With one more Bangladesh factory, the Denim Processing Plant acquiring the Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) certificate, the total number LEED certified garment factories in the country has grown to 150.

The certificate from the US Green Building Council (USGBC) will steady the country's global top position in green revolution in the textile and readymade garment sector, says Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).

In all Bangladesh will have 44 platinum, 93 gold, nine silver and four lead-rated certificates. The country owns nine out of the top 10 environment-friendly garment factories in the world. It also houses 39 of the top 100 global platinum factories in the world

In May 2012, Bangladesh's Vintage Denim Studio was recognized as the first LEED platinum certified factory in the world.

Apparel entrepreneurs in the country have stepped up their investments in green initiatives post the 2013 Rana Plaza building collapse, which killed 1,134 people and injured more than 2,000.

As per Faruqe Hassan, President, BGMEA, these have helped recover the image of the industry and also the country.

Cambodia’s garment exports surged by 11.40 per cent to $8.2417 billion during January-September 202 as against the same period last year, shows data by the General Department of Customs and Excise.

As per Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia, garment sector in the country managed to avoid sliding into negative territory despite COVID. The sector has been gaining market share due to the unprecedented challenges arising from political issues and COVID-19 ramifications of competing countries, says a report by the The Phnom Penh.

Hong Vanak, Director, International Economics, Royal Academy of Cambodia, says, the rise in garment exports bodes well for economic activity in the Kingdom, as other countries reel under the severe conditions wrought by COVID-19.

He said the government is also striving to streamline the local investment and business environment to instill confidence among businesspeople and investors amid expanding market access to a range of countries.

It has signed new FTAs with China, South Korea and other markets to make Cambodia, a better investment destination, he underlined.

In 2020, Cambodia’s garment exports plunged by 10.44 per cent to $9.50171 billion as against $10.60986 billion in 2019, according to the Ministry of Commerce.

Cifra has launched a new high-tech shapewear range that uses patented WKS technology to create without size constraints and prevent skin markings.

As per a Textile Focus report, through this collection Cifra focuses on the plus size market and sustainability With Step and OekoTex certified traceability, the company provides strict transparency across the production chain, which extends to partner selection, from yarn suppliers to dye houses.

Cifra’s eco-friendly collection comprises items manufactured from recycled yarns such as Econyl, Renycle, Qnova, as well as biodegradable Amni-Soul eco and natural yarns merino wool and Tencel, all of which are produced with zero waste owing to the Zero Waste initiative. The collection will be on display at Performance Days in December and Ispo in January.

A textile manufacturer, CifraSpA offers natural fabrics such as cotton, wool, micro modal, and silk. The company serves customers in Italy.

As per the 10th ITMF Corona-Survey conducted by International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) among companies around the world in all segments of the textile value chain, the current business situation is mostly positive.

A report by the Knitting Industry shows, around 48 per cent of respondents business to improve March 2022 while 13 per cent foresee gloomy days.

Upstream segments are seen to be faring better than downstream ones since the recovery is under way. Supply chain disruptions are the leading cause for delay in recovery of upstream segment as delays in the supply of raw and intermediate materials accumulates down the value chains.

Furthermore, the shows a significant rise in order intake in September on a global level compared to May and July 2021 and companies anticipate a further increase in the next six months. Order backlogs are expected to remain stable. However, differences between regions and segments may remain.

Expected rise in the cotton harvested area, production, imports and total domestic consumption is expected to strengthen Turkey’s cotton business in the upcoming period. As per reports, cotton harvested area will increase due to favorable weather conditions, rising global cotton prices, better yield and increased incentives from the Turkish government.

From 0.57 million hectares in market year (MY) 2019-20, Turkey’s area under cotton harvest will rise again by 28.57 per cent to reach 0.45 million hectares in MY 2021-22.

Cotton production will rise by 19.05 per cent from 0.75 million metric tonne in MY 2019-20 to 0.75 million metric tons in MY 2021-22. Turkey imported 1.02 million metric tonne of cotton in MY 2019-20 and 1.16 million metric tonne in MY 2020-21. It is now expected to import 1.18 million metric tonne in MY 2021-22.

Turkey’s cotton consumption is expected to expand by 10.61 per cent to 1.83 million metric tonne in MY 2021-22.

A new analysis by researchers at Cornell warns, rising sea levels threaten to take large apparel producing areas across Jakarta, Phnom Penh, India, Bangladesh, Guangzhou, Columbo and Ho Chi Minh City underwater by 2030. The research uses the open-source factory database, classified under, the Open Apparel Registry (OAR)

According to this research, in order to survive, these factories need to shift to a higher ground. The analysis emphasizes that the industry cannot wait any longer to take action towards a more sustainable future. It needs to use cases for data and the potential from it to inform crucial decisions around policy, investment, sustainability and ESG initiatives in the global fashion sector.

Standardized format for disclosing information

The OAR - a not for profit –can help the industry improve data quality in the apparel sector by addressing specific industry challenges and creating a standardized format for disclosing facility information, making data publicly available to all industry stakeholders, cleaning and matching facility data and enabling organizations to connect disparate data sets. Its report has been released to assist stakeholders looking to support similar ventures, given the urgency of issues facing the apparel sector, says Natalie Grillon, Executive Director.

The OAR’s tool allocates a unique ID to all garment facilities across the world. The tool data is used by major global brands, civil society organizations, factory groups, multi-stakeholder initiatives and certification schemes. The data is received by over 400 contributors and mapped facilities 1800 subscribers and contains over 68,000 facilities, has received data from over 400 contributors and mapped facilities in more than 120 countries.

Powered by a sophisticated algorithm

The Open Apparel Registry (OAR) is a neutral, open-source tool mapping garment facilities worldwide and allocating a unique ID to each. With over 68,000 facilities in the database, data in the tool is contributed and used by organizations all over the world, including major global brands, civil society organizations, multi-stakeholder initiatives, certification schemes, factory groups, etc. The data is organized and presented in such a way that it improves the lives of some of the most vulnerable workers in global supply chains.

At its heart, the OAR exists to drive improvements in data quality for the benefit of all stakeholders in the apparel sector. Powered by a sophisticated name- and address-matching algorithm, the tool creates one common, open registry of global facility names and addresses, with an industry-standard facility ID. These OAR IDs do not replace any existing ID schema, rather they serve as a ‘central source of truth,’ enabling interoperability across systems and creating a collective understanding of shared connections at the facility level.

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) was awarded three prestigious prizes at this year’s TechConnect World Innovation Conference and Expo (TechConnect) in Washington DC.

PolyU research teams excelled in the area of “Materials & Manufacturing” with two innovations being awarded TechConnect 2021 Global Innovation Awards. The PolyU innovators had developed a nature-inspired ‘sweatable’ textile material capable of ultra-fast sweat dissipation; as well as inventing an environmentally friendly technique to synthesizing MXenes – a promising energy storage material designed to meet rising global energy demands.

In the area of “AI, Data, Cyber & Software”, PolyU has developed 3D LiDAR-aided GNSS precise positioning technology that allows highly robust centimetre-level global positioning in urban environments for automated driving, which also received a TechConnect 2021 Global Innovation Award.

PolyU is the only higher education institution in Hong Kong this year that received the awards, which recognise the top 15 per cebt of submitted technologies based on their potential positive impact in different technological areas. Other awarded innovators include those from global-renowned universities, institutes and laboratories, including several national laboratories affiliated with the US Department of Energy. It is the fifth year that PolyU research teams have been awarded the prestigious prizes at the world's largest multi-sector event for fostering development and commercialising innovations.

Application laboratory of Garmon Chemicals, Garmon Studio has joined Stella Blu, a denim fabric manufacturer that aims to be the resource for innovative, novel and exciting indigo fabrications, to create a completely sustainably and recycleable capsule collection, celebrating The Jeans Redesign’s July 2021 updated guidelines for denim circularity.

The collaborative effort honors the mission of The Jeans Redesign, a project of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation that provides a framework for the denim industry to scale practices for a circular economy. The capsule collection was developed using all the principles of denim circularity to give a tangible example of how the denim supply chain can achieve greater sustainability.

The capsule collection was presented at Denim Première Vision, an event dedicated to the world of denim, its trends, its market and its unique community. Held in Milan at SuperstudioPiù, Denim Première Vision is the first in-person event after nearly two years of pandemic-induced digital-only events, making it the ideal setting to announce the collaboration.

In line with the latest needs for traceability and transparency in the denim industry, Garmon Studio and Stella Blu worked together to present a capsule collection that is durable, recyclable and made with safe materials and processes. reserving our planet and its living beings, is a true demonstration of alignment, transparency and real circularity in the denim industry.

Virtual marketplace Material Exchange will acquire the agency portion of denim consultancy and events business Olah Inc. As per a Sourcing Journal report, the acquisition will help the platform expand into expert services with a special focus on sustainability. For more than 60 years, Olah Inc. has served the denim and sportswear industries with its educational offerings, evolving from a Canadian textile agency to a multi-faceted New York-based consultancy.

In recent years, the company has doubled down on its sustainability content, releasing focused reports and hosting educational series as part of its newly launched Transformers Foundation, a nonprofit that actively addresses and facilitates change in the denim supply chain.

Initiated in July 2020, the Material Exchange partnership aims to complement the Olah Inc.-owned Kingpins shows and allow exhibitors to showcase their textiles year-round. The digital format aims to provide denim brands with tools for sourcing denim and denim-related fabrics in real-time and view detailed product data on demand. Soon after, Kingpins debuted Kingpins Exchange, an online denim marketplace and digital denim showroom created in partnership with Material Exchange that Olah described as the “Netflix” of materials sourcing. Using the platform, companies can essentially source denim on demand.

Held in September in Paris, French trade show Interfilière saw the participation of the Brazalian textile brand Savyon, which was supported by Texbrasil (Internationalization Program for the Brazilian Textile and Fashion Industry) – the result of a partnership between Abit (Brazilian Textile and Apparel Industry Association) and Apex-Brasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency).

As per a Texbrasil report, the company has been in the market for more than 50 years. It s one of the main jacquard manufacturers in the country and develops elaborate wefts for several segments. One of them is the beach, intimate and fitness fashion, focus of the French fair.

For the company, Interfiliere had a good outcome, considering the unstable post-pandemic scenario in Europe. Because of travel restrictions, the September edition had mainly French buyers.

Savyon has been present in Europe for more than 20 years and, besides France, also operates in Italy and England.