Berkeley Lab’s China Energy Group Provides Training to Chinese Textile Plants to Assist in Greening of China’s Textile Supply Chain

[30 January, 2012] China is the world’s leading textile and clothing exporter, manufacturing around 40% of the world’s textiles and clothes from cotton, man-made fibers, and silk. Textile and clothing is the largest manufacturing industry in China. China is also the largest importer of textile machinery.

In recent years, environmental groups and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have highlighted the negative effects of inefficient production of textile products in China and other countries with respect to the local environment, health, and climate change. Since many global clothing brands have their supply chain in China, various groups and stakeholders have focused pressure on these brands to ensure that their suppliers use more efficient and environmentally-friendly textile production processes.

In this regard, LBNL's China Energy Group conducted two one-day training workshops in Suzhou, China in October 2011. These workshops were conducted in collaboration with Azure International, an international consultant firm based in Beijing, and the Suzhou Energy Conservation Center. More than 150 Chinese textile engineers as well as academia and provincial Energy Conservation Centers were trained on energy and resource efficiency technologies for the textile industry.

In addition, the attendees learned how to use the Energy Efficiency Assessment and Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction (EAGER) Tool for the Textile Industry, developed by Dr. Ali Hasanbeigi of the China Energy Group. Dr. Hasanbeigi, the lead instructor of the workshop, was accompanied by Lynn Price and Lu Hongyou from LBNL.

Other instructors were from Azure International and China National Textile and Clothing Association. The workshops were funded by the UK’s Strategic Programme Fund, and development of the materials presented by the LBNL team was funded by Energy Foundation. The LBNL guidebook for energy efficiency technologies for the textile industry, the EAGER Textile tool, and the presentation material used in the workshop are all available at http://china.lbl.gov/Textile.Section