Germany-based Wacker Chemie AG has launched the Wetsoft® NE 580 hydrophilic silicone softener for
the finishing of both natural and man-made fiber textiles. According to the company, the new
softener is a self-dispersing microemulsion concentrate that offers high stability in alkaline
solutions and when exposed to high temperatures, high shear and salts; and also high process
stability.

Wetsoft NE 580 may be used alone or with other finishing agents, and is well-suited for
high-quality finishing applications, the company reports. Among the benefits it imparts to textiles
are increased moisture transport and a “silky-velvety” hand.

September 18, 2007

The Burlington WorldWide (BWW) division of Greensboro, N.C.-based International Textile Group Inc.
(ITG) and India-based worsted wool fabric manufacturer OCM India Ltd. have entered into a marketing
and commercial partnership intended to help OCM set up state-of-the-art manufacturing operations
and develop and market new wool fabrics that use BWW’s fabric technologies. As part of the
partnership, BWW also will assist OCM by developing and running an export program to sell OCM
fabrics in the United States, Europe and Asia; and OCM will be licensed to manufacture and sell
BURLINGTON®-branded enhanced wool fabrics in India.

Both ITG and OCM are owned by New York City-based investment firm WL Ross & Co. LLC —
ITG having been created by the 2004 merger of Burlington Industries and Cone Mills, which WL Ross
acquired in 2003, and OCM having been acquired earlier this year. BWW is part of ITG’s Apparel
Fabrics business segment.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to expand ITG’s footprint into the growing Indian market
and provide an additional supply chain of products for the US and European markets,” said Wilbur L.
Ross Jr., chairman, ITG. “BWW is the North American leader in worsted wool products, and its
expertise in wool manufacturing and new fabric development will further OCM’s operations and
breadth of product to grow a global wool platform for both companies.”

September 18, 2007

Germany-based BASF AG has developed a formaldehyde-free version of its Helizarin® textile pigment
printing system, enabling textile manufacturers to meet regulatory standards and brand and retailer
requirements without taking additional steps.

The new system incorporates the new formaldehyde-free Helizarin Fixing Agent TX 4737 and
Helizarin Binder TX 4738, and BASF’s existing formaldehyde-free thickeners.

“Product safety and environmental protection are our top priority when developing new
products,” said Dr. Karl Siemensmeyer, responsible for developing the new products. “The new
formaldehyde-free Helizarin pigment printing system further strengthens BASF’s eco-friendly product
lineup.”



September 11, 2007

Phifer Inc., Tuscaloosa, Ala., has launched its Phifertex Marquesa Green collection of eco-friendly
outdoor deep seating fabrics made with Marquesa® solution-dyed filament yarns produced by Chapel
Hill, N.C.-based American Fibers and Yarns (AF&Y).

According to AF&Y, Marquesa yarns are made from a by-product of industrial waste and,
when compared with other man-made fibers and filaments, offer several green benefits including
lower energy requirements for production; and lower waste generation, with no harmful industrial
waste. Marquesa also provides inherent performance benefits including antimicrobial resistance,
stain resistance and colorfastness; and the fabrics can be recycled via AF&Y’s own recycling
system and regenerated into other products.

“Designing and creating fabrics for today’s leisure lifestyle also means taking into account
the impact they have on the environment,” said Hugo Benitez, national sales manager, designed
fabrics, Phifer. “With great success in our Marquesa Blends collection, introducing a 100-percent
Marquesa fabric was the next logical step for us.”

September 11, 2007

Hanesbrands Inc., Winston-Salem, N.C., has acquired the textile manufacturing operations of El
Salvador-based Industrias Duraflex S.A. de C.V. for an undisclosed price.

The operation, to be renamed Hanesbrands El Salvador Textiles, has been a supplier of fleece,
T-shirt and underwear fabric to Hanesbrands since the early 1990s; and now is the company’s second
self-owned offshore fabric-manufacturing operation, joining Hanesbrands’ recently opened
manufacturing facility in the Dominican Republic in that capacity. The 350,000-square-foot El
Salvador facility employs 1,300 workers and will continue to operate without interruption under the
direction of the existing management team.

“The addition of fabric production capacity in El Salvador is another significant milestone
in our efforts to create a lower-cost supply chain operating fewer, larger plants that are more
effectively aligned with our production flow,” said Richard A. Noll, CEO, Hanesbrands. “We already
own sewing plants in El Salvador and elsewhere in Central America. We now have a textile and sewing
base in Central America that gives us flexibility to expand and leverage our large scale of
production.”

Hanesbrands’ plans for the El Salvador facility include further investment to grow the
operation, which quadrupled its production capacity over the last two years.

September 11, 2007

In an effort to meet customer demand for more sophisticated and decorative swimwear prints and
lingerie fabrics, as well as to speed up response and custom design times for shorter runs, Hyosung
Corp., Korea, now offers swimwear and lingerie fabrics made with creora® spandex printed using
Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont Imaging Technologies’ DuPont™ Artistri™ 2020 printer. The printer
offers direct-to-fabric printing on an array of woven and knitted fabrics, including spandex — up
to 1.8 meters wide.

“We believe customers will be impressed with the quality and hand of the fabrics printed with
Artistri,” said Greg Vas Nunes, president, Europe and the Americas, Hyosung. “The combination of
our innovation in creora spandex in fabric and the Artistri acid dye ink provide outstanding
washfastness, durability and exceptional color penetration properties, making it ideal for the
intimate apparel and swimwear markets.”

In other news, DuPont Imaging Technologies has appointed England-based Brook International as
a marketing partner for the DuPont Artistri printing system. Brook provides print-ready polyester
fabrics for DuPont Artistri 2020 and 3320 digital textile printers. Fabric end-uses include
banners, flags, signage and in-store displays, as well as other graphic applications.

September 11, 2007

At a hearing conducted last week by the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission in North
Carolina, James Chesnutt, former chairman of the National Council of Textile Organiztions (NCTO)
and CEO of National Spinning Inc., called for a nine-point program to address what, according to
the NCTO, is “a threat posed by China to the US textile and apparel industry.”

Created by Congress, the commission is mandated to monitor, investigate and submit an annual
report on the national security implications of trade and other relationships with China.

“The central issue is not what policies or practices the central government in Beijing has
undertaken, rather the central issue is how our own government has responded, or more accurately,
has failed to respond to China’s deliberate economic intervention on behalf of its citizens and its
industry,” said Chesnutt, testifying at the hearing.

As part of his testimony, Chesnutt released a NCTO analysis that shows the Chinese government
offers its textile manufacturers 73 subsidies, and he said the US government has failed to develop
any such comprehensive list of Chinese subsidies.

In order to address what he sees as problems with Chinese trade, Chesnutt proposed a
nine-step program that he said would lead to a “revitalization of the US textile industry.” The
program calls for:

• Congress to pass legislation that would address China’s currency manipulation;

• extension or replacement of the current China textile import safeguards, designed to
address market disruption;

• creation of a “Comprehensive Subsidy Database” for use by US manufacturers;

• an increase in anti-dumping and countervailing duty assistance to small and medium-sized US
manufacturers;

• increased enforcement efforts by the US Trade Representative and the Department of Commerce
to deal with illegal trade;

• a review of the Chinese government’s support for its state-owned industries, including
textiles, and penalization of illegal transactions;

• an increase in Customs enforcement efforts, with particular emphasis on China;

• development of a more effective enforcement system that holds US importers responsible for
illegal imports and provides stronger penalties for violations; and

• imposition of penalties on companies that import products made by Chinese companies that
pollute the environment.

Chesnutt concluded that US textile companies cannot survive “when they are pitted against the
Chinese government.”

In a related development, as the US Department of Labor issued its August employment data
showing the loss of 4,000 jobs nationally and a total of 215,000 jobs in the past 12 months, the
American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition (AMTAC) renewed its appeal for Congress to enact
legislation addressing the currency manipulation issue and problems resulting from the value-added
taxes imposed by other countries.

“It is imperative for Congress to level the playing field for US manufacturers expeditiously
by passing legislation that would address the massive disadvantage to US producers caused by
foreign value-added taxes and manipulated currencies,” said Auggie Tantillo, executive director,
AMTAC.

He added that foreign border taxes such as value-added taxes placed US manufacturers at a
disadvantage estimated at $294 billion in 2005, and that figure continues to increase.

September 11, 2007