BCI Conversion Factors Multipliers Oct 2020 1
BCI Conversion Factors Multipliers Oct 2020 1
Consumption:
BCI Conversion
Factors and
Multipliers
Better Cotton Initiative
1. Introduction 3
2. Background Concepts 4
3. Methodology 7
6. Next Steps 21
Annex 1: Methodology 22
Acknowledgements23
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
1. Introduction
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
2. Background Concepts
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
2. Background Concepts
Recycled
Comber
Cotton
purchased by a BCI Retailer & Brand (RB)
Noil
Cotton Lint
Member for a specific period of 12 months.
or the apparel and home industry, this
F
typically includes the weight of cotton fibres
consumed by spinners to create cotton-
containing yarns to make the components
Comber Noil: Recycled Cotton: Cotton Lint:
of end products.
Cotton fibre generated as a Cotton regenerated from Cotton fibres that are ready
or the hygiene, healthcare and consumer
F
by-product of the combed pre-consumer or post- to be spun into yarn after
goods industries, this typically includes
yarn spinning process. consumer textile products being separated from cotton
the weight of cotton fibres consumed by
It is mainly reused in the and waste materials seeds through the ginning
spinners, non-woven fabric manufacturers,
production of open-end through a mechanical or process; also referred to as
paper mills and other end-product
yarns, nonwoven fabrics, chemical process. ‘virgin cotton’.
manufacturers for making end products
hygiene, healthcare and
such as cotton swabs, pet products and
paper products.
toys.
Figure 1: Total cotton consumption of a BCI RB Member involves measuring the weight
of all cotton fibres, including comber noil, recycled cotton and cotton lint. The proportions
shown in the diagram are not representative of actual distributions.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
2. Background Concepts
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
3. Methodology
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
1
Refers to the percentage of non-lint matter (i.e. leaf fragments of the plant) attached to the cotton fibres.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
Combed
21% to 30% 26% 1.35
(ring-spun yarn)
Open-End
6% to 16% 10% 1.11
(rotor yarn)
Table 2:
he possible range for fibre loss for carded yarns is equal to the most common expected
T
fibre loss rate during the blow room and carding processes.
he possible range fibre loss for combed yarns was obtained by combining the most
T
common expected fibre loss for carded yarns and noil extraction rates.
he possible range for fibre loss for open-end yarns was obtained as a result of the
T
survey ran by BCI among its spinner members.
he expected fibre loss for different yarn types was equal to the average of the possible
T
ranges for fibre loss. The figure for open-end yarns was adjusted by 1% to be aligned
with the most commonly used rate in the industry.
he average yarn-to-fibre multipliers were obtained using the formula 1 / (1- Expected
T
Fibre Loss Percentage).
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
Table 3: Fibre loss percentages and fabric-to-yarn multipliers for products made with
denim, woven, and circular knit fabrics.
In Table 3:
“ Fibre loss” refers to the total weight loss during fabric production. These loss rates were
based on the possible range for fibre loss, which was obtained as a result of a survey of
key BCI Member fabric mills.
“ Expected” could refer to either the average or the median value of the raw data on which
these figures are based. It is referred to as “average” for simplicity.
hile this guidance document provides “average Fabric-to-Yarn” multipliers for denim,
W
woven and knit fabrics, the multiplier provided for flat knits is the “average end-product-
to-yarn”, following the specificity of the flat knit process.
Some rates were adjusted to create alignment in the industry.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
Table 4: Fibre loss percentages and end-product-to-fabric multiplier for apparel products.
2
Here, “fibre loss” for apparel refers to the total weight lost during the CMT process.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
IF
Yarn-to-Fibre = Multiplier A;
Fabric-to-Yarn = Multiplier B;
End-Product-to-Fabric = Multiplier C,
COTTON YARN WOVEN/KNITTED END-PRODUCT
THEN FIBRE FABRIC
the combined multiplier for
Fabric-to-Fibre = A x B;
AND Cutting and
the combined multiplier for Trimming Waste
End-Product-to-Fibre = A x BxC
Weaving/Knitting
Waste
Spinning
Waste
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
Customised multipliers can therefore be produced for different end-products, as shown in Table 5.
Table 5: End-product-to-fibre and fabric-to-fibre multipliers based on fabric, yarn and end-product types.
In many cases, the type of yarn used to produce an end-product may not be known. For To calculate the cotton consumption of individual products using these multipliers, the user
example, retailers and brands may not capture this information from their suppliers. In these should multiply the product weight excluding trims and other accessories by the percentage
instances, the average yarn-to-fibre multipliers of possible yarn types suited to the manufacture composition of cotton in the product by the combined multiplier of the product stage.
of the fabric in question can be used in cotton consumption calculations. These are presented
in the last column of Table 5.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
4. C
onversion Rates, Fibre
Loss Rates and Multipliers
Figure 4 shows which multipliers are used in calculating the cotton fibre
consumption of a pair of denim jeans. Figure 4: BCI denim multipliers
Total
Cotton Fibre = 500kg x 75% x 1.43 = 536kg
Consumption
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
5. Better Cotton Claim Units
(BCCUs) Calculations
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
5. Better Cotton Claim Units
(BCCUs) Calculations
Once the supplier knows how much cotton is in the fabrics used for the jeans, he can
calculate the net weight of cotton fibres used to make the jeans by applying the Fabric-
to-Fibre multiplier for denim from Figure 4 ( 1.21 ).
Therefore the garment supplier should expect 535 BCCUs from their supplier.
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
5. Better Cotton Claim Units
(BCCUs) Calculations
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
6. Next Steps
6.1 Refining Combined average mix of virgin cotton and comber noil
used for OE yarns from its online system
Multipliers when these factors are updated within the
Under section 4.2.4 Combining Multipliers, Better Cotton Platform, and by collecting
the multiplier for Yarn-to-Fibre has been data on this particular cotton fibre fraction
calculated based on some assumptions over time.
(Annex 1). For example, for the Apparel-
Wovens category, for the purposes of
calculating a Yarn-to-Fibre multiplier, it 6.2. Implementation
was assumed that this fabric is produced BCI will implement new end-product-to-fibre
from 50% Open-End (OE) yarn and 50% or fabric-to-fibre multipliers in a phased
Carded yarn. However, yarns are typically approach through an RB Member-wide
used in different proportions. To bring these recalculation by the end of 2020. In addition,
multipliers closer together, a further study to complement this approach, we will develop
can be conducted to obtain more precise appropriate tools and control processes to
assumptions for each type of yarn used in help ensure that the multipliers are applied as
each category of fabric multipliers. consistently as possible across the members
It is well known that open-end (OE) yarns concerned. The multipliers on the Better
are widely used in the industry for various Cotton Platform – BCI’s online platform for
applications. It is important to note that OE registering data - will also be updated with
yarn is produced from a mix of virgin cotton new multipliers.
and cotton waste (comber noil). The mix of All retailers and brands are invited to use
virgin cotton and comber noil is determined the information in this paper as they seek
by the supplier, based on the quality of yarn to estimate cotton usage for their cotton
they would like to produce. Comber noil is sourcing strategies.
accounted for in combed yarn consumption
today. The average mix of virgin cotton and
comber noil is currently not known to BCI. To
bring more accuracy to cotton consumption
calculations, BCI expects to establish the
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
Annex 1: Methodology
To gather the data used in the analysis that All statistical measures of central tendency
informed the ranges, rates and other figures Assumptions (mean, median, mode) and descriptions of
mentioned in this document, several data dispersion (standard deviation, variance,
In establishing different Yarn-to-Fibre multipliers, certain assumptions were made about the range) were examined to determine the
collection methods were deployed.
proportional use of the different predominant yarn types for the respective fabric categories. best measure in determining the “expected
1. BCI member spinning mills were surveyed. These assumptions are laid out in the following table: fibre loss” rates. It was determined that the
They were asked to provide BCI with the expected fibre loss rate would be taken
minimum and maximum fibre loss rates from the mean value of the average of the
Yarn Usage Assumptions (%)
they observe when manufacturing carded, Fabric Category maximum and minimum values. Put simply,
combed and open-end yarns. Assumptions (%) we used the mean of the mean. This is a
Combed Carded Open-end
2. In addition to spinning mills, BCI also conservative measure and assumes that
surveyed key fabric mills and end product the data is distributed relatively normally,
Denim - 50% 50% without skew. The conversion rate value
manufacturers to gather data on fibre loss
in manufacturing different types of fabrics was always reported as an integer (e.g. 7%
and end-products. Woven - 50% 50% instead of 7.1%) using standard rounding
rules where 0.5% is rounded to the next
3. In addition to surveys, BCI has also highest integer value.
reached out to a wide range of producer Circular Knit 50% 50% -
organisations, merchants, and other Given the limited data (number of
organisations that are involved in this type Flat Knit 50% 50% - observations), a conservative measure
of work. rather than more advanced techniques (e.g.
regression analysis) was used. The primary
4. Textile Exchange was consulted Home Textiles - - 100%
limitations of the analysis were: 1) the size
extensively and some of the figures seen of the data set (number of observations)
in this document were directly adopted which was relatively small; and 2) the
For “Apparel-Yarn and Fabric Types Unknown” category, the assumption was a mix of
from its work. Figures mentioned in this data was self-reported. The analysis took
80% knits and 20% wovens and denim.
document are to be updated in the future, account of these limitations by focusing on
in collaboration with Textile Exchange. measures less sensitive to outliers (e.g.
median versus mean).
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
Acknowledgements
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Better Cotton Initiative | Measuring Cotton Consumption:
BCI Conversion Factors and Multipliers
Version 1.0 – October 2020
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