DÜSSELDORF, Germany — May 3, 2021 — Asahi Kasei renewed its membership in the Business Call to Action (BCtA) led by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in February 2021 with businesses in India for Bemberg™ regenerated cellulose fiber (cupro) and Microza™ polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) hollow-fiber membrane.

Since joining BCtA in 2016, Asahi Kasei’s support for stakeholders in the Bemberg value chain in India from raw material to garment as well as the collaboration with academia have been highly evaluated as a business model combining commercial activities and sustainable development. Bemberg is the brand name of a regenerated cellulose fiber made from cotton linter, the fuzz around cotton seeds. It is widely used for the lining of high-quality suits as well as many other applications such as outerwear, innerwear, traditional garments, bedding, and sportswear.

Advanced Water Filtration systems

While continuing to create new employment opportunities in the textile industry in India and to foster young talent that will lead the next generation of India’s fashion industry, Asahi Kasei is additionally advancing plans to install industrial wastewater treatment systems which are essential for the environmentally friendly sustainable development of the textile industry. For this the company is planning to utilize Microza, a hollow-fiber membrane for filtration systems used in a wide range of fields spanning from chemicals and high-precision electronics to potable water, wastewater, foods, pharmaceuticals, power plants, and environmental protection.

Outline of Bemberg™ business in India

This is the 45th year since Bemberg yarn was first exported to India in 1976. Traditional garments worn by many women are made of Bemberg in India. With export volumes growing to over 4,000 tons per year, India is currently at the heart of the Bemberg business. Through direct and indirect involvement in the Bemberg value chain in India from raw material to garment, Asahi Kasei contributes to the development of techniques and the growth of human resources in India including the enhancement of skills, the securement of stable incomes, and the creation of new employment opportunities. Asahi Kasei procures from India a great amount of the cotton linter used for the production of Bemberg yarn. To support local manufacturers, Asahi Kasei lends equipment to remove linter from cotton seeds free of charge, and has its own engineers provide the local workers with training and technical instructions for improving productivity. Cotton linter imported to Japan is processed into Bemberg yarn, which is exported to India and sold to weavers. Asahi Kasei also provides ongoing technical guidance on weaving and dyeing in the fabric production process in India.

New endeavor with Microza in India

In addition to the above, Asahi Kasei also proposes that customers install Microza systems to treat wastewater from fabric dyeing, aiming for zero wastewater emission from dyeing plants, in order to protect the environment surrounding the plants and to conserve valuable natural water resources by recycling the water which is used.

Posted May 3, 2021

Source: Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH

BOLOGNA/BERGAMO, Italy — April 30, 2021 — To be leaders of change and promoters of a sustainable business model that provides traceable, virtuous and competitive production and supply chains, with benefits for all stakeholders. This is the corporate strategy of both Macron, an international brand leader in the sportswear industry based in Bologna, and RadiciGroup, an Italian multinational headquartered in Bergamo and world leading manufacturer of a wide range of chemical intermediates, polymers, high-performance engineering polymers, and advanced textile solutions for a variety of applications, mainly in the fashion industry.

The two standard bearers of Italian entrepreneurship excellence have decided to pool their competencies to develop and produce technical sportswear combining high performance and sustainability. One notable result of this collaboration is a type of sports socks made of Renycle®, a yarn manufactured by the Bergamo-based group from recycled nylon 6, a high-value material with excellent resistance, dyeing characteristics, softness and versatility. At RadiciGroup, production scraps are recovered, recycled and reconverted into polymers, and eventually spun into yarn featuring technical characteristics comparable to the yarn made of fossil-source materials, but boasting decidedly better environmental performance. In fact, the above-mentioned new yarn range reduces CO2emissions by almost 90 percent and generates energy savings of more than 87 percent and water savings of 90 percent.

Macron and RadiciGroup have long since embarked on a green path engaging their entire production chain, by launching initiatives and promoting solutions aimed at protecting the environment, while at the same time making targeted investments in sustainable innovation.

The Bologna-based company has launched the Macron 4 the Planet project, which involves the construction of anew completely eco-sustainable headquarters, the production of sport jerseys made from 100-percent recycled polyester from PET bottles and the use of packaging, 100-percent made from certified recyclate.

RadiciGroup has adopted a circular economy business model and directs all its efforts to optimizing raw material, energy and resource usage, perfecting processes, eliminating scraps and promoting designed-in end-of-life recycling of the materials it produces. The group’s goal is to reduce the environmental impact of its day-to-day activities by transparently and objectively measuring their effects at each stage.

Both organizations have developed corporate welfare policies fostering the implementation of training programs focusing on the health, safety and well-being of their employees. All of the above decisions and policies contribute to reaching their main goal: to win the battle for the future.

“RadiciGroup is a valuable partner in the green path undertaken by Macron, ”Gianluca Pavanello, CEO of Macron, stated. “A shared vision and strategy on sustainability and environmental protection is essential. Macron’s objective is to create advanced technical sportswear for athletes of all levels, and our mission, which we pursue with great passion and commitment, is to study and develop materials that are more and more eco-friendly. Finding companies like RadiciGroup — a world leader in its sector, with whom we share values such as sustainability, recycling, use of renewable sources, corporate welfare and care for local communities–allows us to enhance our product offering and gain market acceptance by people who play sports at all levels. We hope our partnership will continue to develop over time.”

“A circular economy cannot be achieved by acting alone,” stressed Angelo Radici, president of RadiciGroup. “As upstream players in the supply chain, we have always tried to share our knowledge of materials and deliver solutions featuring both better performance and respect for the environment. Furthermore, it is also crucial to find customers who are equally sensitive to these issues and can become strategic partners in the development of innovative and sustainable solutions. With Macron, we have worked as a team to create winning sports socks, because they are made from recycled materials, using all-Italian technologies, and are the result of a zero-kilometer, measured and traceable production and supply chain.

Posted April 30, 2021

Source: RadiciGroup

BELMONT, N.C. — April 30, 2021 — In 2019, Lauren Choi, then an innovative senior majoring in Material Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University, was sent a Los Angeles Times article by her mom about China banning imported U.S. recyclables. The article described how plastics shipped abroad could not be recycled because they are dyed, contaminated, or mixed with other non-recyclable waste.

Distraught to see no compulsory bilateral environmental agreements between the two countries, the story made a profound impact on Choi. She started a project, The New Norm, to find a way to use plastic waste to produce sustainably made textiles that would not harm the environment.

“At an early age, I had a strong interest and desire to work with sustainable products that would not damage but protect our planet,” Choi said. “While in college my interest focused on creating sustainable textiles for the fashion industry. After reading this article, I saw it as an opportunity to step up and do something.”

Choi began The New Norm’s search for a plastic product that was easily accessible and inexpensive. She selected red Solo cups, a popular brand of cups used at parties, picnics and many social gatherings. The cups are made of polystyrene (#6 plastic). It is estimated that the approximately 7.4 billion Solo cups, lids and containers that are produced each year end up in landfills or oceans.

“Over time, I received grants and other funding to build a small extruder in my garage that enabled me to test the concept,” said Choi. “The long-term goal is to operate as a B2B wholesale fabric company, targeting higher-end womenswear brands, but I needed to first produce fiber and clothing on a larger scale.”

To inquire about blending the Solo cups into a suitable fiber-grade polymer, Choi contacted Gaston College’s Textile Technology Center (TTC) and the Catawba Valley Community College Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC). Together, they worked with The Polymer Center of Excellence, a polymer lab in Charlotte, N.C., to conduct testing and determine the polymer blending and pellet extrusion process. Through this network of polymer engineers and textile specialists, Choi got in contact with Dart Container, the makers of Solo cups, and is now working in collaborative efforts with its recycling initiative.

In 2020, the TTC and the MSC formed a partnership creating the Manufacturing & Textile Innovation Network (MTIN), to work together to develop a regional workforce focused on advanced materials and textile testing development.

“When Lauren initially reached out to the Textile Technology Center for assistance with her research, I was extremely excited to help,” said Jasmine Cox, process coordinator at the TTC at Gaston College. “Sustainability is such an important concept that directly impacts the textile and apparel industry. Being able to transform a common household item like a Solo cup into a garment is amazing. I knew that the TTC and partner organizations would be able to help The New Norm produce a great product,” Cox said.

The process included grinding recycled Solo cups into a pellet size suitable for the melt extrusion. Then the polymer pellets were melted through a combination of applied heat and friction, after which the molten polymer was forced under pressure through a small “shower head” opening, called a spinneret, on the TTC One Shot Extruder. This produced a prototype filament. The TTC Physical Testing laboratory then ran initial tensile, or tension, tests to determine ultimate strength and durability of a product.

Watching every stage of the testing process, Choi learned it was necessary to start small and work her way up to achieve successful fiber blends that could be turned into yarn and then a knit and woven fabric samples.

“Both the TTC and MSC have introduced me to experts in the industry,” Choi said. “I’m very grateful for this pool of advisors who helped me while working on this project. You need to seek advice and listen so that you can make the proper decisions. Stay on your feet but be flexible to change. Don’t give up and keep going.”

“These centers are wonderful tight knit facilities with good one-on-one communication,” Choi continued. “They were able to do multiple fiber tests and stay on budget until they could extrude a yarn successfully. You can’t create something so unique without building a relationship of trust. I don’t believe we would have accomplished these projects in the same timeline otherwise.”

Although Choi graduated from Johns Hopkins in 2020, she elected to pursue The New Norm for a year to continue with the project. “Everything we’ve done so far would not have been possible without both centers. I’ve personally learned so much and as I look back to see what we’ve achieved in one year, I know we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the centers,” said Choi.

Posted April 29, 2021

Source: Gaston College Textile Technology Center