Chemical Information in Two Textile Supply Chains - A case study of the producers in China

Abstract: The benefits from chemical use to human life are numerous. Textile industry whosedevelopment is driven by the use of various chemicals is one such example. However,chemicals also bring adverse effects to human life and environment when beingmisused. For instance, it is reported that waste water released during textileproduction can cause detrimental consequences to ecosystems and the chemicalleftovers in textile articles can also harm health and environment. For the purpose ofcontrolling undesirable effects caused by chemicals in textile production, a properway must be found. It is believed that more information about toxic substances isneeded in order to manage chemical use in textile industry (Massey et al 2008).This paper chooses China as the focus of the investigation. Under the help of twoSwedish textiles retailer companies, totally five textile factories in two supply chainslocated in Guangdong and Shanghai were visited. Interviews of managers in thosefactories, was performed to find out: (1) how chemical related information istransferred downstream and upstream in textile supply chains and how severalcorporations work together to cope with chemical risk issues; (2) what kind ofinformation is required by textile importers from their suppliers and how theserequirements affect textile producers behavior in terms of chemical use; and (3) howpeople work with chemical related information within a factory. A comparison of thechemical information management between the two supply chains is made as well.It is found through the study that two Swedish importers set the standards to controlthe quality of products manufactured by Chinese textile producers. Moreover, theseimporters were also dedicated to help textile producers’ ability to improve regardingchemical information management. As a result, these producers can follow thedemands properly. However, there are also differences between the supply chains’information management: mainly in the way that the two importers collect chemicalrelated information from producers in upstream and the range of importers’ contactwith textile producers. It is also concluded that importers play major roles forimproving manufacturers’ awareness on the importance of chemical information andconducting better outcome of chemical management in supply chain.