HONG KONG — May 28, 2015 —  The Autumn Edition of the world’s largest apparel fabrics and accessories fair – Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – is now less than five months away, and is already on target to exceed last year’s exhibition space. Located at the new and larger National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the fair will cover around 200,000 sqm (2014: 170,000) and is expected to attract some 4,000 exhibitors (2014: 3,844 from 30 countries and regions) from 13 – 15 October.
 
Following the success of March’s Spring Edition at the same venue where the visitor figure rose 56%, the fair’s organisers are confident that the Autumn Edition will be just as beneficial for exhibitors. Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd, commented: “Despite some logistical issues due to our first time at this fairground, on balance the fair in March was a strong success due to the new venue attracting a lot more quality trade buyers. This was due to a few reasons, including the closer proximity of the fairground to nearby textile manufacturing hubs, but also the three concurrent fairs: Yarn Expo, CHIC and PH Value. In particular, the co-location of the CHIC fashion garment fair for the first time resulted in a large increase in big-name Chinese fashion brands sourcing from Intertextile Shanghai exhibitors, and we predict this will be even more prevalent in October as the fairs are held concurrently for the second time.”
 
SalonEurope, Asian pavilions and product zones ensure extensive sourcing choice
 
As the apparel fabrics and accessories industry’s largest trade fair, buyers have a huge selection to choose from no matter their quality or price requirements. At the high end of the market, SalonEurope caters to those looking for premium and niche products. The Milano Unica Pavilion continues to be a strong attraction for buyers in SalonEurope, with a two-year extension signed in March ensuring their participation at the fair into the future. In addition, pavilions from Germany, Portugal and Turkey also feature here.
 
Bringing more diversity to the product line up, particularly in terms of innovation, are country and region pavilions from India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Thailand. While these pavilions help buyers to source based on the product’s origin, a number of product zones allow buyers to discover the latest developments within certain product segments. In recent editions, a large focus of the fair has been creating these zones based on the market’s current and future demand to benefit both exhibitors and buyers. This year sees the return of the Premium Wool Zone, Verve for Design and All About Sustainability, while entire halls are once again dedicated to Beyond Denim and accessories. Plus a functional fabrics zone will also feature for the first time.
 
Fringe programme and four concurrent events cover entire textile supply chain
 
Thanks to a huge range of concurrent fairs and fringe programme events, Shanghai will be the centre of the global textile industry in October. With three well-established concurrent fairs taking place in the same venue – Yarn Expo Autumn, CHIC and PH Value – the entire textile supply chain is now covered, and has already shown at the Spring Edition the strong synergy effects for both exhibitors and visitors this brings. What’s more, on day 2 of the fair (14th October) Planet Textiles 2015: The Sustainable Textile Event will take place, featuring some of the industry’s foremost experts as speakers.
 
Fairgoers can also discover the latest trends and gain market updates through the fair’s fringe programme. This includes the Intertextile Directions Trend Forum, Fabrics China Trend Forums, China International Fabrics Design & Fabrics Creation Competition, and a wide range of seminars and product presentations.
 
In further news the fair’s organisers have decided, after consulting with exhibitors and buyers, that this year’s edition will take place over three days instead of 3.5 days as in the past.
 
Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Autumn Edition 2015 is co-organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; and the China Textile Information Centre.

Posted June 8, 2015

Source: Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd.
 

STOCKHOLM, Sweden — May 27, 2015 — Atlas Copco, an industrial group with world-leading positions in sustainable productivity solutions, was recently recognized for its climate initiatives, including its goals to impact emissions through energy efficient products and to decrease the carbon footprint of its operations, during the United Nations’ Business and Climate Summit held in May in Paris, France.

The UN Business and Climate Summit is a unique forum for business and government leaders to demonstrate innovative and ambitious strategies that combat climate change. The purpose of the Summit is to identify solutions and forward-thinking strategies with the potential for global impact ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference in December 2015.

“We have long been committed to sustainable business practices not only because it makes good business sense, but because it positively impacts the environment, the industry and our customers,” said Jim Levitt, president, Atlas Copco North America LLC. “We are honored that the UN has recognized our efforts to reduce our carbon footprint through innovative and energy efficient products and operations.”

Atlas Copco’s energy-saving products include variable speed drive (VSD) compressors, representing one of the most energy-efficient compressor designs in the industry since its introduction in 1994. Fitted with an intelligent drive system, a VSD compressor continuously changes the motor speed to match air demand and eliminates the compressor running in an unloaded state. This simple concept yields significant energy and cost savings; customers can achieve average energy savings of 35 to 50 percent and an average 22 to 37 percent reduction in life cycle cost.

Earlier this year, Atlas Copco was ranked 23rd among the 2015 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World index – a list presented at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The company was also listed first overall in the machinery industry.

Posted June 8, 2015

Source: Atlas Copco
 

WASHINGTON — May 12, 2015 — The number of facilities certified to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) grew by more than 18 percent last year, from 3085 facilities in 2013 to 3663 facilities in 2014. GOTS is recognized worldwide as the leading processing standard for textiles made from organic fibers. GOTS certified facilities are now located in 64 countries around the world. Growth is evenly spread across all market segments including the mass market and the big brands. GOTS certification enables consumers to purchase items that are certified organic from field to finished product. Seven representatives worldwide (China, Japan, EU, Germany/Austria/ Switzerland, India/Bangladesh, UK, USA/Canada) are driving the increase in the awareness of certification to GOTS.
 
Countries with the greatest increase in GOTS certification in 2014 are (in rank order) are: India (+338), Bangladesh (+89), Germany (+32), Turkey (+21) and China (+18).
 
The Top Fifteen countries in terms of the total number of GOTS-certified facilities are: India, Turkey, Germany, China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Italy, South Korea, Portugal, Japan, France, USA, UK, Austria, and Hong Kong. The growth rate of GOTS certified facilities particularly in India, Bangladesh, Turkey, and China demonstrates that the pull effect on the supply chain continues to be strong.
 
“The growth in certifications demonstrates that GOTS has become the standard of choice for brands and retailers to efficiently manage their organic fiber supply chains,” says Claudia Kersten, GOTS Marketing Director. “Certification to GOTS also demonstrates a company’s commitment to sustainability through third party and independent GOTS certification and reference to GOTS on product labels instead of self-claims.”
 
“GOTS has considerably strengthened its widespread global acceptance as a tool that enables and monitors sustainable production worldwide,” adds Herbert Ladwig, GOTS Managing Director. “This is also confirmed by the support of governments and worldwide institutions such as the endorsement by IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements), including the recommendation to governments not to start development of redundant standards and regulations, but rather to make reference to GOTS as the processing standard for organic labelled textiles.”
 
According to the Organic Trade Association’s recent Organic Industry Survey, the market for organic textiles is the most rapidly growing non-food organic category in the U.S., growing to $1.1 billion in sales in 2014. The sector grew 18 percent in 2014, its strongest growth since 2009. Much of this growth is the result of the 2011 US Department of Agriculture policy requiring companies labeling their textiles as “organic” to certify their products to the U.S. organic food standard or GOTS, as well as grocery retailers urging their suppliers to become certified to GOTS.
 
Indeed, the number of companies in the U.S. gaining certification in 2014 increased 20 percent over 2013 and included: Burt’s Bees Baby™, Boll & Branch, IMM Group, Loomstate, Maggie’s Organics, MetaWear, Michael Stars, Organics and More, Portico, Synergy Organic Clothing, Under the Canopy, PACT Apparel, Welspun, and Xamax. The companies make a wide array of products, from apparel for babies through women/men, to beds and bedding, and personal care products.
 
Labelling Guide for GOTS 4.0 released
On 01 March 2015, GOTS released a new edition of the Licensing and Labelling Guide addressing changes made in the latest version (4.0) of GOTS. It includes detailed explanation for the correct on-product and off-product logo application and GOTS referencing especially for traders and retailers. In particular, the guide explains where and when GOTS labelling and referencing is not permitted in order to prevent possible misinterpretation and misuse.

Posted June 1, 2015

Source: GOTS