Helly Hansen skiwear uses new PrimaLoft insulation
Oslo-headquartered activewear brand Helly Hansen will debut skiwear made with materials developer PrimaLoft’s Ocean Bound Plastic insulation this autumn-winter, joining Isbjörn of Sweden to become one of the first to bring the material to market.
The material is 100% post-consumer recycled, containing 60% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) from plastic bottles discarded within a 50-kilometre radius of coastal areas. Its process has been third-party verified by social enterprise OceanCycle, which currently works in Thailand, China, Pakistan and the Philippines, with plans to expand into India, Vietnam, Honduras and Indonesia by the year’s end.
“The quality of plastic quickly degrades once it’s exposed to the elements in ocean water, making it unusable for most recycling efforts,” explained PrimaLoft's senior vice-president of product strategy, Tara Maurer-Mackay.
Expanding on the significance of using ocean-bound plastics, therefore, she added: “By capturing plastic waste before it can reach the ocean, we’re able to use the material to create products that offer our brand partners and consumers the best mix of performance and versatility, with a reduced environmental impact.”
Vice-president of ski, sailing and research and development at Helly Hansen, Øyvind Vedvik, said designing in PrimaLoft Insulation with Ocean Bound Plastic will enable the company “to provide professional-grade gear to help people stay and feel alive”, noting that the brand has been incorporating ocean-bound material in shell jackets since spring-summer 2022.
The insulation delivers “all the performance benefits that PrimaLoft is renowned for”, according to its developer, from lightweight thermal properties to durability and packability.
Helly Hansen’s Arctic short jacket made with Ocean Bound Plastic insulation material from PrimaLoft. Courtesy.
