TENT-ATIVE CONCLUSIONS: RECOVERING FUNCTIONAL VALUE FROM DISCARDED FESTIVAL TENT MATERIALS THROUGH A GRADING FRAMEWORK AND MATERIAL-DRIVEN DESIGN SYSTEM: RECOVERING FUNCTIONAL VALUE FROM DISCARDED FESTIVAL TENT MATERIALS THROUGH A GRADING FRAMEWORK AND MATERIAL-DRIVEN DESIGN SYSTEM
Translated title
TENT-ATIVE CONCLUSIONS: RECOVERING FUNCTIONAL VALUE FROM DISCARDED FESTIVAL TENT MATERIALS THROUGH A GRADING FRAMEWORK AND MATERIAL-DRIVEN DESIGN SYSTEM
Author
du Marchie Sarvaas, Gideon Jan
Term
4. Term
Education
Publication year
2026
Submitted on
2026-06-04
Pages
47
Abstract
Every year, large numbers of tents are abandoned at European music festivals, and many are incinerated or landfilled despite retaining functional material properties. This thesis investigates whether a grading framework and a material‑driven design system can recover functional value from discarded festival tents, and what this demonstrates about design as a mitigation strategy for festival waste. Using festivals such as Roskilde as context, two purpose‑built digital tools were developed and tested: TentSort Measure for photogrammetric panel measurement and quality grading, and TentSort Decision, a decision‑tree calculator that translates sorted material stock into defined design scenarios. Three tents were disassembled and sorted into eight component types across four quality grades, then allocated to four predefined design scenarios—a backpack, a hauler bag, a tote, and a pouch. Findings indicate that a structured grading and allocation logic can convert variable, post‑consumer tent materials into documented design outcomes, positioning design as a mediating process between material recovery and product production. The work is presented as a proof‑of‑concept, with conclusions bounded by the small trial and limited material heterogeneity; future work should incorporate more diverse tent inputs and further optimise the tools, which may be transferable to other material streams. The thesis responds to a gap where collection and behaviour‑focused efforts have had limited success, offering a systematic, design‑led approach that connects sorting knowledge with product development.
Hvert år efterlades store mængder telte på europæiske musikfestivaler, og meget ender til forbrænding eller deponi, selvom materialerne stadig har funktionel værdi. Denne afhandling undersøger, om et graderingsframework og et materialedrevet designsystem kan genindvinde funktionel værdi fra kasserede festivaltelte, og hvad det siger om design som afbødningsstrategi for festivalaffald. Med festivaler som Roskilde som kontekst udvikles og afprøves to digitale værktøjer: TentSort Measure til fotogrammetrisk opmåling af teltpaneler og kvalitetsgradering, og TentSort Decision, et beslutningstræ, der oversætter sorteret materialelager til definerede designscenarier. Tre telte blev demonteret og sorteret i otte komponenttyper på tværs af fire kvalitetsgrader, hvorefter lagret blev matchet til fire designscenarier: rygsæk, hauler-taske, tote og pouch. Resultaterne peger på, at en struktureret graderings- og allokeringslogik kan omsætte variabelt, post-forbruger teltmateriale til dokumenterede designudfald og dermed positionere design som en mellemliggende proces mellem materialegenopretning og produktfremstilling. Arbejdet er et proof-of-concept, og konklusionerne er afgrænset af forsøgsskalaen og materialernes homogenitet; fremtidigt arbejde bør inddrage mere heterogene telte og optimere værktøjerne, som potentielt kan overføres til andre materialestrømme. Afhandlingen placerer sig i et felt, hvor indsamling og adfærdsindsatser hidtil har haft begrænset effekt, og tilbyder en systematisk, designdrevet tilgang, der forbinder sorteringsviden med produktudvikling.
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