Unifi Expands REPREVE® Recycling Center

Unifi Inc., Greensboro, N.C., has invested $5 million to expand its REPREVE® Recycling Center in Yadkinville, N.C., and add 10 jobs. The expansion will support growth of Repreve post-consumer recycled polyester fiber and other premium value-added products. Unifi reports increasing demand for those products as companies such as Ford, The North Face, Nike, Volcom and Patagonia have begun adopting its products.

The expansion will increase annual recycling capacity at the center from 42 million pounds to 72 million pounds, and will increase the availability of Repreve products such as lower deniers used in lighter-weight apparel; FR Flame Retardant yarns; and WaterWise™ color technology.

“Expanding our Repreve manufacturing capabilities highlights our commitment to the Repreve brand and provides increased flexibility to better serve our customers,” said Roger Berrier, president and COO, Unifi. “As we bring the new machinery online, it’s clear that the increased versatility will help better position Repreve to support the growth and demand for recycled products.”

Unifi has invested a total of $15 million in the Repreve Recycling Center since its
opening in May 2010.

July/August 2014

Business & Financial: Midyear Assessment

By Robert S. Reichard, Economics Editor

Half the year has gone by, and all signs now suggest that 2014 domestic textile and apparel activity — bolstered by a slowly strengthening economy — will equal or even top last year’s advance. Looking at the macroeconomic picture first: Overall demand, which slowed down in the first quarter, now seems headed for a modest second-half pickup. Most business analysts see a close-to-2.5-percent annual rate of growth over the remainder of the year. And that’s pretty much what Textile World editors also expect. This encouraging trend should spill over into 2015, with the World Bank already on record calling for a solid 3.5-percent advance for that year.

This kind of pace should guarantee continued employment increases — with an average of more than 200,000 new jobs likely to be added each month through year end and into 2015 — enough to spark further upticks in consumer spending. There are also some other positive signs of stepped-up buying. For one, there’s the continuing increase in household wealth — the value of homes, stocks and other assets, minus debts and other liabilities. At last report, this number was running some 2 percent, or $1.5 trillion, above three-month-earlier levels — enough to push this key buying indicator to a new all-time high. Still another upbeat sign: Americans again seem to be feeling a little more comfortable about borrowing. Thus, overall household debt rose at an annual 2-percent rate in the first quarter — considerably higher than the relatively flat pattern noted during late 2013.

The Textile And Apparel Impact
All the above is good news for the textile and apparel industries. That’s on top of an already solid year-to-date performance. Textile mill dollar shipments are, as of now, up 1 percent compared to early 2013. And if one travels further downstream to the apparel sector, the shipment gain is even more impressive — somewhere near 3 percent. One indication that increases will continue into the remainder of the year — aside from the expected acceleration in general economic growth — come from the Institute of Supply Management. This group’s widely monitored grass-roots survey of the nation’s top purchasing executives finds that textile demand has been fairly brisk in recent months. Still other signs that suggest better days ahead would have to include the continuing leveling-off in imports, and today’s relatively trim inventory levels — now running well under the highs of a few years back. This latter development is especially important because it suggests that new incoming orders are now increasingly likely to be filled via new production rather than by any stock drawdowns. Given all the above, TW editors now feel mill shipments for the year as a whole could rise as much as 3 percent. Basic mill items like yarns and fabrics will probably lead the advance, with more highly fabricated items like home furnishings and carpets expected to hold near last year’s levels. As for apparel, TW now sees 2014 shipment totals running anywhere from 3 to 4 percent above 2013 levels.

Better Bottom Lines
These anticipated demand gains will, in turn, help buoy up earnings. So will such other factors as steady-to-slightly-firmer prices and costs that remain at or a bit below year-earlier readings. Indeed, there is already some good evidence that profits already are topping year-ago levels. Thus, first-quarter after-tax mill earnings ran 20-percent ahead of those reported a year earlier, and in terms of mill margins, the year-to-year improvement has been equally impressive. The latest profits per dollar of sales number is now estimated at near 3.9 percent — well above the year-earlier 3.3-cent reading. The same positive picture is noted when profits are compared to dollar of stockholders equity — with the latest mill numbers here put at 8.7 cents versus only 7.7 cents a year earlier. More significantly, economic consulting firm Global Insight sees the upward earnings trend continuing. This year’s profit gain for mills making basic textile products, for example, should be around 2.5 percent — with 2015 and 2016 gains running a bit higher. Zero in on more highly fabricated mill products, and the increase should be more impressive, averaging out at more than 5 percent over the 2014-16 period. Implication: healthy and viable domestic textile and apparel industries well into the future.

July/August 2014

Big Success For INDEX™ 14

INDEX™ 14, held April 8-11, 2014, was again the meeting point for the global nonwovens industry. More than 12,500 visitors made their way through the doors of Palexpo in Geneva to see the 586 exhibitors — 10 percent more than at INDEX 11 — from 41 countries, in more than 22,000 square meters of booth space. As the show closed, everybody in Geneva agreed that INDEX 14 was a big success.

Visitors were able to see a larger variety of technologies than ever before including automotive, packaging and geotextiles, among others; and product presentations and innovation events delivered value to the most diverse sectors of the nonwovens industry.

“Celebrating the 30th anniversary of INDEX in Geneva, INDEX stands as the most representative exhibition of the nonwovens industry,” said Pierre Wiertz, general manager of INDEX organizer EDANA, the International Association Serving the Nonwovens and Related Industries, Brussels. “With more exhibitors than ever, we see this as a sign that points to not only a recovery in the global economies, but to a healthy and diverse industry.”

And, he added, “Since INDEX first appeared in Geneva, our industry has evolved. Nonwovens and related materials are replacing traditional fabrics or plastic composites in vehicles, and in building and construction projects, showing that nonwovens offer high-tech fluid management solutions for not only hygiene and medical purposes, but with cross fertilization — in many other applications as well.”
 


INDEX™ 14 drew 12,500 visitors to Palexpo in Geneva to see the offerings of 586 exhibitors from 41 countries.

Happy Exhibitors
Most exhibitors were quite happy with the show’s outcome and with visitor quality. “The visitor frequency was very good,” added Sabine Duttenhofer, director, corporate communications, Freudenberg Nonwovens, Germany.

However, Thierry Masi, sales manager, Laroche S.A., France, saw the results of the show to be “medium,” and the frequency also was low.

Gunnar Hemmer, Ph.D., director, marketing & distribution, of Germany-based DiloGroup, was happy with the results and visitor frequency.

Overall, all companies’ expectations were fulfilled, although Masi said “not really.” Laroche also reported 20-percent fewer visitors than last time. Visitors came mainly from Europe for Dilo and Laroche, but “from all over the world” for Freudenberg.

Oerlikon Neumag, Germany, reported “high visitor resonance.” Its nonwovens technology for industrial applications also proved to be very much in demand. The nonwovens team summed up the show by saying there were “intensive and qualitatively good discussions as well as numerous concrete inquiries from clients and potential customers.”

Products
Freudenberg presented 3-D patterned lightweight microfilament wipes for the first time at INDEX, as well as newly developed bicomponent fine filaments that are well-suited for use in applications in many industrial sectors. “Different polymers can be combined in one filament during the manufacturing process,” Duttenhofer said. “In addition, these bicomponent fibers can be mixed with monofibers, thus creating several different property profiles for these spunlaids. And the feedback to this product was good, because Evolon® fine filament and bico fibers are very unique solutions with huge application possibilities.”

DiloGroup and its businesses DiloTemafa, DiloSpinnbau and DiloMachines provided information about numerous applications of nonwovens featuring various products.
 


DiloGroup’s booth was always crowded with people. The group provided comprehensive information about numerous nonwovens applications.
 

Laroche showed a new way to recycle edge trims, and reported the feedback was very good.

Apart from their interest in Oerlikon Neumag’s nonwovens technologies, visitors were particularly interested in the Staple FORCE S 1000 staple fiber plant, which was presented for the very first time, for industrial applications. Neumag stated that “with its compact construction, simple handling and energy-efficient operation, the Staple FORCE S 1000 is not just for fiber manufacturers focusing on special applications and on ‘on-demand’ deliveries, it also enables nonwoven producers to efficiently integrate fiber manufacturing into their own production operations.”

Most In Demand
As for products most in demand, Duttenhofer said: “Evolon and medical solutions were the most demanded products. INDEX is focused on medical applications. The target group is very dedicated.”

According to Hemmer, for Dilo, lines for automotive and geotextiles were most in demand “because the markets are increasing and there is high demand for geotextiles.”

The most demanded products in Laroche’s portfolio are airlay and recycling machinery. “The reason for that is the fact that this is our very own specialty,” Masi said.

Market Changes
How has the market situation changed since INDEX 11? “Markets are always in motion,” Duttenhofer said. “There are more regulations, especially in the medical sector. There are more requests about sustainable solutions.”

Hemmer added that “products with more technology, reduced weights and new fibers provoke a constant change of the markets. Of course, the European market for nonwovens and technical textiles is still important.”

“In Europe, especially spunlaid technology is increasing,” Duttenhofer added. “Europe is the technology leader in nonwovens production and plays therefore a key role. Some of our most advanced products are only marketed in Europe. These products still show attractive growth rates.”

Everyone agreed that the Asian market is not in general becoming more important than before. However, Duttenhofer mentioned that “the nonwoven markets in Europe and Asia are very different. In 2013, we faced pretty strong textile production in Asia. This had a strong impact on our woven and knitted interlining turnover. The upswing in the automotive industry in Asia had a very positive effect on our tuft business. Our Evolon business is steadily growing, in Europe as well as in Asia. Asia is the fastest-growing market in the world. Freudenberg is making significant investments in its sites in Asia. The growth potential in Asia is much higher than in Europe.”

Current Market Situation
All in all, the current market situation is considered to be stable for all reporting companies. Europe, the United States, China, Germany, and also the Middle East and Latin America were unanimously mentioned as the most important export countries. “However,” Duttenhofer explained, “it is getting tougher because of the insecure economic situation worldwide and the crisis in Southern Europe. The medical market faces a lot of regulations that have impacts on nonwovens solutions.”

Where are possible problems? For Masi, it is clear that there is still too much competition. And Duttenhofer added: “In Europe, the market for interlinings is saturated, and that makes it difficult to grow. In the European healthcare business, we face many regulations. To meet these regulatory requirements and to receive approval by authorities are the biggest challenges, and the market requires more and more engineered textile solutions, tailor-made and sustainable.”

INDEX Awards
EDANA’s INDEX 14 Awards recognize excellence in the nonwovens industry, and highlight innovations from businesses of all sizes and from all parts of the nonwovens supply chain. This year’s winners for each section were:

  • Nonwoven roll goods: sandler fibercomfort® tread- and waterproof roof insulation;
  • Finished products made from or incorporating nonwovens: Imeco Nocemi® MED virucidal, bactericidal, alcohol-free and disinfectant wipes;
  • Most original marketing campaign: Lenzing AG, the TENCEL® Skin promotion campaign;
  • Innovation in a raw material: Eastman Cyphrex™ microfibers;
  • Innovation in machinery:
  • ITW Dynatec Vector™ Surge Applicator;
  • Sustainable Product: Ahlstrom Flow2Save™ filter media; and
  • Sustainable process/management practice: TJ Beall True Cotton greige cotton nonwoven for wound healing and hygienic product applications.

The Future
All companies approve the concept of INDEX taking place every three years. Hemmer expects “good business for 2014.”

Duttenhofer gave a more detailed answer: “Although the European financial and debt crisis is not over and many countries in Europe are still facing significant structural problems, there are signs that the pace of growth will accelerate.”

“We see the future market for nonwovens and technical textiles in progress,” Masi said.

According to Freudenberg, the markets for hygiene and medical applications will further grow. And Hemmer added that “depending on the country, good developments are in sight for products such as shoes, automotive, geotextile, technical products like filtration.”

In the coming years, “megatrends like demographic change and e-mobility will have impacts on nonwovens production. Most important for medical applications is the capability to functionalize material,” Duttenhofer said, mentioning antimicrobial treatments, dyes, hydrophobic treatment and odor adsorption.

In the next few years, Hemmer thinks that “the markets want the development of new products with better properties, less cost and new fibers or fiber blends.” He also mentioned “the use of special fibers like carbon for the car industry and airplanes, as well as glass and ceramic fibers.”

“There are a lot of uncertainties,” Duttenhofer said. “How will the global economic crisis finally be solved? How will expected reforms in China impact the markets? For sure, the nonwovens business in some markets will remain static. However, there will be great opportunities in niche markets with tailor-made solutions.”

Market Needs
To fulfill the needs of the markets in the future, Hemmer is convinced that DiloGroup needs to have “very close contact with our own representatives and agents in each country, participation at important exhibitions and symposiums, as well as the organization of our own Dilo symposiums.”

Duttenhofer sees it quite similarly, mentioning “close partnerships with customers to develop tailor-made solutions.”

And how will the companies achieve their goals? “Being innovative and being part of the Freudenberg Group is an advantage because we can use synergies in many markets. Via Freudenberg’s central R&D department, we have access to R&D experts covering all disciplines in material science,” Duttenhofer said.

Hemmer is certain that Dilo needs “development of new machines and technologies, as well as tests in our labs at Dilo.”

The same is also the main target for Laroche, Masi said, adding that “a strong presence in Asia will be very important.”

July/August 2014

Delta Apparel Moves Some N.C. Production To Honduras

Delta Apparel Inc. , Greenville, plans to transfer some of its fabric production for basic T-shirts from its Maiden, N.C., plant to its Ceiba Textiles facility in Honduras, in an effort to lower costs for those products.

The consolidation will reduce fabric production in Maiden by 35 percent and increase it at Ceiba by 8 percent to some 900,000 pounds of fabric weekly. It also is expected to shorten production cycle time and reduce costs by some $1.1 million annually.

The move will result in the loss of 70 jobs at the Maiden plant, which will retain 190 employees to produce fabric for its U.S.-made marketed goods and private-label products along with its Mexico sewing operations.

July/August 2014

Freudenberg Marks 40 Years Of Medical Innovations

Freudenberg Nonwovens, Germany, is celebrating 40 years of medical textile innovations. The company began producing activated carbon filters in the 1970s. These filters are still used in stoma pouches. In the 1980s, it introduced nonwoven pads to adhesive bandages, replacing the knitted pads previously used in such products. During the 1990s, it added antimicrobial finishes to the nonwovens used in adhesive bandages.

Freudenberg has focused recent efforts on advanced wound care — particularly moist wound care, which encourages new tissue to grow while preventing scab formation, and can halve healing time compared to dry healing treatments. The company has engineered nonwovens using chitosan fibers for the moist treatment of chronic wounds. Chitosan, a biopolymer derived from the shells of sea crustaceans, has been shown to stop bleeding and heal wounds faster than other wound-care products.

“One goal for us is to stimulate the human body’s capacity to heal itself following an acute injury,” said Oliver Heneric, Ph.D., head of Freudenberg Nonwovens’ Medical Segment. “And another is to help make life easier for people with chronic wounds, like diabetics.”

Freudenberg credits close, long-standing relationships with its customers for many of its developments.

“We have a close and trusting collaboration with Europe’s leading medical device manufacturers and can offer customers individual product solutions based on our long-standing experience worldwide,” said Bernd Schlesselmann, Ph.D., head of medical nonwovens research and development, Freudenberg Nonwovens.

July/August 2014

PerformanceScrubs.com Moves Cullman Operations To Florence, Ala.

PerformanceScrubs.com — a Nashville, Tenn.-based Performance HealthCare Products Inc. company — has invested $4 million to move its Cullman, Ala., manufacturing operations to a 50,000-square-foot, high-tech manufacturing facility in Florence, Ala., approximately one hour from Cullman. The company is offering all of its Cullman employees jobs at the new facility, and hopes to have at least 50 to 60 positions filled by the end of the year, with plans ultimately to employ three shifts comprising 65 workers each.

The new facility features PerformanceScrubs.com’s high-tech, on-demand manufacturing system that automates and integrates almost every component of the manufacturing process and allows for on-demand customization. The company reports its proprietary workflows and complex software will enable it to manufacture millions of garments in any quantity on-demand while reducing inventory costs and streamlining the supply chain. While the facility initially will focus on manufacturing scrubs and sleepwear, PerformanceScrubs.com says the factory model can produce any type of garment.  

“We’ve spent years planning and designing our comprehensive system that has the potential to revolutionize how clothing is made,” said J. Kirby Best, CEO, PerformanceScrubs.com. “The rich history of garment manufacturing in Florence/Muscle Shoals makes this the ideal location to launch a state-of-the-art facility.”

The company’s medical scrubs and sleepwear are made using moisture-wicking; antimicrobial; wrinkle-, stain- and fade-resistant fabrics manufactured by Spartanburg-based Milliken & Company.

All garments, including components, are 100-percent Made in the USA.
 


Conveyor lines at PerformanceScrub.com’s Florence, Ala., manufacturing facility are part of the company’s on-demand manufacturing process and systems.

July/August 2014

Surya To Open Facility In Cartersville, Ga., Add 200 Jobs

Surya Inc., India — a manufacturer of machine- and hand-knotted area rugs and soft goods for the home furnishings market — is investing $30 million to open a U.S. corporate office and distribution facility in Cartersville, Ga., and add 200 employees to its U.S. workforce.  

Surya manufactures its products abroad and ships them to the U.S. for sales and distribution. It has showrooms in major U.S. markets as well as in Toronto and India.

The state-of-the-art, 1,000,000-square-foot facility in Cartersville will handle Surya’s supply chain management, sales, and web creative development services. The company currently has a corporate facility in Calhoun, Ga., and reports that 250 jobs will be retained with the opening of the new facility.

 “Our new facility will enable us to consolidate our product offerings under one roof, providing a highly efficient logistics base and the operational flexibility needed to optimally serve our designer and retailer customers,” said Satya Tiwari, president, Surya, noting that the company has grown significantly over the past several years.” The addition of 53,000 square feet of inviting office space, designed with Surya’s energetic and collaborative culture in mind, will provide a great working environment for both existing employees and new talent as we continue to execute on our strategy to become a $1 billion company.”

July/August 2014

Jacob Holm Acquires DuPont™ Sontara® Business

Jacob Holm & Sønner Holding A/S, Switzerland, has agreed to acquire the DuPont™ Sontara® business of DuPont Protection Technologies, Wilmington, Del. The sale, expected to be completed in the third quarter of this year, includes Sontara assets at DuPont sites in Old Hickory, Tenn., and Asturias, Spain; as well as some 240 employees, mostly in the United States and Spain.

Jacob Holm currently has production facilities in Candler, N.C., and France; and employs some 230 workers in the production of spunlaced nonwovens for home care, hygiene and industrial applications. Sontara produces spunlaced nonwovens for medical and wipes applications.

July/August 2014

Quality Fabric Of The Month: Comfort & Safety In The Extreme

By Janet Bealer Rodie, Contributing Editor

Workers involved in hazardous activities such as oil and gas exploration and drilling and utility work in extreme weather environments like those found in Alaska, Canada or North Dakota now have a new outerwear solution that provides protection from the elements as well as from hazards associated with electrical arc flash and flash fire. According to Brian Schmidt, senior category manager for Dearborn, Mich.-based workwear manufacturer Carhartt, the company spent more than two years developing its Carhartt Extremes® Arctic outerwear line comprising a parka, coat, biberall and hood — all meeting NFPA 70E Hazard/ Risk Category 4 (PPE Level 4) requirements and able to shield workers from high winds and temperatures well below zero — even as low as -60°F. The line features Carhartt’s proprietary Wind Shield® wind-resistant technology applied to Mount Vernon Mills’ 9-ounce AMTEX™ PLUS cotton/high-tenacity nylon flame-resistant (FR) canvas fabric, woven by the Mount Vernon FR division in Trion, Ga.



Carhartt’s Extremes® Arctic parka and coat feature special pockets inside and outside to hold tools, and an innovative pass-through port for a radio microphone and cord.

“We did some research with end users in Alaska and determined that their outerwear needed to be warm, comfortable, nonrestrictive and lighter-weight than what’s currently on the market,” Schmidt said. “It also needed to have a great amount of functionality, with pockets to hold tools — specifically, a gas monitor and a radio including microphone and cord.

“The combination of the Amtex Plus canvas with our Windshield technology makes for a really good outerwear fabric,” Schmidt said. “It has a nice drape, moves easily, is not as stiff as comparable fabrics, and yet still feels and looks like what you would expect from Carhartt.”

The FR performance of Amtex Plus is guaranteed for the life of garment. “We use an FR process, not a finish,” explained Craig Tutterow, FR technical director, Mount Vernon FR,. “We saturate the fabric with a monomer that will be polymerized when treated with nitrogen delivered in an ammonia gas, so you get a 3-D polymer chain formed within the fabric. It can’t be washed off, scraped off or blown off — it’s inside, outside and within the fabric.”

The quilted lining in the garments is comprised of lightweight 3M™ FR Thinsulate™ 200-gram platinum insulation and a 6-ounce Amtex Plus twill. There is moisture-wicking Polartec® FR grid fleece on the inside of the coat collar. To further keep the core of the body warm, Carhartt’s FR Sherpa lining helps insulate the wearer’s back.

“A lot of heat is exhausted across the shoulders and down the back,’ Schmidt said, noting that keeping the core of the body warm will help keep the extremities warm. “The Sherpa lining on top of the quilt package provides an additional layer that keeps the back warmer.”

The Carhartt Extremes Arctic line is produced for the North American market in Carhartt’s factory in Mexico.

For more information about Carhartt’s Extremes® Arctic outerwear, contact carhartt.com or mvmfr.com

July/August 2014

Bulletin Board

The Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers (ACIMIT), Milan, has released a video on its Sustainable Technologies project. The video may be viewed on YouTube.

The Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA), Cary, N.C., has published “INDA Impact 2014,” its inaugural annual report analyzing industry-wide events that impact the nonwovens industry.

AATCC, the Association of Textile,  Apparel & Materials Professionals, Research Triangle Park, N.C., has released four AATCC Test Method Online Training Videos including Color Evaluation, Colorfastness to Crocking, Colorfastness to Perspiration & Water, and Water Resistance and Repellency.

SGS Consumer Testing Services, Geneva, has released its RAPEX Annual Report 2013 covering notifications on dangerous products in Europe.

Textile Rental Services Association of America (TRSA), Alexandria, Va., has certified 11 textile services plants Hygienically Clean in the quarter ending May 31, 2014.

GSD (Corporate) Ltd., United Kingdom, is offering free practitioner card replacement to GSD Practitioners who have previously been GSD certified and lost their certification credentials. Card holders may initiate a card replacement request by contacting gsdhq.com/contact-us/.

Midland, Mich.-based The Dow Chemical Company’s Dow Microbial Control business unit has launched a Certified Mill Program to recognize textile manufacturers who have successfully completed a training program and demonstrated their proficiency in applying  SILVADUR™ Antimicrobial in their production processes.

The International Oeko-Tex Association, Switzerland, has developed an Application Programming Interface (API) that enables verification of certification data via external online portals and company databases/software.

The Technical Association for the Pulp, Paper, Packaging and Converting Industries (TAPPI), Peachtree Corners, Ga., is accepting nominations through August 1 for the TAPPI 2015 awards.

July/August 2014

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