A new supply chain platform has launched to drive sustainability, transparency and profitability in UK fashion and textiles. 

The UK Fashion & Textile Association is working with IBM, Tech Data, and the Future Fashion Factory to design, prototype and pilot a new technology platform to help the UK fashion and textile industry drive sustainability and profitability through increased transparency within the supply chain. 

Retailers Next, H&M, N Brown, New Look and yarn manufacturer Laxtons will be part of the initial pilot.

The Sustainable Supply Chain Optimisation project has been awarded £1.4 million in funding by Innovate UK, on behalf of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund Manufacturing Made Smarter Challenge.

The new technology platform will combine a number of emerging technologies like blockchain, AI and sensors to digitise key processes in the supply-chain, creating a shared system of data.

The platform will be designed to help make a complex and disjointed global supply chain more sustainable, resilient and able to cope with unforeseen disruptions.