From the Sector

IFFT/Interior Lifestyle Living has wrapped up three successful days of business at Tokyo Big Sight’s South Halls. From 18 – 20 October 2021, a total of 11,147 visitors found their way to the fairground. Assembling again for the first time since the pandemic began, 300 exhibitors from five different countries and regions welcomed visitors with an extensive and diverse selection of products in 10,390 sqm of gross exhibition space.

“As the place where designers set trends and decision makers meet, IFFT/Interior Lifestyle Living has once again proven to be the premier trade fair in Japan for the entire living space,” says Mr Yasushi Kajiwara, Managing Director of Messe Frankfurt Japan Ltd. “After last year’s fair was deferred due to the pandemic, we worked hard to present industry buyers with new impulses and ideas at this edition. This included an additional focus on up-and-coming designers at dedicated zones for new talent.”
 
Fresh talent and green living
With products for the entire living space assembled at the fairground, trade buyers were once again spoilt for choice, but a number of product zones in particular were worthy of special attention.
As a new initiative for 2021, the renowned Japanese architect Mr Keiji Ashizawa gathered prospective new interior designers and their products at the highly anticipated '+Talents' Zones.
 
To maximise connections, a series of fairground tours were also arranged to bring architects closer to the best new designers and their interior products for the Japanese market. A new 'Ethical' Zone was also introduced to spotlight green living, up-cycling, fair trade, and more.

Autoneum presented an insight into current market trends and the Company's strategic focus in the areas of electromobility and sustainability, as well as an outlook on its medium-term financial targets at the media and financial analysts brunch.

In addition to current market expectations and trends in the automotive industry, the focus will be on Autoneum’s activities and growth potential in the areas of e-mobility and sustainability. Matthias Holzammer, CEO, and other experts of the Company will present Autoneum's latest developments with regard to New Mobility and sustainable product innovations as well as their strategic classification. CFO Bernhard Wiehl will also present Autoneum's new medium-term financial targets.

Based on the further expansion of the portfolio with sustainable products and new applications for e-vehicles as well as the increase in market share with existing and new customers, particularly in Asia, the Company expects a profitable revenue growth at market level in the medium term. Based on the expected revenue development, further progress in the turnaround of North America as well as the consistently practiced operational excellence in all business areas, Autoneum targets an EBITDA margin of 13% in the medium term. Accordingly, a solid free cash flow in the amount of 6% of revenue and a further increase in the equity ratio to over 35% are targeted. The Company still intends to pay a dividend to shareholders of at least 30% of the profit attributable to Autoneum shareholders.

For its 2021 Green Collection, the Italian luxury hosiery brand Sarah Borghi presents a broadened product offer in terms of colors and categories, meeting the needs of a stylish, yet sustainable consumer. By mixing fashion, quality, innovation and research, the tights and stockings powerhouse continues its development in the journey towards a conscious future.

The evolution of the Green Collection, the sustainable hosiery collection first launched in 2020, confirms the efforts of the brand in promoting a new generation of attractive fashion and design which actively encourages and supports a responsible change in culture and smart products offer.

Lately, a decisive step has been added to the brand’s history thanks to the publication of the Integrated Report by Gizeta Calze, Sarah Borghi’s top-notch producer and first Italian company in the hosiery sector to include sustainability throughout its business model. A commitment of responsibility and transparency on a path that has been carried on for years and that, today more than ever, becomes of the utmost importance, as stated by Luca Marzocchi, CEO of Gizeta Calze. The Integrated Report provides a complete view of the business strategy, operating model and governance, which combines financial information with sustainability insights, conceived as complementary to other strategies and, indeed, essential for increasing business value.

The collection
The collection presents a range of versatile, colorful products combined with extra-luxury comfort and designed for every type of woman: from seductive tights to everyday socks, together with knee- highs, up to athleisure with leggings.
 
The responsible collection features two new generation materials. One is Amni Soul Eco®, the world’s first biodegradable in anaerobic conditions polyamide 6.6 yarn that degrades in around 5 years* after disposing of in landfill, developed by SOLVAY and produced and distributed by FULGAR. The other is ROICA™ V550 by leading fiber manufacturer Asahi Kasei, a premium sustainable stretch yarn boasting the Gold Level Material Health Certificate by Cradle-to-Cradle Product Innovation Institute** as it has been evaluated for impact on human and environmental health. Moreover, it smartly breaks down without releasing harmful substances in the environment according to Hohenstein Environment Compatibility Certification. Key elements that makes ROICA™ V550 a precious choice when it comes to Circular Economy material approach.

The Lenzing Group reported a significant year-on-year improvement in revenue and earnings in the first nine months of 2021 thanks to the largely positive market environment. Growing optimism in the textile and apparel industry and the recovery in retail led to a substantial increase in demand and prices on the global fiber market, particularly at the start of the current financial year.

Revenue rose by 32.9 percent to EUR 1.59 bn in the first nine months of 2021. This increase is attributable to a higher sales volume as well as higher viscose prices, which stood at more than RMB 15,000 in May thanks to significantly higher demand for fibers, especially in Asia. The focus on wood-based specialty fibers such as the TENCEL™, LENZING™ ECOVERO™ and VEOCEL™ branded fibers also had a positive impact on the revenue trend; the share of specialty fibers in fiber revenue amounted to 72.4 percent in the reporting period. This more than offset the negative impact of less favorable currency effects.

The earnings performance essentially reflects the positive market trend and was additionally reinforced by efficiency-enhancement measures. Energy, raw material and logistics costs increased significantly during the entire reporting period. EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) more than doubled to EUR 297.6 mn in the first nine months of 2021 (compared to EUR 138.5 mn in the first nine months of 2020). The EBITDA margin rose from 11.6 percent to 18.7 percent. Net profit for the period amounted to EUR 113.4 mn (compared to a net loss of EUR minus 23.3 mn in the first nine months of 2020) and earnings per share to EUR 3.77 (compared to EUR minus 0.1 in the first three months of 2020).

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited announced it has strengthened its Indorama Management Council (IMC) – the company’s highest operational management committee – by rotating experienced executives and adding the COOs of the Fibers and Integrated Oxides & Derivatives (IOD) segments.

The elevation of Mr Christopher Kenneally, COO of Fibers, and Mr Alastair Port, COO of IOD, to the IMC – will enable more agile decision making as they build their high-growth segments into self-sustaining organizations that maximize value for IVL stakeholders. The appointments are effective immediately.

In a rotation of roles, Mr Sanjay Ahuja, the current CFO of IVL, will switch to Interim COO of Combined PET (CPET) for a period of 2 years, effective January 2022, as part of a rotation of senior expertise across the IMC. He will report to Mr D K Agarwal as CEO, who will take on additional broader responsibilities as CFO. The CPET role rotation will enable new dynamism in this largest segment of IVL and establish a self-sustaining organization for the permanent successor that IMC selects over this period. Mr Agarwal will be supported by Mr Ashok Jain in an enhanced role as Controller, covering Banking & Finance, Global Consolidation, Taxation and M&A.

Further, Mr Klaus Holz will join the IMC as Chief Human Resources Officer, effective 1 January 2022. He replaces Mr Roberto Bettini who will retire at the end of 2021.

Penn Textile Solutions GmbH is one of the world's leading manufacturers of elastic fabrics for under-wear, corsetry, sportswear and swimwear, as well as highly functional textiles for technical applications. The fully integrated company with its own warping, circular knitting, warp knitting, dyeing and finishing facilities currently employs around 150 people.

Penn has long relied on Mahlo
Penn has relied on the cooperation with Mahlo for years. The manufacturer of measuring, control and automation systems for web-shaped goods has decades of experience in the field of process control. Until the summer of 2020, the textile manufacturer had been using a basis weight measurement system in the stenter frame outlet with beta radiation and manual control. "When the krypton preparations had passed their half-life, we had to make a decision: Exchange or replace the system right away", says operations manager Franz Schütte. They sat down with Mahlo representatives and looked for the best solution. Since the systems had already reached a high operating age and the measurement was limited to the basis weight, a new concept was decided upon. "Mahlo made us the best price-performance offer." The new system should be even more efficient and easier to operate for the special makes..

The compression zones of the functional fabric create corresponding distortions within the textile surface in its raw state, which have to be smoothed out in the fixing process. This work is now taken over by a process control system. The Mahlo Famacont PMC-15 with two measuring points automatically controls the leading of the stenter frame by continuously and contactlessly determining the mesh density. In addition, the Patcontrol PCS-20 process control system ensures that the dimensions of the different zones are recorded and also automatically controlled. "The previous beta-radiation facility was not able to collect this kind of data," explains the Penn operations manager. Another important aspect for the textile manufacturer: the complete and costly radiation protection is no longer necessary with the new systems.

Despite very good experience with Mahlo in the past, every change naturally involves a risk. Penn did not have to rely on theoretical considerations, however, but carried out tests in advance with appropriate sample material in the Mahlo test laboratory. The results convinced the decision-makers.

• CHIC Shanghai successfully completed under high safety and hygiene conditions
• The trend hotspot for the Chinese sales market: Lively interest of more than 20,000 trade visitors in the new collections of the 487 brands at the NECC in Shanghai
• Sustainability in great demand in all areas
• CHIC Shenzhen focuses on trading in the strong sales region of South China and the international clusters Hong Kong and Macao: Date postponed from November to December due to current Covid-19 cases in China

The fashion world of China met at the physical event CHIC Shanghai from October 9-11, 2021 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai

487 exhibitors presented themselves in clearly structured segments on 50,000 square meters. Maximum compliance with the security measures determined the course. Against this background the exhibitors welcomed more than 20,000 trade visitors and reported cheerful orders.

The 487 exhibitors were also satisfied with the business activity and reported successful orders.

Perfect presentation platform: the CHIC Matching area
The expanded matchmaking events at CHIC were also enthusiastically received.
In total, over 37 matchmaking events took place in the specially set up matching area consisting of several presentation platforms and private negotiation rooms at the fair. From company presentations by industry giants such as Shein, through trade fair tours to selected one-on-one discussions, CHIC brought exhibitors and visitors together in a targeted manner. More than 600 participants have been matched by this CHIC event. Among them visitors such as Shein, Walmart, Wang Yi Yan Xuan, Tiktok, BAILIAN GROUP, LIQUN etc, parts of the organizer's broad network.

Continuing growth: sustainable productions
Sustainability is one of the most important consumer trends in China. CHIC played the theme in all exhibition areas; from womenswear, kidswear and menswear to accessories, sustainable collections were represented in all segments.

Design talent and traditional styles
In the IMPULSES area, innovative designer brands showed inspiring trends, high-quality collections and fashion variety like Kmusso, MIJA or Yu Jian Tian with its new design collection made by natural materials such as mulberry silk and wool, presenting the unique traditional Chinese style.

CHIC Shanghai presented the entire range of the fashion business in a total of 12 exhibition segments. This year's acclaimed visual concept, created by lava beijing, has been awarded the Bronze Award of the Hiiibrand Awards 2021 in the Identity category.

Digital tools and physical events
In addition to the on-site trade fair offer, CHIC is expanding its reach through the consistent use of digital tools. The CHIC app combines all the functions needed for a successful trade fair participation, from the digital trade fair catalog and matchmaking to direct appointments and live chats for all participants who cannot be on site.

The next CHIC in Shanghai will take place in March 2022.

Montalvo, international specialist in web tension control, has hired Mr. Mike Cunningham as their new Europe Director of Sales and Service. Mr. Cunningham will oversee Montalvo’s European sales and service efforts, implementing Montalvo’s regional strategy, increasing and developing the sales service, and support for Montalvo across EMEA. Mr. Cunningham’s primary responsibilities include: developing and coordinating partnerships, forming new alliances with key players while bringing new innovations into the market, and leading both Montalvo’s direct sales, technical, and customer service teams, as well as their resellers and distributors.

Montalvo Chief Executive Officer Bryon Williams said, “This is very exciting for all of us here at Montalvo, as we are expanding our European foothold and market. Mike brings an exciting energy to the team and the market, with a unique perspective and customer focus to which our customers are already responding well. In addition, Mike is bringing new ideas and innovations to our growing business while expanding our reach and responsiveness in the EMEA region. We look forward to what the future holds.”

Mr. Cunningham has a background in product design and engineering and complex bespoke industrial solutions with a bias towards computing and networking solutions in the manufacturing industry. Mr. Cunningham holds an engineering degree from the prestigious Brunel University School in London.

• IVL is celebrating a decade of PET recycling and carbon reduction milestones
• Over 10 years, IVL has achieved a 100x increase in recycled PET

Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL), a world-class sustainable chemical company, launches its 10th annual Sustainability Report and a video celebrating a decade of ambitious PET recycling and carbon reduction milestones. The company is committed to intensifying its drive towards ending plastic waste and a more circular economy in the decade ahead.

Since its first Sustainability Report in 2011, IVL has grown its sustainability initiatives through the 3Ps – People, Planet and Prosperity. From the baseline in 2013, the company achieved a 10% reduction in GHG intensity, 4% in energy intensity and 7% in water intensity. It also increased total waste diverted from landfill from 48% to 84% in 2020. Moreover, IVL’s global PET recycling capacity has improved almost 100 times from 3,576 tons per year in 2011 – the first entry of IVL to the PET recycling business – to more than 330,000 tons per year in the second quarter of 2021.

Celebrating 10 years of sustainability reporting
Throughout the decade, IVL has voluntarily adopted international standards for its sustainability reports to drive benefits for the environment, society and economy. The effort resulted in recognition by world-class sustainability ratings agencies such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI) and the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI).

Recent Sustainability Reports have featured business cases and special situations such as COVID-19. In 2016, IVL was the first Thailand-based company to introduce an additional, shorter version of the report called the Sustainability Report Executive Summary. This year, IVL has made further improvements with an interactive approach, including links to videos and shortcuts to highlighted articles. As a global company operating in 33 countries, the report is available in 15 languages.

On track to recycle 50 billion bottles per year by 2025
In 2020 IVL recycled 10.1 billion PET bottles and is on track to recycle 50 billion bottles per year by 2025. The company’s global reach and leadership position as the world’s largest PET and recycled PET resin producer allow IVL to leverage a closed-loop system. In 2020 IVL invested in three additional recycling facilities and recently acquired CarbonLite’s recycling assets in Texas.

It looks like a normal shirt, but it has it all: The new SmartTex shirt uses integrated sensors to transfer physiological data from astronauts to Earth via a wireless communication network. In this way, the effects of the space environment on the human cardiovascular system will be evaluated and documented, especially with regard to long-term manned space missions. Developed by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in cooperation with DSI Aerospace Technology, the Medical Faculty of Bielefeld University and textile research partner Hohenstein, SmartTex will be tested for the first time as part of the Wireless Compose-2 (WICO2) project by German ESA astronaut Dr. Matthias Maurer, who will leave for his ‘Cosmic Kiss’ mission on the International Space Station (ISS) for six months on October 30, 2021.

"We were already able to gain valuable insights into the interaction of the body, clothing and climate under microgravity conditions during the previous projects Spacetex (2014) and Spacetex2 (2018)," explains Hohenstein Senior Scientific Expert Dr. Jan Beringer. The insights provided at the time by the mission of ESA astronaut Dr. Alexander Gerst have now been directly incorporated into the development of the new SmartTex shirt at Hohenstein. "Matthias Maurer can wear his tailor-made shirt comfortably on his body during his everyday work on the International Space Station. For this, we used his body measurements as the basis for our cut development and the production of the shirt. We integrated the necessary sensors as well as data processing and communication modules into the shirt's cut in such a way that they interfere as little as possible and are always positioned in the right place, regardless of the wearing situation. This is the prerequisite for reliably measuring the relevant physiological data." The SmartTex shirt is intended to provide a continuous picture of the vital functions of astronauts. This will be particularly relevant for future long-term manned space missions to the Moon and Mars.

For example, during the BEAT experiment (Ballistocardiography for Extraterrestrial Applications and long-Term missions), Matthias Maurer will be the first astronaut to wear a T-shirt equipped with sensors that measure his ballistocardiographic data such as pulse and relative blood pressure. For this purpose, the sensors were calibrated in the :envihab research facility at the DLR Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Cologne. Details on the contraction rate and opening and closing times of the heart valves, which are normally only accessible via sonography or computer tomography, can also be read from the data material. The goal is to study the effects of the space environment on the human cardiovascular system. To be able to analyse these effects realistically, Matthias Maurer's ballistocardiographic data will be recorded before, during and after his stay on the ISS. For the future, a technology transfer of the SmartTex shirt for application in the field of fitness or even in telemedicine is conceivable.

Wireless Compose-2 (WICO2)
The project was planned and prepared by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and its cooperation partners DSI Aerospace Technology, Hohenstein and the University of Bielefeld. The wireless communication network reads sensor data and can determine the position of people and objects in space by propagation times of radio pulses. It is also available as a platform for several experiments on the ISS. The determined data is temporarily stored within the network and read out at regular intervals by the astronauts. These data packets are then transferred to Earth via the ISS link and analysed by the research teams. It can generate its own energy from artificial light sources via solar cells.

ESA astronaut Dr. Matthias Maurer in summer 2021 during preliminary talks on the Cosmic Kiss mission in DLR's :envihab in Cologne. © DLR

Sensors measure physiological data during a test run on Earth. © DLR

With the "SmartTex" shirt, astronauts can wear the necessary sensors comfortably on their bodies. © DLR

Dr. Jan Beringer, Hohenstein Senior Scientific Expert. © Hohenstein