ABSTRACT
Textile-based wearable technology is a complex hybrid product, as electronics and sensors are often seamlessly integrated within fibres, yarns, fabrics and garments, and therefore difficult to identify and recover at end-of-life. As this segment is predicted to grow significantly over the next five to ten years, the industry needs to embed circular design strategies into the manufacture of wearable technology in order to provide responsible end-of-life solutions.
By collaborating across disciplines and combining emerging materials and technologies from the textiles and electronics industries with developments from the medical field, stakeholders could accelerate innovation to produce commercial devices fit for the Circular Economy.
