JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #86 - January/February 2014 - 15

marine

Gold of Bengal offers
jute fibre a second wind
give jute fibre a second wind
in Bangladesh. The country is
the world's leading exporter
of jute fibre, but prospects are
being compromised by the
competition from synthetic
fibres. Jute post-office bags
and potato sacks are things
of the past! On top of that,
there is a chronic shortage of
investment on the part of the
industry's stakeholders and
a lack of research in agronomy to improve varieties,
in processing technology and
sail 9,000 nautical miles from equipment, and in marketing
Bangladesh to France. His 186 to identify new prospects.
days aboard the Tara Tari, a
traditional 6.5-metre sailboat A sizeable potential
made of 40% jute-reinforced
market
composite and 60% glass-rein- The raw material is abundantforced composite and named ly available. Corentin had the
for the shipyard where it was
idea to use jute fibre as reinbuilt, has brought publicity
forcement in the composites
for the Gold of Bengal associa- used to make boats. Wood has
tion and the project behind it. become very expensive, and
is usually imported, as is glass
A waning activity
fibre. The shipbuilding sector
The aim of the project is to
constitutes a huge market -
Bangladesh has one of the
world's largest boat fleets -
and an extraordinary source of
growth.

Gold of Bengal is a bold, generous project that
is part of a twofold corporate social responsibility and sustainable development initiative. The purpose of the project is to find new
prospects for jute fibre, a crucial raw material
in the Bangladeshi economy on which tens of
millions of people in the country depend directly or indirectly.

ive years ago, Corentin de Chatelperron,
an ICAM engineer,
launched his jute fibre research project in Bangladesh.
The project has made a lot of
headway since 2009, and not
only across the sea - even if
what will probably go down
in history is the incredible
adventure that led Corentin to

The project advances

Corentin de Chatelperron and jute producers

To float this idea of a sustainable economy on the lookout
for new jute fibre applications, the team acquired new
skills and started to work with
professionals. The idea of a
second boat, but this time
100% jute fibre reinforced,
was launched. The scope of
No86 January - February 2014

work encompassed the fibre,
its conversion and processing
through to the creation of a
technical jute fabric and the
development of an agrocomposite called "Pàt". The boat
was launched in February
2013 in the presence of naval
architect Marc Van Peteghem
and with Roland Jourdain
at the helm. So it is wellsponsored! Last December,
the boat was exhibited at
the International Boat Show
in Paris. The team is also
interested in using an environment-friendly resin.
Today, Gold of Bengal is an
original organization of highly
qualified young people who
are determined to put their
knowhow at the service of
a just cause. Gold of Bengal
now includes research and
industrial project incubation
activities. Their faith in the
potential of jute-fibre-reinforced composites has led
to the development of new
prototypes, e.g. designer Joran
Briand's "Toul" stool, exhibited in Paris and Milan, and
also surfboards - surfing is a
booming activity in Bangladesh. Through such initiatives,
Gold of Bengal is trying to
generate some genuinely local
production and marketing
businesses around Pàt technical jute fabric and finished
products. n
More information:
www.goldofbengal.com

/ jec composites magazine 15

http://www.goldofbengal.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #86 - January/February 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #86 - January/February 2014