Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony Opens ATME-I 2000

The American Textile Machinery Exhibition-International (ATME-I) 2000 opened Oct. 23, 2000, with a
ribbon cutting ceremony. South Carolina Lieutenant Governor Bob Peeler and Greenville, S.C., Mayor
Knox White cut the ribbon, assisted by American Textile Machinery Association (ATMA) Chairman
Timothy J. Whitener, president, Luwa Bahnson, Winston Salem, N.C.; and Richard K. Heusel, chairman,
Textile Hall Corp., and founder and CEO, KM Fabrics, Greenville.ATME-I 2000 featured 539 exhibitors
from 25 countries. The five-day show attracted more than 9,600 visitors from 53 countries.In
related news, ATMA and Textile Hall Corp. announced that ATME-I will be held in Greenville,
presumably in 2004 and 2005, under the current split show format, making the following statement:
[In 1999], the two organizations announced their intention to consolidate ATME-I into a single
show. That objective has not changed. The co-sponsors will continue to evaluate the feasibility and
advantages to the textile industry in the Americas, as well as to all the machinery and service
exhibitors located throughout the world, of providing a single, all-process machinery exhibition
[see ATME-I 2000: Two Many, ATI, this issue].

December 2000

Algo Group And BCBG Max Azria Announce Partnership

Algo Group Inc., Canada, has signed a letter of intent to enter into a partnership with Max Azria
and Los Angeles-based AZ3 Inc., which does business as BCBG Max Azria.The agreement will result in
Azria becoming a significant shareholder of Algo Group and involves Azria as a distributor of all
labels produced by Algo Group. Algo Group will also become the licensee throughout Canada for all
apparel, footwear and accessories of three of the labels under the BCBG Max Azria Group umbrella,
including BCBG Max Azria, Parallel and To The Max.A successful business has to have a global
presence, said Azria, but expanding globally also involves building partnerships with companies
that have a strong hold on particular markets. This partnership with Algo Group will create a
powerful synergy that will result in much stronger manufacturing, sales and distribution of all the
labels involved in the respective territories.

December 2000

Imports Not The Problem


A
 texturizer reported that home furnishings and apparel markets are currently slow. Apparel
is especially bad and, for a change, the problem is not imports. He said, “Customers are just not
buying. Inventories for them are high. Sheeting is particularly bad. The bright side — automotive
and industrial markets are okay. Running conditions are fair to good, but overall we could ship
more. The drop in value of the dollar has temporarily slowed export sales quite a bit. Overall, I
don’t really expect much change in our markets until after the holidays.”


Orders In And Out


Spinners continue to report that
there is no continuity to any sales. One spinner commented, “We get nice orders, but they are in
and out — then I am looking for new business. All business today is essentially spot business. The
customer wants quick delivery with no assurance of future business!” Under our present market
conditions, you can’t expect a customer to commit to extended business — tomorrow the yarn might be
cheaper.

There is no export business for open-end (OE) yarn. (Of course, for obvious reasons, there
is no OE yarn being imported either.) Ring-spun (RS) yarns, however, are being exported by some
spinners.

Spinners report the slowdown in sales has affected markets across the board. A spinner
reported that the denim market was especially slow. You will remember, a few months ago, denim yarn
sales built up very quickly. Apparently, this was short-lived, and no one knows just what the
future may hold. Many textile people know from past experiences that market conditions are not at
their best at this time of year, but everything improves after Christmas. But, one disgruntled
spinner said, “Over the past few years, business after the holidays has deteriorated, and I don’t
expect it will change this year.”


OE Markets Still Crazy



One of the OE yarn respondents,
disgusted with persistent low pricing, said, “If our customer can’t make money with the present-day
prices of yarns, he won’t ever to able to. Here we are with new machinery, expensive cotton, making
a quality yarn. Then we turn around and give it away. Our customers are the only ones making money
today — the consumers aren’t and we sure aren’t!”

Pricing is still referred to in the OE markets as crazy. There was one report of an 18/1 OE
yarn being offered for sale for 85 to 90 cents. With cotton selling at over 60 cents, you only have
a quarter left to buy insurance, pay your overhead costs, labor, waste and so on. You don’t even
have enough left to pay the lawyer to go bankrupt.


Observations On Pricing Trends



Yarn Market was most flattered to
have its pricing data used to publish the research article on OE and RS pricing found in
ATI several months ago (see Open-End Vs. Ring-Spun Pricing,
ATI, September 2000). While the information is good as presented, it will have
little impact on predicting future pricing trends unless additional information is factored into
the equation. For instance, prices quoted in Yarn Market are asking prices. While the actual price
for RS yarns may be reasonably close to the asking price, due to market conditions today, the
actual price of OE yarns in today’s market will be considerably lower than the asking price. This
is due to the ongoing oversupply flooding the markets, as mentioned repeatedly over the past few
years. Also, spinners are naturally reluctant to publish information regarding actual pricing
because so many factors may be considered in making the sale.

Lately, spinners report that there have been significant reductions in the producing of
spindles of OE yarns. Spinners are now anticipating a degree of price stabilization, as well as an
increase in pricing for all yarn counts. They feel this will happen as early as the first quarter
of 2001.

In observing the trends in the spread of pricing between OE and RS yarns, the article says, “
while the price difference in October 1984 was 13 cents, the difference in January 2000 was 51
cents.” It is interesting to note that during this same period of time, OE spindles were increasing
dramatically and RS spindles were decreasing.

Unfortunately, the article doesn’t show anything that spinners don’t already know from
experience and observation. Realizing that the article reported on trends, it would be interesting
for the researchers to extend the scope of the study to determine the cause of the major peaks and
valleys in 1987-88, 1993-94 and 1994-95.


DecYM_1089

December 2000

Quality Fabric Of The Month: Bridging The Gap Between Art And Industry


Fabric_173Junichi Arai is a risk-taker and a rule-breaker. Over the past 50 years, the Japanese fiber artist has consistently pushed his work to the edge, developing new processes by combining
traditional and high-tech materials and processes and then breaking the perceived rules to explore
untested possibilities. He has received 36 patents for his innovative processes, mostly for new types of textiles that use gold and silver fibers in slit-film yarn. He has also used existing
technologies such as heat-setting and burn-out to create new and original effects. 

Early in his career, the innovative artist received the International Trade and Industry Minister’s Prize at the Grand Fair of Synthetic Fibers, Japan. He is an honorary member of the Royal Designers for Industry, England, and a recipient of a design medal from the Textile
Institute, also based in England.

Arai was the first to use the burn-out process to dissolve cotton from the surface of a lamé thread to leave the metallic core exposed, creating a fabric that caused considerable excitement when it was used by fashion designer Kansai Yamamoto. Arai then developed the inverse process of melt-off, by which metal sandwiched between layers of lacquer in a slit-film yarn is dissolved to produce a semi-transparent, filmy fabric.

He was also the first to make woolen cloth using a water-jet loom, paving the way for producers of filament textiles to expand into woolen textiles.

Arai believes that “the human hand and technology must not be separated,” expressing concern that “… there is a danger with modern textiles, that too much reliance on technology and minimal emphasis on manual work will result in a product with no merit.” He applies his artist’s hand in one degree or another to each fabric he produces. He combines traditional cloth-making techniques with high-tech industrial processes, yielding results that are unique and quite striking. Depending on the fabric to be woven, he produces his fabrics on a range of looms, from hand looms to jacquard, air-jet and water-jet looms. Each production run yields a unique fabric, ranging in
length from a few meters to a thousand. Arai shows the completed fabrics to interested clients including a number of haute couture designers — Issey Miyake among them — or uses them in his own
line of textile products, available through the Junichi Arai Brand Division of Jovian Christie Incorporation, Japan.

Heat Transfer And Melt Off

Of particular interest to Arai are the effects produced by heat-setting of colors and pleats and by the melting off of metal to create visual effects and texture in his fabrics. In some fabrics, these two techniques are also combined with traditional resist techniques such as shibori.
Many fabrics are constructed of slit-film polyester/metallic yarns and siro-fil – also called “new generation wool,” a stretchy yarn that consists of a tightly coiled nylon filament core covered by wool.

One metallic fabric is made using a slit-film polyester/silver yarn. Arai uses the fabric in a line of home furnishings as well as for other items.

Other metallics contain aluminum, and Arai looks forward to using titanium in future experiments. As he explains, titanium becomes highly oxidized when it is exposed to ultraviolet rays, releasing oxygen into the atmosphere and creating an array of colors on the surface.
Currently excited by ecological concepts and the idea of using industrial processes to create earth-friendly products, he notes that the heat-transfer process he uses for dyeing his fabrics is also an ecologically sound process because it requires no water.

Representing a bridge between the work of the hand and the work of the machine, Junichi Arai’s work provides creative inspiration to those who seek to expand the potential of the textile
products of modern technology.

November 2000

November 2000

Todd S. Lowenthal joined Atlanta-based
Air Quality Sciences Inc. as indoor air quality product manager.

The Astrup Co., Cleveland, has named
Peter Jagodzinski account representative for New York, Long Island and Westchester
County, while
Victor Cuesta, the new account representative in Miami, is responsible for
international markets.

EcomTextile.com, Fullerton, Calif., has appointed
Peter Ganga director, international sales and marketing.

Chicago-based
FMC Corp. appointed
Robert I. Harries head of the Industrial Chemicals Group, while
Daniel R. Summers was named general manager, Chemical Products businesses. The
reassignments are in conjunction with the announced year-end retirement of Corporate Vice President
Alfredo Bernad.

Atlanta-based
Wools of New Zealand has named
Hallie Cobb marketing manager, while
Ruth Hart,
Susan Hawkins and
Linda Keen have been appointed marketing executives for the company.

Servomex Group Ltd., Norwood, Mass., has appointed
Dr. Sam Langridge sales director with global responsibility for sales operations.

Saati Americas, Somers, N.Y., named
Tim McCue technical sales representative for the Mid-Atlantic region.
Aida Boone has joined the company as bilingual customer service specialist for
customers primarily in South Miami, Fla., and Central America.

Kay M. Villa, president, Kay M. Villa Consulting, Needham, Mass., was named
chairman, West Conshohocken, Pa.-based
American Society for Testing and Materials’ (ASTM) Committee D13 on Textiles. A
member of the ASTM Board of Directors, Villa is also a member of ASTM Committees E05 on Fire
Standards and F23 on Protective Clothing.

St. Louis-based
Dash Multi-Corp. appointed
William D. Sutton general counsel and secretary. Sutton brings more than 20 years
of business and legal experience to his new position.

National Textiles LLC, Winston-Salem, N.C., has promoted
Vernon Carson to vice president, manufacturing, while
David Shirlen has joined the company as vice president, human resources.
Ron Washburn was appointed vice president, sales and marketing; and
Byron Vines was promoted to director, yarn manufacturing. The company also named
Larry Gunn director, textile manufacturing.

Guilford Mills Inc., Greensboro, N.C., named
Kim Thompson vice president and CFO of the company.

John Collins has joined
Kapco (Kent Adhesive Products Co.), Kent, Ohio, as Midwest sales representative.
Collins will be based in Chicago.

Wise Industries Inc., Kings Mountain, N.C., has added
Mike Ruffalo to its technical sales group. He will share the domestic sales
responsibility for nonwoven equipment throughout the Southeast and West Coast.

Ben Watts and
Joe W. Faith have joined the sales team at
DyeTech Inc., Dalton, Ga.

Peter Oakley, chairman and CEO, BASF Corp., Mount Olive, N.J., has been named
chairman of the
Organization for International Investment, a Washington-based trade group that
represents U.S. subsidiaries of international companies.

Cotton Incorporated, Cary, N.C., has appointed
Sherry Ayazi manager, fashion marketing, apparel.

At the annual general meeting of the
European Disposables Nonwovens Assoc. (EDANA),
Krzysztof Malowaniec, Paul Hartmann AG, Germany, was elected chairman for a
one-year term of office.
Aldo Ghira, Tenotex SPA, Italy, was re-elected treasurer.
Ingemar Bengtson, Trioplanex International AB, Sweden, and
Hermann Eidel, Freudenberg Vliesstoffe, Germany, were both elected vice-chairman.

Tyrone L. Vigo, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Southern Regional Research
Center, was presented the Olney Medal for achievement in textile chemistry at the 2000
International Conference and Exhibition of the
American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists.
Roland L. Connelly, president and co-founder, SheLyn Inc., Greenboro, N.C., was
honored as the recipient of the Harold C. Chapin Award, while I
an D. Rattee and
W.E. Stephen were co-recipients of the Henry E. Millson Award for Invention.

Acme-Hardesty Co., Blue Bell, Pa., has named
Bryan A. Huston regional sales manager for metropolitan New York/New Jersey and
New England, while
Darin R. Barrow was ap-pointed regional sales manager for Texas, Oklahoma,
Louisiana and southern Mississippi.
D. Neil Fleming was named national sales manager.

William N. Gaughan was promoted to vice president, e-business and information
technology,
Bayer Corp., Polymers and Chemicals Division, Pittsburgh.

November 2000

Fed Holds Steady While Economy Slows


T
 he latest economic reports indicate the U.S. economy is gradually slowing down.
Meanwhile, rising energy prices pushed up sharply the inflation measures, but there is no evidence
of broad-based increase in prices. With the jobless rate at the lowest level since 1970 — 3.9
percent compared with 4.1 percent in August, the Fed will continue a tightening bias. Nevertheless,
no rate hike is likely in the near future.

Total non-farm payrolls rose by 252,000 jobs in September after falling by 91,000 in August.
After factoring out the return of 75,000 striking workers, and the release of 27,000 temporary
Census workers, the September gain was 204,000 — much better than the adjusted 17,000 gain in
August. A strong dollar, higher energy costs and weakness in export markets led to a loss of 66,000
factory jobs in September on top of a 117,000 drop in August.

The lower September jobless rate rekindled fears of inflationary pressures, which unsettled
the financial markets.

The Producer Price Index for finished goods shot up 0.9 percent in September, due mostly to
increases in oil, car and truck prices and the largest gain since February. Excluding food and
energy, the price index was up 0.3 percent.

Consumer prices rose 0.5 percent in August largely driven by a 1.6-percent increase in
apparel prices and higher tobacco prices, as well as increased energy costs, which rose 3.8 percent
after falling 2.9 percent in August. Core inflation was up 0.3 percent after rising by 0.2 percent
for five consecutive months.

Textile_Production_180

Index Of Textile Production (1992 = 100)


Factory Output On The Rise


Industrial production rose 0.2 percent in September, following a 0.4-percent gain in August
and a 0.2-percent decline in July. Factory output was up 0.3 percent despite a 2.2-percent drop for
transportation equipment. Third-quarter industrial output grew 2.8 percent at an annual rate, the
slowest gain since the first quarter of 1999 and a sign of slowing economy. The operating rate of
industrial capacity held steady at 82.2 percent in September, marginally up from the 1967-1999
average of 82.0 percent.

Housing starts rose 0.3 percent in September to an annual rate of 1.53 million units.
Single-family units were down 1.3 percent to 1.25 million. New construction was up 8.1 percent in
the Northeast and 8.6 percent in the West, but fell 2.6 percent in Midwest and 4.4 percent in the
South.

The U.S. trade deficit of goods and services narrowed in August to $29.44 billion from a
record $31.69 billion in July. Exports — led by capital goods, industrial supplies and automotive
products — shot up 3.6 percent to $93.02 billion. Imports rose 0.8 percent to $122.46 billion.

Business sales rebounded 0.5 percent in August from 0.6 percent in July, as durable goods
shipments rose 0.7 percent and non-durable sales grew 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, business inventories
grew 0.7 percent, causing the August inventory-to-sales ratio to edge up to 1.34 from 1.33 in July.


Textile Output, Utilization Rate Improve; Jobless Rate Eases


Results for textiles and apparel were mixed. Payrolls fell 0.2 percent in September after
edging up 0.1 percent in August. The volatile jobless rate for textile mill workers eased to 3.1
percent from 3.2 percent in August.

Textile output bounced up 1.4 percent in September after falling 2.9 percent in August. At
an annual rate, textile output tumbled 14.3 percent in the third quarter. The utilization rate for
textiles improved to 79.9 percent of capacity from 78.9 percent in August.

Textile shipments declined 1.0 percent in August, after falling 0.7 percent in July, while
inventories increased 0.4 percent, causing the August inventory-to-sales ratio to move up to 1.63
from 1.60.

Retail sales rose 0.9 percent in September, the largest gain since February. Motor vehicle
sales rose 1.4 percent after falling 0.4 percent in August. Sales of furniture and home furnishings
rose 0.8 percent and were up 0.2 percent for general merchandise. Sales fell 0.7 percent for
building materials and hardware. Apparel and accessory sales were up 0.4 percent.

Producer prices of textiles and apparel edged down 0.1 percent in September. Prices rose 0.2
percent for synthetic fibers and were unchanged for finished fabrics. Prices dropped 1.0 percent
for carpets, 0.7 percent for home furnishings, and 0.4 percent for greige fabrics and for processed
yarns and threads.

Textile_Barometers_179



November 2000

Cargill Dow Awarded Grant For Biobased Chemicals R And D

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded more than $2 million to Cargill Dow, Minnetonka,
Minn., for continued research and development of the companys fermentation process for utilizing
annually renewable resources.The DOE administers two financial assistance programs in support of
President Bill Clintons executive order to triple U.S. use of biobased products and bioenergy by
2010. Cargill Dow will share equally with the DOE the $4.6 million budget for the projects.The
projects center on developing process technology for the fermentation of corn fiber and corn stover
to lactic acid and a number of other products. The results will help support the continued
advancement of Cargill Dows NatureWorks PLA, which is derived entirely from annually renewable
resources, as well as help develop other biobased products. Ultimately, Cargill Dows
fermentation-based manufacturing technology will be able to be used anywhere in the world, using
native agricultural by-products.NatureWorks PLA has applications in both fibers and packaging
markets. In packaging, potential end-uses include high-value films, rigid thermoformed food and
beverage containers, and coated papers and boards. New, emerging applications such as injection-,
stretch- and blow-molded bottles are also being explored.

Reshaping The Apparel Industry

Reshaping The Apparel Industry
Digital imaging, electronic color matching are in the spotlight at high-tech show.Bobbin
Americas 2000, held September 13-15 at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, focused on mass
customization and digital tech-nologies that offer the sewn products industry the opportunity to
reshape its business horizon. In addition, the show presented a host of network solutions, new
product premieres and educational events.A new feature of the exposition, according to Margaret
Crow, Bobbin Americas 2000 director of marketing, was The Digital Zone, with exhibits and
interactive digital production displays. The show also featured a Production Sourcing Expo, a
Fabric Sourcing Expo and a complete seminar program.

The shows Digital Zone, which was created and co-produced by the Cary, N.C.-based
TextileandClothing Technology Corp. ([TC]2), Bobbin Americas sponsor Miller Freeman, and 15
high-technology exhibitors, offered a look into the future of the sewn products industry.[TC]2, a
not-for-profit organi-zation supporting the apparel industry, announced the formation of ImageTwin
Inc., a joint venture with Truefinds.com Inc., a preferred stock subsidiary of Konover Property
Trust, Cary, N.C. The venture is the first Web-enabled 3-D digital body-scanning and measurement
system. The technology is designed to provide a definitive solution for accurate apparel sizing for
online, catalog and bricks-and-mortar shopping.ImageTwin is the culmination of a nine-year
development effort that resulted in a safe, white-light scanning process that generates extremely
accurate measurements in less than 12 seconds. ImageTwins in-store scanning station instantly
captures more than 200,000 data points of an individuals image, compiling a full 3-D representation
of his or her body. Proprietary software, in turn, automatically extracts dozens of sizing
measurements that can be used to create a perfect custom-fit garment or predict the appropriate
size of existing ready-to-wear clothing.The ImageTwin is part of [TC]2s overall strategy in
developing a more efficient apparel supply chain by increasing forecasting accuracy and reducing
merchandise returns, said Peter N. Butenhoff, president, [TC]2. [TC]2 also presented interactive
exhibits, demonstrating the power of integrated digital technologies in the sewn products supply
chain. There was also an opportunity to take a look at mass customization and virtual try-ons, as
well as digital fabric printing, all of which could become more and more a part of everyday
life.Customized Garments

At Gerber Technology, Tolland, Conn., also in The Digital Zone, Deborah Marconi, manager,
public relations, pointed to several products that will help manufacturers create customized
garments quickly.The individuals preferences as to style, color, size and fit are translated into a
unique garment. With such tools, manufacturers receive an order, generate patterns and markers, and
can digitally present the final product in minutes. Also, these tools eliminate the use of paper,
reduce the potential for inaccuracies, decrease turnaround times, and allow manufacturers to
realize greater profitability and repeat business.With Gerbers Made-to-Measure (M-T-M) software, a
garment is custom-made to the buyers preference. Manufacturers receive orders automatically through
mainframe, modem or internet connection, and M-T-M then creates the patterns and automatically
makes a marker. This facilitates the all-important quick turnaround.In addition, Marconi said
Gerbers new, automated plaid/stripe matching system, InVision, delivers thread-to-thread accuracy
and is now available from Gerber Technologies on its GTxL GERBERcutter. The units multitasking
operating system carries out matching and cutting operations simultaneously for optimum
productivity in the cutting room.InVision improves productivity by completely automating the
matching process, thus removing errors. It makes matching and cutting plaid and stripe fabrics as
easy as cutting solid fabrics, eliminating errors when using manual or semi-automated matching
processes.InVision contains an advanced camera and optics system to enable the operator to zoom in
on critical areas for added precision. In addition, its state-of-the-art lighting system and
imaging techniques achieve precise matching even through a plastic overlay. The system also cuts as
it matches.E-Business Solutions

Paris-based Lectra Systs offered its new e-business product that combines CAD/CAM, virtual
reality and the Internet to enable customers to create, manufacture and sell their products in a
fully electronic way, capitalizing on both their existing organization and new technologies.The
LectraOnline portal, launched in October, provides customers with online professional services and
facilitates secure data exchange between principals, subcontractors, textile companies and
retailers.Also on exhibit was the Lectra FitNet, which creates a virtual 3-D double of a person in
20 seconds thanks to its partnership with Tecmath, a German company specializing in computer
simulation of the human body. One can dress the 3-D double with a garment that is the right size
and personalized to suit the persons tastes, cut the garment in less than four minutes, and
manufacture it in under four hours.This procedure, with Lectras new 3-D virtual design
technologies, enables mastery of the way fabric behaves and faithful reproduction of its
draping.The LectraOnline portal will allow Lectra group customers to create garments automatically
in 3-D on the Web using existing models. During 2001, websurfers will be able to try clothes on
their own virtual mannequin, choose the right size or have the clothes altered to suit measurements
and styles.Lectra Systs is also involved in CAD/CAM systems for the upholstery industry, which is
being revolutionized by the new all digital model of design, as well as manufacturing solutions
that guarantee improved cut quality to the millimeter.The company incorporates all the links in the
chain with global, integrated CAD/CAM solutions that cover the whole textile process, from basic
materials to finished product in the upholstery industry.These solutions take in the full cycle,
starting from the virtual design of yarn and fabric and continuing through 3-D, CAD systems and
collection management; digital fabric printing for prototypes; automated fabric and leather
cutting; computerized technical data exchange; right up to virtual merchandising.Maureen Kelly,
marketing manager, Datacolor International, Lawrenceville, N.J., said that though everyone is
talking about communicating color, Datacolor is delivering it. With the companys Colorite program,
one can communicate exact colors electronically. Everything is calibrated, including print, for
true-color output. Kelly said Datacolors software instruments and services are designed to save
time throughout the entire color development process.The Colorite Studios offer an optimal viewing
area for the Colorite program, which is said to be an integral part of a revolutionary new Color
Information Management System (CIMS). CIMS is Datacolors complete computerized environment for
color measuring, matching, quality control and communication.Thus, designers, colorant suppliers,
and production staff can see and communicate color digitally, eliminating the need to mail color
samples between locations and cutting the cost of samples and development time in half. These
advantages allow companies to move rapidly with production, delivering products with savings in
administrative costs. 
Editor’s Note: Diane and Bob Wanger are freelance writers based in Nashua, N.H.


November 2000

Burlington Announces Improvement Plan

The Board of Directors of Burlington Industries Inc., Greensboro, N.C., has approved a five-point
plan to improve the companys future profitability and financial flexibility.We have outstanding
capabilities within Burlington, but our performance this year is disappointing, said George W.
Henderson III, chairman and CEO. Our results are due both to our own performance shortfalls as well
as difficult market dynamics in some of the markets we serve. We are capable of doing better and we
are committed to improving results.Among the current challenges Henderson noted are the trend
toward casual dressing, lower exports to Europe due to the weakness of the Euro, competitive
pricing in denim and reductions in interior furnishings product inventories at the retail level.The
steps outlined in the companys five-point plan include: realigning operating capacity, including
closing a plant in Johnson City, Tenn., reducing operations at the Clarksville, Va.,
PerformanceWear facility and reducing the size of the companys trucking fleet; eliminating
unprofitable businesses, particularly in the companys PerformanceWear segment; reducing overhead
through consolidation, cost reduction and job reductions; paying down debt; and eliminating excess
historic enterprise goodwill.The planned closings and overhead reductions will eliminate
approximately 950 jobs in the United States and 650 jobs in Mexico.We believe we have made a
realistic assessment of our business, and we are taking a series of actions that will capitalize on
our strengths and correct our weaknesses, said Douglas J. McGregor, president and COO. For example,
we are continuing to grow our top-performing Lees carpet business, which is enjoying its best year
in history. The effective execution of our five-point plan is critical to achieving better cash
flow and debt reduction, which will allow us needed flexibility to grow.We deeply regret the job
losses that are a necessary part of this plan, McGregor continued. We will do everything we can to
help the affected employees make the transition to other employment.

November 2000

Springs Hartwell Finishing Achieves Top Safety Honor

Springs Industries Hartwell Finishing facility, Hartwell, Ga., has received a Voluntary Protection
Program (VPP) flag for excellence in safety performance. This is the first VPP flag to fly at a
Springs Industries facility. Hartwell Finishing completed a rigorous process to qualify for the
VPP, which is administered by the U.S. Department of Labors Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA). The VPP process relies on cooperative efforts of facility management, labor
and government to monitor, measure and improve workplace safety.On average, VPP sites experience
about half as many injuries as their industry counterparts. About 650 workplace locations in the
United States are currently recognized as VPP sites.

November 2000

1...2,4812,4822,483...2,532Page 2,482 of 2,532

Sponsors

Breaking News

Load more

Digital Issue

2025 Quarterly Issue Number II

View Latest Digital Issue

FEATURED ARTICLES

© Copyright 2017 Textile Industries Media Group, LLC.