Sustainable materials

Natural Acetate is a purely plant-based material composition of cotton and wood. Contrary to traditionally used acetates, this sustainable material creation is made without harmful components and uses only plant-based plasticizers. As a result, the material is considered biodegradable and particularly environmentally friendly.

The castor beans used to produce oil for our bio-based plastic are sourced from a cooperative of 2,730 certified farmers in India. The farmers are part of a sustainable farming movement called the PRAGATI Initiative. Under this initiative, they have adopted improved farm waste management practices and received safety kits and intensive training to improve their skills and help them cultivate in an ecological way. The castor oil plants used for our eyewear are all non genetically modified (non-GMO).

Castor oil is a colorless to pale liquid with a very distinct taste and smell. The oil and its derivatives are used in a wide range of manufacturing applications, including lubricants, hydraulic and brake fluids, paints, dyes, coatings, inks and nylon. Its many remarkable properties have earned the castor oil plant the title of “miracle plant”, however, it is also well known for being the source of the deadly toxin ricin. This toxic protein is only found in the seeds of the plants which must be handled with extreme care. Ricin is insoluble in oil which means it can be safely removed from the oil during the pressing process. Cold pressed castor oil is therefore non-toxic which is why it is also widely used in medications, cosmetics and as the base of biopolymers such as naturalPX and natural3D.

The heavy use of petroleum based plastics around the world is taking a huge toll on the environment. The overconsumption of these plastics deplete precious mineral resources and destroy massive parts of our environment. The distillation of petroleum and the cracking of naphta require enormous amounts of energy. These factors led to the development of our plant-based alternatives naturalPX and natural3D.

Resource-saving

naturalPX and natural3D are both biobased plastics made from renewable castor oil, opposite to non-renewable petroleum-based resources that are damaging to the environment. At the moment, biobased plastics only make up 0.5% of all manufactured plastics world-wide, so we are leading the way in developing and utilizing materials that do not deplete the planet’s precious mineral resources.

Fantastic wearability

naturalPX and natural3D are not just kinder to the environment, they also have many special properties that optimize the look and feel of NEUBAU EYEWEAR. Their high elasticity and form stability also ensure that the frames fit well and retain their shape.

Beauty and flexibility in design

naturalPX is more transparent than glass. This wonderful characteristic makes it possible to produce a wide variety of innovative color combinations and crystal-clear finishes, perfect for customers who want to express their unique style and personality. natural3D has slightly different properties, but still offers a great deal of flexibility in terms of colors and styles. Our 3D frames are distinguished by their fine details, rich opaque colors and textures which would be hard to achieve using conventional manufacturing methods.

Pollutant-free

The processes involved in the extraction of castor oil do not demand high levels of energy, which means carbon dioxide emissions are very low. Our customers can therefore purchase our eyewear safe in the knowledge that we are doing everything possible to minimize our company’s carbon footprint. In addition, both materials are free from harmful chemicals such as BPA, BPS and plasticizers which are major pollutants and are linked to a wide range of health problems.

Made to last

Today’s environmentally conscious consumers are looking for well-designed products that last. Frames made from naturalPX and natural3D are designed to stay in shape and stand the test of time which is great for customers who follow the ethos of “buy less and buy better”.

Skin-friendly

naturalPX and natural3D are hypoallergenic materials. This means they do not react with your body’s natural chemicals or anything else you put on your skin.

65% of this innovative bio-based polyamide material is made up of oil extracted from organically grown castor beans. The remaining 35% is regular polymer which is needed to reinforce the strength and elasticity of the material. naturalPX doesn’t just help us minimize our carbon footprint, it allows us to design and manufacture High-performance eyewear in a wide range of stylish colors and finishes.

natural3D is a 100% bio-based polymer made from non genetically modified castor oil beans which we use in our 3D printing process. This material is not only derived from a renewable source, it also enables us to produce the frames without creating solid or cutting waste, so the whole process leaves an extremely small ecological footprint.

natural3D produces extremely robust and durable components comparable to those created with our naturalPX material. It is also solvent resistant and plasticizer free.

Our natural3D printed frames are extremely flexible and impact resistant. This robust material ensures that the frames retain their shape and are built to last. 3D printed frames are also extremely lightweight. The cutting-edge finishing and sealing processes used during 3D printing produces frames with a beautiful finely pored surface, so they look and feel great too.

In simple terms, our 3D printing process involves sintering layers of powdered plastic into a solid structure. This is known as SLS (selective laser sintering). ​“Sintering” is the process of forming a solid shape by heat without melting it to the point of liquefaction. The SLS process is carried out in the 3 steps: Heating, Printing and Cooling.

Find out more about natural3D and our 3D printing process by watching our video: