SCHRAMBERG, Germany — March 22, 2017 — Modern single cylinder hosiery machines are able to produce socks in excellent quality and with high production rates. The quality of the knitted product depends heavily on the quality of the used needles. Kern-Liebers Textile offers high quality needles for virtually all machines, which are used for the production of socks. For example needles from Kern-Liebers meet the OEM specifications of the global market leader Lonati. They fulfill highest demands in terms of quality, are highly flexible, and have perfect surface integrity and rounding. The high quality of the needles results in a trouble-free operation of the hosiery machine.
In addition Kern-Liebers also offers a comprehensive product range of machine parts, e.g. sinkers, transfer jacks, selectors, cylinder bars, and various others. Some of the parts are partially hardened in areas, which are subject to heavy strain, for example the butt of selectors. Many years of experience in stamping technology enables the company to produce technically demanding parts, for example sophisticated transfer jack forms. Most of the parts have been developed in close co-operation with leading machine manufacturers.
With its huge range of products KKern-Liebers is one of the leading suppliers for the textile industry. Customers are machine manufacturers as well as textile manufacturers. Worldwide sales and support is guaranteed through the international network of subsidiaries and representations in over 80 countries covering all major textile markets around the globe.
Kern-Liebers offers a comprehensive portfolio of needles and sinkers for single cylinder sock machines. The needles and machine parts meet Lonati’s OEM specifications.
MÖNCHENGLADBACH, Germany — March 22, 2017 — On cards and draw frames, sliver levelling and sliver quality monitoring are standard. Why not on the comber? Toyota-Truetzschler asked the same question and carried out corresponding developments.
TCO 12 – the only comber with leveling system
The Toyota-Truetzschler Comber TCO 12 is the only comber with integrated leveling system. This is made possible by the multi drive concept. The combed slivers are permanently monitored and the main draft in the drafting system is accordingly adapted. Thus, sliver count deviations due to differences in lap weight do not stand a chance.
TCO 12 – The only comber with quality monitoring
The quality sensor of the leveling system also supplies the signal for permanent quality monitoring of sliver evenness. The results are displayed in form of graphs and spectrograms on the large touch screen.
TCO 12 – The only comber with automatic piecing optimization
Correct setting of the piecing is a tedious process and requires a lot of time, know-how and laboratory capacity.
On the Toyota-Truetzschler Comber TCO 12 all it takes is the push of a button. The machine automatically checks the area around the set value and evaluates the sliver quality. After just a few minutes the machine determines at which setting the optimal sliver evenness and a clean spectrogram is achieved.
TC 12 and T-DATA
Of course it is also possible to transmit all quality data of the TCO 12 to the higher-level data monitoring and management system T-DATA. Here they are also available for long-term analyses.
JEFFERSON, Ga. — March 22, 2017 — Switzerland-based Hermann Bühler AG has successfully completed the sale of its US subsidiary, Buhler Quality Yarns Corp., to South Korean Samil Spinning Co. Ltd., as of March 20, 2017. The transaction is structured as an 100-percent all-cash share-deal, with a final closing expected by the end of April 2017. Both companies have agreed not to disclose further details of the transaction.
As a key player in the North American yarn market, and with a well-established international distribution network, Buhler Quality Yarns will provide Samil Spinning a Western Hemisphere manufacturing base via Buhler’s spinning facility in Jefferson, Ga. This highly valuable strategic addition broadens Samil Spinning’s global footprint, further establishing its business in the U.S. market and increasing its client portfolio. Samil will build on Buhler’s full product portfolio through targeted investments in the Jefferson facility.
This issue, Textile World is focused on technical textiles with a tip-of-the-hat to the excitement swirling around the upcoming Techtextils. The industry has two opportunities to experience technical textiles with Techtextil 2017 in Frankfurt, Germany — to be held May 9-12 — and Techtextil North America — to be held June 20-22 in Chicago. This issue includes a preview of the Frankfurt event and the North American event will be previewed in TW’s May/June issue.
TW editors focused on preparing articles that would profile the more technical sectors of the industry — composites, filtration, wearable electronics, an interview with Kimberly Clark’s Robert Martin, and more.
Even if your career is more traditional textiles focused, attending Techtextil might be worth consideration. Over the years, traditional textile manufacturers have taken the plunge into these new markets and actually innovated with their knowledge on tradition textile manufacturing. Denim companies have addressed more technical applications, spinners have expanded into nonwovens, knitters have pursued medical and other applications — examples abound.
“Technical textiles rank among the most important forces of growth in the textile sector,”stated Olaf Schmidt, vice president, Textile and Textile Technologies, Techtextil organizer Messe Frankfurt.
An early look at show registration supports that view.
On another front, TW‘s editors would like to thank the National Council of Textile Organizations for sharing Inman Mills Chairman and CEO Robert “Rob” H. Chapman’s view on the future of U.S. textiles. He presents an interesting thesis on how the industry survived tough times through innovation and, in his words, “has a bright future.”
Chapman is the fourth generation of the Chapman family to operate Inman Mills, which was founded in 1901 — his opinion has a strong frame of reference.
To that end, it appears there is optimism in the textile industry. This optimism seems to be in response to the promises of the new administration in Washington. Although, privately, there is confusion over the unintended consequences of change — whether that is changes in trade law, taxes or regulation. But the confidence seems rooted in the president’s commitment to domestic manufacturing. That recognition, and having an ex-textile executive Wilbur Ross confirmed as Secretary of Commerce, is well received.
In a televised Bloomberg interview cited in “Business Insider,” Ross stated, ”We are in a trade war, we’ve been in one for decades. That’s why we have the deficit.”
For those who have invested to leverage existing trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA-DR, renegotiations of these agreements will impact those investments. It is hard currently to get a sense of positive verses negative effects any renegotiations may cause.
A focus on bilateral trade agreements will demand study, and ideas like border taxes and addressing currency manipulation also will change the game. For some manufacturers, change may call for adjustments, but in the longer term, playing on more level playing is a new and novel factor for the industry to deal with … imagine that!
Springs Window Fashions LLC, Middleton, Wis., has acquired window covering product manufacturers Mariak Industries Inc., Rancho Dominguez, Calif., and its affiliated company Houston-based Patrician Window Coverings. The newly-acquired companies will continue to be led by president Leo Elinson. Mariak will maintain its Rancho Dominguez, Calif., location, while Patrician recently moved to a new Webster, Texas, address.
“Leo Elinson and the Mariak team have built a tremendous business, with a 30-year track record of high-quality craftsmanship, extensive product selection and competitive pricing,” said Scott Fawcett, president and CEO, Springs. “We look forward to building on Mariak’s successful go-to market strategy over the long-term and are excited to welcome Mariak and Patrician to the Springs family.”
“The natural synergy, collaboration, and support that will be created from a partnership with Springs will allow Mariak and Patrician to grow exponentially, while maintaining our successful business model of providing the highest quality of product craftsmanship, competitive pricing, and prompt delivery,” said Leo Elinson. “We look forward to this new partnership with great enthusiasm and excitement.”
Duquesne, Pa.-based bedding producer American Textile Co. reports it will open a state-of-the-art warehouse and distribution facility in Tifton, Ga., later this year. The company has experienced high growth this past year, and the new facility will more than double shipping capacity in order to keep up with customer demand from both e-commerce and
traditional retail areas.
The company also recently expanded capacity at its Dallas and Salt Lake City locations, and currently employs more than 1,100 people globally.
“Demand for sleep products has climbed steadily over the past decade, but what’s shifted even more rapidly is the growth in e-commerce sales, which drove over 40 percent of all retail sales growth in 2016,” said Lance Ruttenberg, president and CEO. “We have strategically expanded our physical footprint and logistics capabilities to keep pace with the on-demand, online economy that requires new capabilities, while also expanding infrastructure to support the significant growth in our traditional retail channels.
Wichita, Kan.-based Invista has retained the services of Goldman Sachs & Co. to help the company explore strategic alternatives for its Apparel & Advanced Textiles business. Details about the process will be kept confidential, but Invista reports options include selling the business, or keeping the business as part of the Invista portfolio. The business includes such brands as Lycra® and Coolmax® fiber.
“A key element of our Market-Based Management® business philosophy is to continuously assess the external value of our assets against our internal value to make sure that the asset is owned by the company that values it most highly,” said Jeff Gentry, Invista chairman and CEO. “The apparel business is a strategic part of our portfolio — we are extremely pleased with the results of the business and remain confident in its continued and future success. We are simply considering all available options. In the event that no other company values the business more than we do, we will gladly hold the business and continue to invest for the future.”
The stance of yarn spinners and fabric knitters and weavers has changed on trade issues over the past several decades. “Our industry was dismantled piece-by-piece for many years by unfavorable trade agreements that created a flood of cheap imports that we just couldn’t compete with,” said one spinner. However, he said, the industry responded by increasing production efficiency, focusing on customer service and fast delivery, and developing aggressive export strategies of its own. “Our primary domestic customers at the time were cut-and-sew shops, and they were closing at a rapid rate — to the point where, today, they have all but disappeared. We had to reinvent ourselves or close up shop.”
Today, however, it is not the trade agreements themselves that draw the most ire from U.S. textile leaders, but rather their enforcement. “As our reach has become more global, the view many of us have about trade has changed,” said one spinner. “We have the capability to compete favorably with just about anyone, as long as everyone plays by the rules. The problem is that, in many instances, we are the only ones playing fair.” He cited, as an example, a report from the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) that indicated up to a third of denim jeans that claim NAFTA origin actually may be made using Chinese fabric.
In response, Congress in early 2016 passed “The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015,” which increases enforcement activities across multiple fronts. “This is a big step in the right direction,” said one spinner. “Now let’s see how aggressively it is applied.”
Trade Wars Looming?
A cornerstone of U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda is the review and possible reconstruction of how the United States trades with other nations. Trump has made no secret of his preference for bilateral agreements over those such as the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which he has promised to renegotiate to provide a more competitive advantage for U.S. companies.
He has threatened, for example, to impose heavy tariffs on Mexican products. And Mexico has promised to retaliate, placing higher tariffs on U.S. goods or replacing them with products from other countries.
NAFTA isn’t the only target of the administration. China has been called out as well, and Chinese officials, like those in Mexico, have promised retribution if action is taken.
“It is possible, if we don’t tread lightly, that we are looking at a potential trade war,” said a general business analyst. “If that happens, virtually everyone loses, especially the U.S. consumer, who will end up paying higher prices for both imported products and those produced at home. We certainly want agreements that enhance the competitive position of U.S. companies, but those agreements must be fair across the board.”
Currency Manipulation
Trade disparity is, however, no longer the primary impediment to the prosperity of the U.S. industry, according to many industry experts. From an NCTO report: “Countries that trade with the U.S. and manipulate currency cause trade deficits that interrupt trade flows by inflating the cost of U.S. exports, deflating the cost of U.S. imports and in turn displace U.S. jobs.”
“Currency manipulation has a significant detrimental effect,” said one industry expert.” Indeed, according to data from the Economic Policy Institute, an estimated 2.4 million U.S. jobs were lost between 2001 and 2008 because of currency manipulation by China. From the NCTO report: “While the Chinese government is the most widely known government to manipulate its currency, many countries wishing to engage in international trade with the U.S. maintain artificially low currencies.” The report noted that Japan, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia also are known currency manipulators.
“When you look at how strong the dollar has been over the past few years, and then take into consideration that the currencies of some countries are artificially deflated, it makes U.S. goods incredibly expensive in comparison,” said one yarn seller. “A significant portion of our production is now exported, so it has a profound effect. But it has an effect at home, too, because imported goods, in relation, are cheaper than ever.”
Whether the issue is trade or currency manipulation, U.S. producers seem to always be fighting an uphill battle. Said one spinner: “We are looking for that one thing we never seem to have — a level playing field.”
Trade shows return to Frankfurt for the fourth concurrent event
TW Special Report
Germany-based show organizer Messe Frankfurt GmbH reported some four months before collocated shows Techtextil 2017 and Texprocess 2017 were scheduled to open their doors that exhibitors had booked more space than in previous editions. The fourth combined event will be held May 9-12, 2017, at the Messe Frankfurt fairgrounds in Frankfurt. The steady growth of both shows, but especially the newer Texprocess show, confirms the importance of these events to the global textile community.
“Technical textiles rank among the most important driving forces of growth in the textile sector,” said Olaf Schmidt, vice president, Textiles and Textile Technologies, Messe Frankfurt. “The fact that so many companies have already registered for Techtextil 2017 is an indication of how dynamically the sector is developing.
“The large number of registrations shows that Texprocess has successfully carved out a place for itself in the market as the leading international platform of its kind,” Schmidt added. “Texprocess offers the full spectrum of new software solutions, as well as processes and technologies for garment and leather manufacturing. Moreover, the 2017 edition will cover more themes than ever before.”
Techtextil
In 2017, Messe Frankfurt has partnered with the European Space Agency (ESA) and German Aerospace Centre — Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR). Under the theme, “Living in Space,” Techtextil will illustrate the wide range of technical textiles applicable to the aerospace industry.
“We are branching out in completely new directions with this year’s Techtextil and are, therefore, all the more delighted about the outstanding resonance of our exhibitors,” Schmidt said. “Furthermore, the fact that we have gained strong new partners, ESA and DLR, from one of the main areas of application for technical textiles represents solid evidence of the application relevance of the products and technologies shown at Techtextil.”
Hall 6.1 will house a “Living in Space” exhibition featuring a wide range of technical textile and functional apparel products used in the aerospace industry manufactured by both Techtextil and Texprocess exhibitors. In addition, visitors will be able to participate in a virtual reality journey through space to Mars to learn how technical textiles will aid in the future development of space travel and colonization of nearby planets.
“The technical-textile sector offers the textile solutions needed to move around and survive in space,” said Michael Jänecke, director, Brand Management Technical Textiles & Textile Processing, Messe Frankfurt. “This is what we will show in a professional, and at the same time, entertaining way on a dedicated area at the trade fair. For visitors, the area will offer inspiration and orientation.”
In addition, Hall 6.1 will have an “Innovation Made in Germany” area hosted by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy that will highlight young and innovative companies based in Germany.
In 2017, show organizers have decided to concentrate bonding and separating technology; cutting, making and trimming (CMT); CAD/CAM; and printing product segments together in Texprocess Hall 4.0. Techtextil exhibitors participating in these areas now will be found in the Texprocess hall and the product groups will be removed from the Techtextil offerings.
Traditionally, Techtextil organizes the exhibits into 11 different product groups: research, development, planning and consultancy; technology, processes and accessories; fibers and yarns; woven fabrics, laid webs, braids and knitted fabrics; nonwovens; coated textiles; composites; Bondtec; functional apparel textiles; associations; and publishers.
In addition, past show participants are familiar with Techtextil’s classification system for the exhibits, which are organized according to 12 application areas:
Agrotech — horticulture and landscape, gardening, agriculture, forestry and animal husbandry;
Buildtech — membrane construction, lightweight and solid structures, civil engineering, industrial construction, temporary constructions, interior construction, earthworks, hydraulic engineering and road construction, and agriculture construction;
Clothtech — functional apparel, clothing and shoes;
Geotech — road construction, civil engineering, and dam and waste site construction;
Mobiltech — cars, ships, aircraft, railway and space travel;
Oekotech — environmental protection, recycling and waste disposal;
Packtech — packaging, protective covering systems, sacks, big bags and container systems;
Protech — personal safety and property protections; and
Sporttech — sport and leisure, activewear, outdoor equipment, sports equipment and outfits, and sports footwear.
The application areas are illustrated by graphic icons displayed on exhibitor booths. Show organizers report the icons help visitors find the suppliers they need in an efficient manner.
Events associated with Techtextil include the 19th Techtextil Symposium, the Techtextil Innovation Award 2017 and the Student Competition.
The symposium will be held in Hall 4.0 in the Saal Europa. Messe Frankfurt has put together a comprehensive group of experts who will focus their presentations on new developments, trends and potential areas of application for technical textiles and nonwovens. Topics include new fibers and textiles, circular economy and sustainability, health and protection, smart textiles, and composites. For the first time, the symposium also will offer a discussion period following the lectures to allow for an active exchange of ideas.
An awards ceremony will be held on May 9 at 10 a.m. to recognize winners of the Techtextil Innovation Award 2017, which “honors outstanding ideas and future-oriented developments in the field of technical textiles, nonwovens and functional apparel textiles,” according to Messe Frankfurt. The recipients are selected by an international jury of experts, and all award-winning projects will be displayed in a special exhibit area of the show.
The 14th Student Competition, “Textile Structures for New Building 2017,” asked students from civil engineering, product design and related disciplines to submit building designs featuring textiles or textile-reinforced materials. The competition is supported by Architonic, Tenisnet and University of Stuttgart (ILEK). Prize money totaling 8,000 euros will be awarded to winners during an official ceremony during the first day of the show.
Innovative Apparel Show Returns
After its successful debut in 2015, the Innovative Apparel Show will return to showcase the synergies between Techtextil and Texprocess. Each day of the show, international colleges of fashion and design will present their creations live on stage. The designs — presented in Textile Effects, Creative Engineering and Smart Fashion categories — will highlight the possibilities for technical textiles created using modern processing techniques. Four schools were selected for the Apparel Show in 2017 — Paris-based Esmod, Portugal-based ESAD College of Art and Design, Italy-based Accademia Italiana and Germany-based Hochschule Trier.
Texprocess 2015
Texprocess, the International Trade Show for Processing Textile and Flexible Materials, will showcase the latest machines, plants, processes and services for the garments manufacturing and textile processing industry. This year, digital printing will play a predominant role in Texprocess. In conjunction with well-known industry representatives, Messe Frankfurt will present a Digital Textile Micro Factory exhibit that will demonstrate the digital production chain from design and digital printing to cutting and garment production — all live and on site.
In addition, a dedicated series of presentations at the Texprocess Forum will focus on digital printing. Visitors to Texprocess also will have the opportunity to participate in the first European Digital Textile Conference, a complementary program that will be held on Wednesday. As of TW’s press time, the digital printing agenda was still in the planning stages. More up-to-date information is available at the show’s website.
Texprocess covers 20 product groups that encompass the entire value creation chain: CAD/CAM and product development; production preparation and organization; cutting, making and trimming (CMT); fusing, setting and manufacturing preparation; textile machinery; textile finishing; knitting technology; embroidery technology; stitching, joining and fastening technology, automation technology; stitching, joining and fastening materials, technical accessories for garment, house and home textiles; product processing and finishing; energy, air conditioning, disposal and recycling; quality control; internal material flow; textile logistics; information technology; services, consultancy and training; and media; research, development and training; and sourcing.
In addition to the Texprocess Forum, special events associated with the show include IT@Texprocess and Texprocess Innovation Award.
Both shows are open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. May 9-11, and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on May 12.
For more information about Techtextil 2017 and Texprocess 2017, please visit techtextil.com and texprocess.com.
