ANN ARBOR, Mich. — August 5, 2024 — Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc., announced today that renowned sericulture expert, Dr. Nirmal Kumar, will rejoin the company’s team in Asia to oversee completion of the second production cycle of BAM-1 spider silk hybrids.
Dr. Nirmal Kumar rejoins the team this week, as Kraig Labs prepares to cocoon and reel the second BAM-1 hybrid spider silk production batch. This production cycle will build on the success of the first production cycle completed in July. The recombinant spider silk generated from this production batch will be available for sale and use in end-market product development.
This production cycle is the second of many scheduled for this year as Kraig Labs continues the expansion of its BAM-1 production hybrids.
The production team leaders and Dr. Kumar have remained in close daily communications over the last month, laying the groundwork and preparing the facilities for the BAM-1 hybrids, now in production. While in-person with the team, Dr. Kumar will supervise the cocoon production and monitor cocoon quality and reeling characteristics. Dr. Kumar will also lead and train the team in large-scale selective matings in preparation for a 10X increase in capacity as the rainy season concludes.
During this trip, Dr. Kumar will also review the teams’ progress in building the facilities, staffing, and equipment necessary to sustain the company’s growing operations and meet its metric-ton level spider silk production target.
“The BAM-1 hybrids, in production now, continue to show the same robustness and performance demonstrated in the spring production trials. Dr. Nirmal Kumar and our team have laid a strong foundation for the massive scale-up in spider silk production, which is now underway. I am very happy to have Dr. Nirmal Kumar rejoin our production team in person as we enter this exciting phase of the rearing cycle. 2024 has been, and will continue to be a breakout year for Kraig Labs,” said Company Founder and CEO, Kim Thompson. “The completion of this second production cycle for BAM-1 hybrids will solidify our production model and reaffirm our industry-leading position in cost-effective and eco-responsible spider silk production.”
AMSTERDAM — August 6, 2024 — Fashion for Good and its footwear focused partners adidas, Inditex, ON Running, PVH Corp., Reformation, Target, and Zalando announce an ambitious new initiative aimed at accelerating and validating the next generation of footwear innovations. This builds on the organization’s existing work leveraging their expertise in scouting, validation, and pioneering innovation and collaboration. This initiative will address the key intervention points needed to drive footwear circularity spanning four work streams across the supply chain from materials to end of use. Industry wide collaboration will be vital to overcome the various roadblocks we face in this space. Therefore, Fashion for Good is launching a call for action, asking all relevant innovators to apply and collaborators to join in the movement.
Tackling The Footwear Complexity Challenge
Around 23.9 billion shoes are produced globally each year, they are often made using over 40 different components from a range of different materials including TPU, EVA, PU and rubber. The industry faces significant challenges due to this high complexity of shoe construction. This combined with a low collection rate, results in a vast majority of discarded footwear ending up in landfills. Fashion for Good sees the need to address this challenge and focus on laying the foundation for footwear circularity as well as accelerating innovation.
Therefore, Fashion for Good will double down their work in this space, building on their existing projects including the Fast Feet Grinded pilot, which tests and validates Fast Feet Grinded’s™ footwear recycling process. Expanding on existing workstreams Fashion for Good will collaborate with our footwear focused partners, including adidas, Inditex, ON Running, PVH Corp., Reformation, Target, and Zalando.
Four Core Workstreams
To effectively address the challenges in footwear sustainability, Fashion for Good has identified the key intervention points across the shoe lifecycle and structured work into four core workstreams.
CREDIT – Fashion for Good
These workstreams include:
Materials – Scouting and validating sustainable alternatives for footwear materials including TPU, PU, EVA, leather, and rubber
Design – Defining circular design in the footwear space and collectively driving guidelines to build a circular infrastructure
End of Use: Sorting, Disassembly, & Recycling – Developing a comprehensive data set on post-consumer footwear waste flows, including (non-)rewearable fractions, volumes, construction and composition. As well as scouting and validating solutions for repair, end of use, disassembly and recycling of footwear
Traceability – Laying the foundation by amalgamating a footwear traceability data protocol to build traceability for evidence to substantiate sustainability claims
This initiative will leverage Fashion for Good’s extensive experience in orchestrating multi stakeholder projects as well as driving innovation pipeline and validation work. Collaboration with ecosystem partners, including The Footwear Collective will align efforts to achieve impactful results.
“Fashion for Good and our corporate partners, including adidas, recognize the urgent need to accelerate innovation in footwear sustainability,” said Katrin Ley, managing director, Fashion for Good. “Over the past seven years, we have consistently broken norms across various segments and are now leveraging our expertise to radically reimagine footwear. By doubling down on our efforts, we aim to drive circularity and validate sustainable solutions in a segment ripe for disruption.”
“adidas has been a partner of Fashion for Good for over six years now,” said Sigrid Buehrle, senior vice president, Product Operations, adidas. “Through this partnership, we have collaborated on a number of different sustainable innovation initiatives that are benefitting the fashion industry. Now we want to build on this know-how and expand our focus into the Footwear space. Currently, there is a limited portfolio of low-impact materials which also meet the necessary performance requirements that are also scalable. We hope this initiative will help overcome some of these hurdles.”
Call For Innovations
Fashion for Good is on the lookout for breakthrough sustainable solutions in the footwear sector that maintain performance and durability. If you have a relevant technology, whether you’re an innovator, university, or established company, we invite you to apply by September 20, 2024.
Brands, manufacturers, and ecosystem partners interested in learning more or getting involved can contact us at: projects@fashionforgood.com.
CINCINNATI — August 6, 2024 — Tide Services, a subsidiary of Procter & Gamble, bolstered its franchise development team with three industry veterans in the second half of 2023. This strategic move strengthens Tide Services’ leadership and supports its goal of becoming the top provider of on-demand laundry solutions, leveraging market trends and rising consumer demand for convenience and quality.
Team members include:
Lawrence Brown, Senior Vice President, Franchising & Development: Brown brings over a decade of executive leadership and development experience, including his role as Chief Development Officer at Fat Tuesday, where he spearheaded significant capital investments and opened ~40 stores in two years. He also served as Vice President of Business Development Americas at Restaurant Brands International, managing the expansion of Burger King across the Americas.
Ryan Stuckenberg, Director of Construction: Stuckenburg’s background is in construction and project management, having overseen over $200 million in projects annually for Luxottica stores across North America. His strategic approach to construction management and cost reduction has consistently delivered outstanding results.
Emilie DeBonadonna, Director of Real Estate: DeBonadonna brings expertise in real estate development and strategic planning from her previous role as Senior Manager of Development for Burger King. Her skills in market analysis, site acquisition and lease negotiations will support Tide Services’ expansion goals.
These professionals joined Emily Schneider, Director of Franchise Development, a five-year veteran of Tide Services who has played a pivotal role in the franchise’s growth and success.
Since joining Tide Services, Brown, Stuckenburg and DeBonadonna have become pivotal to the brand’s growth strategy. Their efforts in converting existing dry-cleaner locations and planning the opening of hundreds of new Tide Laundromat and Tide Cleaners sites over the next two years are accelerating the company’s expansion. Tide Services’ “roll-up” consolidation strategy capitalizes on the fragmented dry-cleaning and laundromat industries, strengthening and expanding the iconic Tide brand by building new organic locations and offering successful operators an opportunity to sell.
“Our team’s combined expertise is driving Tide Cleaners and Tide Laundromat to new heights,” said Andrew Gibson, CEO of Tide Services. “Alongside Emily Schneider, the team is crucial to our ambitious expansion plans and our goal of becoming the leading brand in the industry.”
Looking ahead, Tide Services is targeting major national markets while enhancing its presence in existing ones. The franchise development team is actively seeking well-capitalized multi-unit operators to join the Tide Services network.
Tide Services stands out for its commitment to sustainability, employing eco-friendly cleaning solutions and advanced technology to provide exceptional convenience and efficiency. With Tide, cleanliness and innovation go hand in hand. If it’s got to be clean, it’s got to be Tide!
For more information about Tide Services franchise opportunities, visit tidefranchise.com.
Posted: August 6, 2024
Source: Tide Services, a subsidiary of The Procter & Gamble Company
LINCOLN, R.I. — August 5, 2024 — Organic Dyes & Pigments LLC (ORCO) announced the acquisition of the assets of Bolger & O’Hearn, Inc., located in Fall River, Mass., effective July 31.
For more than 50 years, Bolger & O’Hearn has had a proud history of supplying specialty chemicals and colorants to the textile, paper and coatings industries.
“We are excited to welcome Bolger & O’Hearn and their customers and employees to the ORCO family,” said John D’Amelio, president of ORCO. “This acquisition continues to strengthen ORCO’s presence in key markets and positions us for future growth.”
Organic Dyes and Pigments is a colorant solution provider offering a broad range of high-quality dyes, pigments and specialty chemicals used in a diverse base of industries including textiles, coatings, agricultural products, construction materials, HI&I and many others. The company based here, with additional manufacturing operations in Union, S.C.
PHOENIX, Ariz. — August 6, 2024 — Direct-to-consumer sleep brand Helix Sleep announced today a new retail partnership with Sit ‘n Sleep.
“We’re thrilled to bring on Sit ‘n Sleep as another valued retail partner,” said Jerry Lin, EVP of Strategy & Operations at 3Z Brands. “Sit ‘n Sleep is an iconic brand and a trusted household name across Southern California. Their commitment to helping people find the right mattress for their specific sleep needs, body type, and health aligns perfectly with the mission of our retail program, making this a perfect partnership. We are thrilled to collaborate with a company that shares our brand ethos as we work to make Helix products more accessible across the United States.”
Helix Premier
Starting this month, Sit ‘n Sleep will carry five of Helix’s top-selling mattresses in their stores across Southern California. Sit ‘n Sleep will be the first retailer to offer the Helix Premier mattress, an all-new hybrid model designed exclusively for brick-and-mortar stores. The Helix Premier mattress offers ultra-high-density comfort with seven meticulously designed layers, including high-density memory foams, advanced GlacioTex™ Elite technology, full perimeter edge support, and ultra-supportive zoned lumbar coils.
Sit ‘n Sleep will also carry Helix’s best-selling Midnight lineup, including the Midnight Core and Midnight Luxe. As an upgrade, customers can opt for the ultra-popular GlacioTex™ cooling cover on both the Midnight Core and Midnight Luxe models. Rounding out the offerings include Helix’s Twilight Luxe model, a premium firm mattress designed to support side sleepers, and Helix Kids, a flippable, supportive sleep solution for kids.
“We’re thrilled to have added Helix to our Brand assortment,” said Nelson Bercier, President of Sit ‘n Sleep. “They started with a great roll-out to our sales associates and products sold from day one! Helix has proven to be a strong contender in product assortment.”
Sit ‘n Sleep is a market-leading mattress retailer in California with 36 locations across the southern part of the state. Founded in 1980, Sit ‘n Sleep is dedicated to delivering a good night’s sleep to millions of Californians by helping people find the right mattress, at the best price, while receiving excellent service. Sit ‘n Sleep is an established Southern California brand, currently operating some of the nation’s largest and most successful mattress stores.
Initially launched as an online DTC brand, Helix has been focusing on expanding its retail footprint nationwide to make its products more accessible. The brand is available in over 250 retail locations, including Mancini’s Sleepworld, Big Sandy Superstore, and Brooklyn Bedding’s brick-and-mortar stores. For more information on Helix Sleep and its retail partners, please visit https://go.helixsleep.com/wholesale/.
MÖNCHENGLADBACH, Germany — August 6, 2024 — September 11-14, 2024, the Trützschler Group will present its latest innovations at CAITME in Tashkent, Uzbekistan — featuring machines and technologies in spinning, card clothing and nonwovens. Visit booth J30 in pavilion 3 to learn all about Trützschler’s global flagship in carding — the intelligent card TC 30i — as well as the integrated draw frame IDF 3 and the world’s first 12-head comber, the TCO 21XL.
Trützschler Spinning
Discover the latest innovations in carding, draw frame and combing at Trützschler Spinning. All innovations address fundamental customer needs in fiber processing: high efficiency, more sustainable raw material utilization and intelligent automation. A highlight will be Trützschler’s next generation card, the TC 30i. In recent customer trials, the TC 30i has achieved up to 40 % higher productivity while reducing energy consumption by up to -18 %. In addition, the team will share insights about the Integrated Draw Frame IDF 3, which enables shortened processes that save resources, energy and production space. Visitors will also have the opportunity to discover the world’s first 12-head comber, the TCO 21XL. This new high- performance comber makes it possible to increase productivity by 50 %, while requiring 25 % less space and achieving consistent quality at all times.
Visitors will also get the chance to learn about Trützschler’s new brand for textile recycling, TRUECYCLED. Through machinery expertise and technological know-how, the company enables its customers to produce high quality tapes while turning waste into value.
Trützschler Card Clothing
Trützschler Card Clothing (TCC) will present a wide range of technologies from its card clothing portfolio, covering the full spectrum of applications in the spinning and nonwovens markets. A key feature will be the Flexible Bend Control (FBC), which ensures perfect flat setting for all card models within a few seconds and guarantees optimum quality at all times.
Trützschler Nonwovens
Trützschler Nonwovens will share insights into innovations like the needle-punching line T-SUPREMA for technical nonwovens.
Trützschler Nonwovens will focus on proven solutions for the production of cotton nonwovens for wipes, pads and medical products from virgin fibers, comber noils or blends. In addition, the team will provide insights into T-SUPREMA needle-punching lines and will be ready to show you its solutions for the specific requirements of high-potential markets such as geotextiles, filter media, automotive textiles or other durable products.
See you in Tashkent, Uzbekistan!
CAITME offers a great opportunity for people from across the textiles industry to talk to our Spinning, Nonwovens and Card Clothing experts. We are already excited to meeting you in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, at pavilion 3, booth J30.
TOKYO — August 6, 2024 — Teijin Frontier Ltd. announced today that its European subsidiary, Teijin Frontier Europe GmbH, has opened a new showroom in Paris with the aim of expanding its fashion business in the region.
Launched in June 2024, the showroom displays Teijin Frontier’s fabric collection and products, which is centered on environmentally friendly and functional fibers. The collection includes the company’s ECOPETⓇ polyester fiber, made with recycled post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and its ultra-soft and smooth SOLOTEXⓇpolytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT) fiber, as well as textiles and other products that use these fibers.
Interior of the showroom
In addition to showcasing materials and disseminating information, the showroom will display applications in collaboration with Teijin Frontier’s Japanese suppliers and serve as an exhibition venue for their clients’ brands. The exhibits will change seasonally and align to evolving customer needs.
By opening a showroom in the fashion capital of the Western world, Teijin Frontier aims to increase its presence as a fiber supplier to the French and European markets. Furthermore, by encouraging customers to visit and learn about its products, Teijin Frontier hopes to uncover new needs and trends, which will be used to guide development of new products and solving customer issues.
ST. LOUIS — August 5, 2024 — Barry-Wehmiller is excited to announce a new role that will bring transformative change to the organization. Doug Neal has been appointed vice president of Continuous Improvement and will lead the efforts to reboot the organization’s dedication to operational excellence. Neal brings over three decades of experience in operations and continuous improvement across diverse industries, spanning from healthcare to manufacturing, making him a pivotal addition to the leadership team.
Most recently, Neal worked at Revvity (formerly PerkinElmer), where he held important roles such as senior director, Global Lean; senior director, Planning and Logistics; and senior director, Service Operations. He holds a Bachelor of Science in industrial management from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Business Administration from Pennsylvania Western University Clarion.
Neal’s diverse skill set includes expertise in multi-site operations and international business systems, along with extensive experience in manufacturing and transactional process improvement. His appointment marks a strategic move toward enhancing Barry-Wehmiller’s global commercial, operational and organizational strategies.
“Doug’s wealth of experience and passion for operational excellence will undoubtedly drive significant transformation at Barry-Wehmiller,” said Kyle Chapman, Barry-Wehmiller president. “His continuous improvement initiatives align with our vision of building a vibrant future and ensure that our customers continue to receive exceptional quality and service.”
“Barry-Wehmiller is a great organization with a great history and foundation,” Neal said. “I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunities here. Our focus will be on the people, ensuring they are involved and engaged in driving the changes needed to deliver results for our customers, stakeholders and team members.”
SEOUL, South Korea — July 1, 2024 — Cho Hyun-joon, chairman of Hyosung, has identified “Bio BDO” as the future growth driver for the company.
Butanediol (BDO) is a chemical used to manufacture PTMG, which is used in the production of spandex. BDO is also used to manufacture packaging materials, automotive interior components, and industrial compounds.
Bio BDO is produced by fermenting sugars derived from renewable sources such as sugarcane or corn. Compared to conventional products that are produced with fossil fuels, Hyosung’s bio BDO is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 90 percent, making it a highly regarded material in the eco-friendly market.
Investing KRW 1 trillion in Vietnam to establish a bio butanediol plant with an annual production capacity of 200,000 tons
After observing the rapid shift in the global textile market toward eco-friendly products, Chairman Cho swiftly decided to invest in bio BDO.
In April, Hyosung TNC announced its plan to invest KRW 1 trillion in southern Vietnam’s Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province to build a new plant capable of producing 200,000 tons of bio BDO annually.
The company plans to start production and sales of bio BDO with an initial capacity of 50,000 tons per year beginning in the first half of 2026.
The world’s first integrated production system for bio spandex, from raw materials to finished fibers
With Chairman Cho’s investment in bio BDO, Hyosung TNC will establish the world’s first vertically integrated production system for bio spandex in Vietnam. The plant in Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province will produce bio BDO, which will be converted into PTMG at the Dong Nai plant, and subsequently used to mass-produce bio spandex.
This integrated production system is optimized for customers in the global eco-friendly premium textile market, including Europe and the United States. It enhances production efficiency through stable raw material supply and allows for quick responses to market demands by speeding up the production system’s operations. Additionally, it secures cost competitiveness by reducing transportation costs and minimizes environmental impact by lowering fuel consumption for transportation.
Chairman Cho Hyun-joon stressed: “The bio business, which focuses on transitioning from fossil fuel-based raw materials to plant-based ones, will be a key pillar of Hyosung’s centennial vision. Strengthening our global market strategy by focusing on our bio BDO and bio spandex integrated production system is key to elevating Hyosung’s premium brand status.”
ROCHESTER, N.H. — August 2, 2024 — Albany International Corp. announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed Christopher Stone as president, Albany Engineered Composites Inc., and elected him an officer of the company, effective August 12, 2024, to succeed Gregory Harwell, who no longer serves as president of Albany Engineered Composites.
Stone brings a deep knowledge of the A&D industry, and considerable broad experiences to his new role. He has held a wide range of leadership positions at public companies, with a focus in manufacturing and supply chain management, business operations, production control, logistics and organizational transformation. Most recently he served as vice president and chief supply chain officer at Lockheed Martin Corp. from 2021 to 2024. Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, he was vice president – Supply Chain & Material Management at Aerojet Rocketdyne from 2018 to 2021, and previously held various management positions at Textron companies, including Textron Marine & Land System and Bell Helicopter from 2005 to 2018. He is a former Aviation Officer with the United States Army with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Management from Gonzaga University and an MBA from Rice University.
Kleveland said: “I am excited to have Chris join the Albany team and know he will bring a strong strategic capability to our growing business. At the same time, his experience and admirable results leading Operations and Supply Chain are critical to continue the competitive advantage AEC has in on time delivery of a quality product.”
Stone said: “I am deeply honored to join the team at Albany Engineered Composites, renowned for their state-of-the-art technologies and exceptional execution in a market space that is critical to our industry. I am excited to meet our talented employees, learn the Albany business, and engage with our valued customers.”
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — August 5, 2024 — Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc., announced today that renowned sericulture expert, Dr. Nirmal Kumar, will rejoin the company’s team in Asia to oversee completion of the second production cycle of BAM-1 spider silk hybrids.
