Worn Again Technologies explained that the initiative aims to design and carry out trials to help develop “a fully integrated, automated sorting and pre-processing system for non-rewearable clothing in the UK”.
Titled Autosort for Circular Textiles Demonstrator (ACT UK), the £4 million initiative is led by the UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT) in collaboration with Circle-8 Textile Ecosystems. It is supported with funding from Innovate UK.
The company said it is set to support ACT UK through the use of its 1,000 tonne per year demonstration plant in Winterthur, Switzerland, set to start up in 2024, as well as its expertise. The result is hoped to act as a blueprint for the creation of a commercial scale facility able to supply high volume feedstock to mechanical and chemical recycling plants, Worn Again Technologies outlined.
Worn Again Technologies noted that the recycling technology is planned to be “brought to life” by a team of experts and strategic partners, some of which are solutions providers Sulzer Chemtech and Oerlikon, Mexico-based garment manufacturer Himes Corporation and textiles producer Directex.
Commenting on the announcement, the company’s CEO Erik Koep, said: “Zero waste strategies can be successful only when the entire supply and value chains work together to embrace cost-effective, efficient and circular material management. Being part of the ACT UK project is a strategic step in this direction and we are excited to be part of this initiative. This collaboration will help align sustainability efforts across the global textile industry, supporting the scaling up of comprehensive solutions for circularity.”
Project
According to the company, the project brings together a consortium of stakeholders, including recycling technologies, textile collectors and sorters, academia, manufacturers, retailers and industry associations. Some of the partners include IBM, Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Salvation Army, Oxfam, Textile Recycling International, Textile Recycling Association, WRAP and others.
Worn Again Technologies continued that the initiative is part of a broader Circular Fashion Programme supported by Innovate UK, the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), which are all part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
Background
Since its founding in 2005, Worn Again Technologies has made multiple ventures into research and development. In January 2020 the company launched a pilot research and development facility in North Yorkshire, which was set to develop a process for the separation, decontamination and extraction of materials from nonreusable textiles, PET bottles and packaging to go back into supply chains as raw materials (see letsrecycle.com story).
Later that year, the company secured £7 million investment with the clothing-retail company H&M Group as one of the investors “to accelerate and complete the company’s fundamental technology development through the research and development phase (see letsrecycle.com story).
Subscribe for free