5 InsideOutdoor | SPRING/SUMMER 2024 Green Theme Technologies, suppliers of the EMPEL waterfree and PFAS-free textile finishing platform, continues a trajectory of growth by partnering with Koreanbased textile company Hwasung International. Hwasung is the first Korean mill to offer the EMPEL high performance technology to global footwear brands and regional Korean mill customers. Known globally for providing high performance textiles that incorporate functional yarns such as Dyneema, Kevlar and Cordura, Hwasung will now broaden its high performance and sustainable offerings by scaling EMPEL into its global supply chain. Green Theme’s EMPEL platform can be applied to a wide range of synthetic knit, woven, non-woven and novel fabrics that are traditionally hard to treat, said GTT. Because no water is used during the treatment application, EMPEL can remove pollution and waste from most textile manufacturing processes. EMPEL Water-free, PFAS-free Finishing Expands into Korea NILIT Goes Circular with Nylon 6,6 NILIT, producers of high-quality Nylon 6.6 for apparel and owner of the SENSIL brand, introduced SENSIL Flow, a new approach to Nylon 6.6 circularity that enables yarn, fabric and, ultimately, apparel recycling, said the company. SENSIL Flow is described as an “innovative approach that engages the entire supply chain to truly attain circularity through product design and partnership.” Today, apparel recycling is constrained by the complexity of sorting and separating materials before they can be recycled back to their original components. Garments made with blended fibers and fabrics are especially difficult to recycle. The SENSIL Flow approach addresses these obstacles on multiple fronts, explained NILIT executives. First, SENSIL Flow is a yarn that delivers a mono-component fabric with comfort stretch that can be considered as an alternative to elastane in certain end uses. Engineered to provide inherent elasticity and recovery properties, SENSIL Flow creates comfortable, stretchable performance fabrics for the casual and lifestyle segments. These fabrics have excellent color absorption and 3D effects while at the same time making post-consumer recycling possible. Pure premium Nylon 6.6 yarns, fabrics and garments are easily recycled using a process that requires no additional chemicals and generates minimal CO2 emissions. Additionally, NILIT partners with recycling experts to facilitate the efficient recovery and recycling of fabric waste and post-consumer fabrics and clothing that would otherwise end up in a landfill or incinerator. These partners are expected to create highquality recycled nylon chips that can be reintroduced into NILIT’s nylon fiber spinning process, resulting in high-quality outputs, as well as other engineering plastics. Certificates will validate circularity and provide transparency and accountability for partners committed to building a circular textile economy. Ortholite, Cirql Develop Circular Midsole YKK Adopts Low-Carbon Aluminum Performance insole brand OrthoLite and its sustainable footwear materials subsidiary Cirql recently unveiled a patented midsole foam made with 30-percent postconsumer recycled TPU material and manufactured through a chemical-free, supercritical foaming process. Cirql’s rTPU30 incorporates Global Recycled Standard-certified, post-consumer recycled TPU materials directly into the foam using a patented technique exclusive to Cirql’s chemical-free supercritical injection foaming process. “Our goal is to exceed the expectations of footwear developers searching for advanced, sustainable footwear materials designed with consideration for their end-of-life,” said Glenn Barrett, founder and CEO of OrthoLite. The Cirql rTPU30 material has been tested by third-party labs and passes the essential tests for midsole specs, said the company. It will be offered with the option of a co-molded TPU outsole which will remove the current bonding process and make it a glueless, single material bottom unit. Alternatively, Cirql’s midsole foam innovations also can be conventionally bonded to all outsoles on the market today. YKK Corporation reportedly will begin purchasing alloy wires that utilize low-carbon aluminum, with the aim of making a staged transition from conventional aluminum alloy zippers to eco-friendly zippers that use low-carbon aluminum. The move was part of YKK’s Sustainability Vision 2050, its sustainability goals for achieving climate neutrality by 2050, which set targets under the five themes of climate change, material resources, water resources, chemical management and respect people. YKK said it will continue to work with customers and suppliers to reduce GHG emissions through the development and expansion of eco-friendly products and technologies and accelerate its efforts to bring about a sustainable society.
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