Tex Tech Industries — a Portland, Maine-based developer and manufacturer of engineered, high-performance fabrics including Core Matrix Technology™, a patented protective material — has acquired Chapman Innovations — a Salt Lake City-based developer and manufacturer of CarbonX® thermal fabric solutions.
Tex Tech Industries supplies its fabrics to the aerospace, defense, law enforcement, industrial and sporting goods industries. The company reports that it manufacturers fire-retardant and thermal acoustic insulation for all major commercial aerospace platforms; and that it is the largest producer globally of tennis felt.
CarbonX non-flammable fabrics and apparel comprise a patented blend of high-performance fibers and are used in protective industrial safety, construction, welding, molten metal, utilities, pulp and paper, oil and gas, firefighting, motorsports and tactical/police applications.
“The CarbonX product line will significantly strengthen our position in several key markets,” said Ciaran Lynch, CEO, Tex Tech Industries. “We are impressed with its superior performance compared to competing flame-resistant products and with the company’s strong relationships with its end-users.”
“Chapman Innovations looks forward to being a part of the Tex Tech family of companies,” said Tyler Thatcher, CEO, Chapman Innovations. “Tex Tech’s global distribution platform and in-house development capabilities will enable us to bring new products to the market more quickly.”
April 22, 2014
Tex Tech Industries Acquires Chapman Innovations
Maquilas Can Begin Applying For Certification For VAT Tax Credit
WASHINGTON — April 21, 2014 — The Mexican tax authority has begun accepting applications from maquiladoras for certification that will ease the burden of a tax reform law that took effect Jan. 1, 2014. Applications may be submitted at various times during the year depending on where in Mexico the maquila is located.
The new law eliminated the value-added tax exemption for temporary imports of goods, parts and components, and machinery and equipment, which had been heavily used by maquilas. The law also increased the VAT in Mexico’s border states from 11% to 16%.
As a result, imported goods are now subject to VAT, and payments will be due in January 2015 unless the importer is accredited through a VAT certification program, in which case the importer will receive a 100% VAT tax credit on the VAT paid on imported goods. Certified companies will also receive refunds of any additional VAT payments within 10-20 days of export, depending on the level of certification obtained.
From April 1 through April 30, the government is accepting applications for certification from companies participating in Mexico’s supply chain security program, the New Certified Companies Scheme, as well as those in the automotive industry. Applications from other maquilas will be accepted based on where they are located geographically: April 15-May 15 for those in the north Pacific area, June 3-July 3 for those in the northeast, July 7-Aug. 7 for those in the north central region, Aug. 7-Sept. 8 for those in the central area, and Sept. 22-Oct. 22 for those in the west and south.
Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg P.A., through the Mexico City office of its affiliated company, Sandler & Travis Trade Advisory Services Inc., offers a number of services to help companies comply with the new maquila requirements. These include internally auditing the maquila’s operations to make sure it is in compliance with the current laws, performing a feasibility analysis to determine the applicability of an advance price agreement with the Mexican government, providing advice on restructuring maquilas that have domestic sales and exports, and assisting in obtaining certification from Mexican tax authorities so that the company can receive the VAT tax credit and expedited tax reimbursement.
Posted April 22, 2014
Source: Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A.
FOTL To Close Jamestown, Ky., Plant, Move Operations To Honduras
Bowling Green, Ky.-based branded apparel manufacturer Fruit of the Loom Inc. (FOTL) has announced it will close its Jamestown, Ky., plant and move the operations to Honduras. The company cited economic considerations as the basis for the decision. The closure will result in the loss of 601 jobs in the area. Operations will be phased out over a period of seven months, from June 8 through December 31.
“This decision is in no way a reflection on the dedication and efforts of the employees in our Jamestown facility, but is a result of a competitive global business environment,” said Tony Pelaski, the company’s executive vice president and COO.
FOTL, which was acquired by Berkshire Hathaway in 2002, will continue to be headquartered in Bowling Green, where it also maintains a distribution center. The company also has distribution and/or yarn spinning facilities in North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama and Louisiana.
As one of the largest private employers in Honduras, FOTL has put considerable effort into making its operations in that country a model of social and environmental responsibility. Initiatives include: establishing a collective bargaining agreement with its Honduran workers; recognizing unions and assuming a union-neutral stance at its facilities; offering health screenings in local communities; and reducing carbon emissions and providing ecological stoves in rural areas. Earlier this year, the company received the 2013 Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE) in recognition of its role abroad as a good corporate citizen within the local Honduran community. It also received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Climate Leadership Award for its commitment to reduce electricity-related greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2015 — with a large portion of that reduction related to electricity consumption in Honduras, where the company will offset all of that consumption with renewable sources including onsite biomass electricity and local hydroelectric power.
April 21, 2014
Lenzing Reports TENCEL® Fiber Suitable For Flushable Wipes
Austria-based Lenzing AG reports its TENCEL® cellulose fiber in a short-cut type is suitable for use in flushable wipes. Flushability has become an important factor in hygiene and care products, as many nonflushable items are disposed of in a toilet, leading to blockages in sewer systems.
According to Lenzing, disposable wipes made using its biodegradable Tencel fiber are more tear-resistant than wipes made with traditional materials such as pulp and short-cut viscose. In addition, because Tencel is stronger than short-cut viscose, fewer fibers are needed to make a wipe of comparable quality; and using Tencel in the wipes reduces the need for binding agents.
“Quality does not, however, only mean enhanced service properties but also refers to the skin-friendly attributes of Tencel,” said Dieter Eichinger, Ph.D., Hytec market segment head, Lenzing. “The fiber has already demonstrated in tests that it is particularly well suited to sensitive skin. The exceptionally smooth surface of Tencel makes the fiber ideal for the skin and prevents skin irritations. For this reason, wipes of Tencel are particularly smooth and gentle on the skin.”
April 15, 2014
People
Wichita, Kan.-based Invista has named Ninabeth G. Sowell market development director, Performance Bedding Products.
Austria-based Lenzing AG has appointed Thomas Riegler CFO, effective June 1, 2014.
Switzerland-based Archroma has appointed Miguel De Bellis president, Emulsion Products and Americas.
Arlington, Va.-based Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP) President and CEO Avedis Seferian has been named to the Bangladesh-based Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety’s Board of Directors.
Houston-based Puget Technologies has appointed Gary J. Valentine president.
The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), Research Triangle Park, N.C., has presented the Harold C. Chapin Award in recognition of outstanding service to Robert Keith Lattie. The AATCC Technical Committee on Research (TCR) has presented the TCR Service Award in recognition of achievements and service to H. Kenneth Greeson, Cotton Incorporated, and Adam R. Varley, Vartest Laboratories Inc.
Greenville-based Global Location Strategies has promoted Monty Turner and John Longshore to consultants.
Longshore
Turner
Detroit-based Sandler & Travis Trade Advisory Services Inc. has named Mike Wilder vice president, business practice innovation.
Turkey-based Mogul Co. Ltd. has appointed C. Enver Kayali president; Ayse Kayali Executive Board Member; Serkan Gogus CEO; and Ersin Kosker director, projects and operations.
New York City-based Iconix Brand Group Inc. has promoted Seth Horowitz to COO; and has named Jeff Lupinacci CFO and Rodney Hutton executive vice president, Men’s Division.
Mason, Ohio-based Downlite International has named Chuck Northcutt vice president, quality assurance.
Northcutt
Milan-based Parà S.p.A. has named Jeff Jimison national sales manager, Tempotest USA Division, Dallas.
Jimison
Switzerland-based Swisscanto has presented the prix eco.swisscanto, the Swiss sustainability award, to Patrick Hohmann,
April 2014
Karl Mayer Introduces MT 51/1/32 Multibar Textronic® Lace Series Machine
Germany-based Karl Mayer Textilmaschinenfabrik GmbH recently introduced a new Multibar Textronic® Lace series machine for economical lace fabric production. The MT 51/1/32 features more than 32 yarns in front of the fall-plate to enable unique and varied effects in the finished lace in addition to larger widths of lace bands.
The machine currently is supplied in a 134-inch working width and gauge of E 24. The company reports E 18 and E 28 gauges also will be available in the future.
Karl Mayer’s China-based subsidiary Karl Mayer (China) Ltd. will supply the machines, with the first deliveries scheduled the third quarter of this year. Further details about this machine, as well as an entry-level MT 31/1/16 featuring fewer fall-plate yarns and an MT 43/1/24 with fewer guide bars will be available at ITMA Asia + CITME 2014, to be held in Shanghai June 16-20.
A sample of lace fabric produced on Karl Mayer’s MT 51/1/32 machine.
April 15, 2014
The JEC Americas 2014 Innovation Awards Program Recognizes Ten Composite Companies For Innovation And Industry-Leading Advances
UNION, N.J. — April 10, 2014 — JEC Group, the world’s largest organization exclusively dedicated to the composites industry, has announced the ten winners of its prestigious 2014 JEC Americas Innovation Awards program, which highlights the most pivotal advances in composites design, manufacturing and application. JEC will recognize the ten winning companies and their innovation partners during the third annual JEC Americas exhibition at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.
Since its launch in 1998, JEC’s Innovation Awards program has recognized over 700 companies and their partners throughout the world at ceremonies in Paris, Shanghai, Mumbai, Singapore and Boston for their industry-leading contributions toward improving composites technology and enhancing value for end-users.
“The American market has traditionally been at the forefront of composites both in terms of manufacturing and innovation. The Americas continue to be a key engine for innovation, investment and the commercialization of cutting-edge composites technology. The US is a key geography for the global composites industry as it represents around a third of its value, $22.5 billion on an overall of $70 billion,” said Mrs. Frédérique Mutel, President and CEO of JEC Group. “The JEC Innovation Awards Program continues to identify and celebrate the very top innovators from the Americas and abroad to help fulfill JEC’s mission to share the latest industry advances with the global composites community. From environmentally friendly bio-based resins to cutting-edge personal protection to innovative musical applications to integrated software and preforming processes, the products and technologies highlighted in this year’s competition are incredibly rich and varied.”
For this year’s award’s program, JEC compared applications from dozens of international companies for recognition in ten competitive categories, including Automation, Automotive, Ballistics, Construction, Processing, Raw Materials, Reinforcements, Software, Sports & Leisure and Wind Energy.
Reflecting JEC Group’s 20-year history of dedicated support for this region’s vibrant composites industry, the JEC Americas Exhibition & Conference is the only composites event that brings together leaders from the full spectrum of the global composites value chain, both upstream and downstream. This year, JEC Group will leverage its new relationship with Messe Frankfurt, Inc. to co-locate the JEC Americas Exhibition & Conference with Messe Frankfurt’s Techtextil North America and Texprocess Americas shows, giving visitors a rare opportunity to attend all three events at once.
The 2014 Innovation Awards Program is actively supported by JEC Magazine and Aviation Week.
Ten Companies Recognized at the 2014 JEC Americas Innovation Awards
- Raw Materials Category Winner: TSE Industries (USA)
- VOC- and BPA-Free Bio-Based Polyurethane Spray Layup Reinforcing Resin
- Reinforcements Category Winner: Stäubli GmbH (Germany)
- Double Rapier Weaving Machine for Economic Production of Locally Adapted 3D Weaves
- Software Category Winner: Plataine Technologies (USA)
- Integrated Production Optimization – New Technology Bridges the gap between CAD and ERP
- Processing Category Winner: EADS (Germany)
- Fiber Patch Preforming (FPP) Ttechnology
- Automation Category Winner: Technische Universität Braunschweig (Germany)
- Form-Flexible Preform-End-Effector (FormHand)
- Automotive Category Winner: FRIMO Group GmbH (Germany)
- Technical Demonstrator “Street Shark”
- Ballistics Category Winners: PPE (France), Cedrem (France)
- BBOX High-Energy Absorber for the Defense and Security Market
- Construction Category Winner (JEC Composites Magazine Special Prize): Kompetenzzentrum Holz GmbH (Austria)
- Non-Combustible Composite for Decorative Façades
- Sports & Leisure Category Winner: BComp (Switzerland)
- First Ukulele made of natural fiber Ekoa composites
- Wind Energy Category Winner: Owens Corning (France/USA)
- Innovative Wind Turbine Blades Manufactured with Glass Fabrics
Posted April 14, 2014
Source: JEC Americas
ITMA And EDANA Sign Memorandum Of Understanding
GENEVA — April 14, 2014 — The International Association for the Nonwovens and Related Industries (EDANA) and MP Expositions, the organiser of ITMA 2015, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU), intended to support the organisation of a conference on nonwovens during ITMA 2015.
Mr Pierre Wiertz, General Manager of EDANA, said: “For more than 40 years, EDANA has served its member companies through a number of programmes and events designed to bring the industry together. We share a common objective of helping the textile and, in our case, nonwoven industries reach out to a wider audience through greater innovations and education.”
Ms Eileen Ng, Executive Director of MP Expositions, added: “ITMA is the world’s largest textile and garment technology exhibition and it showcases the entire value chain. Since the introduction of the fibre and yarn sector at ITMA 2011, there is a growing emphasis on solutions for nonwovens and technical textiles. Visitors are able to witness the interaction of the materials and chemicals with the machines on the spot during live demonstrations. The cooperation with EDANA is synergistic and beneficial for the industry.”
Among the proposed joint efforts outlined in the MOU which was signed in Geneva on 10 April during the Index™ 2014 exhibition is collaboration on a nonwovens conference to be held at ITMA 2015 in Milan.
Lauding the collaboration, Mr Charles Beauduin, President of CEMATEX, said: “As the owner of ITMA, we warmly welcome EDANA to co-organise the nonwovens conference. Many of our CEMATEX national association members who produce machinery and related solutions for the nonwovens sector will look forward to this joint initiative.”
Details of the nonwovens conference will be released at a later date. It will be held during ITMA 2015 at Fiera Milano Rho in Milan Italy. ITMA will be staged from 12 to 19 November 2015.
Posted April 14, 2014
Source: ITMA
TENCEL® Fiber With A “Flushable” Function
LENZING, Austria — April 10, 2014 — With the cellulose fiber TENCEL® as a short-cut type, Lenzing is satisfying the trend of the times in the nonwovens industry. The fiber is biodegradable and strong and yet it is still flushable”, ideal for high quality wipes and care wipes.
Convenience and sustainability are not a contradiction with TENCEL®
The market for wipes will grow by 6.5% per year.1 In an increasing number of households one can find practical wipes for hygiene and care applications and the trend is on the rise. Many wipes are disposed of in the toilet whether they are “flushable” or not which leads to problems with blockages in public sewage systems. This is the very reason why industry is looking into this problem and demanding new production technologies. With Tencel, Lenzing supplies a raw material which is of botanic origin, contains no additives, and is biodegradable. When processed in the right way, practical wipes can be produced which comply with the convenience mindset of consumers and are, at the same time, biodegradable and environmentally friendly.
More quality with Tencel for a wipe with a “flushable” function
“Flushable” wipes from Tencel stand out due to their high quality. Due to the enormous fiber strength, the Tencel wipe is particularly tear-resistant in contrast to the materials conventionally used such as pulp and short-cut viscose. The high strength of the Tencel fiber also reduces the use of binding agents which are mostly made of acrylic, latex or bi-component fibers. Another advantage of Tencel compared to short-cut viscose is that due to the higher strength profile, fewer fibers are required for a comparable quality than in a wipe of short-cut viscose.
“Quality does not, however, only mean enhanced service properties but also refers to the skin-friendly attributes of Tencel. The fiber has already demonstrated in tests that it is particularly well-suited to sensitive skin,” Dr. Dieter Eichinger, head of the Hytec market segment (hygiene, home and technical textiles) at Lenzing explains.
“The exceptionally smooth surface of Tencel makes the fiber ideal for the skin and prevents skin irritations. For this reason, wipes of Tencel are particularly smooth and gentle on the skin,” Eichinger argues.
Tencel perfect for new technology
The merging of paper and spun-laced technology will revolutionize the market for wipes. Short-cut Tencel is ideally suited to this application and due to its properties, it will play a key role in the development of “flushable” wipes particularly with this technology. “Here the fiber strength of Tencel also plays a vital role,” Eichinger is positive.
Certificates confirm the sustainability of Tencel
Environmental certificates such as the EU-Ecolabel, Nordic Swan, OK biodegradable from Viocotte or Ecocert demonstrate the environmentally responsible production of Tencel. ”In particular the botanic origin of Tencel and the sustainable production of the fiber fit perfectly with the current consumer demands and are vital for the production of disposable wipes,” Elisabeth Stanger, Head of Hygiene at Lenzing, is convinced.
1 The Future of Flushable Nonwovens Market Forecasts to 2018, Philip Mango Source: Smithers Apex
Posted April 14, 2014
Source: Lenzing
ITM 2016 Will Be Held September 1-4
ISTANBUL, Turkey — April 11, 2014 — The date of ITM International Textile Machinery Exhibition, which is highly anticipated by the textile world, has been determined.
ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition will be held in Beylikdüzü Tüyap Convention and Congress Center between September 1st and 4th, 2016. Uniting hundreds of domestic and foreign textile leaders, ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition ranks among the leading exhibitions of the sector. Entitled to receive an international exhibition certificate, ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition also has a place in the world’s textile exhibitions calendar with its feature of international arena where cutting-edge technologies are exhibited.
Making visitor and participant records every year it is organized, ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition will open its doors on September 1st, 2016, with the attendance of governmental and sectoral authorities. Heart of the textile sector will be beating once again in Beylikdüzü Tüyap Convention and Congress Center. ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition will witness the shows of textile leaders, just like the previous years. Thus, Turkey will be the subject of conversations again in countries with active sectors, owing to this important event.
Pre-registrations for ITM Texpo Eurasia International Textile Machinery Exhibition will start on May 1st, 2014, and a press launch with international participation will be organized in the last quarter of 2014.
Posted April 14, 2014
Source: Teknik Fuarcilik
