ReHiTechTex — Closing the loop on firefighter protective clothing
Hilaturas Arnau's circular economy project within the In Transit programme, funded by the European Union
ReHiTechTex is Hilaturas Arnau's funded sub-project within In Transit, the European programme strengthening the resilience of textile, aerospace, advanced manufacturing and construction SMEs. ReHiTechTex focuses on the recycling of used firefighter uniforms — introducing layer-by-layer recycling and the production of new high-performance products from recovered fibers.
A new circular model for high-tech garments
The project creates a new circular economy business model for high-technology (high-tech) garments — specifically firefighters' suits. It comprises the setup of a collection system for used firefighters' suits, sorting, mechanical debridement to convert the fabric back into fiber, the development of a new yarn using these recovered fibers, and the introduction of this yarn into the manufacturing of new firefighters' garments — closing the circle.
The core innovation is the circularity of high-tech protective garments: recovering and re-spinning flame retardant fibers that would otherwise be discarded, without compromising the protective performance required for life-safety applications.
Hilaturas Arnau's role
As the spinning and recycling specialist, Hilaturas Arnau recovers the flame retardant fibers from decommissioned firefighter uniforms and re-engineers them into new certified technical yarns — demonstrating that even the most demanding protective garments can be brought into a circular economy loop.
Funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement no. 101091494. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HADEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
If you would like advice or additional information, please do not hesitate to contact us; you will receive a prompt response.
