From the Sector

Rejects Importer Attempts to Remove China 301 Tariffs on Finished Products

The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), representing the full spectrum U.S. textiles from fiber through finished sewn products, issued a statement today welcoming the Trump administration’s proposals on an economic stimulus package to gird the economy against the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, but the organization urged officials to reject any attempts by importers to remove China 301 tariffs on finished products as part of any relief package.

As part of a Phase One deal with China, the administration reduced duties on finished apparel and textile products implemented on Sept.1 from 15 percent to 7.5 percent. Finished apparel, home furnishings and other made-up textile goods equate to 93.5 percent of U.S. imports from China in the sector; while fiber, yarn, and fabric imports from China only represent 6.5 percent, according to government data.

NCTO is a Washington, DC-based trade association that represents domestic textile manufacturers, including artificial and synthetic filament and fiber producers.

• U.S. employment in the textile supply chain was 594,147 in 2018.

• The value of shipments for U.S. textiles and apparel was $76.8 billion in 2018.

• U.S. exports of fiber, textiles and apparel were $30.1 billion in 2018.

• Capital expenditures for textile and apparel production totaled $2.0 billion in 2017, the last year for which data is available.

NCTO Supports Administration’s Proposals on Economic Stimulus in Coronavirus Response; Rejects Importer Attempts to Remove China 301 Tariffs on Finished Products

The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), representing the full spectrum U.S. textiles from fiber through finished sewn products, issued a statement today welcoming the Trump administration’s proposals on an economic stimulus package to gird the economy against the impact of the coronavirus outbreak. But the organization urged officials to reject any attempts by importers to remove China 301 tariffs on finished products as part of any relief package.

“The president has outlined the need for a broad economic stimulus package that would include various tax incentives to help impacted industries and workers. We support the administration’s efforts to bolster the economy as a response to the coronavirus outbreak, while opposing add-ons to any stimulus package designed to exploit the crisis,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim Glas.

As part of a Phase One deal with China, the administration reduced duties on finished apparel and textile products implemented on Sept.1 from 15 percent to 7.5 percent.

Finished apparel, home furnishings and other made-up textile goods equate to 93.5 percent of U.S. imports from China in the sector; while fiber, yarn, and fabric imports from China only represent 6.5 percent, according to government data.

Exhibitor registration for the Autumn Edition of Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles has been strong since applications opened in December last year. Renowned global players such as D Décor Home Fabrics (India), G.M. Syntex Pvt (India), Naturtex (Hungary) and SIC Global Textiles (Poland) are amongst those to have already confirmed their participation. Held from 24 – 26 August 2020, the fair is the largest trade platform in China for international buyers to meet potential supply partners in the second half of the year. The fair’s early bird discount will be extended until 30 March. Interested companies can register online to enjoy a 10% discount.

Discover abundant new products and design trends
As the leading business platform for the home and contract textile industry in the Asia Pacific region, participants of Intertextile can always discover the latest innovations and trends of the textile and interior design industry. This year, the fair continues to cover the entire spectrum of home and contract textile products including:

• Decorative Fabrics (Upholstery & Curtains)
• Bedding, Bath, Kitchen & Table
• Carpets & Rugs
• Sun-Protection
• Wallcoverings
• Textile Editors
• Whole Home Products
• Digital Print & Technics
• Fibres, Yarns & Chemicals
• Textile Designs

In addition, Intertextile is pleased to cooperate with the renowned international forecasting agency NellyRodi™ from France again in presenting the hottest international home furnishing trends. A trend committee led by NellyRodi and formed by top forecasters including Carlotta Montaldo, Juliette Lamarca, Shen Lei and Studio NOCC will be responsible for determining the major design trends which will be demonstrated in the three-day fair via a series of events and displays. More details about the trends will be announced soon.

Technology transfer that is creating waves

For more than a decade now, the Manmade Fibers segment of the Swiss Oerlikon Group has been hosting a comprehensive technology symposium at the beginning of each year in the Indian region around Silvassa/Daman. Numerous Indian manmade fiber producers have settled in this area, around a four-hour drive north of Mumbai. Fed from Oerlikon polycondensation and extrusion systems, these companies manufacture polyester, nylon and polypropylene on large-scale installations with Oerlikon Barmag WINGS POY, WINGS FDY, IDY and DTY product lines and using Oerlikon Neumag’s staple fiber and BCF technologies. Reason enough for the Manmade Fibers segment’s experts to regularly provide their clientèle with detailed specialist presentations in India on the latest developments of the product and service portfolio.

And this was once again the case at the event held at the beginning of 2020, where around 450 managers and employees from local businesses took the opportunity to exchange ideas and information. For the third time in succession, Oerlikon also entered into dialog with the next generation of managers at major Indian polyester and nylon manufacturers in a separate event hosted in Mumbai beforehand. The technology symposium was again held – for the very first time – just a few days later and in a slightly modified form at a second venue: in Kolkata in West Bengal, a potential second future key location for manufacturing manmade fibers in India according to plans revealed by the Indian government. Here, the discussions held by the Oerlikon experts focused above all on the transfer of technologies for manufacturing polyester, nylon and polypropylene. Oerlikon is able to offer the entire process chain – from the melt to the textured yarn or the fibers and including the necessary semi- and fullyautomated logistics process – from a single source. This is of interest above all for potential new customers and investors in West Bengal and neighboring Bangladesh, as some do not have decades of expertise in manufacturing manmade fibers, as is the case for most companies in the region around Silvassa/Daman.

At ISPO, AKA – Asahi Kasei Advance keeps the planet fit and healthy at the same time. The cutting edge department of global material innovator Asahi Kasei, unveils ECOSENSOR™, the cutting-edge fabric collection boosting responsible innovation with a “New Eco High-tech Force of Nature” new generation of performance.

Harnessing AKA expertise in yarning a smarter future, the new range focuses on sportwear, urban and athleisure fabrics. “At ISPO we launch the energetic protein fitting perfectly in textiles for clothes with an active imprint, comfort touch and smooth style. From-yarn-to-dyeing and along the whole supply chain, the collection is 100% traceable.” Says Nishizawa Akira, President & Representative Director Asahi Kasei Advance corporation.

Such goals were scored thanks to the renown expertise of Research & Development and energized by constantly and strictly controlled processes that aim to save energy, water and Green House gases emissions. The result is a high-performative collection combining maximum comfort with durability and stretch-ability.

With ECOSENSOR™, Asahi Kasei Advance truly innovates at ISPO as the very first producers choosing the high-performance path with sustainable values. “Like a truly complete athlete, ECOSENSOR™ wins both during the sprint and all along its performance. It’s outstanding light & stretch features match durability.”

Indeed, the flexible and multitasking range is the high-tech solution for sportwear, outerwear and beyond. The collection embraces the casual and sporty mood of active urban surfers as well as that easy-to-wear attitude for a relaxing free-time at home.

Excellent stretch and high-performative features match the adventurous temperament of extreme explorers, while durability and resistance are the key features to weave fabrics for outdoor activities. The target of ECOSENSOR™ by Asahi Kasei is to push at maximum the choice towards bluesign® approved and Standard 100 by OEKO-TEX® certified ingredients and production processes, and GRS (Global Recycled Standard) for recycled ingredients, showing the path to sustainability.

Working with the best like-minded apparel partners, AKA has achieved unsurpassed active climate control materials. The unique high-tech and low-impact functionality has been designed to make a real, sustainable difference a better future.

From smart collections born from the collaboration with style-setting brands to the company’s ultimate yarns, the cutting-edge ingredients empowering sportwear with a responsible attitude.

For the 2020 edition of ISPO Munich, the influential fashion and textile fair dedicated to sportwear and athleisure-wear, ROICA™ has created an interactive booth inviting visitors to explore a backward path from the final sportwear to the yarn. The sustainable premium stretch fiber by leading materials manufacturer Asahi Kasei, has conceived the exhibition as a sort of ‘reversed’ journey in three acts.

THE NEXT LEVEL – For ROICA™, being a world’s leader in smart stretch is not enough. The company shows that responsible innovation is not only about how the premium yarn is made but its functionalities as well. “It’s time to go to the next level of innovation: empowering sustainability with additional performances”. At ISPO, ROICA™ presents the new Global Recycled Standard -GRS- certified ROICA™ EF which innovates with excellent dyability and the Cradle to Cradle Material Health Gold level-certified ROICA™ V550 yarn which allows excellent and durable printability.

THE ‘REVERSED’ JOURNEY: the first section of the backwards path showcases ROICA™’s ultimate collaborations for the contemporary wardrobe with leading brands. Guests are then guided to explore the cutting-edge innovation interwoven into high- performing textiles and finally led to discover the company’s sustainable yarns and ultimate products.

Focus on Sustainability and Climate Change

Passion for Cotton: The 35th International Cotton Conference Bremen starts on 25 March in the Hanseatic city’s historic Town Hall. But before subject-specific questions are discussed in depth in the individual sessions, the concise and inspiring keynotes by leading business experts from science and industry will draw attention to the current trends and challenges in the industry at the start of the conference. A large part of the presentations is shaped by the current discussion on environmental and sustainability issues and the resulting consequences for the global economy.

Climate Change and Sustainability

“Climate change - a storm in a teacup?” asks Kai Hughes, Executive Director of the International Cotton Advisory Committee, Washington D.C., USA, in a provocative speech. The aim of his presentation is to work out the challenges of climate change especially for agriculture and cotton production. This should form the basis for later discussion on concrete approaches and solutions within the cotton community.

With his lecture “The HUGO BOSS sustainability programme ... and what our customer has to do with it” Andreas Streubig, Director of Global Sustainability at Hugo Boss AG, Metzingen, Germany, rolls up the textile value chain from a different angle, starting at the consumer level. As a representative of a premium brand for women's and men's clothing, Streubig discusses sustainability as a strategic element of the corporate strategy and provides information on how elements of the strategy are being implemented at Hugo Boss.

Rüdiger Senft, Head of Sustainability at Commerzbank, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, looks at the changing role of banks in financing the cotton market. In addition to a general introduction to the topic of sustainability and banking regulation, Senft's presentation deals with the financing of the cotton trade from a social and ecological point of view.
The opening session on 25 March is hosted by Bill Ballenden, founder and owner of Dragontree, Swindon, UK, an online auction platform for the cotton trade. As a former cotton manager for Louis Dreyfus in Europe and Asia, Bill Ballenden has many years of experience in the industry.

Cross-Cutting Issues: Digitalisation, Gender, Value Chains

The subsequent session in the conference programme with the headline “A Wider View” is devoted to currently defining trends and important cross-cutting issues in the industry. This goes far beyond classic cotton themes.

A lecture by Mark Messura, Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain Marketing for Cotton Incorporated, Cary, North Carolina, deals with the role of cotton in an increasingly digitally controlled supply chain. Significant keywords here are faster delivery times, vertical integration, transparency and traceability.

The presentation by Roger Gilmartin, Managing Director of Tri-Blend Consulting, Charlotte, USA, entitled “The secret recipe for timely, cost-optimised and high-quality cotton clothing” promises exciting and enlightening insights. Tri-Blend Consulting conducts studies on the performance of different cotton varieties during the entire consumption process to the finished yarn and evaluates them from an economic point of view.

Amy Jackson, from the Better Cotton Initiative, London, UK, presents ICA Liverpool's “Women in Cotton” initiative. With this commitment, the initiative aims to increase the influence of women in the cotton industry and give them a stronger voice, for example by building networks in cooperation.

Navdeep Singh Sodhi, International Strategic Management Consultant at the Gherzi Textile Organisation, Switzerland, gives an insight into the current development of the value chain for cotton, textiles and clothing in Africa. Looking ahead to the coming decades, also in view of population growth, Africa is seen as having a high potential for building economic structures to improve income and prosperity.

Thomas Schneider, Professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Berlin and active in the field of production planning and control, textile materials and materials testing will host the session. A leading light in his field, Thomas Schneider has more than 30 years of experience in scientific and application-oriented research in the textile and fibre sector, including at the Fibre Institute Bremen e.V.

The company announced that its three textile fairs in Shanghai will be postponed from March to a later date due to the Novel Coronavirus outbreak. This includes Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Spring Edition, Yarn Expo Spring and Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Spring Edition which were due to be held in Shanghai from 11 – 13 March at the National Exhibition and Convention Center.

This follows the recent announcement that the company’s other fairs to be held in China in the coming two months – Prolight + Sound Guangzhou, SPS – Industrial Automation Fair Guangzhou (SIAF) and Asiamold in Guangzhou, and Toy & Edu, Baby & Stroller and Licensing China in Shenzhen – have also been postponed until later in the year.

“Messe Frankfurt has been an active player in the China market for over 30 years now, so we stand fully behind the government’s efforts to control the outbreak,” Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd outlined. “This includes the recent suspension of large-scale trade and economic events in a number of cities, so with this and the wellbeing of all our stakeholders in mind, we have made the decision to reschedule our upcoming textile fairs in Shanghai to a later date. Our teams are making every effort to find suitable alternatives, but we will only make the decision to go ahead with these fairs when it is deemed safe to do so.”

The Oerlikon Manmade Fibers segment will be presenting itself at the Egy Stitch & Tex 2020 between March 5 and 8, 2020 in Cairo – with a clear focus on the needs of the African market. In Hall 1, Stand B2 The Oerlikon Barmag and Oerlikon Neumag experts will also be showcasing the comprehensive product and service portfolio of the world market leader for manmade fiber systems at the stand of Oerlikon’s representative ATAG Export & Import.

The spotlight of the Oerlikon Manmade Fibers segment’s trade fair attendance will be on two core technologies: the new generation of Oerlikon Barmag eAFK Evo texturing machines is to be unveiled within the African market for the very first time. It promises higher speeds and productivity with consistently high product quality, along with lower energy consumption and simpler operation vis-à-vis comparable market solutions. In particular, the numerous value-added features include two that convince with cutting-edge technology: the optimized, innovative EvoHeater and the EvoCooler, a completely newly-developed active cooling unit.

The second technology focus offers new opportunities for the Egyptian market and the Middle Eastern markets in particular: with Oerlikon Neumag’s BCF S8 monocolor and tricolor system, the segment will be unveiling its new carpet yarn production flagship. Superlative spinning speeds, up to 700 individual filaments, finer titers of up to 2.5 dpf – the performance data and technological finesse of the new system have already made a huge impression at numerous trade fairs and roadshows over the past year. The tricolor’s core component is the new, patent-pending Color Pop Compacting unit (CPC-T) for even more flexible and more even color separation. With the CPC-T, individually-controllable air pressures for each color provide pre-tangling, which accentuates the colors and hence makes more than 200,000 different shades possible. Whereas it has been very difficult to manufacture strongly color-separated or color-accentuated BCF yarns from polyamide 6 to date, this will in future be possible thanks to the CPC-T system. As a result of the new design, the CPC-T is now also suitable for processes with low yarn tensions.
 
Expanded product offering for manufacturing carpet yarns
Know-how covering all relevant technologies deployed in manmade fiber spinning plants enables Oerlikon – as the world’s only manufacturer – to expand its range of products and services for making carpet yarns. The POY- and texturing-based system concept is designed for a carpet and home textiles segment that demands particularly soft and bulky polyester yarns with BCF-like properties. Here, the aim is to produce yarns with titers of max. 1300dtex and typically more than 1,000 filaments, with typical products including, for example, 1300dtex f1152, 660dtex f1152 and 990dtex f768. The machine concept comprises the well-known WINGS HD POY winder, along with the eAFK Big-V texturing machine.

The integrated sustainable network making fashion circular, Made in Italy and 100% traceable

World leading textile manufacturer Manteco presents its sustainable path for a better future: The Manteco System. A strategy and a vision shaping the company’s sustainable imprint since 1943. The system consists in the development and engineering of a production network involving 100 partner-companies from the whole supply chain “We all team up responsibly to create premium collection based on transparent , traceable  circular economy practices,” comments Matteo Mantellassi, co-CEO of Manteco.
 
To achieve meeting the demand for fair and sustainable fashion that consumers believe in, and is expected  from our clients, the company and its partners have created and accomplished to a Protocol of Sustainable Values and Commitments in line with the highest standards of the global market.

“On a hand, the protocol preserves the unique ‘genius loci’ of our territory – it respects the heritage of all our partners, from the smaller businesses to the more structured ones - on the other hand, it works like a shared compass of sustainable values, allowing the whole supply chain behind Manteco products to stand out and be competitive on the global stage” adds Mantellassi.
 
The protocol and its monitored and traceable system cover virtuous management of resources – e.g. Water, energy and chemical products - waste management and low production impact on the environment but also responsible standards in terms of employment, quality of the working environment, equal rights and anti-discrimination policies.

One of the key  results of such commitment and sustainable development is the creation of an upgraded version of the recycled wool  MWool™: a top ingredient made from premium recycled wool process guaranteed by the Manteco System.The System works like a symphony where management, measurement and controls  are not there just to test  the quality of each single phase of processes or  products , but to make sure and offer the complete traceability of Manteco production.  From raw material, to yarn, spinning, finishing, testing and final fabric.

Some productions tips about Manteco:

•  5.3 million kg of raw materials processed annually.
•  6.860 tests on raw material per year.
•  34.400 tests on finished products.
•  100% made in Italy system completely based in the Prato district since 1943.
•  Total transparency and traceability thanks to a highly skilled management system.

With a turnover of over 91m Euro in 2019 and an annual growth of 17,80% since 2012, Manteco SpA is the 4th textile company in Italy, listed in the TOP30 companies of the Italian fashion system. “The unique Manteco system adds value to our products while highlighting the sustainable path we share with all our partners both upstream and downstream”.