• HOME
  • Newsroom
  • Ultrasuede™ Honored with Good Design Long Life Design Award 2022

Ultrasuede™ Honored with Good Design Long Life Design Award 2022

Share on facebook Share on twitter Share on Linkedin

Oct. 7, 2022

Toray Industries, Inc.



Tokyo, Japan, October 7, 2022 ― Toray Industries, Inc. announced today it received the Good Design Long Life Design Award 2022 for the first time, for its product Ultrasuede™. The Japan Institute of Design Promotion (JDP) is the organizer for this prestigious award.

Since its release in 1970, this state-of-the-art material representing the best of Japanese quality has evolved through a series of technological innovations with its basic manufacturing technology remaining unchanged. During the long course of its development, this material has seen use in the most symbolic and revolutionary applications over the years. Ultrasuede™, one of Toray’s most renowned brands, has made it to this current highwater mark, lovingly nurtured by all who have been involved with this material and take pride in it.

The Good Design Long Life Design Award 2022 for Ultrasuede™ is recognition for the long manufacturing history this advanced material has as well as the use of polymer recycling and plant-based polymer for manufacturing with reduced harm for the environment, the center of attention in today’s society. Toray’s active involvement in social initiatives including industry-academia partnerships was also highly evaluated by the award organizer.

Under the Ultrasuede™ vision of “To enrich society through empowered creativity and materials evolution,” we will continue taking on the challenge to realize Toray Group’s corporate philosophy, “Contributing to society through the creation of new value with innovative ideas, technologies, and products.”
 

<Ultrasuede™>

<Ultrasuede™ nu>


<Good Design Award Official Website>
https://www.g-mark.org/index.html

〇About the Good Design Long Life Design Award
This award recognizes and commends designs that people favor in daily living and hope to continue to exist. The designs cover products, architecture, content, and services that will be ideal examples for designs to come and will continue to serve as reference standards over time.
https://www.g-mark.org/guide/2022/guide5.html

<Comment from Judging Committee Members>
After being made available on the market in 1970, Ultrasuede™gained an exceptional reputation as being the most innovative material for human garments since the fig leaves favored by Adam and Eve. Starting then, Toray continued research and development for the material, looking for a softer handfeel, a more luxurious texture, excellent durability, and maintenance ease. In 2015, Toray’s untiring efforts resulted in Ultrasuede™ nu being released, a version that combines genuine leather appearance not seen in conventional Ultrasuede™ with its distinctive suede touch not available with grain leather. This development illustrates how Ultrasuede™, originally developed to recreate natural suede, has now advanced beyond its original characteristics. Ultrasuede™ is now featured for applications other than garments, shoes, and bags, such as for automotive interiors, furniture, and a host of other items as well. Its soft and smooth touch, the most prominent Ultrasuede™ feature, makes the people/product relationship closer and more intimate. The Ultrasuede™ design philosophy of learning from nature with the desire to keep creating a material that can surpass what nature offers, provides valuable hints for saving resources and energy that are essential in overcoming challenges we face now.

<Ultrasuede™Website>
https://www.ultrasuede.com/

◆Reference
Long Life Design Award Exhibition 2022 (open to public)

Venue: GOOD DESIGN Marunouchi
(1F Shin Kokusai Building, 3-4-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo)
Period:November 10 (Thursday) to December 1 (Thursday), 2022
Admission free