RediRobots receives Country Road grant to help drive sustainability in fashion

This article was originally published on Canberra.edu.au.

Partnering with the University and Textile Recyclers Australia, RediRobots Director Dr David Hinwood is working to address the environmental nightmare caused by over 200,000 tonnes of clothing ending up Australian landfill every year (source: Seamless).

 

“Much of the clothing that is now just discarded could easily be recycled – but the labour-intensive sorting process for discarded clothes is a major barrier,” Dr Hinwood said.

 

“Clothing must be sorted by colour, type and material. And hygiene is another major factor that must be taken into account when it comes to manual sorting.”

 

His answer? Simplifying and automating the sorting process via an advanced, dual-armed robotic system. This innovative system was developed as part of his PhD research at the University’s Faculty of Science and Technology, where Dr Hinwood is also a sessional academic.

 

The robotic system will be deployed at Textile Recyclers Australia premises for testing, proving its mettle in an existing recycling facility.

Read the full article at Canberra.edu.au.