Project Summary

The IPA ADRION area, due to the large variety of forests-based activities present, has been developing a strong tradition of furniture and furniture-related production. Nevertheless, the regions show differences in approaches and development and this lead also to different usage of local wood, post-production waste and post-consumer waste. SMEs, despite the different sizes and capabilities, are facing similar challenges to take on a greener and more sustainable approach within their production to meet EU strategies and guidelines and consumers too are asked to pay more and more attention to circularity and sustainability while purchasing products. The FULAR projects would like to tackle this challenge with the adoption of a transversal series of actions aiming at boosting circularity and uptaking of new solutions within the sector. The consortium, involving partners and associated partners from IPA and ERDF countries covering the quadruple helix, is set to find concrete ways to foster sustainability at a cost-effective level. Universities and research institutes, together with sectoral cluster organisations, development agencies, institutes of entrepreneurship development, competence centres from Greece, Italy, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Slovenia and Croatia as part of the FULAR consortium will jointly work to implement tools that can be directly used targeting SMEs, academic networks, policy makers, consumers together with other relevant stakeholders. The transnational approach aims at fostering collaborations between the variety of actors and networks involved thus developing joint solutions that are relevant for the whole Programme area and that could be also transferred beyond the project’s regions. The planned actions foresee the involvement of the partners in the whole project implementation following a detailed result-oriented work plan. Starting from a specific study focused on how SMEs and consumers consider the importance of the implementation of circular approaches, together with an in-depth analysis of the best practices within the region involved, FULAR project will collect information regarding the overall perception concerning green transition and circularity in the IPA Adrion area. Moreover, thanks to the individuation of some of the best material solutions for sustainable furniture production (considering wood from local sources as raw material, secondary raw materials coming from post-production phase, and, finally, post-consumers materials), as well as, the identification of the most innovative and cost-effective technologies, FULAR will have reached a general framework for the application of the knowledge gathered into furniture production processes. To do so, a circular design contest and three material engineering international workshops will be organised to find innovative design projects for the application of circular models to furniture sector. The winning projects will be then prototyped and tested to demonstrate the feasibility of the application of the innovative circular solutions. Special attention will be dedicated to capitalisation of results with the adoption of a Beyond FULAR: dissemination and transferability plan. The projects results are targeted to a variety of actors, such as SMEs, Experts, Local-Regional-National Public Authorities, Academic Institutions, Professional Schools, Business Support Organisation, Sectoral Agencies and other relevant stakeholders. In conclusion, the FULAR project aims at fostering sustainability and circularity in the furniture sector of the IPA ADRION programme area ensuring positive effects on various horizontal principles such as DNSH and providing concrete joint solutions to tackle the circularity challenges of the sector supporting a greener economy development in the Adriatic Ionian region. The variety of actors involved in the consortium, together with the research and on field piloting actions planned, the concrete results FULAR aims at delivering together with the networks it aims to reach are all elements that will enhance new paths towards furniture circularity.