Next phase for Devalia and Nexia’s ozone-analysing project
09/08/2023
Laundry machinery manufacturer Nexia Italy and Devalia have officially signed a partnership to work together to investigate possible health concerns related to the use of ozone in the treatment of apparel.
Following the success of a pilot scheme testing cotton, elastane and recycled cotton, the project will be widened to include additional materials and potentially create a methodology for other industries to follow.
Consultancy Devalia is the project lead and the results are being analysed at the Institute of Intelligent Industrial Technologies and Systems for Advanced Manufacturing - National Research Council of Italy (STIIMA-CNR) of Biella.
“I wanted to include a public institution because this project is based on transparency, we need to work openly,” Ms Benefatto told Inside Denim.
“I chose ozone because it’s a fairly new technology in the industry and we don’t know its full potential yet. Also, the materials we are using to make garments are changing, for instance, we are seeing more biodegradable fibres – we want to check if byproducts might be developed over time, after they’ve been treated with ozone.”
She added the project could help to combat greenwashing by providing verified data and results. It could also add data to garments’ Digital Product Passports, due to become mandatory in the European Union by 2030.
“Nexia needs credit for allowing its machinery and technology to be analysed by a third party,” she added. “Not all suppliers would agree to this. This is raising the bar.”
Initial results of the project are due to be published in the autumn.
IMAGE: The Nexia team at the recent ITMA show in Milan
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