NEW YORK CITY— April 14, 2017 — Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP advised the initial purchasers in the inaugural $320 million high yield offering of 8.875 percent Senior Notes due 2022 by Mexico-based Grupo Kaltex S.A. de C.V., a vertically-integrated textile company and one of the largest textile companies in the world.

This transaction represents the debut Rule 144A and Regulation S bond issuance by Grupo Kaltex S.A. de C.V., and the first high-yield dollar-denominated Mexican corporate issuance since the US presidential election.

The Milbank team was led by Capital Markets partner Carlos Albarracín along with associates Andres Osornio, Alex Gefter, and Gonzalo Guitart, and included partner Andrew Walker and associate Jules Mugema from Milbank’s Tax Group.

Albarracín said: “We are pleased to be participate with Mexico-based issuers on their high-yield offering.  The Kaltex bond offering is the first dollar-denominated corporate issuance after the US elections and one of few high-yield offerings by Mexican issuers completed over the past three years. We hope this paves the way for more similar high-yield offerings from Mexico to follow.”

Milbank has one of the longest tenures of any U.S. law firm doing business in Mexico since the 1920s and the firm consistently represents clients in market-leading transactions.

Posted April 14, 2017

Source: Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — April 14, 2017 — UniFirst Corp. has widened its lead among multi-location uniform service companies in achieving Hygienically Clean Food Safety certifications, with 17 facilities now having earned the designation. The most recently certified UniFirst laundries are in Vancouver, Canada; Titusville, Fla.; and Whippany N.J.

This achievement reflects UniFirst’s commitment to best management practices (BMPs) in laundering as verified by third-party on-site inspection and their capability to produce hygienically clean textiles as quantified by ongoing microbial testing.

The certification confirms a laundry’s dedication to compliance and processing garments and other textile products using BMPs as described in its quality assurance documentation, the focal point for TRSA inspectors’ evaluation of critical control points that minimize risk.

This process eliminates subjectivity by focusing on outcomes and results that verify textiles cleaned in these facilities meet appropriate hygienically clean standards and BMPs for servicing animal processing, dairies, fruit/vegetable, bakeries, grain and other food and beverage industry segments.

UniFirst’s Hygienically Clean Food Safety certified facilities, besides the three newest designees, are located in Stockton and Ontario; Stratford, Conn.; Tampa, Fla.; Albany, Ga.; Boston, Mass.; Landover, Md.; Charlotte and Kernersville, N.C.; Lebanon and Nashua, N.H.; Tulsa, Ok.; Amarillo, Texas; and Richmond, Va.

The TRSA Hygienically Clean Food Safety protocol examines a laundry’s Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) practices, including its techniques for:

• Conducting hazard analysis
• Determining CCPs, monitoring their control, correcting them if not under control
• Validating and verifying HACCP system effectiveness
• Documenting and record-keeping to show ongoing conformance

Inspection and re-inspection verify laundry practices including washing procedures (detergent formulas, temperature, disinfectant, pH, extraction), drying, garment inspection and transportation. Each certified laundry plant’s operational flowchart is evaluated, ensuring these procedures (as well as pickup, unloading and sorting of soiled items and sorting of clean laundry) are mapped. Employees’ use of personal protective equipment is documented.

Inspectors also evaluate practices relevant to handling and processing textile products used in food manufacturing/processing establishments for adherence to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) directives.

“More and more, we’re seeing our customers in food-related industries looking for third-party validation that our specialized Product Protection Process and our hygienically clean standards are consistent with HACCP and GFSI guidelines,” said Adam Soreff, director of marketing and communications at UniFirst, based near Boston. “Working with a Hygienically Clean Food Safety certified laundry helps reassure them that their managed uniform program is working in concert with their own food safety protocols to help them ensure food safety for consumers.”

Posted April 14, 2017

Source: TRSA

ZÜRICH, Switzerland — April 13, 2017 — Switzerland’s textile machinery suppliers, organized by the national association Swissmem, held a two-day symposium in Cairo in early April. The objective was to strengthen the already well-established industrial ties between Egypt and Switzerland and to initiate a major step towards the revival of the Egyptian textile manufacturing sector.

Egyptian cotton is known worldwide for its quality and strength in applications such as shirts and bedsheets, its heritage dating back to the time of the Pharaohs. In the land of the Pyramids, the area around Giza also lends its name to some of the finest cotton varieties which are grown there.

Textile production, using both local and imported cotton, is a vital contributor to Egypt’s economy, ranking behind only tourism and Suez Canal revenues in the generation of income. But the textile sector’s performance and potential is being held back by financial constraints, rooted in the serious economic downturn of recent years and the accompanying severe devaluation of the Egyptian Pound.

Political instability since the revolution of 2011 drove away both tourists and overseas investors. And it has thus far hampered much-needed investment in new technology by the textile industry — so that its resurgence is now overdue.

Switzerland’s textile machinery suppliers, organised by the national association Swissmem, have now initiated a major step towards revival of Egyptian textile manufacturing, with a highly-successful two-day symposium held April 4-5, 2017, in Cairo. A total of 13 association member companies presented their latest machines and systems to an audience of 400, including representatives of the major textile producers from the private and public sectors, as well as delegates from various universities and research institutes.

As the first of the European textile machinery-producing countries to plan an event of this type, Switzerland recognizes the enormous potential for renewal of Egypt’s textile sector. The devaluations, while making Egyptian goods theoretically more attractive in export markets, have also seriously impacted on the cost and accessibility to Egypt’s textile companies of new production technology from the major producers.

The Swissmem symposium addressed this issue head-on, with direct offers of assistance in the key area of financing capital imports. Ernesto Maurer, Swissmem president, told the symposium: “Switzerland is ready to support Egypt in its striving to re-connect with the worldwide textile community.” He was referring to difficulties in accessing foreign exchange funds and the high costs associated with this, which have been a major obstacle to Egyptian companies seeking to renew their equipment and take up new technology.

“Funds need to be created prior to new investments, and here the Swiss textile machinery companies can help,” he said. “Sometimes, it is also the case that service and upgrade of existing equipment can be easier to achieve than complete renewal.”

Symposium participants heard a detailed explanation of export risk insurance and financing, presented by Fabian Brunschwiler, of SERV (Swiss Export Risk Insurance). His comments attracted significant attention, especially in relation to the assertion that Egypt was not yet making full use of the export finance facilities available from Switzerland.

Swiss textile machinery producers enjoyed strong export sales to Egypt in the years up to 2013, but the country’s economic and political woes since then have seen shipments decline to only 20% of previous levels. Now, as Egyptian textile manufacturers exhibit an eagerness to expand their markets, improve production capability and product quality, Swissmem is optimistic that it can offer both the financial and technological solutions they require.

Said Ernesto Maurer: “We are very confident that Egypt will find a way back to its previous position of strength, and its leading role in the world of high quality fabrics. The Egyptian cotton brand ‘Giza 100’ once stood as a synonym for quality in textile raw materials. Now, our Swiss textile machinery industry is an enthusiastic partner in facilitating and stimulating this revival.”

The 13 Swissmem companies taking part in the symposium were: Luwa, Amsler Tex, Heberlein, SSM Schärer Schweiter Mettler, Saurer (Embroidery), Rieter Components (Bräcker, Graf, Nobibra and Süssen), Stäubli, Jakob Müller, Retech, Loepfe, Maag, Benninger, and Santex-Rimar.

Posted April 13, 2017

Source: Swissmem