Growing up in a DIY household, my early memories draw heavily on landscaping with my father. There were two large projects I remember us undertaking: the annual bamboo trim and the creating of the backyard fortress.
Over a decade later, I’m in a university course on Sustainable Marketing, learning how evolving environmental conditions are changing the way companies interact with their customer base. This emerging market is opening up opportunities for businesses to create sustainable competitive advantages, representing a long-term focus for organizations.
How does this relate to my childhood? Reflecting on the two projects, I wondered: could they have been combined? Instead of hiring a contractor to build the fort all summer, could we have grown the bamboo required for the job? I believe the answer is yes, so, over the next three months, I will discuss the different uses of bamboo and the companies who have been able to to create a competitive sustainable advantage with it.
Bamboo is type of grass that grows abundantly around the world, particularly in Asia. It takes less than one year to grow to full height and three years total to reach its maximum strength. At capacity, bamboo is pound for pound as strong as steel, with new sustainable treatments extending the lifecycle of finished products by increasing durability and resistance to bugs.
In the case of creating a fort, my question was answered by Ibuku. The company sources materials sustainably in Indonesia, working with local designers and craftsman to build unique and original structures. If treated properly, can support structures for over 25 years, with some structures lasting a lifetime. The sustainable advantage Ibuku has is through the partnership with local farmers who grow the bamboo, as well as from the cutting edge designs that the company brings to life. The beauty and efficiency of the end product is wondrous, and unique to working with bamboo.
Back to the topic backyard fortress, if the engineers say that a 300sqm house takes approximately 1200 bamboo poles, a smaller scale, 30sqm structure would take anywhere from 120-240 poles. Growing this bamboo would have put my old property overcapacity, but the project was feasible to complete through outsourcing for supply. This makes me believe that as lumber becomes more expensive, home projects will be undertaken with bamboo more frequently, this change led by organizations similar to Ibuku.