Carmen Silla: All our innovations are designed to eliminate water and chemical use

As sustainability and efficiency reshape the global textile and denim finishing landscape, Jeanologia stands at the forefront of this transformation. With over three decades of innovation, the company has revolutionised garment finishing through eco-efficient technologies — from laser and ozone to e-flow — driving the industry toward a cleaner, digital, and circular future. Carmen Silla, Marketing & Communications Director, Jeanologia, in conversation with Divya Shetty, shares insights on how the textile industry has evolved over the years and how the company is leveraging these emerging trends.

Could you give us an overview of Jeanologia and its core areas of expertise in textile innovation?

Jeanologia was founded 30 years ago in Spain with a clear mission: to transform the textile industry by making it more sustainable, efficient, and responsible. Since then, we have led a profound transformation, helping designers, brands, and manufacturers move from traditional, polluting, and unsafe methods to cleaner, smarter, efficient and more transparent production models.

Through our Mission Zero initiative, we aim to completely dehydrate, detoxify, and decarbonise garment finishing, creating fashion with minimal quantity of water, zero discharge, and zero waste. With disruptive technologies such as Laser, G2 Ozone, eFlow, H2Zero, and Colorbox, today over 40% of the world’s denim is made using our solutions, positioning Jeanologia as a global leader in sustainable innovation.

How do you see the evolution of eco-efficient technologies shaping the future of denim and apparel finishing?

The future of denim lies at the intersection of digitalisation, automation, and sustainability. Eco-efficient technologies are transforming the way we make fashion, making processes smarter, more traceable, and more responsible.

At Jeanologia, this evolution takes shape through our Laundry 5.Zero model, which integrates our core technologies to eliminate harmful processes and reduce water, energy, and chemical consumption by up to 85 per cent, while achieving full circularity and zero waste.

Digitalisation connects design and production, allowing real-time control and data-driven decisions that improve quality and efficiency. Automation ensures consistency and safer working environments, while sustainability and creativity define the new paradigm of fashion, proving that technology and responsibility can coexist to create better products for both people and the planet.

With the industry moving toward smart manufacturing, how is Jeanologia integrating digital solutions and automation to enhance process efficiency and traceability in textile finishing?

Through our Digital Product Development (DPD) approach, we connect every stage from design to production in a continuous digital workflow. Tools like eDesigner link designers, developers, and brands with suppliers, digitalising collections and standardising laser and washing processes to explore ideas quickly, precisely, and creatively.

By creating digital twins, we reproduce virtual garments that exactly match the final product. This accelerates decision-making, improves communication between teams, and reduces physical samples by up to 80 per cent, saving time, resources, and costs. It also enhances creativity, offering greater design possibilities and direct connectivity with production.

At the same time, our EIM (Environmental Impact Measurement) platform quantifies the environmental footprint of each garment and process, from water and energy use to chemical and worker impact. It transforms complex data into clear, comparable insights, guiding manufacturers toward continuous improvement and supporting compliance with new global regulations on transparency and sustainability.

Together, digitalisation, automation, and measurement create a connected, efficient, and truly sustainable supply chain where the way we make a garment becomes a statement of responsibility and innovation.

What recent innovations have you introduced to further minimise water and chemical usage in textile finishing?

All our innovations are designed to eliminate water and chemical use in garment finishing while achieving authentic and creative results. Among the most recent is ATMOS, our sustainable alternative to the traditional stone-wash process.

ATMOS achieves classic denim aging effects without water, pumice stones, or chemicals, combining the natural oxidising power of G2 Ozone with the INDRA system, which controls temperature and humidity for consistent and repeatable results.

When combined with laser technology, it enables the creation of natural, authentic finishes across a wide range of shades, from dark to light, in the most efficient and sustainable way. This combination eliminates manual scraping, and retouching processes, while also removing toxic chemicals and reducing water consumption to an absolute minimum.

It represents a major step toward Mission Zero, where technology and nature work together to create responsible, natural, authentic and high-quality denim.

How are consumer preferences for responsible fashion influencing the adoption of advanced finishing technologies among global apparel manufacturers?

Consumers are now demanding transparency, responsibility, and authenticity. They no longer buy only garments; they buy the values behind them. This shift is accelerating the adoption of clean and measurable technologies by brands and manufacturers.

At the same time, new environmental regulations and brand commitments are pushing the industry to demonstrate real progress with traceable and verifiable results.

Within this context, our EIM (Environmental Impact Measurement) platform plays a crucial role. It is part of Jeanologia’s sustainability ecosystem, evaluating both the performance of production facilities and the environmental impact of each process. EIM provides a common language for the industry, measuring water, energy, chemical, and worker impact.

By transforming this data into a clear score, from low to high impact, EIM empowers brands and suppliers to make informed decisions, reduce their footprint, and confidently communicate their sustainability achievements to consumers and regulators. It connects innovation with accountability, becoming a key enabler for the next generation of transparent and responsible fashion.

Could you share how Jeanologia collaborates with brands, mills, and garment manufacturers to accelerate sustainable transformation across the textile value chain?

We collaborate with leading global brands and retailers such as Levi’s, Kontoor, Uniqlo, Guess Jeans, Gap, American Eagle, among others, and with over 500 laundries worldwide, working side by side on projects that combine technological transformation, digitalisation, and creative inspiration.

Our partnerships go beyond supplying technology. We co-develop strategies, train local teams, and support the integration of clean, efficient, and data-driven production systems. We act as a bridge between brands and their suppliers, helping them align on sustainability goals, eliminate waste, and reduce energy, water, and chemical consumption across the entire value chain.

Each collaboration is tailored to the customer’s needs, whether it’s implementing a full Laundry 5.Zero, optimising digital workflows, or creating innovative design concepts. We work to accelerate transformation by connecting technology, creativity, and purpose, ensuring measurable impact and a real change in the operational model.

Because for us, collaboration is the key to real transformation, uniting technology, creativity, and purpose to build a more sustainable and competitive industry.

What new possibilities do you foresee with the next generation of laser, ozone, and e-flow systems in terms of fabric aesthetics, durability, and customisation?

The next generation of our technologies will open a new horizon of creative, sustainable, and efficient possibilities, delivering more authentic, natural, and durable finishes.

These innovations will merge technology and creativity, enabling designers to push boundaries while keeping production clean and efficient. They will empower on-demand and personalised manufacturing, connecting designers and consumers more directly and making co-creation a reality.

The combination of laser, G2 ozone, and e-flow will continue to redefine denim finishing, maximising performance, minimising impact, and creating fashion that is responsible, expressive, and future-ready.

In the end, the way we produce a garment becomes part of its DNA, showing that technology can shape not only how we make fashion, but what fashion stands for.

As India strengthens its textile manufacturing ecosystem, how does Jeanologia plan to support Indian producers in adopting cleaner, smarter finishing technologies?

India plays a key role in the global denim landscape, with strong domestic growth and significant international production. We support its transition toward sustainable leadership through training, technology integration, and pilot projects such as Laundry 5.Zero, which combines all our core technologies — Laser, G2 Ozone, eFlow, and H2Zero.

This model eliminates harmful processes, reduces water use by up to 85%, improves working conditions, and enhances productivity and efficiency. Today, over 80% of India’s sustainable finishing market uses Jeanologia technologies, with partnerships alongside Killer Jeans, Numero Uno, Jack & Jones, Arvind, Shahi, and Raymonds and much more.

Our goal is not just for India to produce more, but to produce better, becoming a benchmark for a cleaner, digital, and competitive textile industry that leads the global transition toward responsible fashion.