Sweden-based Coloreel reports it has raised 70 million Swedish Krona ($8.1 million) that will be used to support the market expansion and growth of its unique patented technology for dyeing textile threads digitally and on-demand. The technology offers embroidery providers an number of benefits including creative freedom, high embroidery quality, and no thread or water waste. Existing embroidery heads may be equipped with Coloreel’s technology. The company is represented in the United States by Hirsch Solutions, Peachtree City, Ga., which has already installed the technology at several U.S. customers.
“In parallel to this [private placement], 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.
In honor of the Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists’ (AATCC’s) 100th anniversary this year, Charles E. Gavin III made a generous donation of $100,000 to the AATCC Foundation. According to AATCC, this contribution will fully endow two graduate fellowships as permanent sources of textile student support, which helps the organization get much closer to its goal of endowing all existing Foundation scholarships.
In 1997, Gavin was the first donor and was instrumental in establishing AATCC Foundation Inc. Over the years, he has also created and supported several Foundation scholarships and fellowships for both undergraduate and graduate students — providing not only financial assistance, but also guidance and encouragement.
“I would like to thank the Gavin family for their generosity in giving this scholarship, and AATCC for the dedication of their member corporations to continuing the education of Polymer and Fiber science in the U.S. Thank you!” said Jonathan Shaheen, recipient of 2021-2022 Charles E. Gavin III Family Scholarship.
Cleveland-based Avient recently acquired Magna Colours Ltd., England, for $48 million. The MagnaColours® water-based ink technologies for textile screen printing will be added to Avient’s specialty ink portfolio joining brand such as Wilflex® and Rutland®.
“Magna represents an important investment in sustainable solutions, as brand owners seek alternatives to legacy technologies,” said Robert M. Patterson, chairman, president and CEO, Avient. “We are thrilled to have Magna join Avient. We expect our collective inks portfolio will grow substantially as the threat of COVID subsides, people can safely attend sporting and other live events in person, and travel increases.”
Testing showed that even very thin fabrics protected the wearer from mosquito bites as long as the fabric had a very small pore size. (Image Matt Bertone, NC State)
Patent rights to mosquito-resistant clothing developed at NC State has been licensed by startup company Vector Textiles.
By Laura Oleniacz
North Carolina State University researchers have created insecticide-free, mosquito-resistant clothing using textile materials they confirmed to be bite-proof in experiments with live mosquitoes. They developed the materials using a computational model of their own design, which describes the biting behavior of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito that carries viruses that cause human diseases like Zika, Dengue fever and yellow fever.
Ultimately, the researchers reported in the journal Insects that they were able to prevent 100 percent of bites when a volunteer wore their clothing — a base layer undergarment and a combat shirt initially designed for the military — in a cage with 200 live, disease-free mosquitoes. Vector Textiles, an NC State startup company, has licensed the related patent rights and intends to make clothing for commercial sale in the United States.
The researchers think their computational model could be used more widely to develop clothing to reduce transmission of diseases.
“The fabric is proven to work — that’s the great thing we discovered,” said study co-author Andre West, associate professor of fashion and textile design at NC State, and director of Zeis Textiles Extension for Economic Development. “To me, that’s revolutionary. We found we can prevent the mosquito from pushing through the fabric, while others were thick enough to prevent it from reaching the skin.”
To develop the computational model to design textile materials that could prevent A. aegypti bites, researchers investigated the dimensions of the head, antenna and mouth of A. aegypti, and the mechanics of how it bites. Then, they used the model to predict textile materials that would prevent bites, depending on their thickness and pore size. Researchers said they believe the materials could be effective against other mosquito species in addition to A. aegypti because of similarities in biology and biting behavior.
“There are different uses for clothing,” said the study’s first author Kun Luan, postdoctoral research scholar of forest biomaterials at NC State. “The idea is to have a model that will cover all possible garments that a person would ever want.”
Testing The Model
To test the accuracy of their model, the researchers tested the materials predicted to be bite-proof. In experiments with live, disease-free mosquitoes, the researchers surrounded a blood reservoir with plastic materials made according to parameters predicted by the model. They then counted how many mosquitoes became engorged with blood.
One material they initially tested was very thin — less than one millimeter thick — but had a very small pore size to prevent the mosquito from sticking its mouth parts, or proboscis, through the material. Another material had a medium pore size to prevent the mosquito from inserting its head through the textile far enough to reach the skin; and a third material had larger pores, but was sufficiently thick that the mosquito’s mouth still couldn’t reach the skin.
In a subsequent test, the researchers chose a series of knitted and woven fabrics that met the bite-proof parameters determined by the model, and validated they worked in experiments using both the blood reservoir and human volunteers. The researchers tested the number of bites received by volunteers when study participants inserted an arm covered by a protective sleeve into a mosquito cage. The researchers also compared the fabrics’ ability to prevent bites and repel mosquitoes to fabrics treated with an insecticide.
A shows the human arm in cage bioassay covered with fabric sleeve during testing; and B-D are predicted safe fabrics that were tested. B is an ultrafine, thin man-made knit fabric with small pores; C shows two layers of the fabric shown in B; D shows a thick 3D warp knit fabric.
From what they learned in early experiments, researchers developed the bite-resistant, form-fitting undergarment made with a thin material, as well as a long-sleeved shirt, which was initially envisioned as a combat shirt for the military.
When a volunteer wore the garments sitting for 10 minutes and standing for 10 minutes in a walk-in cage with 200 hungry mosquitoes, the volunteer found the combat shirt was 100-percent effective at preventing bites. In the first trial testing the base layer, the volunteer received bites on the back and shoulders — seven bites from 200 mosquitoes. The researchers attributed the bites to the fabric stretching and deforming, so they doubled the material layer around the shoulders, and were ultimately able to prevent 100 percent of bites. They also tested the clothing for comfort, and to see how well it trapped heat and released moisture.
Results
“The final garments that were produced were 100-percent bite-resistant,” said Michael Roe, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Entomology at NC State. “Everyday clothing you wear in the summer is not bite-resistant to mosquitoes. Our work has shown that it doesn’t have to be that way. Clothes that you wear every day can be made bite-resistant. Ultimately, the idea is to have a model that will cover all possible garments that person would ever want — both for the military as well as for private use.”
The study, “Mosquito-textile physics: A mathematical roadmap to insecticide-free, bite-proof clothing for everyday life,” was published online July 13, 2021, in the journal Insects. It was authored by Luan, Roe, West, Charles Apperson, Marian McCord, Emiel DenHartog, Quan Shi, Nicholas Travanty, Robert Mitchell, Grayson Cave, John Strider and Youngxin Wang from NC State University; and Isa Bettermann, Florian Neumann and Tobias Beck from Aachen University, Germany. The study was supported by the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense Deployed War Fighter Program, Natick Contracting Division of the U.S. Department of Defense, the Chancellor’s Innovation Fund at NC State, the Southeast Center for Agricultural Health and Injury Prevention, PILOTS and the NC Agriculture Research Experiment Station.
Editor’s Note: Laura Oleniacz is Public Communications Specialist at NC State News Services.
Rieter’s E 90 comber offers a high level of productivity.
Rieter’s Comber E 90 offers consistent quality thanks to reliable, real-time information with Rieter Quality Monitor.
TW Special Report
Switzerland-based Rieter reports that its latest comber E 90 achieves a high level of productivity. Combined with its high raw material utilization capability and economical energy consumption, the lowest production costs per kilogram of combed sliver may be achieved.
In addition to these E 90 capabilities, Rieter’s customer Brazil-based Norfil S.A. Indústria Têxtil was particularly impressed by the continuous monitoring of the sliver quality. This makes unpleasant surprises in the yarn a thing of the past.
The comber E 90 produces up to 100 kilograms of combed sliver per hour. The high combing speed of 600 nips per minute, as well as the stable and fault-free running behavior of the machine, enable this high standard of productivity. In addition, the E 90 delivers all quality levels with high consistency from yarns with low noil extraction to fine yarns in a class of their own, according to Rieter.
High Flexibility,
Consistent Quality
Flexibility was also an important factor for Norfil when it was considering the E 90 comber. Norfil is a family-owned business in the state of Paraiba founded in 1989. Thanks to continuous investments in technology and automation, the company now produces 2,400 tons of yarn per month. Using raw material from its own cotton plantation, Norfil manufactures high-quality yarn for the apparel industry, with combed cotton yarns as its main product. The company was looking for a comber that could not only deliver consistently high quality, but would also have the capability to produce different quality levels with high consistency. Norfil’s new Rieter E 90 comber meets these expectations. The operating unit is very easy to use, which enables Norfil to flexibly change the quality requirements. The new technology components developed for the E 90 significantly reduce the noil extraction and lead to improved raw-material utilization.
Real-Time Information On Sliver Quality
Production at Norfil takes place with total control over the sliver quality thanks to the Rieter Quality Monitor (RQM) technology. This proven Rieter draw frame technology is now also fully integrated in the E 90 comber. A sensor continuously monitors the sliver quality produced by the comber and constantly delivers exact and reliable information regarding the current quality level. This allows deviations in sliver weight and sliver evenness to be detected early. As a result, unpleasant surprises in the yarn due to changed settings in the comber are a thing of the past at Norfil.
“The new comber E 90 takes many things off our hands so that we can concentrate on our priorities,” said Norfil Owner Fabio Borger. “This is mainly due to the Rieter Quality Monitor (RQM). It is easily adjustable, and we can trust the settings. The comber delivers the promised quality very consistently at a high productivity rate.”
Figure 1: The comber E 90 delivers consistent CV-values at a lower noil level compared to the former model E 62 and E 66.
Quick Change Of Noil Level
Another requirement of Norfil for its new comber was the ability to quickly change the noil level. Using Rieter’s E 90, Norfil can quickly change from 14 percent to 24 percent, which extends the company’s working range and saves raw material. The company can now produce sliver with a low noil level of 14 percent with maximum consistency for Ne 30 at a rate of 550 nips per minute — with enough headroom to easily accelerate to 600 nips per minute if needed (see Figure 1). Thanks to the huge noil savings with the E 90, Norfil also managed to cut costs while maintaining quality.
Rieter has developed new technology components for the E 90 that significantly increase the range of applications of the top comb and circular comb. With this new development, it is possible to reduce the noil extraction amount by 3 percent without the need to change the settings of the top comb and circular comb. As a result, raw material utilization is improved significantly with low noil extraction. Maximum output remains consistent even when producing high-quality yarns.
Norfil is very satisfied with the ongoing support from Rieter technicians throughout the E 90 installation project. In cooperation with Rieter technologists, Norfil was able to implement new ideas, resulting in a new combing process designed for their specific needs. The comber E 90 is the best solution for Norfil and the company has already ordered the next batch of combers.
HanesBrands, Winston-Salem, N.C., has named LaTonya Groom vice president, Talent and Diversity. The company also recently named William S. Simon to its board of directors.
Moira Murray has joined the Textile Division at Spartanburg-based Milliken & Company as the residential sales and market director for the specialty interiors business.
Eizinger
Jürgen Eizinger, vice president of Austria-based Lenzing’s Global Nonwovens business, was appointed to the board of governors of Belguim-based EDANA — the international association serving the nonwovens and related industries.
England-based technical Nonwovenn has appointed Prabhat Mishra sustainability director.
The Washington-based National Council of Textile Organizations’ (NCTO’s) Fiber Council has announced Rachel Crouse as the recipient of the 2021 Paul T. O’Day Scholarship Award. She is the daughter of Sandra and Martin Crouse, who is a Unifi Inc. employee. She will attend NC State in the fall to pursue engineering with an eye on reducing the environmental impacts of the textile industry. She will receive a $5,000 award each year for a total of $20,000 over her four years of study. The scholarship is open to sons or daughters of NCTO Fiber Council member company employees.
Mimaki, Japan, has promoted Arjen Evertse to general manager sales, EMEA, effective September 1, 2021.
Sweden-based Coloreel has recruited Sven Öquist as its new vice president of sales.
Saunders
Champion Thread Co., Gastonia, N.C., has added John Saunders to its team as manufacturing manager.
MagnaColours®, England, has named Mark Taylor regional sales manager.
Austria-based Borealis has named Wolfram Krenn executive vice president of Base Chemicals & Operations and a member of the executive board.
Carhartt, Dearborn, Mich., has appointed Todd Corley senior vice president of Inclusion and Sustainability. He reports directly to Linda Hubbard, president and COO.
Babenzien
New York City-based J.Crew Group has named Brendon Babenzien creative director for J.Crew Men’s.
Atlanta-based Beaver Paper Group has promoted Allen Wheeler to the newly created position of TexSewn® product manager.
Spring City, Pa.-based technical textiles company Davlyn Group has named John Rutt vice president of business development.
Avgol, a subsidiary of Bangkok-based Indorama Ventures Public Co. Ltd. (IVL), has named Tommi Bjornman CEO. He replaces Shachar Rachim who will focus on a broader role as CEO of IVL’s Hygiene vertical in its Fibers segment.
Sammy Dobbs has joined Glen Raven Technical Fabrics , Glen Raven, N.C., as director of New Business Development for the company’s GlenGuard® brand of flame-resistant and arc-resistant fabrics.
Josephine “Josie” Cranfill is the winner of the 2021 American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) Outstanding College Graduate Award. Cranfill is a student at NC State and will graduate with a degree in Polymer & Color Chemistry Science with an Operations concentration and Spanish minor. She was honored with a plaque and $1,000 from AATCC.
Smith
Joey Smith has joined the team at MMI Textiles Inc., Westlake, Ohio, as director of Business Development.
Daniel Rüfenacht was named CEO of Switzerland-based bluesign technologies ag, an SGS Group company.
Unifi Inc., Greensboro, N.C., has hired James Cooper Jr. as sustainability manager; and Sara Porter brand sales manager of Global Business Development, Nonwovens, Films and Rigid Packaging
Seoul-based Hyosung has named Claire O’Neill European marketing manager, and appointed company veteran Julia Nam U.S. marketing manager.
Culp Inc., High Point, N.C., has appointed Jeff Tsacoumangos head of Global Strategic Transformation, Supply Chain and Service for Culp Home Fashions (CHF). In addition, Jeff Veach was named vice president of sales and marketing for CHF.
BIOLACE® Ultrasoft features a viscose/lyocell fiber blend and can be produced using a “big dot” pattern.
Suominen’s BIOLACE® Ultrasoft is the company’s latest addition to its sustainable nonwoven fabric portfolio.
By Rachael S. Davis, Executive Editor
Helsinki-based Suominen is a producer of nonwoven roll goods used for wipes and other applications. Baby wipes, flushable wipes, household wipes, medical wipes, workplace wipes … name it, and Suominen has the market covered.
The company’s global manufacturing platform comprises eight production plants on three continents including three manufacturing locations in the United States — Bethune, S.C.; Green Bay, Wis.; and Windsor Locks, Conn.
On its website, the company states: “… we don’t just exist to make things. Our purpose is also to develop nonwovens and expand their possibilities. We make nonwovens better.” And in 2019, the company pledged to focus on improving its profitability through innovative and sustainable nonwoven products.
The latest addition to Suominen’s sustainable product portfolio, BIOLACE® Ultrasoft, was developed with sensitive skin as well as sustainability in mind. The fabric — made using plant-based, biodegradable and compostable materials — is aimed at personal care and baby products. Suominen reports that the nonwoven remains soft to the touch when it is both wet and dry and offers excellent absorbency.
“Our strategy is put into action with the new innovative and sustainable products such as BIOLACE Ultrasoft,” said Lynda Kelly, senior vice president, Americas & Business Development.
“In 2020, the sales of sustainable products increased by more than 20 percent
compared to the base year of 2019.”
BIOLACE Ultrasoft is made using a viscose/lyocell blend, its basis weight range is 50 grams per square meter and it can be customized with a “big dot” pattern. The product also is certified Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX®.
According to the company, testing showed the structure and composition of BIOLACE Ultrasoft enables a 25-percent higher cleaning efficiency compared to a product with the same basis weight made using 100-percent viscose spunlace, and a 38-percent higher cleaning efficiency compared to a polyester wipe.
“BIOLACE Ultrasoft with viscose and lyocell fibers performs better than a typical spunlace wipe made using only viscose because of the blend and the manufacturing process we are using,” said Johanna Sirén, manager, Category Management.
“BIOLACE Ultrasoft is a sustainable product with great cleaning efficiency and exceptional softness,” Sirén added. “It is a perfect solution for baby and personal care products, such as cosmetic wipes and baby wipes. The softness makes it also suitable for gentle skin products.”
For more information about BIOLACE® Ultrasoft, contact Johanna Sirén, johanna.siren@suominencorp.com; suominen.com.
England-based James Heal has a new microsite, located at performance. james-heal.co.uk, which is dedicated to testing performance and technical textiles.
San Jose, Calif.-based Livinguard has introduced a line of odor-neutralizing T-shirts and polo shirts featuring its hygiene technology.
The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, Memphis, Tenn., recently added the following new members: Montreal-based Gildan Activewear; United Kingdom-based retailer Tesco; and San Francisco-based Levi Strauss & Co. along with its legacy brands Levi’s®, Dockers®, Denizen by Levi’s®, and signature by Levi Strauss & Co.™
Houston-based Ascend Performance Materials received the General Motors (GM) 2020 Supplier Quality Excellence Award for its Pensacola, Fla., nylon 6,6 plant. The award recognizes GM suppliers who meet or exceed the company’s quality performance criteria and support multiple functions across GM’s organization.
Israel-based Delta Galil Industries Ltd. recently announced a global licensing agreement with Wolford to create, produce and market new women’s lingerie and swimwear collections available Spring/Summer 2022. Delta Galil also signed a global licensing agreement with adidas for men’s and women’s underwear collections sold under the adidas Badge of Sport and Originals labels. The collections will launch in Spring 2022.
Front row (left to right): Meg Patel, marketing manager, Government and Defense, Milliken; Nicole Ducouer, senior director communications, IFB; David Horton, president and CEO, IFB; Erik Cobham, director Business Development, Government and Defense, Milliken; and Danny Kelly, executive vice president, IFB. Middle row (left to right): Sean Murphy, Senior Account Manager, Government and Defense, Milliken; Silas Martin, COO, IFB; and Randy Buckner, vice president, Asheville Manufacturing, IFB. Back row (left to right): Bruce LaFlam, vice president, sales and marketing, Government and Defense, Milliken; and Matt Gilreath, CFO, Textile Division, Milliken
Milliken & Company, Spartanburg, S.C., was named Partner of the Year by IFB Solutions, Winston-Salem, N.C. The award is given to the partner company that stands out as an organization in its support of opportunities for people who are blind.
After many years in development, Los Angeles-based Hologenix® recently introduced pure white Celliant® fibers. The new fiber expands the applications for Celliant into white and pastel colored products.
Italy-based Themore® recently introduced Ecodown® Fibers Genius, a hybrid product in between free fibers and rolled insulation that bridges the gap between the two products.
SÃO PAULO — July 22, 2021 — JBS Couros has announced the launch of JBS V-Block technology, which inactivates the SARS-Cov-2 virus, the cause of Covid-19. At processing stage, a silver microparticle additive is added to the leather coating providing it with antiviral qualities.
“Our leather has undergone scientific tests that prove the inactivation of the SARS-Cov-2 virus. The application of this new technology sets a new standard in leather production. It not only inactivates the spread of viruses including Covid-19 but assists in the preservation of the material making it ideal for use in surfaces that are used regularly or come into contact with a number of people meaning there is potential increased exposure to Covid and other viruses, such as furniture, seating and vehicle steering wheels or items such as clothing, bags and wallets,” said Guilherme Motta, president of JBS Couros.
In tests conducted in the level 3 biosafety laboratory (NB3) of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the University of São Paulo (ICB-USP), the material showed 99-percent inactivation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in 30 minutes from contact with viral particles. “The use of this technology increases the contact surface of silver and its prominence in the leather, enabling antiviral action,” says researcher Lucio Freitas, who participated in the tests of the new material. The tests were made in accordance with the international standard ISO 21702, which establishes the most appropriate methods to detect antiviral activity in plastics and non-poral surfaces.
The microparticles are constructed from the synthesis of silver salts — an element chosen for their recognized antiviral action — and stabilized by synthesis technology. “Silver microparticles are able to inactivate the virus by two mechanisms: in its membrane — where they break this external coating of the virus and inactivate its entry into the host cells and, in RNA (or DNA), where they oxidize the genetic material of the exposed virus, inactivating its multiplication capacity,” says materials scientist Daniel Minozzi, founder and director of Nanox, a company specializing in new materials and antimicrobials that developed the additive used by JBS Couros.
ACTON, Mass. — July 19, 2021 — To demonstrate the resilience of the Lexus LC Convertible under extreme weather conditions, Toyota Motor Europe (TME) recently froze the vehicle at -18°C (-40°F). While in deep freeze at the Millbrook Cold Weather Chamber, the convertible was outfitted with a high-performance Sonnenland A5B/DS soft top material from Haartz that shielded its interior components for 12 hours. In the past, this type of protection was normally only offered by coupes and hardtops.
Manufactured using aspects like a fabric laminate and enhanced 3-ply topping, the Sonnenland A5B/DS material from Haartz demonstrates the latest innovation in textile and laminate manufacturing. This successful test with Lexus shows that automotive materials, like those manufactured by Haartz can provide the protection of a hardtop without sacrificing the comfort and feel of a soft top convertible.
“Haartz has always committed itself to providing the highest quality soft top material for convertible owners on the market,” stated Matthew Williams, vice president, global automotive exteriors & new markets for Haartz. “This test from Toyota Motor Europe and Lexus shows that by using the latest innovations in textile manufacturing, soft tops can provide just as much protection for your vehicle against the elements as a traditional hardtop cover would.”
With technology ever-progressing, Haartz can detail the innovative process of manufacturing the Sonnenland A5B/DS material and other plastic and textile products currently under development. To date, Haartz remains a world leader in highly engineered and uniquely designed convertible toppings, flexible interior trim and interior surface materials.
