Taking a stand on sustainability at BIBA 2024

Made from hard wearing and fast growing European plywood from responsibly managed sources, our flooring structures have been retained, repaired, and reused since the 1990s. Swaps from vinyl laminates to chipboard flooring and the likes of recyclable carpet options have been implemented to make sure that the flooring options on our stand give a true foundation of sustainability that makes sense in the temporary world of events, blending both reusability and recycling in tandem.

Just like our flooring, our stand build team have retained a core inventory of stand structures since the 1990s. Building on the lifecycle thinking behind every project, these structures need to be strong, safe and sturdy, but remain largely unseen in their different creative uses.

This means all these architectural components are maintained, reused, and repaired to extend their lifespan across multiple clients and events.

90-95% of the aluminium components, subject to wear and safe usage, have been retained since Aviva’s first purchase in 2013. By using materials like aluminium sensibly and creatively, we first make sure any usage can extend the higher energy required to initially produce aluminium. However, when these components do reach the end of their useful life, aluminium benefits from being fully recyclable and reformable in new components without any loss of quality. Better still, recycling aluminium extrusions typically requires far less energy than initial manufacture, making recycling of these elements even more important for a sustainable stand today and tomorrow. 

At BIBA 2023, all the small plants were ‘rehomed’ amongst staff or associated persons so these still live on in offices and homes.

This year we’re planning to do the same with a selection of native plant species, again selected for their resistance to stress, natural occurrence in the UK and ability to live on beyond the days of BIBA, whilst adding a little biophilia to our event. We've also commissioned a preserved moss wall panel which will last into future events and provide a newer take on stand décor without negative environmental impact. 

Keeping our stand design distinctively ‘Aviva’ is a key part of our success at events like BIBA. We want brokers to use our yellow brand assets as a beacon to visit us, but how do we customise our look without compromising on sustainability?

Once again, understanding lifecycles supports smarter applications of branding. Where a logo or brand asset is likely to be consistent, we can typically plan to reuse these decorative components.

Choosing the right materials for custom structures and shapes means that using them only once or twice is already balancing the lifecycle effectively. Fast growing soft woods, recycled composite materials and boards help make custom features far less costly to the environment. Even using plastics in a few areas is the responsible thing to do, with these materials offering flexibility, durability and cleanliness that is hard to match, making sure that they're not treated disposably. In most cases, even these components are used numerous times, making their way to other Aviva events like the Airmic conference.  

Our stand graphics are all produced via UV printing. This means that there are no Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and no need for heat plates or chemical processes. Instead, ink is cured instantly with UV light for a durable and vibrant finish, reducing the energy required to produce even the largest of graphics. The majority of our graphics are also made from a recycled polyester fabric which uses reclaimed plastic bottles to form a high quality printable and further recyclable media.

Our stand build partners Image Experiential are also taking the stand build process a step further when it comes to sustainability. Committed to honestly acknowledging the green gap in events as they work to close it for good, they partner with Ecologi to fund a range of climate positive programmes across the UK and the rest of the world. These projects extend to carbon capture, reduction and avoidance, as well as funding rewilding, community projects and education, accounting for all travel and installation impacts, as well as the remaining 5 to 10% of a project that can't yet be reused or recycled.