From the Sector

Local events, webinars, on-demand content, and podcasts unite creatives, brands, retailers, supply-chain experts, and print producers – leading seismic shift in apparel and textile production.
 
Kornit Digital, a global pioneer in sustainable, on-demand digital fashion and textile production today announced the launch of Konnections 365 - a year-round movement designed for the people moving the apparel, print, and retail industries forward. The strategy is built on the success of Konnections 2026 held in Hollywood, Florida, featuring more than 500 customers, partners, and collaborators who together are driving the future of apparel and textiles.
 
Bringing together brands, retailers, creatives, print producers, and supply-chain experts, Konnections 365 delivers thought leadership, local and global experiences, committees, webinars, podcasts, and on-demand resources. The intent is to help the industry navigate a watershed moment driven by digital print, AI, sustainability, new inventory models, and emerging technologies.
 
“During our live Konnections event, the room moved and now the industry is ready to follow. We brought together an ecosystem around one clear truth: the winners will be the companies that connect demand, production, technology, and speed – faster than the market can change,” said Ilan Elad, President at Kornit Digital Americas. “Kornit 365 is an extension of this movement, and we can’t wait to see how the industry responds.”
 
Konnections 365 is built on three pillars:
Movement — Year-round community driving industry priorities;
Learn — Practical education through content and thought leadership;
Connect & Act — Events and pilot programs that turn ideas into measurable results.
 
Participants benefit from rapid learning, local-to-global engagement, and the ability to move from ideas to pilots that reduce waste, shorten lead times, and improve margins.
 
Education is free for all participants. However, community events, business networking, and pilot programs are by invitation only for the Kornit Digital Production Community and ecosystem.

As fashion brands and retailers navigate an increasingly complex landscape shaped by geopolitical disruption, ongoing supply chain challenges, evolving trade tensions and regulatory uncertainty, alongside shifting consumer demand, understanding what truly matters to buyers has never been more critical. For its July 2026 edition, Source Fashion is placing these challenges at the centre of its content agenda, using new industry insights and advisory board input to shape a programme designed to help buyers make more informed, commercially viable decisions in a market defined by constant change.

Insights from Source Fashion’s advisory board and from industry research point to a growing sense of complexity and fatigue across the industry. Buyers are being asked to navigate rising costs, increasing regulation and ongoing uncertainty, while making faster, higher-stakes sourcing decisions. Sustainability, once driven by advocacy, is now increasingly shaped by compliance and reporting requirements, leaving many teams questioning how to balance commercial reality with long-term responsibility.

Key themes shaping 2026
The research highlights six key shifts shaping buyer priorities in 2026:

• Operating in permanent volatility - as geopolitical disruption, supply chain instability and unpredictable consumer demand force businesses to plan in a world that is constantly shifting. 
• The commercial realities of sustainability – where doing the right thing does not always align with cost pressures, margins and supplier constraints. 
• Making circularity commercially viable – with growing focus on resale, repair and lifecycle integration as part of a scalable business model. 
• Rethinking the fashion value chain – as traditional sourcing strategies evolve and closer collaboration across the value chain becomes essential. 
• Innovation with measurable impact – as brands look beyond hype to understand which technologies, including AI, can deliver real, scalable value. 
• Regulation, data and compliance – as increasing reporting requirements and upcoming legislation reshape how businesses approach sustainability often shifting the focus from advocacy to obligation.

In response to these insights, Source Fashion’s July 2026 content programme has been designed to move beyond discussion and provide practical, commercially relevant guidance for buyers navigating an increasingly complex landscape. Through a series of new formats and returning features, the show will translate industry challenges into actionable insight, helping visitors better understand how to balance cost, risk and responsibility within their sourcing strategies. This approach is designed to support faster, more confident decision-making in a rapidly changing market.

Fashion Deconstructed will offer a hands-on, interactive space designed to help buyers better understand materials, processes and techniques, from upcycling and repair to innovative production methods. Alongside this, the Catwalk Stage will bring together industry leaders and practitioners to explore the future of fashion through panels, case studies and debates, while the return of the Debates Stage will create space for more open, peer-led discussion around the issues shaping the industry today. 

Speaker highlights include:

• Marguerite, Global Insights Manager, Fashion, Euromonitor International  
• Bill McRaith, Executive Advisor, Future-Proof Fashion  
• Sonica Beckman, Founder and CEO, House of Kind  
• Sarah Coleman, Head of Development, Design and Sustainability, Margarett Howell 
• Nick Reed, Founder, Neem London 
• Rosie Cripps, Head of Circularity, Vivo Barefoot
• Joseph Mountain, Sustainability Manager, N Brown   

Suzanne Ellingham, Event Director of Source Fashion, said “What we’re hearing isn’t rocket science, what we know from listening is that the industry has become more complex, more pressured and, in many cases, overwhelming. There are no shortage of high expectations, new strategies, regulation or technology, but there is a real need for clarity on what actually works in practice, and what delivers real value at scale. As an industry we have to share insight now to help the boat go faster for everyone, in the right direction.

For us, this research is about listening to those challenges and shaping a content programme that responds directly to them. We want to move the conversation beyond theory and into practical, actionable insight that helps buyers navigate cost, risk and responsibility in a more confident and informed way. It’s about making sure the industry conversations we’re having translate into real business impact. Ultimately we want to talk about the things that matter.”

At the upcoming Plastics Recycling Show Europe in Amsterdam on May 5–6, BB Engineering will present its portfolio of PET recy-cling technologies. The German machinery manufacturer will once again focus on textile recycling and melt filtration.

Versatile Portfolio with a Focus on Textiles
The company’s product portfolio includes components and sys-tems for the production of films and synthetic fibers, as well as for PET recycling. With extruders, various filters, and complete spin-ning and recycling plants, the company possesses extensive ex-pertise in plastics processing and can offer comprehensive PET recycling solutions from a single source. Based on its experience in the synthetic fiber industry, BB Engineering places a special fo-cus on textile recycling (PET). BB Engineering will highlight its VacuFil® and COBRA® systems at PRSE.

VacuFil® Visco+ - PET LSP recycling 
The VacuFil® PET recycling plant combines gentle large-area fil-tration with precise IV adjustment, thereby ensuring consistently outstanding rPET melt quality. 

From bottle-to-bottle to 100% fiber-to-fiber: Thanks to its modular design, VacuFil® can be exactly tailored to individual requirements. A wide variety of PET feedstocks — such as flakes, textile waste, fiber waste, or start-up lumps — are processed reliably, while the IV is specifically adjusted to the desired end product.

At the heart of the system is the patented Visco+ component. Us-ing liquid-state polycondensation, it reliably removes volatile con-taminants and delivers an exceptionally homogeneous melt with a viscosity of ±0.01 dl/g — up to 50% faster than comparable LSP systems. Depending on the throughput, a viscosity increase of up to 30% can be achieved. 

Continuous process monitoring via an online viscometer ensures a stable and reproducible output. VacuFil® has a capacity of 150 to 4,000 kg/h.

COBRA® sets new standards in melt filtration
With the development of its latest melt filter COBRA® BB Engi-neering has created a clear solution to the growing demands of the recycling industry. The goal: to reliably handle even high levels of contamination, simplify filter changes and cleaning, and at the same time significantly reduce operating costs. 

The result is a high-performance system that combines continuous large-area filtration with automated, chemical-free intermediate cleaning. Two filter cartridges with automatic switching ensure stable, safe, and uninterrupted operation — even at high contami-nation levels where conventional candle filters or screen changers reach their limits.

A key advantage lies in the integrated cleaning system: it signifi-cantly extends the service life of the filter media while simultane-ously reducing operational effort, melt losses, and energy con-sumption — all without the use of chemicals. This not only en-hances process reliability but also sustainably lowers operating costs.

Thanks to its high flexibility, COBRA® is suitable for both coarse and fine filtration. In addition to its use in PET recycling, the sys-tem also offers great potential for increasing efficiency in other ap-plications, such as plastic spinning, and can be easily retrofitted there.

Klopman, TDV Industries and 4F Knits: three brands delivering best-in-class woven and knit textile solutions for workwear, protectivewear and military applications. At Techtextil 2026 in Frankfurt (21– 24 April), the Group will showcase a new generation of protective and performance textile fabrics, combining advanced fibre technologies, certified safety and enhanced wearer comfort to meet the evolving demands of a high-performance-driven market. 
 
At the exhibition, the Group will introduce an optimised and highly advanced range of flame-retardant fabric solutions, covering both woven and knit technologies and designed to address the highest standards of heat and flame protection across professional end-uses. 

The woven fabric portfolio, engineered with advanced fibre blends combining aramid and modacrylic fibres, delivers permanent flame protection and outstanding mechanical resistance, maintaining performance after more than 50 industrial wash cycles. Iconic ranges such as K-Flame PRO and K-Flame XTRA are complemented by K-Flame PRO Flex and Securit Flex fabrics featuring XLANCE® fibre, offering over 20% elongation for enhanced stretch and freedom of movement without compromising safety. 

In parallel, the Group’s inherent flame-retardant knit fabric portfolio — including piqué, jersey, fleece and polar fleece — is designed to ensure permanent thermal and flame protection while optimising comfort, breathability and durability. Available in versatile constructions such as jersey, providing softness and flexibility, piqué delivering structure and long-lasting performance, fleece providing warmth, breathability and excellent comfort, and polar fleece offering warmth, quick moisture management and a soft and voluminous hand feel. These solutions extend inherent FR protection to a wide range of garment applications. 

Inherent FR fabrics are fully certified for multi-risk protection, covering heat and flame exposure, welding risks, electrostatic discharge and molten metal splash. The integration of sustainable fibres such as VISCOSE FR further reinforces the Group’s commitment to responsible innovation. 

A standout innovation within the range is the new MEGAFLEX R-PES, marking the next generation of treated flame-retardant stretch and Greenwear™ fabrics. Developed with a recycled polyester blend and a PFAS-free Hydrogreen water-repellent finish, MEGAFLEX R-PES reflects the Group’s continued focus on sustainable textiles. 

By bringing together the complementary expertise of Klopman, TDV Industries and 4F Knits, the Group represents a reliable and long-term partner for customers worldwide. The shared portfolio combines technical excellence, regulatory compliance and continuous innovation. 
 
“Innovation in protective fabrics means translating technology into real protection for people at work.” says Amaury Sartorius, Group Commercial Director & Klopman Managing Director “At Techtextil, we showcase our PPE solutions built on advanced textile engineering, certified performance and strong application expertise, reinforcing our role as a trusted partner in high-performance protection.” 
 
With its presence at Techtextil 2026, the Group reaffirms its promise to the market: beyond fabrics, delivering solutions that protect, perform and endure. 

With Tacnera®, Freudenberg Performance Materials (Freudenberg) is presenting a new technology for silicone foam dressings used in advanced wound care. Unlike classic silicone adhesive layers, Tacnera® is a highly-developed, intelligently-engineered system that combines polyurethane foam, a proprietary coating technology and gentle silicone gel. Tacnera® therefore solves a key problem for premium foam dressings: the dilemma between reliable adhesion and the risk of skim trauma during dressing changes. This gives brand manufacturers, distributors and regional suppliers of advanced wound care products a clear competitive advantage in the premium segment. The globally active nonwovens manufacturer will be welcoming visitors to Stand D42 at EWMA in Bremen from May 6 – 8.

Foam dressings with particularly gentle silicones often do not adhere firmly enough, while stronger silicones increase the risk of skin trauma and tissue damage. This “adhesion-trauma dilemma” reduces both patient comfort and clinical confidence, and limits market differentiation options in the premium segment. Tacnera® resolves this dilemma.

Two silicones in a single wound dressing: adhesion exactly where it is needed
Foam dressings based on Tacnera® technology enable a combination of two silicones with different properties in a single foam dressing. While one type of silicone coating ensures strong edge adhesion for reliable fixation, a second, particularly gentle coating in the ultra-soft island zone protects sensitive skin structures and newly-formed tissue. This is achieved by a precisely-engineered foam and a wave-patterned coating designed to specifically improve contouring, flexibility and exudate management. 

User-friendly and reliable
The result is a foam dressing that reliably stays in place even when used on wounds in hard-to-heal locations, while also ensuring gentle and painless removal. The dressing delivers a consistent performance, thereby supporting both the quality of care and the confidence of users and patients. The technology therefore generates new opportunities for brand manufacturers, distributors and regional suppliers to position themselves in the advanced wound care premium segment. 

“Foam dressings based on the innovative Tacnera® technology have a fundamentally new, systemic approach: they combine secure fixation, gentle removal, reliable functioning and commercial viability in a single product,” commented Dr. Oliver Heneric, SVP Division Healthcare at Freudenberg Performance Materials.

Faster to market: economic benefits for customers 
In addition to the functional advantages, customers also enjoy clear economic benefits: engineering high-performance silicone-based foam dressings usually entails long development times, specialized know-how and a high technical risk. Tacnera®-based foam dressings are a production-ready, high-performance and ready-to-sell solution, so customers can enter the market faster and reduce development costs. Marketing authorization in Europe is expected in summer 2026.

Sports shoes made from algae, leggings made from mushrooms, filtering (diesel) oil from water, 4D textiles, recyclable, sustainable and featuring AI – this is what the ITA Group is presenting at three individual stands run by ITA Aachen, ITA Augsburg gGmbH and ITA Technologietransfer GmbH on the joint stand of Elmatex in hall 12.0 D05.

ITA Aachen embraces the concept of sustainability and, through its exhibits, presents solutions to specific contemporary challenges:

1. 4D-printed textiles
   4D textiles are textile structures capable of selectively altering their shape or function over time. The ‘fourth dimension’ refers to their response to external stimuli such as temperature, humidity, light or electrical impulses. These are typically based on active materials such as shape-memory polymers, shape-memory alloys or hygroscopic fibres, which are integrated into textile structures. Their role lies in the development of adaptive, functional systems: from climate-regulating clothing and textile-based actuators in soft robotics to self-deploying or medical applications. 4D textiles transform textiles from passive flat structures into responsive, intelligent systems.
2. AlgaeTex sports shoe
   Algae have immense potential as a bio-based raw material to replace petroleum in synthetic textiles: they grow rapidly and can absorb carbon dioxide more efficiently than other bio-based raw materials derived from land plants. Furthermore, their cultivation requires less land – including land unsuitable for other crops – and avoids the use of pesticides. The use of algae as a renewable resource for the production of biopolymers and textiles circumvents the challenges of competing with low fuel prices by creating higher-value applications. In this way, the German textile industry can act as a catalyst for the shift away from fossil fuels towards a bioeconomy in which algae represent an important source of biomass.
   
   The AlgaeTex project demonstrates that the production of thermoplastic biopolymers from algae for textile applications is technically feasible. These novel biopolymers are melt-spun and processed into high-quality textiles that are of significance to the sporting goods industry, such as knitted shoe uppers or T-shirts. 
3. Visionary Agrotextiles
   Agrotextiles are of particular importance for specialised crops such as strawberries, lettuce and kohlrabi, as they have a significant influence on growing conditions. For instance, they can raise soil temperature, channel water to the plants and protect seedlings from external influences, particularly during early growth stages. Agrotextiles consist almost exclusively of petrochemically produced polymers that are not biodegradable. This demonstrator therefore showcases a carded fleece made from biodegradable polymers, which is used to bring forward the harvest in strawberry fields. In the same crop but serving a different purpose, a monofilament net is on display; its deep red colour and a coating of ultra-fine silicate particles serve to protect the plants from invasive insect species.
4. Bionic Oil Adsorber
   On various biological surfaces, oil is adsorbed from the water’s surface and transported along floating leaves.
   ITA postdoctoral researcher Dr Leonie Beek has transferred this effect to a technical textile using her Bionic Oil Adsorber (BOA), which, at maturity level 4, can remove up to 4 litres of diesel per hour from the water.
   
   The BOA differs from technical solutions in that the oil-water separation takes place without external energy and without toxic substances. The work on the BOA has been recognised with the Bionics Award – only in German available - and the Paul Schlack Prize.
5. BioPEtex – A PE-based, solution-dyed and sustainable T-shirt made from organic raw materials
   In the multi-billion-pound fibre market, fossil-based polyesters (PES) dominate the clothing sector, accounting for 52% of the market. Unfortunately, PET, the most commonly used PES, cannot be produced on an industrial scale as 100% bio-based material, unlike polyethylene (PE). Bio-based PE (bioPE), a drop-in polymer derived from fermented starches or sugars, has properties identical to those of fossil-based PE and is easily recyclable. It is also more cost-effective than other biopolymers used in fibres and can be processed at lower temperatures, which saves energy. Solution-dyed bioPE offers significant environmental benefits: it consumes 50% less energy and water than conventional dyeing processes and emits 60% less CO2.
   
   Life cycle assessments (LCA) predict that PE could significantly reduce the textile industry’s ecological footprint, with solution-dyed bio-PE further enhancing this reduction. Furthermore, PE textiles are IR-transparent and thus provide passive cooling for the body.
   
   Despite these advantages, PE is not yet used in the clothing industry. Preliminary research findings from the ITA suggest that PE can be processed into spun, dyed filaments and knitted fabrics with promising textures. The T-shirt on display is spun and dyed and features an elastic surface made from bio-based raw materials. A bio-based elastic finish enhances the T-shirt, which is made from a single source and is thermomechanically recyclable. Contact: Mathias.Ortega@ita.rwth-aachen.de
6. FungalFibers – Leggings
   Against a backdrop of limited resources such as oil, water and arable land, as well as increasing environmental degradation and potential for conflict, there is significant social and commercial interest in providing competitive, socially and environmentally sustainable alternative raw materials for the textile industry. The aim of this project is to develop a completely new process chain for the production of bio-based, vegan textiles from chitosan fibres (filament and staple fibre yarns).
   
   Chitosan is chemically closely related to chitin, the second most abundant substance in nature after cellulose. It occurs naturally in a variety of sources: in insects, crab and shellfish shells, and as a structural component of the cell walls of all fungi. Chitin can therefore be obtained from by-products of crab meat production, insect protein or fungal biomass waste from industrial processes. Chitosan, in turn, can be easily produced from chitin through deacetylation. Contact: Leonie.Beek@ita.rwth-aachen.de.
   
   ITA Group will be presenting the latest developments in sustainable textile products and production processes at Techtextil 2026, taking place from 21 to 24 April 2026 in Frankfurt am Main. The exhibits from ITA Augsburg gGmbH and ITA Technologietransfer GmbH will be on display at the Elmatex joint stand in Hall 12.0, Booth D05.

ITA Group will showcase various approaches to mechanical and thermo-mechanical recycling, addressing potential applications in the textile, materials and automotive industries. ITA Augsburg gGmbH, which specialises in mechanical textile recycling, will present innovations in the fields of composites, mechanical textile recycling and artificial intelligence in production. These include sound and thermal insulation panels from the “IsoTex” project, a towel from the “EcoYarn” recycling project, and the “ColoSens” demonstrator, an AI-based solution for automated colour recognition of fibres in the recycling process.

ITA Technologietransfer GmbH demonstrates thermo-mechanical recycling using numerous examples within the Fabric2Fabric cycle. Using a 3D-printed car seat demonstrator as an example, the recyclable filament yarns are incorporated into a seat cover.

In addition, ITA Technologietransfer GmbH is showcasing its patented ‘Textile Anchor’ concept, an innovative anchoring system designed to protect and secure structures in geotechnical environments such as mountains, in the ground and underwater, as well as for use in building construction. The textile anchor offers an ultra-lightweight solution with high flexibility and optimal adaptability, and is manufactured from extremely durable or biodegradable and sustainable textiles.

At ITA Group’s ‘shared booth’, ITA Technologietransfer GmbH will be providing information on innovations from various industrial partners:

• technofibres s.a. from Luxembourg offers solution-dyed PET and sustainable trPET filament yarns with a wide range of matting levels, filament cross-sections and packaging options for bespoke solutions, even in the smallest batch sizes, making it unique in Europe.
• Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. from Japan offers Xarec™, a syndiotactic polystyrene (SPS) fibre for use in fabrics and nonwovens. The advantages of this semi-crystalline high-performance material, which acquires its syndiotactic structure through the polymerisation of polystyrene and a metallocene catalyst, are demonstrated in nonwoven samples for the filtration sector in comparison with conventional materials.
• The Swedish company Luma Wire Tech AB is an innovative specialist in fine wires, with expertise in advanced plating. Each wire, ranging from 4 to 300 microns and produced from tungsten, molybdenum, or other advanced materials, is tailored to meet each customer’s specific needs— available either uncoated or with high-performance coatings of gold, silver, palladium, or other.