SYFA Conference Attracts Near-Record Attendance

Ron Houle, president of Pivot Step Consultants LLC, presented to the 152 attendees during SYFA’s fall conference.

After a successful fall event, SYFA is busy planning its spring 2020 conference, which will return to the renovated Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel.

TW Special Report

The Synthetic Yarn and Fabric Association’s (SYFA’s) 2019 fall conference convened at the Renaissance Charlotte Southpark Hotel, Charlotte, N.C. The change in venue was necessary because its usual location, the Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel, was undergoing renovations.

The theme for the fall event was “Textiles Serving America – A Critical Component of Defense,” and presentations focused on military and defense topics. SYFA reported the conference was one of its highest-attended events with 152 participants.

Nicholas Pence, director of sourcing services, Under Armour Inc.

Ron Houle, president of Pivot Step Consultants LLC, talked about the Department of Defense’s funding in his presentation titled, “Making (Some) Sense of the DOD Budget.” Nicholas Pence, director of sourcing services at Under Armour Inc., spoke about product development in his “Sustainability Driving Performance” talk. Roger Tutterow, professor and Henssler financial endowed chair, Kennesaw State University; and Kim Glas, president & CEO, National Council of Textile Organizations, gave an economic update and trade policy update respectively.

Other presenters came from companies including Wood Mackenzie, Pulcra Chemicals LLC, Burlington, Coolcore, Fiber Innovation Technology Inc., as well as the Textile Protective and Comfort Center at North Carolina State University.

Conference sponsors for the fall event included Gold Sponsor Premiere Fibers Inc.; Silver Sponsor Pulcra Chemicals LLC; Bronze Sponsors Burlington, DAK Americas LLC and Augusta Sportswear Brands; and Patrons & Exhibitors Sponsors Clariant Corp., The Association of the Nonwovens Fabrics Industry (INDA), Jomar Softcorp International Inc., Lumat USA Inc., PolySpinTex Inc., Milliken & Company, National Council of Textile Organizations, Techtextil North America, and Unifi Manufacturing Inc.
SYFA’s spring conference will return to the Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel April 23-24, 2020. Attendees may register at the association’s website, thesyfa.org.

January/February 2020

Quality Fabric Of The Month: A New Horizon

In a first for the company, Glen Raven has added Horizon — a durable, man-made
leather fabric — to its Sunbrella® portfolio.

By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor

Sunbrella® fabrics have a reputation second to none for upholstery, shade and marine applications. Very protective of Sunbrella’s image and perception, manufacturer Glen Raven Inc., Glen Raven, N.C., won’t brand any old fabric with the Sunbrella name. Only fabrics of the highest caliber and quality are named Sunbrella; and until recently, the portfolio consisted solely of woven acrylic fabrics. But Glen Raven has expanded the Sunbrella portfolio with the addition of Horizon, an engineered, man-made, leather fabric that offers optimal performance when it comes to marine upholstery applications.

“Sunbrella identified a need for a soft, longer-lasting upholstery for the marine market, and we felt it essential to carry the brand’s technical expertise through this new product line,” said Bill McDaniel, marine market manager for Sunbrella. “We invested in extensive research and developed a solution that extends the brand’s legendary performance into a new line. We’re thrilled to take a bold step in bringing a new product to the marine market that’s backed by the Sunbrella brand promise.”

Horizon is a four-way stretch fabric that features a soft hand for comfort on the water. The product also is designed to resist cold cracking and fading. According to the company, it also exhibits excellent recovery when subjected to excess stretching, which can prevent puddling and prolong the lifetime of the fabric. Horizon also is waterproof and bleach cleanable to deal with common marine stains such as mold, mildew and salt residue.

According to the company, Sunbrellais the first and only brand in the marine industry to offer a three-year warranty against bacterial staining commonly known as “pinking” — a phenomenon caused by harmless bacteria that live in rivers, lakes and streams. If the bacteria seep into a vinyl fabric such as those traditionally used in marine applications, a pink colored digestive by-product produced by the bacteria may stain the vinyl fabric. Additionally, Horizon carries a five-year product warranty against the loss of strength and color that may be expected from normal exposure to sun and water elements.

The 54-inch-wide Horizon fabric is offered in two unique, embossed patterns — Textil and Capriccio — and 30 different colors made using the same pigments used to produce woven Sunbrella fabrics, ensuring a color match for complete boat customization.

“We only put our brand on products that we think are worthy of the Sunbrella name,” said Bret Kelley, vice president, sales, Trivantage — Glen Raven’s distribution company. “The products have to be unique, different and solve a problem. Horizon is the first non-acrylic product to carry the Sunbrella name. And for me, that makes me wonder what’s next?”

For more information about Horizon and Sunbrella® visit sunbrella.com/horizon.

January/February 2020

January/February 2020

Service Thread, Laurinburg, N.C., has appointed Jay Todd CEO.

van de Kerkhof

Heike van de Kerkhof recently succeeded Alexander Wessels as CEO of Switzerland-based Archroma. Wessels will continue as vice chairman of the board of directors and also has assumed an advisory role within SK Capital working across its portfolio of products.

Materials company NFW, Peoria, Ill., has hired Oihana Elizalde asgeneral manager of its Mirum business unit.

Krulic

Bart Krulic has joined Palmetto Synthetics LLC, Kingstree, S.C., as executive sales director.

Pittsburgh-based PPG has appointed Kevin R. Walling chief human resources officer.

Voxel8, Somerville, Mass., has named Dr. Friedrich “Fred” von Gottberg, president and CEO. He was also appointed to the board of directors for the multi-material digital footwear and apparel manufacturing company.

Boston-based Sappi North America Inc. has promoted Tom Radovich to managing director of its Cloquet Mill located in Cloquet, Minn.

Jeff Papalia was named vice president of MMI Textiles Inc., Westlake, Ohio. Reporting directlyto President Amy Bircher, he will be strategically located in North Carolina. The company’s directors — Nick Rivera, directorof operations; Shawn McCollum, director of sales; and Debbie Grant, director of marketing and business services — will report to Papalia.

The Davlyn Group, Spring City, Pa., has named Jeff Zola vice president of marketing, and Michael Braswell director of engineering.

Dr. Douglas Edwards has joined Electronics For Imaging Inc. (EFI), Fremont, Calif., as chief technology officer.

England-based Xaar Plc has named Ian Tichias CFO and director of the board, effective March 1, 2020.

Vancouver, British Columbia-based lululemon athletica inc. has appointed Nikki Neuburger chief brand officer. She is part of the company’s senior leadership team and reports to CEO Calvin McDonald.

Tom Chu was named regional president of PVH Asia Pacific. He reports to Stefan Larsson, president, PVH Corp., New York City.

Italy-based Durst has appointed Dr. Stefan Kappaun segment manager for industrial textile printing. As a member of Durst’s executive team, he is responsible for strategic direction in home textiles, clothing and accessories; and will act as the connecting link between his segment and Durst’s large format segment. He also heads the ink business for all segments as executive vice president, Inks & Fluids.

Casandra W. Robinson and Carol Pollack-Nelson have joined the ASTM International board of directors. Both women will serve a three-year term on the W. Conshohocken, Pa.-based organization’s board.

Brawer Bros. Inc., Hawthorne, N.J., has named Mike Hopkins technical director.

Dr. Don Jones, director of agricultural research – Breeding and Genetics for Cary, N.C.-based Cotton Incorporated, is the recipient of the 2019 Cotton Genetics Research Award. The honor was conferred during the 2020 Beltwide Cotton Improvement
Conference.

Winston-Salem, N.C.-based HanesBrands has announced that its Chief Accounting Officer and Controller M. Scott Lewis was named interim CFO while the company conducts a search for a candidate to fill the CFO vacancy.

Bonte

The board of directors of Belgium-based DOMO Chemicals has named Yves Bonte as the successor to CEO Alex Segers. Bonte was also appointed chairman of the board. Segers will continue to play a role as Domo merges into one company with the recently acquired European Performance Polyamide business of Solvay.

San Francisco-based Levi Strauss & Co. (LS&Co.) reports Roy Bagattini, executive vice president and president of Levi Strauss Americas, has left LS&Co. to take on a group CEO position. Executive Vice President and President of Direct-to-Consumer Marc Rosen was named executive vice president and president for Levi Strauss Americas. He will maintain his leadership role of the Direct-to-Consumer business.

January/February 2020

Burlington Introduces Kids Essentials Collection

Greensboro, N.C.-based Burlington, part of Elevate Textiles, has introduced a Kids Essentials Collection featuring Burlington Smarterwear™ performance. Fabrics originally designed for athletes and outdoor enthusiasts have been adapted for use in kids’ clothing.

The easy-to-care-for designs offer comfort stretch, soft hand and abrasion resistance active children, according to Burlington. The collection incorporates Burlington’s Synatural™ yarn technology and Plaidology™ piece-dyed pattern technology.

“We are excited to introduce a collection of fabrics designed specifically for kids and their active play,” said Nelson Bebo, vice president, Burlington Performance Fabrics. “In this first of its kind collection, Burlington has created the Kids Essentials fabric line that stands up
to the extreme and often unexpected demands of kids. With advanced stretch and natural softness, kids will love the comfort while parents appreciate the durability, protection and easy care of these fabrics.”

January/February 2020

Pendleton Woolen Mills Announces Formation Of Outerwear Division

Pendleton Woolen Mills, Portland, Ore., has formed an outerwear division after re-acquiring its outerwear license from Item House Inc. Pendleton has hired the Item House team that helped elevate the Pendleton outerwear line and is focused on leveraging the technical fabric and outerwear expertise of the team to expand its history of innovation.

“We are very excited to continue the outerwear innovation and growth we have witnessed throughout our partnership with Item House,” said John Bishop, president and CEO
of Pendleton.

January/February 2020

PVH Agrees To Sell Speedo Business

New York City-based PVH Corp. has entered into a definitive agreement to sell its Speedo North America business to Pentland Group, a parent company of Speedo International Ltd. The Speedo trademark is licensed to a PVH subsidiary for perpetual use in the United States and the Caribbean. The sale, worth $170 million in cash and subject to a working capital adjustment, is contingent upon customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the first quarter of PVH’s fiscal 2020 year.

“This strategic announcement aligns with PVH’s goal to optimize and streamline its Heritage Brands business in the ever-evolving retail environment and focus on delivering sustainable profitable growth of its global brands, CALVIN KLEIN and TOMMY HILFIGER,” said Emanuel Chirico, chairman and CEO, PVH Corp. “I am pleased to see Pentland Group reunite the Speedo business globally, as they are best positioned to capture the full potential of the iconic Speedo brand.”

Andy Long, CEO of Pentland Group’s Pentland Brands division, said: “We’ve had a great partnership with PVH and they’ve done an incredible job in raising the profile of the Speedo brand and growing the business in North America during their time as licensee. With the Tokyo Games this year, now is the right time to bring Speedo North America back into our brand portfolio.”

January/February 2020

Delta Galil Granted Patent

Israel-based Delta Galil Industries Ltd. recently was issued U.S. patent 10,212,977 B2 for its Touch&Go™ hook and eye bra accessory. The Touch&Go hook and eye components are flat, wide hooks that slide easily into one another allowing the hook and eye to easily click together. According to the company, this ease of connection means the wearer does not have to search for the connecting piece. Touch&Go is suitable for all kinds of bras, but is especially well-suited for sports bras.

“We’re very pleased to have been granted this patent in the United States,” said Isaac Dabah, Delta Galil’s CEO. “While we’re confident this simple technology will prove incredibly popular, we’re also mindful of the investment of time, research and development that went into perfecting it., and so are grateful to be able to protect our intellectual property.”

January/February 2020

Tukatech Turns 25; Offers Software As Thanks

Los Angeles-based Tukatech has reached its 25th anniversary and to mark the milestone, has added its TUKA-APM [Automatic Pattern Making] to the TUKAcad system at no charge to customers. According to the company, people of any skill level can complete a graded pattern in seconds using TUKA-APM. The software is available to new TUKAcad customers by way of a cloud subscription via TUKAweb. Existing customers using a dongle key may switch to a cloud license to add TUKA-APM to their TUKAcad software.

“Since 1995 we have stayed focused on simplifying apparel product development processes,” said Tukatech Founder and CEO Ram Sareen. “There is no better way to start 2020 than with a thank you to our loyal customers who have supported us and are the reason we’ve been profitable over the last 25 years.”

January/February 2020

Novita Starts-Up Andritz Spunlace Line

Austria-based ANDRITZ reports Poland-based Novita has begun production on a new Andritz neXline eXcelle spunlace line dedicated to spunlace fabrics ranging in weight from 25 to 100 grams per square meter. Andritz supplied the web forming system with two TT cards; a JetlaceEssentiel hydroentanglement unit featuring the neXecodry energy saving system, water filtration and retreatment systems; and one neXdry double-drum through-air dryer. The line has an installed capacity of almost 3,000 kilograms per hour.

“With the new ANDRITZ spunlace line, Novita is able to offer first-class spunlace roll goods with high-quality fabric characteristics and a customized product perfectly suited to hygiene end-uses,” said Radoslaw Muziol, Novita CEO.

January/February 2020

Freudenberg Sells Brazil-Based Hygiene Plant To Fitesa

Germany-based Freudenberg Group has sold its South American hygiene business, Freudenberg Hygiene Brazil Ltda., to Brazil-based Fitesa S.A. The purchase price was not disclosed; and the sale does not affect any of Freudenberg Performance Materials’ apparel, shoe or leather businesses in Brazil or other South American countries.

“Acquiring Freudenberg’s South American hygiene business gives us a state-of-the-art production facility, as well as a professional and well-trained workforce, to help us better serve the needs of our customers,” said Silverio Baranzano, Fitesa CEO.

January/February 2020

1...1,0921,0931,094...2,625Page 1,093 of 2,625

Sponsors

Breaking News

Load more

Digital Issue

2026 Quarterly Issue Number I

View Latest Digital Issue

FEATURED ARTICLES

© Copyright 2017 Textile Industries Media Group, LLC.