Trimco Group launches traceability platform Product DNA®
What if every fashion brand could measure their global production sustainability performance within social and environmental efforts at any moment with the click of a button? Could that enable the apparel industries to be accountable to consumers and regulators? To help brands support their environmental and social credentials, Trimco Group releases transparency and traceability platform – Product DNA®*.
22nd of March 2022: Reducing the environmental impact of garment manufacturing and increasing its circularity is the big challenge of international brands. Working with conscious and alternative materials is vital for every fashion brand to ensure a greener future. Making sure that materials are ethically sourced, both socially and environmentally, is also part of the responsibility.
The fashion industry is facing a series of social and environmental regulations across the globe where brands are required to take action. Several countries have already implemented regulations that ask for due diligence along the supply chain, such as the German Supply Chain Act “Lieferkettengesetz”, the UK Modern Slavery Act, the Norwegian Transparency Act “Åpenhetsloven”, the New York Fashion Act and the upcoming EU Green Deal. All of them demand transparency and traceability here and now.
Traceability is crucial for answering consumers’ demand for more transparency about how and where their products are made. Complying with different social and environmental regulations is a long-term commitment rather than a quick fix. Trims and packaging solutions expert Trimco Group aims to provide brands with an effective solution to monitor and achieve their sustainable goals by launching Product DNA® – a supply chain traceability and transparency toolbox for garment, footwear and home textile industries.
Trimco’s Product DNA® is a multifold platform that includes different solutions, from supply chain ESG certification management to on-product communication options using QR codes, depending on the brand’s setup and strategy, bridging the physical and digital worlds. Trimco’s Product DNA® can save brands major expenses in software development and workload in the onboarding process. As a trim supplier itself, Trimco leverages its global presence by onboarding garment factories to Product DNA® with their extensive local support organisation.
Product DNA® can be customised to every company’s ESG goals. As part of the solution, brands can measure the use of different sustainable materials in their collections by weight or by piece. Product DNA® allows brands to monitor their ESG performance by comparing year on year progress or against their ESG target. The platform also links the usage with the garment factories’ scope and transaction certificates to substantiate the Brand’s ESG claims.
The tracing technology enables brands to measure the amount of sustainable fibres and materials they put into the market. The tracking technology allows for easy management of garment factory ESG certificates. Depending on the brand’s strategy, ESG compliance transparency can go from Tier 1, garment factories, all the way to Tier 4, the raw material suppliers. For brands looking to dive into more detailed analysis, reporting on greenhouse gas emissions and other specific environmental measurements is also possible.
A customisable dashboard will enable the brand to monitor sustainable and ESG efforts with a few easy clicks. Comparison reports by material, season, collection, product category, regions, etc., are available in real time with drill-down capability for in-depth analysis. Additionally, the brand’s internal stakeholders such as buyers, sourcing or compliance and sustainability teams, would also benefit from the platform. Product DNA® could also provide the information required for external parties such as auditors, shareholders, public authorities and the general public.
Amy Wan, Group CEO, mentions, “Since the beginning, Trimco’s mission has been to offer brands the best solutions within trims, variable data, packaging and store deco, always staying ahead of the market and up-to-date with the latest changes. Trimco Group believes that reliable traceability across the supply chain is crucial in building more sustainable and socially-responsible garment and footwear industries. As trusted partners for so many brands in the fashion industry, we advocate the increasing importance of traceability and transparency across the supply chain. Product DNA® was born from our wish to track and trace our compliance and sustainability amongst suppliers at social and environmental levels. A customer support team is assigned to train and answer any questions from the brands and their suppliers, making the onboarding and use of the platform speedy and hassle-free.”
Several brands have already taken the first step in running trials on the platform. Amongst others, ASICS and DK Company have now chosen and rely on Trimco’s Product DNA® platform to monitor their supply chain social and environmental compliance.
Laurens Norde, Senior Materials Production Specialist at ASICS EMEA, says, “Being able to improve our sustainability performance and supply chain traceability became much easier with the solution provided by our trusted partners at Trimco Group. Dealing with several factories globally and actively focusing on sustainability surfaced the need for more transparency across our supply chain. So far, we are very pleased with the tool, and we were just as pleased to hear that Product DNA® was just as flexible as the rest of their solutions.”
“Product DNA® is growing into one of our core solutions, always developing and adapting to the needs of our brands and the market’s change signs. We’ve received great feedback from our current brands using the tool, and we look forward to seeing the platform grow even further with more brands stepping up and taking control over their supply chain.” Camilla Mjelde, Care and Content Compliance and Sustainability Director at Trimco Group, adds.
Trimco Group’s focus and support within social and environmental compliance drive the company across its services, providing brands with alternative or consciously-sourced options for all their trims, RFID and variable data solutions, as well as packaging and store deco. The in-house team of experts at Trimco continuously updates and advises on different regulations and compliance requirements globally, as an additional service to their care and attention for social and environmental responsibility.
