systems, design for all principles or new societal models) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the initiative can be exemplary in this context.
Inclusive design indicates the need to include social relations and interpersonal interactions as an inevitable element of the solution. Wool was used to make carpets, woolen socks, quilts and home insulation. Many generations from rural areas grew up with stories about wool and its use. Today, many remember and keep memories in the form of useful objects, but the story is also passed down from generation to generation. Tradition is certainly the foundation of sustainable rural development, but innovations are necessary in order to present traditional values in a new and market competitive way.

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the initiative and civil society have been/will be involved in the initiative and what has been/will be the impact of this involvement on the initiative
The purchase of wool from the rural population would clear the pastures of ecological disaster, provide financial support, and additionally motivate the population to connect, learn from examples of good practice, and that the transfer and exchange of knowledge and experience are of particular importance in creating new values, but also common weaving new stories.

Please explain how different stakeholders at various levels (local, regional, national, European) were engaged in the design and implementation of the initiative.
The wool processing workshop Minaka from Prijedor is included in this initiative. The wool processed by this shop is from our premises. There are no large factories for the production of cloth in Bosnia and Herzegovina, so 99 percent of the final products of this woolen shop are bought for the needs of home crafts.

Please explain which disciplines and/ or knowledge fields were reflected in the design and implementation of your initiative. Please explain how representatives of these different fields interacted with each other, and what the added value of this process was
The contemporary development of design as a discipline and the evolution of the design thinking methodology and its wide application enable a completely new approach and innovative solutions, not only in the area of product design but in a holistic interdisciplinary approach and solutions that include all aspects of the living environment, material and technological to sociological and cultural. Inclusive design, product design, Mechanical engineering, and wood processing engineering. Representatives from those four knowledge fields work together in this initiative. We have together worked in the design and construction of ww panel.

Please highlight the innovative character of the initiative, when compared to mainstream actions in the field of the initiative
The innovative character of the initiative is reflected in the fact that panels with wool have not been designed so far. As far as we know, wool was not used as an integral part of plate production. We are of the opinion that this initiative, in addition to being innovative, has a reproductive character

Please describe which elements of your initiative could be replicated or transferred to other places, groups of beneficiaries and contexts. This may involve, for example, aspects of the methodology, technology, processes, products, learnings, etc.
Our initiative could be used in the production of wooden elements and as such they represent a completely natural material

Please describe the methodology or approach used in your initiative.
When we came up with the idea of using wool to make wooden boards, we first got information about companies that make such types of wooden boards. After that, we visited a company where we made an estimate of how much wool we need to make panels. We approached the purchase of wool and re-arranged an appointment at the company where we made the panels. We compared the mechanical and acoustic characteristics of a classic board and a board with the addition of wool.

Please explain what kind of global challenges the initiative addresses by providing local solutions
We are of the opinion that this useful way of using wool in our region could be an example for other regions where wool is disposed of in the same or similar way and is not used.

Please detail the scope of progress in the implementation of the initiative. This can include already demonstrated results/outputs related to the chosen Prizes category, and the already achieved benefits from the initiative for direct and indirect beneficiaries. This can also include a development plan of the initiative, with a particular attention to the steps envisaged in the year following the application, and including envisaged results and benefits from the initiative
The research consisted of the following activities: promotional activities and preparation of the experimental part of the project, writing and presentation of papers at a scientific conference, visit to the company "Simpo Šik" a.d. Kuršumlija, Serbia and production of testing boards and measurement of the maximum bending force of the testing boards.
Promotional activities of the project consisted of the presentation of the project to interested parties during the presentation of projects that are carried out at the University of Bihać. That activity was held in December 2021.
The preparation of the experimental part of the project included the planning of the experiment, the selection of the input parameters of the experiment as well as the levels at which the input parameters are varied.
Based on the data from the preparation of the experimental part, two papers were written and published at the international scientific conference ICAS 2022, which took place in May 2022 in Banja Luka. Members of the project team participated in the conference and presented the works and the overall research related to the project.
At the end of May 2022, members of the project team stayed at the company "Simpo Šik" a.d. Kuršumlija in Serbia, where we got to know the production process of fiber boards on the spot. Also, trial panels with the addition of wool were made, and a visit to the mentioned company was arranged in September, when they should make the final panels according to the project documentation.
The measurement of the maximum bending force of the test plates was done in the months of June and July 2022. Bending was done in the laboratory of the Technical Faculty according to the standards BAS EN 789 and BAS EN 408+A1.

Please provide documents that demonstrate the maturity level of the initiative and commitment to implement the initiative in practice (e.g.: evaluation report, final or mid-term initiative report, certification, publications, building permit, grant agreement, letter of support, partnership agreement, etc.)
PDF
PDF
- pdf-1-20576.pdf
If relevant, please describe how your initiative contributes to developing new competences, especially in the context of the European competence framework on sustainability.
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Please attach at least 6 high resolution images or visual representations of your initiative to your application.
If you would like to upload additional documentation, please upload or write below.
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By submitting your application you confirm that you are the copyright owner of the images provided and that they can be used by the European Commission for the purposes of promoting the New European Bauhaus on all platforms (websites, print, social media and other).
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that you are not in in one or more of the exclusion situations foreseen under Article 136 of the Financial Regulation.
Yes

By submitting this application, I declare that I am not related to the entities subject to EU restricted measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and subject to Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)1, and entities covered by Commission Guidelines No 2013/C 205/05), which are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that you assume sole liability in the event of a claim relating to the activities carried out in the framework of the contest, that the proposed initiative has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Prizes in any other category or strand and that it has not been subject to any type of investigation, which could lead to a financial correction because of irregularities or fraud.
Yes

By submitting your application, you guarantee that you are the author or have the rights to proceed with the application and to authorise the use of the initiative and that you have obtained any necessary consents, licenses or assignments from third parties and included copyright notices when necessary
Yes

By submitting your application, you understand that all the applications that meet the eligibility requirements will be shared for the purposes of the selection processes, and notably published on the secured platform prizes.new-european-bauhaus.eu and for the purposes of the promotion of these on the New European Bauhaus website and/or other European Commission communication channels. In this sense, the applications would be widely available. Applicants should ensure that they present their initiatives, initiative, in such a way that they could be shared without giving rise to intellectual property related concerns. If your submission is selected as one of the finalists, it will additionally be shared for the purpose of the public vote that will take place. The European Union is granted a licence to use and share your application with the general public and the official external experts for the purposes of the selection process, including the voting. The European Union has the right to use the images and visual materials and the description provided in the application for communication purposes related to the contest and beyond. Rights granted comprise the right to store, reproduce, display, publish and communicate or distribute copies in electronic or digital format, including, but not only, through the internet. Unless you have disclosed your name, the European Commission has no obligation to share your name when using or disseminating your contribution to the public. The European Union cannot be held responsible in case any submitted initiative, initiative is found to infringe third party’s rights. The European Union shall be neither responsible for the use that third parties may do of the applications or related content.
Yes

By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you read and understand that the ‘Guide to Applicants’ of the NEB Prizes 2023, available online in the website of the NEB Prizes 2023, is an integral part of this application form and that it must therefore be observed when completing and submitting your application.
Yes