INVISTA Invests In Camden Facility For Expanded Specialty Fiber Capacity

WICHITA, Kan. — May 8, 2017 — INVISTA is investing more than $65 million in state-of-the-art fiber production equipment at its Camden, S.C., facility. This investment will expand capacity of Nylon 6,6 fiber used in a diverse range of applications.

Importantly, this investment will significantly increase domestic US capacity of high-tenacity, specialty fibers used in CORDURA® fabrics. These durable fabrics offer valuable solutions in military applications such as bags, backpacks and ballistic vest carriers as well as a wide variety of commercial end-uses from hiking boots to hunting gear, workwear to motorcycle, and many other outdoor and lifestyle apparel and equipment products. The new assets will also be capable of manufacturing bulked continuous filament and high-quality fibers for airbags and industrial sewing threads.

According to Jeff Brown, Executive Vice President, Invista Performance Materials division, “This investment is utilizing a combination of patented and proprietary technology with flexibility such as solution dyeing which enables increased innovation opportunities around fiber properties and performance and creates a strong platform for our future growth.”

This latest investment shows an ongoing commitment by Invista to provide its domestic and global customers with differentiated, value added products manufactured by state-of-the-art equipment.

Camden is an ideal location being situated in the heart of the textile industry. “As Invista’s largest integrated nylon polymer and fiber producing facility, this site offers an ideal footprint for reinvesting in high performance solutions for the markets we serve,” says Brown.

Posted May 8, 2017

Source: Invista

Gerber Appoints Mohit Uberoi CEO; Mike Elia Joins Board And Retires From Company

TOLLAND, Conn. — May 4, 2017 — Gerber Technology today announced the appointment of a new CEO, Mohit Uberoi, to succeed retiring Mike Elia effective Friday, May 5. Elia will join Gerber Technology’s Board of Directors continuing to provide leadership and on going counsel.

“Working with the Gerber team has been a tremendous honor,” said Elia. “I am proud of what our global team has accomplished and I look forward to serving Gerber and Mohit as a Board member.”

“We thank Mike for his vision and the success he has brought to Gerber,” said Eric Baroyan, AIP Partner. “Mohit will be a great addition to the Gerber management team and will carry out the strategic vision set in place when AIP acquired Gerber.”

“I am inspired to join a company that has a long standing history of innovation dating back to its founder, Joseph Gerber. Joining an industry leading company, that is financially strong with innovative product roadmaps driven by customer insight, is truly a blessing,” said Mohit Uberoi. “My vision for Gerber is to continue to help customers Embrace Their Digital Reality with products that accelerate speed to market.”

Prior to joining Gerber, Mohit has served as President and CEO of Goss International and B&W MEGTEC. He has a proven track record of guiding companies to achieve their strategic initiatives, driving technology solutions, building great management teams, and creating value for all stakeholders. Mohit has also worked in research and new business development for W.R. Grace & Co., a diversified industrial conglomerate. Mohit earned a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology before moving to the U.S. to pursue his doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Arizona.

Posted May 5, 2017

Source: Gerber Technology

DyStar Sets Up New Texanlab To Drive Sustainability In Textile Industry

SINGAPORE — May 5, 2017 — On April 21, 2017, Texanlab Laboratories Pvt. Ltd. — a DyStar Group company — opened its third state of the art and technologically advanced laboratory at Tirupur (Tamilnadu), a town in South India famous for knitwear exports and known as Manchester of India. It is also a popular destination chosen by European and American retailers for buying various knitted products like t-shirts.

Posted May 5, 2017

Source: DyStar

AmeriPride St. Cloud Laundry Receives Hygienically Clean Certification

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — May 5, 2017 — AmeriPride Services Inc., St. Cloud, Minn., has earned Hygienically Clean Food Safety certification, reflecting their commitment to best management practices (BMPs) in laundering as verified by on-site inspection and their capability to produce hygienically clean textiles as quantified by ongoing microbial testing.

The certification confirms the laundry’s dedication to compliance and processing garments and linens using BMPs as described in its quality assurance documentation, the focal point for nspectors’ evaluation of critical control points (CCPs) that minimize risk. The independent, third-party inspection must confirm essential evidence that:

  • Employees are properly trained and protected
  • Managers understand legal requirements
  • OSHA-compliant
  • Physical plant operates effectively

In addition, the AmeriPride facility passed three rounds of outcome-based microbial testing, indicating that their processes are producing Hygienically Clean garments and linens and zero presence of harmful bacteria. To maintain their certification, laundry plants must pass quarterly testing to ensure that as laundry conditions change, such as water quality, textile fabric composition and wash chemistry, laundered product quality is consistently maintained.

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 animal processing, dairies, fruit/vegetable, bakeries, grain and other food and beverage industry segments.

The St. Cloud facility is the second in the AmeriPride chain to receive the Hygienically Clean Food Safety certification; the company’s Fresno, Calif. laundry earned the designation earlier this year. Hygienically Clean Healthcare certification, for serving hospitals, surgery centers, medical offices, nursing homes and other medical facilities, was previously awarded to 11 of the company’s U.S. locations: Little Rock, Ark.; Phoenix; Watkinsville, Ga.; Topeka, Kan.; Bemidji, Minneapolis and Twin Falls, Minn.; Springfield, Mo.; Omaha, Neb.; Memphis, Tenn.; and Lubbock, Texas. The company’s Canadian Linen and Uniform Service facility in Lethbridge, Alberta, is also Hygienically Clean Healthcare certified.

Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) practices are examined in the Hygienically Clean Food Safety inspection process, evaluating the plant’s 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

On-site inspections 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. Introduced in 2014, Hygienically Clean Food Safety brought to North America the international cleanliness standards for laundering garments and other textile products for food manufacturing used worldwide by the Certification Association for Professional Textile Services and the European Committee for Standardization.

Posted May 5, 2017

Source: TRSA

Dr. Mike Fralix To Work With Softwear Automation As A Technology Evangelist To Accelerate The Deployment Of Sewbots™

ATLANTA — May 5, 2017 — SoftWear Automation Inc., an Atlanta-based machine-vision robotics firm, today announced that Dr. Mike Fralix will be working with the company as a Technology Evangelist. Leveraging Dr. Fralix’s industry experience demonstrates SoftWear Automation’s continuing focus on creating and expanding autonomous Sewbot™ worklines for the sewn products industry.

Fralix, who holds a Doctorate in Technology Management, is the current President and CEO of Textile Clothing Technology Corporation [TC]2 and he will continue in that position while working with SoftWear Automation. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the AAFA (American Apparel and Footwear Association) and brings decades of experience in apparel manufacturing, including research and development, operations management, and corporate management. Fralix will champion SoftWear’s Sewbots™ onto the factory floor while helping to identify key partners that will support and enable more local manufacturing.

“Mike brings a remarkable amount of industry knowledge and expertise,” said Raj Rajan, Chairman and CEO of SoftWear Automation. “We’re thrilled to have him evangelize our technology to help redesign the textile and apparel industry supply chain.”

“The sewn products industry is ripe for innovation, and SoftWear Automation is perfectly positioned as a leader in this space,” said Dr. Fralix. “I’m excited to join the team at this rapid stage of its growth. This is a fantastic opportunity to help lead the adoption of SoftWear’s unique robots in a market I know so well.”

SoftWear Automation’s Sewbots™ are currently commercially deployed in the home goods and automotive sectors. With Sewbots™ produced goods currently on retail shelves globally, SoftWear is committed to disrupting, in a positive way, the $100 billion sewn products industry. Sewbots™, fully autonomous sewing worklines, allow companies to SEWLOCAL™, geographically shortening the distance between consumers and manufacturers.

An internationally recognized speaker, Dr. Fralix offers expertise on a variety of topics, including 3D product development, sizing for fit, production scheduling, industrial engineering, ergonomics, full package production, simulation, lean manufacturing systems, sustainable technologies, and the digital supply chain. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics and Philosophy from North Carolina State University, a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Duke University, and a Doctorate in Textile Technology Management from North Carolina State University, where he was appointed an Adjunct Associate Professor in 2009. He is also active in several industry organizations including the International Apparel Federation, where he serves as a member of the Board and Chairman of the Technical Committee.

Posted May 5, 2017

Source: SoftWear Automation

Twitchell Technical Products, A Portfolio Company Of Highlander Partners, Acquires The Quantum Group

DOTHAN, Ala. — May 3, 2017 — Highlander Partners’ portfolio company Twitchell Technical Products, a specialty materials company focused on engineered polymer fabrics and coated films, today announced that its parent company acquired The Quantum Group, a leading manufacturer and innovator of unique yarns and high-performance woven fabrics to the furniture, construction, recreational, industrial, healthcare, automotive and airline industries.

Founded in 1985, Quantum is a vertically integrated yarn and fabric manufacturer with expertise in mono- and multi-filament yarns and possessing extensive yarn preparation processes, including warping, texturizing and twisting fibers, producing a wide variety of engineered performance characteristics, patterns and textures.  Examples of these creations include fabrics with unique performance characteristics for a wide range of uses like the Pellicle® fabric for the iconic Herman Miller Aeron chair and the roof fabric in use today on Centre Court at the Wimbledon Tennis Center.

Quantum’s facilities, located in Colfax, North Carolina, are ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified and all of the Company’s products are manufactured in the USA.

Founder Jeff Bruner, who started the business to provide unique technical solutions that were not achievable by other textile companies, will remain with Quantum as General Manager, is a continuing shareholder and will join the Twitchell management team as Chief Technology Officer.

“I am pleased to be joining forces with the people and business of Twitchell to continue Quantum’s focus on innovation and growth as we leverage our combined technologies into new and exciting products,” said Jeff Bruner.

“We are thrilled about the addition of Quantum’s technology, products, customers and people to our growing platform of technology driven specialty materials,” said Jeff Register, Twitchell’s Chief Executive Officer. “The acquisition of Quantum expands our reach into complementary categories and strengthens Twitchell’s technological expertise and strategic positioning.  Like Twitchell, Quantum takes a customer-centric approach, providing customers with leading-edge fabric technology, superior service and customized solutions, and the two organizations are a great cultural fit. We are looking forward to partnering with Jeff Bruner, a recognized leader in the industry, and his team and continuing Quantum’s culture of innovation.”

Mike Nicolais, Chairman of Twitchell and CEO of Highlander Partners, commented, “The addition of Quantum is another example of Highlander’s ongoing strategy of executing strategic add-on acquisitions that expand our portfolio companies’ product offerings and market share. This is our second acquisition in the last twelve months and Twitchell is well positioned to continue supplementing its organic growth with M&A opportunities. We are excited about this combination and we are fully committed to continue our strategy of building a leading specialty materials company.”

Regions Bank, as Administrative Agent, along with a syndicate of participating lenders, provided senior financing for the transaction.

Posted May 4, 2017

Source: Highlander Partners

Techtextil 2017 Exhibitor Preview: Radicigroup

BERGAMO, Italy — May 4, 2017 — Countless products for technical and industrial applications delivered by a sole source provider, a Group capable of meeting diverse market demands and requirements. The yarns and nonwovens produced by RadiciGroup Synthetic Fibres and Nonwovens Business Area ensure the reliability, performance, technical content and sustainability of the final products realized by its customers.

At Techtextil 2017, RadiciGroup presents its top products and latest solutions for technical applications in a variety of industries, such as automotive, apparel, furnishings, construction, sport, and outdoor (Hall 4.1, Stand C68).

“Today RadiciGroup is the only European industrial group that has the capability to control the production process in its entirety, from chemicals to synthetic fibres and engineering plastics, including end-of-life recycling,” stressed Maurizio Radici, vice president of RadiciGroup. “Synergistic vertical integration, especially in our polyamide production process (with a 200,000-ton-per-year production capacity) is one of the Group’s main strong points, and we proudly claim it is an added value for our customers.”

Polyamide yarn and staple yarn, polyester continuous filament and polypropylene nonwovens are the leading players at the Techtextil RadiciGroup stand. Particular prominence is given to the sustainable versions of these products and to improved technical characteristics, which have been made possible by

production plants recently put into, or soon to be, in operation to widen the product range. At its Selbitz site in Germany, RadiciGroup has invested EUR 3 million to develop and produce both household and industrial products for the abrasive sector, as well as felts for the industrial sector (dorix® teck). In Italy, a bico technology production line for the manufacture of spunbond is due to become operational by the end of 2017 and will increase total production capacity by 50%.
The automotive sector is one of the main target markets for RadiciGroup technical textiles. As explained more in detail in the last issue of Voices corporate magazine, the Group product ranges include Raditeck® Double Six (high- tenacity PA 66 yarn, mostly used for car airbags and tyre reinforcement), and Radifloor®
Automotive (solution-dyed PA 66 yarn for car carpeting and polyester yarn for automotive interior applications). This broad yarn offering is complemented by numerous types of engineering plastics from the RadiciGroup Performance Plastics Business Area, ideal for the manufacture of structural plastic cabin components with high mechanical performance specifications.

RadiciGroup’s strengths also include being the number two European polyester producer, recognized for the quality, innovation and sustainability of its yarns: over 24,000 tons of product and about EUR 70 million in sales revenue. Additionally, the Group has focused more and more on the production of yarn obtained from post-consumer recycled polymers (PET bottles), for which RadiciGroup can provide UNI 11505 certification attesting to the full traceability of the recycled material (r-Radyarn® and r-Starlight®). Within this context, RadiciGroup has numerous on-going projects in collaboration with renowned names in the outdoor and sport apparel industries with the aim of achieving concrete sustainability for the entire value chain.

May 4, 2017

Source: RadiciGroup

AMSilk Strengthens Team And Product Competence In The Biosteel® Fiber Business Unit

PLANEGG, Germany — May 4, 2017 — AMSilk GmbH, the world’s first industrial supplier of synthetic silk biopolymers has further expanded its Fiber Business Unit: Since the beginning of April, Martin Lankes supports the Biosteel® fiber development team as Senior Product Manager Fiber Business in a technical and market-related way to bring the protein-based silk fiber to the next development stage. The aim of AMSilk is to develop market-ready products together with selected leading brands and partners and to set new standards in the fiber industry. This includes the continuous improvement of the Biosteel® fiber as well as the definition of product requirements and defined quality characteristics.

With more than 20 years of professional experience, Martin Lankes is an experienced textile engineer and product manager. After his start in the development department at Patagonia he subsequently worked for several years in trade marketing with Helly Hansen. Following, he was with W.L. Gore & Associates for over 9 years as Product Specialist for Gore-Tex® and Windstopper, before Lankes was appointed Senior Product Developer to the adidas Innovations team. Over the past four years, Lankes has rebuilt the GENTIC brand as a brand manager at Skylotec.

Regarding his new job at AMSilk GmbH, Martin Lankes explained: “AMSilk GmbH has a unique product and is the only biotech company in the world to produce the Biosteel® fiber in large quantities. I am particularly fascinated by the many different Biosteel applications and I’m looking forward to helping to further develop and market the Biosteel high-performance fiber.

Severin Bertsch, Head of Fiber Business at AMSilk, added: “We are delighted to have won with Martin Lankes an engineer with such extensive experience and competence that will help to shape and implement the ambitious goals of AMSilk in the future. With his know-how in the fields of international textile value chain, innovation and product management, as well as the development of product standards, he will further advance our high-quality performance products”.

Posted May 4, 2017

Source: AMSilk GmbH

Trützschler And Voith Introduce New Safety Standard For Wet-Laid Spunlaced Nonwovens Machinery

EGELSBACH, Germany — May 4, 2017 — In the shape of standard VN 3260/TN 0790, Voith Paper and Trützschler Nonwovens have developed a new safety standard for wet-laid spunlaced (WLS) Nonwovens machines. The standard will help producers of Nonwovens to ensure safe and reliable operation of their machines. It also provides the basic prerequisite for meeting expectations in respect of production and quality:

  • Basis for safe production of Nonwovens;
  • Combination of proven standards for paper and textile machines; and
  • Standardization process by ISO initiated.

Voith and Trützschler jointly developed the manufacturing process for wet-laid and hydroentangled Nonwovens. The machines on which the materials are produced consist partly of paper machine components and partly of components from Nonwoven machines. The manufacturing process for wet-laid Nonwovens is similar to that for producing paper: A suspension consisting of water and fibers up to 40 mm long is passed over a wire on which a homogeneous fiber mat forms. The hydroentangling or spunlacing process produces bonded Nonwovens that can be textured if required. Drying and winding of the Nonwovens are done on other machine components.

The newly developed standard combines various Voith and Trützschler safety standards for paper and textile machines in a new document and thus defines the safety requirements for new hybrid machines.

The safety standard has already been incorporated by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as the basis for developing an international standard, so as to achieve greater impact at global level.

Posted May 4, 2017

Source: Trützschler Nonwovens

ITMA 2019 Enhances Index Of Products To Facilitate Collaboration And Sourcing

BRUSSELS — May 4,2017 — Exhibition space application for ITMA 2019, the world’s largest textile and garment technology exhibition, opens today. The exhibition, which has been held every four years since 1951, showcases the entire textile and garment making manufacturing chain, as well as raw materials.

As the most established industry exhibition, ITMA’s owner, CEMATEX – the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers – constantly reviews its index of products to ensure its relevance and continuously improve visitor experience.

Fritz P. Mayer, president of CEMATEX, explained: “A core value of ITMA is to be relevant to the textile and garment making industry and end-users. As such, we are always exploring new ways to reinvent and to make our platform vital to all stakeholders by offering an integrated sourcing experience. More importantly, during every ITMA, manufacturers are able to have meaningful discussions with their partners and customers on innovative ideas that offer users a competitive advantage.”

At ITMA 2011 a new fibre and yarn sector was introduced, and this was favourably received by visitors who could source their raw materials at the show.  Due to the favourable response received from fibre and yarn exhibitors and visitors at the last two ITMA shows, ITMA 2019 will include woven, nonwoven and knitted fabrics in the fibre and yarn exhibit sector. In addition, digital and screen printing inks have been classified in the printing chapter. This will allow ink producers to be in the same hall as printing machinery manufacturers so that visitors can easily source technology and consumables. A new service introduced for the benefit of machinery buyers is leasing and financing services, according to ITMA Services, the organiser of ITMA 2019.

Mr A. E. Roberts, managing director of ITMA Services, commented, “We have taken a comprehensive approach in ensuring the index of products will be extremely useful to manufacturers as the global business environment remains challenging. The launch of ITMA 2019 space application has been eagerly awaited by textile machinery manufacturers and raw material producers. We have received a lot of enquiries from past exhibitors and interested manufacturers who have not taken part in ITMA before. This augurs well for ITMA 2019 and the industry can look forward to another strong industry platform.”

Mr Han Bekke, president of International Apparel Federation, said: “ITMA is a very established textile machinery exhibition but over the years, the exhibition show profile has evolved in keeping with industry trends and challenges. It now features the entire textile and garment making production chain, including raw materials.

“Hence, our IAF members which represent the world’s leading brands and apparel makers find it an excellent sourcing platform. As we look for innovative solutions to offer consumers exciting products made in a sustainable way, we are glad to be able to explore new materials and technologies in one location at ITMA 2019.”

ITMA 2019 will be held from 20 to 26 June at Fira de Barcelona, Gran Via venue. Interested participants can visit www.itma.comto apply for space or get more information on the sector allocation plan, exhibition schedule and travel arrangements.

Mr Jordi Galtés, president of AMEC AMTEX, the Spanish Association of Textile Machinery Manufacturers, enthused: “We are excited to be hosting ITMA again. Participants had a good experience in 2011 and we hope to replicate it again in 2019. Spain is home to some of the most famous luxury and fast fashion brands and an interesting destination for all in the textile, garment and fashion industry.”

The last ITMA exhibition, held in Milan in 2015, featured exhibits from the entire textile and garment making value chain spread over 108,268 square metres of net exhibition space. It drew the participation of 1,691 exhibitors from 46 countries and visitorship of almost 123,000 from 147 countries.

Posted May 4,2017

Source: CEMATEX & ITMA Services

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