From the Sector

Patients as well as air-condition and ventilator systems spread SARS-CoV-2 virus as aerosols which settle on surfaces and remain there infective for more than 72 hours. That‘s why the pandemic has triggered an intensive search for Personal Protective Equipment PPE whose surfaces have antiviral properties, e.g. are able to bind and inactivate adhering virus.

In this context the chemical stability of the materials being used for PPE, polypropylene PP and/or polyester PET, is a challenge. More precisely, the absence of so-called ‘functional groups‘, like -OH, -COO-, -NH3+ at the material‘s surface. These groups are the fundamental basis for surface chemistry – specifically for attaching antiviral compounds onto the surfaces of man-made fibers.

Antiviral surface modification with the basic amino acid Arginine Arg is a new approach to inactivate SARS-CoV-2. - bionic surfaces‘ - development was tested according to ISO 18184:2019 „Determination of antiviral activity of textile products“ at Institute for Virology and Immunology at University Wuerzburg, Germany. - The finding: „[Six hours] incubation on [Arginine] coated NW reduced viral infectivity by more than five orders of magnitude.“ In other words: An amount of, for example, 10.000.000 virus is reduced to 100 (by five orders of magnitude).

- bionic surfaces – has more than 30 years experience in wet-chemical surface modification of man-made polymers like PDMS, PP, PE, PTFE.

Hologenix, creators of Celliant®, infrared responsive technology, and Kelheim Fibres, a world-leading manufacturer of viscose specialty fibers, have partnered to launch Celliant Viscose at ISPO Munich 2021. Celliant Viscose is a finalist in Best Products by ISPO and will be showcased in the Fibers & Insulations Category for ISPO Textrends, where realistic views and 3-D simulations will be available for each material.

The introduction of nature-based Celliant Viscose will be the first in-fiber infrared sustainable solution on the market and meets a consumer demand for more environmentally friendly textiles. An alternative to synthetic fibers and extremely versatile, Celliant Viscose blends beautifully with cotton, micromodal, lyocell, wool varieties including cashmere. It also has many applications across industries as it is ideal for performance wear, luxury loungewear, casual wear and bedding.

Celliant Viscose features natural, ethically sourced minerals embedded into plant-based fibers to create infrared products that capture and convert body heat into infrared, increasing local circulation and improved cellular oxygenation. This results in stronger performance, faster recovery and better sleep.

Celliant Viscose provides all the benefits of being a viscose fiber — lightweight, soft, highly breathable, excellent moisture management — as well as fiber enhancements from Celliant infrared technology. Celliant’s proprietary blend of natural minerals allows textiles to capture and convert body heat into full-spectrum infrared energy, resulting in stronger performance, faster recovery and better sleep. In addition, Celliant is durable and will not wash out, lasting the useful life of the product it powers.

An Affordable, Long-lasting Solution with Diverse Applications
As opposed to other IR viscose products which are coatings based, Celliant Viscose’s in-fiber solution increases wearability and longevity with a soft feel, durability from washing and longer life. The combination of Kelheim’s distinctive technology and the Celliant additives creates this unique fiber that provides full functionality without the need for any additional processing step — a new standard in the field of sustainable IR viscose fibers. This single processing also makes Celliant Viscose more cost-effective and time-efficient than coatings.

In addition, Kelheim’s flexible technology allows targeted interventions in the viscose fiber process. By modifying the fiber’s dimensions or cross sections or by incorporating additives into the fiber matrix, Kelheim can precisely define the fiber’s properties according to the specific needs of the end product.

Highly Sustainable
Celliant Viscose is a plant and mineral-based solution for brands seeking an alternative to synthetic fibers. It contains natural raw materials that are from the earth and can return safely to the earth.

Nature-based Celliant Viscose is certified by FSC® or PEFC™, which guarantees the origin in sustainably managed plantations, and is part of the CanopyStyle initiative to protect ancient and endangered forests. The production of Celliant Viscose takes place exclusively at the Kelheim facilities in Germany, complying with the country’s strict environmental laws and guaranteeing an overall eco-friendly product.

Backed by Science
Celliant is rigorously tested by a Science Advisory Board composed of experts in the fields of physics, biology, chemistry and medicine. The Science Advisory Board has overseen 10 clinical, technical and physical trials, and seven published studies that demonstrate Celliant’s effectiveness and the benefits of infrared energy.

For more information, visit www.celliant.com/celliant-viscose/

• Sappi implements innovative barrier paper technology to increase production

Sappi will introduce new barrier coating technology for functional paper packaging at its speciality mill in Alfeld, Germany, strengthening its position as the leading global provider of sustainable paper packaging solutions. Explaining the decision, Berry Wiersum, CEO Sappi Europe stated: “Expanding the use of our proprietary barrier coating technology underpins Sappi’s drive to maintain our leading position in barrier coated paper as well the commitment we have with our customers in developing innovative future focused packaging solutions which contribute towards a sustainable future”

•    Investment in sustainable barrier coating technology
•    Comprehensive expertise in future focused functional paper packaging
•    Where performance meets environmental accountability

The demand for paper and paperboard packaging continues to rise dramatically as consumers become increasingly mindful of the impact their buying choices have on the environment.  The call for innovative, truly sustainable solutions has never been louder. Sappi is striving to support its customers to go beyond traditional film and foil-based material solutions, growing its products ranges to meet the demands of our ever-changing world. Working directly with brand owners Sappi seeks to create future-oriented circular solutions in line with growing collective global responsibilities.

The desire to continuously evolve to meet and exceed the business needs requires ongoing investment in innovation in order to create the solutions of tomorrow. Sappi’s acquisition of Rockwell Solutions has deepened the company’s barrier paper manufacturing knowledge. Adding barrier coater capacity at Alfeld Mill further upscales our capabilities, brings this unique combination of paper, dispersion and coating technology to more customers and enables Sappi to offer customers even more competitive and attractive paper packaging solutions.

Sappi has made great strides to provide future-focused products and services – matching and exceeding the needs of consumers now and in the future – delivering recyclable packaging solutions in line with the requirements of a circular economy. Environmental accountability is at the heart of both Sappi and its customers’ needs. Through this initiative Sappi will continue to challenge the conventional packaging industry with new ideas and solutions in order to make it easier for the world and the planet to follow a circular-economy strategy.

• Leading Turkish textile printing company Hamle has installed a new Monforts Thermex dyeing range as part of its ongoing strategy of continuous investment.

“Investment in new technology and capacity expansions are very important to us, in order to stay ahead in terms of sustainable, high quality production,” says general manager Gürkan Uzuner. “We carefully assess the benefits of each advanced new technology in order to thrive in a sector that is constantly changing.

“The Zara Group is a major European customer for us, along with well-known Turkish brands such as LCW and De-Facto, and it’s no accident that Çorlu, due to its proximity to Istanbul and the ease of supplying to Europe, has become the epicentre of Turkish textile production. The quality of textiles coming from the region is now very well proven.”

Integration

Hamle’s plant in Çorlu already houses a Monforts ten-chamber Montex stenter and two Monforts sanforizing ranges on which the company carries out an extensive range of finishing processes. The new Thermex range further integrates a number of processes on technology all from a single supplier. The Thermex universal hotflue for continuous dyeing, condensing and thermosoling achieves unrivalled reliability even at maximum fabric speeds, for exceptional cost-effectiveness when dyeing both large and small batches of woven fabrics. The new range installed for Hamle benefits from the Econtrol® process* for reactive dyestuffs. This is quick and economical one-pass pad-dry and wash off process, with drying in the hot flue at 120-130°C and controlled humidity (25-30% by volume) to obtain fixation in 2-3 minutes.
Econtrol® ensures excellent reproducibility of all colours, improved dye penetration on difficult fabrics and no risk of the browning of cotton or other cellulose fibres due to the low fixation temperature.

As such, it is the ideal process for fast change technology and operational savings. “The new Thermex range has some very advanced automation features which ensure our machine operators have full control over the entire system,” Mr Uzuner concludes. “ As the Monforts representative in Turkey, Neotek has been our solution partner in the installation and commissioning and has been with us every step of the way.
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* Econtrol® is a registered mark of DyStar Colours Distribution GmbH, Germany.

• Looking to the future – Frankfurt Fashion Week is positioning itself with a consistently sustainable agenda and propelling the transformation of a modern, resource-efficient fashion industry.

The Conscious Fashion Campaign (CFC), working in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Partnerships (UNOP), will be the presenting partner and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will be a prerequisite for all exhibitors by 2023. And the Frankfurt Fashion SDG Summit by CFC is set to become the leading international conference for sustainability in the fashion world. The future of fashion has begun – and its key players will be coming together in Frankfurt am Main from 5-9 July 2021.
 
Frankfurt am Main, 2 December 2020. Joining forces to improve the fashion industry: Frankfurt Fashion Week is positioning itself as the host of the future of fashion and actively driving forward the transformation towards a future-oriented, more sustainable fashion and textile industry. All decision-makers looking to instigate this change will be coming together in Frankfurt am Main from 5-9 July 2021. The initiators of Frankfurt Fashion Week – Messe Frankfurt and the Premium Group – have achieved a real coup: Conscious Fashion Campaign, working in collaboration with the United Nations Office for Partnerships, will be the presenting partner. Messe Frankfurt will build on its collaboration with the United Nations Office for Partnerships and establish Frankfurt Fashion week as the platform on which to advance the Sustainable Development Goals and help guide the fashion industry into the 'Decade of Action'.
 
“Frankfurt will play host to the whole world. We are seeing a very positive response indeed,” confirmed Peter Feldmann, Senior Mayor of the City of Frankfurt am Main, at today’s digital press conference, before going on to say: “The fact that the initiators are able to rethink the concept of a Fashion Week in such a way is extremely impressive and proves that the fashion industry is correctly interpreting the signs of the present and future. The time has come for value creation and values to be reconciled. Consistent alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals is an important step in this direction.”
 
“Frankfurt Fashion Week aims to play a crucial role in finding solutions for macrosocial challenges and supporting the goals of international politics such as the European Green Deal. The fashion and textile industries are also expected to be climate-neutral by 2050. If we want to achieve this, we all need to pull together. Frankfurt Fashion Week is inviting all initiators and supporters of sustainable concepts and congresses or shows dedicated to sustainability to meet in Frankfurt, partake in discussions and make tangible decisions for the greater good. We will connect the most relevant players and pave the way for a future-proof fashion and textile industry,” says Detlef Braun, CEO of Messe Frankfurt.
 
“Given its global reach, the fashion industry is uniquely positioned to collaborate and engage on the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular on climate action and responsible production and consumption,” said Annemarie Hou, Acting Executive Director of the United Nations Office for Partnerships. “Frankfurt Fashion Week and the Summit will serve as an important platform for education and engagement of the fashion and textile industry in the Decade of Action,” emphasised Ms Hou.
 
The aim of Frankfurt Fashion Week is for all exhibitors, participants and partners to align with the Sustainable Development Goals by 2023. The SDGs will also be incorporated into all formats of Frankfurt Fashion Week. This will help to make the UN’s sustainability goals visible and tangible for the Fashion Week audience, therefore bringing its claim, goals and specific proposals for implementation to an international opinion-forming fashion and lifestyle community. During a one-day Frankfurt Fashion SDG Summit presented by Conscious Fashion Campaign, topics like gender equality, clean water, climate protection, social justice and their significance for a forward-looking fashion industry will be examined in greater depth. Another point on the sustainability agenda: Frankfurt Fashion Week is launching a Sustainability Award for outstanding, innovative, sustainable design, alongside other categories with a global appeal for the fashion and textile industry.
 
"We are committed to setting the wheels of transformation in motion. Not only does the overall mindset have to fundamentally change; the entire industry also needs to have the courage to be transparent and honest. It’s important to see values and value creation as opportunities rather than contentious. We are doing what we do best: connecting the relevant players at all levels. With its ecosystem, Frankfurt Fashion Week will become the enabler. We are creating a platform that will orchestrate industry-wide change. With this as our inspiration, we are also developing our tradeshow formats from a ‘marketplace of products’ to a ‘marketplace of purpose and ideas’,” explains Anita Tillmann, Managing Partner of the Premium Group.
 
A new start in Frankfurt: In summer 2021 the entire fashion industry will be coming to the metropolis on the Main river to inform themselves, be inspired, discuss, negotiate and celebrate. “There’s a huge need to finally meet in person again, to exchange ideas and be inspired. At the same time, digital tools and formats have become an integral part of the fashion industry,” says Markus Frank, Head of the City of Frankfurt’s Department of Economic Affairs and therefore also responsible for its creative industry. “To implement such a future-oriented, all-encompassing overall concept, Frankfurt’s business and creative scenes offer an almost unique concentration of different expertise with its internationally networked agencies, universities and museums. The city’s multifaceted, high-end club, bar and restaurant scene, diverse hotel industry and internationally renowned retail landscape will become the stage for this. This network will be a key factor in the successful implementation of Frankfurt Fashion Week and the way in which it will expand into the public space as a cultural and social happening.”
 
A number of major publishing houses are also showing their commitment to the new Fashion Week in Frankfurt with conferences, events and awards: Textilwirtschaft, the leading professional fashion journal by the Deutscher Fachverlag publishing house, is moving its traditional meeting of the industry’s top decision-makers – the TW Forum, the presentation of the renowned Forum Award, as well as its subsequent conference – from Heidelberg to Frankfurt’s Palmengarten botanical gardens, and will therefore be kicking off Frankfurt Fashion Week on Sunday evening and Monday morning. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung will be hosting its traditional fashion party for the first time in Frankfurt and publishing a special edition of its FAZ Magazin on Frankfurt Fashion Week. And the ZEIT publishing group is holding its ‘UNLOCK Style by ZEITmagazin’ conference, which was established in 2014, and the ZEITmagazin Fashion Week party in Frankfurt for the first time and will dedicate the whole new issue of ZEITmagazin Frankfurt to Frankfurt Fashion Week. Condé Nast will also be involved in next summer’s Frankfurt Fashion Week with an exclusive event by GQ. And the Burda publishing house will also be represented with various event formats from its lifestyle and fashion brands.There will also be talks with SHINE  Conventions, the organiser of GLOW, about what a mutual collaboration could look like.
 
Frankfurt Fashion Week is also delighted to have the Fashion Council Germany (FCG) on board.  The FCG is theinstitution when it comes to German fashion design. It promotes designers, is committed to gaining more political relevance and strengthens the international visibility and awareness of German fashion. At Frankfurt Fashion Week, the FCG will contribute selected formats, such as its already established Fireside Chat, and a future-oriented accelerator format to support German designers.
 
“What really impresses me about Fashion Week is the whole networking aspect: the creative industries will meet the financial world and sustainability is the common denominator. The Green Finance Cluster is another project that we could link with Frankfurt Fashion Week in the future. This will provide new inspiration in the fashion industry, which will certainly extend way beyond its own horizon of Frankfurt and Hesse. After a very difficult year for the trade fair industry, the concept is an encouraging breath of fresh air,” sums up Tarek Al-Wazir, Hesse’s Minister of Economics, Energy, Transport and Regional Development and Deputy Minister-President of the state of Hessen.

The company, founded in 1993, has established a reputation for leadership in new printing techniques and technologies with customers across Europe, as well as with many of the leading Turkish brands.

Mission
On its mission to achieving continuous progress in error-free and resource-efficient manufacturing, İlay has just taken delivery of a new Monforts Montex stenter range, with a working width of two metres and eight TwinAir chambers.

“This installation provides us with much improved control options for all process parameters and compared to the old stenter it is replacing, we are particularly impressed with the energy savings we are making,” Mr Savaş says.

Achieving energy savings on Montex stenters has been a key focus for Monforts designers and engineers in Germany for many years.

With the TwinAir heating chamber system within a Montex stenter, top and bottom airflows can be regulated completely independently of each other, ensuring heat is only applied when and where it is required. The Optiscan balancing system ensures continuous automatic evaluation of the distance between the nozzles and the fabric for highly economical and contact-free drying.

The resulting constant evaporation rate within the stenter ensures optimum energy utilisation. In addition, TwinAir chambers feature special panelling for low heat radiation, careful sealing of all connecting positions and chamber access points, and air locks at both the entry and the exit.

“Monforts stenters set the benchmark in terms of energy efficiency and help conserve resources,” says Ahmet Kılıç, founder of Neotek, the representative for Monforts in Turkey. “Automatically setting the initial moisture content requirement for a specific process before drying to a minimum value helps reduce heat evaporation and consequently, energy consumption. The hermetic sealing of the stenter frame further prevents the loss of heated air as well as the ingress of excessive cold air – which has to be heated back up if it is not kept out in the first place.”

The new Montex line was completed at İlay Textile in August 2020, with no problems during either installation or commissioning.

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 AVK – Industrievereinigung Verstärkte Kunststoffe e.V. – has once again announced the winners of its prestigious Innovation Awards. Decided by an expert jury, the awards recognise and honour sustainable innovations in three categories: “Innovative Products/Applications”, “Innovative Processes” and “Research and Science”.

Overview of all the winners in the three categories:

Category “Innovative Products/Applications”
1st Place: “Directly-cooled electric motor with integral lightweight housing made of fibre reinforced polymers - DEmiL” – developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT, Pfinztal, Germany, in partnership with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd.*

2nd Place: “Intrinsically Reprocessable, Repairable and Recyclable (3R) thermoset composites for more Competitive and Sustainable Industries” – developed by cidetec, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain*

3rd Place: “Fireproof composite metal hybrid structure – LEO® fire protection sandwich with integrated Hyconnect steel-glass hybrid connector” – developed by SAERTEX GmbH & Co. KG and Hyconnect GmbH.*

Category “Innovative Processes”
1st Place: “Robotised Injection Moulding (ROBIN)” – developed by Robin, Dresden with the Institute for Lightweight Engineering and Polymer Technology at the TU Dresden*

2nd Place: “Omega stringer from the roll” – developed by the German Aerospace Center, Braunschweig*

3rd Place: “Hybrid die-casting – manufacturing of intrinsic CFRP-aluminium composite structures in aluminium high-pressure die-casting” – developed by Faserinstitut Bremen e. V. with Fraunhofer IFAM, Bremen*

Category “Research and Science”:
1st Place: “New high-temperature resistant UP resins and toughening agents” – developed by Münster University of Applied Sciences with BASF SE Global New Business Development, Leibniz Institute for Polymer Research e. V., Saertex multicom GmbH*

2nd Place: “Scientific basis for the industrial application of the thermoplastic resin transfer moulding (T-RTM) process” – developed by Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT, Pfinztal*

3rd Place: “The material- and energy-efficient production of turbine struts by the integrative combination of thermoset fibre reinforced materials” – developed by the Institute of Polymer Technology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg with the German Aerospace Center, Gubesch Group, Schmidt WFT, Siebenwurst, Raschig.

Award ceremony on the Internet for the first time
For the first time, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the award ceremony took place as an online event on 12 November 2020. Many of the award winners’ innovations will be presented again in this year’s AVK Innovation Award brochure. This will be available online: https://www.avk-tv.de/innovationaward.php

*Please see attached document for more information.

• Efficient heat supply of the future reduces environmentally harmful CO₂

The heating sector offers a variety of options for the energy turnaround. One of them is district heating. This is an efficient energy source that makes an important contribution to sustainability and climate protection, especially when used within heat and energy-intensive companies. The CHT Group for speciality chemicals has opted to utilise the district heating supplied by the Tübingen public utilities (swt) at its headquarters in Tübingen - and thus reduce CO2 and the use of fossil fuels. This also resulted in the district heating network of the municipal utilities being extended by an additional half kilometre.

Until recently, heating, hot water and various process steam applications within the CHT site in Bismarckstrasse, Tubingen were fed from a central steam generation plant fired by heating oil. Now three of four company buildings are connected to the swt district heating network and the process steam applications have been decentralised. The fourth building has already been equipped with a modern CHP system for many years. In the future, this building will be prepared for district heating. The conversion to district heating supply will be made as soon as the CHP plant has reached the end of its operating life. In order to connect the CHT headquarters to the district heating, the municipal utilities have extended their supply network by around 570 metres during a four-month construction period. The heat now flows through newly installed transfer stations where it is measured, regulated, transferred and finally fed into the buildings' heating circuits.

Dr. Bernhard Hettich, Chief Technical Officer of CHT Germany GmbH: "As a company CHT focuses on worldwide sustainability. This not only includes products but also the sustainable use of resources at the individual locations. At our headquarters in Tübingen, our efforts are directed towards reducing energy consumption and optimising it with regard to renewable energies. With this investment we will continue to reduce CO2 emissions and the consumption of fossil fuels for the energy we consume. As a Tübingen company, we are therefore pleased to be connected to the local district heating network and to be able to use its advantages for the benefit of our sustainability strategy".

High heat demand offers great savings potential
CHT's heat requirements are high as the three buildings already connected require around 1.3 million kilowatt hours of heat per year. With the fourth building included, the heat requirement is even 1.6 million kilowatt hours. With the conversion to district heating CHT saves about 152 tons of CO2 per year. An investment in the district heating connection is therefore an investment in the future, both from an ecological and economic point of view. CHT has invested 180,000 Euro in the district heating connection.

Please read the attached document for more information

With the PFAFF 4520, engineers and technicians from PFAFF have designed a full-automatic production line (CE compliant) for processing multi-layer disposable masks, which meets the requirements of "German engineering" in a unique way. The product combines 150 years of expertise in joining textile materials and a concentrated know-how of the PFAFF INDUSTRIAL and KSL brands in the areas of process control, automation and robotics.

The PFAFF 4520 is an investment in a robust and sophisticated production line (MADE IN GERMANY) with an exceptionally reliable working process. In times of Covid-19 it is so important to rely on the right equipment for the mask production and avoid costly readjustments or an unnecessary second investment!

Key facts of the unit:

-    Size of the mask: 175 x 95 mm
-    Output:  3,500 – 4,000 masks per hour
-    1-, 2- or 3 ply processing  (Non-woven/filtration fabric)
-    SPS (PLC) control of the entire mask system
-    Exceedingly quiet working process of the whole unit
-    Ultrasonic welding components from German manufacturers
-    Protective housing for occupational safety of the operator
-    Packing station + printing station for personalized masks (on request)

The machine package also includes important features in the pre- and after sales:

PFAFF technicians ensure the adjustment of the desired customer material (non-woven or similar filter material) and the number of layers (1-, 2-, 3-ply) to the machine and make a "Ready to production" installation of the whole unit at the customer.  A fast service response time in after-sales (by involvement of the PFAFF sales- and service partner on site) ensures a maximum production output.