Clariant to showcase denim technology at Paris event
18/05/2012
In the build-up to the event, the Swiss chemicals manufacturer said clothing brands are becoming more and more eco-conscious in their choice of materials and suppliers and said it viewed this as a positive development following the Greenpeace ‘Dirty Laundry’ report last year. The non-governmental organisation’s report investigated hazardous chemical discharges into water supplies at two Chinese outsource manufacturing partners of a number of major sports and fashion apparel brands.
Clariant has developed new technology called Advanced Denim, which it says can help clothing companies that use the material address the problem of hazardous chemicals in their supply chains. Traditionally, the production of denim has involved huge quantities of water, with all the attendant problems of cleaning or disposing of the significant amount of wastewater, Clariant said before the Paris event.
Its head of special dyes in the textile chemicals business unit, Miguel Sánchez, commented: “Wastewater in denim mills is largely generated by the washing off and rinsing processes. Usually, in dyeing with indigo, a tremendous amount of water is used in washing off. With the first Advanced Denim process though, the Denim-Ox, water consumption for washing off is significantly reduced, so the wastewater generated is much less. The Pad/Sizing-Ox process goes one step further as here there is no water consumption for rinsing.”
Employing the Advanced Denim processes can reduce water consumption by as much as 92%, the company claims, while 63% of the usual cotton waste is avoided and around 30% can be saved in energy costs, compared to a traditional denim process.
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