In our previous article, we highlighted how lightweighting, monolayer constructions, and mono-component solutions are gaining traction as manufacturers pursue performance with less material use and improved recyclability. Now, we want to address a challenge, and opportunity, which sits at the heart of sustainable manufacturing: energy and resource efficiency.
For nonwoven and textile manufacturers, energy is a critical input that shapes competitiveness, environmental impact, and long-term resilience. The industry remains energy intensive throughout its process chain, from fibre preparation to bonding and finishing. Improving energy efficiency is no longer optional to future-proof operations in a climate-constrained world.
1. Resource Efficiency: More Than Just Cost Cutting
Lightweighting and mono-component materials are not just sustainability buzzwords; they are strategic levers for resource efficiency. By reducing material consumption while maintaining or enhancing performance, manufacturers cut embodied energy upstream and lower the operational energy tied to processing heavier, more complex constructions.
Why it matters:
- Fewer material types mean fewer process steps, fewer energy-intensive bonds, and fewer chemical inputs.
- Lighter materials often require less thermal and mechanical energy to process.
- Mono-component systems simplify recycling and reduce energy costs during end-of-life handling.
2. Low-Energy Production & Bonding Technologies
Manufacturers are increasingly adopting bonding technologies that reduce both energy and water use:
- Thermal bonding with optimised heat profiles and active cooling control.
- Airlaid and hydroentanglement processes that reduce reliance on high-energy drying stages.
These approaches do not just save energy, they reduce water usage and emissions too, driving multi-dimensional efficiency.
3. Water & Dyeing: A Big Piece of the Efficiency Puzzle
Wet processing remains one of the most energy and water-intensive phases of textile production. But strategic interventions can make a big difference:
- Sustainable dyeing techniques such as digital printing and low-impact dyes reduce both water and energy per batch.
- Heat recovery systems reuse energy from process exhaust streams to pre-heat water or air, cutting net energy demand.
- Process automation and real-time monitoring help eliminate over-processing, another unseen drain on resources.
These efficiencies directly reduce operational risk and shrink the environmental footprint of processing.
4. Supply Chain & Process Optimisation: Immediate and Long-Term Gains
Strategic analysis of process capability and manufacturing workflows can identify bottlenecks and energy hotspots. By rethinking layout, sequence, and resource scheduling, companies can significantly reduce peak loads and wasteful energy spikes.
Examples include:
- Energy audits to benchmark performance and pinpoint opportunities.
- Smart controls and sensors to shut down idle equipment and optimise heating/cooling cycles.
- Data-driven manufacturing optimisation using emerging AI tools to balance efficiency and output.
This is where the dual benefits of immediate savings and long-term resilience converge, smarter processes make operations leaner and more adaptive.
5. Renewables, Low-Carbon Energy Integration & Science-Based Targets – Why 2026 is a Pivotal Year for Action
Energy efficiency improvements inside the factory are critical but they are only part of the decarbonisation equation. Increasingly, manufacturers are aligning operational strategy with structured frameworks such as the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
SBTi provides companies with a clear methodology to set greenhouse gas reduction targets aligned with climate science and the goals of the Paris Agreement. For textile and nonwoven manufacturers, this typically means:
- Reducing Scope 1 emissions (direct emissions from owned or controlled sources)
- Cutting Scope 2 emissions (indirect emissions from purchased electricity, heating, cooling)
- Addressing Scope 3 emissions (all other indirect emissions across the value chain), which is often the largest proportion of emissions, including raw materials, logistics, and end-of-life impacts
While more than 11,000 companies and financial institutions have already set science-based targets or committed to doing so, SBTi is currently developing an updated Corporate Net Zero Standard, V2. Incorporating new technical standards, this will include incentivisation for companies taking early, voluntary action to remove emissions. From 1st January 2028, all companies will need to use this new Net Zero Standard – those that act now will gain competitive advantage.
ISO: The International Organisation for Standardisation is currently reviewing the first internationally recognised Net Zero Standard, ISO 14060. This will set out the requirements for how organisations can demonstrate targets and delivery on these, showing credible and verifiable progress, aligned with the Paris Agreement, and guarding against greenwashing. It will ensure a consistent, internationally agreed approach to carbon accounting. It is anticipated that this Standard will be published mid to late 2026. Companies acting now to align with ISO 14060 will be better prepared to meet disclosure requirements, particularly when working across multiple territories and jurisdictions.
The implications are significant. Energy strategy is no longer about efficiency, it becomes part of a company’s formal decarbonisation roadmap which is increasingly scrutinised by customers, investors, and regulators.
Practical steps include:
- Transitioning to renewable electricity through on-site solar, wind, or power purchase agreements (PPAs)
- Electrifying thermal processes where feasible, supported by industrial heat pumps and electric boilers
- Implementing heat recovery and energy cascading across production stages
- Collaborating with suppliers to reduce embodied carbon in raw materials
For many organisations, Scope 3 reduction, particularly in polymer and fibre sourcing, is now the defining challenge. This is where material optimisation, lightweighting, and mono-component design become powerful levers, reducing both raw material intensity and upstream emissions.
Conclusion: Efficiency as a Competitive Advantage
Nonwoven and textile manufacturing operate in a global environment of rising energy prices, tightening climate regulation, and increasingly conscious customers. With material optimisation, low-energy technologies, water reduction, and supply chain optimisation, manufacturers can turn energy challenges into strategic advantage.
Meeting sustainability goals doesn’t mean accepting lower performance or higher costs. Rather, it means re-thinking how we use energy and materials and in doing so, unlocking value across the entire value chain.
At NIRI, we see these challenges every day across nonwovens and technical textiles. Energy efficiency, material optimisation, and supply chain resilience are rarely solved by a single intervention, they sit at the intersection of product design, process capability, and manufacturing reality.
Our work supports manufacturers across:
- Product development, including lightweighting strategies, mono-component and monolayer constructions, and performance-led material selection
- Manufacturing and process optimisation, helping identify energy hotspots, reduce waste, and improve process capability
- Supply chain and sourcing support, ensuring materials and processes are not only technically sound, but scalable, resilient, and commercially viable
By taking a holistic view from concept through to industrialisation we help clients reduce energy and resource intensity while protecting performance, margins, and long-term competitiveness.
Let’s Continue the Conversation
If you’re exploring ways to reduce energy use, improve resource efficiency, or build long-term manufacturing resilience, we’d be happy to talk.
Contact us to discuss how NIRI can support your product development, manufacturing optimisation, or supply chain strategy. Efficiency isn’t just about doing less – it’s about doing things better.
Contact NIRI via email or phone +44 (0)113 350 3829.
