17 March 2025
AUSTRALIAN DEEPTECH COMPANY XEFCO AWARDED $4.9 MILLION INDUSTRY GROWTH PROGRAM GRANT TO SCALE WATERLESS PLASMA TEXTILE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY
Advanced manufacturing company Xefco has secured $4,999,122 through the Australian Government’s Industry Growth Program to accelerate the commercialisation of its Ausora® waterless textile dyeing technology.
The funding will support the deployment and validation of commercial-scale Ausora systems with global textile manufacturing launch customers, while expanding Australian manufacturing capability for export of the technology.
Textile dyeing and finishing is the most environmentally intensive stage of textile production, responsible for around 20% of global industrial water pollution and approximately 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Xefco’s Ausora technology replaces conventional wet processing with an advanced atmospheric plasma coating process, eliminating water consumption while significantly reducing energy and chemical use.
The technology delivers substantial environmental and operational improvements, including:
- 100% elimination of process wastewater
- 94% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
- 90% reduction in energy consumption
- 97% reduction in chemical use
“The existing water-intensive processes used to put colour and functional finishes on fabrics have the biggest environmental footprint in the textiles supply chain,” said Tom Hussey, CEO and Co-founder of Xefco. “Our Ausora® systems integrate seamlessly into existing manufacturing supply chains, enabling a high-performance, waterless process that can eliminate millions of tonnes of chemical waste and CO₂ emissions, redefining what sustainable production looks like at scale.”
Designed, developed and manufactured in Geelong, Victoria, the first commercial-scale Ausora system is scheduled for deployment to a launch customer in Southeast Asia, marking an important step in the commercialisation of the Australian deep technology.
With global textile production exceeding 113 million tonnes annually, the technology presents a significant opportunity for Australia to export advanced manufacturing systems into a global textile market valued at more than $2 trillion.
The Industry Growth Program project will support further validation of commercial-scale systems with manufacturing partners and scale up production of Ausora systems in Australia.
Xefco expects to deploy more than 200 systems globally within five years, supporting the growth of advanced manufacturing capability in regional Victoria while enabling textile producers worldwide to reduce environmental impact.
The development of Ausora builds on collaborations with Deakin University and national research initiatives, including the Innovative Manufacturing CRC and Deakin’s Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialisation Hub (REACH), supported by the Australian Government’s Trailblazer Universities Program and the ARC Research Hub for Future Fibres.
About Xefco
Xefco is an Australian textile technology company developing advanced materials and manufacturing systems designed to significantly reduce the environmental impact of textile production.
The company commercialised its first technology, XReflex®, in 2019: a heat-reflective coating used by leading global apparel brands including Zara, The North Face and Salomon to improve insulation efficiency in garments.
Xefco’s flagship platform, Ausora, is a waterless plasma dyeing and finishing technology designed to eliminate wastewater and significantly reduce energy and chemical consumption in textile manufacturing.
The company operates research and manufacturing facilities in Australia and works with textile manufacturers and apparel brands globally to develop and deploy next-generation textile processing technologies.
Media Contact
Olivia Utharntharm
Communications Manager
Xefco Pty Ltd
o.utharntharm@xefco.com
+61 433 057 579
www.xefco.com
Commercial Contact
Timothy J. Skedzuhn
Global Commercial Director
Xefco Pty Ltd
t.skedzuhn@xefco.com
+1 (647) 929-6329
www.xefco.com