Open-source process to transform cotton dyeing in fashion

A detailed manual on how to dye cotton more sustainably and more effectively than ever before using Ecofast Pure Sustainable Textile Treatment has been released by Dow and Ralph Lauren.
With this manual, the 2 companies are open-sourcing this improved dyeing process to encourage adoption in the textile industry and help standardize a more sustainable and efficient cotton dyeing system for positive environmental impact.
The co-developed, step-by-step manual details how to use Ecofast Pure, a cationic cotton treatment developed by Dow Chemical Co., Midland MI/USA, with existing dyeing equipment. Ralph Lauren Corp, New York, NY/USA, the first brand to use Ecofast Pure, partnered with Dow to optimize and implement the technology in its cotton dyeing operations as part of its new Color on Demand platform, a multi-phased system, aimed at providing a scalable zero wastewater cotton dyeing system.
Pre-treating fabric with Ecofast Pure helps significantly reduce the amount of water, chemicals and energy needed to color cotton, by enabling up to 90% less process chemicals, 50% less water, 50% less dyes and 40% less energy without sacrificing color or quality.
Ralph Lauren began integrating Color on Demand into its supply chain earlier in 2021 and first launched product utilizing Ecofast Pure as part of the company’s Team USA collection for the Olympic & Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020. By 2025, the aim is to use the Color on Demand platform to dye more than 80% of its solid cotton products.