From the Sector

Digital Product Passports can now be processed at TEXAID’s largest sorting facility, thanks to circular.fashion’s intelligent sorting stations, which use RFID and NFC technology to improve the quality and consistency of manual sorting.

Digital Product Passports (DPP) have been recognised by the EU as an enabler for circular fashion and textiles. Technology company circular.fashion has been a leader in this effort, releasing the circularity.ID in 2018 and developing Intelligent Sorting Stations to bring ID based sorting to the textile reuse and recycling industry.

ID based sorting optimises the manual sorting process for reuse and recycling by giving sorters data to make decisions more accurately and consistently. TEXAID has, by adopting this technology, increased Europe’s capacity to process DPPs.

The installation and testing of TEXAID’s new Intelligent Sorting Stations was completed successfully shortly before the holiday period. Initial test results indicate that ID based sorting can make sorting decisions more reliable and more consistent. The team also sees a potential for ID based sorting to reduce training costs for new employees and maximise the value of their sorting decisions. This advancement was made through the CIRTEX project, funded through the KMU Innovativ funding programme from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The Intelligent Sorting Stations at TEXAID are now operational, and brands and retailers have the ability to adopt the circularity.ID as a Digital Product Passport and have textile products returned to TEXAID for ID based sorting.

• Monomaterial solution contains renewably-sourced polypropylene from the Bornewables™ portfolio of circular polyolefins
• Trexel employs its proprietary MuCell® technology to deliver a range of lightweighting benefits
• EverMinds™ in action: reuse and design for recycling are focus of value chain collaboration

Borealis and Trexel, an expert in foaming injection and blow moulded parts, announce that they have co-developed a new plastic bottle based on a grade from the Bornewables™ portfolio of polyolefins made using renewable feedstocks derived 100% from waste and residue streams. The lightweight bottle – which will be showcased at the Borealis stand at the K 2022 (from 19 to 26 October 2022 in Düsseldorf) – is reusable and fully recyclable. It boasts a significantly lower overall CO₂ footprint because it is composed of renewably-sourced feedstock and produced in the foaming process.

The Bornewables™ portfolio of circular polyolefins helps reduce the carbon footprint while offering material performance equal to virgin polymers. Using Bornewables grades allows for design freedom and colour flexibility, and helps retain a premium look and feel. The grades – which are commercially available in Europe – help conserve natural resources because they are derived solely from waste and residue streams, for example from used cooking oil. Reusing waste already in circulation instead of fossil fuel-based feedstocks enhances the sustainability of applications made using the Bornewables grades.

The reusable new bottle developed by Borealis and Trexel retains its value over many life cycles thanks to the use of Trexel’s proprietary technology in tandem with Bornewables grades; as a material solution, the new bottle minimises the use of valuable raw materials. Moreover, converters consume less energy in the production process when using the MuCell® technology. The bottle thus helps close the loop on plastics circularity by way of design for recycling, the use of renewable feedstocks, and excellent material performance across multiple life cycles.

The sustainable collaboration and innovation between Indorama Ventures (IVL), Auping and TWE Group presented a certified cradle to cradle process for mattress components across nonwoven applications, at Techtextil, Frankfurt, 21st to 24th June 2022.

Using circular research and design, the industry partnership between IVL Mullagh (Ireland), Auping and TWE Group has resulted in a perpetual, sustainable economic business model, for manufacturers globally. The inclusion of safe raw materials within mattress manufacturing allows the materials to be easily disassembled at the product’s end of use in order to be further reused as same components or recycled into new raw material at the same quality level, to enable versatile textile applications.

Designed for disassembly to optimize the use of existing resources, reduce carbon footprint and support customer objectives all along their customers’ supply chain. This circular industry collaboration begins with design, where the mattress is constructed using only two different base materials, 100% PET polyester textiles and steel wire pocket springs connected with Niaga®️, a non toxic reversible adhesive, making the mattress easy to disassemble and recover.

IVL, Auping and TWE’s shared vision for a better world is demonstrated through their connected and innovative circularity that helps to close the loop. Auping collects, sorts and separates the collected fabrics, which then go to IVL Mullagh for processing, melting and extrusion to form polyester staple fiber. These staple fibers are then converted by TWE Group into nonwovens for use in Auping’s Evolve mattress, a fully circular mattress. Following the end of mattress use, the material recovery process simply starts again.

Auping estimates that annually more than 40 million mattresses are disposed of in Europe alone, the majority of which are incinerated. Their take back system in the Netherlands ensures that when their new mattress is delivered, the old mattress is retrieved and recycled, irrespective of the brand, ensuring existing materials are continually optimized, diverted from landfill and kept in use to achieve a circular economy.

Five players in the textile service industry announce the establishment of Cibutex (Circular Business Textiles). This new cooperative is dedicated to the recycling and recovery of fibres from discarded textiles. Cibutex wants to contribute to a circular textile chain through cooperation in the whole sector.

The textile service has been implementing key Circular Economy solutions for some time: rental, care, repair and reuse of textiles for professional use. "As an industry, we are in a position to delve even deeper into the world of the circular economy. Every linen rental company has many of the same products, which go through the same process every time: the textiles are washed, sorted and collected again after the period of use. After many washes, the textiles are rejected. With this rejected textile, we see a unique opportunity to finally put the idea of a closed textile chain into practice. The used textiles that have reached the end of their useful life can be recycled on an industrial scale and the fibre raw materials can be recovered to make new textiles. We want to exploit this potential to the full by founding Cibutex, a cooperative for all textile service providers in Europe," says Cibutex director Jan Lamme, explaining the background of the unique project.

Cross-competitive goal
The founders of Cibutex are four well-known, competing textile service companies and one supply partner: Blycolin Textile Services (Zaltbommel, NL), Dibella (Aalten), Edelweiss Groep (The Hague), Lamme Textile Management (Amsterdam, NL) and Nedlin (Elsloo, NL). The companies have deliberately joined forces in order to implement sustainability in textiles and clothing by means of closed material cycles throughout the sector.

"Important resources are hidden in our B2B used textiles. We want to recover these in cooperation with relevant recycling companies and thus promote textile recycling as demanded by the EU Commission. We have come together to achieve sufficient critical mass to determine the final recycling of our discarded laundry, with the goal of moving from textiles to textiles," says co-founder Luuk de Win (Nedlin).

Sustainable eco-balance
"By recycling the raw materials of our used textiles, we contribute to reducing the social, environmental and climate impacts of the textile industry related to cultivation and production, and this leads to a long-term improvement of the ecological footprint of our industry," adds co-founder Marc van Boekholt (Blycolin).

Increasing value
To make the final transformation step of the circular economic model "textile service" a success, any European textile service company can become a member of Cibutex. The cooperative takes care of the collection, transport to the recycling partners and remuneration for the old textiles, which are now limited to bed linen, table linen and bath linen. In the future, however, the group wants to develop solutions for other textiles as well. For example, the recycling of workwear is also on the agenda. The founders of Cibutex agree that this too is a treasure trove of resources that must be addressed.

The acoustic performance of components for the vehicle interior such as inner dashes or carpets depends on the noise-reducing quality as well as the geometrical adaptability and fill power of their material. With Flexi-Loft, Autoneum offers a new felt-based technology that thanks to a unique blend of recycled cotton and functional fibers reduces product weight and allows for accurate adaptation even to complex shapes. The textile material therefore provides a versatile and more sustainable alternative to foam.

In order to achieve high acoustic performance at minimum weight and maximum sustainability, Autoneum is continuously advancing its textile product portfolio. When it comes to components for the vehicle interior, for example, standard thermoplastic felts excel through their acoustic absorption, robustness and environmental friendliness. However, since felt-based materials are generally less voluminous and moldable as foam components, they require more weight to thoroughly fill the areas of varying thickness between the surface of the component and the vehicle’s body-in-white. In contrast, Autoneum’s Flexi-Loft technology is significantly lighter, more flexible and more adaptable than standard felts. In addition, the fiber-based material is versatile and clearly outperforms current foam products in terms of sustainability.

Thanks to its blend of recycled cotton and polyester fibers, Flexi-Loft substantially reduces component weight while improving geometrical adaptability and acoustic performance, especially in areas of low thickness. Thanks to the specific properties of the fibers, Flexi-Loft enables a precise adaptation to a wide variety of vehicle bodies, thereby improving the noise-insulating qualities of the respective product. Even at low weight, Flexi-Loft covers a wide range of material thicknesses, thus proving to be an ideal decoupling material for interior components with complex shapes such as inner dashes and automotive carpets. As a lightweight, flexible and sustainable alternative to both standard felts and foam, Flexi-Loft distinguishes itself by its versatile application in combination with existing Autoneum technologies such as Hybrid-Acoustics and Prime-Light. Moreover, the material helps to reduce odor and dust inside the vehicle.

Flexi-Loft consists of at least 50% recycled cotton fibers, and cut-offs generated during the manufacturing process are reclaimed, processed and then reused in the production of new felt blanks.

Autoneum is already using Flexi-Loft worldwide as an insulator for various carpets, inner dashes and other acoustic components based on its Prime-Light technology. The application of the material as an effective decoupler in inner dashes made of Hybrid-Acoustics will be launched on the European market in 2023.

• Riri’s SS 2022 collection explores the mind of the future.
• Bright colors, vintage themes as well as timeless designs and attention to detail, combined with concepts that highlight history and processes.

Riri Group’s gaze looks to the future once more, offering a line of accessories where creativity meets cutting-edge technology. This is the scenario spawning the new SS 2022 collection; a range of innovative proposals each representing a different emotional response to the pandemic, an attempt to interpret the emotions, needs and desires of consumers in the coming years.

The Italian-Swiss group, that for almost a century has committed to creating zips and buttons for the world’s most important fashion brands, doubles down on its forward-looking vision. The result is SS 2022 collection, featuring three different aspirational paths to read into the emerging feelings of the “new normal” that is our time and that may characterize the near future.

REJOICE
Inspired by sensations of euphoria and breaking free from melancholy through evasion and exuberance, Rejoice is the line that sees in positivity and joy of re-living the answer to the months of pandemic and negativity. The optimism that is to come takes the form of a creative and extrovert style, even when it comes to accessories. The inspiration, a triumph of bright colors and timeless styles, comes straight from the streets of Boca, one of Buenos Aires’ most popular neighborhoods thanks to its combination of colors and creative scene. Thus, the Eloxal rio zip is presented once again: with its aluminum chain and colored teeth, matched with a multi-color effect puller. In the range, we can also find the Nylon zip, featuring changing colors matched with buttons that echo their color variations, or the Filmetal 14 zip, big and with eye-catching writings, embossed on the tape.

REBIRTH
Going back to the future, in a more respectful and responsible way, through a rebirth that comes to be thanks to a closer relationship with nature. In this line history and processes through which the product is made are pivotal to tell a new way to approach the world. The range comprises zips and buttons developed with natural material and processed manually. A return to the basics as well as the constant research to reduce resources use respecting the planet are foundation of this line. Part of the Rebirth line are the copper jeans buttons, with a special water-based paint finishing, transparent and protective, or the hemp-derived bio-plastic eyelets, as well as the galalite buttons, a particular bio-degradable plastic, derived from processed milk proteins. A major innovation are our tapes entirely made of recycled polyester, evidence of the commitment by Riri Group to reuse resources.

TIMELESS
Timeless elegance, essential luxury mixed with the highest quality standards for top-of-therange products. Design, materials and colors featuring in this line break away from seasonal trends to become timeless must-haves, essential yet elegant. Every piece is cared for in every detail, created specifically to leave a lasting mark. Buttons, chains and pullers are either made of gold and silver, or they feature the clean and elegant tone of stainless steel. Among the zips, stand out Metal and Simmetrical with luxury finishings, whilst tapes are made with refined materials, such as leather and satin. Essential yet researched, this range comes with square and oval cuts, with geometry being functional and complementary to a timeless elegance.

Intelligently designed clothes made with the latest manufacturing technology are the results of the partnership between on of the leading denim innovators ISKO and the Italian brand HIGH. A project, part of the SS2021 HIGH collection, is the start of collaboration in the pursuit of sustainable fashion.

Aimed at bringing a positive change both for the planet and its people, the project presents two pieces – jacket and pants – which embody HIGH’s approach to creativity and production: a wellbalanced mix of specialists’ expertise and a tireless investigation on the latest and most responsible fabric technologies. HIGH identified the R-TWO™ program as the right fabric ingredient, ideal to level up sustainability in its looks.

Relying on a blend of reused and recycled materials, this revolutionary platform works by embedding material circularity into the production process, designing waste out of the system and minimizing impact at scale. With fully traced reused cotton coming from ISKO’s production loss, which is prevented from becoming waste by adding it back into the spinning process, and an efficient use of polyester materials which are spun into newly recycled fibers, the program can provide certified to Textile Exchange environmental credentials. According to the percentage of material contained, these can be either the Content Claim Standard, Global Recycled Standard, Organic Content Standard or Recycled Claim Standard, ensuring better use of raw materials and resource efficiency while providing advanced concepts that don’t compromise on their look and performance.

Additionally, to meet HIGH’s performance needs, ISKO has brought to the table one of its most popular technologies, of course in its R-TWO™ version: Jeggings™, super-stretch denim technology. Soft and lightweight as leggings, it provides comfort with the look of authentic denim and provides the perfect, responsible solution to usher the partnership.

• Miles Johnson and ISKO’s Creative Room present the new responsible collection.

The second edition of this partnership tells the story of a unique combination of creativity and expertise brought to the table by ISKO’s style and design center, Creative Room Italy, and the innovative designer Miles Johnson, resulting in a collection featuring responsible R-TWO™ fabrics and a selection of sustainable accessories and details.

An act of care for the planet and its people, Light on the Land 2.0 is the new capsule designed by Miles Johnson and ISKO. Former Design Director at Levi Strauss & Co. and Senior Creative Director of Product Design and Development at Patagonia, Inc., Miles joined forces with Creative Room and Iskoteca, ISKO’s Italian style and washing research hubs, to develop a collection that brings responsibility in the fashion industry to the next level.

The project includes 32 unique pieces, each of them realized with seasonless designs and sustainably-minded details. All the fabrics used in the collection were carefully selected from ISKO’s R-TWO™ platform. Using a mixture of reused cotton and recycled fibers, the technique embeds material circularity into the production processes, designing waste out of the system and minimizing impact at scale. Certified to Textile Exchange environmental credentials according to the percentage of materials contained, R-TWO™ ensures better use of raw materials and resource efficiency. ISKO’s Environmental Product Declarations (EPD®s), available for all its +25,000 products, offer a unique opportunity to measure the impact of R-TWO™’s savings in the Lifecycle Assessments (LCAs) framework, where resource savings can be seen in carbon impact, water-use reductions and many other impact KPIs.

Light on the Land 2.0 incorporates responsible design principles such as Cadica’s new and innovative trims, made of vegan apple “leather”, and has been developed using ecoconscious finishing techniques. The collection also features many additional sustainable facets such as efficient low-waste pattern cutting and design, efficient sewing methods, removeable rivets for end-of-life and biodegradable thread which can be removed at high heats.

“When we first started working on this project, we knew it was going to be amazing,” explained Massimo Munari, Manager and Art director Creative Room, ISKO. “To design a collection like this, you need to begin with the right mindset and of course, the right materials. R-TWO was the perfect ingredient, thanks to the re-used and re-cycled content. We then aimed to minimize impact at all stages: incorporating sustainable design ideas, washing processes and trims. We are proud to have created such an inspiring, and sustainable collection, and to bring our collective vision to light.”

Due to the unprecedented challenges of this time, the collection was entirely developed through remote working and creative solutions to ensure the safety and health of all parties involved. To this end, everyone was kept safe thanks to ISKO Vital™+ reusable and eco-friendly face covers, created with organic cotton to cater for comfort and sustainability.

• Technology, creativity and sustainability
• Recycled materials, bright colours, eclectic shapes: excellence is in the details, and the new creations by the Italian-Swiss group have plenty to say.

Mendrisio – Looking at the new Fall-Winter 2021-2022 collection of the Riri Group, it almost seems as if the difficult months to which the pandemic has forced the whole world, have been another new – though unwanted – challenge for the Italian-Swiss company. A testbed that sparked the mind and lit the fire of creativity. Therefore, today, the brand ingredient which for over 80 years has embellished the
garments designed by major fashion system brands with top-quality zips and buttons, also introduces a wide range of heterogeneous creations, intended to cover different aesthetic and functional requirements on the market.

This collection has been divided into three macro-topics; it is a new chapter in the history of the Group.

LIFE SERVING
Keyword: sustainability. Or, more romantically, “Reuse with love”. From the use of materials produced using organic waste and recycled plastics to actual destocking – the re-introduction on the market of unsold items to give them new life through a restyled shape: the topic of “life serving”, for Riri, translates into the meticulous and constant search for materials with a low environmental impact and in the committed attempt to reduce the use of plastic to a minimum. This is why the Group has decided to use recycled polyester tapes, made with new organic cotton, pullers coated with cork, created using 100% recycled plastics or rubber taken from the sole of shoes. Stainless steel – an exceptionally resistant and sturdy material, as well being subject to no galvanic treatments and highly recyclable – characterizes chains and pullers, while the Nylon zip consists of fully recycled tape and chain, and Decor introduces a new 100% polyamide version. On the button side, “life serving” includes buttons with a cork coating, the Zero button with coating made of recycled Meryl polyamide and the F4 with a 100% recycled Nylon head and the heads made of APILON 52 (rubber made of 65% vegetable oils and energy from renewable sources) coated with microfiber from the company Alcantara.

ENGINEERING
This is definitely the most rigorous yet progressive section in the collection, drawing on technological innovation and on uncertainties related to the current situation, to play with shapes, colours and materials. Between zips and buttons there is a prevalence of squared and minimal shapes, also on the tapes of the zips through sublimation and digital printing techniques. The leading colour is grey in its variation of hues, where the insertion of coloured tones sometimes stands out. The leading material, on the other hand, is metal.

OVER SHOCK
A creative topic where “exaggeration” is the keyword, a trend whose style and character somehow remind us of Gen-Z, apart from being especially suitable for outdoors. “Over state” uses the hip hop mood and settings of the Nineties, taking them to the extreme, enlarging shapes and focusing on bright and fluorescent colours such as purple, yellow, blue, orange or green. An example of this is Storm Evo, a zip which is popular in the outdoor sector for its high levels of water resistance and strength, which features a new electric blue chain and tape with reflecting side strips. Also outstanding in terms of originality is the new purple puller, with its anti-theft shape, fixed onto a fluorescent yellow chain. The perfect expression of this category are zippers such as Decor, Nylon and Aquazip, especially recommended for the outdoor sector in general.

COLLECTION HIGHLIGHTS: RESTYLING AND INNOVATION
All the macro-categories selected for the FW 21-22 seasons are included in some special product innovations, most notably the even more minimal and thin shapes of some buttons and the introduction of five different colours for the small synthetic ring, a real point of strength in Cobrax pressure buttons. Also the range of magnetic buttons is complemented by the addition of two extra snaps. As regards zips, the Riri Group team has been working on careful restyling of shapes, more specifically in the shapes of Decor zip bodies – ideal for the luggage industry – further improved from both an aesthetic and functional viewpoint.

Zwei der führenden Anbieter von Hoteltextilien in Europa, das dänische Unternehmen Beirholms Væverier und das Deutsch/Niederländische Unternehmen Dibella, starten eine Zusammenarbeit mit dem schwedischen Unternehmen Reused Remade. Reused Remade ist für seine klimaschonenden Textiltaschen aus wiederverwendeter Hotelbettwäsche bekannt. Gemeinsam werden sie den Lebenszyklus von Hoteltextilien verlängern und zur Kreislaufwirtschaft beitragen, indem sie ausrangierte Textilien aus Textilserviceunternehmen zu neuen Textiltaschen für den Einzelhandel aufbereiten.

In Europa werden jedes Jahr Millionen Tonnen ausrangierter Hotelbettwäsche entsorgt, die aus Verschleißgründen nicht mehr im Hotelbetrieb verwendet werden können. Dank der zum Patent angemeldeten Methode von Reused Remade, Hotelbettwäsche zu hochwertigen Textiltaschen zu recyceln, werden enorme Mengen an natürlichen Ressourcen eingespart. Eine klimafreundliche Alternative zur heutigen Entsorgung oder zum üblichen „downcycling“ zu Putzlappen oder Dämmmaterial.

Bis 2025 werden alle EU-Mitgliedsstaaten eine Produzentenverantwortung der Hersteller für Textilien eingeführt haben. Dies wird besondere Anforderungen an die betroffenen Industrien stellen, gemeinsam intelligente Lösungen zu finden und zum Übergang in eine Kreislaufwirtschaft beizutragen. Beirholm und Dibella haben beide seit jeher einen starken Fokus auf Nachhaltigkeit und forschen nach neuen und intelligenten Lösungen für die ausrangierten Textilien ihrer Kunden. Zweck dieser besonderen Partnerschaft ist es, es mehr Textilserviceunternehmen in Europa zu ermöglichen, sich der zirkulären Lösung von Reused Remade anzuschließen und aus der ausgemusterten Hotelbettwäsche klimafreundliche Textiltaschen zu produzieren.

Mit einem beeindruckenden Wachstum seit der Gründung im Jahr 2016 sind die Textiltaschen von Reused Remade für den täglichen Gebrauch jetzt bei bekannten nordischen und europäischen Einzelhändlern wie Edeka, Clas Ohlson, Ica und Systembolaget zu finden.

„Das Ziel für 2021 ist es, 300 Tonnen Hotelbettwäsche zu sammeln, um die Nachfrage unserer Kunden zu befriedigen. Es fühlt sich fantastisch an, mit Beirholm und Dibella zusammenarbeiten zu können, deren Werte wir in Bezug auf Nachhaltigkeit teilen. Wir sehen, dass wir gemeinsam einen großen Unterschied für unsere Umwelt, unser Klima und unsere gemeinsame Zukunft machen können“, sagen Pia Walter und Josephine Alhanko, die Gründer von Reused Remade.

Weitere Information finden Sie im Anhang