The production and consumption of textile products continue to grow, together with their impact on the environment, due to a lack of reuse, repair and recycling of materials. Quality, durability, and recyclability are often not being set as priorities in the design and manufacturing of clothing (EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles, March 2022).
CISUTAC aims to remove current bottlenecks in order to increase textile circularity in Europe. The objective is to minimise the sector’s total environmental impact by developing sustainable, novel, and inclusive large-scale European value chains.
The project will cover most parts of the textile sector by working on 2 material groups representing almost 90% of all textile fibre materials (polyester, and cotton/cellulosic fibres), and focusing on products from 3 sub-sectors experiencing varying circularity bottlenecks (fashion garments, sports and outdoor goods, and workwear).
CISUTAC will follow a holistic approach covering the technical, sectoral and socio-economic aspects, and will perform 3 pilots to demonstrate the feasibility and value of:
- Repair and disassembly
- Sorting (for reuse and recycling)
- Circular garments through fibre-to-fibre recycling and design for circularity
To realise these pilots, the consortium partners will:
- Develop semi-automated workstations
- Analyse the infrastructure and material flows
- Digitally enhance sorting operations (for reuse and recycling)
- Raise awareness among the consumers and the textile industry
As part of the CISUTAC consortium, Textile ETP is responsible for the Textile Circularity Multiplier Initiative, a community of EU projects related to textile circularity which amplifies each other research and results, and for developing it into a lasting European Community of Practice for innovation in textile circularity and sustainability.
Textile ETP also leads the dissemination & communications activities of the project, and, as Quality Manager, ensures the timely implementation of tasks, and the high quality of all deliverables.
More information on the CISUTAC project on its website: www.cisutac.eu
