What is the key to transforming construction waste? For META Design, it isn’t about simply turning discarded materials into objects. The process begins with observing the material—understanding its qualities, and then finding the right point for design. Each piece becomes a kind of dialogue with the material itself.
影像提供：META Design
影像提供：META Design
Take the formwork, for example. Heavy and rigid, it’s meant to hold concrete in place. META Design asked: “What if we could bend it?” The result was the Formwork Chair—created by dismantling the formwork, cutting grooves into the offcuts to allow them to bend, and then reassembling them into a chair. The design challenged the formwork’s stiff character, transforming something straight and unyielding into a piece of furniture with curves.
影像提供：META Design
影像提供：META Design
The safety net, on the other hand, is soft and flexible, often dismissed as lacking structure. META Design wondered how such a material could be fixed into a stable shape. Through repeated experiments with different methods and forms, they arrived at the Safety Net Pendant Light—a half-sphere lamp where the once-loose mesh is given new order, while its translucent weave continues to reveal its original texture.
影像提供：META Design
影像提供：META Design
Then there is the pipe clamp, a small metal fitting used to hold pipes in place. META Design noticed how its embossed surface catches and reflects light, making it a natural candidate for lighting. Reassembled into a Pipe Clamp Table Lamp, it turns an industrial part into a light source where the surface patterns scatter delicate reflections and shadows.
For META Design, design is not about transformation for its own sake. It is about observing, respecting, and working with the qualities of each material. The rigidity of formwork, the softness of safety nets, the reflective textures of pipe clamps—each project not only gives waste materials a second life, but also deepens the story behind the work, making the design richer in meaning.
