#Recycling / Circular Economy

2025-05-28

AATCC’s Circularity Conference approaches as organization continues 2025 Sustainable Textile Event series

The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) announces that registration is closing soon for its highly anticipated Circularity Conference, continuing this year’s sustainability event series that has delivered significant value to industry professionals.

Circularity Conference: Program Highlights & Final Registration Period

As the textile industry faces mounting pressure to reduce environmental impact, circularity has emerged as a critical framework for sustainable transformation. The upcoming Circularity Conference will bring together industry leaders, researchers, designers, and policy experts to address the complex challenges of implementing truly circular systems across the textile value chain.

The Circularity Conference will take place on June 17-18, 2025, at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston, RI, chaired by Professor Emeritus Martin Bide. The event will feature an impressive lineup of over 15 expert speakers across four focused sessions: Regulations, Sustainable Materials, Sustainable Manufacturing, and Circular Economy.

Keynote speaker David Hinks, Dean of the Wilson College of Textiles at North Carolina State University, will open the conference, setting the stage for two days of groundbreaking discussions. A networking reception with tabletop displays will conclude the first day, providing valuable opportunities for attendees to connect with speakers and fellow industry professionals.

Early registration ends June 3! Details and information can be found at www.aatcc.org/circularity/.

Building on Momentum: Recent AATCC Sustainability Events

The Circularity Conference is part of AATCC’s ongoing sustainability-focused event series that has provided crucial platforms for industry collaboration:

AATCC announces 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition winners

The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) recognized the winners of the 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition. Founded in 1982 to give student members the chance to conduct and present original research, the competition was renamed in 1994 in honor of Herman and Myrtle Goldstein, following their US$60,000 endowment. Their gift is a lasting remembrance of their dedication to young people in the textile industry.

New funding available for textile research

The AATCC Foundation Student Research Support Grant Program provides financial assistance for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing textile-related projects. Students may submit proposals now for funding to be awarded January 2026. Applications must be submitted by October 1, 2025, to be considered.

HKRITA signs MoU with Jeanologia and Looptworks to establish the Green Machine Circular Textile Ecosystem

The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA) yesterday officially signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with two key global partners, Jeanologia and Looptworks, to establish the Green Machine Circular Textile Ecosystem – a first-of-its-kind collaboration to accelerate the large-scale recycling of blended textiles.

Object Carpet tests production of rPET BCF yarn on Neumag BCF line

In a joint project with Object Carpet GmbH, Denkendorf; the Institute for Textile Technology (ITA), Augsburg; and Next Generation Recyclingmaschinen GmbH (NGR), Feldkirchen, Austria, Barmag investigated the processing of recycled polyester for BCF yarn. The goal was to evaluate the fundamental suitability of 100% recycled carpet material for reuse in carpet yarn production to create a closed-loop system in carpet manufacturing. To date, commercial rPET BCF processes have been based solely on rPET from bottle pellets.

Albany International reports progress with Cyclezyme on industrial textile recycling project

Albany International Corp. (NYSE:AIN) reports continued progress in the ongoing project with Cyclezyme AB, a leader in advanced enzyme-based plastic recycling, based in Sweden. The project exemplifies leading edge innovation in materials science, focusing on the development of enzyme-based recycling of industrial textiles primarily consisting of polyester and polyamide, where there is currently a significant lack of effective solutions for circular material flows. The objective of the project is to establish enzymatic processes for depolymerization and recycling of technical textiles and high-performance industrial materials.

The textile industry in transition

Recycling, traceability, eco-design and digitalisation are among the key future challenges facing the European textile industry. The Erasmus+ project Skills4Circularity, involving 21 partners from twelve countries, is investigating the skills required to address these challenges. As the German industry partner, the Industry Association for Finishing – Yarns – Fabrics – Technical Textiles (IVGT) is bringing the industry’s perspective to the project.

2026 general meeting of the Friends and Supporters of RWTH Aachen at ITA

The Friends and Supporters of RWTH Aachen e. V. (proRWTH) looked back on a successful year of support at their 2026 general meeting. The meeting took place at Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen and was combined with a joint session of the Executive Board and the Administrative Board. Before the general meeting began, participants were given a guided tour of ITA, providing them with fascinating insights into current research and development topics in textile engineering.

Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brings supply chain leaders together around cotton innovation

Cotton Incorporated’s Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brought together more than 300 industry leaders from 140 companies across 10 countries, including more than 45 top global brands and sourcing organizations, underscoring strong global interest in cotton-rich product development, sourcing and supply chain collaboration.

Footwear innovation enabled by warp knitting technology– insights from New Balance

The future of the athletic shoe is increasingly being shaped on warp knitting machines. For KARL MAYER, the footwear industry is one of the most important growth markets – and one of the sectors where innovative textiles can realize their full potential. In his keynote address at the opening of KARL MAYER’s TEXTILE INNOVATION CENTER in Obertshausen in April, Vishnu Prakash Muthusamy, Senior Textile and Materials Engineer at New Balance, explained the opportunities that warp knitting technology opens up for performance, sustainability, and faster development processes, and why textile manufacturers are transitioning from suppliers to development partners.