A new University of Sydney-led study reveals how low-cost and scalable strategies can reduce heat stress and protect worker productivity in Bangladesh’s readymade garment (RMG) sector.

In Bangladesh’s RMG factories, indoor temperatures often soar above 35 degrees Celsius and can reach as high as 40 degrees Celsius. Production halls are typically hot, humid and poorly ventilated, with the constant use of heat-generating machinery like irons and steamers making the air thick and stifling. 

An Australian study reveals how low-cost and scalable strategies can reduce heat stress and protect worker productivity in Bangladesh’s RMG sector.
The team tested simple cooling interventions like insulated reflective roofs, electric fans and free access to drinking water.
Without cooling interventions, heat stress reduced work output by around 12-15 per cent.

Workers spend up to 12 hours a day, six days a week, in these conditions which, over time, can take a considerable toll, causing dehydration, heat exhaustion, and a noticeable drop in energy and concentration, putting workers’ health and wellbeing at serious risk.

Most workers are paid by the piece, creating a difficult trade-off: slow down to stay safe in the heat—and earn less—or maintain speed and risk serious illness.

“Garment workers in Bangladesh already endure some of the most precarious and grueling conditions in the world. With rising temperatures, it’s only getting worse,” said Ollie Jay, the study’s senior author and director of the Heat and Health Research Centre at the university in a release.

“Without immediate, scalable and affordable cooling solutions, millions face a serious and growing risk of heat-related illness, exhaustion and long-term harm,” he noted.

To address this, Jay’s team looked at the effects of various cooling alternatives to air conditioning on worker heat strain in a simulated Bangladesh garment factory inside a climate-controlled chamber, replicating the hottest conditions recorded inside a typical factory in Dhaka. 

They tested simple cooling interventions like insulated reflective roofs, electric fans and free access to drinking water, and benchmarked them against air conditioning and no cooling at all.

Published in The Lancet Planetary Health, the study found that without cooling interventions, heat stress reduced work output by around 12-15 per cent. These losses were partly recovered through the team’s sustainable cooling strategies, which prioritised cooling the individual instead of altering the surrounding environment, such as using fans and having access to drinking water

A 2.5-degrees Celsius indoor temperature reduction from an insulated, reflective white roof lowered core body temperature, heart rate and dehydration risk.

Electric fan use combined with access to drinking water delivered similar benefits, reclaiming much of the heat-related productivity loss seen in high-intensity tasks like ironing.

Cooling effects were more pronounced in male participants, highlighting the importance of reconsidering gender-specific tasks and clothing in heat mitigation strategies.

“With Bangladesh’s RMG industry targeting a 30 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, these low-resource options could offer a viable path forward for a sector under increasing pressure from both global demand and a changing climate,” said lead author James Smallcombe, a post-doctoral research fellow at the Centre.  

The full results suggest that improving building design and supporting worker hydration could become key pillars of climate adaptation in global supply chains, protecting both workers and business continuity.

The Wellcome Trust funded the research.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

In virtually all spinning mills, transporting sliver cans is still done manually. Rising labor costs, lack of operators and increasing quality requirements make this a growing challenge. With T-CAN, Trützschler introduces a practical solution: a fully automated can transport system that will be presented live at ITMA ASIA 2025 in Singapore.

Trutzschler’s T-CAN is a fully automated sliver can transport system linking cards and draw frames via automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and smart software.
It cuts labour costs, boosts efficiency, and ensures consistent quality.
Easy to use, scalable, future ready and proven at JINGYI mill, T-CAN will be showcased live at ITMA ASIA 2025 in Singapore.

Efficient and reliable automation

T-CAN automates the transport of sliver cans between cards, breaker draw frames, and finisher draw frames – quickly and precisely. The system combines sliver cans with automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and a smart software interface that tracks every movement and places each can exactly where it belongs.

What T-CAN delivers

T-CAN minimizes manual handling and transport, supports continuous production (also at lunch breaks and night shifts), and ensures consistent quality through reliable material allocation. Therefore, mills benefit from lower labor costs, higher machine efficiency, and improved sliver quality – all with a system that adapts to your mill, not the other way around.

“With T-CAN, we’re responding to our customers’ needs for intelligent automation. Our goal was to create a solution that not only reduces operational costs but also enhances quality and consistency in sliver handling. It’s a leap forward in making spinning mills smarter.”

– Alexander Stampfer, CSO Trützschler Group.

Simple to use

Despite its advanced technology, T-CAN is easy to operate. The intuitive software interface requires only a few minutes of training and no prior expertise in robotics.

Scalable and future-ready

T-CAN is ideal for medium to large spinning mills with high output and automation goals. But thanks to its modular design, it’s also a smart choice for smaller mills looking to future-proof their processes. T-CAN is built to easily scale with your ambitions.

Proven performance

One of the first adopters of T-CAN was JINGYI, a spinning mill in Sheyang, China. After a successful pilot project, JINGYI placed an order to automate can transport for over 120 TC 26i cards and 240 draw frames. T-CAN has proven itself as a robust, reliable, and operator-friendly solution.

“We were impressed by the performance and reliability of T-CAN during the pilot phase. It has significantly improved our efficiency and reduced our staffing needs. That’s why we decided to implement it across our entire carding and draw frame section.”

– Mr. Peng Fujian, Deputy General Manager JINGYI Group.

Experience it live

Visit the Trützschler booth at ITMA ASIA 2025 in Singapore to see T-CAN in action, talk to our experts and discover how it can transform your production.

Note: The headline, insights, and image of this press release may have been refined by the Fibre2Fashion staff; the rest of the content remains unchanged.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)