Clean by Design: What is Clean by Design and How the Program Works (S1T2)

Clean by Design: What is Clean by Design and How the Program Works

Description

Clean by Design (CbD S1T2) is Aii’s inaugural program which captures low hanging fruit efficiency improvements. It is a stage 1 (S1) program focused on Tier 2 (T2) wet-processing facilities that results in 10.6% energy and 12.9% water reductions   

Overview / Context

The Natural Resources Defense council created Clean by Design in 2007 after identifying efficiency in Tier 2 wet processing facilities as an opportunity for water and energy use reductions in the apparel supply chain. The Apparel Impact Institute adopted the highly successful program in 2018 and continues to scale the program. 

The cornerstone of Clean by Design (CbD) is a set of 10 Best Practices that when implemented in any production facility can deliver almost immediate return on investment – most projects pay for themselves in less than one year. These foundational elements of resource management represent the beginning and ongoing steps all wet processing mills can adopt for optimal efficiency and they pave the way for more sophisticated projects when the facility is ready.  Clean by Design and expert partners use a CbD Efficiency Scan to evaluate each mill based on their improvement potential beginning with the 10 Best Practices and then allocate them to programming suited for their level of performance.

Results

Aii is currently scaling CbD S1T2 and 26 Tier 2 facilities in active programming in 2020. Aii continues to improve tools and processes as it scales across Mainland China, Taiwan region, India, and Vietnam. 

• Facilities: completed, total active in 2020 (26 facilities), started in 2020
• GHG reduction – total tonnes in 2020 AND since program inception
• Water reduction – total saved in 2021 AND since program inception
• Cost savings – facilities that completed a program in 2020 saved X$$
• 19.5  months payback time on initial investment
• 8 brands – in active programming in 2020
• Regions – with active cohort programming in 2020 – Mainland China, Taiwan region, India, Vietnam

Multinational apparel buyers, government authorities and industry trade associations encourage mills to join the Clean by Design (CbD) program.

• Upon joining, participating mills complete a performance scan which recognizes the facilities existing results while identifying further areas of improvement towards maximum efficiency.
• Next, the mills are assigned to an appropriate programming track, including foundational, intermediate and advanced level projects or working groups.
• Then, the participants complete a mix of online training courses, in-person workshops with industry experts, on-site expert visits and “homework”; which provides them with the easy to use resources required to identify, prioritize and implement new projects on their way to meeting resource reduction targets established along the way.
• Finally, the savings from implemented projects are evaluated by expert consultants and verified by Aii’s program staff.