Sustainable Ply gives waste cardboard a second life

Sustainable Ply is exploring how cardboard waste from such things as exhibitions and events could be transformed into signage and display materials for future shows, helping organisers find new uses for materials that might otherwise be discarded.

Founded by Paris May in February 2025, Sustainable Ply manufactures lightweight engineered panels using recovered corrugated cardboard sandwiched between surface layers.

The material can be adapted for different applications, including printed signage, furniture, display plinths and sample boxes.

The idea developed from Paris’s experience working on props, temporary set builds and exhibitions at Plunge Creations, where the volume of material used and discarded during projects highlighted an opportunity to make better use of waste.

Following initial experiments at the University of Brighton, where Paris studied 3D Craft and Design, access to an industrial press at Kava Surfaces helped turn the concept into a practical panel-making process.

Sustainable Ply has since attracted interest from different sectors. MTRL Library showcased the material at Surface Design Show 2026, and in September 2026, the company became an Official Materials Partner at Shoreditch Design Week.

Paris is now in discussions with Shoreditch Design Week and Isola about collecting cardboard generated at events and transforming it into signage for future shows.

The proposed approach could give event waste a second life while helping reduce the need for new materials in exhibition production.

The company is also working with Brighton-based Lollipop Print to produce SP-FB, a printable panel featuring a recovered-cardboard core and recycled fibreboard faces, opening up further possibilities for branded displays and exhibition graphics.

Beyond events, Sustainable Ply is already collecting cardboard from Brighton General Hospital, IKEA and Churchill Square Shopping Centre. It has also established a closed-loop packaging project with Red Roaster, turning the coffee business’s waste cardboard into new distribution boxes.

With further applications being explored across furniture and construction, Paris hopes to develop Sustainable Ply into a wider range of products that demonstrate the practical value of recovered materials.

For the exhibition industry, the opportunity is to rethink what happens when a show comes to an end, turning materials that might otherwise be thrown away into useful resources for future events.

For more information about Sustainable Ply, visit: Sustainable Ply — Reclaimed-fibre panels, built in Lewes