Compac presents Obsidiana, a creative revolution

This month we would like to tell you about COMPAC, the Spanish decorative surfaces company that describes itself as a leader in its market. We share with COMPAC a vision of sustainable design that takes environmental commitment into account: the company runs on energy from renewable sources —100% at its factory in Portugal— and has planted more than 30,000 native pines on its land to offset its emissions.

In this article we present its major new product, Obsidiana COMPAC, a surface made with up to 100% recycled glass. We look at what it is made of, which colours, formats, thicknesses and finishes it offered at launch, where it can be used, what its technical data say and how Arik Levy turned it into a sculptural bathtub.

Obsidiana: a recycled glass surface

Recycled raw materials and the look of natural stone.

COMPAC's materials are distinguished by coming from recycled raw materials or renewable sources, and by limiting their environmental impact both in their composition and in the way they are produced, without compromising on quality finishes for any project. Obsidiana takes that idea a step further: it is, according to the company, the first surface created with up to 100% recycled glass, with the same performance as the rest of its materials and the level of finish characteristic of the brand.

COMPAC presents it under the slogan #theethicalbeauty and links it to the Zero Waste philosophy: nature as a source of inspiration for generating no waste —reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink—. The company showed it at the KBIS fair in Las Vegas in January 2020, where it received a sustainability award whose jury highlighted the launch of Obsidiana and the company's environmental track record.

Nine designs in two collections: Volcano and Astral

Obsidiana COMPAC was launched in nine designs divided between two collections:

• Volcano: six colours with through-body veining —Volcano Light, Volcano Fog, Volcano Cloud, Volcano Grey, Volcano Pearl and Volcano Dark—.
• Astral: three colours —Astral Láctea, Astral Titaneo and Astral Azabache—.

COMPAC's catalogue stresses that the pattern is different on every slab, so each worktop or cladding is unique, and that its natural appearance makes it possible to create compositions with colour gradations.

Formats, thicknesses and finishes

Obsidiana is supplied in slabs. The table summarises what the brand offered in 2020:

The choice of finish changes the character of the surface. COMPAC describes its two options as follows:

• Glacé: a smooth matt finish, soft to the touch, without reflections and quick and easy to clean.
• Pulido: a gloss that intensifies the colours and gives them more life.

Applications: from worktop to floor

Obsidiana offers great flexibility for producing all kinds of interior surfaces, from kitchen worktops and floors to decorative pieces. COMPAC also points out that it allows bespoke designs with complex shapes and curves. Its catalogue lists these interior uses:

• Kitchen: worktops, splashbacks between worktop and wall units, and tables.
• Bathroom: vanity tops, washbasins and shower trays.
• Floors and walls: interior flooring and cladding.
• Furniture: shelving and bespoke pieces.

Waterstorm, Arik Levy's bathtub

A sculptural piece to show what the material can do.

Waterstorm Bathtub, designed by Arik Levy, is one of the pieces made with Obsidiana and a clear example of how the new surface can respond to any creative challenge. Levy, whom COMPAC presents as its artistic director, conceived a bathtub and a washbasin inspired by the nature of water, with undulations and curves that show the material's versatility. Both pieces were made in Obsidiana Volcano Fog.

WATERSTORM BATHTUB BY ARIK LEVY0:43

An industrial process with less waste

Obsidiana also marks a change in the sector's industrial processes. According to COMPAC, in 2020 all its production processes used 100% recycled water and energy from renewable sources. The result is a durable material that, according to the manufacturer, is more scratch-resistant than marble surfaces.

Because of these characteristics, Obsidiana obtained Cradle to Cradle certification, an internationally recognised programme that assesses products and their manufacturing process according to the principles of the circular economy. COMPAC notes that this certification earns points in sustainable building schemes such as LEED or BREEAM.

For anyone specifying it or working it in the workshop, one figure is relevant: COMPAC states that its crystalline silica content is below 7%. These are some of the values from the 2020 catalogue, which the brand presents as typical and non-binding:

COMPAC, the manufacturer

COMPAC was founded in 1975 and, according to the company itself, was the first Spanish company to manufacture and market engineered stone. It is a wholly Spanish-owned multinational, with a production plant in Abrantes (Portugal) and offices in Spain, Portugal, the United States, the United Kingdom, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates. Besides Obsidiana, it works with quartz and marble surfaces.

In short, COMPAC has developed the first sustainable, recyclable surface created with up to 100% recycled glass. A significant step towards manufacturing processes and materials that benefit our planet.

After the launch

In December 2020, COMPAC announced that Obsidiana had obtained Cradle to Cradle Certified status at Bronze level. In November 2021, the material won in the surfaces category of the FX International Interior Design Awards.

A surface like Obsidiana is best understood with the sample in hand: the pattern of each colour, the feel of the Glacé finish or the gloss of the Pulido do not come across in the same way in a photograph. At Matter we help you compare surfaces for worktops, bathrooms and cladding and choose the one that best suits your project.