From the Sector

NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas testified at a hearing on “Supporting U.S. Workers, Businesses, and the Environment in the Face of Unfair Chinese Trade Practices” before the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee.

In written testimony submitted to the committee, Glas outlines China’s rise to dominance of global textile and apparel production and its adverse impact on the U.S. textile industry, details ways to strengthen onshoring and nearshoring of supply chains, and provides recommendations on the critical policies needed to address these illegal trade practices and rectify inequities.

“China holds the dubious distinction of being the world’s leading purveyor of illegal trade practices that are designed to unfairly bolster a blatantly export-oriented economy,” NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas says. “These predatory practices take many forms, from macroeconomic policies that grant across-the-board advantages to their manufacturers, to industry specific programs intended to dominate global markets in targeted areas. The U.S. textile industry has been a longstanding victim of China’s predatory export practices.”

“China’s virtually unlimited and unrealistic pricing power coupled with its subsidies and lack of enforceable labor and environmental standards strips benefits and undermines policy objectives throughout the U.S. free trade and preference program structure,” Glas further notes.

“A program of maximum pressure must be developed and fully enforced to reconfigure textile and apparel sourcing patterns that currently place an unhealthy and heavily weighted dependance on China,” Glas adds. “With a strong trade policy holding China accountable, the opportunities are ripe to unlock further domestic and regional investment to bolster this critical textile and apparel production chain because of the important rules of origin for this sector.  We can nearshore more production, help address the migration crisis, and assist in addressing the urgent issue of climate change and create a win-win-win for workers in the United States, workers in the region, and consumers.”

Glas outlines key policy recommendations to the committee, including:

• Enact tax incentives and other targeted critical investments to strengthen Western Hemisphere trade relationships and re-shore manufacturing
• Close the Section 321 De Minimis Tariff Loophole
• Step up enforcement of forced labor of Uyghurs and others in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)
• Firmly maintain Section 301 penalty duties on China for finished textiles and apparel products
• Immediately pass the MTB to help manufacturers with a limited list of critical inputs not made in the U.S. and review/close the mechanism in the MTB renewal which allows for finished products
• Strengthen buy-American practices for PPE and other essential products
• Block expansion of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) to include textile and apparel products
• Use trade enforcement in free trade agreements to mitigate transshipment schemes by unscrupulous importers seeking to illegally circumvent duties

International technology group ANDRITZ has received an order from Welspun Advanced Materials, India, to deliver a complete neXline spunlace line for the production of nonwoven roll goods and wipes for their new plant in Hyderabad, Telangana. The line has a capacity of up to three tons per hour. Start-up of the line is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2021.

The ANDRITZ high-capacity spunlace line will process various types of synthetic or natural fibers, such as polyester, viscose and cotton. The final products will have fabric weights ranging from 25 to 120 gsm, thus covering many applications. This neXline spunlace line also offers the option to integrate a third component from a selection of smart layers, enabling Welspun to also manufacture products for the health care and hygiene sectors.

Welspun is the largest global exporter of home textiles. Innovation and quality lie at the heart of the company’s success, which already has nonwoven production lines in operation, including needlepunch and spunlace equipment. With its new plant in Telangana, Welspun will significantly increase its existing spunlace capacity and also maintain a broad range of applications as the final products are used in hygiene, home care and industrial cleaning. The new, advanced facility is a 100,000 sqm greenfield development that is part of a larger 1,500,000 sqm industrial complex also accommodating the Welspun floorings facility.

European Textiles and Clothing (T&C) industry coming out of the Covid19-crisis, but facing new challenges ahead. This recovery may however be disrupted by the current supply chain and energy problems. Latest economic data on the European T&C industry confirm further recovery from the corona pandemic. The textile activity has now surpassed its pre-pandemic level from Q4 2019 (+3.6%); the clothing sector still remains 11.5% below, but continues to improve.

In quarter-on-quarter terms, the EU turnover showed signs of improvements across the sector. The textile turnover increased by +3.3% in Q2 2021, after slightly contracting in Q1 2021. Similarly, the business activity in the clothing sector expanded by +7% in Q2 2021, after increasing by +1% in the previous quarter.
 
In the 2nd quarter 2021, the EU-27 trade balance for T&C improved, resulting mostly from an increase of export sales across third markets and a drop of textile imports. T&C Extra-EU exports boomed by +49% as compared with the same quarter of the previous year. T&C Extra-EU imports went down by -26% as compared with the same quarter of the previous year, following a decrease of imports from some main supplier countries. EU imports from China and the UK collapsed due to a combination of Brexit and weaker demand in Europe.
 
During the second quarter of 2021, job creation was slowly stabilising in the textile industry (-0.2% q-o-q), while employment in the clothing sector continued to be affected by lower levels of production activity in industry during the first part of the year (-1.2%). When compared to its pre-pandemic level in Q4 2019, EU employment in Q2 2021 was still 4.4% down in textiles and 11.8% down in clothing.

However, this fragile recovery is hampered by higher shipping costs and prices’ increase in raw materials and energy. The cost of energy, in particular gas, has increased more than 3 times since the beginning of this year. Since the announcement of the EU’s “Fit for 55” package, we have seen CO2 prices rising above €60. This inevitably has an impact on the industry’s competitiveness, especially in a global context. The future recovery is also threatened by some factors limiting production, such as shortage of labour force and equipment, which are putting additional pressure on T&C industries.

Director General Dirk Vantyghem commented on these latest figures: “Our companies have shown great resilience during the pandemic, and their latest export performance is an encouraging sign of recovery. This recovery may however be disrupted by the current supply chain and energy problems. Once again, recent developments show that this transition towards more sustainable production can only work if organised in a global context, avoiding carbon leakage and with an effective level playing field. This must be considered in the upcoming EU Textiles Strategy.”

The 2022 edition of Cinte Techtextil China has been confirmed to take place from 6 – 8 September at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. 2021 saw 366 exhibitors and 14,868 visits recorded at the June hybrid event, which offered in-person and digital options for suppliers and buyers.

This year’s edition of Cinte Techtextil China marked the first time the fair was held annually, and the second year physical and online participation options were available, with both aspects well received by exhibitors and visitors.

Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd elaborated: “The response from our exhibitors this year was the Chinese market is still growing strongly, and having an annual edition allows them to benefit from these opportunities on a more regular basis. The domestic economy has shown strong resilience over 2020 and so far in 2021, and this has allowed the technical textiles and nonwovens sector to maintain the growth momentum it has experienced over the past years. As more economies return to normal in 2022, we expect export orders for the sector to receive a further boost which will benefit those overseas companies with business in the Chinese market.”

Cinte Techtextil China’s product categories cover 12 application areas, which comprehensively span the full range of potential uses of modern technical textiles and nonwovens. These categories also span the entire industry, from upstream technology and raw materials providers to finished fabrics, chemicals and other solutions.

• First place in the Austria’s Leading Companies business competition
• Winner of the Global Player Award for successful internationalization

Lenzing AG has two renowned national awards to celebrate. Austria’s Leading Companies (ALC), which was held on Wednesday, June 16, 2021, again recognized the country’s most successful companies. In a competition organized by PwC Austria, Die Presse newspaper and KSV1870, a credit protection firm and business platform, Lenzing won first prize in the “Climate protection” category.

At the ALC Awards, the company’s performance is what counts. Balance sheet figures and sales and earnings growth over the past three fiscal years, alongside a weighted system of key performance indicators, ensure that the results are objective. A carefully selected jury then decides on the final ranking across the various categories. “In these challenging times for the economy, the ALC Award offers valuable recognition and motivation for the future. In periods of crisis, innovation, moving with the times and a change of perspective are crucial”, added the organizers.

Successful internationalization
For no less than the 26th time, this year saw the award of the Export Prize of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber (WKO) to companies that have been highly successful in markets abroad. The jury chose Lenzing as the winner of the Global Player Award 2020.

The prize is awarded to companies that have built up a strong position on the global market over the past several years. The Global Player Award recognizes businesses that have established an efficient network outside of Austria and are actually considered to be pioneers in exporting goods or services within a particular country or sector.

• ANDRITZ receives an additional order for a high-speed spunlace line from Zhejiang Kingsafe, China

International technology Group ANDRITZ has received an order from Zhejiang Kingsafe Hygiene Materials Technology Co., Ltd. in Hezhou, China, to supply a complete new neXline spunlace line. The line is scheduled for installation and start-up during the second quarter of 2022.

This high-capacity spunlace eXcelle line will process either 100% biodegradable fibers or blends of polyester and viscose. It is dedicated to the production of hygiene and medical fabrics. The final products will have fabric weights ranging from 30 to 100 gsm, and the annual production capacity will be up to 18,000 tons.

ANDRITZ will deliver a complete line, from web forming to drying, also integrating two high-speed TT cards, the well-known JetlaceEssentiel hydroentanglement unit and the neXdry through-air dryer equipped with a neXecodry S1 system for energy saving. This combination is becoming the market benchmark for the production of lightweight spunlace fabrics dedicated to the hygiene market.

“We are proud to operate ANDRITZ nonwoven lines, which are very reliable and efficient. It helps us a lot in producing top-of-the-range, nonwoven roll goods, thus enabling us to be recognized as a key player among nonwovens producers worldwide,” says Kingsafe’s president, Mr. Huarong Yan.

Zhejiang Kingsafe Hygiene Materials Technology Co., Ltd., founded in 1987, is one of the largest companies in China producing spunlace and spunbond nonwoven roll goods, with several spunlace lines already in operation. The final products are exported all over the world and used in many fields, such as the medical sector, health care, high-tech agriculture, and high-quality consumer and household products.

The new line is now the ninth spunlace line supplied by ANDRITZ and the third with high-speed TT cards, thus confirming the successful, long-term partnership between ANDRITZ and Zhejiang Kingsafe. The order also proves that the solution provided by ANDRITZ is recognized as the benchmark for production of premium spunlace roll goods and contains the perfect combination for wipes converting machines.

• The nonwoven and technical textiles industry has become the focus of the whole world during the pandemic process.
• Most countries carried out works for these sectors with their investments, production and innovations.

During the pandemic process, a new one is added every day to the works for the nonwoven and technical textiles sector, whose importance is increasing in line with the needs. Turkey has become a center of  technical textiles by showing that its accumulation in these field and power.

In the Turkish technical textiles sector, which has an export market of 107 billion dollars worldwide and continues to break its own export record every month, R&D and innovation investments continue without slowing down. Technical textile exports, which increased by 77 percent in last November compared to the same month of the previous year, increased by 55 percent in January - November period and reached 2.5 billion dollars. Thus, technical and smart textiles and production technologies both attracted more attention and gained more importance in line with the needs of the pandemic process.

HIGHTEX 2021 International Technical Textiles and Nonwoven Fair, which will be held at Tüyap Fair and Congress Center on 22-26 June 2021, will be the exhibition where the latest technologies and products for nonwoven, technical and smart textiles which have become more important during the pandemic period and have become the focus of the whole world. Especially the products and technologies produced for the pandemic will attract more attention at the exhibition. HIGHTEX 2021 Exhibition, which will gather its exhibitors and visitors under one roof, will also allow new collaborations. At the same time, the exhibition, where developing technologies and products are exhibited, will provide a great advantage in terms of the formation of new business ideas.
HIGHTEX 2021, the first and only exhibition in Turkey in its field are expected to sign a new record in terms of number of exhibitors and visitors. You can visit www.hightexfairs.com website for more information about HIGHTEX 2021, which is preparing to attract more attention and host people than ever before.

In pandemic year 2020 circular knitting machine manufacturer Mayer & Cie. (MCT) has further improved its leading position in Turkey. So the country continues to be one of the company’s strongest and most consistent sales markets. Even in difficult years, the manufacturer and its longstanding Turkish representative Mayer Mümessillik have achieved positive results. The reasons for this year’s success, as Mayer & Cie. sees it, are the transfer of production to locations close to Europe, Turkey’s state-of-theart machinery and the increase in demand for comfortable clothing that is suitable as home office wear.

Turkish market is a growth market despite corona setback
“Compared to 2019, we anticipate a growth in the Turkish market even though the corona situation was a serious setback in the second quarter of 2020,” says Stefan Bühler, Mayer & Cie.’s regional sales manager for Turkey.

Mayer & Cie. got off to a strong start on the Bosporus in the first quarter of 2020 with additional positive effects until mid-March. This was due to a desire for production locations close to Europe. In the second quarter, during the lockdown, demand largely ground to a halt. Government measures helped to cushion the downturn. Says Ahmet M. Öğretmen, general manager of MCT’s Turkish sales partner Mayer Mümessillik: “In the second quarter, GDP was down by about 10 percent, so we got off lightly.”

Since July 2020, orders for Mayer & Cie. circular knitting machines have bounced back again. Ahmet M. Öğretmen sees an interplay of reasons for this recovery. The main reason, he says, is the low exchange rate of the Turkish lira, which has boosted exports of ready-made textiles. The Turkish daily Hürriyet reports, with reference to the Turkish state news agency, 11 percent year-on-year growth in August 2020. The most important export markets, the newspaper says, are Germany, the UK and Spain. Between them, they account for around half of exports totalling € 1.27 billion.* “This demand must be fulfilled,” Öğretmen says. “That leads to investment in machinery by manufacturers.”

Relanit is synonymous with single jersey
The machines of choice for Turkish knitwear manufacturers are regularly Mayer & Cie. machines. The long-established German firm’s share of the Turkish market is substantially higher than in other markets. The manufacturer’s position is particularly strong in the market for plain single jersey fabrics, with the Relanit 3.2 HS being the machine of choice. It achieves an extraordinarily high level of productivity, especially in processing elastomer yarns. It also handles a wide range of yarns reliably.

“Interlock is Mayer & Cie.”
Mayer & Cie. is one of the leader in the second major circular knitting discipline, rib and interlock fabrics. The machines used for double jersey fabrics are the OV 3.2 QCe, the D4 2.2 II and the D4 3.2 II. The OV 3.2 QCe knits interlock, 8-lock structures, spacers and fine gauge with 3.2 systems. The D4 2.2 II is another stalwart for rib, 8-lock and interlock. The 8-lock D4 3.2 II is the machine of choice for firms that want to manufacture structures such as Piqué, Punto di Roma or Thermal in addition to interlock.

The MBF 3.2 is another top seller in Turkey. A three-thread fleece machine, it knits fabrics for sportsand leisurewear such as hoodies and is very much in keeping with the trend in home office year 2020. “Comfortable clothing is circular knitted,” says Ahmet M. Öğretmen, “and we benefit from that of course.”

One of the world’s most state-of-the-art machine parks are in Turkey
Another advantage is the modernity of the Turkish machine park, which is doubly attractive in view of Turkey’s weak currency. Says Mayer Mümessillik general manager Öğretmen: “In the past 10 to 20 years there has been very heavy investment in high-quality machines. As a consequence we have the world’s youngest and most up-to-date production facilities.” Combined with geographical proximity to the main export markets in Europe that should prove a growth driver in the years ahead – and keep demand for Mayer & Cie. machines brisk and high.

*More informationen here.

The 26th edition of Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles concluded on 26 August, following a successful three-day run at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). It was Messe Frankfurt’s first event to take place in Shanghai in 2020 following disruptions from the pandemic. Amid the challenges presented by the pandemic, this year’s fair provided a vital opportunity for the international home and contract textile industries to source and reconnect through virtual and in-person meetings. Offering a comprehensive range of home and commercial textile products, the fair welcomed over 600 exhibitors and attracted more than 25,000 trade buyers.

Speaking as the fair concluded, Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd commented: “Intertextile has always been dedicated to providing an ideal platform for the international home textile industry and we are delighted to continue to do so during these unprecedented, challenging times. In view of the current global travel restrictions, this year’s fair offered a series of digital tools in addition to the traditional exhibition, allowing the fair to reach as wide an audience as possible. We are glad that this new format was highly recognised by the participating exhibitors and buyers alike.”

“Whilst economic activity in China is progressively recovering and domestic consumption continues to grow, the country’s exports are taking longer to rebound,” Ms Wen added. “One of the main objectives of this year’s fair was to connect domestic and international suppliers and buyers who are eager to make personal contacts and get back to business. As evidenced by feedback from numerous exhibitors and visitors, the fair has been able to help and support the industry’s recovery, so we are delighted with the results.”

Online business matching platform connected worldwide companies
 
In view of the current international travel restrictions, this year’s fair launched a brand new online business matching platform, which connected around 200 buyers from over 50 countries and regions to 60 exhibitors. The platform introduced multiple new functions, such as live-stream product presentations and a real-time chat platform to better facilitate business exchanges between suppliers and buyers from around the world. One exhibitor participating in the platform was Suzhou Roufang Textile Technology Co Ltd. “Yesterday we had a live-stream product presentation, which attracted around 200 buyers. The online platform is useful for us as we could showcase our new products and design concepts to overseas buyers, and let them know that we are still here to serve them,” the company’s Business Manager Ms Yu Qian Ru explained.

Mr Azam Osman, Manager of the Factory Depot (Pty) Ltd from South Africa expressed his satisfaction about the online platform: “I am glad that the fair provided the online business matching service where I have seen a lot of quality furniture and decorative fabric exhibitors. I’m interested in connecting with them.” Another buyer, Ms Elena Freyuk from Ziptown Trading Inc. said: "I am pleased that the fair offered both live-stream and video recording product presentations as I was unable to watch the live presentation due to time difference. The services were very thoughtful!”

A source of inspiration for the industry
 
To ensure fairgoers can discover the latest design and industry trends and insights, this year’s fringe programme presented a series of high quality events, covering the industry’s hottest topics. Some of the highlights included the 2021 Intertextile Trend Forum, which was led by Shen Lei, the Chinese representative of the Intertextile International Lifestyle Trend Committee. The forum brought together five prominent Chinese designers including Ben Chen, Ben Wu, Meng Ye, Paul Pang and Xie Ke, who presented an in-depth interpretation of the theme of 2021 Intertextile Trends, “BOUND”. Other events included Ride the Storm – Home Textile Digital Printing Forum, Tmall Seminar on industry digitalisation, Furniture & Home Textile Direct Negotiation Event and more.

• Schleswig-Holstein Minister President visits Neumünster, Germany

Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the worldwide demand for protective masks and apparel has resulted in a record number of new orders in the high double-digit millions of euros at the Oerlikon Nonwoven business unit of the Swiss Oerlikon Group. From the manufacturing site in Neumünster, Germany, the high-tech meltblown systems – with their patented ecuTE+ nonwovens electro-charging technology – are meanwhile be exported all over the world. For the very first time, a contract has now been signed with a business in Australia. Today, Schleswig-Holstein’s Minister President Daniel Günther was won over on site by the technology of a ‘global player’. Rainer Straub, Head of Oerlikon Nonwoven, was thrilled, stating: “The machines and systems for manufacturing manmade fiber and nonwovens solutions from Neumünster enjoy an outstanding reputation throughout the world. It is especially in this crisis that the technology from Schleswig-Holstein has proven itself to be absolutely world-class.”

In addition to a tour of the meltblown system and its assembly and production facilities, the visit by Minister President Daniel Günther had one purpose above all: the dialog between politicians and business. Rainer Straub, Head of Oerlikon Nonwoven, and Matthias Pilz, Head of Oerlikon Neumag, jointly expressed their thanks for the support that Oerlikon has repeatedly had the fortune to experience over the past months and years in Schleswig-Holstein and looked to the future full of hope. “As a result of our additional investment at the site here in Neumünster – be this in our new technology center that will be completed by the end of this year or in our new logistics center that is already operating – we, as one of the region’s largest employers, are continuing to move forward, supported by a State Government that is also focusing on both promoting industry and business and on advancing an efficient training and educational system, as innovation is only possible with outstanding engineers”, stated Matthias Pilz. And Rainer Straub directed his appeal specifically at the Minister President: “Treat education and training as a priority. Ultimately, they will secure the future of Schleswig-Holstein as a center of excellence and manufacturing!”

Five-million-euro digitalization program

Daniel Günther, the incumbent Minister President of Schleswig-Holstein since 2017, immediately responded, making reference to one of the Federal State’s current training initiatives: “The State Government is supporting higher education institutions and students in the present coronavirus crisis. With a five-million-euro digitalization program, we are investing on the long-term digitalization of our higher education institutions. With this, we are overall creating a future for young people, particularly also for those who could very well go on to invent the next generation of manmade fiber systems.” And the Minister President was just as impressed by the willingness and readiness with which Oerlikon has been providing high-level support since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to master the present challenges as he was with the company’s meltblown technology itself. Rainer Straub explained: “When, at the beginning of the pandemic in February, demand for protective face masks increased rapidly, we at Oerlikon Nonwoven responded immediately. We ramped up all the available production capacities here in Neumünster in order to quickly manufacture nonwovens for producing face masks using our laboratory systems. As a result, we have been able to make a small, regional contribution to covering demand. In parallel, we have pulled out all the stops in order to systematically further expand our skills as machine and system builders so as to cater to the initially expected, and now also continuing, global demand for meltblown systems as quickly as possible.”

Leading meltblown technology

The Oerlikon Nonwoven meltblown technology – with which nonwovens for protective masks can also be manufactured, among other things – is recognized by the market as being the technically most efficient method for producing highly-separating filter media made from plastic fibers. The capacities for respiratory masks available in Europe to date are predominantly manufactured on Oerlikon Nonwoven systems. “Ever more manufacturers in the most diverse countries are hoping to become independent of imports. Therefore, what we are experiencing in Germany is also happening in both industrialized and emerging countries throughout the world”, commented Rainer Straub. In addition to China, Turkey, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Austria and numerous countries in both North and South America, Australia and not least Germany will for the first time also be among the countries to which Oerlikon Nonwoven will be delivering machines and equipment before the end of 2021.