INDA’s IDEA®and FiltXPO™trade events will collocate in Miami Beach, offering in-person engagement opportunities across the nonwoven and filtration industries.
TW Special Report
IDEA® 2025, the flagship event for the North American nonwovens industry hosted by the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA), returns to Miami Beach April 29-May 1, 2025, for the 22nd iteration of the trade show and conference. IDEA will again collocate with INDA’s FiltXPO™ International Filtration Exhibition and Conference to provide added value for exhibiting companies and attendees alike. The two events will take place at the Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) in Miami Beach, Fla.
“IDEA25 highlights the industry’s leading innovators, including those making strategic investments toward eco-friendly engineered material solutions,” said INDA President and CEO Tony Fragnito. “Attendees can learn and explore alternative production methods including the developments and incorporation of bioderived, recycled and biodegradable components. This event showcases the industry’s commitment to innovation and environmental responsibility in its operations and products.”
The last edition of IDEA attracted approximately 5,000 participants. Visitors to IDEA come from all sectors of the nonwovens market including wipes, apparel, geosynthetics, filtration, and medical and surgical sectors, among other sectors. Job titles for attendees run the gamut from senior leadership to research and development personnel to purchasing executives.
INDA is hoping for robust attendance in 2025 and has confirmed more than 600 exhibitors will participate.
A reception on Tuesday, April 29, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., will officially welcome guests to the three-day event. The exhibit floor is open Tuesday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Education
IDEA will include a Sustainability in Nonwovens multi-day conference portion that attendees may participate in for an additional fee. There will be a total of between 20 and 24 sessions, which includes two to three panel discussions. As of TW’s press time, the conference agenda was not available, but session topics will tentatively cover:
- U.S., European Union and United Nations regulation;
- Start-of-Life: Materials Sourcing and Natural Fibers, among other topics;
- Product/Process Innovations;
- End-of-Life: Advances in Biodegradability/Compostability; and
- Next Life: Fiber-to-Nonwoven Recycling, Advanced Recycling, extended producer responsibility.
At the 2025 edition of the event, product promo talks — held previously during the conference — will be hosted at INDA’s in-booth lightning talks, and regional market overview sessions will occur at INDA’s in-booth sessions.
IDEA25 also offers a series of short courses to be taught on Monday, April 28, one day ahead of the show floor opening. Topics cover the essentials of nonwovens and market focused areas and are designed for newcomers and seasoned professionals alike. Courses include Nonwovens 101, Baby & Adult Care Absorbent Hygiene Systems, Period Products Innovation Workshop and Wet Wipes 101.
The courses will be taught by James “Jim” Robinson, principal with Absorbent Hygiene Insights LLC; Heidi Beatty, CEO, Crown Abbey LLC; and INDA’s own Director of Education and Technical Affairs Dr. Matt O’Sickey.
“With over twenty years of attending IDEA, it was consistently the busiest and most productive week of my year as I was able to meet with all of my suppliers and all of my customers,” said Dr. O’Sickey. “It’s incredibly exciting now, as I am part of INDA, the hosting organization for IDEA and FiltXPO, to provide more ways to make the week even more valuable and efficient to our members with training courses, enhanced on-site meeting room options, and the inaugural multi-day Sustainability in Nonwovens and Advances in Filtration Conferences.”
Attendees register for courses individually and may choose all courses or just one depending on budget and learning needs.
IDEA® Achievement Awards
INDA confers the IDEA Achievement Awards in conjunction with the trade show. Presented by INDA in partnership with Nonwovens Industry magazine, the awards recognize leading companies, individuals and new products in the global nonwovens and engineered fabrics industry who have contributed to the industry since the last IDEA show.
Awards will be presented in the following six categories:
- IDEA Equipment Achievement Award;
- IDEA Raw Material Achievement Award;
- IDEA Short-Life Product Achieve-ment Award;
- IDEA Long-Life Product Achieve-ment Award;
- IDEA Sustainability Achievement Award; and
- IDEA Nonwoven Achievement Award.
Three finalists are selected in each category by INDA’s Technical Advisory Board. Then, industry professionals vote on the winners at the Nonwovens Industry website.
Industry Endorsements
IDEA is highly regarded by the nonwovens industry as a place to network, develop new business strategies and learn new things. INDA also continues to place a priority on sustainability encouraging the exploration of biomaterials and healthier ecosystems as well as circular economies and innovative nonwoven materials.
“IDEA may be the single best opportunity in the nonwovens industry to engage with other businesses and move our agenda forward,” said Neil Johnson, president, AJ Nonwovens. “We have been able to develop relationships, open sales channels, share innovation, solve supply challenges, and increase brand awareness. I’m not aware of a better opportunity to accomplish all of this in one place. We are looking forward to more at IDEA25!”
“IDEA25 is the place for any organization working toward a future ripe with low carbon, biobased solutions,” noted Koen Bastiaens, Strategic Market manager, Hygiene & Nonwovens, NatureWorks. “Leading organizations across the industry gather at the event to showcase the latest technologies and innovations toward a more circular, sustainable economy. NatureWorks is proud to be part of this event that propels solutions that are critical to mitigating climate change.”
FiltXPO™ Details
FiltXPO, is a newer INDA event focused on filtration technologies and innovations, and organized on an 18-month schedule meaning every other year it is collocated with IDEA. FiltXPO includes an exhibit floor, Advances in Filtration Conference, two-day training Filter Media Short Course and FiltXPO Innovation Awards, among other features.
FiltXPO™ Education
This year, the Advances in Filtration Conference is co-organized by INDA and the American Filtration & Separations Society (AFS). Five key topics will be highlighted: nonwovens and filtration for healthy buildings; nonwovens and filtration for data centers; nonwovens and filtration for e-mobility; sustainability and circularity in filtration; and innovations meeting the current challenges of filtration. The conference will include plenary talks, panel discussions, and technical posters presented by subject matter experts as well as research institutes.
The Filter Media Short Course focuses on nonwovens and their applications in air and liquid filtration. The course — taught by Dr. Behnam Pourdeyhimi, NC State University professor and executive director of The Nonwovens Institute (NWI); Dr. Benoit Maze, NWI’s director of Education & Administration; and Dr. Hooman Tafreshi, NC State professor, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, and NWI’s director of research — is perfect for personnel in research and development, product development, marketing and product management, technical sales, technical support, and testing and quality control.
FiltXPO™ Innovation Awards
FiltXpo recognizes innovation within the filtration value chain with a particular focus on nonwoven fabrics and technologies with its FiltXPO Innovation Awards. Innovations are recognized in three categories — Air/Gas Filtration Media, Water/Liquid Filtration Media, and Filtration Equipment including converting equipment, filtration systems using nonwoven filter media, and testing equipment, among other technologies.
Similar to the IDEA Innovation Awards, the FiltXPO Innovation Awards finalist are selected by INDA’s Technical Advisory Board. The industry then votes for the winners via a link on the International Filtration News magazine website.
“FiltXPO is something you don’t want to miss,” said Tom Justice, proprietor and owner, Zene Filtration. “It’s more important now than ever that you stay ahead of this rapidly evolving industry — being able to identify shifts in customer demands could determine whether your company will exist in three years.”
“Being there, you are directly engaged,” said Doug Huntley, senior global R&D leader, Home Environment Markets, 3M. “There is nothing that replaces that. Having healthier air clearly has an impact in the world. The challenges are only increasing in terms of air quality. That’s why we need to really step up our game in terms of delivering those solutions.”
Indeed, there is nothing that replaces that in person engagement and business networking opportunity offered by a trade show. As INDA focuses on preparing and fine-tuning details for IDEA and FiltXPO, the organization looks forward to bringing the learning and networking opportunities to the nonwovens and filtration industries this April.
For more information about IDEA® and FiltXPO™ and to register, visit idea show.org. and filtXPO.com.
2025 Quarterly Issue I
By James M. Borneman, Editor In Chief
