DALTON, Ga. — August 22, 2013 — Scott Humphrey, president and CEO of the World Floor Covering
Association (WFCA) will serve as MC for the FloorTek Expo VIP Breakfast on Tuesday, September 10 at
7:30 am. Mr. Humphrey was with Shaw Industries for 24 years as head of its dealer-aligned network
program prior to his appointment as head of the 3,000+ member flooring organization in April of
this year.

 

“I’m a big fan of FloorTek Expo because it supports the design, manufacturing and technology
side of our industry from the hub of it all – Dalton, Georgia,” said Mr. Humphrey. “I’m looking
forward to introducing (HGTV star and designer) Vern Yip as the keynote speaker at the breakfast
and spending time at the show.”

 

Exhibitors can still get tickets for the VIP Breakfast by contacting the American
Floorcovering Alliance office at 706-278-4101.

 

Attendees may contact exhibitors for tickets to the VIP Breakfast and can register for the
show at Floor-Tek.com. FloorTek Expo will be held September 10-12 at the NorthGeorgia Trade &
Convention Center in Dalton, Georgia.

Posted August 27, 2013

Source: FloorTek Expo

NEUMÜNSTER, Gremany —  August 22, 2013 — At this year’s Floor Tek Expo — being held in Dalton,
Georgia USA, between September 10 and 12 — Oerlikon Neumag will be showcasing solutions for the
efficient production of BCF carpet yarns (Booth 135).

When applying hot-melt adhesives, the focus lies above all on the evenness of the
application. However, The focus on information will be on the BCF S+ system. The three-end S+
combines the advantages of the established S5 and Sytec One machines in a high performance,
efficient and user-friendly plant with proven components. As the successor of the state-of-the-art
S5, the S+ convinces with an efficiency of 99% and thus cost savings for raw material. The S+
achieves highest yarn qualities with a productivity increase and with virtually the same utilized
energy.

Since 2012, the S+ has also been available for the polyester process. This is an important
innovation considering that, polyester is globally becoming increasingly significant in the BCF
process vis-à-vis polypropylene and polyamide.

With continuous development efforts and industry feedback, Oerlikon Neumag focuses on
improvements on the machines, the components and the processes. “This knowledge is applied in new
solutions for an improved performance in BCF”, Michael Rübenhagen, Sales Director BCF, explains
Oerlikon Neumag’s market share in excess of 70% worldwide by the fact that Oerlikon Neumag was able
to further expand their already strong market position, above all in the main markets of USA and
Turkey.

Posted August 27, 2013

Source: Oerlikon Neumag

CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — Aug. 22, 2013 — Beyond color and additive masterbatches, Americhem Inc.
takes a value engineering approach to product design, finding the best mix of properties and
services to boost speed-to-market, product quality, process efficiency and overall customer
satisfaction. The company will detail its holistic, value engineering capabilities at FloorTek Expo
(booth #141), Sept. 10-12, in Dalton, Ga.

“Value engineering means we are more than just a supplier-we are raising the bar on what
customers can and should expect from their masterbatch supplier,” said Mark Downey, sales director,
Americhem. “We design products that center on our customers’ needs, including their processes,
equipment, end-use requirements and desired physical properties, helping them create success with
their customers from the plant floor to the showroom floor.”

Americhem’s value engineering model is a comprehensive approach that expands beyond product
design to also include educational opportunities, trends reporting and process integration.
Combined with superior technical guidance and exceptional service, Americhem is committed to
helping its customers succeed.

“Education is a key component of our value engineering model,” said Downey. “That’s why
we’re excited to bring our popular Americhem U series to FloorTek.”

In conjunction with FloorTek, Americhem is offering a special Americhem U 
presentation, “Discover the World of Polymeric Additives,” presented by Dr. Vaman G. Kulkarni on
Sept. 12, at 11 a.m. Dr. Kulkarni is one of Americhem’s industry experts with extensive knowledge
of fibers, polyester and additives.  Seating will be limited, so interested attendees should
email Susan Ellis at sellis@americhem.com or call 706.279.3465 to RSVP.

For more on Americhem’s value-engineering model visit FloorTek booth #141 or browse
www.americhem.com.

Posted August 27, 2013

Source: Americhem

Some people think that China is not only a country, but also a big factory. Especially in textile
production, China has the image of being a land of extremely large companies with tens of thousands
of employees in every factory. For the last two decades, this image has been nourished by the fact
that customers from the West could only order big or very big quantities of textile products; and
consequently, the exports from China flooded over the globe.

On the other hand, in Western countries, textiles are still a business of more small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). An excellent example is Italy, particularly the Italian textile
machinery industry. According to information from the Association of Italian Textile Machinery
Manufacturers (ACIMIT), most of the 150 member companies are small and medium-sized, very
straight-thinking companies, working for many generations in the same business.

New View In Sight

This up-to-date orientation toward “only big is beautiful” could change soon: The recent
small dent in the textile industry and other business sectors of the Middle Kingdom shows also a
current trend to smaller lots and more flexible production. This was and is the chance for
neighboring countries to take some business away from China to other small tigers around the big
tiger nation. Some days ago, is was officially announced that China’s Cabinet is willing to provide
more support to small and even micro-sized businesses through increased financing innovation and
credit for the private sector.

Eight Targets

The State Council has released eight detailed targets and explains that the credit growth
rate for SMEs cannot be below the national average lending rate. At the same time, the gradual
amount shouldn’t be less than the amount that was borrowed last year. On this subject, Tan Yaling,
head of the China Foreign Exchange Investment Research Institute, made a remarkable comment: she
said that “policy makers have made a point of reiterating the policies to show the government’s
resolution in supporting small and micro-sized businesses.” She added that all eight targets, or
policies, have already been issued.

These targets include the recent doing away with the value-added tax for businesses whose
monthly revenues fall below 20,000 yuan, among other steps. However, Tan emphasized the most
important issue for small Chinese companies is credit access. Many Chinese banks do not want to
provide loans to companies if interest payments won’t provide a large return. However, this is not
only a problem for SMEs in China, but in Western countries as well.

Communication

In most businesses, communication is the key word. Of great importance, Tan said, is to
coordinate the interaction between small financial institutions and SMEs. As she pointed out:
“Financial institutions over the course of their developments have not addressed the SME financing
woes or just ignore their demands. This time the State Council has specifically cited small
financial institutions to tackle the problem faced by SMEs.” This is quite a clear statement.

And the next move, which is very well-known in the Western banking world, is to request that
private banks, financial leasing enterprises and consumer financial companies establish branches in
locations near concentrations of small businesses. In addition, policymakers have promised make
greater efforts to ensure that small businesses are not hit with “unreasonable charges.”

Reshuffling The Cards

Many of the above-mentioned details and problems could also be tackled in the West; for
example, “unreasonable charges” by the banks sounds very familiar. The recent economic slowdown has
led the Chinese government to turn its attention toward small business expansion as it tries to
increase domestic demand and employment. Chinese officials have probably realized that SMEs are
still the pillar and cornerstone of a healthy economy.

It may be surprising to Western people that 99 percent of Chinese companies are small or
medium-sized enterprises. And furthermore, they account for 80 percent of all jobs in cities and 60
percent of the country’s economic output.

The shift in Chinese financial policy is quite remarkable and could activate the business
environment in the Asia-Pacific Rim. It may reshuffle the cards of competitiveness among countries
in the region when it comes to entrepreneurship, flexibility and just-in-time delivery in the
Chinese textile industry.

August 20, 2013

India-based Rajashree Polyfil — a nylon and polyester filament yarn producer and a division of
Century Enka Ltd. — has commissioned C.A. Litzler Co. Inc. — a Cleveland-based manufacturer of
machinery including oven and drying equipment — to design and build a 80 mpm Tire Cord Dipping
Line.

Litzler reports the line offers benefits including multiple tension zones that provide
maximum flexibility for elongating or relaxing the material to meet specific processing criteria; a
line speed of 60 meters per minute (m/min) at maximum tension, with the ability to increase speed
to 80 m/min at reduced tension; speed and tension control accuracy of ±0.1 percent to achieve
control of critical material processes; and improved spreader design for better control of low
ends-per-inch fabric.

The line is the second Rajashree Polyfil has ordered from Litzler over the past three years.

August 20, 2013

Greensboro, N.C.-based textured yarn manufacturer Unifi Inc. has purchased nine draw textured yarn
(DTY) machines and a sample machine for its Yadkinville, N.C., facility, which houses its polyester
yarn twisting and beaming operations. The additional machinery will help Unifi to increase its
production capacity for value-added products in the regional market. The company reports that
synthetic apparel supply in the United States, North America Free Trade Agreement and Central
America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement regions has steadily increased since 2009,
especially as brands and retailers continue their commitment to regional sourcing.

“The number of lot changes required to support the needs of our customers has grown
substantially over the years, which puts a premium on flexibility and the ability to provide
shorter production runs and quicker turnarounds within our manufacturing process,” said Unifi
President and COO Roger Berrier. “The investment in the nine DTY machines will increase our
capacity to support our overall volume growth, and will advance our objective of growing the volume
of our premier value-added yarns by 20 percent annually. The new sample machine will provide
additional product development capacity, which will allow Unifi to stay at the forefront of product
innovation.

“The continued growth of synthetic apparel production in the region will lead to ongoing
opportunities for the Company,” said Unifi Chairman and CEO Bill Jasper. “This investment adds to
our capacity and helps assure Unifi will be in a position to supply the increasing regional
demand.”

August 20, 2013

Technical fit form manufacturer Alvanon Inc., New York City, has introduced an Intimate/Swim Form
that is made using memory foam, making it 15-percent softer than the company’s standard soft
mannequin and thus enabling more realistic fitting of compression fabrics.

“Previous generations of mannequins were not as soft and did not accommodate the underwire
and bust fit very well,” said Ed Gribbin, president, Alvanon. “For that reason, designers could not
assess fit on a mannequin with a desired degree of accuracy.”

Gribbin noted that the new form may be used at every step along the supply chain to ensure
exact form fit measurements and lower production costs. Previously, manufacturers have used human
models at different points along the supply chain, which has made it difficult for designers to
realize a desired fit because of inconsistencies in the models’ shapes.

August 20, 2013

CLOVER, S.C. — August 16, 2013 — Resurgence Of Textiles Back In The Region
Presented by SYFA

Keynote Address

Dr. Donald Sabbarese

Director of KSU Econometric Center

Kennesaw State University

“How Sustainable Is the U.S. Economy without the Federal Reserve’s Quantitative Easing?”

U.S. Economic growth remains steady, but uncharacteristically weak and inconsistent after
four years of expansion. Will important sectors such as the housing and automobile industries
continue to grow at the same pace as the Federal Reserve begins to remove its support for low
interest rates?

Dr. Donald Sabbarese specializes in the area of macroeconomics and financial institutions. He
is a professor of Economics and Director of the Kennesaw State University’s Econometric Center
where he directs the Georgia Purchasing Managers Survey, Southeast Regional Purchasing Managers
Survey, and the Georgia International Business Index. Other research includes studies of the local
and regional economy, industry surveys, economic impact studies, tax revenue forecasting, and
research on forecasting regional economic conditions. He serves as a member of the Board of
Directors, ISM-Atlanta. He served as Director of the Graduate School of Banking for Community
Bankers.

His work at the Econometric Center has been reported by local, regional and national media.

When

Thursday September 26, 2013 at 11:30 AM EDT

-to-

Friday September 27, 2013 at 12:30 PM EDT

Where

Sheraton Airport Hotel

3315 Scott Futrell Dr.

Charlotte, NC 28208

Posted August 20, 2013

Source: SYFA