 WHAT IS BIOMIMICRY:

• The word biomimicry originates from Greek word bios, meaning life,
and mimesis, meaning to imitate. In simpler terms, biomimicry is the
conscious emulation of nature’s genius. It is a way to observe nature
action and use that knowledge to inspire new ideas.
• Biomimicry is an inspiration from nature to solve human problems
through the study of natural designs, systems and processes.
• Through this we can learn about systems, materials, structure and
how nature is self-sustaining - Nature has already solved many of
mechanical and structural problems without generating any
wastage.
• Janine Banyu’s author of the book “biomimicry: innovation inspired
by nature” explains about the science of biomimicry in her book
how mimicking designs and strategies found in nature and how they
can help in the way human think in every field and architecture.
• She explains that living organisms and engineers have similar goals
for creating any structure in terms of energy. As she explains we can
incorporate what living organisms have and we can use that in our
designs. How we can make material stronger and self-healing.
• For building how we can use natural process and forces.
 CONCEPT:
• Biomimicry is an old concept as we can look in history from making shelter to making equipment’s we are
being depend on nature.
• The nature is self-developing from ancient period we are using biomimicry for our development/evolution as
nature is evolving for itself and for us, we are trying to create new technology for mankind.
• This is the basic idea of combing biology and engineering to help humanity treat nature better and in more
harmonious way, so anyone from largest enterprise to single individual can create better products, and work
in harmony with nature for betterment of our future.

 HISTORY
• Biomimicry has been studied only for the past half-century, but the
incorporation of nature into buildings had begun much before…The
Golden Ratio. The Golden ratio reflects the pattern of growing spirals in
nature. The golden ratio can be seen all around us – in flower petals,
shells, pinecones, pineapple spires, DNA molecules, and even in
hurricanes. The golden ratio was used to design the Parthenon, a
temple to worship Athena in the Acropolis of Greece. The golden ratio
is also known as the Fibonacci sequence, which is the mathematical
equation wherein the longer part divided by the smaller part, equals to
the sum part both parts divided by longer part, both of which equals
1.618. The golden ratio is seen all around us and is considered the
beauty enhancing factor, hence the use of golden ratio often results in
a perfectly proportioned design.

• Ornamentation was predominantly inspired by nature. The use of

organic elements adds a graceful component to the design. The
addition of organic components can be seen from the Greek Ionic
column to Art Deco. Nature was always worshipped through the course
of mankind. The idea of ornamentation complementing nature
symbolized respect towards Mother Earth and nature. The element of
nature also created contrast in this man-made world. The organic
forms were also used to bring in a layer of complexity to the plain
surfaces and straight lines.
  Silk: 3000 BCE
• Silk is one of the first examples of biomimicry that we see in human history.
Use of the material is dated back to 4000 BC, making it one of the first
fabrics invented by humans. It is common knowledge that silk comes from
silkworms, and the Chinese were the first civilization to learn from the
brilliant worm. This invention was the reason that the Silk Road got its
name. Silk could be traded for its weight in gold during the times where
only the Chinese had the weaving strategy mastered. 6,000 years later we
are still using silk all around the world.

 Bullet Train: 1990s

• In the late 1990s Japan implemented biomimicry in the form of trains.
• The bullet trains they had been using were causing problems for all
nearby inhabitants.
• When the trains zoomed through a tunnel, air would compress around
the front of the train before releasing a tremendous booming noise
once the train exited the tunnel.
• The chief engineer was able to solve this problem by looking to one of
his hobbies: birdwatching. The kingfisher is a small bird with a long
beak that dives into the water for its prey.
• The engineer redesigned the front of the train to be shaped like the
kingfisher’s head, resulting in the train slicing the wind rather than
trapping it inside the tunnels, fixing the booming sound.

Eastgate Centre: 1996

• The Eastgate Centre is located in Harare, Zimbabwe and fills the role
of ashopping mall and office space.
• However, it is no ordinary shopping mall. Designed with the concept
of termite hills in mind, the Eastgate Centre does not need to be
conventionally heated or cooled.
• Termites keep their mounds at a steady temperature by closing and
opening holes along the mound’s outer shell, allowing the air to
ventilate and balance thetemperature within.
• The Eastgate center works in a similar way
except with ducts and fans instead of termites. It uses 10% of the
energy a conventional building of the same size.

Sharkskin: 2014
• Sharkskin has been mimicked for its rough segmented
texture. It turns out that bacteria do not like landing on
the skin of a shark.
• Engineers have designed materials with a comparable
microscopic texture that repel bacteria in a similar way.
• This material will be especially useful in hospitals where
it can be used to cover surfaces and door handles to
eliminate the spread of bacteria.
 TYPES OF BIOMIMICRY
• Depending on the degree of emulation of the life processes of other organisms, biomimetics can be classified into three levels of
design: product, process and policy.

1. Organism-level biomimetic.

•This refers to the mere replication of the form of an organism to inspire product design. The ubiquitous Velcro adhesive is a classic
example of biomimetics at an organism level.

•The inventor of Velcro, George de Mistral, was intrigued by the microscopic structure of burrs that stuck to the fur of his dog.

•Their outer surface features many projections that have tiny hooks in them. When the dog brushed by a plant, these hooks would cling
on to its hairs and be carried away, along with being very difficult to remove.

2. Behavioural-level biomimetics
•In behavioural biomimetics, designers aim to replicate the behaviour of an organism
when it comes in contact with other elements.

•This is best explained by lotuses that bloom in marshes and remain fresh, despite their
surroundings. The petals and leaves of a lotus are ultra-hydrophobic, meaning that they
exhibit extreme water and dirt repellence, commonly known as self-cleaning
properties.

•This has inspired many products, such as self-cleaning paints, stain-repellent coatings
for fabric, and water-repellent

3. Ecosystem-level biomimetics
• When systems are modelled to be a part of the natural ecosystem, rather than to derive
partially from it, the highest level of biomimetics is attained.

• All the elements of a biomimetic ecosystem are interconnected and interdependent. An

important example of ecosystem-level biomimetics is the Eastgate Centre in Zimbabwe,
which is modelled on termite mounds.

• Termite mounds are designed to maintain stable temperatures inside, regardless of

fluctuations in outside temperatures. Termite mounds have a series of thin ‘chimneys’ that
absorb heat in the daytime, while keeping the inside reasonably cool.

• At night, the hot air, owing to its low density, makes its way out of these chimneys. At the
bottom of the mound are open vents, which allow cool air to enter inside.

• In a similar fashion, the use of porous concrete and fan- assisted chimneys enabled
architects to exclude conventional air conditioning systems in the Eastgate Centre, yet
maintain habitable temperatures in the otherwise semi-arid Zimbabwe
 ABSTRACTTOPIC

BIOMIMICR Y – WHERE NATURE IS CHANGING INNOVATION

 ABSTRACT
• As a highly interdisciplinary field, business management is influenced by many subjects of natural and social sciences. From a
new angle, there seems to be an increasingly biomimetic influence. Biomimicry is an applied science that examines nature, its
models, systems, processes, and elements to emulate or take inspiration from, in order to solve human problems. This for the
reason that nature has proven its ability to teach us about systems, materials, processes, structures and aesthetics. By delving
more deeply into the application of biomimicry and how nature solves problems that are experienced today, we will be able to
extract timely solutions from it and to build a more sustainable environment. Through the comparison and examination of
existing biomimetic applications, this paper elaborates on distinct approaches to biomimicry that have evolved. A framework
for understanding the various forms of biomimicry has been developed, and is used to discuss the potential of the various
cases. So, this research attempts to specifically investigate strategies for sustainable innovation. Those strategies are inspired
by the development of unsophisticated living systems (ecosystem level), their material properties (organism level) and their
possibility to adapt to changes in the environment (behavioral level). The results are achieved through an attempt to link the
two emerging interfaces: biomimicry and innovation, exploring their potential in developing more sustainable businesses.

 . INTRODUCTION
• 1. Problem Statement
• Nowadays, in a rapidly changing environment, companies are forced to be innovative, to bring new products to the market and
to keep their management practices up to date to remain competitive and ensure longevity.
• The majority of businesses believe that innovation is a priority and that the importance of innovation is increasingly significant.
This for the reason that every organization is feeling the impact of globalization, migration, technological and knowledge
revolutions, and climate change issues nowadays (Shukla, 2009).
• Besides, today’s global market place is fiercely competitive and “organizations that fail to bring to market innovative products
that create value for their customers will quickly find that their competitors have done so, and that their own existence is in
danger” (Reddy, 2014, p. 21). This trend could also be described by using Darwin’s theory of evolution, which relies on the
principle of survival of the fittest. This theory suggests that organisms that are best able to adapt to their environments, and
at the same time are best able to change in response to that environment, are most likely to survive (Farr & West, 1990).
• Furthermore, innovation will bring added value and widens the employment base. However, breakthrough innovations are
often sensitive to failure due to a lack of resources, high risk, uncertainty and inefficient processes (Hobcraft, 2011). However,
there are promising approaches that have the potential for companies to adopt sustainable innovation, one of which is
biomimicry. Although biomimicry is mainly known for copying nature for technological applications, this field is also applicable
to management concepts. For example, the Keystone Advantage, which translate business networks into ecosystems as found
in nature, “laying an emphasis on the interconnectedness and reliance on each other within the network” (Badawy, 2007, p.
287). However, at the moment, it is quite unclear what management concepts are exactly related to biomimicry, as well as
which management concepts have already been used in practice (“Biomimicry and its Place in Business Management”, 2016).
Moreover, “biomimicry can help the development, production and commercialization of new products to be aligned with
ecologically, socially and economically sound standards”

 Concept Clarification
• Biomimicry, is a new interdisciplinary field, which is about learning from nature and then emulating nature, its forms, its
processes, its ecosystems in order to solve human problems (Baumeister, Benyus, Dwyer, Ritter, & Tocke, 2012). The term
biomimicry is derived from the Greek bios, which means life or nature, and mimesis, which means imitation; ‘imitating nature’
(Baumeister et al., 2012). Biomimicry strives for using biological concepts in the development of innovative technologies,
products, and processes. It aims to better understand successful strategies adopted by nature to better adapt organisms to life,
and then mimic and apply such strategies to solve human problems.

• My personal motivation for doing this research is to analyze ways in which we can apply bio-inspired concepts and approaches to
solve human problems. This thesis will be mainly structured around the concepts of product innovation and the innovation of
organizational processes. Moreover, I will look at creating innovations that are economically, socially and ecologically sustainable.
In my opinion, biomimicry is a concept that will cover all the above-mentioned concepts.
 Biomimicry
• Nowadays, in a rapidly changing environment, companies are forced to be innovative, to bring new products to the market
and to keep their management practices up to date to remain competitive and ensure longevity. However, innovations
areoften sensitive to failure due to a lack of resources, high risk, uncertainty and inefficient processes (Hobcraft, 2011).
Nevertheless, there are promising approaches that have the potential for companies to adopt sustainable innovation, one of
which is biomimicry. This chapter covers the literature in the field of biomimicry, which is mainly based on the models from
the Biomimicry Guide.

 Origin of Biomimicry
• The earth has been developing efficient methods of life for 3.8 billion years and is therefore the oldest and wisest teacher we
could ask for (Schreiner, 2018). Moreover, the activity of studying and emulating nature for offering solutions to human needs
is not a new practice, because humans have always looked to nature as an inspiration to solve their problems (Vierra, 2016).
For example, early humans relied on nature for the provision of food, shelter and alternatives to survive. One more specific
example of early biomimicry was the study of birds to enable human flight by Leonardo da Vinci. He very closely observed the
anatomy and flight of birds, and therewith made numerous sketches of proposed flying machines (Vierra, 2016).
Unfortunately, he never became successful with his own flying machine. However, his ideas lived on and the Wright Brothers
finally succeed in creating and flying the first airplane in 1903 (Vierra, 2016).
• By the in-depth study of nature, early scientists and innovators have been able to gather information about the sustainable
exploitation of resources. “The natural world metamorphoses and sustains itself over the long term by meeting its own needs
and providing sustainable remedies to its challenges” (Aigbavboa & Oguntona, 2017, p. 2492).
• The specific term ‘biomimicry’ appeared as early as 1982 and was popularized by scientist and author Janine Benyus in 1997
when she published her book: ‘Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature’ (Smith, 2007).

 Biomimicry Principles
• Nature is a big thing, both physically and conceptually and there is a lot going on in nature: cycling and recycling, death, birth,
cooperation, competition, nurturing, movement etc. (Lozeva & Marshall, 2009). Despite the diversity of nature, Benyus
believes “it is important for biomimics to take account of certain basic laws of nature when they engage in the practice of
biomimicry” (Benyus, as cited in Lozeva & Marshall, 2009, p. 4). Benyus therefore, formulated nine basic principles of
biomimicry, which are focusing exclusively on nature’s attributes. Therefore, implying that humans have much to learn from
the natural world’s evolutionary experience. The nine principles include the following (Benyus, as cited in Lozeva & Marshall,
2009, p. 4-5):
• 1. Nature runs on sunlight
• 2. Nature uses only the energy it needs
• 3. Nature fits form to function
• 4. Nature recycles everything
• 5. Nature rewards cooperation
• 6. Nature banks on diversity
• 7. Nature demands local expertise
• 8. Nature curbs excesses from within
• 9. Nature taps the power of limits

 Definition of Biomimicry
• Biomimicry, also called biomimetics, can be defined as “an approach to innovation that seeks sustainable solutions
• to human challenges by emulating nature’s time-tested patterns and strategies” (Biomimicry Institute, 2018). It is “an
interdisciplinary approach that brings together two often disconnected worlds: nature and technology, biology and
innovation, life and design” (Biomimicry 3.8, 2015). The purpose is to create products, processes, and policies that are well-
adapted to life on earth over the long haul.
• The term biomimicry is derived from the Greek bios, which means life or nature, and mimesis, which means imitation;
‘imitating nature’ (Baumeister et al., 2012).
• Benyus (2011) further argued that “at its most practical, biomimicry is a way of seeking sustainable solutions by borrowing
life’s blueprints, chemical recipes, and ecosystem strategies”. Moreover, “at its most transformative, it brings us into right
relation with the rest of the natural world” (Baumeisteret al., 2012).
• Biomimicry aims to better understand successful strategies adopted by nature to better adapt organisms to life, and then
mimic and apply such strategies to solve human problems.
• To better understand what biomimicry is about and how it differs from other bio-inspired approaches, it is important to
understand what biomimicry is not. To make a clear distinction, the conceptsof bio-utilized, bio- assisted and biomorphism
will be introduced. Those concepts are quite different from biomimicry.
 The Ecosystem Level
• As aforementioned the ecosystem level “involves mimicking how an organism interacts with the environment and how
many components work together, this tends to be on the urban scale or a large project with multiple elements rather than a
solitary structure” (Ismail et al., 2018, p. 55). This level is considered as the hardest level as it focusses on a functionally very
hard issue to mimic (Aziz & El Sherif, 2016).
• The mimicking of ecosystems is an integral part of biomimicry as described by Benyus (1997) and Vincent (2007).
• Another term that describes the mimicking of ecosystems is called ecomimicry (Russell, 2004).
• Considering all the biomimicry levels, mimicking at the ecosystem level allows for the easiest conjunction with the other
levels (organism and behavioral) (Alibaba & Nkandu, 2018).
• For design to mimic nature on the ecosystem level, it might follow six principles. Ecosystem principles follow that
ecosystems (El Ahmar, 2011):
• 1. Are dependent on contemporary sunlight
• 2. Optimize the system rather than its components
• 3. Are attuned to and dependent on local conditions
• 4. Are diverse in components, relationships and information
• 5. Create conditions favorable to sustained life
• 6. Adapt and evolve at different levels and at different rates
• However, due to the scope of this research it is decided to not test each ecosystem case against those six principles,
• because that would take too much time and will be too complicated.
• Table 6 provides an in-depth overview of the ecosystem level, by analyzing several cases at aforementioned aspects.

 Inspiration
• Growing of a tree29

 Materials used
• Steel, glass29

 Application

•The southern facade would be made of photovoltaic panels that convert

sunlight into electricity29
•A combined heat-and- power recycle system. There will be also a tower
plant installed, which is fueled by natural gas, to supply the power that Rafflesia House
the
solar panels cannot29

 Added value

•It uses minimal construction materials, while making maximum use

of the enclosed space29
•All of the water in the building is recycled29
•All products, from building materials to furniture, could be recycled or
returned safely to
the earth29

. Treescraper Tower of Tomorrow

 . DATA COLLECTION
• For the data collection, there is decided to use practical examples or case studies that are already existing. Those
• are chosen based on their study about biomimicry approaches. Besides, those cases were clearly divisible and match the
corresponding characteristics of one of the aforementioned biomimicry levels: the organism level, the behavioral level
and the ecosystem level. Furthermore, those cases fit the categorization requirements that will be proposed for the data
analysis framework which will be further explained in Chapter 5.
• Unless the fact that we use the term biomimicry as early as 1982 (Smith, 2007), the application of biomimicry is still not
enough implemented in human life. For this reason, there is not an overload of biomimicry examples available nowadays,
they are actually relatively rare. Given this situation, the availability of examples is mainly dependent on what the internet
was providing. Therefore, just like most of the information being part of this paper, also those cases are mainly derived
from sources like Google, Google Scholar, Web of Science, ScienceDirect and Scopus. Furthermore, a few of them were
cited and elaborated on in the book of Janine M. Benyus: ‘Biomimicry – Innovation Inspired by Nature’.
• However, the hype around biomimicry at the moment made it quite difficult to distinguish between pure scientific
literature and novels, which made searching for concepts relatively difficult. Therefore, we could not state that those
examples are representative for nature and the application of biomimicry as a whole, because there are undoubtedly
more examples that could have strengthen the validity of this paper. However, due to the limited resources and the
serious time constraint, research has taken us this far.
• Table 3 provides a categorization of the biomimicry levels and their corresponding cases, this makes that the
• division is clear at a glance.
  BACKGROUND STUDY
• Biomimicry in Furniture Design inspired by nature
• Nature has always been a source of inspiration for the human. Indeed, human met all his needs such as shelter,
• survival and protection in caves which were readily available in nature. It was only later that they built shelter for
• protection and defense. Therefore, we may conclude that human observed and tried to learn about natural forms and
• structures and needed shelter simultaneously.
• Furniture design has always been an important part of our life, we need furniture for sitting, sleeping, eating, working and
storage. Population growth requires furniture to be optimised. As our needs and life circumstances change, so does our
furniture. In the past, people used natural elements in furniture design with primitive forms. With the support of technology,
furniture design today promises unconventional possibilities. Furniture designers can now develop ideas based on the
anatomy and function of what nature has to offer. The science of applying nature to solve human problems is known as
Biomimicry

The armchair, an exact copy of a lily designed by Albina Basharova Biomimicry principles in chair design by Lilian Van Daal. The plant
cell structure enhances not only the appearance, but also the
structural attributes of the soft seat product

Aim:

• To study the biomimicry influence in furniture design inspired by nature.

Summary:
• Derived from the stems “bios-life” and “mimesis-to imitate” and similarly used with “Biomimetic”,“Biomimesis”,
“Biognosis” and “Bionic” terms, this concept is used in varios disciplines in researches and studies towards developing
more advanced technologies by “learning from nature”. Biomimicry may also be translated into our language as
“learning by imitating the best ideas of nature” and has begun to be regarded as a new branch of science by embodying
“likely solutions and solution potential in the nature” in various different disciplines and even through an interaction
that integrates disciplines. “Thus, man who used to gain experience through observation of nature have begun to take
lessons from nature as a means of comparison and an instructor beyond taking it a model” (Benyus, 1997). “Imitating
the nature” has been a popular theme for centuries in almost every kind of art, social and science fields and now is
resorted to in numerous disciplines including architecture, sculpture, painting, interior architecture and industrial design
etc. to find solutions. Observation, analysis and modeling the features of materials and forms in the nature including
stability, lightness, resistance to dynamic and static loads, figural and structural properties enabling energy saving,
silence, self-repairing directed attention of many scientist to living and non-living forms in the nature. Therefore; Benyus
thinks that a “biomimetric revolution” will happen in the following years if this learning process is popularized in other
disciplines” (Benyus, 1997). Interior architecture has also been influenced by increasing popularity of Biomimicry among
scientific branches nd materials and forms in nature have begun to find themselves a place particularly in furniture
design. It is no possible to see furniture samples influenced by microorganisms, plants or animal skeleton structure,
designed precisely or amended and produced with macro or micro-size inspiration from the nature.
 Objective:

• “Tree Table” was designed by metal artist Scott Cawood. A table of forged and
welded steel with an exact figure of a tree

Scope:
• As a design method, Biomimicry has given us the chance to use in our designs the system, technique, color,
harmony, proportion etc. that the nature offers us. As a result of this method that employs exact functioning of the
nature, designs that occur are stronger because an exact copy of this method is in the nature and functions.
Methods derived from the perfect nature provide rich starting points in our studies and integrated designs may
occur with correct technique. Instructions of the nature’s perfect order will contribute significantly to the
development of our designs. The fact that everything in nature exists in compliance with rules facilitated the starting
process.
To conclude, Biomimicry has given us the chance to use in our designs the system, technique, color, harmony,
proportion etc. that the nature offers us. It was effective in basing the designs formed with this method on concrete
scientific data. Methods derived from the perfect nature provide rich starting points in our studies and integrated
designs may occur with correct technique. The perfect order of nature facilitated the process of decision-making and
trial and error and helped to animate the design on mind, give it a form or find a solution through production.

Limitation:
• Biomimicry that observe the materials in the nature and then aim to produce solutions for humans
by imitating these designs or by taking inspiration from them.

• Imitating these designs or taking inspiration from them which aims to provide solutions to
people's problems is one of the new branches of science.

Bibilography

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Kuday, I. (2009). Examination of the Term Biomimicry as a Supporting Factor In Design Process. Master's
Thesis, Mimar Sinan Fine Arts
University, Institute of Natural and Applied Sciences, Istanbul.
Tokman, L. (2012). Mimarlik Uzerine Bir Bilimsel Arastırma: Tasarim, Yontem, Uygulama. Elif Yayinevi
Yayinlari, Ankara
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