From the Sector

Global leader in sustainable packaging, Smurfit Westrock, hosted a “Barrier Day Open House” on April 15 at its production facility in Ibi (Alicante), Spain, in collaboration with machine manufacturer Reifenhäuser Blown Film. A large international group of customers and industry experts gathered to experience the latest generation of Reifenhäuser EVO Ultra Die Heads in a live customer operation. 

The highlight was the output of over 1,000 kg/h for barrier applications, delivering films with outstanding properties, including a profile accuracy of better than ±3 % 2σ at a thickness of 70 μm. To ensure the film’s outstanding tolerance even at extreme throughput rates, the line combines the new EVO Ultra Die Head with the perfectly matched internal bubble cooling system EVO Cool and market-leading Kdesign cooling ring technology. In addition, Smurfit utilizes the proven Reifenhäuser Ultra Flat System, which ensures perfectly flat film for easy further processing. 

“The results of the new EVO 7-layer blown film line with the EVO Ultra Die 7 have exceeded our expectations,” says Pascual Martínez Pérez, Managing Director of Smurfit Westrock Spain. “No other supplier achieves the nominal outputs we have achieved.”

With the new line, Smurfit Westrock now operates a total of three Reifenhäuser blown film lines at this location, further expanding its capacity. At the same time, the new generation of die heads sets new benchmarks in productivity without compromising quality or stability. 

Bernd Reifenhäuser, CEO of the Reifenhäuser Group, adds: “The real competitive edge is about more than technology. It’s what we’ve built together over seven years – trust, partnership, and measurable results. Every major step we’ve taken in this partnership started with one question: What creates the greatest value for Smurfit Westrock? Today’s demonstration is a perfect example.” 

On the new blown film line, put into production at the beginning of 2026, Smurfit Westrock produces seven-layer films with barrier properties which are used, among other applications, for so-called bag-in-box packaging. This type of packaging consists of a sturdy cardboard box containing a plastic bag filled with liquid. A spout allows the beverage to be dispensed and prevents oxygen from entering – just like the 100% oxygen barrier of the plastic film. 

In addition to maximum performance and first-class film quality, the new production line offers a high degree of flexibility. If required, production can be quickly switched from seven-layer film to five- or three-layer film. Despite the large geometry and high volume of the die head, fast changeover times are ensured thanks to its particularly maintenance-friendly design. 

The live demonstration was accompanied by a series of expert presentations on the production of barrier films and packaging. The presentations addressed the specific challenges of barrier applications and highlighted the advantages of the new Reifenhäuser Ultra Die Head generation.

The future of the Mayer & Cie. brand has been secured: Following the successful completion of the purchase agreement for assets in the circular knitting machinery segment of the German traditional company Mayer & Cie., which was signed in February this year, the brand will continue to exist. The transfer of these assets to the new owner, Xu Hongjie, was formally completed yesterday afternoon. This clears the way for the resumption of business operations at the Albstadt site. 

During the transition phase between signing – the execution of the agreements in February – and yesterday’s closing, the new owner and his team have worked intensively on a concept for the restart. The aim is to realign the traditional brand and consistently focus on customer needs. In the future, Mayer & Cie. will operate with greater speed, efficiency, and an even stronger focus on solutions. 
 
Successful closing paves the way for Mayer & Cie.’s future 
Today’s closing marks the final milestone in the transfer of assets from Mayer & Cie.’s circular knitting division to Xu Hongjie. 

All negotiations, due diligence processes, and legal agreements have been successfully completed. The required approvals from all relevant authorities have also been obtained. These include, in particular, approvals from the competent Chinese authorities for outbound investment as well as the certificate of non-objection from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. 

“We are very pleased that the process has now been successfully completed,” says Xu Hongjie on behalf of his family. “We are convinced of the unique value of the brand, the quality of the machines, and are deeply impressed by the technical expertise of the new team.” The young entrepreneur adds that he is very proud to now be part of this team. With the completion of the process, the company is now able to fully resume its business operations. 
 
Concept for the restart 
The objectives for the restart are clearly defined: the company aims to restore profitability as quickly as possible and, in the medium term, return to a leading position in the global textile machinery market. 

During the approximately two months between signing and closing, the new owner and his team worked intensively on a concept to achieve these goals. The team of the new Mayer & Cie. Global – as the company will operate in the future – currently comprises around 30 employees, particularly in design, product management, and sales. All team members have been newly hired. 
 
Huixing and Mayer & Cie.: Focus on synergies 
With the closing, the transferred assets of Mayer & Cie.’s circular knitting machinery business have formally been transferred to Xu Hongjie of the Huixing Machinery Co., Ltd. owner family, based in Shishi. Huixing is headquartered in Shishi City, Quanzhou, a key hub of China’s textile and machinery industry. The company manufactures and distributes highquality knitting machines and develops the corresponding intelligent software. 

The Mayer & Cie. brand will remain independent, with “a strong heartbeat in Albstadt,” as Xu Hongjie puts it. This means that research and development, production, and related administrative functions will continue to be based at the company’s headquarters. The new Mayer & Cie. Global will operate with a clear strategic focus on the premium segment. Its broad product portfolio ranges from single jersey to double jersey machines for applications in apparel, underwear, and home textiles. 

Synergies between the two companies are to be leveraged, particularly in procurement, access to market expertise, and the ability to serve a significantly broader range of customer needs than either company could alone. 
 
Successful completion through close collaboration of all parties 
Xu Hongjie extends special thanks to RÖDL, whose team led by partner Jiawei Wang supported the entire project on behalf of the new owner family – from the initial discussions at the end of 2025 through to the completion of the process. 

“We are pleased that the acquisition process, which we supported on both the German and Chinese sides, has now been successfully concluded. This creates a valuable opportunity for the Mayer & Cie. brand and its team: as an industrial investor, the new owner brings extensive expertise, deep market knowledge, and a clear strategic vision for the future.” The new owner also expresses his gratitude to the general representative, attorney Martin Mucha of the Stuttgart-based law firm Grub Brugger, who, together with his team, managed the self-administration proceedings. Thanks to the close cooperation with RÖDL, the transition was implemented efficiently, laying the foundation for the continuation of business operations. 

Restructuring expert Martin Mucha is satisfied with the positive outcome of the insolvency proceedings opened in December 2025: “The fact that a viable investor solution was found during the ongoing proceedings sends an important signal for the location. We have thus created the basis for a promising restart of the company.” 

On April 16, 2026, 342 shareholders, who represent 64.0% of the share capital, attended the 135th Annual General Meeting of Rieter Holding Ltd. They approved all proposals of the Board of Directors. 

Annual Report, Financial Statements, Consolidated Financial Statements and Remuneration Report 
The shareholders approved the Annual Report, Financial and Consolidated Financial Statements for 2025. They also granted discharge to the members of the Board of Directors and those of the Group Executive Committee for their activities in the year under review. 
In a consultative vote, the shareholders also approved the 2025 Report on Non-Financial Matters. 

Waiver of dividend distribution 
The shareholders followed the proposal of the Board of Directors to waive the distribution of a dividend. 

Amendments to the Articles of Association 
The proposed amendments to the Articles of Association of Rieter Holding Ltd. were also approved. 

Remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors and the Group Executive Committee 
In a consultative vote, the shareholders approved the Remuneration Report 2025. 
They also approved the total maximum compensation of the Board of Directors until the next Annual General Meeting in 2027. In addition, they approved the total amount of the maximum fixed remuneration of the Group Executive Committee for the 2027 financial year and the variable remuneration for the 2025 financial year.

Election to Board of Directors 
The members of the Board of Directors who were standing for re-election – Peter Spuhler, Roger Baillod, Carl Illi, Sarah Kreienbühl, Daniel Grieder, Thomas Oetterli and Jennifer Maag – were confirmed for a further one-year term of office. 

Thomas Oetterli, Chairman of the Board, was also re-elected for a one-year term of office. 
The members of the Remuneration Committee – Sarah Kreienbühl, Daniel Grieder and Roger Baillod – were also re-elected for a one-year term of office. 

Election of KPMG as statutory auditors 
The shareholders also adopted the proposal of the Board of Directors to re-elect KPMG AG, Zurich (Switzerland), as statutory auditors for the financial year beginning January 1, 2026.

Fibre Extrusion Technology Limited (FET) will be exhibiting once again at Techtextil 2026 in Frankfurt, which runs from April 21 – 24. Techtextil attracts major international companies at the cutting edge of technology, which are seeking innovative solutions to technical challenges, so this event represents an ideal opportunity to demonstrate FET’s strength in helping customers achieve their goals.

FET is an acknowledged leader in laboratory and pilot melt spinning equipment for a vast range of applications. These include precursor materials used in high value technical textiles, sportswear, medical devices and specialised novel fibres from exotic and difficult to process polymers. 

Where melt spinning solutions are not suitable, FET provides a viable alternative with pilot and small scale production wet spinning systems. In addition, FET has also recently launched its FET-500 Series of gel spinning systems. These systems have the potential to revolutionise the research and development of UHMWPE fibres, with significant savings in cost, footprint and environmental factors.

As part of the launch of the FET-500 series, FET’s Senior Scientist Dr Kristoffer Kortsen will be a speaker at the Techtextil Forum on Wednesday 22 April. All visitors are invited to come along and find out more about FET’s new process exploiting super-critical fluids. To date, FET has successfully processed over 130 different polymer types in multifilament, monofilament and nonwoven formats, collaborating with specialist companies worldwide to promote greater sustainability through innovative manufacturing processes.

FET’s Fibre Development Centre further enhances this service, allowing clients to trial their own products in an ideal environment. Resident equipment in the Fibre Development Centre reflects the wide range of fibre extrusion and other systems offered by FET to clients worldwide and will enable continued growth of the company through innovation.  

Managing Director Richard Slack and his technical team will be in attendance on the stand. Slack commented. “We have now exhibited at over 10 Techtextil exhibitions around the world and we again look forward to meeting customers face-to-face to discuss their fibre technology requirements.”

From April 21 to 24, 2026, the Trützschler Group will present its future‑ready solutions at Techtextil in Frankfurt, Germany. Trützschler Nonwovens will showcase its latest developments for efficient nonwovens production, including comprehensive service and consulting solutions. Highlights include the fully upgraded X‑Series nonwoven cards suitable for spunlace, needle‑punching and air‑through bonding (ATB) processes, as well as the T‑ONE digital working environment enhanced with new features. Trützschler Card Clothing will complement the presentation with a new card wire designed with a specially engineered surface for high‑performance nonwoven applications. Visitors can also take a closer look at Trützschler’s complete solution for the recycling of textile waste, TRUECYCLED. 

Trützschler Nonwovens
The T-SUPREMA needle punching line has proven its performance in the market, with lines successfully operating at two customer sites since early this year. It demonstrates the exceptional versatility of needle-punched nonwovens, covering basis weights from below 50 gsm to above 2,000 gsm. New streamlined configurations featuring the compact NC-Xe card further reduce the footprint while ensuring high process stability and consistent product quality.

Beyond complete line solutions, Trützschler Nonwovens will showcase upgrades to its single machine portfolio, including the X-Series nonwovens cards (the high-speed card NCT-X, the versatile NC-X and the compact NC-Xe), the MPD high-performance dryer and the new compact AquaJet-X. These developments are designed to combine compact machine concepts with high operational reliability and outstanding performance.

At Techtextil 2026, Trützschler Nonwovens will also highlight its advanced ATB technology for hygiene applications. The process enables the reliable processing of ultra fine fibers down to 0.4 dtex, producing exceptionally soft nonwovens that meet the highest requirements for softness and performance in baby diaper applications.

T‑ONE, Trützschler Nonwovens’ digital working environment, serves as a powerful digital backbone for any nonwoven line. New enhancements include an energy management function for real‑time monitoring of electricity and gas consumption and CO₂ footprint calculation per time unit, roll or order, as well as camera‑based anomaly detection that identifies fiber migration and accumulations at an early stage. This helps to prevent unplanned downtime while improving process stability and production transparency.

With tailored modernization and development solutions, Trützschler Nonwovens supports manufacturers in optimizing existing installations and translating new product ideas into stable, industrial scale production. Application-specific consulting enables higher efficiency, increased output and longer service life – without compromising quality.

Trützschler Card Clothing (TCC): Next‑generation card clothing for demanding nonwovens applications
Visitors can experience top nonwovens performance with our high-efficiency card clothing. Our TCC experts will present our latest innovation: a new wire with special surface designed for Hygiene, Spunlace and ATB applications. It ensures cleaner operation, less contamination and reduced downtime - delivering maximum productivity for your line. More details will be revealed at the exhibition – don’t miss this opportunity to see it first hand. 

Trützschler Spinning: TRUECYCLED – the complete solution for textile recycling    
Visitors can also learn more about TRUECYCLED, Trützschler’s complete solution for the recycling of textile waste. It covers the complete process: from cutting and tearing textile waste to carding and drawing secondary fibers. Based on Trützschler’s technological recommendations and a Trützschler machinery line-up, it ensures the best possible quality of the end product.