GPP Criteria for Textiles Green Public Procurement Textiles Economy - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

GPP Criteria for Textiles

Green Public Procurement

Textiles Economy

• Significant role of the public sector

as purchasers in work wear and bed linen for health services.

• EU Lead Market Initiative

estimated that public markets for textile and clothing industry have a value of 10 billion Euros per annum.

Key environmental impacts

• Ecotoxicity associated with the production and use of fertilisers and

pesticides

• Main contributor to energy consumption
• Significant impact of water use for irrigation
• Land degradation from intensive cultivation

Definition

• It includes both finished products, intermediate products and

accessories

• Must consist at least 80% by weight of textile fibres
• Textile fibres comprise: natural fibres, synthetic fibres and man-made

cellulose fibres.

First Criteria (2012)

• Narrow scope
• 90% by weight of textile fibres
• Focused on textile products
• No mention of accessories

Revised GPP Criteria (2017)

• Includes intermediate products and accessories
• 80% by weight of textile fibres
• Laundry, maintenance and take-back services included
• Inclusion of non-fibre accessories such as zips and

buttons

Streams of the revised criteria

Textiles Textile Products Textile Services

Textiles Textile Products Textile Services

Textiles Products

Textile Fibres

Cotton Fibres Wool Fibres Man Made Cellulose Fibers

Chemical Restrictions

REACH Candidate List Substances for final product

Durability and lifespan extension

Durability Standards Availability of parts

Energy conservation during use

Fabric selection Care labelling

Textiles Products

Textile Fibres

Cotton Fibres Wool Fibres Man Made Cellulose Fibers

Chemical Restrictions

REACH Candidate List Substances for final product

Durability and lifespan extension

Durability Standards Availability of parts

Energy conservation during use

Fabric selection Care labelling

Cotton Fibres

• Cotton identified as the textile fibre associated with the most environmental

impacts

• Uses 16% of the world’s total use of pesticides
• Two improvement options: organic and Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

production systems

• IPM is better suited than organic cotton due to the greater market
• availability. The suggested technical spec is open and leaves it up to the CA

to decide between organic and IPM

Wool Fibres

• Should be utilised when the wool content is greater than 50%.
• Aspects of sheep farming and wool scouring require addressing to

minimise impacts of wool production.

• Addresses wastewater discharges from wool scouring
• Verification reference to an ISO standard (ISO 6060) ensures that the

test results are comparable.

Man Made Cellulose Fibres

• Should be utilised when the content is greater than 50%.
• Cellulose fibres such as viscose, modal and lyocell are manufactured

from cellulose feedstock derived from timber, bamboo or cotton.

• Criteria focus on raw material sourcing and emissions at the

production stage.

• Criterion with limit values for sulphur.

Textiles Products

Textile Fibres

Cotton Fibres Wool Fibres Man Made Cellulose Fibers

Chemical Restrictions

REACH Candidate List Substances for final product

Durability and lifespan extension

Durability Standards Availability of parts

Energy conservation during use

Fabric selection Care labelling

REACH Candidate List

• Textile manufacturing requires multiple production stages and

chemical processes to deliver finished products.

• Substances from the bleaching, dyeing, printing and finishing stages

are identified as being of greatest significance.

• In terms of verification the tenderer must provide a REACH Article

33(2) declaration upon delivery of the finished articles.

Substances for final product

• EU textile manufacturers are increasingly testing their final products

for the presence of hazardous chemicals.

• Given the increasing use of final product testing and ease of

verification a number of final product tests are identified.

• In terms of verification the tenderer must provide results from a
• laboratory. Test results from Type 1 ecolabels, as well as third party

textile testing schemes will be accepted.

Textiles Products

Textile Fibres

Cotton Fibres Wool Fibres Man Made Cellulose Fibers

Chemical Restrictions

REACH Candidate List Substances for final product

Durability and lifespan extension

Durability Standards Availability of parts

Energy conservation during use

Fabric selection Care labelling

Durability Standards

• Extending the lifespan of textile products is important to minimise

their environmental impact. This can be achieved by specifying design and durability standards.

• Standards in 3 broad areas : wash resistance, physical durability,

durability of function.

• Tenderer must provide reports from tests carried out in accordance

with the standards specified.

Durability Standard Performance Benchmarks Test method Washing colour fastness Colour change and staining ISO 15797 in combination with ISO 105 C06 Seam strength 100 N at breakdown EN ISO 13935 or equivalent Wet rubbing colour fastness Level 2-3 ISO 15797 in combination with ISO 105X12 or equivalent

Availability of parts

• The early failure of zips, buttons, velcro and fasteners can lead to the

early discard of work wear and uniforms

• No specific standards for such accessories could be identified, so a

focus on the continued availability of parts was sought.

• A minimum of two years is being requested for their availability. It is

proposed that an indicative price list is provided in order to encourage more competitive pricing for parts.

Textiles Products

Textile Fibres

Cotton Fibres Wool Fibres Man Made Cellulose Fibers

Chemical Restrictions

REACH Candidate List Substances for final product

Durability and lifespan extension

Durability Standards Availability of parts

Energy conservation during use

Fabric selection Care labelling

Fabric selection

• Energy use for washing, drying and ironing is associated with the

most significant life cycle impacts of textile products.

• The energy required can be minimised by fabric selection. Different

fibres have different drying times and absorb different quantities.

• Specifications focus on water absorption capacity. This is based on the

laundry procedures of ISO 15797.

Care labelling

• Evidence suggests that measures relating to washing have the

greatest improvement potential.

• It is proposed that where applicable, washing instructions on the

GINETEX care labelling promote lower temperate washing.

• Survey results suggest that employees unless provided with guidance

may not always follow care instructions.

Textiles Textile Products Textile Services

Textiles Services

Laundry

Fabric Selection

Maintenance

Maintenance of the textile assets

Textiles Services

Laundry

Fabric Selection

Maintenance

Maintenance of the textile assets

Fabric Selection

• Similar scope to the criteria already highlighted under the ‘energy

conservation during use’

• To minimise energy use, laundry energy and detergent use.
• Such services can better enable the correct management of the

products.

Textiles Services

Laundry

Fabric Selection

Maintenance

Maintenance of the textile assets

Maintenance of textile assets

• Importance of extending the useful life of textile products through

adequate maintenance was already highlighted in other proposed criteria.

• Requires provision of basic repairs – such as replacement of zips,

repairing seam splits etc.

Conclusions

• The first NAP gave a mandatory status to such criteria
• Depending on the results of the public consultation, this product

group will either maintain the current status or introduce the revised criteria on a incremental approach.

• Any feedback is to be sent to gpp@gov.mt