World Water Day and the effects of digitization

World Water Day is celebrated every May 22 to emphasize the importance of taking care of the so-called “liquid gold,” on whose lives every single species on Earth depends. It is in fact so important that Clean Water and Sanitation is the 6th of 17 global goals the UN has set for sustainable development toward 2030. Clean Water and Sanitation aims to ensure that everyone has access to water and sanitation, and that it is managed sustainably. Dwindling water resources is a problem affecting all continents. More than 40% of the global population are affected by water scarcity, and global warming is expected to worsen these conditions.

Urgent action is needed to address the problem of water scarcity, largely a result of poor resource management and unnecessary waste. The importance of learning about, protecting, and sustainably managing groundwater is paramount in our mission to survive climate change and meet the basic needs of growing populations.

At Jet Sport we want to be part of the movement toward a more ethical and environmentally friendly approach to fashion. We believe most companies can improve their manufacturing processes, which make use of very large amounts of water. As for ourselves, we use many areas of the manufacturing process to reduce waste and do likewise concerning pollution. During the dying process, we utilize water-conserving machinery and technologies that supply us with improved washing efficiency, shorter washing times, and reduced use of chemicals and energy. This drives our desire to not only save on water but to simultaneously reduce water pollution.

It's broadly recognized that access to potable water requires investment in infrastructure and sanitary facilities, and that water-related ecosystems like forests and rivers are protected and restored. International cooperation can have a substantial effect, not just between countries and governments but between companies, too. Today, conventional prints comprise 19 of 20 printed fabric meters in the world, with digital prints comprising the 20th. This constitutes a not insignificant problem for the environment as conventional prints consume up to three times as much water per fabric meter as do digital prints, six times as much ink, and more than double the amount of electricity.

Companies in the textile printing industry uniting in a push toward greater utilization of digital printing has the potential to bring about significant use reduction of water, ink, and energy. They cannot, of course, decide for themselves what and how to print, but have only to follow the needs and wants of their customers. They can, however, continually promote and recommend digital printing to customers; an approach which has an almost unavoidable effect.

We are undoubtedly moving in the right direction. Many observers opine that the last years’ significant increase in digital printing’s market share has been well aided by relevant companies’ willingness to embrace digital printing and recommend it to customers. Such an approach creates a symbiosis and a dynamic effect between the two business spheres in which environmentally conscious customers influence recalcitrant companies and environmentally conscious companies influence recalcitrant or uninformed customers. At Jet Sport, the combination of own ambitions and continuous customers wants has enabled us to digitize 20% of our production, a digitization ratio four times that of the industry average.