Extrusion International 6-2025

55 Extrusion International 6/2025 Scaling Up Textile Recycling – Partnership with Australian Technology Pioneer At K show in Düsseldorf, the world’s leading trade fair for plas- tics and rubber, EREMA Group an- nounced a strategic investment in clean technology company Block- Texx ® . The Australian pioneer has developed a process that sepa- rates polyester and cellulose from blended textiles. By combining both companies’ technologies, the partnership aims to scale post-con- sumer textile-to-textile recycling to industrial levels. Through the strategic collabora- tion the EREMA Group emphasizes its commitment to returning poly- ester to the apparel production cy- cle and scaling up textile-to-textile recycling. “The PET bre industry is three times the size of the PET bot- tle industry. We have been invest- ing in the research and develop- ment of textile and bre recycling for several years. With the tech- nology we already provide for PET bre recycling, our next step is to aim for full-scale industrial textile recycling. We consider BlockTexx ® a key partner in this. Their technol- ogy paves the way for used textiles to re-enter the production cycle,” said Manfred Hackl, CEO of EREMA Group. BlockTexx ® ‘s process separates polyester and cellulose from post- consumer textiles and clothing, providing the polyester for ERE- MA’s technology. The INTAREMA ® FibrePro:IV system will process the polyester into recycled pellets suit- able for new garment production. “Our thermomechanical recycling system is a core element for tex- tile recycling,” said Wolfgang Her- mann, Business Development Man- ager for Fibres & Textiles at EREMA Group. “However, full-scale textile recycling requires a combination of technologies, with BlockTexx ® un- locking the solution for processing polyester-blended textiles.“ BlockTexx ® operates its rst plant in Australia with a processing capac- ity of 10,000 tonnes per year, with plans for a second plant of 50,000 tonnes per year. Scaling up re- quires a strong investment partner. “Blended textiles like cotton-polyes- ter account for over 60 per cent of global apparel production but are notoriously dif cult to recycle due to bre incompatibility and chemi - cal contamination”, says Adrian Jones, co-founder of BlockTexx ® . EREMA Group’s investment brings not only capital but also deep recy- cling expertise, proven technology and infrastructure. From the very beginning, it felt like a true partner- ship, Jones notes: “Both companies share the same intellectual curiosity and EREMA Group was committed to this journey from day one.” According to global non-pro t Textile Exchange 75 million tonnes of synthetic bres were produced in 2023, with polyester being the most common, accounting for 57 per cent of total bre production. Recycling rates for polyester are estimated at only 1 per cent. “Currently, nearly all the recycled polyester in the clothing you see in retail stores is derived from PET plastic bottles” says Graham Ross, co-founder of BlockTexx ® . As per Textile Exchange, recycled bres constituted 7.7 per cent of the global bre market in 2023, with 7 per cent being recycled polyester from waste PET bottles. Hackl emphasizes: “The goal must be to ensure that rPET from bottles is returned to new bot- tles. This investment is not only posi- From left: Manfred Hackl (EREMA Group), Adrian Jones (BlockTexx ® ), Wolfgang Hermann (EREMA Group), and Graham Ross (BlockTexx ® ) holding the new fabric made from 100% recycled polyester at the Edvanced Recycling Center, where EREMA demonstrates live recycling and products made of recyclate during the K show (Photo credits: EREMA GmbH)