Product design agency, Katapult, is integrating sustainability into not just the operations of their team and offices, but also the way they work with clients to develop products that last and are kind to the planet.

We asked Katapult’s Founder and CEO, Nathan Pollock, a few questions about the company’s decision to become carbon neutral and how Trace is playing a role in their broader goal to become a Certified B Corp.

About Katapult

Katapult Design is a leading global product design and development consultancy with studios in Byron Bay, Sydney and Melbourne, Australia and a dynamic team of highly experienced, passionate industrial designers, product engineers and creative thinkers.

They have over 30 years of experience developing products in a huge range of categories including medical, hi-tech electronic, consumer and hardware and have successfully worked for global leaders, local icons and even underground start-ups!

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Why did Katapult decide to measure & offset its carbon emissions? How did you decide Trace was the right partner to do this with?

We believe climate change is the biggest issue facing our planet at the moment and, as industrial designers who develop new products, we need to be doing better. 

The push to develop more sustainable alternatives to traditional products and services is something we want to be at the forefront of. As part of giving advice to our clients on sustainability, we needed to be doing things ourselves to reduce our impact.

We met Trace and found that they were easy to deal with, proactive and creative in their approach. We also liked the fact that we could have visibility of the real projects we're supporting.

Here are just a few of Katapult's projects where sustainability was core to the design process:

• Active Mask - A reusable face mask that replaces disposable masks
• Electric eFoil – Silent, electric powered eFoil with improved serviceability and durability compared to the previous model.
• Hi-tech Splint Bath - with significant improvements in power management (lower energy use), operator UX and introduction of inbuilt UV sanitisation for bacteria control.

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What did you learn throughout the process? Did anything surprise you?

We knew that calculating environmental impact can be challenging, and the detail and breadth of review was pretty full-on to start. That said, it was great to understand how our team operates - particularly as we have many staff working from home - and how this impacts our carbon footprint.

The good news from our assessment is that we actually are doing a reasonable job; with office recycling, using renewable energy options and many staff riding to walk or taking public transport. We'll have to manage our company-wide transport impact as we come out of the pandemic but I think the wide acceptance of online meetings will assist with that.

What's next for your company's journey to net-zero?

Our involvement with Trace is an initial stepping stone in our larger journey to get B Corp certified.

We are excited about the prospect of being the first industrial design consultancy in Australia to become a B Corp and utilise that as evidence of our commitment to our staff, clients and the planet.

Want to be like Katapult? Find out how to make your business carbon neutral.