From waste to resource: how to recycle industrial textile waste
After three intense years, we are now closing the door on TexChain3, a project where more than 30 parties have collaborated to find solutions on how to best utilize textile residual streams. At Wargön Innovation and The Loop Factory, we are passionate about creating circularity in the textile industry. That is why we have run the TexChain initiative on several occasions. The aim has been to create the conditions for circular business models and to reduce waste in the industrial textile streams. We have seen that there is a great willingness and commitment among companies to start a circular journey.
Within the framework of TexChain3, which ended in August 2023, eight of the partners have taken the step of trying to find ways to create circular flows within their own business together with other actors in the project. They have analyzed their textile processes and based on this, they have continued to pilot and develop their circular business models. They have tested different ways of using textile residual material, waste from production or discarded textiles.
During the project, it also became clear that the circular economy is still relatively immature in Sweden. Therefore, it has been important for us to build networks for knowledge and inspiration, but also for material flows. It is clear that there is a need for an area for buying and selling textile residual streams to make it easier for users to find sufficient volumes. That is why we have also developed a marketplace that, when completed, will be found on Texchange.se.
The companies that have piloted with us have all been brave enough to embark on a journey that few have yet undertaken. The benefits are nevertheless clear, and perhaps even more so for those who dare to be first. The project has produced new collections of clothing from discarded textiles, sound absorbers from train seats and a range of furniture with upholstery from worn-out jeans. Imagination is the only limit, and in this magazine we have collected the results of the eight pilots.
We hope you'll read and be inspired!
TexChain3 is a Vinnova-funded project led by The Loop Factory and Wargön Innovation. The project has focused on the raw material textile and more specifically how the textile residual streams from the industry, which today in many cases are seen as waste, can be reused in materials or products.