From the Sector

From April 24 to 26, the Karachi Expo Center hosts a new edition of Igatex, Pakistan’s leading textile‑industry trade fair. At a decisive moment for the region’s manufacturing sector, Jeanologia presents its proposal for technological integration to drive modernization through automation, sustainability, and productivity.

With nearly two decades of presence in Pakistan, Jeanologia has helped transform the local production landscape by promoting competitive models based on cutting‑edge technologies such as laser, ozone, e‑Flow, and water‑recycling systems like H2Zero. Designed to be accessible to both small workshops and large corporations, these solutions have enabled more sustainable and efficient denim production—reducing water consumption by up to 85%, minimizing chemical use, and ensuring safer processes for workers.

At this year’s Igatex, Jeanologia is highlighting the potential of its laser technology to automate processes and optimize marking quality and speed—critical factors for boosting productivity and lowering cost per garment. It will unveil Compact Super, the fastest laser machine on the market, as part of its portfolio of high‑productivity solutions built on intelligence, speed, and precision—elements essential for the future of the textile sector, especially denim.

All these innovations converge in the Laundry 5.Zero model, the first denim‑finishing plant to guarantee zero pollution. Already operational in Pakistan, this solution represents the evolution from traditional factories to fully digital, scalable production systems with a neutral cost balance.

Pakistan: a strategic hub in the new global manufacturing map
With 8.5% of its GDP tied to textiles, Pakistan has established itself as a key node in the new global manufacturing map. Its favorable cost structure and robust production facilities make it a strategic destination for global textile operators. Jeanologia works closely with local mills, brands, and exporters to accelerate this transformation and reinforce the country’s leadership in the sustainable denim era.

With over 35% of the world’s five billion annual jeans produced using its technologies, the Spanish company consolidates its position as a strategic partner for brands, manufacturers, and exporters worldwide reaffirming its mission to transform the textile industry through innovation and sustainability.

By participating in Igatex 2025, Jeanologia underscores that the future of textile manufacturing lies in digitalization, automation, and sustainability—recognizing Pakistan as a pivotal hub in this transformative process.

With a clear focus on sustainability, Barmag, a subsidiary of the Swiss Oerlikon Group, is presenting comprehensive solutions from its product brands Oerlikon Barmag and Oerlikon Neumag for DTY and carpet yarn production at the Morocco Stitch & Tex Expo in Casablanca. From May 13 to 15, trade visitors can talk to experts from Barmag and the joint venture BB Engineering (BBE) at the Unionmatex booth (booth B4) to get an idea of the portfolio of the chemical fiber machine manufacturer.

Sustainable and efficient – the production of DTY yarns
Oerlikon Barmag offers a wide range of DTY machine configurations for the efficient and sustainable production of high-quality textured yarns made of various polymers – from polyester and polyamide to polypropylene, PLA and PTT. The modular machines – whether manual or automatic – produce yarns for excellent downstream processing at optimal OPEX costs.

Fancy yarns increasingly in demand
The demand for textiles with special characteristics is continuously increasing. For the production of these effect yarns, such as cotton-like DTY, linen-like DTY or wool-like DTY, Oerlikon Barmag offers a variety of processes and additional components. With its high-quality and flexible technology as well as its detailed knowledge of the yarn path and the required parameter settings, Oerlikon Barmag is the ideal partner for the successful and flexible production as well as the continuous further development of these specialty yarns.

Extended product range for carpet yarns
Thanks to its comprehensive knowledge of all relevant technologies in manmade fiber spinning, Oerlikon Barmag is the only manufacturer worldwide that can expand its range for the production of carpet yarns. The system concept, based on a POY and texturing process, is designed for the carpet and home textile sector and produces particularly soft and bulky polyester threads with BCF-like properties. The aim is to produce yarns with a titer of up to 1300dtex and over 1000 filaments, such as 1300dtex f1152, 660dtex f1152 and 990dtex f768. The machine concept includes the well-known WINGS HD POY winder and the eAFK Big-V texturing machine.

Innovative bicomponent BCF yarn for the carpet market
Quality, efficiency and performance – with its latest development in the field of bicomponent yarns for carpet production, Barmag's product brand Oerlikon Neumag is meeting the carpet market's demand for innovative BCF yarns. The new BICO-BCF yarn is characterized by a richer and higher volume and simultaneously significantly reduces the raw material consumption during carpet manufacturing.

VarioFil® – versatile compact spinning system for diverse applications and specialties
The VarioFil® system from BBE is ideal for a broad range of products, whether it be carpets, upholstery fabrics, fashion, sports, seat belts or airbags. This compact turnkey spinning line is particularly suitable for producers of small batches or specialized products. It flexibly processes various polymers such as PET, PP, PA 6, PA 6.6 and PBT. In combination with Oerlikon Barmag texturing machines, a wide range of textile standard yarns as well as textured yarns with BCF-like properties can be produced.

The VarioFil® R+ enables the direct recycling and processing of PET bottle flakes and PET waste from the start-up process into POY. This sustainable machine concept offers a high degree of product flexibility, including the production of spun-dyed yarn.

JeTex® air texturing offers a versatile product portfolio
BB Engineering also offers flexible solutions for the subsequent texturing of yarns. The JeTex® air texturing system perfectly complements the Oerlikon Barmag DTY systems and expands the product portfolio to include high-quality ATY based on POY and FDY for various textile applications. The centerpiece of the system is the texturing box developed by BB Engineering, which ensures gentle yarn treatment with reliable texturing effects and production efficiency.

“From waste to value” with VacuFil and Visco
BBE's VacuFil PET recycling system transforms textile waste into high-quality rPET melt. The technology is based on decades of experience in extrusion, filtration and spinning and combines gentle large-area filtration with targeted IV control. VacuFil processes various input materials, from bottle flakes to production waste and post-consumer waste. The patented Visco+ component removes volatile contaminants and automatically regulates the IV. The recycled melt can be added to the main melt stream, pelletized into chips or fed directly back into the spinning mill. The VacuFil system is modular and flexibly adaptable to customer needs.

The Lenzing Group, a leading supplier of regenerated cellulose fibers for the textile and nonwovens industries, will be presenting its sustainable innovations at Hannover Messe 2025, the world’s leading trade fair for the industry, from March 31 to April 4. As a co-exhibitor at the EU Commission’s stand, the leading integrated fiber group is representing a European flagship company in the clean industry.

Lenzing is currently the only producer of regenerated cellulosic fibers with a verified, science-based net-zero target. Lenzing is also proactively developing and promoting innovation to provide economically viable and scalable solutions to the global textile waste problem and accelerate the transition to a circular economy model.

A current example of Lenzing’s pioneering work in this field is the CELLFIL project, which was launched in 2024 and is co-funded by the EU with EUR 6.9 mn. As part of this project, Lenzing is working with the non-profit organization RTDS Group and 13 other partners from research and industry to promote the scaling of lyocell filaments.

Since 2021, Lenzing has been working with Swedish pulp producer Södra to jointly develop new processes for recycling used textiles on an industrial scale. The project was supported in 2023 as part of the LIFE 2022 program with a grant of EUR 10 mn from the EU.

Another example of Lenzing’s innovative strength is the project “Glacial Threads: From Forests to Future Textiles”, which combines glacier protection and textile recycling and will be presented at HANNOVER MESSE 2025.

Sports company PUMA and RE&UP Recycling Technologies have signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) to scale a fully circular textile solution, transforming textile waste into RE&UP’s Next-Gen Recycled Cotton Fibers and Recycled Polyester Chips.

Circularity is one of the focus areas of PUMA’s Vision 2030 sustainability goals and the company has already scaled up its RE:FIBRE textile-to-textile recycling program, producing millions of football jerseys made out of an increasing share of recycled textiles. RE&UP has become a key Next-Gen raw material partner in the RE:FIBRE program supporting PUMA’s ambition to reduce reliance on bottle-recycled polyester, enhancing true circularity while minimizing textile waste. Due to its previous success, this collaboration has now evolved into a broader global commitment to fully enabling circularity.

As part of the expansion, PUMA will introduce RE:FIBRE to the Americas, leveraging RE&UP’s recycled raw materials within its local supply chain. Both companies have a long-term commitment to scaling sustainable solutions in the textile industry. By 2030, PUMA aims to use 30% fiber-to-fiber recycled polyester fabric for its apparel products.

RE&UP’s revolutionary recycling technology is a key enabler of the circular transition of the industry, especially due to its unique capability to process diverse textile feedstocks, including post-consumer and post-industrial waste, as well as complex blended textiles like polycotton and polyester-elastane—materials, traditionally difficult to recycle. Powered with 100% renewable energy and leveraging advanced technologies such as decolorization processes, RE&UP sets a new benchmark for sustainable, low-impact recycled textile fibers.

CARBIOS, a pioneer in the development and industrialization of biological technologies to reinvent the life cycle of plastic and textiles, announces the resignation of Philippe Pouletty from term of office as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director, as well as from his term of office as Chief Executive Officer, a position he had accepted on a transitional basis on 18 December 2024.
 
The Board of Directors has taken note of this decision and thanks Philippe Pouletty for his contribution to CARBIOS' development.

The Board of Directors has appointed Isabelle Parize as Chairwoman of the Board and Vincent Kamel as Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
 
Continuing the work already undertaken, Vincent Kamel will focus on successfully executing CARBIOS' strategic objectives, including securing the additional financing needed to build its PET biorecycling plant in Longlaville.

Isabelle Parize is CEO of DELSEY. Isabelle Parize began her career at Procter & Gamble, where she held strategic positions in marketing and brand management for 13 years. She then joined Henkel as Vice President EMEA. On the strength of this experience, she became head of Canal Sat, the French media group. She then pursued her career in the beauty sector, becoming President of the Managing Board of Nocibé, one of France's leading perfume retailers, in 2011. In 2015, she was appointed Managing Director of Douglas AG, a European perfume giant, where she steered the company's expansion and modernization.
 
In 2018, she took a new role as CEO of DELSEY. Between 2021 and 2025, she will continue to support the Group as President of its Supervisory Board. Isabelle Parize has served on Coty Inc.'s Board since 2020.
 
Isabelle Parize has been a member of the CARBIOS Board of Directors since 2022.
 
Vincent Kamel, with over 38 years' experience in the polymer and chemical industries, has held management positions in companies such as Rhône-Poulenc, Rhodia and Solvay, both in France and abroad (China, South Korea, Brazil), notably as General Manager of Solvay's polyamide division, Director of the Coatis business unit and Director for Asia in the engineering plastics sector.
 
Vincent Kamel has been involved in CARBIOS’ development since 2021 as a member of the company's Board of Directors, and since December 2024, as an advisor to CARBIOS’ executive management.

Through a nationwide network of charity shops, donation centres and clothing banks the Salvation Army Trading Company (SATCoL) work with community groups, large organisations, local authorities, schools, colleges and individuals - all with a shared aim to help others and help protect our planet.

SATCoL work in partnership with brands and retailers to accept excess, returned and end-of- line stock of clothing and home-goods to be resold in its charity shops across the country.

This partnership opportunity for brands helps them to save on additional storage costs, create more room in their warehouse for new stock and divert more items away from disposal.

By extending the useful life of products, Salvation Army Trading Company and its partners make a positive contribution to reducing unnecessary waste, greenhouse gas emissions, and raising vital funds for charity work. In addition to this, SATCoL’s investment in modern processing centres and new technology means they can offer new ways of reusing and recycling textiles on a commercial scale, never seen in the UK. The trading arm of the charity also support businesses to amplify the message around their sustainable collaboration by making the public aware of their partnership goals and aspirations to create lasting change.

As a call to action, SATCoL produced a photoshoot with leading fashion industry photographer Camille Sanson and Fashion Stylist Karl Willett whose work includes styling celebrities for The Grammy’s, The Met Gala, Vanity Fair magazine and more.

Karl shared “It was a pleasure to be part of the Corporate Donations shoot, a scheme that is contributing to positive change and sustainability for the planet by diverting more everyday items away from landfill.”

The stylish images demonstrate the potential of second-hand fashion, electronic devices and home-goods, all of which the organisation is keen to receive. The Salvation Army Trading Company has received industry wide recognition for their efforts to support brand and retailers to meet their sustainability goals and encourage second-hand shopping.

Shaunacy Burne, Corporate Partnerships Manager at Salvation Army Trading Company shared: “We are partnering with businesses to receive their obsolete, end of line and faulty stock to be reused or repurposed. Not only are we helping brands to meet their CSR goals with our sustainable solutions, but the donations we receive are sold in our retail outlets to help raise vital funds for our parent charity. We’re keen to explore partnership opportunities with retailers, together we can reduce waste and divert more items away from landfill. Please get in touch, we want to hear from you.”

International technology group ANDRITZ has supplied and commissioned a reXline tearing system for Buitex, Semin Group, located in Cours, France. The new production line enables the company to expand textile waste recycling for sustainable insulation production.

Founded in 1895, Buitex is a French manufacturer of high-performance recycled products. As a pioneer in circular economy practices, Buitex transforms textile waste into high-performance insulation and comfort products. Since joining the Semin Group in 2023, the company has operated a 20,000 m² production site equipped with six production lines and has become one of Europe’s major players in the circular economy.

This second ANDRITZ tearing line at Buitex increases the company’s recycling capacity while maintaining high fiber purity, thanks to an advanced hard-point removal system. The latest-generation cyclone technology further improves disruptor sorting, enhancing overall efficiency. The system can process up to an additional 2.5 tons of fiber per hour, enabling the production of recycled fibers for applications such as bedding, construction, and automotive insulation.

"It is crucial for us to make the building insulation industry more sustainable by giving new life to post-consumer clothes that would otherwise be incinerated or end up in landfills. The European market has abundant raw materials and a strong demand for sustainable insulation products. With this new line, ANDRITZ enables us to significantly enhance our recycling capabilities,” says Adam Adamowicz, CEO of Buitex.

Beaulieu Fibres International is exhibiting its next-generation sustainable fibre solutions for high performance nonwovens in various industries at IDEA25 in Miami Beach end of April.

“IDEA25 is at the intersection of nonwoven materials and sustainability, with a focus on innovation and research to address environmental challenges and new opportunities. With our Sustainable Fibres Program, we offer low carbon, recyclable and circular solutions where performance and sustainability go hand in hand, bringing value in co-design and TCO performance,” said Maria Teresa Tomaselli, General Manager, Beaulieu Fibres International.

Self-reinforced PP fibres for fully recyclable automotive composites
The company will be presenting its comprehensive range of polypropylene (PP) bonding fibres designed for thermoplastic lightweight composites and automotive interior fabrics. These fibres assist car manufacturers and OEMs in meeting stringent performance, cost-efficiency, and sustainability standards. Beaulieu’s PP fibres are engineered to enhance the mechanical, thermal, and functional properties of composites while reducing vehicle weight.

Fibres for high performance liquid and air filtration
Beaulieu has set new performance standards for the fast-growing air and liquid filtration industry rolling out its full range of MONO and BICO fine-medium count fibres, as an outcome of its investment into R&D efforts to promote staple fibres in the field of high efficiency filtration.

In addition to its existing portfolio of PP fibres for liquid filtration, compliant with FDA and European food contact regulations, Beaulieu is launching a new bicomponent fibre range in PET/PE, PP/PE for high loft filtration media and fine count mono PP fibres for tribo-electric charged air filter media.

The fine count mono fibres are customized according to the line specifics of the nonwoven producer and guarantee up to 20% higher filtration efficiencies for nonwovens in combination with state-of-the-art acrylic counter fibre compared to standard PP fibres used in this application. Typical applications are air handling units in larger buildings and residential furnaces.

Premium outdoor PP fibres for resilient, weather-resistant crop protection solutions
Engineered for superior mechanical strength and resistance to environmental stress factors, these fibres enhance durability in needle-punched fabrics, ensuring long-lasting protection in the field. Their advanced UV stabilization prevents degradation from prolonged sun exposure, extending the lifespan of crop covers, while their hydrophobic properties repel water, reducing moisture-related damage and maintaining breathability.

Ultrabond, design for recycling
Discover UltraBond innovative bonding staple fibres that replace the need for chemical binders. They open a path to create 100% polypropylene (PP) needlepunched fabrics which meet the same performance requirements as traditional constructions, while reducing end-of-life environmental impact.

The 100% polyolefin-based needlepunched fabrics are fully recyclable, reducing waste generation and creating high value PP recycled products as new materials. Furthermore, the sustainable fabrics are produced with an improved Total Cost of Ownership and with a significant ecological footprint reduction.

Beaulieu strengthening its position in the hygiene market
With a full portfolio already serving the hygiene sector, Beaulieu is focusing on next-generation speciality bicomponent solutions designed to enhance softness, processability, and sustainability in absorbent hygiene products.

Hypersoft fibres are specifically engineered for topsheet applications in direct contact with the skin: 25% improvement in softness compared to standard reference fibres while maintaining optimal processability has been achieved.

Meralux is a bicomponent trilobal fibre that improves nonwoven materials by providing better opacity, comfort, and absorption. It also promotes sustainability by saving raw materials and reducing carbon emissions by up to 60%.

With the Fraunhofer Innovation Platform for Fibers, Processing and Recycling Solutions at Innovative Composite Center FIP-MIRAI@ICC, the Fraunhofer Institute for Casting, Composite and Processing Technology IGCV and the Innovative Composite Center (ICC), Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT) in Kanazawa area are setting new standards in the circular economy. With a total budget of 2 million euros - half funded by the Fraunhofer-Society and half by the ICC - the platform aims to develop solutions to global challenges in the field of composite recycling. A Fraunhofer Innovation Platform (FIP) is a temporary research unit hosted and operated by a research institution abroad, which is set up in close cooperation with one or more Fraunhofer Institutes in Germany. With “Mirai”, the Japanese word for “future”, the FIP-MIRAI@ICC sends out a clear signal: Waste is seen as a valuable resource and reused through new technologies. The aim is to create a forward-looking circular economy that guarantees sustainability for future generations. At the heart of the five-year cooperation (2025-2029) is a central location in Kanazawa area, which brings together researchers from the Fraunhofer IGCV and the ICC with companies, universities and customers.

Global challenges as an opportunity for innovation
The increasing use of composite materials in industries such as aerospace, wind energy and sports is leading to rising volumes of hard-to-recycle waste. As early as 2023, 75 kilotons of carbon fiber waste were produced worldwide, and 350 kilotons are expected by 2028 in aviation alone. The growing use of hydrogen technologies in mobility and transportation will further exacerbate this problem.

Technological innovations for sustainability
The German-Japanese collaboration pools technological expertise: the Fraunhofer IGCV contributes its expertise in fiber-matrix separation, quality assurance of recyclates and the wet-laid process, while the ICC contributes its pressing processes and continuous double-belt press technology. Together, this creates a unique “one-stop-shop” offering for companies looking for solutions for the recycling of composite materials.

Appearance at the JEC World 2025
A first insight into the work of FIP-MIRAI@ICC will be provided at JEC World 2025 in Paris, where the platform will be represented at the Japan Pavilion. Companies, researchers and industry experts are invited to visit the stand and discuss the latest developments.

A boost for the circular economy
FIP-MIRAI@ICC aims to act as a catalyst for sustainable technologies and transform waste streams into valuable resources. The close partnership between German and Japanese players paves the way for a sustainable and future-proof industry. With this initiative, science and industry are joining forces to turn global challenges into opportunities. With the vision of promoting ecological and economic sustainability, FIP-MIRAI@ICC is setting new standards in international cooperation.

Reju™, a textile-to-textile regeneration company, and Cibutex, a cooperative of companies dedicated to establishing a more sustainable textile supply chain, announced a partnership. Through this collaboration, Reju and Cibutex will work to establish an ecosystem among Cibutex member companies.

This partnership will deliver feedstock supply of secondary raw materials derived from post-consumer textile waste to Reju for the recycling and the production of regenerated Reju Polyester™. This provides circular regeneration opportunities using Reju’s innovative textile-to-textile recycling technology.

Reju is pioneering a global infrastructure for large-scale textile waste regeneration, starting with polyester. Reju Polyester™, will have a 50% lower carbon footprint compared to virgin polyester and can be regenerated infinitely. This partnership with Cibutex will see materials from the cooperative’s member companies processed at Reju’s Regeneration Hub Zero in Frankfurt, Germany, which will be fully operational in 2025 and at future Reju Regeneration Hubs.

Cibutex brings together companies from the textile service sector to collect and process post-use business textiles, creating a pathway for these materials to be reintroduced into the production cycle. It aims to close the loop on business textile production, ensuring that B2B post-use textiles are collected and transformed into valuable raw materials. By integrating Reju’s proprietary regeneration technology, this union ensures traceability and scalability, key components of a truly sustainable and circular textile supply chain.

The joint efforts of Reju and Cibutex highlight the strength of combined ingenuity and innovation in tackling the growing challenge of textile waste. With the European Union’s mandate for textile waste collection taking effect this year, along with pending regulations in the U.S., this initiative comes at a pivotal moment, ensuring scalable solutions to meet regulatory demands and achieve a more sustainable future.