FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany— June 21, 2022 — Why are crises also powerful catalysts for textile innovation? How are digital prototyping and machine learning redefining design processes? And how do companies gain decisive competitive advantages through new environmentally conscious technologies? These and other questions formed the central themes of the panel discussion at the opening press conference on the first day of Techtextil, Texprocess and the one-time Heimtextil Summer Special.

The Heimtextil Summer Special, together with Techtextil and Texprocess heralds the re-launch of the global textile trade fairs in Frankfurt – finally enabling new international contacts, personal business encounters and intensive networking on site in Frankfurt. “Volatile energy costs and raw material prices due to the Ukraine war, bottlenecks in production and rising transport costs – given the challenging environment of the textile industry, there could not be a better time for the re-launch of the textile trade fair trio,” stated Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board, Messe Frankfurt, in his opening speech. In addition, textile companies are faced with the task of finding their way in their own circular economy and rethinking their supply chains “Even in times of crisis, the following applies: Change always harbors business opportunities. And paves the way for progress and competitive advantages,” Braun continued.

Panel talk: Pioneering impulses in challenging times

The panel speakers Lucie Brigham, Chief of Office of the United Nations Office for Partnerships and co-founder of the Conscious Fashion and Lifestyle Network, Matthew Drinkwater, Head of Innovation Agency at the London College of Fashion, Elgar Straub, Managing Director of the VDMA Textile Care, Fabric and Leather Technologies Association, and Olaf Schmidt, Vice President Textiles & Textile Technologies at Messe Frankfurt, moderated by Alexandra Bohn, Style Content Director of F.A.Z. Quarterly, spoke about the role of collaborations in innovation development as well as on challenges as business opportunities – and how sustainability is continuously becoming a business-critical factor in the textile industry. Key strategic decisions in light of the upcoming EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles and the Supply Chain Act coming into force were also topics of discussion.

In her keynote address, Lucie Brigham emphasized the importance of collaborations in identifying strategic market opportunities in sustainability: “Collaboration is key to fostering transformative sectoral engagement and accelerating the implementation of the SDGs. Mobilizing expertise, innovation, technology and resources can only be achieved through strong partnerships. Messe Frankfurt’s Texpertise Network was one of the first members and valuable partners of the Conscious Fashion and Lifestyle Network. We are proud to have been involved in the extensive SDG activities from the beginning and look forward to developing these activities together in the future,” said Brigham.

From 3D fabric simulations and machine learning for zero waste cutting technology to the use of blockchain for greater supply chain transparency, fashion-tech trailblazer Matthew Drinkwater shed light on how recent digital developments are redefining design processes and paving the way for innovation: ” Emerging technologies are leading the textile industry into a new era, changing the way we create, communicate and consume products, redefining design processes as well as the deployment and tracking of ressources along the textile value chain.,” Drinkwater explained.

Elgar Straub from the VDMA trade association highlighted the increasing demands on manufacturers of sewing and apparel technology and on machines for processing technical textiles, to automate and digitize production processes – while also showing how an increased focus on regional production can contribute to greater supply chain transparency: “Mechanical engineering and technology providers are the enablers for solutions to today’s biggest challenges: Sustainability, flexibility, and regionalization,” said Straub.

The panel discussion of the opening press conference is available in full length on the Texpertise Network as well as on the press pages of Techtextil, Texprocess and Heimtextil as a stream in English and German.

Techtextil, Texprocess and Heimtextil: trade fairs as a concentration of all innovations

With a total of around 2,300 exhibitors from 63 countries, this year’s Techtextil, Texprocess and Heimtextil Summer Special will present forward-looking innovations and trends along large parts of the textile value chain. “As a concentration, trade fairs give these diverse developments visibility, bundled on a global business platform – and at the same time make a decisive contribution to understanding sustainability holistically and redefine supply chains,” explains Olaf Schmidt.

From yarns, fibers, contract, decorative and upholstery fabrics to functional textiles, textile technologies, finishing processes, water-saving dyeing processes and end products for textile furnishings, textile design, bedding and performance textiles, the parallel Techtextil, Texprocess and Heimtextil Summer Special offer a bundled global range of products – which also demonstrate that scalable and sustainable innovations are not at odds.

Highlights of the trade fairs at a glance

This summer, Heimtextil Trends will be taking place under the motto “Next Horizons”. in Hall 4.0 with a clear focus on resource conservation.

The “Heimtextil Conference Sleep & More” in Hall 3.0 offers a first-class speaker line-up with, among other things, the latest findings in sleep research, tracking technology and on sustainability in the hotel industry.

Another highlight is Heimtextil’s one-hour Green Tours guided by an independent consultant to selected exhibitors with an exchange on the latest developments in the green segment. The tours start at 2 p.m. on all three days of the fair at the Green Village Counter in Hall 3.0.

In addition, Heimtextil will host its widely acclaimed Interior.Architecture.Hospitality program. This top-class knowledge and networking platform is aimed specifically at experts in contract furnishing. “Scenarios in space” is this year’s leading theme of Interior.Architecture.Hospitality LECTURES 2022 on 22.6.2022.

At the Texprocess Denim Future Lab in Hall 8.0, visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the world of denim production and processing. Trends such as eco-denim or luxury denim will be vividly presented along many stages of the textile value chain and sustainable approaches and upcycling solutions will be demonstrated. The Speakers Corner invites to discussions and exchange with exhibitors of the Transformer Foundation.

How are technical textiles used in the apparel industry? The Techtextil special show Performance Textiles in Fashion in Hall 9.1 focuses on textile end products and presents unusual and innovative garments.

The Techtextil and Texprocess Forum offer expert lectures and discussions on current industry topics on all four days of the fair. The free forums provide an opportunity to exchange ideas and pick up on new trends and approaches. Presentations such as “Softgoods for Hardware: Fabric in the Metaverse” or “Sustainability – where should the data come from?” await the audience on site or afterwards on-demand in the Digital Extension. The patron of the Techtextil Forum (Hall 9.1) is once again EURATEX – The European Apparel and Textile Confederation. As in 2019, the program of the Texprocess Forum (Hall 9.0) will be organized by DTB – Dialog Textil-Bekleidung e.V. and VDMA TFL.

What does the future hold for the textile industry? What textile innovations have been developed in recent years? The innovative strength of the industry is reflected in the wide range of progressive approaches in the field of technical textiles and textile processing presented at the Techtextil or Texprocess Innovation Awards. Textile innovations selected by two international groups of experts will be awarded prizes and presented on all four days of the fair in Hall 9.1 (Techtextil) or 9.0 (Texprocess). The public presentation of the Innovation Awards will take place on June 21, 2022 in Hall 9.0.

Posted: June 21, 2022

Source: Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH

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

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 21, 2022

Source: Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH