Invista’s Lycra® Style Targets RTW Market

Invista, Wichita, Kan., has launched Lycra® Style fiber for the global ready-to-wear (RTW) market.
The fiber was developed specifically to meet RTW requirements with regard to branding, performance
and pricing; and is targeted for apparel worn by individual-istic, fashion-conscious consumers 18
to 35 years old who are particular about good fit and comfort.

“Invista’s new ready-to-wear brand, Lycra Style, is extremely important to the growth of our
overall Invista apparel business,” said Libby Neuner, global marketing director, outerwear,
Invista. “The sheer size of the ready-to-wear business and the opportunity to further penetrate the
market makes this a critical area of focus for Invista.”

Invista worked with biometric market research experts at Innerscope Research, Boston, to
discern potential consumers’ emotional responses by measuring their physical reactions to brand
marketing stimuli. The data collected were used to compare the subjects’ emotional feelings and
conscious responses related to each marketing component, providing a basis for understanding which
messages resonate with and will emotionally engage the targeted consumers.

May/June 2011

Hohenstein Tests High-tech Swimsuit Prototype

The Hohenstein Institute, Germany, has completed initial testing on a high-tech swimsuit prototype
developed by Sarah Ziem, a student at the University of Reutlingen, Germany. The swimsuit fabric is
an ultra-lightweight textile material coated with a nano-sol super-hydrophobic coating in which
microbubbles trapped between the fibers create an ultra-thin air cushion that allows the swimmer to
glide through the water. The institute reports the technology mimics the natural waterproofness of
the feathers of penguins, and substantially complies with strict regulations passed by the
International Swimming Federation in 2009 in response to concerns about an unusually large number
of records broken by swimmers wearing certain high-tech swimsuits in 2008-09 competitions.

Ziem developed the swimsuit as part of her bachelor’s degree dissertation under the
supervision of Dr. Walter Marx, Reutlingen. She also received support from Dr. Jan Beringer,
Hohenstein Institute; textile chemicals manufacturer CHT R. Beitlich GmbH, Germany; and performance
fabric manufacturer Mectex S.p.A., Italy.

The coating will be further refined prior to the swimsuit’s market debut.

May/June 2011

Novozymes Reports Benefits Of Enzymatic Processing

A life cycle assessment (LCA) conducted recently by Novozymes A/S, Denmark, shows that the use of
enzymes in textile processing can reduce water and energy consumption, carbon dioxide (CO2)
emissions and processing time.

Possible savings per ton of knitted fabric include up to 70,000 liters of water and 1 ton of
CO2, as well as a 20- to 25-percent reduction in processing time. Textile and apparel maker Esquel
Group, Hong Kong, has conducted several trials in which Novozymes solutions were applied at
different production stages and reports that the use of Novozymes enzymatic solution in place of
conventional technology enabled it to save 30 cubic meters of water per ton of knitted fabric just
in the bleaching process.

Novozymes notes that with the use of enzymes, water consumption is reduced because processes
can be combined, effluent toxicity is reduced, and fewer rinses are required after one process than
when traditional chemicals are used. The enzymes degrade quickly into harmless compounds; and
smaller amounts are required for textile processing compared to conventional chemical requirements.
In addition, water and effluent treatment costs are reduced.

May/June 2011

Alexium, ITG Sign MoU

Alexium Inc., Greer, S.C., and International Textile Group Inc. (ITG), Greensboro, N.C., have
signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) under which the companies will collaborate on several
product development initiatives, with ITG serving as Alexium’s preferred fabric supplier for
commercial and defense bids. The MoU is expected to speed up the textile market’s adoption of
Alexium’s Reactive Surface Treatment (RST) technology — a protective treatment that can be applied
to apparel and other textiles to provide waterproofing, oil repellency, flame retardation, chemical
and biological protection, and other functions.

Alexium is working with ITG’s Safety Components, Carlisle Finishing and Burlington Worldwide
business units on existing projects — mainly to treat military combat and battle dress uniforms
with a breathable, repellent finish — and plans to expand the applications on certain product lines
across several ITG divisions. The companies also recently partnered to supply outer-shell fabrics
for the U.S. Department of Defense’s Uniform Integrated Protection Ensemble comprising a
lightweight chemical/ biological protection suit.

May/June 2011

Sigma, Kraig Team To Produce Spider Silk Using Silkworms

Sigma Life Science — the biological products and services research business of St. Louis-based
Sigma-Aldrich Corp. — and Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc., Lansing, Mich. — a developer of
recombinant technologies and fibers — have signed a licensing agreement under which Kraig will use
Sigma’s CompoZr® Zinc Finger Nuclease (ZFN) technology to transfer spider silk genes to silkworms,
with the goal of commercializing spider silk production. Silk from spiders has been shown to have
greater tensile strength and elasticity than silk from silkworms. Potential applications include
sutures and other biomedical products, bulletproof vests, and automobile airbags.

“Sigma-Aldrich’s proprietary zinc finger technologies are extremely powerful tools which
enable very precise genetic targeting,” said Kim Thompson, CEO, Kraig Biocraft. “We believe that
… the technology will enable us to rapidly and precisely target specific gene sequences for the
creation of stronger fibers, advanced textiles and new bio-materials.”

May/June 2011

AmSafe Awarded Contract For Tarian QuickShield

AmSafe Industries Inc., Phoenix, has received a $4 million contract from the United Kingdom
Ministry of Defence (MOD) to supply its Tarian QuickShield rocket-propelled-grenade (RPG)
protection system. The textile net system is based on AmSafe’s patented Tarian technology, which
comprises a lightweight modular system that replaces traditional bar or slat armor on vehicles such
as high-mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles that cannot handle the weight of traditional RPG
armor, and can be used in place of damaged or missing bar armor. AmSafe reports it can easily be
stowed aboard the vehicle and fitted immediately to replace damaged bar armor without disrupting a
crew’s mission.

Introduced in 2009, Tarian technology has been tested by the MOD’s Defence Science and
Technology Laboratory and by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency (DARPA), and has been shown to withstand more than 550 live firing shots. QuickShield is up
to 98-percent lighter than steel bar or slat armor and up to 94-percent lighter than aluminum bar
or slat armor, AmSafe reports.

May/June 2011

Universal Textile To Recycle Yellowstone’s Plastic Waste

Universal Textile Technologies Inc., Dalton, Ga., and Yellowstone National Park have entered into a
recycling partnership under which Universal Textile will buy the plastic bottles collected by
Yellowstone and convert them into a nonwoven fleece material used to manufacture BioCel™ and
EnviroCel™ sustainable backings for carpet and synthetic turf. The backings utilize Celceram™, a
highly refined material recovered from coal combustion in electric utility power plants and then
combined with soybean-based polyols. They are certified under the U.S. Green Building Council’s
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program; and are moisture-resistant, insulate against
energy loss, reduce ambient noise and strengthen the structural integrity of carpet and synthetic
turf, according to the company.

May/June 2011

Trevira Introduces Ingeo™ PLA Fibers For Nonwovens

Polyester fiber and filament yarn manufacturer Trevira GmbH, Germany, has introduced fibers made
from Ingeo™ polylactide (PLA) biopolymer for nonwoven applications. The company received a license
in 2010 from brand owner NatureWorks LLC, Minnetonka, Minn., to manufacture Ingeo fibers.

Different versions of the fibers are suitable for spunlace, wetlaid and carding applications
for wet wipes, hygiene products and technical nonwovens. Trevira also plans to add a bicomponent
fiber to the product range.

May/June 2011

Bullet-resistant Wool Heads Toward Commercialization

Researchers at RMIT University, Australia, have developed ballistic materials containing a
wool/Kevlar® blend for applications such as bullet-resistant vests that are expected to cost less,
weigh less and have greater efficacy than traditional Kevlar vests.

RMIT School of Fashion and Textiles professors Dr. Rajiv Padhye and Dr. Lyndon Arnold report
that a vest made with the blended material has greater efficacy when wet than a 100-percent Kevlar
vest, which loses some 20 percent of its efficacy when wet and therefore must be treated with an
expensive waterproofing agent. They also found that 28 to 30 layers of the blended material provide
the same level of protection offered by 36 layers of 100-percent Kevlar material.

“And because wool fibres expand naturally in water by up to 16 percent, the wool-Kevlar blend
actually becomes more effective in wet conditions,” Padhye said. “The result is a cheaper
bullet-resistant vest that works even better when it’s wet.”

Arnold noted that when wool is added to Kevlar, the friction is increased and the yarns hold
together more closely, so fewer layers suffice to dissipate a bullet’s kinetic energy. “With Kevlar
averaging around $70 per kilogram, compared to about $12 for wool, reducing the amount [of Kevlar]
required to make a vest is a real incentive for manufacturers,” he added.

A blend comprising 20- to 25-percent wool and 75- to 80-percent Kevlar provides the optimal
performance, according to research findings.

The project has received support from Australian Wool Innovation and Australian Defence
Apparel. Padhye and Arnold are working with ballistics vest makers in hopes of commercializing the
wool/Kevlar material.

May/June 2011

RadiciSpandex Develops Eco-Friendly RadElast®

RadiciSpandex Corp., Gastonia, N.C., is developing a line of sustainable RadElast® spandex fiber
comprising 80-percent biomaterial derived from corn and designed for use in medical/personal care
and apparel applications.

“By using a 100-percent renewably sourced raw material for the production of our spandex, we
will develop a product with a reduced environmental footprint,” said Marty Moran, CEO,
RadiciSpandex. “The demand of the market at large, and particularly the personal care and textile
sectors, which are our target markets, is increasingly leaning towards so-called ‘green’ products
that help protect the environment.”

The company reports the biopolymer used in RadElast is more easily processed and is more
cost-competitive long-term than chemically produced spandex base materials and their end products;
and provides improved stretch, reduced deterioration under stress and decreased hysteresis effect.

May/June 2011

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