POC's new helmet can be broken down into its constituent parts at the end of its life

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What happens to your cycling helmet when you replace it? With a mix of materials bonded together, cycling helmets are usually impossible to recycle, so the chances are it will usually end up in landfill.

The new POC Myelin commuting helmet is designed to avoid that. It’s built so that it can be easily disassembled into its individual components at the end of its life and its constituent parts can then be recycled.

Even from its inception, the POC Myelin helmet is made from 50 per cent recycled materials. It incorporates a shell made from woven recycled fabric and is assembled without using adhesives. POC says strategically placed fasteners ensure the helmet’s integrity and avoid the use of adhesives or lamination.

The fasteners can be cut apart at end of the helmet’s life and the component parts can then be separated. POC says that’s something that anyone can do using tools available at home, so the owner can then recycle the parts without needing a specialist recycling facility.

Despite its novel construction, the Myelin passes the relevant helmet safety standards across all jurisdictions.

POC says its big idea with the Myelin is “to use our planet’s resources respectfully, to take inspiration from a circular economy approach and to lead from the front with new ideas and innovations”.

It’s an example of what POC calls its “whole helmet concept”, where the brand has designed each part of the helmet to enhance the whole.

Apart from the shell, other recycled parts used in the POC Myelin include a cap and pads made of recycled polyester and a bottom ring of recycled nylon. The straps are made of recycled polyester, include a snap and incorporate elastic sections.

Protection is provided by an EPS foam liner, as with a conventional helmet, and an array of small ventilation holes are built into the top of the helmet. POC has avoided the usual printing on the Myelin helmet by embossing its logo into the helmet shell.

“We wanted to question the idea that safety and sustainability could not obviously co-exist in a helmet… so we wanted to challenge the conventional way of creating a helmet, in particular by starting with recycled materials, how it is manufactured and how it can be deconstructed so as to allow for all the materials to be used again,” says Claes Nellestam, senior designer at POC.

POC sees the Myelin as an important step forward in its helmet design. However, it says it’s just a starting point, and it will be looking to transfer its experience in designing and testing the helmet into more products.

The POC Myelin is available immediately online at POC’s website and in retail stores in three sizes, priced at £100 / $100 / €100. The woven shell itself is grey, but accents are provided by the bottom rim, which is available in five different colour options.

Paul has been writing about bike tech and reviewing all things cycling for almost a decade. He had a five-year stint at Cycling Weekly and has also written for titles including CyclingNews, Cyclist and BikePerfect, as well as being a regular contributor to BikeRadar. Tech-wise, he’s covered everything from rim width to the latest cycling computers. He reviewed some of the first electric bikes for Cycling Weekly and has covered their development into the sophisticated machines they are today, on the way becoming an expert on all things electric. Paul was into gravel before it was even invented, riding a cyclocross bike across the South Downs and along muddy paths through the Chilterns. He dabbled in cross-country mountain biking too,. He’s most proud of having covered the length of the South Downs Way on a crosser and fulfilling his long-time ambition to climb Monte Grappa on a road bike

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