Sportswear giant Nike received over 600 applications from 58 countries for its Circular Innovation Challenge, which challenged designers, engineers and scientists to close the loop in footwear waste. Submissions had been invited to send ideas on what can be made from footwear material waste and how the footwear recycling process can be improved to ensure that higher quality, more versatile resources are created from footwear-related waste.

Selected as finalists have been invited to create either new products using Nike Grind, a palette of premium materials (rubber, foam, fibre, leather and textile blends) recovered in the footwear manufacturing and recycling process, or to improve upon the Grind recycling process itself. Among the winning entries are Yogo, pictured, a unique line of yoga accessories developed with an assortment of Nike footwear waste by Jessica Thompson from San Francisco.

Other winners included Brian Riise and John Gysbers who identified two new phases that could be added to the standard Nike Grind material recovery process: an additional material separation step that divides outputs based on their weight, and an extra material-grinding step. Together, these steps are said to have the potential to improve the purity of the material outputs that come from the Nike Grind process.

Solutions from both the Design with Grind and the Material Recovery Challenges are being considered for further development in partnership with Nike, Inc.

Unifi and Nan Ya Plastics, two leading US polyester producers, have filed petitions alleging dumped and subsidised imports of polyester from China and India are damaging the domestic market. The petitions allege producers in China and India are dumping polyester textured yarn in the US market at sizeable margins – by up to 68 per cent in the case of China and between 40 and 130 per cent in the case of India.

The products affected by this case are made by Unifi at its production facilities in Yadkinville, North Carolina, and Madison, North Carolina, where Unifi employs approximately 1,100 and 470 people, respectively, and by Nan Ya at its production facility in Lake City, South Carolina, where Nan Ya employs approximately 900 people.

The petitions also allege the Chinese polyester textured yarn industry benefits from at least 20 different Chinese government subsidies, and that the Indian polyester textured yarn industry benefits from at least 38 different Indian government subsidies.

Coats, world’s leading industrial thread manufacturer, has opened the first of three Innovation Hubs at North Carolina, US. The Innovation Hub comprises three zones. The Innovation Gallery features a video wall, display pods of most recent product developments and a timeline tracing Coats from its origins in Paisley, Scotland to the FTSE 250 global manufacturing company it is today.

The Materials Lab will enable customers to collaborate directly with R&D technologists in the idea generation and creation processes. The Prototyping Area will aid in creating ideas and prototypes. It will include a pilot factory with a full range of manufacturing machinery that can used to fine tune production processes in a controlled stand alone environment.

The company will open the remaining two innovation hubs in Turkey and China in early 2019. These Innovation Hubs will develop pioneering new products and processes in apparel and footwear and performance materials, which encompasses hi-tech products for end users in automotive, oil and gas, protective wear and telecom. They will provide creative and inspiring spaces to develop innovative ideas.

Contradicting recent news that Nike has discontinued its association with 19 garment companies, the sports products companies ensured them of its continued cooperation. News spread recently that about 19 Indonesian garment companies had being cut off by Nike. However, the Ministry of Industry immediately annulled or denied the news.

Chairman of the Indonesian Textile Association (API) Ade Sudrajat, as chairman who accommodated the industry said that Nike considered its cooperation with garment companies in Indonesia to be still profitable, hence the question of discontinuing does not arise.

The European Union's withdrawal of 'Everything But Arms (EBA)' trade arrangement to Cambodia will boost Bangladesh's export to the 28-nations economic block. The EU grants EBA to the 48 Least Developed Countries (LDCs), including Bangladesh and Cambodia, under which they're enjoying duty free and quota free market access to the EU for exports of all products, except arms and ammunition.

The EU notified Cambodia on October 5 that the Kingdom would lose its duty-free access to the EU market unless it makes clear and demonstrable improvements to human rights and democracy in the country. The suspension of trade privilege means Cambodian exports to EU will face a higher tariff up to 12 per cent whereas Bangladesh's export will remain duty-free, further promoting the latter's export to EU.

Exports to EU by far Bangladesh's largest market where it shipped goods worth $21.33 billion in the fiscal year 2017-18, accounting for 58 per cent share of its total shipments, according to the Export Promotion Bureau. However, EU's annual import from Cambodia is about $6.0 billion. The high import duty will make EU businesses uncompetitive in Cambodia which can immensely influence its import from the country. A major portion of this import may be shifted to Bangladesh due to competitiveness of local merchandises.

The Apparel Importers Trade and Transportation conference will be held in New York City, November 7, 2018. This is one of the industry’s most important transportation and logistics events, which will bring together executives working in compliance, logistics, sourcing, supply chain management, government relations, and corporate social responsibility to discuss the impact of the elections on trade and business, as well as other hot topics.

Dozens of global fashion brands, retailers, importers, and industry service providers will be present. An array of expert speakers from across the supply chain will speak on varied topics. The focus will be on US-China trade tensions and how companies can mitigate the impact of the tariff increases.

In addition to trade policy, the conference will include discussions on retail, sustainability, and innovation, including experts from Levi Strauss and Co., Macy’s Merchandising Group, BSI, Canopy, Lenzing, and PwC. The conference will feature speakers from The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, The Port of Long Beach, GEODIS USA, Bamboo Rose, and more.

The event is hosted by the US Fashion Industry Association (USFIA) and the American Import Shippers Association. USFIA works to eliminate the tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede the industry’s ability to trade freely and create economic opportunities in the United States and abroad.

Higher labor costs in China and political pressures were supposed to drive US manufacturers to bring production home. That is yet to happen. Reshoring trend has yet to materialize in any major way. US imports of manufactured goods from the 14 countries that would be typically associated with offshoring actually grew by eight per cent in 2017. By comparison, US domestic manufacturing output grew only 5.6 per cent.

The US is growing, manufacturing jobs are up, but imports are growing faster. The reshoring wave that was supposed to start back in 2011 really never took off. In fact more and more products are coming into the US from those offshoring countries. Some of these countries are China, Taiwan, Malaysia, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Cambodia.

One reason is that US consumers are still looking for a bargain. That means they are buying products that are cheaper because they’ve been made offshore. Even US companies that have reshored over the past few years have been reluctant to invest too much. In fact some have actually scaled down their reshoring. They have discovered that any product with labor-intensive manufacturing processes is still more economical to produce in low-cost countries.

"A recent survey by McKinsey & Company reveals around 60 per cent of all clothes produced end up in incinerators or landfills within the first 12 months. People are buying new clothes in large quantities. Clothes production doubled between 2000 and 2014, with the number of garments purchased each year by average consumer increasing 60 per cent."

A recent survey by McKinsey & Company reveals around 60 per cent of all clothes produced end up in incinerators or landfills within the first 12 months. People are buying new clothes in large quantities. Clothes production doubled between 2000 and 2014, with the number of garments purchased each year by average consumer increasing 60 per cent.

Complete overhaul of system

Though many brands adopt sustainability measures in their operations, their focus is often misleading as they emphasise on a single sustainable component like the recycled ocean plastic. However, Levi’s has opted for a complete redesign of systems. Aware that fabrics recycled from reclaimed bottle can’t be recycled alongwith its snaps or zippers, the brand aimed to create something better than that is available.

It launched a new range of garments designed with 100 percent cotton Thermadapt fabric. These garments are made from a polyester thread wrapped in cotton. This thread is then woven into denim and further dissolved and recaptured for future use. The resulting fabric looks like a heavyweight jean but is 30 percent lighter than traditional denim; it also wicks moisture from the body and provides enough insulation for year-round wear.

The machines that produce these garments aren’t located in San Francisco. However, Eureka Innovation Lab houses an array of scientific instruments for testing fabric and a room full of hi-tech wash and dye machines.

Denim with cottonised hemp

Rather than creating a new manufacturing system, Levi’s wanted to process hemp that would make it feel and act like cotton. This led to the development of cottonised hemp, produced using little energy or chemical processing and could move through a supply chain similarly to cotton.

The brand recently introduced Wellthread cottonised hemp collection as its team learned how to process, spin and weave the thread. In upcoming seasons, the brand will incorporate this cottonised hemp into its indigo denim and finish it with a range of washes.

Making clothes that last

The belief that people should buy less is an odd position to hold as one of the most influential executives at the world’s largest denim brand. However, Levi’s Wellthread x Jacquard by Google jacket, endorses this view of the brand. The jacket, featuring a touch interface on the left wrist paired to the wearer’s phone, allows the consumer an on-the-go access to navigation, messaging, music, etc. This stops the consumers from throwing away the jackets after a few uses. The brand also upgrades the jacket’s digital functionality with new features by adding and monetising digital value rather than simply producing more stuff.

Though Levi’s experiments with new and emerging technologies — e.g., working with textile technology startup EvrNuto produce jeans from garment waste, or using bacterium to dye clothes the right shade of blue — the brand adopts a simple, humanistic approach to attack the thoughtless consumption cycle. The brand emphasizes on making clothes that last. It also aims to train people to value clothes that they already own. Repair and reuse them instead of throwing them away.

With consumers increasingly drawn towards instant gratification of fashion shopping, brands are optimising their marketing through the use of digital tools such as Augmented Reality (AR) apps, rewards promotions, and digital style guides that provide ideas on how to incorporate trends in everyday life.

Under Armour used mobile rewards promotions to drive sales during the competitive back-to-school season in Canada. Japanese apparel company Uniqlo created an innovative mobile-activated campaign that used fast-moving images on billboards containing unique product codes that could only be captured by taking a photo of the display.

Designer Rebecca Minkoff embeds QR codes into handbags, so customers can scan the codes with their mobiles to unlock content and rewards. Consumers scanning the QR code initially unlock a video from Rebecca Minkoff herself, helping drive a deeper connection to the brand.

Fashion brand Maggy London created an AR catalog for mobile users, using 3D scanning and Apple’s ARKit. Shoppers can put a mobile phone up to items in the catalog and view them as realistic, virtual 3D products.

Automation in textile industry is expected to register a six per cent CAGR by 2023. There are several investments and developments in the industrial sector, which will have a positive impact on the automation market. Availability of favorable policies will be one of the major factors that will have a positive impact on the growth of the market. Favorable policies will attract investments in this sector and create a demand for automation products and services in the textile industry. These policies are beneficial for the growth of the industry and drive the automation of processes, in turn, increasing the demand for field, control, and communication devices.

Rapid developments in textile industry have led to improvements in product offerings by vendors and superior quality solutions to customers. Vendors are also offering licensing options that allow end-users to reduce the cost of initial investments.

Asia will be the major revenue contributor to the automation market in the textile industry throughout the forecast period. Additionally, the increase in investments in the textile industry will also fuel the market’s growth in the region. Countries like India are key revenue generators for the global textile industry. India already allows 100 per cent FDI in the textile industry under the automatic route.