Glen Raven Inc. — a Glen Raven, N.C.-based technical fabrics producer — and G&K Services —
Minneapolis-based a branded identity apparel program provider — are partnering to supply the
industrial apparel rental market with uniforms having inherent flame-resistant (FR) properties.
G&K Services produces uniform shirts, coveralls and work pants made with Glen Raven’s GlenGuard
FR fabric, which exceeds safety standards for thermal and body burn protection, according to Glen
Raven. The fabrics are constructed of Kermel aramid and modacrylic fibers, making them soft,
lightweight, colorfast, ultraviolet-stable and abrasion-resistant; and compliant with electrical
safety and flash-fire protection standards.

“G&K Services’ relationship with Glen Raven is important in the FR market,” said Hal
Bates, marketing director, Glen Raven Technical Fabrics. “GlenGuard FR, which is inherently
flame-resistant, protects from both flash fire and arc flash, and results in uniforms that do more
to protect workers.”

G&K Services is marketing its ProTect™ apparel made with GlenGuard FR to businesses
serving the electric and petrochemical industries, oil and gas companies, industrial maintenance,
and other areas in which people encounter heat, flames, chemicals and electric arc hazards.

June 3, 2008

Charlotte-based nonwovens producer Polymer Group Inc. (PGI) has announced plans to close its
manufacturing facility in Landisville, N.J., by the end of the third quarter of 2008. The plant
employs approximately 85 workers in the manufacture of carded thermal bond and chemical bond
products for hygiene and medical applications. Those employees will be offered severance and
displacement assistance. The company plans to move the manufacture of certain product lines to
other PGI facilities in the United States, while it will discontinue other lines as a result of
changing market demand.

“PGI’s focus on leading market positions and global growth requires a constant assessment of
our capabilities compared to the market needs,” said CEO Veronica “Ronee” Hagen. “The consolidation
of the Landisville facility is a function of market demand shifting away from the technological
capabilities of the plant and is consistent with our efforts to focus resources on best-in-class
technology and product offerings.”

PGI will continue to operate seven other plants in the United States, including Benton and
Mooresville, N.C.; North Little Rock, Ark.; Waynesboro, Va.; Kingman, Kan.; Clearfield, Utah;
Guntown, Miss.; and Clackamas, Ore.

June 3, 2008

LifeStone Materials LLC, a joint venture of Pompano Beach, Fla.-based Point Blank Solutions Inc.
(PBSI) and Israel-based FMS Enterprises Migun Ltd., will invest $5.5 million to establish a weaving
facility in Anderson, S.C., for the production of high-performance, protective fabrics for
applications including ballistics fabrics for the US military, law enforcement agencies and other
government agencies.

PBSI is a designer and producer of high-tech soft body armor systems for the US military,
domestic law enforcement, and other state and local agencies. FMS is a producer of high-tech
lightweight ballistic armor materials, including aramid ballistic fibers, for the global protection
industry.

“We, with FMS, have worked hard to structure a joint venture that aligns our interests and
makes great business sense for both companies,” said Larry Ellis, president and CEO, PBSI, adding
that the joint venture provides weaving capabilities to PBSI, which previously has sourced fabrics
from various weavers.

The new facility will employ 45 workers and is expected to be fully operational by the end
of this month, according to company spokesperson Glenn Wiener. LifeStone Materials is leasing an
existing 80,000-square-foot building in Anderson and will weave fabrics for PBSI and FMS, taking
advantage of research and development efforts among all three companies. Craig Trask, previously a
plant manager for PBSI, has been named production manager for the new company.

“Point Blank Solutions, FMS and LifeStone Materials are all committed to making our
operations in Anderson, S.C., a success,” Wiener said, noting that state and local leadership have
provided very positive support. “We look forward to growing to be a vibrant part of the Anderson
community,” he added.

June 3, 2008

At a congressional hearing into the impact on the US economy of the offshoring of jobs and
globalization, James R. Copeland, chairman, Copeland Fabrics, issued a call for a “comprehensive
new trade policy” that will enable US manufacturers to compete in today’s global economy.

In an opening statement, Rep. Brad Miller, D-N.C., who serves as chairman of the House
Science and Technology Committee’s Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight, said the United
States can no longer avoid questions about offshoring jobs and the consequences of globalization.
He invited Copeland to testify as a manufacturer who has chosen to keep manufacturing in
Burlington, N.C.

In a wide-ranging presentation, Copeland laid much of the blame for the US trade deficit and
the loss of manufacturing jobs on what he said is an “uncompetitive trade policy,” saying that
policy is responsible for much of the steep decline in manufacturing employment and investment that
is hindering economic growth in the United States. Copeland added that “US manufacturing will
continue to suffer unless Congress and the Bush administration intervene with policies that
encourage rather than discourage manufacturing investment in the United States.”

Pointing out that the United States had a $708 billion trade deficit in 2007, including $499
billion in manufacturing and $89 billion in textiles and apparel, Copeland warned that the country
cannot continue indefinitely to withstand the problems associated with a runaway trade deficit.

He said the United States runs trade deficits in products where it normally should have a
comparative advantage because of the way foreign governments intervene with subsidies, manipulated
currencies, tax breaks and other policies to make their industries competitive.

Copeland was particularly harsh on China, which he called an “800-pound gorilla in
international trade.”

“Most of China’s industry is government-owned or quasi-government-owned,” he said. “The
Chinese government buys their capital equipment or guarantees the purchase. Chinese companies often
end up paying zero capital costs, a tremendous advantage that no US competitor can overcome.”

Copeland also pointed out that China’s currency is pegged to the dollar and is undervalued by
some 40 percent, making Chinese goods 40 percent cheaper in the market. He claimed that retailers
and other importers “have exactly what they want, as they can buy at the China price and sell at
the US price.”

The North Carolina textile executive called for a number of specific reforms that he believes
would help make US manufacturers competitive including the following:

A trade policy should be implemented that places more emphases on reciprocity. Copeland spoke
of how the United States has reduced its tariffs on industrial goods to 3 percent while the average
worldwide bound tariff is 30 percent. He also criticized the way the World Trade Organization
permits countries such as China to self-label themselves as “developing” in order to get special
tariff treatments.

The value-added tax (VAT) advantage enjoyed by some countries should be offset. Countries
utilizing a VAT system impose taxes on the cost of an import plus shipping, handling, and insurance
and tariff expenses. The VAT is rebated to those countries’ exports. Since the United States does
not have value-added taxes, this results in a trade disadvantage.

Currency manipulation should be made an actionable subsidy. Charging that the lack of action
by the administration and Congress is “inexcusable,” Copeland said this issue needs to be addressed
by the Currency Reform for Trade Act of 2007, which would make currency manipulation subject to US
anti-dumping and countervailing duty laws.

Trade enforcement should be separated from the Office of the US Trade Representative.
Copeland said it is unreasonable to expect an office that on one hand is charged with negotiating
trade agreements with other countries to turn around and impartially punish them when they run
afoul of US trade laws.

Negotiation of free trade agreements with countries that cannot buy US goods should be
halted.

Copeland concluded by saying: “Despite the hardships it has faced, the health of US
manufacturing quickly can be restored if the United States addresses its manufacturing policy
competitiveness issues.”

May 27, 2008

Gastonia, N.C.-based RadiciSpandex Corp. recently feted the winning designs submitted in three
categories by students from The Fashion School of Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, for the
company’s 2008 “Stretch to the Future” Design Competition, as well as designer Marc Bouwer as
honoree judge for the competition. The event was held May 20  at the Italian Trade Commission’s
offices in New York City.

Eighteen junior-class design students at the school submitted eveningwear, swimwear and
lingerie designs using stretch fabrics made with RadiciSpandex fiber and provided by Brookwood
Cos., Charbert Fabrics, Darlington Fabrics, Guilford Performance Textiles, McMurray Fabrics,
Milliken & Company, Sextet Fabrics, Startex and Symphony Fabrics. Competition winners included
Jenni Smas, Grand Prize/Eveningwear; Andrew Spargo, Swimwear; and Sydney Sustarsic, Lingerie. Smas
used Stretch fabrics from Milliken for her floor-length evening gown. Spargo’s one-piece swimsuit
and cover-up ensemble was made with black fabrics from Darlington and Sextet. Sustarsic designed a
two-piece intimates ensemble using fabrics from Milliken and Startex.

Luciano Radici, regional director, Americas, for RadiciSpandex’s parent company, Italy-based
The Radici Group, presented the 2008 Stretch to the Future crystal award to Bouwer. Marty Moran,
CEO, RadiciSpandex presented scholarship awards to Smas and Spargo for their winning entries. Barry
Ross, president of Lingerie Award sponsor The Underfashion Club Inc., a Clinton, N.Y.-based
lingerie industry trade association, presented the Lingerie Award, which was accepted by Dr.
Elizabeth Rhodes, director, The Fashion School of Kent State University, on behalf of Sustarsic,
who was not able to attend.

May 27, 2008

Atlanta-based Urban Expositions LLC and Arlington, Va.-based American Apparel & Footwear
Association (AAFA) — producer and sponsor, respectively, of the Material World trade show
presenting the fashion and style industry supply chain, technology and trends — have announced they
will present a West Coast fall edition of the event beginning in 2009. Material World West will
take place Sept. 30–Oct. 2, 2009, at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Los Angeles, as a
counterpart to the show’s flagship spring edition in Miami Beach, Fla.; and is targeted
particularly to exhibitors and attendees from the Western United States and Pacific Rim.

Material World West will replace Material World New York, which previously has been held in
the fall in alternation with Material World Miami Beach, and which will not take place this coming
fall.

“While we were happy with the New York show, we felt we had to strongly evaluate the
geographic opportunities our show could provide to our exhibitors moving forward,” said Tim von
Gal, president, Material World.

“The industry has been encouraging us to bring Material World west for many years. California
has the most important fashion manufacturing and import base in the United States,” he added. “It
is the home of top name brands and leading designers. California’s international accessibility
lends itself to a diverse mix of participation. For those reasons and L.A.’s indisputable
reputation as a Fashion city, it is the ideal location for a fall edition of our event.”

The West Coast edition of Material World is endorsed by the Atlanta-based American Apparel
Producers’ Network, Los Angeles-based California Fashion Association,  Boston-based National
Textile Association, and Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations. Carlstadt,
N.J.-based Pantone Inc. and New York City-based Stylesight also will support the Los Angeles event
as official color authority and trend partner, respectively.

“The apparel and textiles industry is the largest manufacturing sector in L.A. County, and we
are looking forward to hosting such a popular trade show that will showcase one of our city’s most
well-known attributes,” said Mark Liberman, president and CEO, LA INC. The Los Angeles Convention
and Visitors Bureau. With an annual wholesale volume totaling $24.5 billion, the Los Angeles
industry employs a larger workforce than the industry in New York City.

May 27, 2008

Charlotte-based Polymer Group Inc. (PGI) has started an approximately $50 million expansion of its
plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The plant will house the new Reifenhäuser Reicofil® 4 line, a
state-of-the-art multi-beam spunmelt line that will produce hygiene and medical fabrics for the
North America market.

“The high-quality, skilled local workforce and support from the government has enabled PGI to
grow and thrive at this plant since we began operations in 1994,” said Rolando Dominguez, PGI’s
vice president and general manager for Latin America. Since the company purchased the plant in 1994
from Bonlam S.A., a subsidiary of Cydsa S.A. de C.V., PGI has made several expansions to the
facility, which have more than quadrupled overall employment. PGI currently employs around 400
people at the plant, but the expansion is expected to generate more than 40 jobs and have a
positive economic impact on the community through supplier relationships.

The new spunmelt line — expected to begin production by mid-2009 — will add approximately
15,000 metric tons of production capacity and will produce high-quality, lightweight, strong
fabrics used in diaper parts such as fine denier back sheets and leg cuffs, as well as fabrics that
give high-barrier protection and comfort for medical garments.

May 27, 2008

Greensboro, N.C.-based textured yarn manufacturer Unifi Inc. has announced it will shut down its
polyester yarn beaming and warp drawing plant in Staunton, Va., and move that operation to its
manufacturing facility in Yadkinville, N.C. The approximately 140 employees in Staunton are being
offered jobs at Yadkinville.

According to Ronald Smith, Unifi’s CFO, the move will enable the company to reduce expenses
by removing the cost of transporting product back and forth between the two plants. In addition, he
said the company will implement upgraded beaming and warp drawing operations in Yadkinville to help
satisfy customer demands. The transition of operations is expected to be complete by the end of
September.

“We’re looking at savings, but we also will be improving our flexibility and the productivity
of our assets,” Smith said. He added that once the move is completed, the company’s entire domestic
polyester business, worth some $500 million to $550 million, will be located in Yadkinville and
will employ some 1,400 workers at that facility.

Unifi also has a polyester operation in Brazil. In addition, it employs about 1,000 workers
in its domestic nylon yarn business.

May 27, 2008

A global alliance of suppliers, manufacturers and associations has developed a guidance document
providing information on how to assess the flushability of consumer products. Coordinated by Cary,
N.C.-based Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA) and the Brussels-based International
Association Serving the Nonwovens and Related Industries (EDANA), the document defines flushability
and describes assessing a product’s compatibility with home plumbing fixtures and drain lines, as
well as measures for onsite product disposal and municipal wastewater treatment options.

INDA and EDANA will publish the guidelines, which will be presented at the World of Wipes
International Conference to be held in July in Atlanta. Members of either association can obtain a
copy at no cost, while non-members can purchase the guidelines for $3,000.

May 27, 2008

Effective June 2, Wellman Inc., Fort Mill, S.C., will implement a 4-cents-per-pound price increase
on all Fortrel® polyester staple fiber products. The company cited rising crude oil prices in
announcing the price increase.

May 27, 2008