Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont has begun production at its new Cooper River Kevlar® facility near
Charleston, S.C. DuPont first announced the investment back in January 2008
(See ”
DuPont
To Build Kevlar® Fiber Facility In South Carolina,” www.
TextileWorld.com, January 8, 2008). Product from the plant will be
commercially available by the end of the year, according to the company. The $500 million plant
initially increases DuPont’s Kevlar production by 25 percent and represents the largest single
investment in Kevlar since the fiber was introduced 46 years ago. Planned improvements and
technology upgrades may increase overall production by some 40 percent over the coming two years.

“As the population grows, there will be even more critical need for protection materials to
keep people safe and to protect the environment, structures and critical processes,” said Thomas G.
Powell, president, DuPont Protection Technologies. “After more than 40 years, the proven
performance of Kevlar continues to create significant new opportunities where the combination of
lightweight strength and other unique properties enable new designs, increase reliability and save
more lives. This significant boost in capacity and capability demonstrates DuPont’s continuing
commitment to support our customers and to find solutions that help protect more people around the
world.”

The new facility employs 135 people and will focus on manufacturing DuPont™ Kevlar AP, DuPont
Kevlar KM2 Plus and DuPont Kevlar XP™ products. Suitable end-uses for these products include
personal protective equipment such as ballistics protection, fiber optic cables and tires; as well
as applications in the aerospace, oil and gas, and automotive industries.

October 11, 2011

For the last several weeks, ITMA 2011 in Barcelona, Spain, was the focus of the Rupp Report.
However, some readers have been sending in emails to ask for the latest news on the cotton front.
And what can be better than to be approached by the valued readers and serve their needs? Here is
the latest news:

In late June, NY July futures rallied 1,859 points to 164.55 cents, while December closed 78
points lower at 119.40 cents. “It was a bizarre week in the futures market, because July and
December seemed to move contrary to what their respective fundamental situation was suggesting,”
noted Plexus Cotton Ltd. in its weekly Market Report.

In early July, futures and demand came under pressure: NY December futures dropped 507
points to 113.52 cents and there was concern the drop in demand might more than offset U.S. crop
reductions. “Mill demand continues and to be only of sporadic nature and certainly not sufficient
to absorb all the foreign stocks that merchants and growers would like to get rid of,” Plexus
reported, recognizing a “striking difference” between the balance sheets of the United States and
the rest of the world.

Plenty Of Cotton Available

The July 7 report stated that “there is still plenty of cotton available in the rest of the
world, starting with the vast unsold supply in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, followed by positions
in India, Brazil, Australia, Argentina and various African countries, which is where the current
price pressure is coming from.” The prices remained volatile for weeks.

And, in early August: “NY futures were able to extend their recent gains, with December
advancing another 235 points to close at 104.92 cents.

“The problem … with this trade net short in futures is that it is mainly ‘hedging’ long
positions in foreign growths, such as Brazilian, Australian, Indian and African origins. [The US
has] 7.4 million statistical bales in outstanding export commitments plus whatever shippers already
sold to domestic mills.”

In the meantime, the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) reported: “The
season-average Cotlook A Index reached a record of $1.64 per pound in 2010/11, twice as high as the
2009/10 average. However, the season-average A Index will decline in 2011/12, as an increase in
production will replenish stocks.”

According to ICAC, “world cotton production is expected to rise by 8% to 26.9 million tons
in 2011/12, driven by the high cotton prices received by farmers in 2010/11. Production will rise
in most large producing countries, with the exception of the United States. Production could reach
records in India and Australia. Despite a significant increase in U.S. planted area, severe drought
conditions in Texas will not only increase abandonment but also limit yields. U.S. cotton
production is forecast at 3.5 million tons in 2011/12, down 12% from the previous season.

“As a result of the surplus of 1.8 million tons expected in 2011/12, world ending stocks
could rebound by 20% to 10.9 million tons. The global stocks-to-use ratio could recover from 37% in
2010/11 to 43% in 2011/12.”

A Retreat, However …

In late August, Plexus reported: “NY futures retreated … as December gave back 396 points to
close at 102.99 cents. … Although the market managed to rally all the way up to 109.00 cents,
taking out the 108.62 cents resistance level and filling a chart gap at 108.88 cents in the
process, there wasn’t enough momentum to sustain the advance and prices have since fallen by over
500 points.

“Merchants have apparently been busy trying to reduce their US exposure by switching to
other growths, since ‘optional origin’ sales increased by 607,700 running bales, with 546,900 bales
involving commitments to China. … After this latest round of cancellations, or rather switches to ‘
optional origins,’ total outstanding commitments now amount to 6.5 million statistical bales of US
cotton, plus 0.7 million bales in the ‘optional origin’ category.”

Going Up Again

On September 8: “NY futures have moved sharply higher, with December gaining no less than
1064 points during that period, closing today at 113.63 cents. … The market had closed the previous
12 sessions in a very narrow band of just 335 points, between 102.99 cents and 106.34 cents, with
open interest showing hardly any change at all. But just when everyone was getting used to a dull
sideways trend, the market found a way to escape the boredom. Although some point to the floods in
Pakistan and the rains in India as the cause for this rally, we believe that it was a wide variety
of factors, both fundamental and technical, that led to this bullish move.

“Enquiries are definitely picking up, as mills are in the process of replenishing their
inventories. Yarn prices have started to rebound as well and we are seeing some encouraging signs
on the retail front. … The fact that the Chinese Reserve is, as of September 8, actively procuring
cotton in an effort to restock its depleted inventory, is another important element of support for
the market. The first procurement auction for 24,300 tons failed to attract any sellers, which is
to be seen as a bullish sign by the market. The buying program by the Reserve is intended to run
through March 31, 2012, and should provide decent support underneath the market.”

The week before the opening of ITMA in Barcelona: “NY futures traded lower this week, with
December dropping 201 points to close 111.62 cents. Although the market did not find enough
follow-through buying to keep last week’s upside momentum going, it has so far managed to hold and
consolidate recent gains. Volume tapered off considerably after 30,000 lots had changed hands last
Thursday and even though overall open interest increased by 1813 contracts since then, December saw
its open interest drop by 560 lots.

“However, conditions in the physical market have definitely improved in recent weeks, with
yarn values continuing to trend higher and mills apparently being able to work with replacement
values of around 120 cents landed Far East at the moment. Also, the floods in Pakistan’s Sindh
province have probably washed away some 1.5 million bales and impacted the quality of the cotton
that survived, while persistent rains in India’s Northern Zone has also adversely affected output
and quality, which is lending support to the market.”

Now, a few weeks later: “The US currently has export commitments of 8.0 million statistical
bales, of which only about 1.0 million bales have so far been exported. This means that there is
still a lot of cotton to come out of the US, sold or unsold. US merchants are currently trying to
figure out their quality position, because the US crop presents a very mixed bag of good, bad and
ugly cotton against commitments of mostly premium grades.”

The next page of the cotton story is yet to be written. The Rupp Report will keep you
up-to-date.

October 11, 2011

Singapore-based Huntsman Textile Effects has opened its 12th Formulation and Distribution Center
(FDC) in São Paulo, Brazil. The new center will feature the latest technology and will focus on
manufacturing dyeing auxiliaries, and pretreatment and finishing products for customers in the
area. Huntsman reports that Brazil is one of the fastest-growing and increasingly important markets
for its textile chemicals.

“With the opening of our new low cost production facility for formulated chemicals in São
Paulo, we will considerably increase our competitiveness and flexibility in textile chemicals in
the growing Brazilian textile market,” said Rohit Aggarwal, vice president, Huntsman Textile
Effects for Apparel and Home Textiles. “Huntsman Textile Effects is committed to sustainability and
looks to develop more competitive locally-sourced formulated products for the local market.”

“We are delighted that our Textile Effects division is opening this FDC as it means they can
offer a truly bespoke end to end service for their customers across Brazil,” said Monte Edlund,
vice president, Advanced Materials Americas, speaking at an opening ceremony for the FDC in São
Paulo. “It will also result in greater integration between our two divisions, Advanced Materials
and Textile Effects within [the] Americas and it will ensure greater leverage of existing Huntsman
business infrastructure in Brazil.”

October 11, 2011

True Fit Corp. — a Boston-based provider of fit personalization software — has launched True Fit™,
a fit personalization technology that matches online shoppers with apparel and shoes that fit their
body and style preferences. Macys.com is the company’s first retail partner, and will offer the
patented software service initially to women shopping Macy’s denim collection online within its
Women’s Denim Finder.

When viewing apparel or shoes on a retailer’s website, users begin by creating a True Fit
profile, which involves identifying brands, styles and sizes that fit them; identifying conceptual
body types; and providing basic information including height, weight and age. Then, when users shop
online, True Fit’s Recommendation Engine™ virtually tries on items using a range of proprietary
algorithms. Users are provided with guides for each product they view, including True Fit
T-Scores™, a five-point scale indicating how well an item will fit; True Fit Size™, which
pre-selects the best size for the user; and True Fit Details™, which provides fit details for body
areas such as waist, hips, seat and inseam. As users continue utilizing the technology while
shopping online, the software’s machine learning engine will learn more about what fits as the
user’s body and preferences change.

According to True Fit, the technology will benefit multi-channel retailers by increasing
sales and reducing returns by existing customers; helping to bring in new customers who might be
hesitant to purchase apparel or shoes online; and offering a quick reference for how a product will
fit to in-store customers who use the technology on their mobile phones and iPads.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Macy’s – a venerable retailer and innovation leader, who is
on the cutting edge defining the very best experience for the multi-channel shopper,” said William
R. Adler, CEO, True Fit. “We’re excited to deliver this highly personalized service to their
esteemed customers, and make it easier for them to find the right clothes and shoes at Macy’s.”

October 11, 2011

New York City-based Aria Systems Inc. — a producer of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software
for the apparel, accessories, footwear, home furnishings and textile industries — has developed a
Workwear/Uniform Clothing Management (WCM) module for its ERP software. The WCM module allows
workwear and corporate clothing suppliers to offer customized access portal websites to each
client. These websites allow suppliers to place and monitor orders with email notifications, check
and set up new locations and employees, track employees’ ordering patterns and entitlements, track
deliveries, request return authorizations and print management reports.

Aria reports such functions offer benefits including managing more customer accounts with
fewer staff; individualized uniform packs, product catalogs and price tables for each customer;
multi-level security and order approval levels; online client management reports; email
notification of orders; and flexible inquiries about orders in process by client account, location
and wearer, among other parameters.

According to the company, the WCM module can be fully integrated with all Aria modules and
other ERP systems, and will help corporate clothing suppliers provide their customers with
high-quality service on time at the right price in a competitive market.

October 11, 2011

Atlanta-based carpet tile and broadloom manufacturer Interface Inc. reports it expects to complete
environmental product declarations (EPDs) for 90 percent of its products, as measured by production
volume, by the end of this year. The company has pledged to secure EPDs for all of its products
worldwide in 2012.

An EPD stems from a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA), which lists a product’s
components and their origins and reports the environmental impacts – including energy and material
consumption, waste generation, and emissions – across the product’s life cycle. Both the LCA –
which must comply with the ISO 14040 environmental management LCA standard – and EPD – which must
comply with the ISO 14025 environmental labels and declarations, Type III environmental
declarations standard – are verified by an independent third-party organization.

“With the multitude of labels and claims in the marketplace, only EPDs offer full
transparency and allow customers to evaluate products based upon verified facts,” said Interface
President and CEO Dan Hendrix. “Adopting EPDs is one way we are responding to confusion in the
marketplace and offering a trustworthy tool for customers. Our hope is that [the customers] will
take advantage of EPDs to make decisions comparing and favouring products that have a smaller
footprint, while using more sustainable products for their projects.”

Interface’s EPD pledge is part of the company’s Mission Zero® initiative to eliminate all of
its negative impacts on the environment by 2020.

October 11, 2011

Anderson, S.C.-based aramid fiber/ballistic fabric weaver LifeStone Materials LLC will auction all
assets at its manufacturing facility, located at 99 Roush St. in Anderson. The company has retained
Spartanburg-based Yellow Tag Auctions — a licensed auction firm that works with businesses,
financial institutions and government entities — to conduct an online auction including weaving,
finishing and support equipment offered by individual lot and in bulk.

October 11, 2011

CHICAGO — October 10, 2011 — AkzoNobel has announced its plan to invest $20 million to increase
capacity at its Surface Chemistry plants in Itupeva, S.P., Brazil, and Morris, Illinois, USA, over
the next two years. This investment will enable AkzoNobel to expand production capacity for fatty
amine derivatives, which are essential ingredients in formulations used in a broad range of
industries such as oilfield, organoclay, fabric softeners, agrochemicals, home and personal care.

“We are committed to support our strategic customers in the Americas by constantly improving
our manufacturing sites and, as a result of our unparalleled innovation efforts, enabling them to
develop and produce new products,” says Bob Margevich, Managing Director, AkzoNobel Surface
Chemistry business unit. “Our objective is to grow with our customers.”

AkzoNobel’s fatty amines product lines include: Arquad®, Ethoquad®, Armid®, Armeen®,
Armosoft®, Redicote®, Berol®, Bermocoll®,  Aromox®, Duomeen®, Triameen®, Armac®, Duomac® and
Ethomeen®.

Posted on October 10, 2011

Source: AkzoNobel