The Lycra company, USA has just released its new COOLMAX® and THERMOLITE® EcoMade fibers made from 100% recycled materials. The new range is the joint venture of The LYCRA Company and ITOCHU Corporation. The ITOCHU Corporation is a general trading company with strength in consumer-related sectors, including the textile business. While the LYCRA Company is a global leader in fiber and textile solutions for the apparel industry.
Pakistan is also a big consumer of Lycra yarns for making stretchable garments. Switching to the new innovative and environmentally friendly product with no compromise on the performance could be of huge importance for compliance in the textile industry known to be a major pollution-causing source.
Integrating textile waste technology with COOLMAX® and THERMOLITE® fibers provides consumers with the performance attributes they seek while making these industry-leading fibers in a new and responsible way. A unique depolymerization and refining process is used to convert textile waste, which consists of scraps from garment manufacturers, into fibers with properties comparable to virgin polyester. The new fibers are available in filament and staple forms, suitable for common textile processes and insulations batting uses.
Julien Born, chief commercial officer for The LYCRA Company, said, “We are pleased to announce our alliance with ITOCHU in helping to address textile waste, which represents a substantial sustainability challenge as the equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is sent to landfills or incinerated every second1. This collaboration exemplifies the synergistic approach we have to develop products and technologies that support a more sustainable future for our vast global customer base.”
This is the first of several innovations that The LYCRA Company is working on in textile and garment recycling. Laying the groundwork for a more circular future is one of the key objectives of The LYCRA Company’s Planet Agenda Sustainability platform.
