Patagonia inspires big changes at YKK Vietnam
Zips, trims and fastenings supplier YKK, headquartered in Tokyo, has introduced a new, eco-friendlier, chemical agent to its Vietnamese production lines on the recommendation of outdoor brand Patagonia.
In partnership with Italy-based chemical group Erca, the developer of Revecol LV-TS, a “certified high-performance, safe textile [dye] chemical” upcycled from waste material such as used vegetable cooking oil, YKK has successfully converted the dye processes at its Vietnam plants to Revecol, the collaborators announced.
According to Swiss testing body Bluesign, the agent has a 72% lower carbon footprint than Erca’s “more conventional chemical auxiliaries”. It can also reduce the use of dyeing auxiliaries by between 20% and 30%, Erca said.
“We saw an opportunity to build a partnership with an innovator, Erca, who was pushing the boundaries of sustainability, and match them with an existing partner, YKK, that consistently delivers high-calibre, quality goods and services,” explained Patagonia’s colour and material quality manager, Matt Swartz.
"We designed our approach and conversion to Revecol LV-TS to have an outsized impact from the start, [but] the real success is seeing this go beyond Patagonia and spread across supply chain partners, brands and consumers.”
On behalf of YKK, its sales and business development manager in Vietnam, Mike Maekawa, suggested their collaboration was a strong example of “how true upcycling on a mass-production scale is made possible” in apparel.
Image: YKK Vietnam.
