Sustainable Fashion Through Technology

Interlaced: Sustainable Fashion Through Technology

Technology is revolutionizing the way we use and relate to clothes. Last year, Google and Levi’s announced they were partnering on Project Jacquard to develop a fabric that can send commands to your smartphone via gestures like tapping or swiping. Ralph Lauren already offers a t shirt for a cool $295 (£210) that sends workout data to an iPhone, and Lady Gaga has brought 3D printing to the red carpet. (Interlaced, 2016).

Sustainable business

Information technology today has become the keystone in an organization's quest for growth in a rapidly changing and complex environment characterized by intense competition, global impacts, uncertainties and fast-changing business models. Computer technology plays an important role in the strengthening and reinforcing the sustainability efforts and is specifically directed to the contribution of computer technology for bringing in social & environmental sustainability in the Fashion industry. It contributes significantly towards giving a greener face to the fashion value-chain. The computer technology, policies & practices with an orientation towards environmental, social and economic sustainability is known as Green Technology (greentech) or environmental technology (envirotech). Widespread application of greentech or envirotech in the Fashion industry is an important dimension of Sustainable development. Because of its role as a tool for sustainable development, green technology is also known as sustainable technology.

Sustainable Technology and Processes in Manufacturing

For many manufacturers, going 

green isn’t exactly easy, but becoming more environmentally conscious has the potential to yield big rewards. Not only are you developing a sustainable brand story that consumers feel proud to wear, but you’re gaining a first-mover advantage over your competition and investing in technology that will most definitely be an inevitable and required standard in the near future.

By incorporating sustainable practices and technology—committing to improving your production processes by 5%, 10%, 15% or even 25%—you can do better for the planet, while also saving time and money.  Brands need to educate themselves and take the time now to invest in technology and new methods of manufacturing. The following are sustainable technological processes in the apparel manufacturing industry that are important to know:

AirDye™, a subset of California-based Transprint USA/Colorep Inc., is a sustainable textile printing and dyeing company. AirDye is an air-based technology that can dye or print on one or both sides of a fabric at the same time without using water or chemical treatments. According to the company, “using AirDye saves up to 95% of the water, 86% of the energy, and 84% of the greenhouse gases as compared to conventional print and dye methods. On a single garment, the water savings alone can be as much as 45 gallons.” Current companies utilizing this technology include Patagonia, Julie Apple, Hunter Douglas, and Costello Tagliapietra (Envirogadget 2013).

                                

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