Assessing Sustainability Performance in the Textile Industry Using a Triple Bottom Line and SEM Approach: Evidence from a Developing Economy

Junaid Arshad; Ubaid Ullah; Muzammil Hafeez; Muhammad Arshad; Mansoor Mustafa; Sikandar Bilal Khattak

Authors

Junaid Arshad Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar.
Ubaid Ullah Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar.
Muzammil Hafeez Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar.
Muhammad Arshad Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar.
Mansoor Mustafa Riphah International University, Islamabad.
Sikandar Bilal Khattak Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Engineering & Technology, Peshawar.

Keywords:

Sustainability, Textile Industry, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), Circular Economy, Eco- Design, Resource Efficiency

Abstract

Tindustry can be considered as one of the most resource-intensive manufacturing sectors that poses significant environmental, social, and economic challenges, especially in developing economies. Despite growing interest, empirical research on the interdependencies among sustainability dimensions remains limited., although there is an increasing interest in sustainable textile production. The proposed study will evaluate the performance of sustainability in the textile industry by applying the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) framework and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). A structured questionnaire survey was conducted on 120 textile manufacturing companies in Pakistan to collect primary data. The outcome shows that social sustainability positively affects economic performance (β = 0.794, p < 0.001) and environmental performance (β = 0.659, p < 0.001), and economic sustainability also has a strong effect on environmental sustainability (β = 0.730, p < 0.001). Some critical aspects contributing to sustainability performance include economic stability, waste management, energy efficiency, and adherence to human rights standards. Even though all the structural relationships are deemed to be statistically significant, the overall model fit indices (CFI = 0.704; RMSEA = 0.094) provide evidence of potential improvement of the measurement model.

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