Inflatables Emerge As A Sustainable Event Decoration Option  

With sustainability and environmental consciousness on the rise among the masses, event organisers have to keep up with these emerging sentiments. Making sure these events are up to the new standards of sustainability and still stand out visually to provide the attendees with an immersive experience that leaves a strong impression can be quite the challenge.  

Increasingly, event organisers are now looking at sustainable alternatives for decorations and stage-building materials. Traditional materials like wood lead to large amounts of waste being generated post the event since these creations can be damaged during dismantling and transport or are simply too big to be stored.

A Belgium-based company X-treme Creations proposes alternatives like tailor-made inflatables as stage and event décor. The company has been making alternative décor since 1994, the technologies have since advanced from handcrafted models to computer-aided design, from heavy PVC to light polyester weaves, and from painting to dye-sub and LED printing. Leading festivals such as Tomorrowland have a long history of incorporating inflatables into their stage designs. However, the Belgian company has not limited its creative reach to Europe alone, as they have also left their inflatable mark on stages as far-flung as the United States, Japan, and New Zealand. 

What adds volume to inflatables is freely available air, making the material use minuscule. X-treme primarily uses a light polyester fabric and solvent-free printing for their creations while avoiding the use of PVC. Their largest decorations usually require a few 100-watt electric fans for the inflation process. 

In terms of logistical efficiency, inflatables prove themselves to be highly efficient. When deflated, the material for even the biggest decorations can fit in the trunk of a car which makes transport and storage not only feasible but also affordable and flexible. In the case of the Tomorrowland festival, ‘The Gathering Stage’ has been transported to Brazil and Atlanta, using three giant inflatables, locally rented scaffolding, and truss systems.

Inflatables also pose great reuse value as inflatable objects can easily be integrated into various versatile designs. The Untold Festival in Romania for instance, moved giant inflatable wolf heads from the main stage to secondary stages, and even other small festivals they host.