Vandewiele-Savio India Have Finalized The Merger Process

MARKE, Belgium/PORDENONE, Italy — January 13, 2022 — Vandewiele NV and Savio India announced today that they had finalized the merging process, creating a global network for their customers. The two companies will operate under the new name of VANDEWIELE-SAVIO INDIA Pvt. Ltd.

“We are convinced that these joined forces provide a comprehensive network of integrated services that will better serve our customer’s needs for the Indian market,” said a company spokesperson.

This strategic alliance is set to immensely benefit the Indian textile industry, as the expertise from these two leading groups, offering complete weaving, winding, twisting solutions to the Indian customers, will give them a sustainable competitive advantage in their business.

Posted: February 18, 2022

Source: Savio Macchine Tessili S.p.A.

Textile World’s Pursuit Of The Digital Issue

By James M. Borneman, Editor In Chief

Founded in 1868 and published for more than 150 years, Textile World magazine has always had two directives: A focus on editorial content that informs and supports the U.S. textile industry; and to maintain a qualified audience of textile industry professionals that are attractive to those trying to reach key members of the U.S. textile community.

Over the years, editors have adapted the editorial focus to meet the changing needs and interests of a dynamic industry. From the early days of wool and cotton processing, content has shifted to include more nonwovens and technical textile topics.

In format, TW has had to adapt to changes in the overall publishing industry including the speed of news delivery and changes in reader preferences. From the days of solely printed magazines, buyer’s guides and directories, the dynamics of delivering content and reaching readers has changed. Today, TW is delivered in print and online. Additional content reaches more than 17,000 readers through the weekly e-newsletter, and the website attracts an average of 65,000 page views per month.

With changes in mind, editors of TW and its sister publication Textiles Panamericanos have been experimenting with the creation of a digital edition. There is nothing new about the digital rendering of a printed magazine. When the technology was first developed more than 20 years ago, the internet was just taking hold with low speeds and other barriers. There was also a strong demand for print in a time with no iPhones, iPads and few laptops. Over the course of the past 20 years, one might observe that all things internet are vastly different.

The turning point for a relook at digital edition technology came when Covid-19 struck. TW editors learned that some tradeshows were going to take a new approach to distributing magazines and discourage print in favor of digital editions to reduce point of contact exposures. This idea presented an opportunity to augment print rather than replace.

Both TW and Textiles Panamericanos have limited circulations, in publishing circles known as “qualified circulation.” In short, that means that the magazines are limited to certain readers based on qualifications such as geography or industry sector. TW rarely goes, with exceptions, to non-USMCA (NAFTA region) readers. Textiles Panamericanos is largely delivered to qualified readers in Mexico, Central and South America.

So, the opportunity is apparent — maintain the qualified print circulations and expand the readership through the digital edition to all readers in, and beyond, the qualified parameters.

The dynamics available in the new technology also add value. All advertising that appears in print will also be present in the digital edition with the ability to be linked for the reader’s convenience. For example, an event ad might have a link to register. Or in an article, a link may be included for a reference or a video.

The editorial team is at the beginning of exploring these new digital possibilities and hope they will enhance the editorial experience of the highly valued TW and Textiles Panamericanos audiences of textile industry professionals.

January/February 2022

Jennifer Knight Appointed U.S. DOC Deputy Assistant Secretary For Textiles, Consumer Goods And Materials

The Biden Administration recently named Jennifer Knight deputy assistant for Textiles, Consumer Goods And Materials at the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). She will oversee the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA), the Office of Materials Industries and the Office of Consumer Goods within the International Trade Administration’s Industry and Analysis unit.

The Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) was quick to congratulate Knight, praising the administration for its choice.

“Jennifer’s extensive and successful career in U.S. textile manufacturing, as well as her experience in setting up international operations in regions such as Central America, is an enormous asset as she takes on this critical role,” stated Kim Glas, NCTO’s president and CEO.

“As onshoring and nearshoring efforts gain momentum amidst the global supply chain crisis, Jennifer’s appointment could not have come at a more pivotal time. We couldn’t be more delighted with her appointment and strong familiarity with our sector and beyond. Jennifer will be a strong advocate for American workers and industries, and we look forward to working with her on the U.S. textile industry’s top priorities
in the months and years ahead.”

January/February 2022

Mount Vernon Mills To Acquire Facility From Wade Manufacturing

Mount Vernon Mills, Mauldin, S.C., has announced plans to purchase a yarn spinning and weaving facility in Rockingham, N.C., from Wade Manufacturing Co., Wadesboro, N.C. No other Wade Manufacturing assets are part of the deal. Mount Vernon Mills will retain substantially all of the Rockingham facility’s employees, possibly adding new jobs in the future. Financial terms were not disclosed, and the transaction is expected to close in early February.

To begin with, the business will manufacture open-end spun yarns and woven greige goods for Mount Vernon Mills’ flame resistant products.

“The Rockingham facility is a modern,cost-efficient operation with an experienced and stable workforce, making it a great fit as we increase the amount of control that we have over our yarn supply, weaving operations and overall costs,” said Bill Duncan, CEO, Mount Vernon Mills. “We are also proud to expand our footprint in the U.S. and build upon our made in America commitment and heritage.

January/February 2022

Fiber Industries Expanding in Darlington County, S.C.

Polyester staple fiber manufacturer Fiber Industries LLC has announced plans to invest $30 million to expand its operation in Darlington, S.C. The investment includes increased capacity through upgrades and modernization of production lines such as the addition of state-of-the-art control systems, as well as increased warehouse space.

The expansion includes more than 50 new jobs and is expected to be complete by early 2023. The South Carolina Coordinating Council for Economic Development has approved job development credits, and also awarded a $300,000 Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to
Darlington County to assist with the cost of building improvements.

“We are excited about the continuing growth of our facility which is now even better positioned to serve the needs of the American textile industry,” said Fiber Industries CEO Don Bockoven. “We also are proud to be part of the wider effort to reshore jobs and bring textile manufacturing back to the USA. We thank the state of South Carolina as well
as Darlington County for their unwavering support.”

January/February 2022

Walmart Joins Unifi’s REPREVE® Billion Bottle Circle

Unifi Inc., Greensboro, N.C., reports Walmart has purchased the equivalent of 1 billion post-consumer plastic bottles worth of REPREVE® recycled performance fibers. The calculations are based on a standard 16.9-ounce-bottle and how it translates to bottles per pound of recycled polyester (rPET); and tracked pounds of Repreve yarn, fiber and resin sold to Walmart suppliers for store programs. This achievement puts Walmart in the Billion Bottle Circle of Repreve’s Champions of Sustainability program.

“We’ve been using REPREVE’s recycled fibers for 10 years now, and this achievement is the result of not only our commitment to a more sustainable supply chain, but that of our customers, who have purchased products in our stores made with REPREVE,” said Deanah Baker, senior vice president, Merchant, Men’s, Kids, Footwear, Walmart U.S. “This is part of
Walmart’s larger goal to move toward a circular economy, where materials stay in use in a productive way that is better for the environment.”

“Due to Walmart’s scale and reach, commitment to sustainability, and ability to set goals and reach them, we are seeing a shining example of how large retailers can drive change and improve material usage for our earth,” said Unifi CEO Eddie Ingle.

January/February 2022

January/February 2022: Textile Activity At A Glance

January/February 2022

Demand Steady; Costs Soar

By Jim Phillips, Yarn Market Editor

Despite soaring raw materials prices, product demand from U.S. yarn spinners remains relatively strong. As has been the case since the economy began to reopen after the first COVID-19 wave, the primary issue has been timely product delivery as a result of a shortage of qualified labor and a muddled supply chain.

However, soaring prices for cotton and petroleum, as well as a general escalation in energy costs, continue to put pressure on margins for many spinners.

The per-pound price for cotton is at levels not seen for nearly a decade. As of the week ending February 10, spot quotations for the base quality of cotton (color 41, leaf 4, staple 34, mike 35-36 and 43-49, strength 27.0-28.9, and uniformity 81.0-81.9) in the seven designated markets measured by the U.S.Department of Agriculture averaged 122.37 cents per pound. This was slightly down from the previous week, but substantially up from the 81.08 cents reported during the corresponding period a year ago. The ICE March settlement price ended the week at 125.66 cents.

Before the recent surge in prices, the last time cotton exceeded $1.20 per pound was in the first half of 2011. In 2010, cotton exceeded $2.00 per pound for a short period of time.

For petroleum, the crude oil price per barrel was just shy of $94.00 on February 14. This compares to just $20.67 as recently as August 2020.

“Margins throughout the yarn industry have always been on the thin side,” said a research analyst. “The escalating costs across the board put tremendous pressure on spinners. Their customers are facing pricing and sales pressures of their own, so they often push back on large price increases. So, the spinners are caught in the middle. They have to be more efficient and effective. They need to turn product around quickly. And they need to get product to customers as promised — a much more difficult proposition today when the supply chain is still somewhat scrambled.”

COMPETES Act Passes House, But Faces Senate Resistance

The U.S. House of Representatives in late January passed the America COMPETES Act, a legislative package that will help close the de minimis loophole on duty-free imports from China and also renew the Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB), both important provisions to U.S. textile manufacturers, according the National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO).

Another important provision in the legislation, NCTO says, is that it renews the MTB for two years, which would extend limited tariff relief on a range of manufacturing inputs used by U.S. textile producers.

“We commend the House for passing this sweeping legislation, which contains several critical trade provisions beneficial to American manufacturers,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas. “This legislation contains a provision that would effectively prohibit China from exploiting the Section 321 de minimis mechanism in U.S. trade law, a win for U.S. textile producers and workers.”

Despite the action in the House, the act faces some stiff opposition in the Senate. The next step is to reconcile the bill with its Senate sibling, the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act of 2021, which was passed in June with the support of 19 Republicans. But those same GOP senators say changes will have to be made to the House bill if there is any chance of passage in the Senate.

A number of Republican senators say the House strayed from the bipartisan language of the Senate bill. “Throughout our nation’s history, Republicans and Democrats have worked together on critical national security issues,” said Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) “In that tradition, last year the Senate followed regular order and an open process to pass the U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) with strong bipartisan support. I am disappointed that the House did not follow a similar process. To outgrow, out-innovate, and out-compete China, we need to work together and take the fight to the Chinese Communist Party.

“As we head to a conference process, my hope is that the final legislation will reflect the Senate bill and give House Republicans a much better option to support. The Senate-passed bill focuses on directly confronting China, and getting legislation like USICA across the finish line will ensure the United States leads the world into the future,” Senator Young said.

January/February 2022

Orders Boom, Business Hampered

Sivakumar Narayanan

How Uster is meeting multiple global challenges to serve growing demand

TW Special Report

The order situation may be excellent for many companies, but there is still no talk of a boom as the business environment is extremely challenging. In this interview, Sivakumar Narayanan, executive vice president and head of Business Development at Switzerland-based Uster Technologies AG, comments on the current economic situation. He explains the problems and their impact, setting out Uster’s commitment to meeting the challenges while giving customers the best possible service.

Textile World: The vast majority of companies in the Swiss mechanical, electrical and metal industries benefited from the strong recovery in the global economy in the first nine months of 2021, according to Swissmem, the representative trade body. And entrepreneurs in the sector continue to take a fundamentally positive view of the outlook for the year ahead. How is Uster doing?

Sivakumar Narayanan: Very well. For Uster Technologies, 2021 has been the best year for several years in terms of order intake. We believe this reflects our strong relationships with customers, who appreciate our ongoing efforts to support them with continuous innovations, including our digital offerings such as Uster Quality Expert.

TW: A number of challenges have emerged globally with the positive order situation. Increasing inflation, raw material and energy costs, supply shortages, transport costs, currency instability, the risk of trade conflicts and the continuing unpredictable pandemic developments all create a difficult business environment.

Narayanan: I agree, and I see those factors as having a negative impact on margins. There is still a high level of uncertainty, so we have to remain very agile and dynamic to manage the situation day by day, to ensure we offer the best possible support, as well as value-enhancing products and solutions. We share the concerns of our customers that a worst-case scenario for textile producers could see these factors affecting the current strong consumer demand. A situation where textile mills were not able to invest in innovations and digitization would be bad news for the whole value chain, including Uster.

TW: What is the biggest challenge currently for Uster?

Narayanan: Currently our major challenge is satisfying all our customers with regards to yarn clearer deliveries. We have been fortunate in that customers really liked the latest innovation, and this resulted in aggregated short-term demand from all the machine manufacturers reaching a peak that we have never seen in recent years. The effect was that our inventory was rapidly consumed, including that in the pipeline.

Unfortunately, at the same time, the sharp increase in semiconductor shortages led to a total lack of visibility of component availability — both the required quantities and time scales — as well as a steep escalation in costs. To be specific, we are suffering from a difficult situation with the advanced chips built into our yarn clearers.

Perhaps our customers will understand it when I make this comparison. Imagine yarn buyers waiting at your door for their large orders and deliveries, while you are trying to obtain the raw material. And there is no guarantee what you will get, in what quantities, or when and under what conditions, as your whole supply chain is facing shortages and lacking order confirmations or reliable commitments. That’s the level of pressure — and uncertainty — we are going through now.

We also currently have a high demand for laboratory instruments, as well as fiber cleaning, fabric inspection and quality management systems. Consequently, lead times have partially increased, but in general, production and delivery of these items have been impacted to a lesser degree, and we have so far been able to meet most of the delivery commitments.

Uster headquarters in Uster, Switzerland

TW: Do you expect the situation to improve?

Narayanan: Unfortunately, there is no easy answer to that. It is a similarly challenging situation for most high-tech companies including phone manufacturers and car producers, for example. They have all been seriously affected and are constantly trying to find components from key manufacturers. Therefore, we expect shortages to remain for the next several months, affecting our abilities to deliver.

TW: How do you plan to deal with the continued shortages?

Narayanan: Firstly, I’d like to emphasize that Uster is mobilizing all resources and networks to meet delivery commitments. We are working on several fronts in parallel — redesigning where possible, extending sourcing channels and negotiating with key suppliers. We are also looking into the future and taking risk mitigation measures.

Despite the difficult situation, Uster never accepts compromises in product quality. Our motto remains “Think Quality.” For example, we have scaled up testing dramatically to screen material procured through alternative channels. We have had a reasonable level of success in this, thanks to our hard-working teams and partners. But there is still a long way to go.

Secondly, we sincerely apologize to our customers. We are aware how badly customers are affected due to the longer waiting times. I can only ask for their trust and understanding and assure them that Uster, at all levels, is working like never before to match expectations and to find solutions. The good news is that the impact is mostly limited to the yarn clearers, due to the unprecedented high volume of demand, but of course we also understand that, of all things, yarn clearers are among the most essential parts.

TW: Of course, yarn clearers are an important element of quality control in spinning but they also are a further supporting means of controlling yarn production.

Narayanan: Uster yarn clearers in a modern spinning mill play a much more important role than simply clearing yarn on the winders. The data gained by the clearers are combined in Quality Expert with data from other instruments — and sophisticated automated analysis drives efficiency in yarn production and more.

TW: So, what do you wish for in 2022?

Narayanan: Frankly, providing more relief to our customers is what really matters for us, and would make us happy in the coming year. We hope to see the back of this semiconductor and logistic crisis in 2022 and get back to normal life. We hope at the same time that the

textile industry and all our customers continue to thrive in 2022 and beyond, and wish them the best for their families and society.

January/February 2022

Back To In-Person Business

INDA’s IDEA® and FiltXPO™ trade shows are collocating in Miami Beach for a value-added, in-person experience.

TW Special Report

The Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry’s (INDA’s) IDEA® show is heading to Miami for the 21st anniversary of the nonwovens and engineered fabrics event. This edition will be collocated with the second edition of the Cary, N.C.-based association’s FiltXPO™ filtration and separation show. Both events will take place at the Miami Beach Convention Center (MBCC) in Miami Beach, Fla., March 28-31, 2022.

INDA is excited to combine the two events into one enhanced experience — a decision that was made in part to avoid a crowded show calendar late in 2021, but also adds value for both exhibiting companies and attendees.

IDEA 2019, held during the INDA’s 50th anniversary year, was the largest IDEA show in the event’s history. The 2019 edition attracted 509 exhibiting companies and more than 6,500 visitors from more than 75 countries at IDEA. Visitors came from all sectors of the market including wipes, apparel, geosynthetics, absorbent hygiene, transportation, home and office furnishings, building construction, filtration, and medical and surgical, among other sectors. Job titles run the gamut from senior leadership to research and development to purchasing.

The association is expecting similar exhibitor and visitor numbers in March as the industry has an opportunity to reunite in person. “We are very excited about being face-to-face again!” said INDA President David Rousse. “Our industry needs face-to-face interaction to build trust. This event provides that forum. As we emerge from the pandemic, our members and the entire industry realize the power of gathering in-person at live expositions and conferences like IDEA.”

IDEA 2022 kicks off with a welcome reception to be held on the outdoor terrace of the Miami Beach Convention Center, Monday, March 28, from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.

The exhibit floor is open Tuesday and Wednesday from 10:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. and on Thursday from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Educational Opportunities

The 2002 IDEA conference will focus on “The World View of Nonwovens.” Each morning, conference sessions presented by industry experts will look at how each global region’s nonwovens industry has changed since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Sessions will take place from 9 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. prior to the exhibit halls opening.

IDEA 22 also will feature a series of short-course training courses aimed to share essential information and key details with newcomers, as well as enhanced knowledge for those with two or more years of experience in the nonwovens industry.

Under the header, “Essentials of Nonwovens” the six training courses focus on absorbent hygiene cores, making nonwovens, industrial wipes, consumer wet wipes and patent searching.

The courses are taught by James “Jim” Robinson, principal with Absorbent Hygiene Insights LLC, Dr. Jim Loftus, principal with Loftus Technical Consulting LLC, and INDA’s own director of Education and Technical Affairs, Chris Plotz.

Attendees register for courses individually and may choose all courses or just one depending on budget and learning needs.

IDEA® Achievement Awards

Presented by INDA in partnership with Nonwovens Industry magazine, the IDEA Achievement Awards are handed out every three years in conjunction with IDEA.

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, so in this case, since 2019. The following five awards will be presented:

  • IDEA Equipment Achievement Award;
  • IDEA Raw Material Achievement Award;
  • IDEA Short-Life Product Achievement Award;
  • IDEA Long-Life Product Achievement Award;
  • IDEA Sustainability Advancement Award; and
  • IDEA Nonwoven Product Achievement Award.

Three finalists were selected in each category by INDA’s Technical Advisory Board. Winners are determined by an online vote on the Nonwovens Industry website, and awards will be presented by INDA’s Rousse and Rodman Media Corp. Owner and President Rod Zilenziger on Wednesday morning, March 30, after the first conference presentation.

FiltXPO Details

FiltXPO is INDA’s new filtration and separation event first held in Chicago in February 2020. FiltXPO features an exhibit floor, filter media training course and trend presentations, as well as five interactive panel discussions on indoor air quality, sustainability, clean water, pandemics and filter standards.

“With COVID-19, “filtration has become mainstream,” says Mike Clark, divisional president, Filtration Solutions, Hollingsworth & Vose Co. “This new public awareness will likely have a profound and lasting impact on the industry. The filtration industry continues to be on the ‘front line’ providing critical personal protective equipment (PPE) and IAQ (indoor air quality) to minimize the spread of the virus, along with advanced filtration solutions for medical equipment and hospitals, and the biopharma production processes used to develop and produce the vaccines at tremendous scale.”

Health And Safety Protocols

INDA reports it is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for all attendees. Precautions, including social distancing, mask wearing, personal hygiene and sanitation, and self-monitoring and self-reporting will be enforced during the event inline with current guidance provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control; and any federal, state or Miami Beach health authorities as well as MBCC rules. IDEA and FiltXPO attendees can check the event websites for safety protocols and mask/vaccine requirements.

Change For Future Show Schedules

Traditionally, IDEA has occurred on a triennial schedule. However, INDA recently made the announcement that the show will move to a biennial schedule beginning in 2024. The next show will take place April 23-25, 2024.

After the 2022 collocated event, FiltXPO will return to its 18-month schedule and will next take place October 10-12, 2023, at Navy Pier, Chicago, Ill.

“Establishing this new timing for IDEA® and returning FiltXPO™ to its original cycle aligns with our industry’s needs to continue the growth of the nonwovens industry and establish its global leadership and versatility in delivering essential, environmentally-responsible materials and products,” Rousse said. “With a more frequent IDEA® cycle, INDA will be better positioned to overcome business challenges and to support our members at the highest level.”

IDEA cannot wait to host a “real live meeting of the minds” this March in Miami Beach where attendees can see, touch and feel the latest innovations available in the nonwovens and engineered fabrics sector.

For more information about IDEA® and FiltXPO™ and to register, visit ideashow.org. and filtXPO.com.

January/February 2022

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