"Sustainable development" has become a buzzwordin the present times due to the emergence of various social & environmentalconcerns. Increasing pollution from vehicles and industrial units,deforestation, excessive use of chemicals, plastic, metals and othernon-biodegradable material, expanding landfill sites are leaving devastatingimpacts on the environment. Extensive use of natural resources and superfluousproduction & use of man-made articles along with tremendous waste generationis adversely effecting the environment. This has intensified the need tominimize the environmental damages and make the earth a better place to livenot only for the present generations but also for the future generations tocome.


To "Sustain" means "to maintain" or "to up hold". Sustainabilityis a wide-ranging term. It's important dimensions are


Environmental Sustainability - Environmentalsustainability is the ability to maintain the valued qualities of the physicalenvironment. It refers to preservation of the environment & naturalresources.


Social Sustainability - Social sustainability isone important aspect of sustainable development. Social sustainabilityencompasses human rights, labor rights, and corporate governance. For a societyto be functional & sustainable, the basic needs of the members must be met.


Economic Sustainability - Economicsustainability is about achieving economic growth along with ensuring theimprovement in quality of life and the environment.


The Sustainability concern is applicable to allareas of human activity such as computing, design, manufacture, architecture,transportation, agriculture, to name a few.


The term "Sustainability" is being discussed foralmost a decade now but its explicit and all-round intervention in the field ofFashion is a recent one. Its relevance in the Fashion industry is because ofthe highly unsustainable nature of this industry. Fashion Industry is one ofthe most polluting industries in the world. It is the second largestwater-consumer of all the industries of the world. Trends like globaloperations, fast fashion, increasing disposable incomes, increasing consumerismare intensifying the social & environmental concerns with respect to thefashion industry. An interesting area of research is to emancipate the role oftechnology integration in the fashion industry and its contribution in theemergence of an ethical and green fashion value-chain.


Some pertinent researches and distinctiveinitiatives in this field have enabled the evolution of specialized disciplineswith a focus to understand, evaluate and reduce the carbon footprints of humanactivities and aim towards environmental & social well-being. A few of theemerging disciplines include Sustainable Design, Sustainable Architecture,Sustainable Fashion, Sustainable Tourism, Sustainable Agriculture and so on.This article gives an overview of sustainability concerns in the fashionindustry and the technology intervention to address these concerns.


There are some of the very useful resourceswhich give an insight into the concept of Sustainable Fashion and its gradualentry into the fashion mainstream. Janet Hethorn and Connie Ulasewicz in theirbook "Sustainable Fashion: Why Now?" discuss the various issues and practices relatedto Sustainable Fashion. Kate Fletcher promoter of "Slow Fashion" in her book 'SustainableFashion and Textiles Design Journeys" writes about ecologically sustainablefashion and textiles."Green Technology, Strategy and leadership for clean andsustainable communities" [3] discusses strategies for green and clean living.Eco Textile News [4] gives an insight into the latest developments in the fieldof environmental & social sustainability. The website Business Green [8] informsabout Fashion industry signing up to green makeover. Sustainable StyleFoundation [7] talks about "look fabulous live well, do good". London Collegeof Fashion launched the Centre for Sustainable Fashion (CSF) in 2008 tofunction as a globally connected catalyst for change moving towards asustainable fashion economy.


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

Some of the major areas where sustainable technology has been deployed.

 

Technology Related To Material Used

 

  • Technology for weaving, printing, dyeing and finishing of yarn & fabric
  • Technology for Non-toxic processing and treatments of fiber
  • Testing of Fabric for contaminants
  • Technology for Stain-free and wrinkle-free fabric


Technology Related To Design

 

  • Computer-aided design of apparel
  • Automatic manipulation of fabric
  • Colour inventory management


Technology Related To Processes / Software Modules

 

  • Enterprise Resource Planning
  • Electronic Data Interchange
  • Product Life Cycle Management
  • Supply chain management


Technology Related To Manufacturing

 

  • Operating facilities with alternative or renewable sources of energy such as landfill gas, wind, solar, low-impact hydroelectric facilities etc.
  • Technology for reducing harmful emission
  • Technology for Chemical-free processes
  • Body-scanning for made-to-measure, ready-to-wear, Seamless apparel technology, custom-fit, Made-to-order, Mass-customization,
  • Quality control & assurance
  • Robotics
  • Automated on-line fabric inspection
  • Sewing machines and embroidery technology


Technology Related To Distribution, Transportation And Retail Of Fashion Articles

 

  • Use of RFID for effective tracking & securing of fashion products and establishing a green supply-chain.
  • IT Planning for enhanced efficiency of processes and improved supply-chain responsiveness.
  • Minimal or eco-friendly packaging using recycled and eco-friendly material.
  • e-commerce, e-retailing, on-line shopping


Consumer-Use Technology

 

  • Smart textile, smart garment
  • Less frequent laundry
  • Fewer but multi-utility garments
  • Garments with extended life-span
  • Innovative clothing


Post-Consumer Technology Related To Disposal, Recycling And Reuse

 

  • Zero-waste through implementing "Closed Loop" waste-management techniques.
  • Fiber-to-fiber recycling
  • Refurbished or recycled fiber and fabric

 

The intervention of green technology in the fashion industry is bringing forth various aspects such as Green material, Green design, green manufacturing, green transportation, green retail, green post-consumer management and so on. These concepts have relevance to various key areas in the fashion value chain where eco-friendly technology and alternate solutions can replace the conventional methods. The coming years are going to witness integration of green technology in various stages from fibre to fabric, from raw material to the finished fashion article covering the farming, sourcing, designing, manufacturing aspects and from Manufacturer to retailer and finally to the consumer covering the warehousing, ordering, transportation, retailing, consuming and post-consumer management.


References:


Image courtesy: &sec=article&uinfo=<%=server.URLEncode(2335)%>">http://thefind.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c733953ef01156f40be23970c-800wi


About the Author:

The author is Assistant Professor at Department of Fashion Management Studies, National Institute of Fashion Technology