Work with LITAC
Bringing together expertise from across a large academic community, LITAC tackles global challenges through collaborative research and innovation, working nationally and internationally with business, NGOs, and other academic institutions.
Our work focuses on developing innovative science and technology, new approaches and methods, including work on new polymers, textile materials, chemical treatments, manufacturing processes, testing methods and digital tools. Research and business engagement activities also include textile design, fashion design and marketing.
Work with us
LITAC has several mechanisms and resources in place to support academic and industry partners to come together and collaborate in research, including:
- Preparation of collaborative research proposals
- Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs)
- PhD scholarships developed collaboratively with industry partners
- Consultancy, Technical Services and Testing
- Networking opportunities with key researchers, industry leaders and policy makers.
LITAC’s services cover all areas of textiles, fashion and colour including, science and technology, textile design, fashion design and fashion marketing. As such, we provide support services to a variety external organisations.
Please contact Kate Fenton, LITAC Research Bid and Business Development Manager at [email protected] to discuss how we can collaborate.
See a full list of our facilities.
Clothworkers’ Centre for Textile Materials Innovation for Healthcare (CCTMIH)
At LITAC, cross-disciplinary collaboration drives the creation of innovative, real-world solutions. A pertinent example is our work with the Clothworkers’ Centre for Textile Materials Innovation for Healthcare (CCTMIH), where textile science, engineering, and healthcare research intersect to transform patient care. Together, teams from across the University of Leeds are developing next-generation textile-based technologies that diagnose illness, support treatment, prevent infection, and improve accessibility within healthcare systems.
Founded through the generous support of The Clothworkers’ Foundation, CCTMIH exemplifies how partnerships between researchers, clinicians, and external organisations can accelerate meaningful impact. This collaboration demonstrates the potential of interdisciplinary thinking—and the strength of working with LITAC to bring innovative ideas to life.
Case studies
Learn more about a recent research project, Impact of Brexit and COVID-19 on the UK Fashion and Textiles Technology Ecosystem, which included a variety of stakeholders from industry, policy and academia exploring the impacts of global challenges.
Our spinouts
LITAC’s academic research in textile science and technology has led to the creation of innovative spin-out companies (companies that are developed following University research), all of which have attracted significant external investment:
- Nonwovens Innovation & Research Institute (NIRI) Ltd, a global product development and technical consultancy company, develops nonwoven and related products
- XEROS PLC develops and licenses platform technologies which transform the sustainability, performance and economics of water intensive processes, including the washing of clothing
- Keracol Ltd develops active molecules from plant sources applied in cosmetic products for hair coloration, hair care and skin care as food colorants and food ingredients and in nutraceutical applications.
- SwitchDye is a drop-in dyeing technology company, that originated from a shared vision by Professors Richard Blackburn and Christopher Rayner and has been realised through a decade of R&D by Nathaniel Crompton and Harrison Oates to create a scalable, industry-transforming solution.
- HyFaCol is an advanced collagen manufacturing platform that dramatically enhances the efficiency and quality of medical-grade collagen production in a rapidly expanding, $6 billion-a-year industry.