*3.5. Industrialisation of Biological Processes*

The field of mycelium-based materials is currently confronted with two different tendencies: (1) the one dictated by the technological paradigm of automation, and (2) the one created by the use of biotechnologies in the built environment. Specifically, the renewed interest and development in biotechnologies applied to the built environment foresees a new material culture that can potentially overcome the separation between industrial processes and natural environmental cycles. The technologies and research developed within the context of mycelium-based material research, especially when confronted with applications on a large scale, come with a series of challenges that converge with the emergent field of construction biotechnologies. This new emergent field introduced by Ivanov and Stabnikov [88], investigates new microbial-mediated construction processes and microbial production of construction materials. Despite the advancement, the chemical, manufacturing, and construction industries remain somewhat reluctant to adopt bio-based or bio-inspired practices that could replace current oil-based processes. Both civil and environmental engineering are conspicuously developing a variety of solutions taking into consideration fundamental knowledge of microbiology. However, this type of knowledge is often a general case of "applied biological science" rather than firmly weaved and developed within design and engineering problems. In this regard, there are three main considerations to consider when scaling up bio-based material systems.

## **Scalability**

Manufacturing process for new materials with high impact and a growing market value comes with an inherent potential for large-scale industrialisation. The case of mycelium-based materials shows a biological process (similar to other industrial fermentation processes, such as cheese, beer, etc.) characterised by various complex variables that include long cycles of production, risk of contamination, and a complex multi-step manufacturing process. The lack of consistency and reproducibility of a specific material profile, therefore, prevents the scaling up of mycelium in both size and quantity to reach an industry-standard level of product certification. Companies such as Ecovative and Biohm have started to address some of these considerations using genetic engineering, optimisation of fungal strains, and introduction of additional micro-organisms in the fabrication loop.
