U.S. Federal agency EXIM offers financial products that empower U.S. companies to compete with foreign competitors and win more international sales.

By James Burrows

Textile and apparel companies across the United States are benefiting from exporting; it’s a great means of boosting the bottom line and growing a business. According to the Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations, the United States’ exports of textiles and apparel accounted for $28.6 billion worth of economic activity in 2017.

Exports have played a major role in pulling the U.S. economy out of recession, and it’s not just the major corporations that benefitted. The U.S. Department of Commerce reports small and medium-sized businesses with fewer than 500 employees represent almost 98 percent of U.S. exporters.

Exporting offers plenty of benefits and opportunities, including:

• Accessing more consumers and businesses — If a company is only doing business domestically, it may be limiting its potential profits by not expanding worldwide. It can also help in offloading excess production.
• Lowering unit costs — Exports help to put idle production capacity to work and improve efficiency.
• Spreading risk through geographic diversification — Exporting has parallels to a stock portfolio. When the domestic economy falters, the company may rely on other growing markets. Exporting can also minimize the effect of seasonal sales and prolong the sales cycle.
• Expanding the lifecycle of mature products — If the U.S. market is saturated with a company’s products, they can be sold in other parts of the world.

Savvy and strategic managers in the textile industry are boosting revenue by targeting the 95 percent of world consumers living outside the United States. They sell their wares across the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) areas, as well as in Asian and European markets.

While exporting is not new, many small businesses and corporate executives are still reluctant to sell overseas, or may be selling to just one or two markets they are comfortable with. Oftentimes, this is because exporting is perceived to be too burdensome or risky. Naturally, there are some complexities that come from exporting, including financial risk. Since there is little recourse for American exporters if overseas customers do not pay for goods already shipped, it is easy to understand why getting paid is the primary concern of U.S. companies selling goods and services into international markets. The good news is that help is available.

Selling On Open Account

There is an excellent solution to this concern of buyer nonpayment: the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM). EXIM, a U.S. federal government agency, offers financial products that empower U.S. companies to compete with foreign competitors — many of whom have similar backing by their home governments — and win more international sales.

EXIM’s export credit insurance is a popular product among U.S. exporters. The insurance policy protects foreign accounts receivable generated by the sale of goods and services from U.S.-based companies to international customers. The policy covers up to 95 percent of the sales invoice against nonpayment due to commercial — bankruptcy and protracted default for example — and political — such as war or insurgency — risks.

Export credit insurance also improves textile companies’ competitiveness in the world market. While many American exporting companies resort to cash in advance to avoid nonpayment risk, most foreign competitors are able to offer open account credit terms, which are significantly more attractive to potential buyers. They expect credit terms and companies that are unable to extend credit may lose out on valuable opportunities.

Export credit insurance empowers U.S. businesses to negotiate credit terms — typically in 30, 60 or 90 days — with foreign buyers up front, which is a powerful marketing tool and can be the competitive edge that wins deals. EXIM can cover a company’s entire portfolio of customers or a single buyer.

In addition to reducing the risk of nonpayment and offering open account credit terms to foreign buyers, EXIM’s export credit insurance can enhance a company’s borrowing capacity by assigning now secured foreign receivables to a lender, improving liquidity and easing cash flow constraints.

EXIM Customer Stories

Between 2015 and 2017, EXIM has supported more than $253 million in exports of U.S. textiles and apparel to international markets, ensuring that American textile and apparel products can be worn around the world.

The agency’s support is available to businesses of all sizes. In fact, small businesses comprise 91 percent of EXIM’s total authorizations, and no transaction is too small.

Textile and apparel companies have used EXIM insurance to a great effect.

Northfield, Vt.-based Darn Tough Vermont, a Cabot Hosiery Mills brand, already was exporting and offering its distributors 30-day open account credit terms, but two things were on their minds — inklings of potential problems with payment from one international source, and an upcoming trade conference to discuss deals with new distributors.

With the protection of EXIM’s export credit insurance, Darn Tough Vermont representatives were able to negotiate payment terms with new international distributors, secure in the knowledge that the receivables were insured against nonpayment and covered for commercial and political risks. In addition, export credit insurance bought the management team peace of mind, knowing they had decreased the risk of payment problems from a potentially shaky partner.

“Thanks to EXIM’s excellent export insurance program, Darn Tough Vermont is well on its way to achieving its goal of worldwide brand recognition and substantial growth in international markets,” said Steve Kelley, Darn Tough CFO.

Jefferson, Ga.-based Buhler Quality Yarns Corp. sells cotton yarns to Central America, and its product can be found in Lacoste™ polo shirts, T-shirts, and other clothing. The company needed to find other avenues of providing payment terms to new companies beyond requiring cash in advance. EXIM export credit insurance allowed the company to sell on open account credit terms and cover the risks in emerging markets. “EXIM allows us flexibility to go after business in international markets,” said David Sasso, International sales manager, Buhler Quality Yarns Corp. “EXIM understands companies and empowers them to have continued growth.”

Ben Kaufman Sales Co. a distributor of towels and apparel to Caribbean countries, also has benefitted from EXIM support. With an EXIM export credit insurance policy, Ben Kaufman Sales mitigated the risk of nonpayment and eased the company’s initial concern about expanding into riskier international markets. Its foreign accounts are protected from potential losses that could result from an international business deal gone awry. As a result, exports now account for 20 percent of the company’s sales.

EXIM can help companies of all sizes boost sales while protecting financial assets. Contact EXIM to learn more.

Editor’s note: James Burrows is EXIM’s senior vice president, Office of Small Business. He has more than 30 years of professional experience in both the public and private sectors of the financial services industry, including commercial banking, retail banking and investment banking.
For more information, visit exim.gov or e-mail exporthelp@exim.gov.

September/October 2018

As advanced technologies continue to evolve from ancient textile methodologies, a broader assortment of opportunities unfolds.

By Jim Kaufmann, Technical Editor

Anyone making a cursory inquiry into the intriguing world of 3D textiles will find that the sector embraces a rather nebulous term leading to an untold number of different routes and a wide array of opportunities. A quick Google search of 3D fabrics, for example, results in somewhere around 325 million hits, which include 3D versions of everything from traditional wovens and knits to nonwovens and non-traditional prints, not to mention an exponentially diverse list of applications, some obvious and others not so much so. An immediate thought surrounding this growing interest is that engineers are finally becoming significantly more comfortable with and accepting of 3D textiles in dynamic performance-based applications. At the same time, product designers continue to become even more adept at creating fabrics or maybe more appropriately fibrous materials, which exhibit these specific technical, visual and/or tactile requirements.

Versatility and clearly defined performance attributes continue to be the prime drivers for interest in 3D textiles. Given that virtually all textile manufacturing technologies can be adapted or modified in some way to create 3D textiles, the breadth of applications is truly almost endless.

3D Weaving, 3D Braiding

3D weaving and 3D braiding continue to see interest and find applications mostly in the composites field, where the emphasis remains on replacing steel in order to achieve weight reduction. According to Dr. Keith Sharp, new product development manager for 3D Weaving at Portland, Maine-based Tex Tech Industries: “3D wovens in composites are perfect for replacing steel. You can weave billets or near net-shape preforms that can be molded into exacting shapes with intricate designs, which saves not only weight, but labor in manufacturing and potentially increases long term reliability as well. There are many applications now, but the LEAP jet engine fan blades that Albany International is 3D weaving are probably the biggest example of this.”

The ability to control fiber placement and tailor yarn paths in order to achieve specific performance profiles is also reflected in the LEAP engine module. According to Albany International’s website, LEAP offers the following benefits:

• “Composite fan module (comprised of blades, platforms, spacers and fan case) is 300 pounds lighter compared to equivalent metallic components per engine;
• Can achieve composite blade geometries that are challenging to produce with titanium;
• Higher impact resistance and lower weight than laminated composite alternatives.”

Interest in 3D woven composites is driving new equipment innovations as machinery manufacturers are becoming more active in the 3D sector. Historically, 3D weaving machines either were highly modified versions of traditional 2D weaving machines, or were custom purpose-built one-offs with specific product concepts in mind. Over the past few years, Switzerland-based Stäubli Group, known for its jacquard warp shed control systems, introduced its technical fabric weaving system — a heavy-duty weaving machine derived with a modular design that when mated to its jacquards or Unival warp shedding control systems, provides incredible flexibility of product design along with the manufacturing capability to produce it.

Not to be outdone, Germany-based Lindauer Dornier — widely known for producing weaving machines for technical, industrial and performance fabrics — recently introduced a collection of products targeted directly at the composites industry. Its Composites Systems now include a machine explicitly designed for weaving 3D preforms. The suite also includes a spread tow unidirectional tape line and machines specifically for weaving rovings and spread tow tapes.

3D Knitting

Recent articles found on websites Gizmodo.com and ZDnet.com make for excellent examples of just how impactful 3D textiles have become. The first article on Gizmodo by Julian Goldman proclaims, “The Future is Knit: Why the Ancient Art of Knitting is High-Tech Again.” The second article on ZDnet by Greg Nichols touts, “The High Tech Science Behind 3D Knitting (yes knitting!).” Both articles focus on the advent of 3D or shaped weft knitting and the control of dimensionality found in knit structures, but not inherent to wovens, along with improvements made in the user interface leading to more effective and efficient knit product designs. 3D knitting offers not only product design aspects — you program the machine, load the yarn and out comes a full garment — it also creates the potential for incorporating wearable electronics into fully fashioned knit products, some of which have already made it to market. Cambridge, Mass.-based Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA), a non-profit institute headquartered near the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was established through federal funding to advance the use of textile technologies into integrated and networked devices and systems. As part of this effort, AFFOA is focusing on the effectiveness of 3D knitting to create complex shapes. Yoel Fink, AFFOA’s CEO and a professor of material sciences and electrical engineering at MIT, was quoted in Goldman’s article stating: “You’re no longer going to pay for the shirt. You’re going to pay for what that shirt does for you. You pay for the service and you get the fabric.” Certainly a different way of looking at textiles of the future.

Not to be outdone by its weft knitting cousin, 3D warp knit spacer fabric manufacturers including Hauppauge, N.Y.-based Gehring Textiles Corp. and Apex Mills, Inwood, N.Y., continue to advance the technology’s versatility in new and exciting ways for applications ranging from fashion to seating and bedding, along with other areas where conformability, filling voids, increasing air flow and additional engineering parameters remain desirable.

3D Nonwovens And Additive Manufacturing — 3D Printing

In the grand scheme of things, at least from a textile perspective, it can be argued that 3D printing — which continues to gain interest and attention across many areas — is essentially a more precise version of spunbond nonwovens where polymer is extruded onto a collecting belt or platform where it bonds together, creating a defined structure. The only real difference is that spunbonds typically have a random orientation and bonding pattern, while 3D prints are extruded in precise layers at specific locations. But regardless of whether you believe 3D printing is an extension of textile manufacturing methodologies or not, it has certainly become the it technology and a media darling of recent years.

Originally viewed by many as a way of creating incredibly intricate shapes and novel gizmos, 3D printing now is prophesied as a solution for just about every manufacturing opportunity or shortcoming. The perception, or maybe significance, circling around 3D printing is that it literally seems to imply that if you can conceive it, 3D printing can make it. 3D printing initially found acceptance in rapid prototyping where detailed and exacting one off pieces could be produced, concepts could be explored and theories could be evaluated. As the technology has progressed and generated more interest, new and advanced polymer systems have been developed that include variations for printing “metals,” adding fibrous media as reinforcements and improving the layer to layer integrity of the 3D-printed structure. In conjunction with advancements in the media or inputs used, the size, scope, complexity and consistency of 3D printers also have improved greatly. Over the last several years, 3D printers have grown from primarily being desktop models able to produce at most a cubic foot sized piece — still a core competency — to metal 3D printers as big as a bus with the potential for even larger versions not very far off.

3D printing now is seen as a valid manufacturing technology, particularly where mass customization is preferred or for products that are overly complex, limiting or restricting their process ability via traditional manufacturing methodologies. The advantages continue to be product design possibilities aligned with simplifying the overall manufacturing of complex parts, reducing production time and reducing labor content. This combined with the relatively small footprint needed and increasing reliability of the inputs and resultant products produced present vast opportunities for generating replacement parts in-house instead of dealing with OEM’s and parts suppliers, especially on difficult to reach areas, even for overnight delivery services, like ocean-going ships or even future space travelers.

As the technology continues to advance and scale into more cost-effective, larger-scale productions, potential applications will only continue to grow exponentially. Unfortunately, there’s not enough room here to discuss those applications because there’s an even more intriguing new category on the horizon.

4D Textiles?

While researching for this article, a longtime friend Dr. Chris Pastore, professor of Transdisciplinary Studies at Jefferson University and Fulbright Specialist, asked, “Why aren’t you including 4D textiles in this update?” Researchers at places like MIT, Harvard, Aachen University and Jefferson University, among others, are exploring the possibility of combining textiles and other programmable materials with 3D printing in astounding ways. The term 4D printing is said to be coined several years ago by Skyler Tibbits, director of the Self-Assembly Lab at MIT and a Jefferson University alumni, by incorporating the dimension of time to that of length, width and depth for these structures.

As Dr. Pastore explained: “Wouldn’t it be interesting to combine the flexibility and elasticity of textile materials with the rigid polymer structures of 3D printing to create systems that when you add heat or some other actuator to transform them, they change from two-dimensional structures into complex three-dimensional structures? Or maybe if you were to incorporate shape memory polymers in the 3D print structure, then it’s possible that with activation the object can result in a totally different configuration. Think of the possibility of taking flat textile material then 3D printing a grid over it which can then be activated later. At a later time, you apply an actuator to the flat configuration and it self deploys into a tent. If you think about it, the potential for 4D textiles is tremendous!”

Yes, this concept might cause one to think a bit too much, but several interesting video examples can be found on YouTube that show flat 3D printed structures changing into a different shape. The most famous of these videos shows a seemingly straight line of polymer magically transforming into the initials MIT.

While 4D textiles are still in their relative infancy, they offer yet further evidence that 3D textiles indeed represent a vast opportunity to those with a bit of imagination and some knowledge of the ancient, yet continually advancing technology known as textiles.

September/October 2018

INDA offers a look at the nonwoven filter media market.

TW Special Report

Filtration — a separation process using a filter medium — has become so important that you can find it almost everywhere in your life. The Cary, N.C.-based Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA), in its triennial North American Nonwovens Industry Outlook report, attempts to quantify the nonwoven filter media used in the many, many filtration processes.

The filtration market is a diverse one with seemingly endless categories. Filters allow us to cleanse the air we breathe and purify the water we drink. Filtration in the food and beverage industry removes impurities and extends the shelf life of the products we consume. Medical filters can safeguard sterile environments like operating rooms by keeping out harmful pathogens and bacteria. Filters in vehicles make them more efficient. These needs, along with government regulations and environmental concerns, have put the filtration market on a path of continued growth.

The Materials

Filters are constructed with filter media that can be either paper, woven including woven metal, nonwoven including glass fibers, microporous membranes, or a combination/hybrid of media. Nonwoven fabrics typically add backup support and/or mechanical strength to the comparatively thin and fragile polymer-based membranes that are produced by directly coating onto the carrier material’s surface.

Nonwovens are well suited to the filtration market because the fabric can specifically be engineered to provide the precise porosity and flow rate needed for the particular filtering application. Nonwoven media are different sizes and shapes; may be perforated, folded, pleated or fluted; and may be used in pleated tubes for tube filters and in cartridge filters. Filter media are manufactured from all of the nonwovens processes — airlaid, drylaid, spunmelt including spunbond and meltblown, and wetlaid — from a variety of materials.

In addition to filtering, nonwovens can be engineered to offer benefits for many applications, including the removal of a wide range of contaminants, a uniform structure, tear and puncture resistance, chemical resistance, high retention capacities, high air permeability, excellent abrasion resistance, flame retardancy, the absorption of fats and oils, a high level of flow capacity, and high tensile strength.

The Market

The filtration market is the most diversified of all the nonwoven end-use categories, with more than 30 major market segments. Nonwoven filter needs vary in size from four story filter houses with up to 1,800 filters down to tiny blood filters.

There are numerous drivers affecting nonwoven filter media demand. The over-arching megatrends are demands for purer air and cleaner water, which are both the subjects of ever-more stringent legislation.

Over the past few years, there has been a steadily increasing demand for improved air quality, particularly indoors, whether in private, public or industrial areas. Emissions may come from a variety of sources, such as gases from interior materials, particles which enter a room via the external air supply or processes running within the room. Further complicating factors may be the small size of a room, too many people in the room and the restricted availability of fresh air.

Consumers are increasingly aware of the potential health and aesthetic benefits of water and air treatment systems, and are becoming more willing to invest in these products to improve the environment inside their homes. Media reports about water and air contamination affect consumer perception about local water or air quality and thereby drive sales.

Increasing Demand

Economic and population growth will increase demand, which will require increased production and increases in manufacturing efficiency for industrial products, foods and beverages, and transportation. All of which means an increase in the need for filtration media. As the housing recovery strengthens and consumer spending activity continues to improve, so will consumer spending on water and air treatment systems. Rising home sales will also drive sales, since many consumers purchase or upgrade water and air treatment systems once they move into a new home. As the economy strengthens, consumers should return to replacing their existing filter products closer to the recommended replacement periods. Continued trends toward the incorporation of smart features and complementary monitoring devices indicating filter replacement time and toward specialized, industry-specific filtration media will support unit growth.

The further strength of the manufacturing and industrial sectors, specifically the power generation and hydrocarbon processing segments, will boost filtration demand as well. As manufacturers look to streamline their manufacturing processes, filtration of resources is increasingly being viewed as a way to boost efficiency and reduce carbon footprints.

Nonwoven filter media is used for the filtration of engine air, cabin air, oil and fuel. The increasing demand for vehicles is projected to continue through the forecast period, which in turn, will create the requirement for nonwoven filter media. Better economic situation and shift in lifestyle along with the rising consumer confidence have resulted in the increasing demand for new, fuel-efficient, and technologically advanced cars. Additionally, the easy availability of financing options is also driving people to invest in cars. This will fuel the growth of the automotive industry which is identified to be one of the primary factors driving the growth of this market.

Increased Regulation

Another driver of the industry is new legislation and regulatory controls increasing at local, state and national levels. Enforcement of these regulations by the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies has increased the demand for products that limit emissions and has increased demand for products that protect people from the effect of emissions. Relatively comprehensive environmental regulations in the United States and Canada continue to drive filter use designed to promote air and water quality.

The market for nonwovens in filtration media is also growing — because of more economical and better performing nonwoven media — by taking share from woven and paper-based filter media.

Nonwoven Material Developments

These drivers and developments have resulted in the North American filtration market consuming an ever greater amount of nonwoven material — 3.1 million square meters, weighing 371,000 metric tons, in 2016. This is an increase of 3 percent annually in square meters and 3.8 percent in metric tons from 2011. The filtration market is forecast to consume 3.6 million square meters, weighing 445,000 metric tons, in 2021 — an annual increase of 3.1 percent and 3.7 percent respectively.

There have been technological advancements in developing new and innovative filter media over the past few years to meet all these demands, some of which were driven by government regulations. Nonwoven producers continually work to improve the efficiency — the ratio of particles trapped by media over total particles upstream of media — of filter media which enhances the removal capability of both particulate and chemical contaminant. This has resulted in filter manufacturers increasing the range of spunmelt nonwoven materials, incorporating nanofiber layers or coatings, using fibers with integrated functional additives in nonwoven filter constructions, and developing hybrid fiber/material composite materials — all while optimizing the media structure and element configuration by computational modeling.

This is in addition to the ever-present demand of sustainability, both in terms of lower energy consumption and renewable raw materials and in the development of economically and ecologically effective disposal/recycling solutions for filters and filtration residue.

Editor’s note: This article was published courtesy of INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry. The Cary, N.C.-based organization serves hundreds of member companies in the nonwovens/engineered fabrics industry in global commerce. Since 1968, INDA events have helped members connect, learn, innovate, and develop their businesses. INDA educational courses, market data, test methods, consultancy, and issue advocacy help members succeed by providing them the information they need to better plan and execute their business strategies. For more information on the filtration sector and analysis of the supply and demand balance in the nonwovens industry, contact Brad Kalil, director of market research and statistics, bkalil@inda.org. For more information on INDA, visit www.inda.org, or download the INDA mobile app for immediate updates.

September/October 2018