Moira Murray Joins Textile Division At Milliken & Company 

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — July 7, 2021 — Milliken & Company is pleased to announce that Moira Murray has been hired as the residential sales and market director for the specialty interiors business within the Textile Division. Joining the company from UltraFabrics, Murray will be working closely across departments to assist in accelerating the Specialty Interiors business’s position in the residential marketplace.

“As an organization, we are committed to growing our residential business and having Moira join our team is an exciting step in that journey. Her customer-focused philosophy and vast product exposure brings a unique skill set to our team and her experience in the residential and commercial industries is invaluable,” said Benji Bagwell, vice president of Specialty Interiors.

With more than 15 years of sales experience across the architectural and design, furniture and fabrics verticals, Murray brings intimate knowledge and understanding of the challenges facing industry decision makers.

Murray received her B.S. in Finance from the University of South Carolina and started her career at Milliken more than 35 years ago.

Posted July 7, 2021

Source: Milliken & Company

U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol Announces Levi Strauss & Co And Their Legacy Brands As New Members

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — July 7, 2021 — The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol welcomes new members Levi Strauss & Co, one of the most recognizable denim companies worldwide, and its legacy brands Levi’s®, Dockers®, Denizen® by Levi’s®, and Signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™

More than 90 percent of Levi Strauss & Co’s products are cotton-based. The company has committed to sourcing 100-percent more sustainably grown cotton focusing on decreasing water use, cutting carbon emissions, and reducing fertilizer and pesticide use. This corporate commitment to more sustainable and resilient cotton sourcing is part of a broader internal initiative designed to move the company toward a more sustainable and circular product strategy.

“At Levi Strauss & Co., the quality and sustainability of the cotton we use is critical to our business and important to our customers,” said Jeffrey Hogue, chief sustainability officer, Levi Strauss & Co. “Membership in the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol will be an important step and a key partnership in our efforts to source 100 percent more sustainably grown cotton.”

The Trust Protocol will aid Levi Strauss & Co.’s efforts by providing verified data on sustainability practices from U.S. cotton growers and access to aggregate year-over-year data on critical metrics including water use, greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, soil carbon, soil loss and land use efficiency. Levi Strauss & Co will also participate in the pilot phase of the Protocol Credit Management System which provides its members with complete supply chain transparency through use of TextileGenesis’ blockchain technology.

“Levi Strauss & Co. is a globally recognized and respected brand and we are proud to welcome them as members,” said Dr. Gary Adams, president of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol. “During the past 35 years, the U.S. cotton industry has made significant progress in reducing our environmental impact and the Trust Protocol is aligned with the 2025 national goals to further those improvements. As a member, Levi Strauss & Co. will receive farm level data which will help them progress their sustainability efforts and achieve their cotton sourcing goals.”

The Trust Protocol has welcomed more than 450 brand, retailer, mill and manufacturer members since its launch in 2020. This includes Gap Inc. and its collection of purpose-led lifestyle brands Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta as well as global apparel manufacturer Gildan. The Trust Protocol has also welcomed UK retailers Tesco, Byford and Next Plc. Other Trust Protocol member announcements include the first 10 U.S. mills to join and the first members in Latin America.

The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, recognized by Textile Exchange and Forum for the Future, and part of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Cotton 2025 Sustainable Cotton Challenge, Cotton 2040 and Cotton Up initiatives.

Posted July 7, 2021

Source: The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol

Coloreel Secures 70 Million Swedish Krona In Private Placement

JÖNKÖPING, Sweden — July 7, 2021 — Coloreel, with its unique well-patented technology for digital dyeing of textile thread on-demand, has raised 70 million Swedish krona ($8.1 million) in a private placement to existing and new shareholders. The funding will be used to support the company’s market expansion and growth and to initiate expansion into new application areas such as sewing.

“In this private placement, we bring in a number of exciting and strong investors alongside the existing major shareholders, Robur Ny Teknik, SEB Stiftelsen, Svea Ekonomi and Ilija Batljan, who also participated in this placement. In parallel to this, we now receive more and more new expressions of interest from additional investors which feels very exciting,” said the company’s founder and main owner Joakim Staberg.

“We are noticing a sharp increase in activity as more and more markets open up. Larger orders such as the one recently announced from Tryckhuset AB is great proof that we are on the right track in our ambition to modernize the use of embroidery in the textile industry,” said Mattias Nordin, CEO of Coloreel

Product and customer benefits

Coloreel’s technology for digital dyeing of textile thread on-demand gives embroidery manufacturers and fashion designers a number of significant competitive advantages. The technology maximizes the users’ creative potential while minimizing the environmental impact. Higher embroidery quality, no thread waste, no wastewater, creative color changes and above all a complete freedom in the use of colors.

Market and deliveries

The interest from the market is great, from the smallest to the very largest brands in everything from lifestyle and sports to exclusive fashion apparel. Coloreel has chosen to initially enter into close collaborations with some of the world’s most famous brands and leading embroidery manufacturers.

The embroidery market is large and includes about 8 million installed embroidery heads worldwide. Each of these embroidery heads can be equipped with Coloreel’s technology. Despite the ongoing pandemic, Coloreel, with the help of existing distributors, has delivered its ground-breaking technology to eleven countries in Europe, the United States and Asia, albeit in limited volumes. It has also started business with the world’s largest distributor of embroidery machines, U.S. based Hirsch Solutions, which has already installed the technology with several reputable end-customers in the United States.

Posted July 7, 2021

Source: Coloreel

Hexcel Showcases Carbon Fiber Prepreg Capability For UAV Applications With Sponsorship Of Austrian University Camera Drone

STAMFORD, Conn. — July 7, 2021 — Hexcel has announced the successful maiden flight of a lightweight camera drone, developed using Hexcel HexPly® carbon fiber prepregs. The composite drone was developed by a team of students from the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria in Wels with composite materials supplied by Hexcel Neumarkt in Austria.

A team of six students in the university’s lightweight construction and composite materials course was responsible for the complete design, engineering, and manufacture of the camera drone over a period of 18 months. Hexcel materials and optimization of the composite engineering enabled the team to reduce the composite structural mass by 42 percent compared to similar drones.

Hexcel Neumarkt was one of eight industrial partners supporting the university team throughout the project, providing all carbon fiber prepreg materials used for the drone’s landing gear as well as the fuselage. The ultra-lightweight 32 gram landing gear was laid up and cured in the press, whereas the fuselage was autoclave cured by the student team using Hexcel HexPly M901 and HexPly M78.1 prepreg resin systems with a combination of woven and unidirectional carbon fiber reinforcements.

With the development of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) as a key emerging market and innovation space in the transportation sector, Hexcel’s collaboration with the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria team not only creates an important link with the next generation of lightweight composite engineers but also highlights the weight saving and structural benefits of Hexcel composite material solutions.

“The massive weight saving achieved with their updated version of the camera drone is a fantastic achievement by the student team,” said Michael Rabl, dean of FH Wels of the Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences. “The joint study not only illustrates the wide range of complex and innovative composite techniques present in the drone sector but also presents the opportunities that exist for further development in the wider Urban Air Mobility (UAM) and aerospace composites markets.”

Hexcel congratulates the project team which includes Lukas Weninger, Karl-Heinz Schneider, Jakob Schlosser, Matthias Thon, Marla Unter, and Simone Hartl on an exceptional piece of lightweight composite design and thanks them for showcasing the contribution of Hexcel materials with a presentation and drone flight.

Johanna Arndt, research and technology group leader at Hexcel Neumarkt, said: “It was a great pleasure to work with the team who were very cooperative and self-motivated to succeed. Watching the drone just fly around the Neumarkt plant was just great.”

Posted July 7, 2021

Source: Hexcel Corp.

An Alternative For Leather And Synthetic Leather: VTT Succeeded In Demonstrating Continuous Production Of Mycelium Leather

ESPOO, Finland — July 7, 2021 — Leather and synthetic leather production have a large negative environmental impact due to resource-intensive processes and hazardous chemicals used during production. VTT’s research team demonstrated that VTT’s technology enables the continuous manufacturing of mycelium leather sheets by the meter. The approach is applicable to industrial roll-to-roll production. The first product applications for the material could be accessories, footwear, and garments, for example.

“The material has a leathery look and feel and can be as strong as animal leather. It also offers the possibility to be colored and patterned, and it does not contain any backing or supporting materials,” said VTT’s Senior Scientist Géza Szilvay.

Fungal mycelium is a bio-based raw material that can be sustainably processed into leather-like materials. Until now, increasing the production volume with current methods has been challenging due to mycelium cultivation taking place in a planar two-dimensional form limited in size. “Our process makes it possible to overcome these size limitations,” says VTT’s Research Scientist Manuel Arias Barrantes.

VTT’s patent-pending technology for producing mycelium leather alternative materials is based on growing mycelium in common bioreactors. The benefits of this approach are that liquid fermentation in bioreactors is easily scalable to commercial scales and similar fermentation technology is already widely used in the food, chemical, and pharma industries.

The film-making process developed by VTT enables continuous mycelium leather alternative production using VTT’s pilot equipment. The benefits of this manufacturing method are consistent quality, competitive production price, and reduced amounts of offcuts.

At the moment, the VTT team is exploring applications in the accessory, footwear, and garment segments. The researchers are now turning to improve tear strength and abrasion resistance by bio-based approaches.

The work done at VTT will contribute to an accelerated availability of mycelium leather alternatives in the market.

Business Finland has funded the development work.

Posted July 7, 2021

Source: VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd.

Messe Stuttgart’s Sun Shading Expo North America Move Collocation Debut With IFAI Expo To 2022

ROSEVILLE, Minn. — July 6, 2021 — Messe Stuttgart announced that its new U.S.-based show Sun Shading Expo North America will not be held in 2021 as a separate trade show but will instead contribute its expertise in internal and external sun shading systems at IFAI Expo 2021 in the form of expert talks, open discussions and more.

IFAI Expo 2021 will still take place November 2–4, 2021, with education on November 1–4, in Nashville, Tenn., at the Music City Convention Center.

IFAI Expo, the leading trade fair for specialty fabrics and technical textiles will celebrate its 100th in-person anniversary November 2–4, 2021. The concept for cooperation with Messe Stuttgart will also be presented live at IFAI Expo in November.

“A large number of international R+T exhibitors have already shown their interest in the North American market. In our capacity as a professional trade fair organizer, our objective is to offer all participants planning security in particular along with a high-quality and successful presentation platform. After analyzing the currently valid general conditions and in view of the long-term success of the new trade fair brand, we decided to stage Sun Shading Expo North America as a co-location to IFAI Expo 2022,” said Roland Bleinroth, president of Messe Stuttgart.

The premiere of Sun Shading Expo North America will be held October 12–14, 2022, collocating with IFAI Expo 2022 in Charlotte, N.C. IFAI President and CEO Steve Schiffman added: “We are looking forward to long-term collaboration between IFAI Expo and Sun Shading Expo North America. Our 100th anniversary of IFAI Expo is the ideal framework to celebrate this partnership and start the development of a strong cross-industry network between the customers of both events.”

The planned conference program of Sun Shading Expo North America during IFAI Expo 2021 will be announced shortly.

Posted July 6, 2021

Source: Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI)

Esquel Group Sues Department Of Commerce Over Erroneous Inclusion On U.S. Entity List

WASHINGTON — July 6, 2021 — Today, Esquel Group, the Hong Kong-based textile and apparel manufacturer, has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia seeking relief from the economic and reputational harms caused by the placement of its subsidiary, Changji Esquel Textile Co. Ltd., on the U.S. Entity List. Esquel is a recognized leader in responsible labor, sustainability and ethical business practices. The company categorically denies the false allegations that have been made by the Department of Commerce — allegations that are antithetical to everything for which Esquel stands.

Under the prior U.S. administration, Changji Esquel was added to the Entity List without notice and with no supporting evidence, causing incalculable reputational and economic harms. Despite continued outreach and the sharing of numerous business documents with the Department of Commerce’s End-User Review Committee since September 2020, Esquel has received no meaningful response or evidence from the U.S. government that would support its inclusion on the List.  Accordingly, Esquel has had no choice but to take legal action to end the devastating ongoing reputational and commercial damage resulting from this erroneous designation.

“The Department of Commerce provided no evidence to support its erroneous decision and acted far beyond its limited legal authority,” said James Tysse, a partner at Akin Gump LLP about the lawsuit filed today. “Esquel is a globally recognized leader in corporate social responsibility.  This action is completely contrary to Esquel’s proven track-record of ethical labor practices.”

The listing falsely implicated Changji Esquel in using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region, a conclusion that contradicts the facts, including audits by multiple world-class, third-party independent auditors using internationally recognized industry standards such as the SMETA standard, a widely respected social audit format. These audits involved site visits to facilities in the region and independent interviews with randomly selected Uyghur workers. In every instance, the audits found no evidence of forced labor or coercion. Further, the Changji Esquel facility is highly automated and technologically advanced, and it requires highly skilled workers – the inverse of a business model reliant on underpaid labor.

“The use of forced labor or coercive practices is completely contrary to our founding principles and the business we have operated for more than 40 years,” said Esquel Chairman and CEO Marjorie Yang. “Esquel values and respects the dignity of all our people in Xinjiang and actively works to create an inclusive environment free from any kind of discrimination or intimidation. Esquel has never used forced or coerced labor.”

For the past 10 months, Esquel has provided extensive corporate information to the End-User Review Committee in an effort to secure a just resolution of the erroneous listing. Esquel also offered to undertake additional independent audits and to facilitate site visits by relevant officials and representatives. In response, the End-User Review Committee provided no evidence to justify its listing of Changji Esquel.

In addition to pointing out the lack of any factual basis for the listing, the lawsuit shows that there was no lawful basis for the Department of Commerce to list Esquel in the first place and seeks access to the administrative record the Commerce Department relied on in making the erroneous listing.

“It is our continued hope that the Department of Commerce will voluntarily address what is clearly an error,” said Yang.  “But so far, the ERC has given no meaningful response to the comprehensive materials we have submitted and taken no step to rectify its mistaken inclusion of Changji Esquel on the Entity List. Accordingly, we have been forced to take legal action in order to protect our business interests and mitigate the devastating harm that is accruing daily to our business, employees and business partners.”

Posted July 6, 2021

Source: Esquel Group

Bluesign Completes 2021 Revision Of All Its Chemical Substances Lists

ST.GALLEN, Switzerland — July 6, 2021 — Having come into effect on July 1, 2021, the revision incorporates new scientific knowledge on the toxicological and ecological profile of substances, new legal classification of chemical substances, new legal consumer safety limits, revised risk assessments based on the bluesign® CRITERIA for chemical assessment, feedback from experts of the Chemical Expert Group (CEG) as well as new analytical standards.

The revision covers all the updates to the restrictions for chemical substances published in:

  • BSSL (bluesign SYSTEM SUBSTANCES LIST);
  • BSBL (bluesign SYSTEM BLACK LIMITS); and
  • bluesign RSL.

The bluesign SYSTEM SUBSTANCES LIST (BSSL) specifies limits for chemical substances in articles (consumer safety limits).

The bluesign SYSTEM BLACK LIMITS (BSBL) specifies threshold limits for chemical substances in finished chemical products such as auxiliaries or dyes. The compilation of substances in the BSBL includes all substances for which a precautionary hazard-based threshold limit is defined.

The bluesign RSL is an extract of the BSSL and contains consumer safety limits and recommended testing methods for the most important and legally restricted substances in textile and leather articles and accessories.

2021 revision of BSBL, BSSL, and RSL came into effect on July 1st, 2021. The following revised lists as well as the documents regarding the relevant changes to substances and limits are publicly available on Bluesign website:

  • BSBL v3.0;
  • BSSL v12.0;
  • bluesign® RSL v12.0;
  • BSBL v3.0 – Changes 2021;
  • BSSL v12.0 – Changes 2021; and
  • bluesign® RSL v12.0 – Changes 2021.

2021 revisions include the following updates:

  • Restriction for free aniline content in chemical products have become more stringent. Aniline reduced indigo is now a must for bluesign® APPROVED indigo types. Aniline is restricted in other dyes and auxiliaries with a limit of 500 mg/kg.
  • Following the Bluesign philosophy that residual monomers play a very important role in eliminating hazardous chemicals in the textile supply chain, a usage ban was defined for N-methylolacrylamide and 1-vinylimidazole.
  • For 2-pyrrolidone, a solvent used in inks, a consumer safety limit was defined. The mid-term goal is to define a usage ban for this solvent which has to be classified as toxic for reproduction according to recent studies.
  • For similar reasons, 2-Butanone oxime which is classified as a carcinogenic substance and already listed on BSSL — consumer safety limits, is now under more stringent observation by Bluesign. The free content of this substance which is used as a blocking agent for polyurethanes, is now limited in chemical products. A total usage ban of this substance as a blocking agent is planned by Bluesign.

The revised BSBL is valid for all new bluesign FINDER registrations from July 1st, 2021. For already existing bluesign APPROVED chemicals, a transition period until July 1, 2022 is valid to comply with the revised sections.

As a support for all bluesign SYSTEM PARTNER companies, along with the RSL, a testing matrix to be used as a guide for appropriate testing of articles such as textiles is also available in template format in bluesign CUBE.

Posted July 6, 2021

Source: bluesign technologies ag

Mannington Commercial Acquiring AtlasMasland Assets

CALHOUN, Ga. — June 30, 2021 — Mannington Commercial announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire select assets of AtlasMasland, the commercial floor covering business of The Dixie Group. The transaction is expected to close within the next 45 days.

At the transaction’s completion, Mannington Commercial will gain AtlasMasland’s existing product lines, tufting machinery and other equipment assets from The Dixie Group’s Atmore, Ala., facility. The equipment will be relocated and installed at Mannington Commercial’s carpet manufacturing facility in Calhoun, Ga. The Atmore facility is not included as part of the transaction and will remain with The Dixie Group. All operations for both companies, including ordering, shipping, invoicing, claims and customer service will remain the same until the purchase is complete.

“Today marks an important day for Mannington Commercial’s future and for our customers,” said Mannington Commercial President Tom Pendley. “We will be adding significantly more sales and carpet manufacturing capacity to meet the continue demand for our commercial product line. We are also gaining proven product lines that are well-established within certain commercial segments where we see expanded growth opportunities. Taken together, we will be accelerating our growth and better serving our customers with a more comprehensive set of floor covering solutions.”

During the transition phase, AtlasMasland will continue to manufacture products for Mannington Commercial until the equipment assets are fully operational at the company’s Calhoun facility.

“This newest acquisition is exciting for the entire Mannington organization. We look forward to utilizing the assets acquired to better service our customers and pursue further opportunities for growth and success,” said Russell Grizzle, president and CEO of Mannington Mills, Inc.

The AtlasMasland purchase follows Mannington Commercial’s acquisition of Amtico, a provider of luxury vinyl tile in 2012 and Burke Flooring, a leading manufacturer of rubber and vinyl floor coverings, in 2008.

Posted July 6, 2021

Source: Mannington Commercial

 

Textile Exchange Report Shows Record Organic Cotton Production in 2019-20

LUBBOCK, Texas — June 30, 2021 — Textile Exchange’s 2021 Organic Cotton Market Report, released today, shows that 2019-20 was a record-setting year, with the largest volume of organic cotton fiber harvested globally to-date. In total, 229,280 farmers grew 249,153 metric tons of organic cotton fiber on 588,425 hectares of certified organic land in 21 countries. This represents a four percent growth in fiber volume and is the fourth year in a row that organic cotton production has increased. Organic cotton accounted for almost one percent of the global cotton harvest that season.

Ranked by production, the top seven organic cotton-producing countries, which together account for 95 percent of global production, were India (50 percent), China (12 percent), Kyrgyzstan (12 percent), Turkey (10 percent), Tanzania (5 percent), Tajikistan (4 percent), and the United States (3 percent). Two new countries — Uzbekistan and Myanmar — joined the line-up of organic cotton producers in 2019-20, and at least another three countries are expected to join in the next few years. The biggest contributors to the global growth seen in 2019-20 were Tanzania and Kyrgyzstan, followed by Uganda, the United States, Pakistan, India, and Turkey.

“The demand for organic cotton has been growing steadily, particularly the last four years,” said La Rhea Pepper, Textile Exchange founder and CEO. “All signs point to increasing demand for organic cotton as brands expand their use of the fiber in their product lines in response to concerns over the textile industry’s impact on the environment and consumer demands for sustainable choices.”

India once again had the most land in conversion to organic, followed most closely by Turkey, Tajikistan, and Tanzania.  At least 50,552 hectares of cotton land were in conversion to organic cotton in 2019-20. This is equivalent to eight percent of the total certified production area.

Organic cotton production is set to skyrocket in 2020-21, with an estimated 48-percent growth, stemming predominantly from India and Turkey. In India, this growth is largely a result of increased demand causing organic cotton prices to increase. This, in turn, makes it a more attractive option for farmers and is leading existing producers to dedicate a larger share of their certified organic land to growing cotton versus other crops. In Turkey, increased demand is also the main driver, but the growth is more a result of new producers starting up organic cotton production.

“Textile Exchange urges all brands to ‘plan for planting,’ including supporting the conversion years to ensure that organic will be available to meet their future needs,” said Textile Exchange Fiber Strategist Rui Fontoura.

Besides revealing detailed production data at global, regional, and country levels, the report also covers current trends and priorities for the organic cotton sector, including discussions on current demand, regenerative agriculture, seed innovation, Covid-19, and the price vs. value paradigm. Impact is also a key feature, in line with Textile Exchange’s 2030 Climate+ goal, with spotlights on the key impact areas of climate, biodiversity, soil, and water.

The report is peppered with insightful quotes from the twenty-one “industry insiders” who were interviewed for the report as part of Textile Exchange’s Insider Series, highlighting how producers and companies are making a difference in textile sustainability.

Textile Exchange continues to gather information on the uptake of organic cotton as well as production, and appreciates the cooperation of all producers, brands, retailers, and other stakeholders in sharing usage and production information via our surveys. In addition, brands, retailers, manufacturers, and suppliers are invited to track their progress with organic cotton (and other preferred fiber and materials) by participating in the annual Material Change Index (MCI) survey (open through September; email: CFMB@TextileExchange.org). New this year are questions regarding product sales figures and forecasted demand through 2025 — information vital to understanding the market.

Textile Exchange also urges active participation in upcoming webinars on the topic as well as this fall’s Organic Cotton Round Table (OCRT) Summit, held in conjunction with our 2021 Textile Sustainability Conference in Dublin, Ireland, November 15-19. Join the OCRT to engage with others in the organic cotton community and stay up to date on the latest news and events on the OCRT Hub.

Posted July 6, 2021

Source: Textile Exchange

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