The Re-generation Project:
Closing the Loop on a major retailer's supply

The Re-Generation project simultaneously generates lower costs for commodities, higher quality, and verifiably sustainable products by providing a highly efficient “closed loop” method of re-generating supply chain waste into retail and “goods not for re-sale” (GNFR) .

I. BASIC PREMISE:

Zero waste is one of the key foundational pillars of any sustainability initiative.  For most retailers (and some brands) approximately 12% of the total waste generated by the company comes from operations, while the remaining 88% represents the waste from supply chains generating products for retail floors and/or for GNFR.

This 88% represents a significant opportunity to generate high volumes of raw materials, with a predictable surety of supply, which can then be re-generated into a variety of products aligned with the corporate sustainability initiatives at very attractive margins.

II. THE MODEL:

Sustain provides the project management and supply chain expertise to create a “closed loop” method of accelerating the capture and “re-generation” of qualifying supply chain waste into retail and GNFR  products.

In order to accomplish this goal Sustain’s team works internally with management, merchandising and sourcing/production teams as well as externally in the client’s supply chain within specific product categories and key suppliers. Note: Time spent interacting with client personnel is held to a minimum so as to maximize return, without duplicating efforts.

Benefit to Client:This approach is a simple “pays for itself” method for assessing, score carding and capturing qualified supply chain waste, linking it with a global network of re-generation facilities capable of processing it into high demand products of equal or higher value, at lower costs.

Benefits to Sustain: In exchange for providing project management and metrics for transparently evaluating verifying environmental, social, and financial performance, Sustain is remunerated with a fractional percent of each transaction’s raw material value and/or re-generated product value. This percentage is then be embedded as part of the product cost and evaluated as part of the financial metrics process. (This transaction typically occurs between Sustain and its aligned Re-Generator partners.)

III. DESCRIPTION OF THE RE-GENERATION PROCESS:

There are three key players in the “ecology” of this closed loop system:

• Raw material entity (Source of waste in clients supply chain)
• Re-Generation Entity (Processing facility that re-captures value from the waste stream)
• Uptake Entity (Client or a key supplier/ factory)

 Step #1:  When appropriate, Sustain signs an agreement with the client that provides exclusive access to supply chain waste within a specified product sector supply chain.  Sustain then works internally with management to prioritize the “low hanging fruit” product categories for a Re-Gen Project.

Step #2: Sustain works with merchandising and/or sourcing/production departments to understand important characteristics of the targeted product categories such as key supply chain partners, product volumes, and sourcing relationships.

Step #3: In partnership with both the client and a closely aligned regenerator selected for the project, Sustain utilizes proprietary “total metrics” along with physical samples to complete an assessment of the sources, quantities, qualities, costs and locations of specific targeted waste materials, and of the re-generated final product, in order to determine the feasibility of tapping into specific waste streams for regeneration and uptake into high value products within the client’s supply chain.

Note: Sustain’s “Total Metrics” utilize a holistic screening process, measuring not only the project’s “environmental and social impacts”, but also its “financial properties” such as material and processing costs, quality, transportation and the feasibility of retail or GNFR products.

These metrics insure the alignment of each project with:

• Client’s financial and sustainability goals.
• Carbon, waster use, and chemical input reduction goals.
• Lower material costs.

Step #5: The transaction is thoroughly reviewed by Sustain and client’s management/principal project leader and “green lighted” if total metrics criteria for success are met.

Step #6: Relationships between the regenerator and the supply chain manufacturing facilities are established and the waste collection process for regeneration commences in concert with trial “proof of concept” production of uptake products. 

IV. DESCRIPTION OF TEXTILE RE-GENERATION PROJECTS
It is typical for Sustain to engage in “pilots” with our clients in order to “Beta test” the process and relationships an example of which follows:.

PILOT: Re-Generation of Organic or Conventional cutting waste into yarn for home or apparel products.

Summary: Cutting floor waste experienced in typical apparel facilities can range as high as 18% of production. This material is almost always “down cycled” for little or no financial return.

Strategic advantage: When re-captured and re-generated, this yarn can be spun at a cost lower than the original “field grown” yarn thus reducing the over all cost of this strategic commodity. (As well as reducing the embedded carbon of petroleum based fertilizers, pesticides, farming fuels and transport associated with virgin fiber.)

Feasibility: Sustain will conduct initial total metrics assessments on specific apparel programs and link these to our consortium of re-generation facilities that have substantial production capacity. An integral part of this assessment process is identifying: A) One or more “uptake” programs within the client’s supply chain (this “360 degree” strategy is preferred), or B) An “uptake” entity not associated with the client, but which also satisfies the total metrics analysis (this “180 degree strategy is a less preferred, but a viable option).