IKEA Develops Sustainable Products Using the LTM from ZwickRoell
Case Study
- Customer: IKEA
- Location: Älmhult, Sweden
- Industry: Wood
- Topic: IKEA: development of sustainable products with LTM 3kN
May 2024
IKEA Älmhult (Sweden) is investing in new sustainable materials to help mitigate climate change. In collaboration with ZwickRoell, the company is using the versatile LTM 3kN machine to research and optimize the properties of recycled materials. This investment not only enables IKEA to develop products digitally and efficiently, but also saves time and money in materials testing and modifications.
Furniture company IKEA: focus on sustainability
IKEA is a Swedish furniture company founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad. The company originally started out as a small mail order business selling household products such as pens, wallets, and picture frames. In the 1950s, IKEA started producing furniture. The clever concept for reducing cost and facilitating transportation: sell furniture in flat packaging and let customers assemble it themselves.
This approach was a tremendous success and contributed significantly to the company's global expansion. Today, IKEA is known around the world for their wide variety of affordable, high-quality furniture and home accessories. They operate more than 400 stores in over 50 countries and employ more than 200,000 people. IKEA is also committed to sustainability and produces the majority of its products from eco-friendly materials.
ZwickRoell top competences
- Precise and reliable results for the development of high-quality products.
- High-level machine quality, robust design for daily use.
- Materials testing under axial and torsional load.
- Reliable service and great support from ZRS Testing System.
- Excellent collaboration with ZwickRoell demo lab in Germany.
The task
Environmentally-friendly products based on recycled materials
IKEA is committed to producing sustainable furniture and plans to increase the proportion of recycled material in its products in order to actively contribute to environmental protection. By using recycled materials, IKEA strives to offer eco-friendly products that meet customer needs while minimizing the impact on the environment.
To ensure that the quality of their products remains high despite the use of recycled materials, IKEA is investing in the areas of research and development to better understand the properties and performance capabilities of these materials and continuously optimize them. These efforts are reflected in IKEA’s long-term vision of producing high-quality furniture that is not only environmentally friendly, but also satisfies the customer and contributes to a more sustainable lifestyle.
The ZwickRoell solution
LTM supports materials testing under axial and torsional load
To determine the properties of the recycled material that are needed for product development purposes at IKEA, the company branch in Älmhult (Sweden) purchased an LTM testing machine from ZwickRoell. The machine supports high-precision materials testing under axial and torsional load.
The new material data obtained from these tests is used for calculations in computer systems, where new products are developed (finite element method).
The computers then calculate the strength of the product, enabling digital and virtual product development.
“By using flexible and versatile instruments, we save a lot of time and money. After a thorough preliminary analysis, we chose the LTM 3kN from ZwickRoell. Now we can offer even higher quality products developed with sustainability in mind.”
Marko Kokkonen , Test Development Engineer at IKEA
The result
Saving time and money
In the past, quality developers at IKEA could only perform static tests until the specimen broke. With the LTM testing machine, they can now run more extensive tests due to its flexibility and versatility.
Dynamic tests can now also be carried out to obtain detailed results that can be used to modify materials to fulfill the purpose of the product and ensure high product quality. This makes the development of the right material and design for the right application much more efficient. The prototypes and materials developed using the ZwickRoell LTM testing machine are also subjected to physical tests. Positive result: by using this method, IKEA is saving both time and money.
“We have high demands when it comes to our development department, and have therefore carried out a thorough feasibility study. Through close cooperation with ZwickRoell's demo lab in Germany, which was quick and accommodating, we were able to make an informed and very good decision,” says Marko Kokkonen, Test Development Engineer at IKEA. And he adds: “Other important factors that led to our decision were the strong local support and service provided by ZRS Testing System.”
