bluesign®system · of the environmental performance.They shall embrace, withintheir sphere of influence, the ten principles of the UN GLOBAL ... Non-system partner chemistry

© bluesign technologies ag | www.bluesign.com

bluesign® systemVersion 1.0 | April 01, 2014

bluesign® system | v1.0 | April 01, 2014© bluesign technologies ag | www.bluesign.com 2 | 14

Content1 Introduction 3

2 Scope 3

3 Definitions 3

3.1 BAT 33.2 bluesign® system 33.3 bluesign® system partner 33.4 bluesign® applications 33.5 bluesign® system substances list (BSSL) 33.6 Brand 43.7 Chemical product 43.8 Chemical substance 43.9 Converter 43.10 Input stream management 43.11 Manufacturer 4

4 bluesign® system partner 5

5 Input stream management 5

5.1 Chemical supplier 55.2 Manufacturer 6

6 Chemical assessment 6

6.1 bluesign® rating 86.2 Restrictions and bans for chemical substances 86.3 bluesign® bluefinder - Positive list of blue and grey rated chemical products 8

7 Resource productivity 8

8 bluesign® criteria 9

8.1 bluesign® criteria for production sites 9

9 Trademarks 10

9.1 bluesign® approved 109.1.1 Scope 109.1.2 Chemical products 109.1.3 Articles 10

9.2 bluesign® product 119.2.1 Requirements for trademark users 119.2.2 Article requirements 11

10 bluesign® applications 12

10.1 bluesign® bluetool 1210.2 bluesign® bluefinder 1210.3 bluesign® blueguide 12

11 System integrity 13

12 Consultative bodies 13

12.1 Advisory Board 1312.2 Stakeholders 13

13 Validity 13

14 Other applicable documents 14


1 IntroductionTaking the responsibility when it comes to environmental and consumer protection is the challenge that future-driven businesseshave to accept long before politics, legislators or authorities force them into a new way of thinking. However, many companies havelearned from their own attempts, that this can be a quite challenging task.The way towards sustainable production can not and should not be taken alone - it involves co-operation of the whole supply chainnetwork and the commitment for a continuous improvement. Real changes can be achieved only by mutual understanding betweenthe involved parties.

Under the roof of the bluesign® system there is an ever growing network of companies from chemical suppliers to manufactures andbrands. These interacting parties, called bluesign® system partners, are guided by a set of bluesign® criteria. Each bluesign® systempartner shares within the bluesign® system their own and unique expertise and tasks that shall be integrated towards a collectivegoal of responsible management of resources as well as human and environmentally friendly production and products.The bluesign® system as a holistic approach based on input stream management and sophisticated chemicals management assuresthat harmful substances are minimized or even eliminated from the manufacturing process.Managing inputs and responsible actions across the whole supply chain lead to the desired credibility towards the community.

bluesign technologies supports the efforts of the bluesign® system partners by providing a solution and services to foster the mutualaim of social responsibility, environmentally friendly and safe production, conservation of natural resources and a high level ofproduct safety.

2 ScopeThe today´s scope of the bluesign® system includes the textile and leather supply chain from chemical suppliers to manufacturers tobrands and respectively from chemical products to consumer goods.

3 Definitions3.1 BATBest Available Techniques. The bluesign® system supports the implementation of BAT at all levels of the supply chain.

3.2 bluesign® systemThe bluesign® system integrates the relevant parties across the supply chain, sets criteria and defines actions that determine theirbehavior towards human and environmentally friendly production and products.

3.3 bluesign® system partnerA company committed to the bluesign® system and holding a valid bluesign® system partner agreement (see also Chapter 5).

3.4 bluesign® applicationsA set of web-based tools and databases (bluesign® bluetool, bluesign® bluefinder, bluesign® blueguide) that support theimplementation of the bluesign® system.

3.5 bluesign® system substances list (BSSL)A list that specifies limits and bans for chemical substances following the bluesign® criteria for chemical assessment (Homologation).bluesign® system substances list (BSSL- Consumer safety limits) is available as a print version and a pdf. Limits and bans for the BSSLsubstances in chemical products are documented in the bluesign® bluetool


3.6 BrandAn originator of the final product and owner of any associated label/trademark.

3.7 Chemical productA commercial product which can be a chemical substance or a mixture.

3.8 Chemical substanceA chemical element and his compounds with constant composition and properties. It is defined by the CAS number.

3.9 ConverterA company selling textile articles (all processing levels), finished leather articles and accessories for use in textile and leather industrythat are sourced from a sub-supplier. A converter does not have any installed chemical or physical finishing steps. Original productsare sold without any change with exception of make-up/packaging.

3.10 Input stream managementUsing for manufacturing of articles only those chemical products and other raw materials which are assessed based on their risk forpeople and environment, thus minimizing or even eliminating harmful substances before the manufacturing begins. A similarapproach applies for both upstream and downstream parties across the supply chain.

3.11 ManufacturerA company that produces textile articles (all processing levels) leather and accessories.


4 bluesign® system partnerThe network of bluesign® system partners consists of chemical suppliers, manufacturers of textile and leather products andaccessories, converters and brands. Agreements between the bluesign® system partner and bluesign technologies specify theappropriate scope of supply of the system partnership. Respective bluesign® criteria form part of the agreements.

The bluesign® system partners strive for a high level of safety for people, responsible use of resources and a continuous improvementof the environmental performance. They shall embrace, within their sphere of influence, the ten principles of the UN GLOBALCOMPACT in the areas of human right, labor standards, environment and anti-corruption.

In order to meet the prescribed criteria all involved parties need to follow a clear and universal procedure. Depending on the industrybranch the following main milestones and actions are defined:

Successful screening/audit/assessment Signing bluesign® system partner agreement Implementation of mandatory actions within a given time frame Further continuous improvement following an itemized action plan and monitoring improvements by means of

re-screenings, re-audits, re-assessments Certification of chemical products and articles Labeling

5 Input stream managementInstead of focusing only on the finished product an input stream management integrates also the upstream parts of the supply chain.Prior to the use in manufacturing the chemical products and other raw materials are assessed based on their toxicological andecological properties. Limit values and bans for chemical substances are defined.A suitable input stream management and process control ensure that the final product is of defined quality, that the manufacturingprocess conforms to the legal requirements and to the bluesign® criteria and that both the manufacturing process and the finalproduct have the least possible impact on people and environment.Harmful substances can hence be minimized or even eliminated before manufacturing begins.

Figure 7.1 Input stream management

5.1 Chemical supplierChemical companies have full responsibility for the products they manufacture, purchase, store and market to their customers.Correct and sufficient classification and labeling of chemical products as well as compliance with the relevant bluesign® criteria canonly be assured if the chemical company is serious about the principles of the product stewardship.


The product stewardship team has to work interdisciplinary in an internal and external network of stakeholders.An appropriate input stream management concerning chemical raw materials and intermediates shall assure that sufficientknowledge on the raw materials (active components) and adequate information on by-products and impurities is given. Effectivequality control of the raw materials by means of chemical analysis shall be established as a routine procedure.Relevant supplier information shall assure that the bluesign® criteria concerning restricted and banned substances can be met.

5.2 ManufacturerUsing only bluesign® approved chemical products from bluesign® system partners shall be the goal. Non-system partner chemistrymust be phased-out/replaced as soon as possible. Taking into consideration that a phase-out/replacement of non-system partnerchemical products is often linked with the time consuming actions such as

adaption of recipes lab and production trials additional lab testing newly adapted sourcing creation/expansion of the bluesign® network

the change in the chemical product portfolio of a manufacturer can be done – practically speaking – only step by step.

The bluesign® criteria reflect this situation by means of a stepwise phase-out procedure of non-system partner chemical productsduring the implementation phase of the bluesign® system.The bluesign® bluefinder, with its positive list of bluesign® approved chemical products, plays an important role in the chemicalsubstitution process and shall be implemented into the chemicals management system of every manufacturer.

6 Chemical assessmentThe chemicals used in the production of textiles and leather generally fall into two classes:

Effect chemicals: designed to remain on the finished product ("be fixed", e.g. colorants, easy-care finishes, etc.); only verysmall amounts of these substances will be found in the wastewater effluent or the off-gas.

Process chemicals: used to support the finishing processes (e.g. leveling agents, wetting agents) or to pretreat the rawmaterial (e.g. detergents); may be completely introduced into the wastewater effluent during the production.

The possible consequences for the worker, consumer, and the environment depend on which of the above categories the chemicalbelongs to. However, often not the active substances mentioned above but the additives (e.g. dispersing agents in dyes) or theimpurities (e.g. monomer residues in polymers) are the reason for a possible negative impact on people and the environment.Therefore the homologation procedure considers also these types of substances.

Hazard identification and appraisal of exposure followed by a risk assessment of chemical substances that are contained intentionallyor non-intentionally in the chemical products is one of the main fundamental pillars of the homologation procedure. Based on thedetailed knowledge and data delivered by system partners from chemical industry a well-founded assessment of the respectivechemical products can be performed. The web based bluesign® bluetool serves as the assessment tool for auxiliaries and dyestuffs.

The paramount idea of the bluesign® chemical assessment (homologation process) is to provide chemical suppliers as well as down-stream users with the tools to reduce or even eliminate harmful chemicals in consumer goods and to minimize emissions to theenvironment (Fig. 6.1).


The outcomes of homologation are the bluesign® system substances list (BSSL); around 900 substances are considered usage bans for chemical substances in manufacturing (for about 600 substances a usage ban is defined) limits for chemical substances in chemical products (documented in the bluesign® bluetool) blue, grey and black rating of chemical products limits for chemical substances in articles (consumer safety limits; see BSSL-consumer safety limits) web-based bluesign® bluefinder, a positive list of blue and grey rated chemical products

Figure 6.1 bluesign® homologation process.


6.1 bluesign® ratingChemical products supplied from bluesign® system partners are rated. Three rating scores can result: blue, grey or black.Chemical products that comply with the bluesign® criteria are divided into categories “blue” or “grey”:

Blue chemical products entirely fulfill the requirements of the bluesign® criteria based on realistic worst-case exposurescenarios and may be used for all applications.

Grey chemical products may be used in the production only under certain conditions. The principle of the Best AvailableTechniques (BAT) applies in this case.

Chemical products that do not meet the strict requirements of the bluesign® criteria fall into the category “black” and must beeliminated from the manufacturing process.

6.2 Restrictions and bans for chemical substancesAs of 2014, the BSSL contains about 900 chemical substances. So far for about 600 substances a usage ban has been defined.

6.3 bluesign® bluefinder - Positive list of blue and grey rated chemical productsThe bluesign® homologation provides a foundation for developing a ‘positive’ list of blue and grey chemical products, which shallsolely be used in the manufacturing process of bluesign® system partners. The list is available as a web-based application – thebluesign® bluefinder.

6.3.1 Usage rangesThree usage ranges (A, B, C) are defined, with A being the most stringent category concerning limit values/bans:

Usage Range A: Next to skin use and baby-safe (0 to 3 years) Usage Range B: Occasional skin contact Usage Range C: No skin contact

7 Resource productivityResource productivity defines the ecological and economical willingness to manufacture products of defined quality and addedvalue with a minimum required resources and the lowest environmental impact possible.

The textile companies shall aim at reducing their ecological footprint expressed as energy and material input per kilogram ofmanufactured textile product. The environmental impact decreases by a reduced amount of resources used, while simultaneouslythe added value of the products increases. Thus an intelligent and careful resource management during the complete productionprocess can lead to the cost savings.

The bluesign® system helps optimizing the process efficiency by minimizing both energy and material input. As the first step anevaluation of the available data concerning water, energy, chemicals and raw materials consumption is performed. It is followed byan in-depth analysis and benchmarking of the obtained results against publicly available data and numbers shared by other systempartners. Finally, the buesign® expertise provides the recommendations on the potential improvement of resource efficiency that aresupported by the respective BATs.


8 bluesign® criteriaThe bluesign® criteria define the requirements for inputs, production sites and products.

bluesign® criteria for chemical assessment (homologation) bluesign® criteria for production sites bluesign® criteria for converters bluesign® criteria for brands bluesign® criteria for bluesign® product and bluesign® approved trademarks

8.1 bluesign® criteria for production sitesA proactive strategy towards a clean and transparent production shall be promoted. The criteria related to the legal compliance,management system, effective housekeeping and maintenance, product stewardship, resource productivity, emissions andOccupational Health and Safety are meant to provide direction to the bluesign® system partners towards the optimization of theenvironmental performance and minimization of the impact to people and environment.

At the production site(s) of a bluesign® system partner the following principles shall be the guidance for all activities:

The activities performed at the production site must not have harmful impact on human beings, animals, plants, soil,aquatic bodies or the atmosphere.

A high level of human health and environmental protection shall be ensured with the goal of achieving sustainabledevelopment.

A system partner shall be aware of Best Available Techniques (BAT) that are relevant for the industry and shall implementthose techniques to continuously improve environmental performance.

The requirements for production sites defined by the respective criteria are reviewed by the screening or audit carried out bybluesign technologies. The results are summarized in an audit/screening report. The report includes, among others, a decision ofbluesign technologies on the compliance of the company with the relevant bluesign® criteria. In case of non-conformities correctiveactions including a time table are prescribed. Furthermore, the recommendations for continuous improvements are given. Finally,the audit/screening report concludes whether or not a system partnership is recommended.


9 TrademarksCommunication of bluesign® trademarks and rights of use are described in the Communication Guidelines and bilateral trademarkagreements.

9.1 bluesign® approved9.1.1 ScopeThe trademark bluesign® approved in terms of this document applies to chemical products for industrial use in the textile and leather industry and related industries (accessory manufacturing) textile articles (all processing levels (man-made fibers, yarns, raw fabrics, dyed, finished, coated fabrics etc.) for industrial

use finished leather articles for industrial use accessories

9.1.2 Chemical productsA bluesign® approved chemical product must comply with bluesign® criteria for chemical assessment (Homologation) be rated blue or grey be registered in the bluesign® bluefinder

A chemical supplier willing to use the bluesign® approved trademark must follow the bluesign® criteria for production sites | Annex: Chemical supplier be a bluesign® system partner with the right to use bluesign® approved trademark have successfully applied for homologation of chemical products

9.1.3 ArticlesA bluesign® approved article must be conform to the chemicals management requirements (compare bluesign® criteria for production sites | Supplement:

Chemicals management for manufacturer) comply with BSSL - Consumer safety limits be registered in the bluesign® blueguide

A manufacturer willing to use the bluesign® approved trademark must follow the bluesign® criteria for production sites and related annex documents be a bluesign® system partner with the right to use bluesign® approved trademark have successfully applied for certification of articles

A converter willing to use the bluesign® approved trademark must Follow the bluesign® criteria for converters be a bluesign® system partner with the right to use bluesign® approved trademark have successfully applied for registration of articles


9.2 bluesign® productThe trademark bluesign® product applies to consumer goods with textile character manufactured for direct consumer use.The following product categories are currently outside the scope of bluesign® product:

Footwear Medical supply such as dressings and bandages Hygiene products Toys Food safe articles Furniture

9.2.1 Requirements for trademark usersTo use the bluesign® product trademark, a trademark user must be a bluesign® system partner and have signed a bluesign® trademark agreement. be authorized with a formal authorization paper issued by bluesign technologies to declare articles as bluesign® product maintain a robust quality assurance system to manage the supply chain and verify the suppliers’ qualification

9.2.2 Article requirementsThe components of an article must meet the requirements described in Table 9.1

Usage Range A + Bapparel, sleeping bag …

Usage Range Cbackpack, bag, tent, …

Share of bluesign® approved fabrics ≥ 90 %Share of bluesign® approved accessories ≥ 30 % ≥ 20 %Non bluesign® approved components provided by a qualified supplier

Table 9.1 Requirements for articles which shall be labelled with bluesign® product


10 bluesign® applicationsTo assure an easy implementation of the bluesign® system, bluesign technologies offers three globally accessible online applications:bluesign® bluetool, bluesign® bluefinder and bluesign® blueguide.

10.1 bluesign® bluetoolThe bluesign® bluetool is a web-based software application for chemical suppliers to guide them through the homologationprocedure. Its main features include:

collection of restrictions and limit bans for chemical substances and mixtures which are calculatedbased on the risk assessment

data exchange between chemical suppliers and bluesign technologies integrated guidance for the correct and complete data entry easy to handle registration and rating of chemical products

10.2 bluesign® bluefinderThe bluesign® bluefinder is an advanced online search engine for bluesign® approved blue and grey chemical products. It is designedfor manufacturers willing to produce approved materials. Its main features include:

continuously updated selection of bluesign® approved chemical products such asdyestuffs and auxiliaries

information on application restrictions regarding grey-rated chemical products grouping of chemical products based on their applications, e.g. dyestuffs, detergents,

softening agents, etc. easy search for alternatives to already existing applications database with contact details of chemical suppliers

10.3 bluesign® blueguideThe bluesign® blueguide is the global sourcing tool for fabrics and accessories which meet the highest criteria regarding protectionof resources, people and environment. It is designed for brands searching for fabrics and accessories. Its main features include:

globally accessible and easily comprehensible database for bluesign® approved yarns fabrics and accessories possibility of bluesign® approved products tracking constantly expanding know-how section concerning resource efficiency and environmental impact database with contact details of textile and accessory manufacturers


11 System integrityThe following routine procedures assure the implementation of the bluesign® system:

follow-up of action plans testing of chemical products and articles regular reporting of chemical inventory list and resource key figures re-screenings and re-audits latest after 3 years

Beyond the above mentioned routine procedures the integrity measures ensure credibility and a high level of efficiency of thebluesign® system and foster the reliability of bluesign® trademarks:

tracing of bluesign® approved articles and chemical products as well as bluesign® product spot tests of bluesign® approved chemical products and articles as well as bluesign® product based on a defined testing

program unannounced company inspections tracking of deviations

12 Consultative bodies12.1 Advisory BoardThe role of Advisory Board is to be visionary in the guidance of bluesign technologies in a way that anticipates the ever-changingideal of sustainable production and challenges the organization to be proactive in services offered.Another task shall be identifying upcoming political, legislative, scientific, sustainability and regulatory developments.The Advisory Board comes together in face-to-face meetings and other means of communication, to discuss how sustainablethinking is, or could evolve. The Advisory Board provides the direction for bluesign technologies with regard to conservation ofnatural resources, environmentally friendly and safe production and a high level of product safety.

12.2 StakeholdersThe expertise of bluesign® system partners is a valuable input for a continuous improvement of the bluesign® system. Thecollaborative approach allows to rapidly adapt the bluesign® system to upcoming requirements within the ever changing world ofour community.Cooperation of stakeholders is managed by

biennial bluesign® conferences regular meetings of working groups with bluesign® system partners from chemical industry, manufacturers and brands cooperation of bluesign technologies in various global stakeholder committees

13 ValidityThis document comes into effect from April 01, 2014. It replaces the bluesign® standard, edition 1.2 from March 2010.This document is subject to changes. Changes will come into effect after prior notice and defined transition time.


14 Other applicable documents

bluesign® criteria for production sites with all related annex documents (effective versions) bluesign® criteria for converters (effective version) bluesign® criteria for brands (effective version) bluesign® criteria for chemical assessment (Homologation) with all related annex documents (effective versions) bluesign® criteria for bluesign® product (effective version) bluesign® criteria for bluesign® approved chemical products and articles for industrial use (effective version) bluesign® criteria for bluesign® approved chemical products for consumer use (effective version) bluesign® communication guidelines (effective version) bluesign® glossary (effective version) bluesign® system substances list (BSSL; effective version)

Documents

bluesign®system · of the environmental performance.They shall embrace, withintheir sphere of influence, the ten principles of the UN GLOBAL ... Non-system partner chemistry