Jonathan Mountfort is the creative director at Autex Acoustics, a New Zealand-grown business that creates industry-leading acoustic and insulation products for builders, architects and designers around the world. The company now serves more than 18 export markets, including Australia and the US.

In 2025, Autex unveiled its groundbreaking Autex Future Lab (AFL) – a platform providing a clear pathway for developing high-performance materials, products and solutions that respect and preserve natural resources.

Mountfort has a deep belief in circularity and in how materials, systems and science can work together to create better environmental outcomes. Now 14 years into his time at the company, he is excited to continue building on Autex’s long-held philosophy of leaving the planet better than we found it.

What’s a typical day like for you as creative director at Autex?

I like to start early, sometimes a 5am workout or a walk in the Waitākere Rangers, to think through big ideas.

After breakfast and dropping my youngest off at preschool, I’ll spend the first hour of the day with my Leuchtturm journal, reviewing the day before and nailing down priorities. I know people online say you need to do this before bed, but lots of them don’t have children! 

Then my day is a constant cycle of team work sessions, project reviews and brainstorming and testing. I’m also on a few advisory boards, so I spend quite a bit of time talking to the market and other external collaborators.

On top of that, I do a fair bit of travelling. Last year, I went to London, LA and Australia to meet with other industry professionals, attend workshops and present about our work with AFL. 

How does Autex help manufacturers integrate sustainability at every stage of product design?

At Autex, we believe no material itself is sustainable, it’s the system that it exists within that decides its benefit or its impact on the environment.

For years, our PET (polyester) products have had carefully considered systems around them to close the technical loop and recycle the ‘waste.’

That’s why we’re so excited about AFL. We’ve created a blueprint for how manufacturers work in partnership with the natural world to responsibly use both biological and technical resources. This concept hasn’t yet been fully resolved by any industry, which is why we’re determined to have a crack. 

The idea is that every stage of a product’s life feeds into the next, turning what was once waste into a new resource and creating a whole new value chain and truly circular economy. 

We hope manufacturers take these circular processes and weave sustainable practices into every stage of the product design process.

How does Autex ensure its sustainable innovations are trusted and not seen as greenwashing?

For years, we’ve been quietly walking the walk.

We were the first New Zealand company to run Life Cycle Assessment on our insulation and interior acoustics products circa 2010. We’ve been using recycled polyester since 1992, leading the way to circularity through a reform and palletisation process that gives the material a new life as RePET.

AFL takes this ethos to another level. Embrace has been accredited as the construction industry’s first Global GreenTag Nature Positive+ Certified material. This global benchmark acknowledges that for every kilogram of Embrace, 8.6 kilograms of potential carbon is removed from the atmosphere, and we had to go through a rigorous assessment process to get there. 

We’ve also published our full 2024/25 impact report, which transparently details the bold steps we’ve taken toward a more sustainable future, and it’s available for anyone who wants to take a look.

What excites you most about collaborating with scientists, designers and industry leaders to reimagine the spaces we live and work?

Collaboration is vital to making fundamental industry change. What I get the biggest buzz from is combining skill sets from wildly different disciplines aligned to the same goal and hanging on for the journey. This kind of teamwork has the potential to push multiple sectors forward while enhancing New Zealand’s reputation for leading-edge innovation.

Take Embrace for example – Rubisco supported us greatly, introducing us to the farm and then working with us at each step to functionalise the NZ strong wool fiber. We also worked with a leading scientist to conduct research, regenerative practitioners, WoolWorks, architects, specifiers and designers, who all played a crucial part in building out the product. I love working with people who share our mission of leaving the planet better than we found it.

What’s the most challenging part of leading the team?

I don’t see myself as a natural leader. I have ideas and a vision of how things could be, and I love sharing, testing and pushing them forward.

However, I can sometimes get so caught up in the work and the process that I don’t always make enough time to connect with everyone. It’s something I’m constantly trying to get better at, because I want to make sure the team feels supported as we bring ideas to life.

What’s next for Autex Future Lab?

2025 was a big year for AFL – being its first year in the market and launching its first innovation, Embrace.

Autex has always had a history of punching above its weight – and that’s exactly what we intend to keep doing this year. Through AFL, we’ll continue pushing the boundaries into new circularity systems and collaborate with people across the industry so we can lead the industrial re-evolution.