Showcased at Dutch Design Week, HBMS is a flat-pack shelving unit created by Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Pierre Salaün that is folded into its 3D form from a single metal sheet.

HBMS, which stands for Hand Bent Metal Shelf, can be assembled without the need for fasteners or adhesives.

The shelving unit is laser-cut from one sheet of industrial-format 1.5 millimetre-thick stainless steel, measuring 2.5 by 1.25 metres.

It is then hand-folded into its three-dimensional form, with elements nested inside one another for structural support.

The design can be adjusted to create different sizes of shelving from different sizes of metal sheets. A tall version made from standard industrial-format sheet is 300 millimetres deep, 605 millimetres wide and 2,440 millimetres tall.

"Thanks to its unique locking system, the shelf needs no other securing connector than the sheet itself," Salaün told Dezeen. "There is no hardware needed, meaning no welds or bolding system – one material, one piece, one system."

The furniture makes use of the entire sheet of metal, meaning there is no scrap metal left behind in its construction.

"When starting the HBMS project, I got inspired by the life cycle of stainless steel," said Salaün. "I visited some laser cutting factories and was intrigued by the skeleton of the laser cut – the piece that is left once the 'useful' parts have been extracted."

"From that point, I thought that instead of upcycling the leftovers, I could think of a design that would optimise the initial standard stainless steel sheet," Salaün explained.

HBMS was presented at Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven's central Heuvel shopping centre as part of the DAE Graduation Show.

Other graduate projects exhibited during the festival include marbled furniture made from second-hand books by Willem Zwiers and Henry K Wein's design for a portable treehouse.

The photography is by Pierre Salaün unless stated.

HBMS was on display as part of Dutch Design Week 2023 from 21 to 29 October. See Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.