CARY, N.C. — April 5, 2019 — IDEA® 2019, the world’s preeminent event for nonwovens and engineered fabric professionals, welcomed more than 6,500 participants and 509 exhibiting companies from 75 countries across the entire nonwovens and engineered fabrics supply chain to make business connections last week in Miami Beach, Fla.

The 20th edition of IDEA 2019, held March 25-28, broke a display record for the event filling 168,600 square feet of exhibit space (15,663 square meters) within the newly renovated Miami Beach Convention Center. The new record represents a nine percent increase in display space over IDEA 2016 as industry participants expressed their business confidence through larger exhibition booths.

The triennial event organized by INDA featured seven new nonwovens training classes, market presentations from China, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, industry recognitions with the IDEA Achievement Awards, the IDEA Lifetime Achievement Award, and a welcome reception celebration of INDA’s 50th anniversary.

Exhibitors and attendees noted the large number of industry senior leaders participating in the three-day event. “IDEA provided exceptionally strong metrics in leadership presence this year. The event attracted a high level of key decision makers, a testimonial to the show’s importance within the international nonwovens and engineered fabrics industry,” said Dave Rousse, INDA President.

“The quality of attendees and visitors was exceptional,” said Mark Steinbrecher, Sales Manager, OPTIMA Nonwovens. According to Pat Mahoney, Key Account Manager at Berry Global, the absorbent hygiene prospective activity was “more than expected.”

“The size and scope of the booths were impressive,” according to Pedro Camerena Torres, Chief Commercial Officer with Polimeros y Derivados of Mexico.

Other highlights of IDEA 2019:

The presentation of the IDEA Achievement Awards — sponsored by INDA and Nonwovens Industry Magazine — recognized companies in five categories for the best new products introduced since IDEA 2016. Competing among over 50 nominees, the winners of the IDEA 2019 Achievement Awards were:

IDEA 2019 Equipment Achievement Award: A.Celli Nonwovens S.P.A. –   A. Celli Vision System

IDEA 2019 Raw Materials Achievement Award: Lenzing AG – Veocel™ Lyocell Fibers

IDEA 2019 Roll Goods Achievement Award: Fitesa – Fitesa 100% Biobase PLA Soft

IDEA 2019 Short-Life Converted Product Achievement Award: Callaly – Tampliner®

IDEA 2019 Long-Life Converted Product Achievement Award: Soteria Battery Innovation Group – Soteria Battery Architecture

The IDEA 2019 Entrepreneurial Achievement Award is selected by the editors of Nonwovens Industry Magazine. This year editors found a unique supporter and developer of the entrepreneurial spirit rather than a specific product invention.

P&G Venture Labs  is the recipient of the IDEA 2019 Entrepreneurial Achievement Award, first, for helping aging adults perform daily self-care activities and preserving personal dignity and independence, and secondly, for alleviating symptoms of menopause driven by the loss of estrogen over time.

Capping off the awards event, Rousse recognized the accomplishments of Robert Julius, President of Nice-Pak Products Inc. in awarding him the IDEA Lifetime Achievement Award. Julius was recognized for his lifetime commitment to research, quality, innovation, and service. Nice-Pak and PDI have pioneered the development of wet wipe products and markets globally, that serve the consumer, commercial, healthcare, and contract markets.

IDEA Training Opportunities:

For the first time IDEA offered short course and refresher training. Over 260 industry professionals took advantage of INDA’s essential training on Nonwovens Basics, Wet Wipes, Absorbent Hygiene, and Filter Media for air and liquid taught by renowned industry experts.

INDA’s 50th Anniversary Welcome Reception:

More than 500 participants enjoyed hors d’oeuvres, beverages, live music, and video in paying homage to 1968, the year INDA was formed and a year when a gallon of gasoline cost 34 cents and a loaf of bread cost 22 cents. The anniversary welcome reception enabled INDA to express appreciation for the continuous support from its members and commit to continuing its mission to advance the success of the nonwovens and engineered fabrics industry and its members.

IDEA 2022 will be held March 28-31, 2022, again at the Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach.

Posted April 5, 2019

Source: INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry

LONDON — April 5, 2019 — Reinventing a product as well-known as the tampon is a bold move. Add the taboo of menstruation and you have a serious challenge on your hands. But Callaly, the creators of the Tampliner® — an innovative combination of a tampon and pantyliner — have risen to that challenge, and the hard work is already paying off. The British company has just won an IDEA Product Achievement Award for the best new disposable product utilising engineered fabrics in the past three years. The win was presented by INDA, a global nonwovens fabric association, in Miami Beach, Fla., at its triennial global conference, which is attended by more than 7,000 industry professionals.

The news comes hot on the heels of Callaly’s INDA Hygienix Innovation Award win last October. In November 2018 the British startup also won a prestigious 1 million pound loan from Innovate UK, the UK government body that helps innovative businesses scale up and commercialise new technologies. And in March 2019 Callaly CEO Thang Vo-Ta was named one of only 10 “People’s Champions” in the annual Sunday Times Maserati 100 innovative entrepreneurs list — more evidence that Callaly is one to watch this year.

The Tampliner was originally invented by gynaecologist Alex Hooi and developed by Ewa Radziwon, a garment technologist with 10 years’ experience in the fashion industry. Alex made the first functioning Tampliner, and Ewa perfected and tested the design for five years prior to the product’s initial soft-launch in early 2018. Alex and Ewa were helped on their mission by co-founder Thang, who brought the first-of-its-kind product to mass market via a monthly subscription model. The Callaly team has since grown to 14 people, all passionate about providing better, more innovative products to people with periods and putting an end to common problems like leaking, inflexible buying options and a lack of quality organic cotton products on the market.

Callaly is a certified B Corp, meaning it’s committed to using business as a force for good. It has supplied over 100,000 period products to charities including Bloody Good Period and The Red Box Project, which work to eradicate period poverty and bust the menstruation taboo. In 2018 Callaly also donated more than 6 percent of sales to Days for Girls, an international charity that provides girls living in poverty with reusable period products. Through its marketing, communications and social media content, Callaly is playing a leading role in changing the conversation around periods, prompting open discussion and awareness, and demanding higher standards for femcare products across the board.

Speaking about the latest win, CEO and co-founder Thang Vo-Ta, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have won a second prestigious award within a matter of months. The first award last year was a fantastic achievement, so winning two is just a huge honor. We’d like to thank INDA and the industry professionals from over 600 companies who voted for us. Femcare products have traditionally been seen as a taboo topic of conversation, so every win for us also feels like a small step forward for people with periods.

“Innovation is at the heart of everything we do, and the positive feedback we’ve had from our customers shows that, by questioning the way things have been done before and inventing something better, we can make a real impact on people’s lives. We’re excited to see what the future holds when we launch our full product range this summer.”

Posted April 5, 2019

Source: Calla Lily Personal Care Ltd.