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#Research & Development

TCLF: Resilient value chains in times of crises

The textiles, clothing, leather and footwear (TCLF) industry was at the centre of the webinar “Resilient value chains in times of crises”, which took place on 28 April 2026. Global supply chains continue to face increasing pressure, raw material dependencies are growing and economic uncertainties are affecting the entire sector.

Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen University contributed to the implementation of the webinar together with strong European partners. The event addressed current developments within the European textiles ecosystem and demonstrated how companies along the value chain can strengthen their resilience and position themselves for the future.

Together with the partners DG GROW and EISMEA of the European Commission as well as EY, current challenges, strategic approaches and concrete best practice examples from industry were presented. Contributions from the fields of technical textiles, clothing, leather and footwear provided practical insights into innovative solution approaches within the European textiles ecosystem.

Speakers included Dirk Vantyghem (EURATEX), Mario Jorge Machado (Adalberto Textile Solutions), Andreia Barbosa (Humana People to People), Giacomo Zorzi (UNIC – Concerie Italiane) and Gilles Trouveroy from the South East Asia IP SME Helpdesk.

Following the presentations, participants had the opportunity to ask questions to the speakers and exchange views on current challenges within the sector. Open questions from the Q&A sessions will continue to be addressed within the relevant workspaces of the EU Textiles Ecosystem Platform.

Melina Sachtleben Dahmann, Head of Multifilament Technologies at ITA, moderated the webinar. Through this involvement, ITA actively contributed to European networking activities and to shaping key future topics within the textile industry.

ITA would like to thank all participating partners and contributors for the dedicated collaboration and the joint advancement of a resilient and sustainable textile ecosystem in Europe.



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