HKRITA, Jeanologia and Looptworks Join Forces to Scale Green Machine Textile Recycling Technology
A new international partnership is set to accelerate the commercialization of one of the textile industry’s most promising recycling technologies for blended materials.
The Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel (HKRITA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Spanish textile technology company Jeanologia and U.S.-based textile-to-textile recycling specialist Looptworks to establish the Green Machine Circular Textile Ecosystem. The collaboration marks a significant step toward scaling circular textile recycling through an integrated ecosystem that bridges innovation, industrial engineering and commercial deployment.
At the heart of the initiative is Green Machine 4.0, HKRITA’s latest hydrothermal recycling technology developed in collaboration with the H&M Foundation. The process enables the recovery of polyester from cotton-polyester blended textiles at 98% or higher purity, using only heat, water and a small amount of environmentally friendly chemicals. By overcoming one of the industry’s most persistent recycling challenges, the technology offers a viable pathway for closing the loop on blended textile waste.
Green Machine has already demonstrated commercial potential through applications in products for H&M Group’s Monki brand and Turkish denim manufacturer Isko. The new partnership seeks to expand this success by enabling broader industrial adoption.
Under the agreement, Jeanologia becomes the first official machinery partner, providing industry-ready equipment engineered to European standards and compliant with CE high-pressure requirements to facilitate scalable deployment. Looptworks, a certified B Corporation and long-time collaborator of HKRITA, will convert pre- and post-consumer textile waste into high-quality Global Recycled Standard (GRS)-certified recycled fibers for reintegration into the supply chain.
The partners describe the collaboration as a transition from research-led innovation to market-ready implementation, demonstrating how cross-sector partnerships can accelerate circular transformation across the textile value chain.
Scott Hamlin, Founder and CEO of Looptworks, noted that blended textiles have long represented one of the biggest barriers to circularity. The Green Machine, he said, enables these materials to be recycled at scale while proving that circular business models can be both environmentally and economically viable.
HKRITA CEO Jake Koh emphasized that the circular economy has moved beyond aspiration to practical implementation, highlighting the importance of technologies capable of delivering measurable industry impact.
For Jeanologia, the partnership also represents an expansion into textile-to-textile recycling after more than two decades of advancing sustainable denim production through laser, ozone and other low-impact finishing technologies. CEO and Founder Enrique Silla stressed that textile recycling must become part of the industry’s pre-competitive space, where collaboration—not competition—drives systemic solutions.
By combining HKRITA’s recycling innovation, Jeanologia’s industrial engineering expertise and Looptworks’ operational capabilities, the Green Machine Circular Textile Ecosystem aims to establish a scalable model for textile-to-textile recycling, supporting the industry’s transition toward a more circular and resource-efficient future.
