Lenzing Takes Supply Chain Transparency To Next Level By Combining Real-Time Shipment Tracking And Carbon Visibility

LENZING, Austria — September 14, 2023 — Lenzing Group, a global producer of wood-based specialty fibers, is taking an important step in enhancing the transparency and efficiency of the global fiber supply chain with the launch of a pioneering real- time ocean shipment tracker in collaboration with digital supply chain solution company, project44. Adhering to Lenzing’s sustainability goals, the tracker also offers capabilities to improve the visibility of carbon emissions among partners and elevate the customer experience.

To address the industry’s increasing supply chain complexities, Lenzing has incorporated a fully integrated real- time application programming interface (API) between its systems applications and products (SAP) and the project44 platform, Movement. Combine this with advanced artificial intelligence (AI), GPS sensors, and machine-learning technologies, and Lenzing can now empower customers with accurate real-time insights on fiber orders, ranging from shipment status, container location, to vessel route tracking and estimated arrival times at ports around the world.

Powered by real-time data and predictive insights

“Over the past couple of years, supply chain disruptions have highlighted the importance of advanced ocean shipment tracking. Our real-time shipment tracker is a testament to Lenzing’s ‘Better Growth’ corporate strategy, which reinforces our commitment to digitally transform and ensure transparency in the textile and nonwovens supply chain. With supply chain transparency and sustainability becoming increasingly more important, our ability to implement groundbreaking carbon emission tracking at shipment and container level demonstrates that we are ready and eager to collaborate with our valued customers in jointly crafting ambitious carbon reduction targets,” said Thomas Panholzer, vice president Global Supply Chain, Lenzing.

Partnering to achieve the shared goal of greater carbon emission visibility

As part of Lenzing’s sustainability commitments, the real-time ocean shipment tracker provides improved solutions which empower value chain partners to achieve their carbon emission targets, by providing customers with access to Scope 3 carbon emission data accredited by the Global Logistics Emission Council (GLEC) framework on shipment and container level. This real-time data allows Lenzing and its customers to collaboratively establish goals and adjust shipment plans to reduce carbon emissions.

“Supply chain visibility continues to depend on successful collaborations,” said Jett McCandless, founder and CEO of project44. “Lenzing’s shipment tracker, powered by project44’s unique data and insights, gives unprecedented customer access to real-time information that locates shipments across the globe. We are continuously seeking partnerships with pioneers like Lenzing who strive to incorporate new solutions and technologies into their offerings.”

“This new carbon visibility solution is a pivotal milestone for Lenzing. As our partners intensify their efforts to minimize their carbon footprint, we stand ready as a trusted collaborator to empower them with crucial insights to drive further reductions,” affirmed Jayaraman Sethuraman, vice president of Global Sales Textiles at Lenzing.

“We value Lenzing’s ongoing commitment to supporting our journey towards reducing carbon emissions. Our unwavering dedication to sustainability is evident in our use of green energy for spinning and weaving production processes. At the Pallavaa Group, we are well-prepared to deliver carbon-neutral solutions up to the grey fabric stage,” shared Durai Palanisamy, executive director of the Pallavaa Group.

Driving digitalization to enhance efficiency and transparency of the global fiber value chain

“Lenzing IT’s vision is to accelerate our ambition to change the world for the better by unlocking the power of information and technology. This project is one of the many fantastic examples that brings our vision to life. We are committed to fostering digital collaborations that will further enhance customer satisfaction and supply chain transparency,” said Christian Platzer, vice president Global IT & Digital Innovation, Lenzing.

Lenzing’s real-time ocean shipment tracker will be accessible to all Lenzing customers worldwide starting September.

Posted: September 14, 2023

Source: Lenzing Group 


Deakin University Partners With Industry To Color Clothes Without A Drop Of Water

GEELONG, Australia — September 14, 2023 — Deakin University has signed a partnership agreement with Australia-based company Xefco as part of its Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialization Hub (REACH) to conduct new research to transform how our clothing, including jeans, get their color.

Jeans are one of the most worn garments in the world, but they are also one of the least environmentally friendly, taking around 75 liters of water to dye just one pair.

Deakin’s work with Xefco is helping to explore if a waterless manufacturing process can replace the water intensive processes the clothing industry has used for hundreds of years. The new technology in development is called Ausora.

Associate Professor Alessandra Sutti, from Deakin’s Institute for Frontier Materials, said it was exciting to be on the commercialization journey with Xefco, working with the company to discover what is possible and hopefully reduce the world’s fashion footprint.

“If successful, the Ausora technology, which colours fabrics without the need for large quantities of water, will put us a step closer to more efficient and sustainable clothing manufacturing,” Associate Professor Sutti said.

Xefco CEO Tom Hussey said the company’s new pilot plant, housed at Deakin in Geelong, will test different materials, including specialized fabrics such as waterproof items like outdoor jackets and jeans.

“This is the first stage of Xefco’s vision for the technology, with the REACH project focused on demonstrating the commercial viability of the technology at pilot scale and developing processes so it can be scaled up for commercial production,” Hussey said.

“Together, Deakin and Xefco will push the limits of innovation and see what is possible.”

Xefco’s pilot plant is co-located with Deakin researchers at ManuFutures, the state-of-the-art advanced manufacturing hub at Deakin’s Waurn Ponds campus.

Founded in 2018 Xefco now employs 17 people and its products are already making a difference across the world. Its XReflex technology, which reduces consumption of insulation materials, is being used by some of the world’s leading apparel and fashion brands including The North Face.

Backed by a $50 million grant from the Australian Government’s inaugural Trailblazer Universities Program, with industry and university support taking the total project value to $380 million, REACH is facilitating the development of greener supply chains and accelerating business success as markets move from a throughput economy to a circular economy.

Posted: September 14, 2023

Source: Deakin University

Purdue University: Chemists Uses Nature As Inspiration For A Sustainable, Affordable Adhesive System

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — September 13, 2023 — Glue holds the world together. Without adhesives, much of modern human civilization — including our cellphones, cars, furniture, walls and the packages arriving on our doorstep — would simply fall apart.

The trouble with all those adhesives is that they are not sustainable. A team of chemists at Purdue University led by Jonathan Wilker, professor of chemistry in the College of Science and of materials engineering, aims to change that with a new, completely sustainable adhesive system. The team’s findings were released in a paper in Nature.

“Our current adhesives create all sorts of environmental problems,” Wilker said. “Almost all glues are petroleum-based and do not degrade. The bonded materials in our products stay stuck together. Consequently, we cannot recycle many of the materials that we put into our recycling bins. Discarded products will sit in landfills for centuries and, sometimes, contribute to ocean microplastics.”

Wilker and his lab have spent years studying the science of sticky substances, analyzing marine animals that adhere, like mussels and oysters, and trying to create better, sustainable, affordable adhesives that work as well as any glue from the hardware store. He has a drawer of those commercial glues in his lab, which give off a strong and familiar smell.

“Those volatile petrochemicals in these glues can be toxic, which is a further problem with current technologies,” Wilker said. One example is the common building material plywood, which is formed of wood pieces held together with formaldehyde-based adhesives. Newly built houses are off-gassing formaldehyde, exposing residents to this carcinogen.

These substances are harmful both to the environment and to human health. However, people and companies are accustomed to using traditional adhesives; they’re strong, easy to produce and relatively inexpensive. Any new adhesive must work at least as well as traditional products, which is why Wilker keeps that drawer around: to test them, side by side, against innovative substances.

“By studying how nature makes adhesives, we are learning how to design new technologies for our future society,” Wilker said. “Given all of the problems generated by current glues, we feel an obligation to create something better. Ideally, new adhesives will be bio-based and nontoxic. Strengths should be as high as current products. Then we would like to bond them strongly when needed and also be able to take the substrates apart when wanted. Further design constraints that we grapple with, in order to have impact, are costs needing to be low and having all starting compounds available at large scales.”

After a series of experiments on a range of different biologically sourced and sustainable ingredients, the team settled on epoxidized soy oil for a main component. Epoxidized soy oil is already produced globally on a massive scale. For their work, the smallest container that they could purchase was a 55-gallon drum of the substance. Since each experiment uses just a little epoxidized soy oil, the level in their drum has dropped only a few inches after several years of testing.

Wilker and his team added the epoxidized soy oil to malic acid, a compound most known for giving apples their tart flavor. Then they added tannic acid, to provide an aspect of the chemistry that mussels use for attaching themselves to rocks and each other. Tannic acid is a component of tannins, common in trees, red wine and black tea. Those three ingredients added up to an adhesive that is inexpensive, effective, scalable, practical to produce and completely sustainable.

“If you combine these components under the right conditions, adhesives can be made that are as strong as epoxies,” Wilker said. Epoxies are generally considered to be the highest performance class of adhesives. “All of the components are bio-based, safe and already available at train car scales. A bonus is that the adhesive is easy to make. Basically, you can mix and heat the components.” Other bio-based compounds can also be used with epoxidized soy oil, generating an entire family of new sustainable adhesives.

To test the adhesive’s performance, the scientists bonded together objects — wood, plastics or metals — and then used an instrument for breaking the bonds and measuring forces. In many cases, their new adhesives held up well, sometimes performing similarly to, or even better than, traditional toxic adhesives such as a superglue and an epoxy. Further research will refine the system and work to maximize societal and environmental impacts in areas ranging from medical innovations to industrial materials to packaging. Their team’s innovations may pave the way to a more sustainable system for holding the world together.

Wilker disclosed his adhesives to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which has applied for a patent to protect the intellectual property. This research was supported by the Office of Naval Research.

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: Purdue University – Brittany Steff / Jon Wilker

The Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC) At Catawba Valley College To Host Manufacturing Day Event On October 5

CONOVER, N.C. — September 13, 2023 — The Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC) at Catawba Valley College will host a tour of its facilities on October 5 from 10 a.m. to noon as part of Manufacturing Day.

Manufacturing Day is a nation-wide celebration of those who produce goods and services in America, and it promotes the importance of modern manufacturing careers.

The MSC Manufacturing Day will begin in the new MSC II facility at 350 5th Avenue SE in Conover, N.C., with presentations about the MSC and the companies which operate in the MSC II building.  A tour of the MSC facilities will be available to attendees following the presentation.  The program is co-sponsored by the Conover branch of the Catawba County Library System.

The MSC’s mission is to support US manufacturers and to create and retain US manufacturing jobs.  This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.  To register, visit the link at the top of the MSC website at www.manufacturingsolutionscenter.org

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: The Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC)

GM Defense And NP Aerospace Sign Cooperation Agreement

LONDON — September 13, 2023 — GM Defense LLC, a subsidiary of General Motors (GM), and NP Aerospace signed a collaborative Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop cooperative research and development, post-production support, and global logistics and sustainment for integrated vehicles, power and propulsion, autonomy and connectivity, fuel cell, power generation, system integration and platform integration. Company leaders signed the MOU during the Defense and Security Equipment International (DSEI) 2023.

The MOU enables GM Defense to deliver military solutions more effectively, like the light and agile ISV, to global defense and government customers. Based on the Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 midsize truck architecture, the ISV features 90 percent commercial-off-the-shelf parts, including Chevrolet Performance components, adapted to meet U.S. Army requirements. GM Defense expanded on the ISV program of record to develop the ISV Family of Vehicles, which includes variants designed to support diverse mission use cases and meet future customer demand. The business is also developing a purpose-built Heavy-Duty armored Sport Utility Vehicle (HD SUV) solution, an armored HD architecture that is gaining interest among international defense and government customers to meet global protection missions.

The MOU expands the range of vehicles covered via NP Aerospace’s Vehicle Systems, Services and Spares business. Current contracts include the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) Protected Mobility Engineering Technical Support contract and the Canadian Department of National Defence Land Equipment Program – Engineering Technical Support Services Contract.

“NP Aerospace has a proven track record and expertise that complements GM Defense,” said Steve duMont, GM Defense president. “This collaboration will help position our commercial-based solutions, including the ISV and HD SUV, to global militaries while aligning our capabilities to meet the needs of the UK Ministry of Defence’s Land Industrial Strategy.”

“Our collaboration with GM Defense is very exciting as it diversifies our product and technology offering established through the UK MoD protected mobility fleet contract and expands our vehicle armour and engineering capabilities into North America,” said James Kempston, CEO, NP Aerospace. “We are pleased to work with a business with such a long legacy in defense and look forward to partnering in expanding their offerings globally.”

The MOU formalizes GM Defense’s commitment to pursue opportunities in the UK for GM Defense, which leverages the advanced commercial technologies and investments of its parent company, General Motors, to transition global customers to a more electric, autonomous and connected future. The collaboration comes after GM Defense recently announced the incorporation of GM Defense Canada and the formation of GM Defense International last year.

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: GM Defense LLC

Polartec Partners With Spoonflower Offering On-Demand Digital Fleece Printing

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — September 13, 2023 — Polartec®, a Milliken & Company brand and inventors of synthetic fleece, has partnered with Spoonflower, a premier on-demand fabric printing marketplace for artists and creative enthusiasts. The collaboration makes Polartec’s signature 200 Series Fleece available for unlimited designs through Spoonflower’s online community of makers and entrepreneurs.

Spoonflower is the only provider of custom print-on-demand Polartec® Fleece, offering an exciting opportunity for companies to create unique and high-quality products. Spoonflower users can create their own patterns or select from over one million designs, which are then digitally printed on a single-side of Polartec high-loft fleece using water-based ink, adding a new dimension to Spoonflower’s offerings. With no minimum purchase requirements, individuals and businesses of all sizes can print limited-edition runs with little risk. Moreover, Spoonflower can accommodate quick product development time-frames due to its streamlined printing processes, allowing businesses to stay ahead in today’s ever-evolving market.

“We are thrilled to showcase our classic 200 Series Fleece with Spoonflower’s design community,” said Karen Beattie, global director of Product Marketing at Polartec. “Our mission is to provide premium, innovative fabric solutions, and by partnering with Spoonflower, we are taking a significant step forward in empowering creative entrepreneurs to bring their ideas to life at any scale.”

Polartec’s durable and high-quality fleece — a 100-percent polyester fabric known for its breathable, quick-drying properties and warmth without weight — is the ultimate choice for cold weather apparel, including jackets, gloves, scarves, and more. The fabric’s soft texture, slight stretch, and resistance to pilling make it an exceptional material for a wide range of creative applications, from cozy blankets to stylish loungewear.

“Often overheard at Spoonflower HQ is the phrase, ‘There’s a design for that!’ This sentiment is the foundation of what makes the Spoonflower platform truly special,” said Sarah Ward, Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing at Spoonflower. “With more than one million designs available, we are excited to match up customers with relevant design results across an immense spectrum of search results. Each design is uploaded by an independent artist somewhere in the world, and all Spoonflower purchases support these amazing creatives. We are thrilled to provide a platform for commerce through community connections be it through the relationships with our artists, the human connection extended through our customer care team, or the suppliers and vendors we partner with, like Polartec, that bring the Spoonflower Design Marketplace to life. Creating a closely knit relationship between the global leader in print-on-demand technology and the leader in modern synthetic fleece is a winning combination with endless possibilities for DTC and B2B alike,” Ward continued.

Polartec 200 Series Fleece is now available for single-sided digital printing up to 56” wide on Spoonflower.com starting at $34/yard. The partnership offers entrepreneurs and makers an incredible opportunity to combine cutting-edge fabric technology with unique, digitally printed designs, resulting in products that stand out in the market. Spoonflower’s on-demand digital platform has revolutionized the textile industry in its development of a responsibly made, and scalable manufacturing process, printed (and sewn) in the USA.

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: Polartec®, a Milliken & Company brand

The George Washington University Museum & The Textile Museum Receives Record $25 Million Gift

WASHINGTON — September 13, 2023 — The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum today announced a $25 million endowment gift from an anonymous donor, the single largest investment in the museum’s history. The bulk of the gift, $24 million in endowment funds, will provide long-term support for textile conservation, curatorial scholarship and educational initiatives. The remaining $1 million will fund priority projects and equipment as the museum prepares for its centennial celebration in 2025.

“This extremely generous gift will have a transformational impact on The Textile Museum,” GW President Ellen Granberg said. “The museum is recognized as a center of excellence for the international prominence of its collections, its academic mission and its global community. These funds will allow us to expand our leading work in textile collections care, scholarship and museum training for generations to come.”

Twelve million dollars in endowed funds for conservation and curatorial engagement will underwrite students and visiting scholars, advance research and scholarship, and support the museum’s Avenir Foundation Conservation and Collections Resource Center on GW’s Virginia Science and Technology campus. The conservation lab preserves more than 25,000 textiles in the collections and prepares them for display in museum exhibitions. It also serves aspiring conservators through training programs and graduate fellowships.

Another $12 million establishes a new endowment to support onsite museum education and broaden global reach through digital initiatives, ensuring the museum continues to be an integral part of teaching, research and learning at GW and beyond.

“This extraordinary gift acknowledges the worldwide relevance of our museum’s collections, invests in our museum professionals and recognizes our responsibility to share, collaborate and facilitate access to global heritage,” said John Wetenhall, director of The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum. “It also signals an investment in the future of textiles: training the next generation of scholars and museum professionals, and expanding the museum’s audience through digital learning.”

The endowment will also fund the hardware, software and staffing to activate The Textile Museum Collection online, focusing special support on interpretation by students, faculty, and independent researchers. These endeavors will also assure the preservation and dissemination of digital images of collection artworks and the archives of leading textile scholars.

Additional priorities include appointing a new educator dedicated to engaging faculty and students, as well as creating academic courses and paid student positions. Endowed funds also will support museum staff professional development.

The $1 million for centennial projects will fund new equipment for conservation, enhancements to the Textiles 101 learning center, technology to facilitate virtual programming and preserve the museum’s digital resources, and other immediate needs.

Over nearly 100 years, The Textile Museum has gained an international reputation for excellence in research, exhibitions and educational programs that explore textile art as global cultural heritage, with collections spanning five continents and five millennia. The museum’s conservation program has been a pioneer in innovative practices in textile care and providing specialized training for conservators. The Textile Museum reopened in its new home at the George Washington University in 2015, bringing new opportunities to invigorate research and scholarship, transform collections care and prepare the next generation of museum professionals.

“This remarkable donor’s generosity ensures The Textile Museum of enduring reach as it addresses the key challenge of cultivating successive generations of those who appreciate textiles as art and cultural heritage,” said Bruce P. Baganz, chairman of The Textile Museum’s board of trustees and co-chair of the George Washington University Museum’s board. “This investment fundamentally advances our aspirations for the museum’s international leadership in art, scholarship, education and fostering cultural understanding.”

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: The George Washington University Office of University Communications & Marketing

Sun Chemical To Exhibit Extensive Solutions At Printing United 2023

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — September 13, 2023 — Sun Chemical will present its full portfolio of printing solutions for a variety of wide format applications at Printing United 2023 on October 18-20 in Atlanta, Ga. Under the theme ‘Experience Transformation,’ Sun Chemical’s showcased digital solutions will highlight how customers can innovate their businesses.

“We’re excited to exhibit our solutions at Printing United, one of the most extensive printing events in North America which brings together top industry experts and their growing base of customers to introduce new printing technologies and promote the latest market trends,” said Christine Medordi, sales manager – North America at Sun Chemical. “This event gives us a valuable opportunity to connect with new and returning customers and demonstrate how they can use our products to experience transformation for their own businesses.”

Products on display will include Sun Chemical’s solutions for wide format and super wide format printing, solutions for digital presses, and inks for digital printing.

Wide Format Printing

Sun Chemical will promote its Streamline range of inkjet inks for wide format printers. Formulated with low-odor chemistry, the Streamline ink series is Greenguard Gold-certified for low indoor emissions.

Also present on the stand will be the Streamline TVL 2and TEL2 ink series which are offered in 500ml pouches and designed to support the sign, display, and graphics market for use with Roland’s TrueVis SG2 and VG2 range of eco-solvent inkjet printers, including the latest additions to the range––orange and green inks.

A trained and fully experienced team of engineers are available to ensure customers get the best from Streamline inks, offering color management support, on-site and remote support, and ink conversion.

Super Wide Format Printing

With the increasing popularity of new, industrial, 3.2m-solvent inkjet presses, Sun Chemical offers tailored Streamline ink solutions to support presses with Konica Minolta, Spectra Starfire, and Epson i3200 printheads. Optimized for the inkjet droplet specification and the end-user print application requirements, the latest addition to the range is Sun Chemical’s Streamline SGR, a solvent ink series for presses using Ricoh Gen 5 printheads.

Degassing Modules for Digital Presses

SEPAREL® for inkjet applications is a hollow fiber membrane, developed by DIC Corporation. These degassing modules prevent gas from passing through a hollow fiber membrane, allowing only liquid to pass through and resulting in minimal pressure loss and a more compact size. The range offers a variety of products suitable for various ink types and applications, including aqueous, solvent, and UV.

Aqueous Inks for Digital Printing

Demonstrating its commitment to super wide format printing, Sun Chemical will be promoting its Streamline aqueous ink technology for high-speed, industrial poster printing on presses.

Streamline APY, for Kyocera printheads, is a high-color strength series, delivering drying benefits and a significant reduction in ink consumption compared to competitive aqueous inks. The inks offer improved print finish and color vibrancy, as well as reduced energy consumption costs.

The latest addition to the aqueous series is Streamline APR, formulated for Ricoh Gen 5 printheads and offering all of the advantages highlighted with Streamline APY.

Solutions for Digital Textile Printing

Sun Chemical will highlight a full range of digital inks for textile decoration across a variety of applications such as sign and display, sportswear, fashion, and home textiles.

Products presented will include a range of market-leading sublimation inks, including ElvaJet Opal SC and ElvaJet Topaz SC –– Sun Chemical´s latest range of sublimation inks –– to address higher viscosity printheads. In addition, Sun Chemical will showcase solutions for pigments, offering the best in color and application performance.

Additional Inks on Display

Offering outstanding color and print sharpness, edible inks are well suited for both small and larger businesses, as well as brands looking to bring customization and enhanced consumer experience to their products.

As the global inkjet brand of Sun Chemical and DIC, SunJet will demonstrate its most recent developments in inkjet chemistry, including collaborations with OEM partners, system integrators, and printhead manufacturers across a number of market sectors, including graphics, décor, textile, coding & marking, publication, commercial, industrial, label, and packaging.

Sun Chemical will also display its conductive inks, resists, dielectrics and insulators for membrane touch switches (MTS), sensors, displays, touch panels, printed antenna, and solid-state lighting. To support a broad variety of applications, SunTronic® ECLIPSE technologies can be tailor-made for specific inkjet printing processes.

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: Sun Chemical

Rudolf GmbH Commissions Baldwin’s TexCoat™ G4 Lab-Scale Precision Spray Unit

GERETSRIED, Germany — September 13, 2023 — Rudolf GmbH, a provider of chemicals to the textile industry, can now offer side-by-side performance tests of the age-old “dip and squeeze” pad versus precision spray finishing with the delivery of Baldwin Technology Inc.’s TexCoat ™ G4 lab-scale unit

Baldwin’s non-contact precision spray technology helps textile finishers up their game by enabling consistent, high-quality finishing, with zero chemistry waste and drastically minimized water and energy consumption.

Rudolf, founded more than 100 years ago and based in Geretsried, Bavaria, offers a wide portfolio of chemical solutions and services that increase innovation and sustainability along the entire textile value chain, from fiber to finish.

“The commissioning of Baldwin’s lab scale TexCoat in Rudolf’s Customer Solution Center further strengthens the partnership of our two companies and provides the technical expertise to the textile industry in transitioning from pad to TexCoat G4 precision spray finishing,” said Rick Stanford, Baldwin’s vice president of Global Business Development, Textiles.

The new TexCoat lab-scale unit at Rudolf’s Geretsried, Germany-based Customer Solution Center, tests the sprayability of chemicals on fabrics as an additional tool to help the market transition to precision spray with confidence in the performance and sustainability of the end result.

With Baldwin’s innovative system, the chemistry is precisely distributed across the textile surface and is applied only where it is required, on one or both sides of the fabric. The non-contact technology eliminates chemistry dilution in wet-on-wet processes, allowing full control of maintaining consistent chemistry coverage rates.

Plus, pad bath contamination is eliminated, and changeovers are only required when there is a change of finish chemistry. On wet-on-dry processes, the finish is applied with 50 percent of the amount of water required for pad finishing. Dryer fabric entering the tenter means less water to evaporate resulting in less energy and higher production speeds.

More specifically, with Baldwin’s TexCoat G4, textile finishers can expect unprecedented tracking and control of the finishing process for consistent quality. Changeovers are easily and quickly performed thanks to recipe management, including automated chemistry and coverage selection. Furthermore, the system takes speed information from the drying process to insure exact coverage regardless of any change in speed. TexCoat G4 measures every drop of chemical usage ensuring that the amount of chemical add-on is precise.

In addition, the TexCoat G4 system can process a wide range of low-viscosity water-based chemicals, such as durable water-repellants including PFAS-free, softeners, antimicrobials, easy care resins, flame retardants and more. Baldwin’s innovative technology utilizes the same chemicals used in the traditional pad bath, with no special auxiliaries required.

“We are excited to introduce the TexCoat G4 lab-scale unit to the textile industry in collaboration with Baldwin Technology Inc.,” said Norbert Haberer, Rudolf director of Finishing Chemicals. “This innovative precision spray technology revolutionizes finishing processes, delivering consistent quality while minimizing waste and resource consumption. At Rudolf GmbH, we remain committed to driving sustainability and innovation across the textile value chain and offer a new service in our in-house application labs”

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: Rudolf GmbH

Microban Launches Ascera™ — A Patent-Pending, Cutting-Edge Antimicrobial Technology Inspired By Nature

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — September 13, 2023 — Microban International is pleased to introduce its latest ground-breaking technology – Ascera™. This patent-pending, next generation antimicrobial technology uses an active ingredient inspired by nature*, and is designed for use in olefinic polymers and solvent-based coatings. Ascera is sustainable, metal free and less toxic than alternative technologies, and provides the lifelong antimicrobial product protection that Microban is known for around the world.

As the global leader in antimicrobial and odor control technologies, Microban is committed to the development of solutions that support product sustainability by extending their useful lifetimes. Ascera exemplifies the company’s commitment to sustainability by offering lasting product protection while maintaining critical attributes, such as ease of incorporation, handling safety, and good chemical, thermal and UV stability. Ascera will perform for the product’s expected lifetime when applied according to Microban’s standards, effectively inhibiting the growth of odor-causing bacteria to prevent stains and premature aging of the finished product.

“Microban has always led the antimicrobial industry with technological innovations that contribute to product sustainability,” said Dr. Souvik Nandi, vice president of R&D at Microban International. “In the past decade, regulatory and environmental groups have put increasing pressure on many antimicrobial chemistries that are currently used. As a result, Microban has invested significant resources in identifying naturally occurring solutions that are more sustainable and effective. We are very proud to roll out Ascera, which represents the culmination of many years of intensive research. This is the first of an exciting series of nature inspired solutions that we will be launching in the next few years for different market segments and material types.”

“As the global leader in antimicrobial, odor control and surface modification solutions, Microban is always standing at the forefront of the industry. As we work towards our vision of becoming the most trusted brand in ultimate cleanliness and product protection, we want the world to rely on Microban for best-in-class solutions.” Michael Ruby, president of Microban International, said: “Our R&D teams are laser-focused on developing a range of cutting-edge technologies that are nature-inspired for the different market sectors we serve. Our partners look to us first for what is next. Ascera will help leading brands to create clean, odor-free and high value end-use products, which their customers will choose to support sustainability and live a clean and refreshing lifestyle.”

*The Microban technology used in this product is similar to acids found in nature and is used in multiple consumer product applications.

Posted: September 13, 2023

Source: Microban International

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