Asia Pacific Rayon (APR), an Indonesian manufacturer of viscose rayon, has released its inaugural Sustainability Progress Report covering the first 18 months of its operations from January 2019 to June 2020. Formally inaugurated by Indonesia President Joko Widodo in February 2020, APR is a vertically integrated operation from renewable fibre plantations to high-value textile manufacturing facilities, located in in Riau, Sumatra.
APR’s effort to report on its sustainability performance underscores the company’s commitment to responsible viscose production. The report, themed ‘Creating Sustainable Value, From Plantation to Fashion’, details APR’s sustainability efforts which are focussed on clean manufacturing, sustainable sourcing, and initiatives in support of employees and communities.
Basrie Kamba, APR Director, said: “In our first 18 months of business, we focussed on laying a strong foundation by embedding sustainability in the way we operate – whether as a manufacturer, an employer, a member of the local community or a global corporate citizen. Our operations are guided by our sustainability policy. We sought to actively monitor our performance so as to develop a baseline from which to improve on, and to benchmark ourselves against industry peers, with the aim to be a top quartile viscose producer.”
Manufacturing Excellence
Notably, APR has attained a string of certifications relating to manufacturing, sourcing and product. It is the first viscose manufacturer in Indonesia to receive the internationally recognised STeP by OEKO-TEX certification. APR’s products carries the labels of OEKO-TEX Standard 100, USDA Biobased, MADE in GREEN by OEKO-TEX, Medically “Tested-Tested for Toxins” by FKT. It obtained ISO 9001 for quality management and 14001 for environmental management systems, and OHSAS 18001 for occupational health and safety management systems. Its PEFC Chain of Custody certification confirms sourcing from 100% certified dissolving wood pulp.
Further, in September 2020, APR updated its sustainability policy, strengthening its clean manufacturing commitment to the ZDHC Roadmap and adopting a time-bound roadmap to meet the emissions and consumption levels set out in EU BAT.
Contributing to Indonesia & Local Communities
As Indonesia’s leading integrated viscose producer, APR contributes to the transformation of the country’s textile industry, supporting the realisation of Indonesia’s ‘Industry 4.0’ vision. APR actively partners local fashion stakeholders to promote viscose as an enabler for sustainable fashion and launched “Everything Indonesia” as a catalyst to revitalise Indonesia as a global centre for textile manufacturing. The company’s blockchain-based ‘Follow Our Fibre’ platform provides transparency and traceability of its viscose from seed to bale.
APR has also been in active engagement with its community stakeholders with programmes aimed at improving rural education standards and empowering livelihoods of women. In response to the COVID-19 health pandemic, the company provided 15,000 PPE gowns, 150,000 medical face masks and pairs of surgical gloves to Riau’s COVID-19 taskforce. It distributed 11,000 household packages to impacted communities in 176 villages across Pelalawan and 165 hygiene kits to maternal and child health centres. APR produced 88,000 fabric masks and distributed them to employees, their families and households in surrounding communities.
“It has been our great pleasure to work with APR on its first sustainability report. As a new player in the man-made cellulosic fibre industry, APR has an opportunity to bring innovation and solutions that can help shape a more sustainable textile and apparel industry. The transparency and accountability that sustainability reporting brings is incredibly important for APR to build trust and engage stakeholders in its sustainability efforts, as well as to continuously improve on its sustainability performance,” said Thomas Milburn, Corporate Citizenship Director.
