“Made in the USA” is a mantra increasingly heard in the textile and apparel industry — signaling a
turning of the tide that has sent so much sourcing offshore. Since its founding 111 years ago,
private-label knitwear and fabric manufacturer FesslerUSA has held fast to that mantra.

The company’s beginnings trace back to 1900, when Walter Meck, grandfather of current CEO
Walter Meck, left the family farm and founded Meck & Co., a cotton underwear manufacturer in
the Pennsylvania Dutch river port of Schuylkill Haven. After surviving two world wars, a depression
and two recessions, the company was sold in 1960 by Walter’s son, Charles, to H.H. Fessler Knitting
Co. In 1994, the Meck family reacquired the company and restructured it with the goal of keeping
manufacturing in the United States.

An employee sorts jersey knit T-shirts at FesslerUSA’s distribution facility.

Today, FesslerUSA remains a family-owned and -operated business, led by CEO Walter Meck; COO
and Chief Sustainability Officer Bonnie Meck, Walter’s wife; and their son, Brian, who serves as
vice president of sales and marketing. The company is a full-package supplier of knitted fabrics
and apparel for more than 100 brands and retailers, producing more than 100,000 garments a week at
its 150,000-square-foot Deer Lake facility — a state-of-the-art, vertically integrated
manufacturing plant in Orwigsburg, Pa. FesslerUSA also runs a sewing facility in Reading, Pa.; and
has a showroom in New York City where it meets with customers.

Vertically Integrated Manufacturing


FesslerUSA’s ability to produce its own fabric is one aspect that sets it apart from other
apparel manufacturers remaining in the United States. “We made a decision very early on to be
different from everyone else by being vertical and having fabric production. That’s been key to our
success and our ability to get through the economic downturn,” said Walter Meck.

A custom software program drives the entire manufacturing process. The company does all of
its design services, knitting, cutting, sewing, folding, packing and final processing in-house.
Dyeing and finishing is done by a local dyer with whom the company has done business for more than
40 years.

Yarn is purchased primarily from domestic manufacturers, including Buhler Quality Yarns
Corp., Jefferson, Ga.; Parkdale Mills Inc., Gastonia, N.C.; Unifi Inc., Greensboro, N.C.; and
RadiciSpandex Corp., Gastonia, N.C. Trims come from Key Manufacturing Textiles, Allentown, Pa., a
FesslerUSA subsidiary that also produces trims for 40 other manufacturers. Laces and elastics come
mostly from overseas sources, as there aren’t many U.S. manufacturers.

“As a domestic manufacturer, we have a big challenge from a supply chain perspective to be
able to offer all the different types of dyed-to-match trims and laces, zippers, and buttons that
our overseas competitors have access to in their local marketplace,” said Brian Meck. “There are
parts of a garment we still need to import, or we need to work within the limitations of what is
available domestically.”

Knitting is done on Vanguard and Monarch circular knitting machines. Brian Meck said that
while knitting technology hasn’t changed much, the machinery has become more efficient, and
FesslerUSA has switched from coarser-gauge to finer-gauge machines. Pattern-making, marker-making
and spreading and cutting equipment is supplied by Gerber Technology.

Focus On Fabric


FesslerUSA knits a range of fabrics in various yarn qualities, including rib, jersey,
interlock, piqué, pointelle, thermal, heather and terry. The company runs a lot of Supima®,
Supima/MicroModal® and Supima/MicroTencel® blends; 100-percent MicroModal and MicroTencel; and
polyester/rayon blends. Currently, there is a lot of interest in wool fabrics and blends. The
company recently introduced Tencel®/cashmere, and it is developing several new fabrics including an
alpaca/wool blend.

“We’ve also added flat bed knitting and have developed a new collection of piqué fabrics so
we can make polo shirts with fashion colors and welts,” Brian said. “And we have quite a few
stretch performance and baselayer fabrics in different stages of development.”

The company offers more than 400 fabrics, and only 10 to 15 percent of production involves
use of fabrics customers might find from another supplier. In addition, FesslerUSA has been
designing its own garments for about 10 years. Customers use the styles as is or make adjustments
and add them to their lines.

The company exports less than 5 percent of its production, and supplies the rest domestically
to brands and retailers mostly in the women’s and children’s fashion market, but also in the
outdoor and performancewear market. A major core customer is Nordstrom, whose relationship with
FesslerUSA spans more than 10 years. Michael Stars has been a customer for well over 20 years.
Walter said good brands such as their largest and core customers don’t change much. Smaller or
startup brands may shift their product lines or designs and move away from what FesslerUSA offers,
but then, the company will pick up a new brand.

FesslerUSA’s 34,000-square-foot knitting facility includes more than 50 circular rib and jersey
knitting machines as well as a full testing lab.

Value-Added Services


While FesslerUSA’s customers range from small startups to high-end department stores, all
need some level of design support. The company’s Design Support Services team takes a customer’s
creative design request through the entire costing and sampling process, from pattern-making,
garment-engineering and sewing through quality-testing, and, finally, through fits and revisions
leading up to final approval and production. Brian noted that expectations of accuracy and quality
for sampling, and especially turn times, have changed dramatically over the past five to 10 years.
“People seem to be waiting closer to their ship dates and in-store dates to submit sample requests;
or they’ve come to know we can turn samples quickly and fill orders if needed. We get a lot of
sample requests that we need to turn in two to three days, whereas our average sample turn time
used to be two to three weeks.” Those shorter lead times are an advantage gained from working with
a domestic supplier, Brian emphasized, because it allows customers to quickly replenish styles
within season.

FesslerUSA also offers customer service and production planning services to help customers
create and manage their design and production time and action calendars. “Helping our customers
stay on time and on schedule is a big part of the service we provide. Our customers save a lot of
time and money not having to hire a production team to manage and oversee the process.”

A growing segment of FesslerUSA’s business comes through its Design Consulting Services,
which assists newer brands or startups that have ideas of something they want to bring to market,
but no production knowledge or expertise. The company assigns a team of people who, for a fee, help
with fabric and style development, brand strategy planning, financial planning and supply chain
development.

FesslerUSA also offers a range of value-added services post-production such as washing,
screen printing, transfer printing, pressing, bagging and tagging. “Pretty much anything that can
be done to a garment, we provide as part of our production process,” Brian said.

The Sustainable Vision


FesslerUSA’s sustainability program began several years ago, with two coinciding events: The
company began making garments from organic cotton and sustainable fibers, and it purchased the Deer
Lake building, which needed renovations.

“When we bought the building, it was very dark and dingy and had old, very inefficient
fluorescent lighting,” Bonnie Meck said. The company began renovating the building phase by phase,
replacing fluorescent bulbs with T5 and T8 lighting and painting the walls using highly reflective,
low-volatile-organic-compound paint, to reduce the amount of lumens needed to provide light.

“But we soon learned that there was more to sustainability than organic cotton and
energy-efficient lighting,” Bonnie said. “It was about the entire carbon footprint — having a
factory that sustainably minimizes electricity usage; responsibly reducing, then recycling our
manufacturing byproducts; minimizing the distance that garments move; using low-impact dyes and
sustainably produced fibers.”

The company invested in variable speed drives to lower its peak electricity usage and utility
costs. “We did that long before we put the solar power system in, because even though we knew we
were going to be generating electricity from the sun, we still wanted to be using less energy
overall,” Bonnie said.

FesslerUSA recently completed its solar power generation system, which consists of more than
1,600 solar panels covering about half of the facility’s roof. The 450-kilowatt system will
generate more than 540,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year — enough to power 35 homes — and
will provide half to two-thirds of the facility’s electricity needs. A live Web-based monitoring
system is broadcast on a large flat-screen TV in the middle of the offices to increase employee
awareness of the energy savings being accomplished.

More than 1,600 solar panels are mounted on the roof of FesslerUSA’s Deer Lake
facility.

One future goal is to convert the company’s hot water system from electric to solar thermal
power, which Bonnie anticipates will make a difference in the company’s energy usage. “When we
started, it wasn’t with the goal of what the return on investment would be — but it does help to
keep us globally competitive. Most sustainability translates to the bottom line,” she said.

The next project in the works involves redoing the office space on a low-carbon basis using
solar tubes and lighting that adjusts according to outside sunlight. Bonnie said the company
actively seeks ways to reuse where it can, such as installing gently used cubicles instead of
purchasing new ones. Although neither the factory nor the office space are fancy, Walter said, “we
want them to make a statement and reflect our culture and the way we do business: simple, elegant,
with a low-carbon footprint.”

The Mecks have received extremely positive customer response to their sustainability efforts
– especially regarding the solar power system, which “makes them aware of the importance of their
carbon footprint, because as energy costs go up, the size of that footprint will directly affect
both brands’ and retailers’ competitiveness,” Walter said. And, as Bonnie stressed, “Most of what
we do never leaves the continental United States in terms of the supply chain. When we buy yarn
spun in Georgia with cotton grown in California, Texas or Arizona, and we bring that yarn to
Pennsylvania, and then we knit the fabric and do everything here under one roof, and then we ship
those garments to distribution centers all over the United States, there’s no way to compare that
to the carbon footprint of something you’re bringing in from China.”

A Culture Of Sustainability


When the company implemented its sustainability plan, Bonnie said, “we learned that
sustainability is a journey, not a destination — a journey that requires everyone to be on board —
from every employee, to vendors, and, most importantly, our customers. As a family and a business,
we chose to personalize and adopt the pursuit of sustainability for FesslerUSA.”

The company’s volunteer employee Sustainability Team has helped develop corporate initiatives
including a sustainability Bulletin Board; a Sustainability Corner in each of the company’s
newsletters; a Swap Shop for employees to swap gently used clothing; a lending library for
exchanging books; and coupon boxes in the lunchrooms. Sustainability Awards are given to employees
who go above and beyond expectations.

“We are trying to create that spirit in our employees, even encouraging them to be more
sustainable in their personal lives,” Bonnie said. “We want them to be proud and involved in what
we’re doing. It takes time, but it becomes a thought process, a way of life.”

Bonnie noted that sustainability awareness has increased significantly in the apparel
industry in the last few years. When FesslerUSA began the process, a few companies in the industry
that were further along in the journey were willing to share their advice and experience. “I found
that to be very refreshing, because we’re in a very competitive industry where people typically
don’t share information,” she said. “I want to be generous with our knowledge so we can keep
promoting the culture of sustainability.”



It’s All In The Family


Although FesslerUSA has built a reputation as a family-owned and operated business, Walter
emphasizes that “when we say ‘family,’ we mean more than just immediate family; I consider every
one of my employees to be part of my family. We think the key to running a successful business is
not just making money, but making sure the needs of our employees — our family — are being met.
Employee welfare is a very important part of sustaining a company.”

The company’s health and wellness committee implements various initiatives to encourage its
150 employees to live a healthy lifestyle. Initiatives have included a contest in which pedometers
were given out to see who walked the most steps; weight-loss competitions; smoking cessation
programs; and an annual health fair that offers skin cancer testing, chair massages, blood pressure
checks, and healthy lunches supplied by local vendors.

The committee currently is working on a project to put a fitness trail around the building’s
perimeter. Naturally, to stay in line with its focus on reuse, the sustainability committee is
looking for a way to make the markers out of something recycled from the factory.

All About Adaptation


In order to survive, a company must be flexible, Walter said. “I tell our people, the one
thing I can promise them is constant change. We continually look for opportunities — whether it’s
in a different market, looking at different brands, acquiring a brand, or partnering with a
retailer — we are always actively open to considering alternatives.”

In the past, most if not all of FesslerUSA’s fabric production was used for garments, but the
company recently started to sell fabric directly to customers. “That has become one of our most
rapidly growing segments,” Walter said. “Another thing we did during the downturn was ask how else
we could use our facility for niches inside or outside the apparel market.”

One such niche is the outdoor performancewear market, which is growing, is custom, and fits
right into FesslerUSA’s “sweet spot,” as Walter said. “We’ve even taken on a few customers that do
some very unusual things, but that our equipment is uniquely set up to produce, such as non-apparel
items in the medical industry.

“To be a U.S. vertical apparel manufacturer, you have to recognize that you can’t compete
with China on the lowest landed cost and you can’t compete at the big-box store level,” Walter
said. “Where we compete is when a customer, retailer or brand needs something more, something they
can’t get overseas; and when they understand the value of taking time, overhead and/or carbon
footprint out of the sourcing cycle.”

While the company was affected by the recent economic downturn and lost customers that
couldn’t survive or decided the grass is greener in China, Walter said, “we’ve seen some come back,
who decided the service we provide is more important than the slight premium in cost that comes
from being Made in the USA.”

Walter also said that people have finally adjusted to the fact that the market has
contracted. “After almost two years of ordering on a trial-and-error basis, customers are more
confident in placing purchases six months out. The uncertainty is slowly but clearly going away,
and the market has adjusted to the new realities of the economy.”

Though competing as a U.S. manufacturer in the global marketplace certainly has its
challenges, Walter said FesslerUSA receives a lot of support from retailers and other suppliers who
serve the apparel industry. “Everyone wants to see apparel Made in the USA, and the support that we
receive from all sides is not only refreshing, but it keeps us focused and keeps us from giving
up.”

“We’re constantly moving forward, looking to do better, remaining a leader in our industry,”
Bonnie said, “and that’s the best we can do — keep moving along that path.”

“Life is adapting to the situation,” Walter added. “We’ve adapted, and we’ll continue to
adapt.”

September/October 2011

When designing and manufacturing a sustainable textile product, raw material production and
processing into fiber come first. If the raw material is a natural plant fiber, there may be
questions about the amount of water and chemicals needed to ensure a successful harvest of
high-quality material. If a manufactured fiber, there are questions about the nature of the raw
material and the way it is processed into fiber — does the raw material come from a renewable or
recyclable/recycled source; is a closed-loop process in place to minimize environmental impact;
what kinds of chemicals are used in the process and what is their impact; how much energy is
required and what is its impact; and can the end product be recycled or composted at the end of its
useful life?

As part of its series of articles on sustainability in textile manufacturing,

Textile World
last year featured initiatives aimed at recycling plastics and textile materials into new
fibers for use in the textile and apparel industry

(See “From Waste To Worth,”
TW, November/December 2010)
. The following article will discuss several plant-based natural and man-made fibers.

New, more productive cotton varietals being planted today and improved cultivation practices
are helping the fiber to reduce its environmental footprint.

Cotton


Cotton claims a 36-percent share of the textile fibers market. The fiber is prized for its
comfortable, soft, breathable, absorbent qualities, which make it the fiber of choice for numerous
apparel articles plus bedsheets, towels and a range of other textile products. With recent
developments of various technical treatments, it also is finding its way into performance markets,
such as athletic and outdoor apparel, that traditionally have been dominated by man-made fibers.

Conventional cotton often comes under fire because of a misperception that its cultivation
requires huge amounts of water and pesticides, and leaches nutrients from the soil, but the fiber
has cleaned up its act, so to speak. New, more productive varietals need minimal irrigation and are
more resistant to damage by the boll weevil and other pests, and improved conservation tillage
practices have led to a balance between soil erosion and soil creation. Cotton Incorporated, Cary,
N.C., the research and marketing company that promotes Upland cotton, has dedicated a section of
its website,
www.cottoninc.com, to the sustainability issue, and provides
considerable data supporting its contention that cotton is a sustainable crop. The Memphis,
Tenn.-based National Cotton Council of America’s website,
www.cotton.org, includes a section that lists conservation
programs available to help cotton growers reduce the environmental impacts of cultivation.

According to Cotton Incorporated, approximately 50-percent more cotton is produced on the same
acreage today compared with 40 years ago. Worldwide, cotton is grown on 2.5 percent of the
cultivated agricultural land and uses 3 percent of the water required for agricultural production.
Two-thirds of the U.S. cotton crop requires no irrigation, and pound-for-pound, 45-percent less
irrigation water is needed today compared with 25 years ago. Pesticide and herbicide use has also
decreased, and many pesticides target specific pests and do not harm beneficial insects. Since
1996, there has been a 23-percent reduction in use of insecticide active ingredients, and a
28-percent reduction in environmental impact. In addition, according to the Bremen Cotton Exchange,
Germany, tests conducted in 2008-09 showed no pesticide or heavy metal residue on raw cotton fiber
from 15 countries. Cotton cultivation also stores more carbon dioxide (CO2) than it emits, with 2.2
kilograms (kg) of CO2 per kg of fiber stored in fiber and soil compared with 1.8 kg of CO2 emitted
into the air during production.

While conventional cotton’s eco-credentials have improved considerably, biotechnology plays a
major role in giving the plants characteristics that help reduce their vulnerability to pests and
increase productivity, and chemical pesticides and herbicides are used to protect the crops.
Organic cotton producers, by contrast, plant non-genetically modified seeds and practice methods
such as crop rotation; soil fortification through the addition of organic matter; physical removal
and cultivation practices to control weeds; maintenance of soil conditions that encourage the
presence of natural predators; and use of beneficial insects, trap crops and other means to control
pests. According to the Organic Trade Association, Brattleboro, Vt., global organic cotton output
in 2008-09 grew 20 percent over the previous year to total nearly 803,000 bales, which represents
0.76 percent of total global cotton output. And consumer demand for organic cotton textiles is
growing as well: In 2009, world sales of organic cotton apparel and home textiles rose 35 percent
over the previous year to an estimated $4.3 billion.

Bast Fibers


Bast fibers are receiving renewed attention in the quest to increase the use of sustainable
fibers in all kinds of textile products, but particularly for apparel. Naturally Advanced
Technologies Inc. (NAT), Vancouver, Canada, has licensed technologies from Alberta Innovates to
process bast fibers such as flax and hemp using enzymes to soften them and remove the lignin. The
resultant materials, branded CRAiLAR®, fit well in the sustainable fibers niche on a number of
counts: As crops, flax and hemp are fast-growing, can be cultivated using minimal to no pesticides
or herbicides, and require no irrigation except in drought conditions. In the Southeast, flax can
be cultivated as a winter crop in alternation with warm-weather crops. In addition, the enzymatic
process is non-polluting and economical. NAT is ramping up its production of Crailar Flax, which it
sees as an ingredient fiber to blend with cotton for apparel applications, among other uses

(See “NAT Announces CRAiLAR® Flax Developments,” Fiber World News, this issue)
. The flax fiber exhibits reduced shrinkage and improved dye uptake and wicking compared with
cotton, and also dries more quickly, the company reports.

NAT also produces CRAiLEX® dissolving pulp, derived from hemp or flax, using technology
licensed from Alberta Innovates. The process does not use harsh chemicals and is more economical
than traditional kraft pulping equipment. The pulp exhibits a high viscosity and purity and shows
promise for use as an additive and functional ingredient for commercial products, and as an
ingredient in a textile yarn extruded using an eco-friendly modified closed-loop lyocell process.
Crailex developments are still in early stages.

When bamboo first was marketed for textile applications, much attention was focused on its
sustainable attributes, including the plant’s fast-growing, carbon-absorbing, pest-resistant
properties, but in all the marketing hype, the viscose process most often used to turn bamboo into
a textile fiber — and which turns it into something quite different from the original bast fiber —
was discreetly disregarded. The Federal Trade Commission now requires that bamboo viscose fiber
must be qualified as such. The viscose process uses caustic chemicals, and unless methods are used
to capture and recycle them, harmful byproducts can be released into the air and water. Meanwhile,
a lyocell process also can be used.

Litrax AG, Switzerland, offers a mechanically and enzymatically processed bamboo fiber,
marketed as Litrax-1®, that retains the bast fiber’s intrinsic properties and can claim all the
eco-benefits of its natural plant characteristics and its cultivation. The environmentally-friendly
enzymatic process softens the fiber, which offers good breathability and moisture management as
well as water and odor absorbency. Litrax-1 also blends well with cotton, Tencel®, silk, merino
wool and other fibers — providing complementary properties to or reinforcing properties of the
partner fiber.

Regenerated Cellulosic Fibers


Lenzing AG, Austria, has been manufacturing viscose for nearly 70 years, and more recently
also has been producing lyocell fibers — including Tencel — as well as Lenzing Modal®. All fibers
are derived from wood.

The viscose process is controversial in sustainability circles for reasons noted above.
However, Lenzing has evolved its viscose process so that the byproducts are recovered to be
recycled or sold, and the company has earned the European Environmental Award in recognition of its
efforts to minimize the environmental impact of all of its processes.

Tencel is derived from fast-growing eucalyptus trees harvested from sustainably managed
plantations. The plant requires no irrigation nor pesticides, and it can be grown on land that is
not prime food-producing land. The fiber’s closed-loop lyocell manufacturing process uses a
water-soluble auxiliary, and the processing chemicals are recovered. The resulting fibers are
biodegradable and 99-percent recyclable, Lenzing reports, as well as being hypoallergenic, soft,
breathable, moisture-wicking and bacteria-growth-inhibiting. Its applications range from apparel
and home textiles to automotive and industrial uses.

Modal is a particularly soft fiber derived from beechwood. Again, Lenzing reports the
processes are optimized for sustainability, and the byproducts are recovered for use in the
production of sweeteners and other foods, as well as glass.

Biobased Man-Made Fibers


Renewably sourced man-made fibers offer numerous environmental advantages over
petroleum-based fibers, and they provide desirable performance benefits as well. The polymers used
to make these fibers are derived all or in part from plant sugars or oils.

Ingeo™ polylactide (PLA) biopolymer is produced by NatureWorks LLC, Minnetonka, Minn., using
lactic acid derived from corn sugar, although it also can be derived from other cellulosic raw
materials including agricultural waste and non-food plants. According to NatureWorks, Ingeo is
produced using 50-percent less non-renewable energy and its production emits 60-percent less
greenhouse gases (GHGs) than polyethylene terephthalate and other petroleum-based polymers. The
company continues to improve its environmental footprint as it implements measures including use of
a new plant-based feedstock and renewable energy such as wind and biomass, as well as optimizing
the manufacturing process.

Ingeo is used to make textile fibers as well as a range of plastic products. U.S. fiber and
yarn producers licensed to produce Ingeo products include Fiber Innovation Technology Inc., Johnson
City, Tenn.; O’Mara Inc., Rutherford College, N.C.; and Palmetto Synthetics LLC, Kingstree, S.C.

PLA properties include low moisture absorption and good wicking, low flammability and smoke
generation, good ultraviolet resistance, low refraction index, and low specific gravity. Textile
applications include apparel, outdoor furnishings, carpet and nonwovens. Eco-friendly end-of-life
options for product disposal include composting of contaminated items and recycling of clean items.
Off-grade feedstock is recycled at NatureWorks’ processing plant in Blair, Neb.

DuPont™ Sorona® polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT) polymer is produced by Wilmington,
Del.-based DuPont at its plant in Kinston, N.C. PTT fiber is known by the sub-generic designation
triexta, assigned in recognition of a unique combination of properties that include the ability to
blend with and improve performance of other fibers. Sorona’s makeup includes 37-percent annually
renewably sourced plant-based ingredients by weight and 28-percent biobased carbon. DuPont is
working to find other materials to make the fiber more sustainable. Compared to production of
polyamide (PA) 6, for which it can be substituted, Sorona is produced using 30-percent less energy
because it is extruded at lower temperatures, and its production generates 63-percent less GHG
emissions. It also contains no heavy metals and is intrinsically stain-resistant. Other properties
include fade resistance, wrinkle resistance and quick-drying properties. Fibers and fabrics can be
dyed at 212°F, and no additional heat, pressure or chemicals are required, DuPont reports.

In carpet applications, Sorona offers durability and wear resistance as well as permanent
stain and bleach resistance. Used as a face fiber, it can be recycled by shaving it off of the
carpet backing and repelletizing it to process into new carpet fiber.

Rilsan® PA 11, produced by France-based chemical company Arkema, is derived from the oil of
castor beans. The polymer has been used in high-performance technical industrial applications since
it was developed in 1942. In recent years, it has been processed into apparel and carpet fiber. The
castor bean plant grows in poor, non-irrigated soil conditions, and fiber production generates half
the carbon dioxide and potential GHG emissions compared with PA 6,6 production.

A Rilsan technical apparel yarn branded Greenfil® is offered by France-based yarn
manufacturer Groupe Sofila. Invista, Wichita, Kan., includes 10-percent Rilsan in its Antron®
Bio_Legacy™ white dyeable nylon carpet fiber and is exploring ways to increase that percentage.
Invista reports PA 11 and PA 6,6 — the other nylon component in the fiber — are very compatible and
can be recycled back into polymer for new fiber using PA 6,6 methods.

September/October 2011