Lenzing

Website

https://www.lenzing.com/sustainability/sustainability-management/circular-economy

Economy with a future

The resources of our planet are limited. For this reason, we are committed to establishing the circular economy as a sustainable, future-oriented concept in the industry and to protect the Earth in this way.

Sustainable and efficient use and processing of all raw materials is required to protect the environment. We have countered the wastefulness of business as usual with circular economy models. For example, we have shown how our environmentally responsible technology turns discarded garments into new sources of raw material for high-quality fibers.

What is circular economy?

The circular economy is oriented to nature as its role model. In essence, the concept of the circular economy aims to keep raw materials in a closed loop. In this way, resources are maximally used, the need for new ones is reduced, waste is avoided and the life cycle of products is increased. In short, the waste of today becomes the raw material of tomorrow - the same as in nature.

In this way, the circular economy differs from the current economic system i.e. the linear system, in which products are manufactured, used and disposed of.

Recycling textile waste

To address the enormous textile waste challenges of industry and society, Lenzing has developed a unique upcycling technology branded REFIBRA™. This technology utilizes pre-consumer cotton scraps and post-consumer garments from the textile value chain as raw materials.

 

Link below lists several companies involved in textile recycling and sustainability. 

https://www.lead-innovation.com/english-blog/sustainable-solutions-in-the-textile-industry

 

Fab Brick

While she was a student in architecture,  Clarisse Merlet, founder of FabBRICK, notices how much construction is a polluting and energy-intensive industry, so she decides to find a way to built differently , especially with the use of raw material wastes such as plastic bottles, cardboard or plastic cups.

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Then, Clarisse figured out that textile industry was poorly considered regarding recycling this material which has relevant properties in the area of construction knowing that cotton is considered as a powerful thermal and acoustic insulator. Then she had the idea of re-using discarded clothes by making it an innovative raw material. Based on the characteristics of the recovered textiles, she designs an ecological building material both thermal and acoustic insulator. Based on the characteristics of the recovered textiles, she designs an ecological building material both thermal and acoustic insulator.

Go to website to see the many images of Fab Brick in action. Link below. 

https://www.fab-brick.com/fabbrick-english

 

Smart Wool

Image Source:

https://gearjunkie.com/apparel/smartwool-second-cut-sock-recycling?fbclid=IwAR0oHblvMaA5N_PfsMNcXr7wcu7PjmLpo2QV2FWD7FItpx1TCDQMzci3v7c

And, now, old socks don’t need to get thrown away anymore.

Nope. They sure don't. We’re partnering with Material Return™ circularity platform to collect and deconstruct hard-to-recycle socks and turn them into new goods like dog beds—helping us reach our big sustainability and circularity goals.

Above info from Smart Wool, a company partnering with Material Return to recycle socks. Go to website for more information. Link below. 

https://www.smartwool.com/what-matters.html#/smartwool/the-second-cut-project