The Ummbrella Project
Umbrella's are cool.
It's an excellent tool, with excellent design. Umbrella's have been around in one shape or another for more than 4 million years. It is a tool that provides shelter from rain and sunshine, it's versatile, ergonomic... and cheap.
In the USA, 33 million umbrella's are sold every year. Worldwide, 1.1 billion umbrellas are thrown away in the same time.
- The Wall Street Journal
The $4 Umbrella
Shangyu Ping’an is the biggest umbrella wholesaler in the world. Minimum orders are 5,000 units, and they can cost as little as 0.85 cents a piece.
Umbrellas, especially these, are not designed to last. They are frequently discarded due to a piece being broken, and the average lifespan is 6 months. Most end up in landfills, as umbrella's are generally not recyclable.
This product has at leas 16 different observable materials, and countless components. A singular rib has 8 parts.
The umbrelievable ummbrella
An umbrella concept that is:
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modular for easy disassembly
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reduced components
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utilizes emerging sustainable materials.
Made of just 5 materials, the ummbrella uses natural rubber for the canopy, aluminum wire, wheat straw thread, and polylactide (PLA) plastic for the shaft. A plant based, biodegradable plastic. Made to dissasemble.
Collapsible Shaft,
Pop-Up Canopy
The ummbrella comes with a waterproof pouch to prevent loss. Additionally, if parts are damaged, the individual parts can be sold separately to be replaced, instead of throwing the whole thing out.
