Jaguar Land Rover will use old fishing nets in future auto cabins
MANILA: The floor mat and cabin trims of future Jaguar and Land Rover units will basically be using waste or, more appropriately, plastic waste recycled into Econyl fiber by circular economy company Aquafil.
This plastic waste comes from industrial manufacturing, fabric offcuts from clothing makers, fishing nets from the farming industry, and those abandoned in the ocean — known as "ghost nets."
While these materials may be considered trash by many, Jaguar Land Rover aims to make them part of its luxurious interior in line with its sustainable and responsible sourcing of materials under the Jaguar Land Rover’s Destination Zero mission.
Econyl is regenerated nylon that’s already been used by high-end fashion, sportswear and luxury watch brands to create handbags, backpacks, swimwear and watch straps.
The nylon waste is reclaimed by Aquafil from all over the world and is then analyzed, treated and is prepared to be fed into a chemical plant, where the nylon waste is broken into its original raw material using a chemical treatment process, known as depolymerization. The raw nylon material is then turned into the yarn, known as Econyl.
This yarn can then be used to manufacture floor mats for future Jaguar and Land Rover models with the goal of using more environmentally conscious and sustainable materials while still providing customers with a premium and hardwearing product.
In a single year, Aquafil recycles as much as 40,000 tons of waste and in the process reduces the global warming impact of nylon by 90% compared with the material produced from oil. For every 10,000 tons of Econyl raw material produced, 70,000 barrels of crude oil are saved and 65,100 tons of carbon emissions equivalent are avoided.
Aside from Econyl or regenerated nylon, other by-products such as non-nylon, metallic materials or copper sulphate which is used for preventing seagrass growing on fishing nets, are removed and sent to alternative industries for recycling.
“Our designers and engineers are committed to developing the next generation of sustainable materials that we'll feature on future Jaguar and Land Rover models. We place a great deal of focus on the creation of new sustainable materials, using the latest, most innovative techniques and textiles. Minimizing waste, reusing materials and reducing carbon emissions sits at the heart of our Destination Zero mission. This pioneering materials research is one of the key ways we’ll achieve this and is an integral part of our design offering to our customers,” said Jaguar Land Rover Senior Engineer of Interior Systems Adrian Iles.
Currently, Land Rover offers a premium Eucalyptus textile interior on Range Rover Evoque while models like the Evoque, Range Rover and Jaguar’s all-electric I-PACE benefit from optional Kvadrat – a high-quality material that combines durable wool with a suede cloth made from 53 recycled plastic bottles per vehicle.
Photos from Jaguar Land Rover
Also read: Jaguar, Land Rover unveil five-year, zero-interest ownership plan
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