Workwear manufacturer Alsico has announced a technology breakthrough that paves the way for recycling of hi-vis clothing.
The new technique, developed in collaboration with recycling technology specialist Stuff4Life and clothing components supplier Coats, makes it possible to recover and reuse the glass beads used to make reflective strips.
Stuff4Life’s patented polyester depolymerisation process, with technical validation from Teesside University, has been shown to separate and preserve the glass beads from hi-vis safety strips during processing.
Laboratory analysis has confirmed that the recovered beads remain intact, spherical and optically effective, retaining up to 80% of their reflectivity compared with new material.
Through this approach, up to 100% of glass beads can be captured through filtration, and more than 75% of the total reflective strip material can be recovered by weight when reflective strips are manufactured on PET backing fabric.
This new development overcomes one of the biggest barriers to recycling of hi-vis clothing as the presence of reflective strips has traditionally forced garments to be incinerated due to their tightly bonded composite construction.
According to Alsico, the findings pave the way for future hi-vis strips containing 100% recycled beads, helping manufacturers create genuinely circular safety garments without compromising safety or compliance.
Performance testing by Coats – a UK supplier of threads and clothing components including beads – confirmed that the recovered beads met the criteria required for reuse in new reflective tapes and materials.
Pictured: Reflective glass beads under a microscope
According to Alsico, the breakthrough provides garment manufacturers, trim specialists, laundries and distributors with a clear technical pathway for designing hi-vis components with recovery and reuse in mind.
Vincent Siau, head of the Alsico Academy, Alsico’s innovation hub, said: “These results show that a closed-loop pathway is technically achievable and brings us closer to making circular hi-vis garments a reality.
“By actively investing in recovery solutions and setting clear standards for recyclability, recycled content and closed-loop operations, we are continuing to build the infrastructure required to make circular workwear a reality at scale.”
John Twitchen, director of Stuff4Life, added: “This work shows that we can close the loop not only on polyester, but on complex components such as reflective beads.
“It’s a major step toward genuinely circular protective garments.”
