Xefco strikes deal with Indonesia’s Shinta Woo Sung to advance sustainable textile manufacturing

Sydney-headquartered sustainable manufacturing technology startup Xefco has struck a major deal with Indonesian footwear textile group Shinta Woo Sung (SWS) to deliver the first commercial application of its ground-breaking Ausora textile production system.

Xefco says the landmark deal, which will see SWS commission a purpose-built facility in Vietnam, signals a major step forward in eliminating water use in textile processing.

The Ausora system is a plasma-based, waterless dyeing and finishing technology that Xefco says not only tackles the one of the biggest sources of industrial water pollution globally but also the largest contributor to the textile industry’s carbon footprint.

While the company’s Xreflex radiant barrier technology is already used by global fashion heavyweights such as Zara and The North Face to insulate clothing more efficiently, the Ausora technology is forecast to deliver an even bigger impact on sustainability for the fashion industry’s supply chain.

“Having the opportunity to collaborate and partner with a global leader in footwear fabrics to bring plasma-based, waterless dyeing and finishing to the market is a giant step forward in sustainable environmental stewardship,” says Timothy J. Skedzuhn, the global commercial director of Xefco.

SWS plans to use the new Vietnam facility and the Xefco technology to supply textiles for the global footwear and apparel industries.

“SWS is proud to partner with Xefco to bring this critical emerging technology into our operations,” says Simon Choi, managing director of SWS.

“We are commissioning a purpose-built facility adjacent to the footwear hub in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to implement Xefco’s Ausora dyeing system.

“As a global leader in footwear textiles, SWS continually invests in next-generation technologies that advance both performance and sustainability.

“The integration of Ausora reflects our commitment to responsible innovation, and our pursuit of a 100 per cent renewably powered dyeing and finishing process that sets new standards for the industry.”

Using a proprietary plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition process, the waterless Ausora system eliminates wastewater discharge, cuts chemical use by 97 per cent, lowers energy consumption by 90 per cent and reduces greenhouse-gas emissions by 94 per cent.

Xefco says these benefits are achieved while delivering deep colour penetration and high-performance finishes such as water repellency, anti-odour and moisture wicking.

“The existing water-intensive processes used to put colour and functional finishes on fabrics have the biggest environmental footprint in the textiles supply chain,” says Tom Hussey, CEO and co-founder of Xefco.

“Our Ausora systems integrate seamlessly into existing manufacturing supply chains, enabling a high-performance, waterless process that can eliminate millions of tonnes of chemical waste and CO2 emissions, redefining what sustainable production looks like at scale.”

Xefco developed the technology in partnership with researchers at Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials. While its headquarters is in Sydney the company is co-located at the ManuFutures innovation hub at the university’s Waurn Ponds campus in Geelong.

Xefco raised $10.5 million last year, in a round that was supported by Main Sequence, to drive its path to commercialising the patented Ausora technology.

Co-founded in 2018 by Hussey and Brian Conolly, Xefco has spent the past seven years advancing innovative textile solutions for the industry with the company’s technology also backed by Breakthrough Victoria, Virescent Ventures, Investible and Voyagers Climate-Tech Fund.