More Denim … More Knits

When Germany-based H. Stoll GmbH & Co. KG introduced its 2014 Spring/Summer trend denim collection, it was so successful that the company followed up with another group of inspirational garments for Fall/Winter 2014-15 — all knitted on the company’s new CMS ADF-3 machine. “There is great interest in knitted denim,” said Jörg Hartmann, head of fashion and technology, Stoll. “People like the variety and comfort of knitted garments. A lot of them are deceiving — they look as if they were woven.”

The Stoll collection uses a variety of yarns, mostly from Italian spinners. There are Merino wool, acrylic and cotton yarns, sometimes blended with polyester, linen and elastane, from Zegna Baruffa Lane Borgosesia S.p.A., Igea, Sesia, New Mill, Filati Be.Mi.Va, Cofil and C.T.F., based in Italy; W. Zimmermann GmbH & Co. KG and Otto Stiftung, Germany; Unitin, Spain; and Vernitas, Lithuania.

Garments range from jackets, pocketed pullovers, ponchos, vests, cardigans and coats to skirts, jeans, caps and scarves. All have been made on Stoll’s new CMS 530 ADF-3 machine. A variety of pattern work, pockets, collars, hoods and other treatments are knitted in novelty stitches and colors. All are seamless, soft and warm; and all have a denim look. There are intarsias, jacquards, plated knits, inlays, aged looks, patchwork patterns, layers, single and double jerseys, and changing colors.

One hooded denim cardigan was knitted with two layers: The inside is Merino wool, and the outside is indigo-dyed cotton. It has an aged look that is achieved by the knitting technique, reinforced elbows in a twilled alternate single-knit structure, and a plush back extension in a double devoré knit. A multi-gauge coat has the look of different-colored patchwork patterns sewn together in red. It is a jacquard that was knitted on Stoll’s new machine in a matter of minutes.

Stoll’s CMS 530 ADF-3 machine has been purchased in Europe by manufacturers in France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. Three U.S. firms have bought this equipment to use for technical applications and apparel.

January/February 2014

Tennessee Apparel, Gore Produce CB Clothing System

Military garments maker Tennessee Apparel Corp. (TAC), Tullahoma, Tenn., and GORE-TEX® fabric maker W.L. Gore & Associates Inc., Newark, Del., have partnered to produce a chemical and biological (CB) protective clothing system that will offer enhanced protection and reduced thermal burden for U.S. special operations personnel.

TAC will produce the garments under contract for the Uniform Integrated Protection Ensemble Increment 1 effort. The protective ensemble comprises a lightweight combat uniform worn over a protective undergarment made of Gore’s stretch GORE® CHEMPAK® selectively permeable fabric. Gore reports the fabric features a comfortable stretch construction that requires no thermal insulating layer next to the skin, thus further reducing heat stress and also increasing heat loss through convection.

The layered system protects against warfare agents as well as exposure to petroleum, oils, lubricants and other environmental contaminants. It may be worn during land or sea combat operations in any climate with minimal impact on combat effectiveness, the companies report. In addition, the undergarment design can be easily incorporated with other combat gear and personal protective equipment. 

January/February 2014

Interfilière Comes To New York

Interfilière recently made a visit to New York. Sponsored by Wichita, Kan.-based Invista and organized by France-based Eurovet, the show was well-attended and received. There were 21 exhibitors from around the world and a presentation of upcoming intimate apparel and swimwear looks.

TVB GmbH, Germany, a supplier of fine-gauge technical knits, showed functional, high-performance single jerseys and interlocks. A single jersey of 92-percent silk/8-percent LYCRA®, designed for lingerie and bodywear, was knitted on a circular, fine-gauge machine. There are cotton/spandex and nylon/spandex jerseys, bra-cup fabrics and super-micro polyester shiny shoulder-strap fabrics.

Tianhai Lace Co. Ltd. Inc., China, sells to manufacturers of swimwear and intimate apparel. Lycra BEAUTY is blended with nylon for swimwear.


Interfilière exhibitor Grupo Industrial Miro showed its fabrics, which are made of U.S.-grown cotton and feature modal, rayon or polyester blended with LYCRA®.

Rosset, Brazil, knits all of its fabric in Brazil. Most of it is nylon/Lycra for lingerie, swimwear and athletic markets; or polyester/Lycra for special orders. One fabric moves in all directions. For swimwear, there are digital prints.

Italian knitter and printer Piave Maitex produces all of its fabrics in Italy. It has installed equipment for circular, warp and raschel knitting; and digital printing. Most of its fabrics are nylon/Lycra or cotton/Lycra. It offers metallic printing and manufactures engineered bands.

At Noyon, France, laces are woven in France and knits are made in Sri Lanka. Most of the line is nylon/ spandex. There are cotton, silk, wool and other natural fibers in the couture line. Narrow fabrics of 23 centimeters are available for intimates; and Chantilly lace, for couture.

Liebaert, Belgium, sells ultrafine knitted fabrics to the swim and intimate apparel markets. There are 50-gauge warp knits of nylon/Lycra that have a compact, woven look with a sheen; and digital and pigment prints and panel fabrics that have reinforced edges, thus eliminating the need to sew a hem.

Tricots and lightweight mesh in solids and prints are available at Darlington Fabrics Corp., part of The Moore Co., Westerly, R.I. The company sells to swimwear, performance and on-field athleticwear manufacturers. There are matte surfaces, metallics and neon shades. A 6-ounce matte tricot of nylon/spandex is its best seller.

Another U.S. firm, Elastic Fabrics of America Inc., Greensboro, N.C., sells warp and circular knits to manufacturers of intimates, swimwear, activewear, and medical textiles. Basic fabrics are made with nylon, polyester, cotton or rayon blended with spandex.

At Willy Hermann, Austria, a blend of MicroModal®, nylon and Lycra is selling for lingerie. There are dense, double-faced cotton/nylon/Lycra bra-cup fabrics that don’t need lamination; men’s underwear fabrics in gray, black, and white stripes; and MicroModal/Lycra scented fabrics. The scent lasts through 30 washings.

Grupo Industrial Miro, Mexico, spins, knits, dyes, prints and finishes its fabrics made of U.S.-grown cotton. Modal, rayon or polyester are blended with Lycra. Neon shades of turquoise, emerald and coral are best sellers. Customers include Target, Kohl’s and Macy’s.

Lingerie and swimwear trends for Spring/Summer 2015 were presented by Eurovet. Overall, there is a feeling of wellbeing. Although the first direction featured white, the season ahead will be colorful.

Heritage is seen in the trends, but it has an active look. There are seamless garments and microfibers. And corsets are back. There are a lot of lace, beading and prints. Fabrics can be airy, transparent and voluminous.

One trend features sumptuousness, with Venetian splendor and Gothic twists. There is a sexy look to garments dyed in black, burgundy and navy. Creature comforts are in a playful group that features bright colors. Look for reds and citrus shades, small prints and colorful solids. There is swimwear that is resistant to chlorine, and long-lasting fit with a lot of performance.

January/February 2014

Haggar Acquires Tribal Sportswear

Dallas-based Haggar Clothing Co. has acquired women’s sportswear manufacturer Tribal Sportswear, Montreal, from Kilmer Capital Fund L.P. for an undisclosed amount.

Tribal Sportswear, founded in 1976 as a women’s trouser company, sells its casualwear and careerwear in more than 2,000 specialty stores in North America. Haggar expects Tribal’s business to complement its own women’s business in Canada at Sears and The Bay, and help expand that business’s North American presence.

Tribal will retain its Montreal headquarters. Steven Richman has been named president of the new division and will work alongside Haggar Canada Co. President Brian Main.

“I am very excited that Haggar shares the same recognition of the unique position in the independent boutique channel that Tribal has earned,” Richman said. “Tribal’s strong position in the boutique channel is in many ways thanks to its dedicated and creative workforce. With Haggar’s vast resources, Tribal will be able to leverage and continue building and growing the brand.”

January/February 2014

Highland Industries To Expand Cheraw, S.C., Plant

Highland Industries Inc., Kernersville, N.C., will invest $4.1 million to expand its Cheraw, S.C., manufacturing facility and add 24 jobs over the next two years. The company reports increased customer demand for its technical fabrics, which are used in products including automotive parts, military tents and backpacks, rockets, and roofing, among other products.

The fabrics are woven or knitted on state-of- the-art equipment at the Cheraw plant, which offers fabric forming and aqueous coating capabilities.

“We have long been committed to South Carolina. Continued investment in our manufacturing capabilities and our people here is the key to our future success,” said Scott Burkhart, the company’s director of manufacturing.

Highland Industries is owned by Takata Corp., a Japan-based manufacturer of automotive safety systems. The company celebrated the 50th anniversary of its Cheraw facility in 2012, and notes that it maintains zero- landfill status in all of its manufacturing processes.

January/February 2014

Burlington Turns 90

Burlington, Greensboro, N.C., a division of International Textile Group Inc. (ITG), recently celebrated its 90th anniversary. The company was founded in 1923 by J. Spencer Love, who had purchased his uncle’s textile mill in Gastonia, N.C., and moved the machinery and equipment to Burlington, N.C. The company first produced cotton fabrics and later, rayon fabrics, soon becoming the leading rayon fabrics producer in the United States.

Burlington expanded by acquiring and reopening shuttered textile mills. It moved its headquarters to Greensboro in 1935, and by 1936, it operated 22 plants and had revenues totaling $25 million. It was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1937. During World War II, it produced military textiles and developed parachute cloth made with nylon, which was invented in the 1930s and was used in place of silk and rayon.

After the war ended, Burlington continued to grow and also to develop nylon fabrics for apparel, furniture, home furnishings, hosiery, industrial and specialty applications. By 1973, it operated 169 plants globally and employed 88,000 workers. However, an influx of imports stymied its growth, and it turned its attention to product specialization and plant modernization, and implemented more efficient processes to enable it to compete in a global market.

In 1987, Burlington defeated a hostile takeover attempt, and subsequently downsized and became a private company. By 1992, it re-emerged as a public company, but continued import challenges and incurred debts forced it to restructure in 2003. At that time, it was acquired by WL Ross & Co. and made a part of ITG.

Today, Burlington has eight production sites in the U.S., Mexico and China; and specializes in technical fabrics for outdoor active, casual, military and uniform apparel; as well as for automotive, barrier, fire protection and contract hospitality applications. The Burlington Labs division was founded in 2006 as a R&D center and knowledge bank.

“Burlington’s successes came from its innovations with new products, new machinery, and new branding strategies, and we congratulate the men and women of Burlington, both today and generations before us, for their contributions to this great brand,” said Joseph L. Gorga, CEO, ITG.


Burlington employees pose in front of Pioneer Plant, Burlington’s first plant, in the 1920s. At the far right is founder J. Spencer Love.

January/February 2014

GCS To Build Plant In Louisiana

Gulf Coast Spinning Co. LLC (GCS), a new venture undertaken by the management group of Lacassine, La.-based Zagis USA LLC, will invest $130 million to build a cotton spinning facility in Bunkie, La. The investment will result in the creation of an estimated 290 jobs.

The facility is the second of two that Zagis USA announced in 2008 it would build in Louisiana. The first, which represented a $20 million investment, opened in Lacassine in late 2009. Together, the two mills are expected to generate 386 direct and 1,040 indirect jobs.

GCS expects to begin construction in mid-2014 on the 600,000-square-foot Bunkie facility comprising two operations — a ring-spinning operation equipped with 43,200 Zinser spindles that will be able to spin up to 450,000 pounds per week of premium cotton and cotton/synthetic carded and combed yarns for knit and woven apparel, and specialty denim yarns; and an open-end operation equipped with 17,280 rotors supplied by five blending lines and 52 cards, with a weekly capacity of up to 2.5 million pounds of cotton/synthetic and synthetic yarns.

The facility will be four times larger than Zagis USA’s Lacassine mill, which produces 100-percent cotton open-end yarns.

GCS plans to export most of its yarn, similarly to the Lacassine mill, which exports 85 percent of its spun yarn. Once the Bunkie mill is commissioned, the two mills together are expected to utilize some 15 to 20 percent of Louisiana’s total cotton crop.

January/February 2014

Crisco Announces Run For Congress

Keith Crisco, president and chairman of Asheboro Elastics Corp. (AEC), Asheboro, N.C., and a former North Carolina secretary of commerce serving under former Governor Beverly Perdue, is running for the U.S. Congress. Crisco, a Democrat, is challenging Republican incumbent Renee Ellmers of Dunn, N.C., for her seat in North Carolina’s Second Congressional District. Both candidates must first win their respective 2014 Congressional primaries, which will be held May 6.

“I am running for North Carolina’s 2nd Congressional District because I believe we need to return to sensitive bipartisan policies, reduce sky-high unemployment and improve educational opportunities for our children,” Crisco said.

AEC, founded in 1986, employs more than 160 people, has manufacturing plants in Asheboro, El Salvador and Honduras, and has annual sales of more than $18 million.

January/February 2014

Cooley Group: Diversified Company Reaches Out For Global Opportunities

Cooley Group is a worldwide leader in the development and manufacture of high-performance flexible and sustainable fabrics used in applications including water, fuel and chemical containment; military equipment; commercial roofing; and outdoor advertising. Established in 1926, it is based in Pawtucket, R.I., and has manufacturing facilities in three locations.

Daniel R. Dwight was appointed president, CEO and director of Cooley Group in March 2011. He has extensive executive global leadership experience in business development, manufacturing and operations, and technology commercialization, including 17 years with GE in the Americas, Asia and Europe.
 


Daniel R. Dwight, president and CEO, Cooley Group

Textile World: You’ve been on board at Cooley for about two years now. What attracted you to the company? What challenges have you faced?

Dwight: Cooley’s people and reputation attracted me to the company. Cooley is a manufacturing company that operates under the simple premise that people, not machines, make products. The belief that every employee can make a difference in delivering proven performance to our customers is what sets Cooley apart from our competitors.  

For example, when Cooley was developing the stadium wrap for the 2012 London Olympic Stadium, our machine operators, R&D technicians and sales team were working together on the factory floor collectively with our collaborative partner, Dow Chemical, to drive development and production of the best possible customer solution. Our challenge with the stadium was that it was built to be taken apart after the Olympic Games were through. We had to hide the inside structure. We ended up developing 25-meter-high by 2-meter-wide banners to cover all the beams and supports that had been visible on the inside walls of the stadium. It took more than 335 banners. The result of this collective effort was a world-class product solution that exceeded our customer’s performance expectation.  

The strength of the Cooley brand globally continues to amaze me. I spend a significant portion of my time traveling the globe meeting with Cooley customers to assess our strengths and weaknesses while looking to identify new market opportunities. Almost everyone I meet is intimately familiar with Cooley’s reputation as a company that delivers proven performance.

As president and CEO, I face the challenge of harnessing the strength of our team, our global reputation for proven performance and innovation, and our collaborative partnerships into a comprehensive strategy for accelerated growth.
 
TW: At the recent IFAI Specialty Fabrics Show in Orlando, the consensus of a number of exhibitors seemed to be that there is a lack of industry momentum right now. Do you agree?

Dwight: As a highly diversified, global company, we are operating with a ton of momentum right now. This momentum is enhanced by our level of innovation. With 40 percent of our revenue annually from new products, we are focused on developing innovative, new solutions for our global customers. Our innovation is a direct function of the strength of our people and their commitment to our customers. Product development is not the sole responsibility of R&D, but a company-wide responsibility that involves every employee.

Water containment, for example, is a very strong opportunity market for us. Limited clean water hampers growth in developing nations. Containment and separation play to the strengths of our products for geosynthetics, desalination and hazardous containment applications.


Cooley recently completed a fuel storage project in Siberia.

 
TW: Cooley seems to be involved in a number of very distinct market segments. Which are the major markets and about what percentage does each represent?  

Dwight: Cooley has three core businesses: Building Products, Commercial Graphics and Engineered Membranes. Building Products services principally the commercial roofing market, although this past year, our Building Products team entered the recreational vehicle and mobile storage market with a highly innovative new product solution that has been very well received. Our Commercial Graphics team services the out-of-home advertising, signage and awning markets. Our recently launched 100- percent recyclable, polyethylene (PE) print media material has been getting rave reviews from our North and South American and European customers. Our Engineered Membranes team services a highly diversified mix of markets. The team continues to accelerate not only its new product offerings but also its geographic expansion, particularly into Russia, Turkey and Eastern Europe.

TW: Give us some examples of international projects.

Dwight: We just completed a huge fuel storage project in Siberia and have applied our leading oil boom containment membrane for prophylactic protection of a desalination facility in Dubai. We recently signed an agreement with Hewlett-Packard to be their global print media supplier for their latex line of commercial printers — which complements our opening of a new office in Germany to support our Europe, Middle East and North African expansions.
 
TW: In your military market involvement, have you seen a decrease due to budget cuts? If so, how do you plan to make up for the lost business?

Dwight: Our military business continues to grow, which is great news not just because of the budget cuts but because we exited one of our larger military markets in 2012 — the military tent market could not meet our profitability objective. Specific military products include material for military raiding craft and chemical containment businesses.  
 
TW: Company literature says more than 40 percent of Cooley’s annual revenue comes from new products. Can you elaborate on this?

Dwight: Cooley gets 40 percent of our revenue from new products not only because we are highly innovative but also because we are not afraid to cannibalize our own successful products in search of better solutions for our customers. For example, we drove the billboard market from 12-ounce (oz) polyvinyl chloride (PVC) to 7-oz PVC; we are now driving the market to our newest product offering, 4.2-oz PE.  We entered the natural gas fracking market in 2013 with a highly innovative geomembrane polyurethane product solution for the storage of the water and chemicals used in this highly liquid-intensive process.  Our new recreational vehicle roofing product offers the RV manufacturer a roofing solution that is easier to install while offering better performance.  
 
TW: What specific issues or market drivers influence Cooley’s prosperity?

Dwight: As a company that distributes its products in over 50 countries on six continents, we have benefited and continue to benefit from free trade agreements. We also benefit from the broader global demand for international product performance standards. For example, we are winning more and more international commercial roofing business because of the growing demand for Factory Mutual (FM) rated quality standards for building materials among building owners and operators in places like China, Turkey and the Middle East. For the same reason Toyota is purchasing our roofing solutions for its U.S. manufacturing facilities, Toyota is also purchasing Cooley solutions for its production facility in Turkey — and that reason is Cooley’s proven performance.

TW: Tell us about your management team.

Dwight: The Cooley leadership team is as diverse as the products we offer and markets we serve. P. Robert Siener Jr., our chairman, just celebrated 65 years with the company and continues to be the emotional driver behind innovation at Cooley, the champion of everything “new, new, new.” Our diversity is exemplified in our two core divisional business leaders, who both bring worldwide sales leadership to Cooley but come from widely diverse backgrounds: David Lunati, business leader for our Engineered Membranes and Building Products businesses, has a degree from Harvard; while Bryan Rose, business leader for our Commercial Graphics business, was educated on the floor of a Cooley warehouse where he started his career over 25 years ago. David Pettey, our COO, has a Ph.D. along with decades of textile and extrusion operating experience. Ron Markovsky, our CFO, has decades of finance and controllership experience with a diverse group of mid-market-size companies.
 

Editor’s note: Stephen M. Warner, Arden Hills, Minn., is publisher of BeaverLake6 Report, beaverlake6.com, a Web-based newsletter reporting on trends, data and issues that he feels influence the technical textiles industry. He also is former president and CEO of Industrial Fabrics Association International.

January/February 2014

Cotton Made In Africa Continues Its Path Of Success

ACCRA/HAMBURG/HARARE/LUSAKA — February 13, 2014 — Nearly 70,000 smallholder farmers in Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Côte d’Ivoire benefit from the Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) initiative’s program for the first time and are able to market CmiA-tested cotton. In this way, the initiative is further expanding its cooperation with smallholder families in Sub-Saharan Africa and making a significant contribution to improving their living conditions.

According to the Human Development Index of the United Nations, Ghana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Côte d’Ivoire are among the least developed countries in the world. In order to fully realize their potential, particular in the agricultural sector, CmiA focuses on sustainable and efficient cotton production. For the first time, the initiative is active in Ghana and cooperates with roughly 9,000 local smallholder farmers and the cotton company Olam. CmiA has already successfully contributed to improving the living conditions of smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Côte d’Ivoire. After successfully receiving CmiA standard certification, an additional 61,000 cotton farmers and the cotton companies Alliance in Zimbabwe and Zambia and Seco in Côte d’Ivoire are now initiative partners.

Through training programs, Cotton made in Africa teaches cotton farmers about modern, efficient, and environmentally friendly cultivation methods that help them improve the quality of their cotton, yield higher crops, and thus earn a better income.

Christoph Kaut, Managing Director of the Aid by Trade Foundation, is pleased about this latest milestone: “Not only the farmers but also their family members profit from the newly established cooperations with CmiA: In Ghana we are able to reach about 100,000 persons, in Zimbabwe, Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire roughly 486,000. This is a great success for all participants in the cotton growing regions of Sub-Saharan Africa and for our initiative.” In total, about 435,000 smallholder farmers and with their family members included more than 3.2 million people currently participate in the CmiA program.

Posted February 14, 2014

Source: Aid by Trade Foundation

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