Industry experts have gathered virtually to express a shared drive to make the denim finishing industry more economic and sustainable through innovation for generations to come.
The denim finishing industry has traditionally been plagued with a number of environmentally harmful practises - from excessive water consumption, indigo dye usage, the use of chemicals in overdyeing and bleaching, through to the exceedingly high amounts of energy needed to resize, de-size and mercerise the material.
In response to an industry-wide issue, over 400 textile and denim experts, from over 50 countries, were in attendance for the VDMA’s webinar presentation: ‘Sustainable denim production: Latest finishing technologies!’ Throughout the two-hour event, industry expert speakers spoke on the importance of utilising sustainability through innovation in the denim finishing processes, to create an economic, greener, and more innovative sector for generations to come.
The webinar bill was made up of three key speakers: Volker Kunzmann, area sales director, Fong’s Europe; Hans-Gerhard Wroblowski, area sales director SEA, head of product management – denim sales, Monforts; and Dr Jürgen Thoms, R&D director, PLEVA.
All three speakers showcased presentations on how changes to different parts of the denim finishing process, through innovation, can lead to a more sustainable industry collectively.
KEY INNOVATION
The webinar was started by Fong’s Europe spokesperson Volker Kunzmann. Kunzmann illustrated the company’s sub-brand Goller – which develops mercerising ranges for denim with combined solutions. The company presented solutions that counteract the issues that occur during the mercerising process. These issues included: the loss of dyestuff; the chances of the process back staining the denim; and the large amounts of potentially harmful chemicals used.
As a solution, Kunzmann showcased Goller’s new chemical impregnation compartment that can hold up to 27 metres of fabric and 200 litres of caustic chemical liquid (a low volume in comparison to other mercerising practices which usually use thousands of litres). In the innovative compartment, once the fabric is mercerised the caustic liquid used in the process is then recycled and the pH level is moderated before the same liquid can be reapplied to the fabric in the future.
The compartment offers sustainable mercerising, as recycling the chemicals used in the process restricts the amount of chemicals needed to add the finishing solution to the denim. Also, due to the recycling of the chemical, the new compartment drastically reduces the need for the up concentrating of the dyestuff in the process. The compartment also streamlines the mercerising process, saving time and energy in comparison to alternative methods.
“With the low liquid content (200 litres), you have the chance to get higher flexibility,” says Kunzmann. “You can change the mercerising process with different concentrations, you only need small preparation tanks and you do not need much energy for cold mercerising. This flexibility means you are able to save (energy and chemicals) on the mercerising process.”
Sometimes great innovation only takes the changing of a small cog in the production line to save time, energy and money – while providing the customers with a more sustainable practice.
During a presentation on customised solutions for denim finishing, Wroblowski upheld a constant reference to the vast amount of energy used in the denim finishing industry, highlighting how changes in production can vastly reduce energy consumption – a positive on two fronts. Firstly, the reduction in energy means the customer will save money and secondly the processes is now a more sustainable practice.
Monforts put forward its ECO Applicator wet finishing solution which, through innovation, saves the customer time, energy and cost in the production process. The applicator allows the chemical application to the denim fabric to run from one recipe as it can apply the finishing liquid to both sides of the denim – another sustainable feature as it reduces the use of potentially harmful chemicals.
Automation was also highlighted in the presentation, with Wroblowski claiming that automating a number of different procedures in the finishing process could drastically cut down the time, energy and cost without hindering the quality.
The Monforts ThermoStretch/LongStretch, a unit that dries, stretches and skews the denim fabric, was shown as an example of how automating and adapting to new technologies leads to sustainable innovation. The stretching and skewing are done under a warm and moist condition, meaning the skewing and width adjustment can occur concurrently saving the need to run each process separately. Wroblowski also explained that, combined with the ECO Applicator, the automated process saves more than 50% drying energy as the line keeps the humidity at the exact point it needs to be throughout the procedure.
The presentation quantified the new innovation by comparing this to a line that is already in use. In a line not currently using the suggested automated features and the ECO Applicator, the average cost of processing was 0.148 Euro/min (35-40m/min) and 0.128 Euro/min (70-80m/min). In contrast, the eco-line utilising the ThermoStretch and ECO Applicator was costing the customer 0.115 Euro/min (35-40m/min) and 0.103 Euro/min (70-80m/min) – evidently demonstrating that the need for innovation and automation is huge not only in terms of sustainability, but also financially.
The final presentation from Dr Thoms of PLEVA echoed the theme of the webinar, efficient production saves time, money and energy through automation and eco-friendly practice. PLEVA develops and produces a number of sensors and controls to monitor and report on the many sections of the production line.
In particular, Dr Thoms focused on the PLEVA brand new series 700, a contact-free microwave moisture measurement device. Through moisture control, lines can efficiently run with minimal application units, as mentioned in the Fong’s and Monforts presentations – the quality control is said to ensure that the production is upholding its quality while saving the customer money, energy and resources.
MONEY TALKS
All three presenters were passionate about reducing the carbon footprint in their industry, but they stated the economic reparations of sustainable working must be the priority for customers. Wroblowski explained that the introduction of the latest Monforts denim line could in-fact save the customer up to 200,000 Euros annually - the highlighted zenith of the presentation.
Wroblowksi says: “We are constantly striving to ensure our customers achieve the maximum output from the machines at the lowest possible cost.
“For this reason, savings in water, energy and chemicals are key priorities in all of our developments,” he adds, indicating that sustainability needs to make financial sense.
Kunzmann says: “Sustainability is an important driver because it is in great demand in the market. Ultimately it is largely driven by the savings associated with this sustainability, insofar sustainability is certainly an important factor in deciding on innovation. However, it is not the only factor that leads to successful development.
“Sustainability in the sense of savings in the process time of water and energy remains the key driver for the development of new machines which, of course, must ultimately remain attractively calculated so that the benefit and return of investment is clearly recognisable for the customer,” he concludes.
A COVID ENVIRONMENT
Ironically, the main driver behind the seminar taking place virtually via a webinar stream, is the heavy impact Covid-19 is having on all strands of the textile industry. Travel restrictions placed on much of the globe mean people are unable to congregate in a trade show or international conference environment.
However, although Covid-19 may have affected the delivery of the conference, the speakers believe the virus will have no long-term impact on the innovation in the denim finishing industry.
Kunzmann, who believes that the drive for economic sustainability and innovation outweighs the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, says: “Covid-19 has not really influenced us in the strategy that is decisive for the development of new machines.
“Machines are developed over years and not in the short-term,” he continues. “For instance, a pandemic that develops over one year and maybe even into the next year, cannot influence the innovation development.”
Wroblowksi agrees: “If anything, the pause from ‘business as usual’ has stimulated a lot of new ideas and given us the time to pursue projects we’ve been advancing for some time at the Advanced Technology Centre (ATC) here in Mönchengladbach (Germany). I don’t see any push back, in fact the opposite.”
