Germany-based Bayer CropScience AG and New York City-based textile and apparel company Olah Inc.
have signed a 10-year licensing agreement under which Olah has received an exclusive license to
develop and market Bayer CropScience’s cotton FiberMax® and Stoneville® brand names for apparel and
home furnishings. The agreement initially applies to North America, Mexico and Japan, but it may be
extended to additional countries. Olah also has the right to sublicense the brand names to other
manufacturers.

FiberMax high-quality, long-staple upland cotton is grown mainly in the United States and is
suitable for finished goods made with fine yarns – such as T-shirts, chinos, towels and bedsheets.
Shorter-staple Stoneville cotton is strong and especially suitable for use in heavyweight fabrics
and apparel such as rugged outdoor workwear, and sports- and casualwear such as jeans. Both
FiberMax and Stoneville goods include certification that identifies the fiber’s point of origin.

“Together, Olah Inc. and Bayer CropScience will create a unique connection between cotton
producers, spinners, merchants, textile manufacturers, retailers and consumers,” said Joachim
Schneider, head of the BioScience business group, Bayer CropScience. “And Bayer CropScience will
continue to invest heavily in growing its cotton business, including new research and development
innovations targeted at improving fiber quality, yields and stress tolerance.”

“This agreement provides us with the means to develop new products for today’s consumers
using best-in-class technology, production techniques and style,” said Andrew Olah, CEO, Olah Inc.
“At the same time it grants us the ability to document the origin of the cotton used in our apparel
and home furnishing products on a mass scale, thus providing consumers with transparency that is
revolutionary in today’s apparel business.”

February 8, 2011

Atlanta-based CET Color — a manufacturer of ultraviolet (UV) wide-format digital printers and
routers — has signed an agreement with PrintLat LLC — a Miramar, Fla.-based distributor of supplies
for the wide-format digital printing industry — under which PrintLat will establish a supply chain
and distribution channel to bring CET’s products to the Latin American market.

“With the distribution and reach of PrintLat, sign shops, agencies and corporate accounts
across Latin America will now have new and affordable UV wide-format printing solutions available
to assist them with reaching new markets that may have eluded them in the past,” said Dave Cich,
vice president, CET Color.  

“CET Color is becoming quite a force in the UV wide-format digital printing market,” said
David Pachon, president, PrintLat. “Our partnership with them will enable us to expand our offering
and round out our portfolio of products. CET Color will assist us in providing innovative print
solutions to companies while lowering their cost of ownership.”

February 8, 2011

Under Armour Inc. — a Baltimore-based developer and supplier of sports performance apparel,
footwear and accessories — has launched the Under Armour® Charged Cotton™ collection of men’s and
women’s shirts and shorts and women’s capri tights. The garments contain alternating hydrophilic
and hydrophobic cotton yarns that transport perspiration when it comes into contact with the
fabric, spreading moisture across the surface area and thereby accelerating evaporation. Under
Armour reports the soft, comfortable fabric dries five times faster than conventional cotton and
offers good stretch and recovery.

“This is truly one of the most exciting product releases in the history of Under Armour, as
Charged Cotton is the ultimate marriage of innovation and performance,” said Kevin Plank, founder
and CEO, Under Armour. “It has long been our mission to make all athletes better, and that’s
exactly what we’ve done with one of nature’s most beloved materials.”

According to Cotton Incorporated – the Cary, N.C.-based research and marketing company
supported by U.S. upland cotton growers and cotton and cotton textile importers — consumers have
long preferred cotton fabrics to those containing man-made materials, but cotton’s absorbent
characteristic has hindered its use in performance athletic and outdoor apparel.

“Several years [ago] Cotton Incorporated recognized the growing athletic apparel category and
the fact that it was dominated by synthetics, even though the majority of consumers preferred
cotton,” said J. Berrye Worsham, president and CEO, Cotton Incorporated. “As a result, we
challenged ourselves to develop an integrated research and marketing program to help introduce new
cotton products into the athletic and outdoor apparel marketplace.”

February 8, 2011

Singapore-based Huntsman Textile Effects reports that Alps Industries Ltd. — an India-based
manufacturer of yarns, home furnishings, natural dyes and fashion accessories — will begin using
Huntsman’s recently introduced Avitera™ SE dyes and Eriopon® LT clearing additive as part of Alps’s
sustainability efforts.

According to Huntsman, the two products can be used together to process cellulosic fibers and
blends at temperatures lower than 60°C using short dyeing and washing-off cycles — resulting in
water, time and energy savings; as well as a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions.

“This ground-breaking new technology, which allows water and energy savings of 50 percent and
more, is an opportunity for mills, brands and retailers to make a real difference,” said Stephen
Gray, vice president, Research & Technology, Huntsman Textile Effects. “Avitera SE dyes and
Eriopon LT have a unique set of properties that ensure much lower processing costs, yet
high-quality results and greatly improved environmental acceptability. All of these benefits make a
key contribution to sustainability in textile processing.”

The company reports the highly soluble dyes may be used in ultra-short liquor ratios, and
offer good lab-to-bulk and bulk-to-bulk shade reproducibility. The dyes are compatible with
Huntsman’s Gentle Power Bleach™ pretreatment system, which features enzyme technology capable of
low-temperature bleaching at a neutral pH. The system enables up to a 40-percent reduction in water
and energy consumption during pretreatment.



February 8, 2011

RecycleMatch, a Houston and Austin, Texas-based online business-to-business (B2B) recycling and
waste diversion marketplace, has launched an online service to facilitate businesses’ efforts to
buy, sell or donate waste and commodity recyclable materials including textiles, plastics, paper,
chemicals, food and organics, metals, building materials and other materials. According to the
company, the waste and recyclables market represents a $90 billion opportunity that comprises $47.3
billion in commodity recycling already in place, $22 billion in charges to companies that send such
waste to landfills and an estimated $20 billion value of those landfilled materials. 

Companies may log on to
www.recyclematch.com to list materials they wish to
offer, and prospective buyers may request information and samples and submit bids on those
materials. There is no charge for listing the materials, and the listing company chooses which
buyer will best meet its goals, which may include not only price, but also environmental and other
criteria.

“Due to changing customer demands and supply chain mandates by industry leaders, companies
are scrambling to reach zero waste,” said Chris Porch, RecycleMatch’s newly appointed CEO,
referring to zero-waste initiatives from companies such as Wal-Mart, IBM and others. “Seventy
percent of materials that get dumped into landfills can be repurposed, and the RecycleMatch
marketplace finds those alternative uses. Even commodity recyclables already being diverted benefit
from better market exposure and pricing. We’re the first marketplace designed specifically for the
needs of large corporations who want control, protection, and trust in the entire process. This is
a large and exciting opportunity to help companies reduce costs, strengthen their brands and help
the environment.”



February 8, 2011

Gainesville, Fla.-based Quick-Med Technologies Inc.’s Stay Fresh® antimicrobial technology has
received U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration for use in textile applications
such as apparel, automotive upholstery, carpeting and interior furnishings.

The patent-pending technology involves bonding of hydrogen peroxide (H
₂O
₂) onto fibers or fabrics to provide durable antimicrobial performance. H
₂O
₂ has been shown to have a high degree of efficacy against a wide range of bacteria,
viruses, fungi, mold, mildew and algae, and Quick-Med reports it helps to preserve the fabric, and
acts against perspiration odor and prevents staining from perspiration even after 75 launderings.
The company also reports Stay Fresh is the first commercially viable technology for bonding
hydrogen peroxide onto a textile, and is the only antimicrobial technology incorporating hydrogen
peroxide that has received EPA approval for antimicrobial preservation of textiles. The treatment,
which can be applied very cost-effectively using conventional textile processes, is non-leaching
and skin-friendly, and kills bacteria by destroying the chemistry of the cell wall and rendering
the cell components inert and nonviable
(See Quality Fabric Of The Month: ”
New
Antimicrobial On The Block,” www.
TextileWorld.com, December 2009).

“Stay Fresh textile treatment locks the power of hydrogen peroxide into fabrics,” said J.
Ladd Greeno, CEO, Quick-Med Technologies. “By incorporating this potent antimicrobial into fabrics,
we bring highly effective antimicrobial activity to a wide range of textile applications where the
durability after repeated laundering has been an unmet challenge. Textiles stay fresher for longer
because the active agent is now held in place on the fabric.”

Treated textiles can be laundered in hot or cold water with or without softeners, chlorine or
color-safe bleaches, or anionic detergents without affecting the antimicrobial function. Quick-Med
notes that laundering does not cause discoloration, as is possible with textiles treated with
certain other antimicrobial additives, and also that the treatment helps preserve a fabric’s
integrity because it facilitates the cleaning process. In addition, the treatment does not restrict
the use of other fabric treatments such as softeners or antistatic or moisture-wicking treatments.
“If it’s a chemistry that mixes with our binder, then it can be added,” said Dr. Jerry Olderman,
Quick-Med’s vice president of research and development.

Olderman said one company is running trials using Stay Fresh on underwear that could be
supplied to the U.S. military. Other companies are running trials using Stay Fresh for sock
applications. “The treatment has met very demanding military specifications for efficacy and
physical properties,” he said.

Quick-Med now plans to apply for U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for use of Stay
Fresh in certain medical device applications. 



February 8, 2011

Germany-based Karl Mayer Textilmaschinenfabrik GmbH has developed a sizing machine that
economically processes short warps while offering performance comparable to that provided by
conventional sizing machinery. Compact Size joins the Gir-O-Matic sample warping machine as part of
Karl Mayer’s warp-preparation solution for flexible, efficient production of short warps,
reflecting a trend — especially in high-fashion markets — toward smaller product runs. The machine
was first introduced in Italy, where it has met with success.

Karl Mayer’s Compact Size is based on the principle of sizing short warps.

“Textile companies can use our short warp sizing machine to try out and examine new samples
easily and efficiently, and small orders can also be produced economically,” said Enzo Paoli,
managing director, Karl Mayer Rotal, the company’s Italy-based subsidiary. “What is more, the
‘Compact Size’ produces much less waste compared to other systems available until now, and a warp
of usable quality is produced right from the very first metre.”

Compact Size features a space-saving design comprising two levels. At floor level, the
take-off device, sizing system and beaming machine are arranged in a line. A ladder is used to
reach the second level, which includes an infrared (IR) air dryer, subsequent cylinder dryer and
vertical sub-drying zone also arranged in a line. The machine has a capacity of 15 meters with the
drying machine and 6 meters without it. Sizing agent requirements are reduced, and there is a
reduced incidence of stop marks and waste yarn.

Compact Size’s space-saving design comprising two levels measures 8.1 meters in length by
4.3 meters in height.

The sizing agent can be applied to the warp yarn either via conventional hot size
application by spraying the size onto the material or using cold size application via  double
kiss rollers. Each system has available a separate unit equipped with its own circulation system
and different heat concepts.

Drying is optimized by a combination of air/IR drying and use of the contact cylinder dryers
of the residual dryer. The drying zone includes a 240-kilowatt gas heater that offers drying
performance of 40 to 50 percent at 60-meters-per-minute processing speed. The system cools down
quickly after it is turned off, thereby minimizing over-drying.

The residual dryer comprises a cylinder drying system that ensures smooth yarns and accurate
yarn-tension setting in the wet and dry zones. Each cylinder has its own motor drive system, which
eliminates overstretching of the yarn. A steam jet pump is used to recirculate the cylinder steam,
which provides for increased heat transfer and drying efficiency. Benefits of this recirculation
include uniform temperatures, constant temperature control and minimal condensate in the cylinders.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — January 18, 2011 — The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has voted
unanimously to lift the stay of enforcement on certification for compliance (see pdf below) with
the flammability standards for non-children’s products in the following categories:

• Vinyl plastic film
• Clothing textiles
• Carpets and rugs

General certificates of conformity (GCCs) will be required for the flammability standards for
these three non-children’s products starting on January 26, 2011 certifying that a manufacturer’s
products comply with these standards. GCCs do not need to be based on testing done by a third-party
laboratory. Rather, certification testing can be done by the manufacturer of the product based on a
test of each product or on a “reasonable testing program.”

A GCC must accompany the product whether imported or manufactured in the United States and
be furnished to the product’s distributors and/or retailers. Firms must supply GCCs for their
products to CPSC upon request.

The Commission’s vote is intended to clarify the lifting of the stay of enforcement of the
flammability standards with respect to these three non-children’s products.

Posted on February 8, 2011

Source: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)