Member Article

PTC and Higg collaborate to deliver ‘sustainable fashion’ boost to the retail sector

Some of the world’s largest retail brands have been handed a major boost in their pursuit for ‘greener’ fashion with news of an exciting new collaboration between Farnborough-based PTC® and Higg.

PTC’s retail customers can now leverage the Higg sustainability insights platform alongside its widely used FlexPLM® product lifecycle management solution, giving them the opportunity to measure and track value chain sustainability in greater detail than ever before.

This industry-first integration will give sourcing managers the information they need to select the most environmentally friendly suppliers for manufacturing. It will also enable product designers and developers to better understand the environmental impact of the materials they choose to incorporate into their products.

“Today’s brands and retailers are doubling down when it comes to understanding and reducing the impact of their products and supply chain on the environment,” said Bill Brewster, SVP & General Manager of PTC’s Retail Business Unit.

“Consumers now want greater transparency, which means brands and retailers need a credible and standardised way to measure social and environmental sustainability during product development, using trusted data.”

He continued: “We’re absolutely thrilled to announce that we’re integrating with Higg and providing our world-class customer base with the information they need to measure and report on their sustainability practices.

“We are delighted to work with PTC to facilitate the integration between FlexPLM and Higg,” commented Josh Henretig, Higg Vice President of Global Partnerships.

“Thanks to this integration, brands, retailers, and manufacturers can use our solutions and data to inform their individual sustainability strategies. We are committed to scaling tools and services that help companies address climate change globally and, by working with PTC, we can make Higg tools available to more companies committed to improving social and environmental impacts.”

Higg is the exclusive licensee of the Higg Index, which was developed collaboratively over the last decade by a coalition of brands, retailers, manufacturers, and other footwear, apparel, and textile industry stakeholders through the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC).

It enables accurate scoring and comparing of a company or product’s overall sustainability impact, across metrics such as greenhouse gas emissions, waste, water usage, and working conditions.

Jeremey Lardeau, SAC Vice President of Higg Index, concluded: “With many SAC members using PTC’s FlexPLM solution to manage their Product Lifecycle Management processes, this new collaboration enables users to access rich environmental data across materials, products, and manufacturing facilities to help users make sustainability a core focus of their design and product development process.”

For further information, please visit www.ptc.com or www.higg.com.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Russ Cockburn .