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Major step achieved in the recycling of used textiles. The cycle has been closed with the TEX2MAT process.

Vienna, October 20, 2021:

For the project “TEX2MAT – New processes for recycling textile waste of multi-material composition”, the company HERKA GmbH received the State Prize 2021 Environmental and Energy Technology in the category Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency from Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler.

In the EU, around 10 million tons of textile waste ends up in residual waste every year and is often incinerated. The main objective of the Austria-wide TEX2MAT project was therefore to recycle used textiles with a multi-material composition. In order to achieve this goal, a consortium developed a new TEX2MAT process suitable for SMEs for the recycling of polyester-cotton blended fabrics. Enzymes are used to extract the cotton content so that the intact polyester fibers can be returned to the production cycle and the resulting glucose can be converted into auxiliaries for textile production. This process ensures that high-quality and consistent recycled quality is maintained. The main objective of producing new textiles or injection-molded products from multi-material used textiles was achieved. The cycle could be closed with the new TEX2MAT process.

Towels produced by HERKA Frottier with recycled polyester are comparable to new goods in terms of dyeing, washing tests etc.. This means that the TEX2MAT process can save considerable amounts of resources and disposal costs, with positive effects on the climate and environment. The process is therefore an excellent example of the circular economy and can also be transferred to other materials (e.g. packaging). The project also shows that the entire process chain can be covered and added value achieved through cooperation with companies at regional level and that the use of modern (bio)technologies can help to increase competitiveness.

HERKA’s aim is to achieve the same for textiles made from 100% cotton. To this end, valuable contacts were made at the State Prize Gala on Wednesday.

“The State Prize is an enormous incentive to continue pursuing our goal of closing the cycle for natural fibers, especially for the valuable raw material cotton. We are currently striving to gain cooperation partners for this.” says Thomas Pfeiffer, Managing Director of the award winner HERKA GmbH.

HERKA GmbH’s project partners were: Ecoplus NÖ, TU Vienna, BOKU Vienna, Montanuni Leoben, Salesianer Miettex GmbH, Andritz AG, Starlinger & Co GmbH, Fildan GmbH, Thermoplastkreislauf GmbH, PlastiksEurope, Multiplast GmbH.

State prizes are the highest awards of the Republic of Austria. An award can be regarded as the highest seal of quality that the Republic of Austria can bestow.

The State Prize Gala with Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler took place on October 20, 2021 in Vienna. More in the video…

EARTH DAY 2022: How we can change our lives – starting on Earth Day

1. banish harmful things from your everyday life: eliminate cheap fashion from your life, consider whether you will wear the item you want more than 30 times and buy it from sustainable labels. Ban cheap food and coffee-to-go cups, switch to green electricity. 10 things that could disappear

2. buy better products: Prominent brands manage to be very present through clever advertising. Buy and borrow from unknown stores. More under

3. reduce plastic: look out for fashion made from renewable raw materials such as linen or cotton and buy food without packaging wherever possible. You can find more ideas here

4. choose brands with trustworthy certificates: The choice is ours: pay attention to how the products are labeled. Here are the best seals for your textiles

5. don’t consume absurd things: coffee capsules, deodorant sprays, squeezies, disposable plastic bottles… do you really have to?

6 Change your life: Earth Day is a great opportunity to think about old habits. Why not try out a repair cafe, take a stress-free vacation or find out about solidarity farming and green emails. You don’t have to do everything at once. Try starting each month with a new good idea. You can find more ideas here

These prizes are dedicated to our team!

The year 2021 ends for the internationally active terry weaving mill HERKA GmbH. as it began, with awards: The two most important prizes in the German-speaking promotional market as well as the highest award of the Austrian state were awarded to the soon-to-be 95-year-old weaving mill in Kautzen. This is where old knowledge meets state-of-the-art technology and an innovative and flexible team. Together with its sister company, Textilveredelung Gmünd (TVG), the company employs 120 people.

January 2021: The PSI (Promotional Product Institute), the largest corporate network of the promotional products industry in Europe, awards the most popular and best-selling promotional towel VINTAGE as STAR PRODUCT 2021. The smooth cloth with the dimensions 50 x 50 cm can be woven with logo/lettering from 120 pieces and is popular as a kitchen towel & promotional gift. It is also available in BIO quality according to GOTS. GOTS, the Global Organic Textile Standard, is the strictest international organic standard for textiles.

June 2021: The MUTMACHER 2021 – Opportunity through Creativity – was awarded to companies by the Lower Austrian Chamber of Commerce that have used creative ideas to combat coronavirus. HERKA was honored in the Trade & Crafts category for the newly developed BIO relax fashion SAROM ®, which is 100% designed, woven, finished & made up in the Waldviertel. SAROM ® fulfills all GOTS and OEKO-TEX criteria.

October 2021: For the project “TEX2MAT – New processes for recycling textile waste of multi-material composition”, HERKA GmbH received the STATE PRIZE 2021 Environmental and Energy Technology in the Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency category from Climate Protection Minister Leonore Gewessler. With the help of the process developed together with TU Vienna, BOKU Vienna, Montanuni Leoben, Salesianer Miettex GmbH, Andritz AG, Starlinger & Co GmbH, Fildan GmbH, Ecoplus NÖ and many more, new towels were produced from used textiles that are comparable to new goods. State prizes are the highest awards of the Republic of Austria. An award can be regarded as the highest seal of quality that the Republic of Austria can bestow.

December 2021: HERKA won the PROMOTIONAL GIFT AWARD 2022 with the WALDVIERTLER HAMAMTUCH, a beach towel made of particularly lightweight, material-saving doubleface fabric. The sustainable towel can be produced from 40 pieces from a pool of more than 40 yarn colors adapted to the customer’s CI. One of the highest b2b prizes was awarded for this communicative product.

“The difficult situation of the pandemic has particularly encouraged our creativity. Processes and communication channels had to be changed due to the COVID situation and it has once again shown the strengths, ideas and skills of our employees. These awards are clearly dedicated to our team,” says HERKA & TVG Managing Director Thomas Pfeiffer.

Despite state-of-the-art energy-efficient technology and optimization measures, we as an energy-intensive company (Frottierweberei HERKA GbmH & Textilveredelung Gmünd TVG GmbH) are facing massive problems! #ESBRENNTDERHUT

OFFENER_BRIEF_EnergiesituationHERKAandTVG

HERKA presents: The ZERO WASTE TOWEL

Leftovers from other productions become stylish towels

Vienna/Kautzen, October 24, 2022: The Waldviertel-based family business Herka is a manufacturer of top-quality terry products – and Herka’s latest product is definitely one of the most sustainable: the ZERO WASTE towel. Leftover yarn from the production process is rewound and rewoven – nothing is thrown away. The zero-waste towel is both an eye-catcher in the kitchen and bathroom and a useful product for people who want to conserve resources in their everyday lives.

“For us, sustainability also means common sense,” says Veronika Pfeiffer-Gössweiner, Head of Marketing at HERKA: “We think about other uses for all the leftovers from production – we have virtually no waste.” The zero-waste towel is a colorful symbol of the sustainability and innovative spirit actively practiced in the company.

The colors of the colorful striped towels vary depending on the production residues – but plain black or dark blue is also possible, in which case the fiber residues are dyed again with organic dyes. And even in this dyeing process, Herka pays attention to the environment: the state-of-the-art dyeing machines save two thirds of the water and chemicals.

The ZERO WASTE TOWEL for €19.90 is not the only Herka product that focuses on conserving resources: “If we have faulty weaves on organic towels, these are sewn into washable make-up remover pads,” says Pfeiffer-Gössweiner.

The zero waste towel and organic make-up remover pads can be purchased separately or as a package at www.herka-frottier.at and are the ideal gift for friends who value a resource-saving lifestyle!

We know jeans from Asia: Produced under poor conditions and with toxic ingredients. But now there is a world first from Austria: a butter-soft denim fabric, woven and made up in the Austrian Waldviertel. Woven from the yarn in the Waldviertel.

Veronika Pfeiffer-Gössweiner, Managing Director of HERKA and co-inventor of the SAROM® fashion line, explains: “I’ve always found denim to be brilliant: It can withstand a lot, is timelessly beautiful and can be combined with many things. But with all the pieces, the image of blue-dyed rivers in India or textile factories in Bangladesh always came to mind. And then I thought to myself: I work in a weaving mill, why don’t we just produce this one ourselves! Inspired by my fashion idol Vivienne Westwood and together with employees, family members and friends, we designed our VIVIENNE fashion line.”

You can find all models & accessories HERE

You can browse through all the new fall/winter products – including bathroom & wellness products – here

Our fashion brand SAROM® and HERKA Frottier as manufacturer are among the 10 finalists for the
Vivienne Audience Award!

Please take part in the voting and vote for us -> https://viviennepreis.at/herka

Vivienne: The price of ecological textiles

The textile industry is the second largest polluter in the world after the oil industry. The problems caused by the fast fashion industry are devastating. But there is another way, as many committed labels and designers in Austria are proving time and again. This is exactly what the non-profit federal foundation COMÚN, in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection, is now bringing to the fore.

Fashion by SAROM ® and ecological textiles from HERKA Frottier

We impress with regionally woven & finished textiles from our zero-waste operation, our (organic) certificates, repair service & exchange market for private customers, the slow fashion SAROM®, production on demand, our renewable raw material (organic) cotton. And with hotel quality and thus maximum longevity.

Award ceremony at the “Consumer Dialogues”

The three nominees who received the most votes in the voting will then be invited to the “Austrian Consumer Dialogues” in Hallein near Salzburg, where they will be presented with their awards at a ceremony on Friday, June 30, 2023 at noon by Federal Minister Leonore Gewessler, actress Liliane Klebow and Foundation Chairwoman Veronika Bohrn Mena.

Please take part in the voting and vote for us

https://viviennepreis.at/herka