From the Sector

• Values from the past 30 years more relevant than ever and are reflected in recent growth

During its 30^th anniversary, the international OEKO-TEX^® Association is still seeing positive business development despite numerous global challenges. In total, OEKO-TEX^® issued more than 36,000 certificates and labels in the past financial year – an increase of 14% compared to the previous year. The STeP by OEKO-TEX^® facility certification recorded the strongest growth, almost doubling compared to 2020/2021. The number of labels and certificates issued increased from 31,696 to 36,084 between July 1st, 2021, and June 30th, 2022.

"Since OEKO-TEX^® was founded in 1992, our business practices have been aligned with our core values," says OEKO-TEX^® Secretary General Georg Dieners. “Sustainability, trust and safety build upon each other and are the basis of transparent and sustainable action. We underpin responsible action with our independent scientific methods and are valued in the industry as an effective, solution-oriented partner.” In the past financial year, this was reflected in the new Impact Calculator, with which STeP by OEKO-TEX^®-certified companies calculate their CO₂ emissions and measure their water consumption to ultimately reduce both. For OEKO-TEX^®, a sustainable future is inextricably linked to a transparent status quo. "By setting the highest standards and communicating them openly, we encourage companies and consumers to do the same," says Dieners.

To maintain trust and credibility, OEKO-TEX^® includes external perspectives. The International Advisory Board reviews proposals of the OEKO-TEX^® Working Groups and provides important impetus for continuous optimization of the standards. Additionally, a Public Stakeholder Consultation was conducted in March 2022 to gain comprehensive insights from all interest groups. These are now being integrated into the further development of the standards and services. The investments of the past financial year reflect how important quality assurance and product control are for the OEKO-TEX^® Association: Almost 40% of the total expenditure flowed into these two items.

In the meantime, the basic business continues to progress successfully. The number of STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® certificates issued in the 2021/2022 financial year exceeded 25,000 for the first time. More than 15,000 chemicals, colorants and auxiliaries were certified with ECO PASSPORT by OEKO-TEX^®.

In autumn 2022, OEKO-TEX^® will launch a certification to help companies comply with upcoming due diligence laws. With RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS by OEKO-TEX^®, OEKO-TEX^® is responding to the increasing global expectations of compliance with due diligence requirements in companies. The new standard is based on the EU proposal for due diligence, the German Due Diligence Act, which will come into force from 2023, and numerous other international legislative proposals.

The world’s largest fashion brands and retailers must increase transparency to tackle the climate crisis and social inequality, according to the latest Fashion Transparency Index.

The seventh edition of the Fashion Transparency Index ranks 250 of the world’s largest fashion brands and retailers based on their public disclosure of human rights and environmental policies, practices, and impacts, across their operations and supply chains.

• Brands achieved an average score of just 24%, with nearly a third of brands scoring less than 10%
• The majority of brands (85%) do not disclose their annual production volumes despite mounting evidence of clothing waste around the world
• Most major brands and retailers (96%) do not publish the number of workers in their supply chain paid a living wage

The Index reveals insights into the most pressing issues facing the fashion industry, like:

• As new and proposed legislation focuses on greenwashing claims, almost half of major brands (45%) publish targets on sustainable materials yet only 37% provide information on what constitutes a sustainable material.
• Only 24% of major brands disclose how they minimise the impacts of microfibres despite textiles being the largest source of microplastics in the ocean.
• The vast majority of major brands and retailers (94%) do not disclose the number of workers in their supply chains who are paying recruitment fees. This paints an unclear picture of the risks of forced labour as workers may be getting into crippling debt to accept jobs paying poverty wages.
• While many brands use their channels to talk about social justice, they need to go beyond lip service. Just 8% of brands publish their actions on racial and ethnic equality in their supply chains.

Despite these results, Fashion Revolution is encouraged by increasing supply chain transparency among many major brands, primarily with first-tier manufacturers where the final stage of production occurs, e.g. cutting, sewing, finishing and packing. Nine brands have disclosed their first-tier manufacturers for the first time this year. It is encouraging to see significant progress across market segments including luxury, sportswear, footwear and accessories and across different geographies.

Fashion Revolution’s co-founder and Global Operations Director Carry Somers says: “In 2016, only 5 out of 40 major brands (12.5%) disclosed their suppliers. Seven years later, 121 out of 250 major brands (48%) disclose their suppliers. This clearly demonstrates how the Index incentivises transparency but it also shows that brands really are listening to the millions of people around the world who keep asking them #WhoMadeMyClothes? Our power is in our persistence.”

More key findings from the Fashion Transparency Index 2022:

Progress on transparency in the global fashion industry is still too slow among 250 of the world’s largest fashion brands and retailers, with brands achieving an overall average score of just 24%, up 1% from last year
For another year, the initiative has seen major brands and retailers publicly disclose the most information about their policies, commitments and processes on human rights and environmental topics and significantly less about the results, outcomes and impacts of their efforts.

Most (85%) major brands still do not disclose their annual production volumes despite mounting evidence of overproduction and clothing waste
Thousands of tonnes of clothing waste are found globally. However, brands have disclosed more information about the circular solutions they are developing (28%) than on the actual volumes of pre- (10%) and post-production waste they produce (8%). Brands have sat by as waste importing countries foot the bill, resulting in serious human rights and environmental implications.

Just 11% of brands publish a responsible purchasing code of conduct indicating that most are still reluctant to disclose how their purchasing practices could be affecting suppliers and workers
Greater transparency on how brands interact with their suppliers ought to be a first step towards eliminating harmful practices and promoting fair purchasing practices. The poor performance on transparency in this vital area is a missed opportunity for brands to demonstrate they are serious about addressing the root causes of harmful working conditions, including the instances where they themselves are the key driver.

Despite the urgency of the climate crisis, less than a third of major brands disclose a decarbonisation target covering their entire supply chain which is verified by the Science-Based Targets Initiative
Many brands and retailers rely heavily on garment producing countries that are vulnerable to the impacts of the climate crisis, yet our research shows that only 29% of major brands and retailers publish a decarbonisation target covering their operations and supply chain which is verified by the Science Based Targets Initiative.

Only 11% of brands publish their supplier wastewater test results, despite the textile industry being a leading contributor to water pollution
The fashion industry is a major contributor to water pollution and one of the most water intensive industries on the planet. Only 11% of major brands publish their wastewater test result, and only 25% of brands disclose the process of conducting water-related risk assessments in their supply chain. Transparency on wastewater test results is key to ensuring that brands are held accountable for their potentially devastating impacts on local biodiversity, garment workers and their communities.

Most major brands and retailers (96%) do not publish the number of workers in their supply chain paid a living wage nor do they disclose if they isolate labour costs
Insufficient progress is being made by most brands towards ensuring that the workers in their supply chain are paid enough to cover their basic needs and put aside some discretionary income. Just 27% of brands disclose their approach to achieving living wages for supply chain workers and 96% do not publish the number of workers in their supply chain paid a living wage. In response, we have joined forces with allies across civil society to launch Good Clothes, Fair Pay. The campaign demands groundbreaking living wage legislation across the garment, textile and footwear sector.

• Collaboration with Red Points addresses consumers’ increasing expectations on transparency and highlights Lenzing’s commitment to trademark protection
• Protects interest of Lenzing customer and partners who are making real efforts to enhance the transparency of their value chains
• Builds upon Lenzing’s overall brand protection efforts that verify the authenticity of fibers up to the end products

Lenzing Group, a global producer of wood-based specialty fibers, has announced a partnership with Red Points, a company in online IP infringement detection and removal, to strengthen Lenzing’s existing brand protection efforts globally and enable round-the-clock brand monitoring services. As Lenzing’s textile brands TENCEL™, LENZING™, ECOVERO™, as well as nonwovens brand VEOCEL™ continue to generate widespread demand from industry partners and customers worldwide, it is becoming increasingly important to protect the company’s trademarks and provide full visibility into the brands’ presence online.

Protecting the interest of Lenzing’s partners and consumers
Red Points provides the ideal technology solution to help Lenzing monitor and remove unauthorized use of its trademarks and counterfeits online. The technology works by using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to automatically detect intellectual property infringements of Lenzing’ trademarks with high accuracy and efficiency.

Brand protection is just one of Lenzing’s ongoing proactive measures aimed at enhancing transparency in the supply chain and protecting the interest of Lenzing’s partners by ensuring they are purchasing genuine Lenzing fibers which meet their high standards.

In 2018, Lenzing launched the Lenzing E-Branding Service which allows Lenzing’s customers, retailers and brand partners to effectively use trademarks in their marketing materials. The platform has been welcomed by partners globally as it continues to deliver value to the fashion, textile and nonwoven sectors by facilitating the traceability of Lenzing’s fibers and enabling customers to promote them effectively.

ANDRITZ will be presenting its innovative nonwovens production solutions at CINTE 2022 in Shanghai, China (September 6–8). ANDRITZ will show its broad product portfolio covering state-of-the-art nonwovens and textile production technologies such as air-through bonding, airlay, needlepunch, spunlace, spunbond, wetlaid/WetlaceTM, converting, textile finishing, recycling, and natural fiber processing.

SUSTAINABILITY IS KEY
ANDRITZ supports nonwovens producers in the move to sustainability with the aim of reducing or eliminating plastic components while maintaining the high quality of the desired product properties. This applies to all types of sustainable wipes, such as flushable, biodegradable, bio-sourced, carded pulp or standard carded wipes. The latest development in this field is the ANDRITZ neXline wetlace CP line, which integrates the carded-pulp (CP) process. This is a fully engineered production line combining the benefits of drylaid and wetlaid technologies to produce a new generation of biodegradable wipes.

NEXLINE WETLAID AXCESS TARGETS SMALLER AND MEDIUM PRODUCTION VOLUMES
The neXline wetlaid aXcess targets smaller and medium production volumes and has been devised for new and existing lines. The compact line provides an entrance to the growing wetlaid market, with a variety of final applications and options.

ANDRITZ AXCESS DEVELOPED FOR MEDIUM CAPACITIES IN WUXI, CHINA
The aXcess range was specially developed at ANDRITZ (China) Ltd. Wuxi Branch to handle medium capacities. The facility in Wuxi has an experienced platform for production and service specially geared to serve the Asian nonwovens industry. It designs and manufactures cutting-edge lines to complement the ANDRITZ aXcess product range, which includes complete lines and individual machines for air-through bonding, needlepunch and spunlace processes. With the aXcess range, ANDRITZ has developed a hybrid line combining European and Chinese machines, which is the ideal combination to obtain the best added value from each component in the line and be very flexible to accommodate different business cases.

The service organization was set up to provide prompt delivery and excellent customer support, even during the COVID-19 pandemic. A team of technicians and process experts can be deployed quickly to customer sites requiring full-range assistance. The ANDRITZ facilities include a roll service center with state of-the-art grinding equipment and a test stand for various types of rolls.

In addition, our aXcess range manufactured in Europe also offers technologies for spunlaid and wetlaid processes. Increasing production speeds and widths, compact and reliable design, and affordable investment costs are what customers look for in a competitive market environment. To meet these requirements ideally, we recently enhanced our nonwoven calender and dryer ranges.

Exhibiting companies can now register for A+A 2023! The world's leading trade fair and congress event for personal protection, occupational safety and health at work will take place in Düsseldorf from 24 to 27 October 2023.

Under the motto "People count", numerous exhibitors will present innovative solutions and concepts for safe and healthy working at A+A 2023. This time, the thematic umbrella of the international trade fair is formed by the megatrends of digitalisation and sustainability.

Decision-makers and experts will find cross-sector solutions and answers to the important questions surrounding a safe, healthy and sustainable workplace. From personal protective equipment (PPE), operational fire protection, environmental protection or disaster prevention to offers for ergonomic and healthy workplace design.

The focus will be on topics such as sustainability and the circular economy of products, digital services in the provision, care and storage of PPE, mobile working, exoskeletons (wearable robots) and wearables. Forums and side events as well as an innovative Start-up Zone complement the trade fair and set new, future-oriented impulses.

For more information and registration click here.

• The Borvida™ portfolio introduces sustainable base chemicals to Borealis’ range of product offering
• The range will initially be based on non-food waste biomass, and chemically-recycled waste; in the future it will also draw from atmospheric carbon capture
• The traceability of the content will be based on Mass Balance, which is ISCC PLUS certified
• This is the next step in an ambitious sustainability journey, which will see Borealis move away from traditional fossil-based feed

Borealis is strengthening its EverMinds™ circular product offering with Borvida™, a range of sustainable base chemicals.

The Borvida portfolio will offer base chemicals or cracker products (such as ethylene, propylene, butene and phenol) with ISCC Plus-certified sustainable content from Borealis sites in Finland, Sweden and Belgium. The move is part of Borealis’ broader commitment to a Future-Positive Revolution, in which the unrivalled benefits of base chemicals and polymers can be enjoyed at minimal impact to the planet.   

The portfolio will initially comprise Borvida B, from non-food waste biomass, and Borvida C, from chemically-recycled waste. In the future, the range will evolve to include Borvida A, sourced from atmospheric carbon capture. Borvida is complementary and is the building block to Bornewables™, a portfolio of polyolefins based on renewably-sourced second generation feedstocks, and Borcycle™, which offers circular polyolefins produced from mechanically- and chemically-recycled plastic waste.

Borealis produces a wide range of base chemicals for use in numerous industries based on various feedstock, such as naphtha, butane, propane and ethane. Through its olefin units (steam cracker and propane dehydrogenation), it converts these into the building blocks of the chemical industry: ethylene, propylene and C4 hydrocarbons (butylenes, ethyl tertiary-butyl ether (ETBE) and butadiene), and C5-6 hydrocarbons (pygas, phenol) among others.

The basis of the Borvida portfolio is Mass Balance, a Chain of Custody model that enables sustainable content to be tracked, traced, and verified through the entire value chain, offering sustainability-assured products from feedstock to end product. Using this model, circular alternatives can be offered in a cost-effective and environmentally-conscious way, which can be scaled up quickly without compromising on quality or efficiency.

Borvida can be used for a wide range of different polymer and chemical applications, also beyond polyolefins (PO). Non-PO polymers, such as polycarbonates, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), super absorbant polymer (SAP) and other chemicals, are utilised for various end applications including coatings, plasticizers, adhesives, automotive, electronics, lubricants, detergents, appliances and sports equipment.

Together with key strategic partners, including Neste and Covestro, Borealis strives to provide a long-term solution in order to allow value-chain partners to meet their sustainability goals. Borvida will enable our customers to increase the sustainability of their products, keeping them ahead of forthcoming legislative changes, and meeting their customers’ demands for climate-conscious products.

Introduced on a smaller scale in early 2020, early renewable base chemicals customers include Covestro. “The use of alternative sustainable raw materials is one important pillar of our strategic ambition to become fully circular”, comments Frank Dörner, Managing Director Covestro Procurement Services GmbH & Co. KG. “The new product line is a good example for joint solutions, another strategic pillar, in order to establish new and reliable supply chains creating benefits for our customers.”

C&S strengthens its position in the luxury segment with the acquisition of Texo S.R.L., a company based in Cagli (Pesaro and Urbino) with 10 years of experience in the production of fashion apparel for Texo and for third parties.

C&S enriches the offer of its Style Services Luxe division, the research and production solution for any kind of style needs, together with Style Services Denim and along with C&S Experience projects, initiatives in direct contact with retail such as the haikure brand and the license agreements for Europe for Jeckerson and Purple. C&S’s history begins over 40 years ago in Trestina, in the Perugia province, and is rooted in denim culture and in the limitless potential that comes with this fabric. The company has begun to establish itself as a partner for the creation of jackets, shirts, outerwear, and denim. Its know-how expresses the combination of the production souls that characterize its territory of origin, between Umbria and Marche: all the typical tradition of premium denim mixed with the culture of luxury apparel, intimately dedicated to beauty, quality, and attention to detail.

“We are proud to have achieved this new milestone” states Federico Corneli, C&S’s main shareholder. “We firmly believe that the added value that Texo S.R.L.’s specialization brings to the table will allow us to grow further and to be able to accelerate the strategic path that will lead us to establish ourselves as special partner for the most important luxury brands”.

The Reifenhäuser Group will be represented with four booths at the world's leading trade fair for plastics processing, K 2022, from October 19 to 26. Under this year's Reifenhäuser motto "The Time is Now", the extrusion specialists will show producers of films and nonwovens solutions for the three major topics of the industry: sustainability, digitalization and productivity.

The main booth showcases the Reifenhäuser Blown Film, Cast Sheet Coating and Reicofil business units. With the help of machine exhibits, visual presentations and concrete solutions for end products, visitors will learn, among other things, how they can manufacture fully recyclable products economically, process recyclates safely, increase their output and network the entire production without becoming dependent on systems, specialists or manufacturers. To ensure smooth production even after purchase, Reifenhäuser Service shows how customers can get the best out of their Reifenhäuser products and increase their productivity with rework solutions, modifications, training programs and digital services.

The component specialists of the Reifenhäuser Extrusion Systems business unit will additionally present their portfolio at two other exhibition booths. Here, everything revolves around screws, barrels and extruders - and why, especially for processing recycled material, high-performance wear protection is essential for reliability and high economic efficiency. Reifenhäuser Extrusion Systems will also showcase its innovations for flat dies and coextrusion blocks and their coordinated interaction for maximum productivity.

In addition to its own booths, Reifenhäuser will also be present as a partner of the R-Cycle initiative as part of a joint pavilion on the open-air site in the so-called Circular Economy Forum. R-Cycle is a cooperation project of various technology companies and organizations along the entire life cycle of plastic packaging.

Aanother highlight for visitors to the Reifenhäuser trade fair booths is the opportunity to additionally participate in the in-house exhibition on October 20, 21 and 24 at the Reifenhäuser Technology Center.

With an annual report entitled 'Here.We.Go' and a sustainability report 'Shaping sustainable living, together', B.I.G. is also publishing a strong ambition for a sustainable future.

Offering sustainable flooring and material solutions will be the number one priority for the coming years.

The Group's first sustainability report is built around a self-designed sustainability model - "Route 2030" - which is based on achievable commitments, covers the main priorities and reflects B.I.G.'s vision in a sincere way.

Their vision for the B.I.G. change is to actively build a better future by their our carbon footprint to zero and doing business in a transparent, integer way. In this sense, it is the translation of the Group's purpose defined in 2021: shaping sustainable living, together.

Pol Deturck adds “By 2030, together with a broad group of suppliers, stakeholders and partners, we want to be the leader in sustainable flooring and material solutions. Specifically, our future value proposition is based on products and services that are environmentally & climate friendly, circular and offered by talented, innovative people with an emphasis on integrity and respect for values. This results more in a recurring value proposition for the future.”

Clear growth ambitions
As a 100% family-owned international Group with a clear long-term vision, B.I.G. stayed true to their plans and kept on investing in all areas of their business.
“The ambition for 2021 was to invest over 100 mio euro. But we were held back by external, unforeseen factors: from delays on quotes and execution to the lack of availability and resources due to the pandemic. If all goes as planned, we’ll make up for it in 2022 with an investment budget well over 100 million euro. The main areas of interest will be sustainability, innovation and Industry 4.0.” says Pieter-Jan Sonck, CFO of B.I.G.

Adding to the gradual top-line growth of recent years, the Group can look back on an unprecedented financial boom. The driving forces: favorable market conditions, a revitalized growth strategy and a team of nearly 5.000 first-class employees.

B.I.G. reported a turnover of EUR 2,5 billion, an increase of 45 % compared to 2020. The Group ebitda amounted to EUR 451 million, an increase of 120 % compared to 2020 and a net result of EUR 274 million, a growth of 215% compared to 2020.

Fruitful year for all Business Units
It was a fruitful year for all 3 business units, but the Group's business unit Polymers stood out. Exceptionally strong demand in Europe and North America, combined with raw material shortages and unplanned shutdowns of competitors, pushed prices and margins up to highs. The Polymers facilities ran at full capacity to meet the customers’ needs and hit all-time profit records during several months.

The Group's business unit Flooring Solutions also fared well. Most divisions and regions outperformed amid surging energy prices, disrupted supply chains, cost volatility in transport and raw materials, and other challenges. Their sustained focus on innovation, design and product differentiation led to an improved operating result at the end of 2021.

The achievements by Engineered Solutions echo those of the other two business units, from volume increases to budget increases. B.I.G. took big leaps forward in all its key markets, including the automotive sector, geotextiles and filtration.

111 companies from nine different countries took part in the 4th edition of one of the leading trade fairs in Turkey for occupational safety and health, TOS+H EXPO, from May 14-17, in Istanbul. Due to the ever-increasing importance of personal protection, occupational safety and a healthy workplace, TOS+H EXPO came just in time. Exhibitors were able to target a Turkish audience with the latest trends and products in industrial safety, health promotion at work and occupational safety management. The Occupational Health and Safety Symposium, which was organised by the Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ICI) was also very well attended on all four days. Current occupational safety and health issues were addressed and provided important impulses for establishing a prevention culture in companies in Turkey and its neighboring countries. A total of 4.309 visitors from 58 countries attended the 4th TOS+H EXPO.

“The remarkable outcome of TOS+H EXPO 2022 is clearly asserting its significance as the leading trade fair for the industry, in Turkey,” says Petra Cullmann, Executive Director at Messe Düsseldorf. “Our new partner, the Istanbul Chamber of Industries, paved the way for a high-caliber symposium with inspiring insights and intensive discussions, and our exhibitors again proved their expertise with a comprehensive overview of innovative products, equipment and services at the trade fair. We are proud to be sending clear signals in the market. We're giving a lead, both in Turkey and beyond, on the element that matters most: the individual.”

TOS+H Expo 2022 and the Occupational Health and Safety Symposium organized by the Istanbul Chamber of Industry were officially opened on May 14, 2022 by Ms. Petra Cullman, Executive Director Messe Düsseldorf and Sadık Ayhan SARUHAN, ICI Vice President. The new partnership with the Chamber of Industry will ensure the quality of the event and also strengthen the leading position of TOS+H Expo in Turkey.

“The Occupational Health and Safety Symposium, which we organized simultaneously with the 4th TOS+H Expo - Turkish Occupational Safety + Health Exhibition, was concluded with the presentations of 84 speakers in 22 sessions. Our symposium included highly interesting presentations on the environment, sustainability and labor law and was met with great interest by all parties and especially by representatives from all industrial sectors which deal with the topic of occupational safety and health at work. As ICI, we will continue to work to improve OHS processes in the next period”, said a spokesperson for the Istanbul Chamber of Industry.