Mönchengladbach does not give up – once a location of C&AS frequently acclaimed jeans factory fit (“Factory for innovation in textiles”), which was considered a blueprint for the future of production in the heart of Europe. In February, the clothing dealer then announced that he would have to close the factory because it did not meet expectations.
So far, so bad, since C&A had already invested almost almost five million euros in the work at the time and had fueled the hopes of the industry and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.
Textile factory 7.0
Now there is a new initiative: the joint future project “Textilfabrik 7.0” from the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences (HSNR) and other industry player: inside that started a week ago. The demands are high: the production and business processes should become digital, the robotics should also find their way into and become circular. Likewise, supply chains are to be mastered and the shortage of skilled workers and an appropriate energy supply.
“In the Textilfabrik 7.0, leading actors have merged from research, economy and municipalities in order to first build up a technology center in which these challenges for and together with the companies are processed and hopefully brought closer to the solution,” explains project manager Maike Rabe, professor of textile finishing and ecology, head of the research institute Textile and clothing at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences.
Already on October 1st, the establishment of the technology center in the Monforms Quartier in Mönchengladbach should start, because machines and systems for the development of on-demand production, microfactories, smart textiles and biological and textile-technical laboratories are already available for the extraction of sustainable raw materials.
Zero-emission park should follow
The future will keep an eye on it, because the Textilfabrik 7.0 should not only be a technology center-“Application-oriented research and development should encourage the transformation process of the textile industry in such a way that industrial production in the Rhenish area settles in a zero-emission park (T7 Park),” said a message. In addition, established companies are to be strengthened.
The HSNR receives a total of 25 million euros in funding from the Ministry of Economics, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine -Westphalia and the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy. In addition, she does not have to get the major project on its legs: the Institute for Textile Technology (ITA) of the RWTH Aachen, the Textilakademie NRW, the Association of the Rhenish Textile and Clothing Industry, the Association of the Northwest German Textile and Clothing Industry and the Mönchengladbach GmbH business development.
“In this way, as a university, we will make a central contribution to structural change in the region so that the textile industry will continue to be a significant location factor and magnet of international importance in the future,” emphasize University President Thomas Grünwald and Vice President of Research and Innovation Kathleen Diener.
There is also a plan for the period after the ten years of state funding: The project partners: Inside, a common society, the “T7 Management GmbH”, has already founded to take over the project structures and content according to the funding period.
Students can definitely be happy, because for the Textilfabrik 7.0, the Textile and Clothing Technology Department works with other specialist areas to use their expertise, for example in the field of energy management, mechanical engineering, robotics or biotechnology. “Our students will also benefit from exciting research projects and maker spaces in which they can implement their own ideas,” promises Rabe.