Representatives of FITI and KISCO, including Mr Kim Young-chan, Director of FITI Testing and Research Institute (5th from the left) and Mr Cho Sung-yong, CEO KISCO (6th from the left) after signing the business agreement. © TIN 뉴스

Source: http://www.tinnews.co.kr/sub_read.html?uid=13053&section=sc32&section2=염료

Kyung-In Synthetic Corporation (KISCO, CEO Kim Heung-jun and Cho Sung-yong), a domestic manufacturer of dyes and the FITI Testing and Research Institute (Chief Director Kim Young-chan) are working together on global environmental regulations.

On February 14, the two companies concluded a business agreement for joint environmental and chemical regulatory programs for sustainability at the FITI Testing and Research Institute. The agreement focuses on the Higg Index response, the development of a chemical substance management program and the establishment of an organization to respond to preemptive measures for overseas regulatory programs.

The two organizations plan to cooperate and develop in various fields such as global environmental and chemical substance control programs. They will form a joint committee for companies that do not have the capacity for regulatory responses and provide information and customized support measures for domestic and foreign regulations that are difficult for individual companies to respond to.

ZDHC’s Manufacturing Restricted Substance List (MRSL) and the Higg Index are representative environmental regulations for textile and apparel products. The Higg Index, created by the SAC (Sustainable Apparel Coalition), is a self-evaluation program for suppliers of green materials that monitors processes, production, social responsibility and sustainable products. Currently, there are 150 brands and companies participating which represents 40% of the global fashion apparel market.

In July 2014, the FITI Testing and Research Institute became the first Korean member of the SAC and since then has been actively convening seminars and supporting the domestic textile industry. In December 2016, SAC-HIGG INDEX was designated as an accredited educational program.

KISCO also joined the SAC in 2016 becoming the first domestic chemical company to do so. KISCO already operates the Chemical Test and Analysis Center to support ZDHC, a chemical development, testing and management system. The Chemical Testing and Analysis Center is an ISO / IEC 17025 internationally recognized testing laboratory approved by KOLAS in 2014. KISCO is certified under the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and was the first bluesign system partner in Korea, evidence of the company’s strong commitment to environmentally-friendly production process and quality control.

KISCO CEO Cho Sung-yong, representative director of the company, said, “There are a lot of things that companies need to solve in a situation where new environmentally harmful substances are increasing. In this respect, we have the opportunity to work with FITI researchers. ”

Mr. Kim Young-chan, Director of the FITI Testing and Research Institute, said, “We will do our utmost to secure the competitiveness of domestic companies by forming practical cooperation through the formation of a joint consultation body and active technological exchange”.