Ascend Brings New EV, Battery Materials To Battery Show Europe

HOUSTON — June 28, 2022 — Ascend Performance Materials is showcasing its latest materials for e-mobility at the Battery Show Europe this week. Among the products Ascend is exhibiting are a new color-stable grade of its Starflam® flame-retardant polyamides; its new Vydyne® AVS for damping noise, vibration and harshness; and Trinohex® Ultra, its REACH-registered electrolyte additive.

Ascend has developed a color-stable orange grade of its Starflam 525K flame-retardant PA66 that is laser-markable, withstands long-term heat aging over 5,000 hours and retains its electrical properties, including a UL 94 flammability rating of V-0 at 0.2 mm. This new color-stable grade is designed for use in high-voltage connectors and busbars.

Vydyne AVS, Ascend’s new anti-vibration material, will also be highlighted. Tailored to dampen the high-frequency vibrations from EV motors and compressors, AVS is an effective NVH solution that mitigates in-cabin noise without adding complexity or weight.

Finally, Ascend will also promote its Trinohex Ultra electrolyte additive, which improves lithium-ion battery performance, safety and longevity. In third-party testing, Trinohex Ultra has demonstrated superior cathode protection across cathode and electrolyte chemistries. This protection leads to a 30% reduction in harmful gas generation and longer-lasting performance, especially in extreme conditions.

“Our goal is to bring new material solutions to the e-mobility space,” said Ian van Duijvenboode, Ascend’s director for e-mobility. “Our capabilities in application and design engineering, coupled with our extensive materials knowledge, continue to help OEMs overcome some significant challenges in terms of safety, passenger comfort and range.”

Ascend is exhibiting at booth 10-C94 at the Battery Show Europe through June 30.

Posted: June 28, 2022

Source: Ascend Performance Materials

TRSA’s Production Summit & Plant Tour Thrives On Operational Diversity

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — June 28, 2022 — The TRSA’s Production Summit & Plant Tour took place at the Embassy Suites Chicago Downtown in Chicago from May 18-19, 2022, and attendees experienced a gathering of some of the industry’s most successful operators who discussed their latest process improvements for improved throughput and profitability in plant operations. The Summit addressed market areas including healthcare, industrial and linen supply.

Summit participants enjoyed a day of sessions and networking opportunities, including keynote speaker Kevin Ames, the founder of Ames Leadership Institute. Ames provided an outside perspective on labor market shifts and how laundry operators can adapt. Other sessions included:

  • ‘Legislative Update’
  • ‘Recruiting and Retention in the New Market for Talent’
  • ‘New Wastewater Challenges’
  • ‘Plant Safety & Health’
  • ‘Benchmarking’
  • ‘Mitigating Supply Chain Problems’
  • ‘Recruitment and Retention Tactics Panel Discussion’

Summit attendees emphasized the impact of COVID-19 during the program with participants discussing how employee retention has deteriorated during the pandemic, and what steps operators can take to combat these challenges. Panelists suggested that mental health was a main driver for this issue, as employees require a sense of stability, and placing a stronger emphasis on stability when advertising job positions could help promote staff longevity and resistance to recession-related challenges.

Recruitment expert Kathleen Quinn Votaw encouraged employers to reframe their focus from “recruiting” to “talent acquisition,” highlighting an important point for attendees to consider: “Employees don’t work for you. No one ever did. They work for their families.” Attendees backed the idea that the industry’s HR and sales personnel can collaborate to find and acquire talent, with TSRA leading the charge through collaboration by its HR and Marketing & Sales committees.

While candidates hesitated to endorse Votaw’s idea of inviting families and friends to a catered lunch to encourage candidate referrals, amid concerns about its likely payback, there was support for increased on-site dining events to reinforce team building, which could have a positive impact on retention.

The next day, attendees visited two of America’s largest operator’s local plants: UniFirst Corp.’s year-old 64,000-square-foot facility in Hammond, IN; and Alsco Inc.’s 20-year-old 185,000 square-foot plant in Chicago.  The hosts at both plants described not only what they have, but why management had chosen their various plant systems.

Attendees praised the tours. “UniFirst Hammond, very impressive; both the new plant and the proud knowledgeable staff, an example for our industry, said one attendee. “Alsco Chicago, a huge facility, well maintained and great quality product.”

Further information about this event can be found at: https://www.trsa.org/news/production-summit-thrives-on-diversity-of-industrys-operations/

Posted: June 28, 2022

Source: TRSA

Careismatic Brands Announces The Appointment Of Sidharth Lakhani As COO

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — June 28, 2022 — Careismatic Brands, the world’s largest manufacturer of medical apparel, announced today the appointment of Sidharth Lakhani to COO. The appointment of Lakhani marks another step forward for Careismatic Brands, as the company continues to evolve its business through building an industry-leading executive team, including the recent appointment of new CEO Girisha Chandraraj.

Lakhani brings a wealth of operating experience to his new role as COO. Prior to joining Careismatic Brands, Lakhani served as Chief Executive Officer of Healing Hands Scrubs for more than a decade, providing critical resources across all areas of the business, developing key customer relationships and fostering talent across the organization. Before joining Healing Hands, Lakhani worked across a number of industries including food service, technology, finance and real estate, in roles at Madison Realty Corporation and Krazy Kat Sportswear, among others.

“Sid’s focus on diversity and empathy helped him grow Healing Hands into a leading medical wear brand, and I am excited for him to integrate this approach into our operations,” Chandraraj said.

Lakhani is recognized as a strategic leader whose leadership style centers on culture, diversity and empathy, and his appointment will help Careismatic Brands progress to its next evolution of growth.

“I look forward to the opportunity to lead Careismatic Brands’ business operations and to build on the strong momentum the company has shown,” said Lakhani.

Posted: June 29, 2022

Source: Careismatic Brands Inc.

ANDRITZ Presents The World’s First Nonwovens Pilot Line For Wipes With Integrated Wetlaid Pulp Process

GRAZ, Austria — June 28, 2022 — International technology group ANDRITZ has established a new inline Wetlace™ CP pilot line with an original design at its center of competence in Montbonnot, France.

From now on, ANDRITZ partners will be able to conduct trials and test all options available for wipes production — from carded staple fibers to pulp and various combinations thereof — thanks to the new inline Wetlace CP line. Customers will benefit from the expertise of the ANDRITZ specialists with this fully engineered process, combining both spunlace and wetlaid technologies, so that they can move forward to more sustainable options while maintaining a high level of product quality, in particular by achieving high CD strength and good linting properties.

Over the past few decades, ANDRITZ has continued to innovate with various nonwoven processes, like spunlace, Wetlace and Wetlace CP, with the aim of optimizing the use of raw materials and focusing on sustainability by reducing the synthetic fiber content. Facing the growing demand for bio-wipes in parallel with enforcement of the EU’s single-use plastics directive last year, ANDRITZ has decided to go one step ahead to help its customers make the right investments.

The Montbonnot pilot line has been rebuilt to integrate the new headbox inside the spunlace line. Pulp can be fed in directly and entangled with carded staple fibers to produce unique nonwoven fabrics designed for end uses as bio-wipes.

Posted: June 28, 2022

Source: ANDRITZ GROUP

Ralph Lauren Announces Nomination Of Deb Cupp To Board Of Directors

NEW YORK — June 24, 2022 — Ralph Lauren Corporation today announced that Deb Cupp, President of Microsoft North America, has been nominated as a director for election at the Company’s 2022 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, to be held on August 4, 2022. The Company also announced that Judith McHale, who has served on the Ralph Lauren Board of Directors since 2001, will not stand for reelection after her term, which is set to expire in August.

“I have always been inspired by people who have a passion for what they do, and Deb has demonstrated that in all of her roles,” said Ralph Lauren, Executive Chairman and Chief Creative Officer. “As we continue to build on the many strengths of our Board, I know that she will bring this passion and special expertise as we build the story of our future. I would like to thank Judith for her many years of leadership and her dedication to the Board and our Company.”

Patrice Louvet, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Deb has built her career around business and organizational transformations that support growth and customer engagement. As we continue to accelerate our momentum at Ralph Lauren, we stand to benefit greatly from her unique perspective, leadership and digital expertise.”

Ms. Cupp was named President of Microsoft North America this year. She has been with Microsoft since 2018 and held positions as President of Microsoft United States and Corporate Vice President of Enterprise and Commercial Industries before assuming her current role. She also serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the IT consulting and services company Avanade.

Ms. Cupp said, “Ralph Lauren has been a leader in American fashion for decades, and their focus on digital acceleration to remain an industry leader is inspiring. I am very proud to join the Board of Directors and look forward to being part of this iconic Company’s Next Great Chapter.”

Before joining Microsoft, Ms. Cupp spent six years at SAP, serving most recently as the Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Success Factors for North America. In this position, she was responsible for leading the HR business by driving sales and go-to-market strategies, as well as overseeing operations for the field sales organization.

Posted: June 27, 2022

Source: Ralph Lauren Corporation

BSN SPORTS Acquires The Eastbay Team Sales Business From Foot Locker Retail, Inc.

DALLAS — June 27, 2022 — BSN SPORTS, one of the largest direct marketers and distributors of sporting goods, footwear, apparel and branding to the school and league markets and a division of Varsity Brands, today announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of the Eastbay Team Sales business (“Eastbay Team Sales”) from Foot Locker Retail, Inc., a subsidiary of Foot Locker, Inc.

Founded in 1980 and originally established to meet the performance needs of local high school and college athletes in Central Wisconsin, Eastbay Team Sales is now a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment to high school and college athletes. Foot Locker, Inc. acquired Eastbay Team Sales through its acquisition of Eastbay in 1997 to integrate an additional channel of distribution for athletic footwear, apparel, and equipment.

BSN SPORTS is a leader in the school and league markets with over 1,100 Field Sales Professionals serving coaches and athletic directors in virtually every zip code in the United States. The Company supports these Field Sales Professionals with Category Managers, Territory Managers, Customer Service Representatives and a robust marketing infrastructure and leading technology that enable the Sales Professionals to provide customers with the most complete and customized one-stop shopping experience in the team sporting goods industry.

Terry Babilla, President of BSN SPORTS, said, “We are excited that the employees of Eastbay Team Sales will be joining the BSN SPORTS family, which is dedicated exclusively to serving athletes, athletic directors and coaches who impact more lives in a year than most people do in a lifetime.  This dedicated approach means that our new Sales Professionals will benefit from the best and broadest inventory selection, leading design and customization tools and support resources as they deliver the stellar service experience all customers deserve. We welcome the Eastbay Team employees to the BSN SPORTS family and look forward to a productive and rewarding integration of our teams headed into the 2022-2023 school year.”

Varsity Brands, BSN SPORTS’ parent company, is a portfolio company of Bain Capital Private Equity.

Posted: June 27, 2022

Source: BSN SPORTS

ANDRITZ To Supply Batt Forming Equipment For A PTFE Line To YANPAI, China

GRAZ, Austria — June 27, 2022 — International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order from Yanpai Filtration Technology Co., Ltd. (YANPAI®), China, to supply batt forming equipment with an aXcess card and crosslapper for a needlepunch line producing PTFE filtration products at its site in Tiantai. The PTFE felts will be used as smoke filters in waste incineration plants. Start-up of the line is planned for the second half of 2022.

This is now the third order that ANDRITZ has received from Yanpai over the past three years. The first contract – awarded in 2019 – was for three complete needlepunch lines (including one PTFE batt forming line), and just recently, Yanpai ordered four new lines containing aXcess and eXcelle equipment.

Vincent Chen, Vice-President at Yanpai, says: “After years of strong presence in the filtration industry, Yanpai has become the main supplier of filtration and separation materials in China, with the ability to provide customers with high-quality, customized, and also complete series of industrial filtration materials for separation tasks. We began our collaboration with ANDRITZ in 2019 and have always been very satisfied with the high quality of machines, process knowledge, and comprehensive technical support from ANDRITZ. This gave us the confidence to award ANDRITZ an order for four new needlepunch lines at the beginning of 2022 and now also the batt forming equipment for the PTFE line.”

Yanpai is one of the leading Chinese producers of nonwoven filters for dust and air treatment and of woven filter fabrics used in solid/liquid separation. Established in 1990, Yanpai was at the forefront of development work on new industrial filtration fabrics. Today, Yanpai is a company with facilities in China and the USA.

Posted: June 27, 2022

Source: ANDRITZ GROUP

Indorama Ventures Enters World-First China License Agreement With Shandong Binhua New Material Co. Ltd.

THE WOODLANDS, Texas / BINZHOU CITY, Shandong, China — June 27, 2022 — Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL), a global sustainable chemical company, has signed a license agreement with Shandong Binhua New Material Co., Ltd. (Binhua), a subsidiary of Befar Group, a leading petroleum and chemical enterprise in China, to build, own and operate a propylene oxide (PO), t-Butanol (TBA) and t-Butyl methyl ether (MTBE) co-production unit.

Featuring the world’s only MTBE ‘single-step’ reaction technology, IVL’s proprietary innovation, the project is part of the ‘C3 and C4’ comprehensive utilization project in Shandong, China. It is one of the largest in the province, covering an area of over one million square meters.

“On completion, this project will be able to produce 600,000 tons of propylene, 800,000 tons of butane isomerization, 150,000 tons of synthetic ammonia, 240,000 tons of propylene oxide and 742,000 tons of MTBE per year. With the lowest operational cost of all other propylene oxide technologies and close to 50 consecutive years of successful and safe operation, the license with IVL was selected because of its superiority, unique features, and competitiveness,” said Mr. Liu Hongan, Vice President of Befar Group and General Manager of Shandong Binhua New Material  Co. Ltd.

Under the contract, IVL will provide a design package, technology, operational know-how and training to enable the construction and operation of a PO co-production with MTBE and TBA units for Binhua. The plant is part of a larger complex comprising propane dehydrogenation to propylene, butane isomerization, synthetic ammonia, and other installations.

Alastair Port, Executive President, Integrated Oxides and Derivatives (IOD), IVL, said, “IVL is honored to be providing this important technology license, enabling the monetization of Binhua’s raw materials in Shandong Province with a world-class and cost-effective plant. Our technology uses 130 U.S. patents and more than four decades of continuous development. This allows IVL to provide both the license, and owner/operator knowledge to deliver the quality and effective solutions a project of this scale requires.”

Posted: June 27, 2022

Source: Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL)

 

Print & Digital Convention 2022 A Great Success: Over 50% Visitor Increase

CHICAGO, IL — June 24, 2022 — With over 1,250 participants, the fifth edition of the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION successfully closed in Düsseldorf, Germany. The event was again an important platform for multichannel and dialog marketing. The focus was on sustainable media production, programmatic print and value-added printing. The unique concept of congress and trade show ensured a communicative and busy atmosphere and enabled long-awaited networking and knowledge transfer at the booths and the presentations. The annual industry event has not only firmly established itself in the German-speaking region – many visitors also came from Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg.

“The atmosphere was excellent! Compared to the previous event, we were able to record an increase of over 50% in the number of participants. That’s a top result”, said Rüdiger Maaß, Managing Director of Fachverband Medienproduktion (f:mp.). “And we managed to bring the right target groups together to network and exchange ideas intensively. It was a wonderfully inspiring two days – not only for us, but also for the entire industry!”

Extensive program

Nine theme worlds, four stages, 50 top-class speakers, 19 half-hour presentations each day and 63 international exhibitors – including DATEV, Deutsche Post, FKS, Kodak, Konica Minolta, Mondi, Xerox and HP – offered participants future-oriented content on the potential of digital printing applications, multichannel solutions, creative finishing and sustainable packaging solutions.

Highlight projects show the fascination of print

Visitors were particularly interested in the seven highlight projects which f:mp. realized with its partners. These projects represent hands-on best practice and thus reflect the special unique selling point of the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION: a “hands-on” trade show with concrete and practical application examples.

Next generation of Print

In order to get new and young target groups interested in print and packaging, the Media Production Association and Messe Düsseldorf, as organizers of the congress trade show, cooperated with the Fritz-Henßler-Berufskolleg (FHBK) from Dortmund, the Stuttgart Media University, the Akademie für Mode & Design (AMD) Düsseldorf and the Berufskolleg Bachstraße from Düsseldorf.  The young talents of tomorrow were able to find out directly from the experts at the booths and in the lectures about the fascinating applications of print and packaging in modern and sustainable media production.

“Even in the digital age, print is highly relevant and indispensable in its many facets – we want to convey this to the younger generation in particular,” explained Sabine Geldermann, Project Director Print Technologies at Messe Düsseldorf. “The response from students and trainees was very good. The demand for information is extraordinarily high! Young people want direct access to the market and want to experience live what potential print has to offer.”

For this reason, the organizers are planning to increase investment in the skilled workers of tomorrow even further for the next edition of PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION. For example, it is planned to offer “Youngster Talent Recruitment” for prospective trainees and interested companies while a “Start-up Area” will connect established companies with young and innovative newcomers.

The sixth edition of the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION will take place in May 2023 in Düsseldorf, Germany (before drupa 2024).  For further information on visiting or exhibiting at  PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION 2023, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America; Telephone: (312) 781-5180; E-mail: info@mdna.com; Visit https://www.printdigitalconvention.de/en, www.drupa.com/en/drupa_global and www.mdna.com.

PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION 2022 Exhibitor Statements:

Frank Siegel, Managing Director Obility GmbH

“The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION presented itself as the perfect marketplace for the graphic arts industry. Everyone was there: brand owners, buyers, production people, printing companies and suppliers. This advantage paid off for us in concrete terms.

We were able to demonstrate how print stores can process jobs much faster and more cost-effectively with our modern ERP/MIS system and make their work easier for their customers with integrated customer stores, web-to-print and job interfaces. These advantages of digitized business processes were reported to us by visitors. So we are now looking forward to follow-up appointments and certainly interesting projects.”

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Christian Kulhanek, Key Account Manager Digital & Print Solutions DATEV eG

“You can literally feel that there is more dynamism and movement in the industry again. The desire to network and exchange ideas has increased. This shows that the digital solution is not the only one – it’s the mix that counts! I see myself as a digital print bridge builder.

The audience at the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION was broad and thus perfectly matched DATEV’s equally broad range of products and services. It was a matter close to our heart to present our trainee project “DATEV Cookbook” at the fair – presented by the trainees themselves. The special thing about it: The entire process of creating the cookbook was implemented independently by our junior staff from A to Z.”

Sebastian Hardung, Director Alliances & Marketing print Group / Werk II Medien- und Informationsgesellschaft mbH

“As a long-standing exhibitor at the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION and a strategic partner of f:mp., we are delighted to be present again this year. For us, the trade show is a place of encounters and it is here that you notice that the industry wants to meet and exchange ideas again. We are noticing more and more in the market that print as a medium is no longer being declared dead but has arrived in the mainstream of digital marketing. As a software manufacturer, we are all the more pleased to accompany the further development of partners and customers. That’s why we also joined the Programmatic Print Alliances (PPA) in January.”

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Kim Niemeyer, Marketing & Communication, Ing. Fritz Schroeder GmbH & Co. KG, Barsbüttel

“The industry get-together shows once again that print is alive and how print can be experienced. We are delighted to be part of the PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION and to help shape the mix of technology, knowledge transfer and networking. For FKS, this year’s event was all about Industry 4.0, because automation and networking are the be-all and end-all of efficient process design these days. We were also able to present a European premiere for our B2 solution in the area of multifinishing. We held exciting discussions on all aspects of printing, postpress and intelligent process design and thus jointly developed and took away valuable inspiration and innovative ideas.”

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Bernhard Cantzler, Head of Marketing & Innovation at  Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper

“At this year’s PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION, we were able to hold exciting personal discussions with representatives from industry, retail and brand manufacturers. We also received positive feedback from numerous visitors about the interesting presentations. Here, for example, we were able to connect very well with the sustainability presentations with the fact that all Mondi own brands such as PERGRAPHICA® or Color Copy are Cradle to Cradle Certified® Bronze.  A huge compliment to the excellent organization, which allows us to focus on our core competence: Advising customers on paper selection.”

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Mirko Pelzer, Offering Manager Professional Printing Konica Minolta

“The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION is a driver of innovation. Various companies and industries show here how the graphic arts industry will produce tomorrow. And all this in a familiar atmosphere with many and good opportunities for networking. That’s why Konica Minolta has been part of the event since the very first edition. We also have a traditional and longstanding partnership with f:mp.

The PRINT & DIGITAL CONVENTION is something special: The focus is not on the pure sale of machines, but rather on demonstrating solutions and application possibilities. To this end, Konica Minolta has implemented GLAMPRINT – a symbiosis of glamour and print. Here we can show all printing options and solutions that are possible in extended four-color printing. The focus for us is to offer the customer added value. This year, we were particularly pleased that many young students and trainees visited the trade show.”

Posted: June 24, 2022

Source: Messe Düsseldorf North America

Automotive, Medicine & Apparel: Techtextil And Texprocess Innovation Awards Transmit Textile Innovations

FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany — June 20, 2022 — After a Corona-related break of three years, the leading trade fairs Techtextil and Texprocess are once again presenting the renowned Innovation Awards. The award-winning new developments from areas such as New Products, Sustainability and Automation demonstrate: Textile innovations and technologies provide impulses for many branches of the industry and promise market and sales success far beyond their own sector. 13 winners from seven categories will be honored at a public awards ceremony at Techtextil and Texprocess on 21 June, 2022.

As is the case for many other industries, times are challenging for the textile industry: the consequences of Corona, the Ukraine war, strained supply chains, sustainability issues, rising energy prices and recruitment problems – the industry is under pressure from many sides. But more than almost any other industry, it is also very adept at meeting these challenges with new ideas, developments and business models. This year’s Innovation Awards at the leading trade fairs Techtextil and Texprocess are another example of this. With their new products, materials, solutions and processes, the 13 award winners are demonstrating in an exemplary manner that textile innovations are the ideal way to create market opportunities and boost future business revenues, out of the challenges of the present.

World’s first: first woven heart valve without postfabrication

In the “New Product” category, the Techtextil Innovation Award goes to the Institute of Textile Machinery and High Performance Material Technology (ITM) at the Technische Universität Dresden. Together with medical product manufacturers and heart surgeons from the Cardiovascular Center Würzburg and the Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, textile researchers from the ITM have succeeded in developing the world’s first woven heart valve that does not require a single seam or other joining technique. “Our new development should also help children with heart valve defects in the future by growing with the heart of the young patients – avoiding repeated surgical interventions,” says Dr.-Ing. Dilbar Aibibu, research group leader for biotextiles and medical textiles at ITM. Worldwide, cardiovascular diseases are among the most common causes of death; several million people die from them every year. When patients receive heart valve replacements, artificial mechanical or biobased solutions are usually used. If ITM has its way, the woven valve, which won the Techtextil Innovation Award, should become a beneficial alternative in the future.

Reuse of waste from a natural source

In the “New Material” category, RBX Créations (France) receives the Innovation Award for a novel cellulose fiber made from hemp waste. The material, named Iroony®, was developed with regard to the following question: Hemp is now grown either to make fiber or to produce hemp oil – but could not the two be combined? RBX Créations has now succeeded in developing a process for extracting cellulose from the waste of oilseed hemp. Spun into textile fibers, it can be used to produce sustainable textiles, packaging and other “green” products. The award is given to RBX Créations for its continuous and successful efforts to convert waste from a renewable source into a valuable cellulose fiber that meets the highest sustainability standards.

Fiber shielding technology for hospitals, electric cars and server farms

The Techtextil Innovation Award in the “New Technology” category goes to Aachen-based FibreCoat GmbH and Deutsche Basalt Faser GmbH from Sangerhausen (Saxony-Anhalt) for the joint development of an aluminum-coated basalt fiber. It combines the strength of basalt with the electrical conductivity of aluminum. According to FibreCoat, electromagnetic shielding as wallpaper in buildings in hospitals or server farms, among other places, should be up to 20 times cheaper than with conventional aluminum foil thanks to the new development. Another attractive and particularly fast-growing market is shielding solutions for electric cars. Robert Brüll, CEO of FibreCoat: “For a young company like ours, winning the Techtextil Innovation Award is an important milestone. We are honored to receive this prestigious award from the independent jury of experts. In particular, the confidence of our customers and visibility gained as a result are crucial for a start-up like FibreCoat on the road to market success.”

More sustainable hygiene products such as diapers

Kelheim Fibres GmbH from Kelheim in Bavaria and the Saxon Textile Research Institute (STFI) in Chemnitz receive the Techtextil Innovation Award in the “New Concept” category for the development of novel, thermally bonded nonwovens based on cellulose for the production of reusable products with high absorbency. Consumers should no longer have to choose between high-performance or environmentally friendly products. Nature and performance of hygiene products go hand in hand thanks to the innovation of Kelheim, STFI and the Berlin-based start-up SUMO. Dr. Marina Crnoja-Cosic, Director New Business Development at Kelheim Fibres: “It is a great honor and pleasure for us to receive the Techtextil Innovation Award together with our partners. We see the award not only as a distinction for the project presented, but also as recognition of our innovation strategy. After all, in dialogue with partners we can react more quickly to current trends, develop in a more targeted manner and accelerate the commercialization of innovative solutions.”

Waste from the automotive industry as a resource

Another Techtextil Innovation Award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” honors a process that uses natural leather waste from the automotive industry to produce innovative textile coatings. It was developed by CITEVE, the Technology Center for Textile and Clothing in Portugal, and partners ERT Têxtil Portugal, CeNTI and CTIC (all Portugal). After CITEVE researchers discovered that cutting operations in the automotive industry generate a large amount of natural leather classified as waste, they sought a solution to reuse it. The expert jury recognizes the development as a successful industrial symbiosis: “Waste from one industrial sector is used here as a resource in another. The work of the CITEVE researchers thus supports an important trend toward a resource-efficient, environmentally friendly and sustainable textile industry.”

Compostable textile coating

The Techtextil Innovation Award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” goes to the textile research institute Centexbel (Belgium) for a bio-based and compostable dispersion for textile coatings and printing inks. The new development does not require solvents and brings a completely new type of polymer for coatings and printing inks to the market. According to the expert jury, the innovation is an important step for the textile coating industry towards more products based on renewable resources.

Fashion from pineapple peel

The Italian company Vérabuccia is honored in the “Performance Fashion Award” category for an innovative production process for the fashion and design sector. The patented process is designed to transform fruit waste into fashion highlights. A first material is the so-called “Ananasse”. According to Vérabuccia, the special feature of this is that unlike other plant leathers, which tend to imitate real animal leather, it retains the original appearance of a pineapple skin; this emphasizes the origin of the raw material. With the Techtextil Innovation Award, the jury honored the unconventional thinking of the young Italian label, whose originality proves that innovative and appealing fashion can be developed from surprising materials.

100 percent compostable binder for nonwovens

In the “New Technology” category, the company OrganoClick (Sweden) receives the Techtextil Innovation Award for the development of a 100 percent bio-based binder for nonwovens applications that is made from waste components and is therefore said to be fully compostable. The innovation is designed to replace plastic-based binders. Because nonwovens are often made from non-degradable plastics, the Swedish company specializes in developing compostable material alternatives from wheat bran, fruit or crab shells, among others. This convinced the jury of the Techtextil Innovation Awards: “OrganoClick receives the award for its efforts to find bio-based raw material alternatives to replace oil-based materials.”

Formaldehyde-free & bio-based coating system

The third award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” goes to Deutschen Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung Denkendorf (DITF) from Baden-Württemberg and the company TotalEnergies – Cray Valley (France). Together, they have developed a novel, formaldehyde-free coating system. It is based on non-toxic hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) derived from biomass waste. These HMF-based dip formulations are capable of replacing formaldehyde-based adhesion promoters on a one-to-one basis. For background: in tires, conveyor belts or V-belts, rubber materials are reinforced by cord. The quality of such cord composite systems with high-strength fibers such as polyester, aramid or polyamide and rubber is determined by the adhesion properties of the fibers to the matrix. In the established manufacturing process, adhesion promoters made of resorcinol-formaldehyde-latex (RFL) are used. However, formaldehyde has been classified by the EU as a proven carcinogen and mutagen since 2014. The jury therefore welcomes the health and environmentally friendly new development. It contributes to a more sustainable textile industry and the reduction of harmful chemicals.

Texprocess Innovation Award

In the “New Technology” category of the Texprocess Innovation Award, as many as three winners will receive the prestigious award this year:

Cold gluing robot is set to revolutionize seam bonding

The welding and sewing machine manufacturer Vetron Typical Europe GmbH (Kaiserslautern) is being honored for a new type of cold gluing robot. For the first time, it is to perform the sealing of seams with adhesive tape on the reverse side completely automatically. Cold gluing, for example for decorative seams on dashboards or closing seams in outdoor clothing, is state of the art in many industries. But because the adhesive tape has to be cut off manually, the technology could not be combined with the high demands of process automation, for example in the automotive industry. Until now. For the first time, the new special robot applies the adhesive tape in an automated process and also cuts it off automatically using a tape cutter. According to Vetron, the innovation, which was presented publicly for the first time at Texprocess, is already attracting great interest from the automotive industry.

“Reinvention of the embroidery head”

The second award in the “New Technology” category goes to ZSK Stickmaschinen GmbH from Krefeld for a new type of embroidery head for single- and multi-head embroidery machines. According to ZSK, the “R-head” is designed to achieve embroidery speeds of up to 2000 stitches per minute. By comparison, traditional multi-head embroidery machines currently achieve embroidery speeds of up to a maximum of 1200 stitches per minute. With this innovation, ZSK aims to enable a new dimension of productivity with higher embroidery precision and reliability even at high embroidery speeds. According to ZSK, the R-head significantly reduces noise emissions compared to current embroidery heads. Customers should also be able to replace it themselves if necessary. The judgment of the expert jury: “This is the reinvention of the embroidery head.” Hans-Rochus Groß, Head of Application Technology at ZSK: “During the development of our latest embroidery head, we were driven by a quote from Hermann Hesse: ‘To achieve the possible, we must attempt the impossible.’ In this sense, the Texprocess Innovation Award confirms that we have achieved our ambitious goals. The award will be an additional drive for us to continue to achieve ‘the maximum possible’ for our customers in the future.”

Increasing productivity and reducing fatigue of sewing machine operators.

The third winner in this award category is Juki Central Europe (Poland), which has developed an AW-3S automatic bobbin thread winding and feeding device. This not only automatically calculates the amount of bobbin thread required when loading a sewing pattern, but can even change the sewing thread automatically, according to the manufacturer. AW-3S is thus designed not only to increase productivity, but at the same time to save operators from having to change the sewing thread manually. This reduces staff fatigue, allowing them to concentrate more on production and quality control. The jury welcomes the conversion of a manual process into an automated one as another example of Industry 4.0.

Advancing digitalization in the sewing industry

The industrial sewing machine manufacturer Dürkopp Adler receives the Texprocess Innovation Award in the category “New Digitalization” for its software module “QONDAC Guided Working”. The company from Bielefeld wants to take digitalization in the sewing industry to a new level. In interaction with programmable sewing machines, QONDAC Guided Working is intended to become the perfect link between planning, operating personnel and machine by supporting processes from production planning to the last work step at the final workstation. In addition, manual workstations or conventional sewing machines can also be easily integrated into the network. Niklas Böckmann, Head of Digital Products at Dürkopp Adler: “The Texprocess Innovation Award confirms us in our claim to drive the digitalization of the sewing industry. With developments such as QONDAC Guided Working, we want to make customers’ production more sustainable and efficient by offering them the possibility to react faster to changes in production processes.”

The jury of the Techtextil Innovation Award:

  • Prof. Dr. Fernando Carrillo, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), Spain
  • Eng. António Braz Costa, Technological Centre for the Textile and Clothing Industry of Portugal (CITEVE), Portugal
  • Johannes Diebel, Forschungskuratorium Textil e.V. (FKT), Germany
  • Dr. Heike Illing-Günther, Saxon Textile Research Institute e.V. (STFI), Germany
  • Dr. Jan Laperre, Centexbel, Belgium (chairman of the jury)
  • Prof. Dr. René Rossi, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA), Switzerland
  • Dr. Thomas Stegmaier, Deutsche Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung (DITF), Germany
  • Prof. Dr. Henry Yi Li, The University of Manchester, England

The jury of the Texprocess Innovation Award:

  • Alexander Artschwager, Deutsche Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung Denkendorf, Center of Management Research (DITF-MR), Germany
  • Jürgen Brecht, HAUBER-GRUPPE FERD. HAUBER GMBH, Germany
  • Prof. Dr. Thomas Gries, Institut für Textiltechnik, RWTH Aachen, Germany
  • Prof. Dr. Yordan Kyosev, Institute of Textile Machinery and High Performance Material Technology, TU Dresden, Germany
  • Claudia van Bonn, Deutscher Fachverlag, Germany
  • Walter Wählt, Adidas AG, Germany (chairman of the jury)
  • Prof. Dr. Kerstin Zöll, Hochschule Niederrhein, Faculty Textile and Clothing Technology, Germany

The winners and award categories at a glance

Unternehmen Projektname Award-Kategorie

 

 Techtextil/Texprocess
Centexbel Biobased and compostable dispersion for use in textile coatings and inks – H2020 Biontop grant agreement No 837761.

 

 New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy Techtextil
CITEVE Valorisation of natural leather waste from automotive industry for the development of  innovative textile coatings

 

 New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy Techtextil
DITF Denkendorf New non-toxic dips for technical cord materials New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy Techtextil
FibreCoat GmbH Alucoat New Technology Techtextil
ITM TU Dresden woven heart valves

 

 New Product Techtextil
Kelheim Fibres GmbH Cellulose-based Nonwovens for high absorbency reusable products

 

 New Concept Techtextil
OrganoClick 100% biobased and home compostable binder for nonwoven applications from waste stream components

 

 New Technology Techtextil
RBX Créations Iroony® : Innovative low-impact and performant cellulose supporting sustainable agriculture, for various applications in textile and packaging

 

 New Material Techtextil
Vérabuccia Vérabuccia

 

 

 Performance Fashion Award Techtextil
Dürkopp Adler GmbH QONDAC Guided Working Module

 

 New Digitalization Texprocess
JUKI Central Europe Sp. z o.o. Automatic Bobbin Thread Wind-and -Feed Device AW-3S New Technology Texprocess
VETRON TYPICAL Europe GmbH VETRON Automation Cold Bonding

 

 New Technology Texprocess
ZSK Stickmaschinen GmbH ZSK „R-Head“ for embroidery speeds up to 2.000 stitches/min with unique compensation

mechanism for first and second-order mass forces

 

 New Technology Texprocess

From 21 to 24 June only at Techtextil and Texprocess

The Techtextil and Texprocess Innovation Awards will be presented on 21 June, 2022 in Hall 9.0. Textile innovations selected by international expert juries will be awarded prizes and presented publicly on all four days of the trade fair in Hall 9.1 (Techtextil) and 9.0 (Texprocess), in some cases for the first time. Here, from 21-24 June, visitors will have the unique opportunity to experience all the award-winning new developments in one place. For the 16th time, the Innovation Awards at the leading trade fairs Techtextil and Texprocess offer an excellent platform for cross-industry exchange between players from business, science and politics and for initiating forward-looking cooperations.

The event Techtextil & Texprocess will be held from 21 to 24 June 2022.

Posted: June 24, 2022

Source: Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH


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