Setting a New Standard for Innovation and Circularity in the Global Textile Industry
DONGGUAN, China, Sept. 16, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- China's first fully automated textile waste sorting line has officially entered operation at Zhangjiagang Shanhesheng Environmental Technology Co., Ltd. Developed and manufactured by Databeyond Technology, the line integrates AI and hyperspectral imaging technologies to deliver automated, high-precision sorting of discarded garments. The milestone marks the entry of China's textile recycling sector into the era of AI-driven sorting.
The AI-driven textile waste sorting line has a processing capacity of approximately 2 tons per hour and is capable of high-precision separation across multiple material types, including: high-purity polyester (over 90%), high-purity cotton (over 90%), high-purity nylon (over 90%), polyester-spandex blends, and nylon-spandex blends. More importantly, the system not only identifies garment material, color, and style, but can also determine blend ratios, enabling it to meet the specific requirements of brand owners. Compared with traditional operations, where more than 30 workers were required to sort approximately 15 tons of post-consumer textiles in a single 8-hour shift, the new line delivers the same throughput with only four workers, substantially reducing labor needs and cutting operating costs.
Ms. Feng, General Manager of Shanhesheng Environmental Technology, explained: "Through our collaboration with Databeyond, we have taken the first step toward the transformation of textile waste recycling. Looking ahead, we plan to introduce sorting lines for shredded garments and factory offcuts, enabling automated sorting from whole garments to shredded feedstock, and providing brand owners with higher-value recycled fibers and materials."
Shortly after commissioning, Shanhesheng received a 200-ton order of high-purity post-consumer textiles from a global apparel company. In the past, fulfilling such an order would have required dozens of workers and extensive manual sorting. Now, with the advanced textile waste sorting line and only a handful of staff for support, the order can be completed with far greater efficiency.
"The launch of the Zhangjiagang project provides a scalable model of sustainable sorting for textile waste companies and signifies a milestone for China's circular textile economy. Through ongoing innovation, we aim to accelerate the shift from manual to intelligent sorting and from fragmented to industrial operations, supporting the global textile industry's transition toward circular growth," Feng added.
The intelligent textile waste sorting line represents the first phase of Shanhesheng's textile recycling transformation project. The upcoming second phase will extend to shredded garments and factory offcuts, ultimately delivering end-to-end automated sorting from whole garments to shredded feedstock. This will enable a steady supply of raw materials for both chemical and biological recycling of textiles, accelerating the industry's progress toward closed-loop textile-to-textile recycling.
About Databeyond
Since its founding in 2018, DataBeyond has consistently focused on developing cutting-edge sorting technologies. As China's largest supplier of AI-based optical sorters for the recycling front-end, DataBeyond has accumulated extensive waste sorting experience. Currently, thousands of its optical sorters are serving the global renewable resource recycling industry.
DataBeyond's AI optical sorters have been implemented across multiple countries and regions, including China, Japan, South Korea, Italy, Brazil, Southeast Asia, and Mexico, earning strong recognition from users.
The company takes pride in driving the global adoption of advanced intelligent sorting technology. By leveraging professional knowledge and innovative capabilities, DataBeyond continues to accelerate the transition toward an intelligent, transformative era in the global recycling industry.
For more information, please visit www.databeyond.com
Contact: Jiahua Liu, liujiahua@databeyond.com
Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8wpV09LqDU
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