Eco-friendly surf board wins Australian eChallenge France

Friday, 8 March 2019

Top prize in the University of Adelaide’s annual Australian eChallange France Awards has gone to Hexa Surfboard who have won one year’s business incubator space in Adelaide.

Hexa Surfboard won the top prize for their innovative approach to 3D printed eco-friendly surfboards.

The team, who are all surfers and engineers, includes Sylvain Fleury, Léo Bouffier, Corentin Macias, Jérémy Fleury and Thomas Duvinagehave, all from Ecole Centrale Lyon. They won $10,000 cash and one-year’s desk space, worth $36,000, at ThincLab Adelaide incubator in South Australia.

Surfboard manufacturing has not changed significantly since the 1960s. It has a large environmental footprint which goes against the values of the surfing community. Surfers can now choose the Hexa Surfboard, an eco-responsible board without compromising on performance. The boards will be made in France using 3D-printing techniques to form them out of recyclable plastic and bio-resin so they can be recycled at the end of their lives.

The winners, which were announced overnight in Paris, were selected from 16 teams from seven French universities.

This is the fourth year that aspiring French entrepreneurs have competed in the University’s Australian eChallenge France Award.

“The Australian eChallenge France Awards, powered by The University of Adelaide, offer French students an opportunity to launch their entrepreneurial ventures globally using ThincLab Adelaide as a start-up springboard,” says Professor Noel Lindsay, Pro Vice Chancellor (Entrepreneurship), University of Adelaide.

“Whatever industry or field, the eChallenge responds to the idea that future employment options lie in entrepreneurial activity and innovation, rather than in traditional career paths.

“The Australian eChallenge France program encourages risk-taking and originality and develops individuals’ resilience and capacity to grow and build, both personally and professionally," says Professor Lindsay.

Please visit www.adelaide.edu.au/echallenge/echallenge-france for more information about the Australian eChallenge France Award or contact Zrinka Tokic at zrinka.tokic@adelaide.edu.au or phone +61 (0)8 8313 7131.

Above: Jérémy and Sylvain Fleury from Hexa Surfboard at the awards ceremony.

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