From the Sector

• Create truly unique yarn designs: with up to 6 colors from a large predefined color range and infinite combinations of twisting & air entanglement
• Endlessly recyclable yarn solution - available in both standard PA6 and 75% recycled content EqoCycle PA6 yarn
• Efficient and flexible - all colors in stock to shorten lead-time; customized lot sizes

B.I.G. Yarns brings inspirational design freedom to high-end loop-pile contract and automotive carpets with the unveiling of ColorMind. The innovative yarn technology is B.I.G. Yarns’ first venture into a two steps yarn collection, offering a unique solution for creating multi-color PA6 yarns for any carpet design.

Available from mid-June 2021 in both standard and EqoCycle 75% recycled content yarn, designers are invited to work closely with B.I.G. Yarns experts to realize the designs they have always wanted. Combinations of variable levels of twisting and air entanglement, using up to 6 colors at once, elevate design possibilities beyond current limitations.

The ColorMind color bank features predefined colors, always in stock, meaning short lead times. Manufacturers can also benefit from customized lot sizes and bobbin length, creating even more flexibility and design freedom. To preview a taster of the potential directions opened up for loop-pile carpets, B.I.G. Yarns has used the technology to achieve its own “Optica” dot effect and “Illusion” wave effect as inspiration for customers’ design explorations.

“ColorMind offers never-seen yarn diversity to support a new level of design sophistication in high-end carpet segments. We’re very proud and excited to enter into two steps yarns with a solution offering something truly special, the result of intensive dedication from our design and development teams,” comments Emmanuel Colchen, General Manager, B.I.G. Yarns. “ColorMind combines our strengths in delivering high-performance, more sustainable yarns to fit the evolving demands of these segments, underpinned by our expertise in color sequencing and color mixing. We’re looking forward to exciting collaborations and innovative, eye-catching designs for future loop-pile carpets.”

ColorMind PA6 yarns are based on a unique Solution Dyed Nylon yarn and are suitable for Class 33 certification (heavy commercial use). The EqoCycle yarn version is mainly based on post-industrial waste and supports contract and automotive carpet manufacturers with a drop-in circular solution to reduce the ecological footprint of their end carpets.

SUPREME GREEN COTTON® has been chosen by the Italian brand Diesel for the ‘Green Label’, ‘NightCrush’ and ‘Malign’ jersey T-shirts. From cotton seed to fiber, yarn production, fabric and final garments, the full supply chain is not just transparent but located in a very focused area 100% in Greece.
 
SUPREME GREEN COTTON® is the premium quality smart yarn collection by Varvaressos S.A. European Spinning Mills. The Greek yarn manufacturer has developed an innovative and socially responsible system from the seed to the garment that supports farmers and businesses at the foothills of Mount Olympus.
 
SUPREME GREEN COTTON® uses a customized satellite-powered drip irrigation system in the fields that allows saving up to 40% of water. Water usage is one of the pressing issues in cotton production. Thanks to the advanced drip irrigation system, plants are watered and fed without wasting a single drop. Thanks to a custom-developed app connected via satellite and meteorological stations in selected cotton fields, farmers can monitor the fields in real time. The IoT – Internet of Things system warns them to take action to ensure plants to flourish healthily and high a higher yield in a sustainable way.
 
The smart yarns are Made in Greece and have been certified by MADE IN GREEN by OEKO-TEX® which assures transparency and traceability, moreover the company has also obtained the STeP by OEKO-TEX®.

National Council of Textiles Organization (NCTO) member Parkdale Mills hosted Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) at the company’s Magnolia Manufacturing plant in Hillsville, Va. today to showcase the critical role the company and the industry has played in producing lifesaving personal protective equipment (PPE) to aid frontline health-care workers and the country during the pandemic.

Parkdale’s facility in Hillsville, Va. is a key yarn spinning hub contributing to a major face mask initiative bringing together several U.S. companies and more than 5,000 workers as part of the Biden administration’s pledge to provide 25 million reusable face masks to communities hit hard by the pandemic.

“Parkdale Mills thanks Senator Kaine for his leadership on policies that help bolster our company and the entire textile industry. We are proud to be part of an initiative that is bringing together American companies to produce 100% American-made masks for community health centers, soup kitchens and food banks across the country,” said Davis Warlick of Parkdale Mills. “With the support of our government and leaders like Senator Kaine, our industry is demonstrating its ability and capacity to make critical items here for the long term.”

Kim Glas, President and CEO of NCTO said: “We want to sincerely thank Senator Kaine for his leadership in supporting American manufacturers, which have played a vital role in our economy as well as the nationwide effort to produce critical PPE and medical textiles for a nation in crisis. We are grateful to the senator and the Biden administration for prioritizing domestic manufacturers and the U.S. workforce. The U.S. textile industry is a vital contributor to the U.S economy and policies that Senator Kaine supports help bolster the onshoring of PPE and critical items, which in turn spurs employment and investment in the American manufacturing base.”

The Biden Administration has awarded two contracts to National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) members Parkdale Mills and Ferrara Manufacturing Inc., following through on the President’s pledge to procure millions of fully Made in America face masks for community health centers, food pantries and soup kitchens across the country.  A third contract is expected to be awarded to a small business early next week.

North Carolina headquartered Parkdale Mills, the nation’s largest cotton yarn spinner, has partnered with Ferrara Manufacturing, a tailored clothing company based in New York City’s garment center whose workforce is union represented by Workers United/SEIU, to manufacture over 17 million reusable masks. The government said it could purchase up to a maximum of 22.2 million masks under the two contracts announced today. The masks will be Berry compliant and thus 100% U.S.-made.

Ferrara Manufacturing and Parkdale Mills will contract with additional U.S. companies across the manufacturing supply chain, employing nearly 5,000 American workers as a result of these awards.  Parkdale will be utilizing yarn from their facilities in NC, VA, and GA and Ferrara will deploy their cut and sew operations in New York City.

The U.S. textile industry has produced over a billion lifesaving PPE and other medical products over the last year.  Since the spring of 2020, both Ferrara and Parkdale have retooled their production chains to help produce millions of masks and gowns to help workers on the frontlines. 

The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO), representing the full spectrum of U.S. textiles from fiber through finished sewn products, held its officer elections for fiscal year 2021 today.

NCTO has re-elected David Roberts, CEO of Cap Yarns, as Chairman and David Poston, President of Palmetto Synthetics, as Vice Chairman.

In addition to the appointment of a new chairman and vice chairman, NCTO elected chairs for each of its four councils. NCTO is comprised of four councils to ensure a broad representation of the industry supply chain. Each council has an allotted number of members who are elected to the association’s Board of Directors, in addition to the Executive Committee.*

“This is a critical juncture for our industry, which answered the call of the nation to produce lifesaving personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers battling the COVID-19 pandemic,” said NCTO President and CEO Kim. “We will continue to engage with all stakeholders to press for policies that support the industry overall, help onshore PPE production and create a permanent domestic supply chain.”

*See attached document for more information.

• Inspiring Interiors

Textiles are an inseparable part of the interior as they give a room atmosphere and good acoustics. But which fabric is best suited for which purpose?
This month's drapilux recommendation is drapilux 115 and is aimed at classic and modern hotels as well as offices.

• The epitome of piece dyeing: drapilux 115

Sustainable, flame retardant and a true eye-catcher – drapilux 115 combines all these features in one fabric. This decorative fabric, which resembles the material of a bedspread, has been created using an innovative yarn, part of which has been manufactured with sustainably produced fibres. The unusual look is achieved by means of a two-tone effect, as the woven material is dyed using a complex cationic/anionic process. The combination of sustainably produced fibres and flame retardancy makes drapilux 115 the quintessence of piece dyeing. Thanks to the modern colours, the fabric is very versatile.

• Major Monforts denim customers continue to pioneer new initiatives that are pushing the boundaries of sustainable production.

Recycling their cotton waste has become one way these companies can do more with less, and at the recent Kingpins24 Flash online event, Sedef Uncu Aki, director of Orta, headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey, announced a new partnership with leading recycling operation Gama Recycle.

Traceable
“Through this local partnership we will supply the waste from our spinning mills and return around 3,000 tons of premium quality cotton back to them,” she said. “We have established a truly controlled and traceable system and partnering with a domestic recycling centre is important because a lot the carbon emissions associated with recycling usually come from transportation.”

Orta’s ZeroMax range meanwhile uses no cotton at all, being based on Lenzing’s Tencel cellulosic fibre, while the company’s involvement in denim production for a recent launch by Levi Strauss, of jeans made with organic cotton and Circulose – a breakthrough material developed by re:newcell of Sweden and partners – was hailed as a further step forward.

To make Circulose, re:newcell repurposes discarded cotton textiles, such as worn-out denim jeans, through a process akin to recycling paper. The incoming waste fabrics are broken down using water. The colour is then stripped from these materials using an eco-friendly bleach and after any synthetic fibres are removed from the mix, the slurry-like mixture is dried and the excess water is extracted, leaving behind a sheet of Circulose. This sheet is then made into viscose fibre which is combined with cotton and woven into new fabrics.

Circular Park
Omer Ahmed, CEO of Artistic Milliners also announced plans for his company’s new 70,000 square-foot Circular Park in Karachi, Pakistan, at Kingpins24 Flash.

Once complete, this will add three million square metres of additional denim capacity a month to the company’s production and take its total recycled output to a monthly five million metres.
Ahmed observed that there is currently a lack of sustainable fibres that are readily available to use for denim production at scale.

“Organic cotton is too expensive, and in my opinion always will be,” he said. “Cottonised hemp is also not cheap and it’s hard to mix with cotton, while the new regenerated cellulose fibres that are now emerging are promising, but currently in short supply. Recycled polyester is meanwhile still based on petroleum resources which we want to move away from. As a consequence, there are only a few other options for us as a manufacturer and this new project will help us minimise our own waste while significantly lowering our carbon footprint.”

Other Monforts denim customers to introduce cotton fibre recycling operations at their plants recently include AGI Denim, Bossa and Soorty.

Vertical savings
Refresh is the name of the latest collection from AGI Denim – reflecting the company’s significant reduction in water consumption.

The company has just opened new fibre spinning and denim mills at its complex in Karachi, Pakistan.

“Over the years we’ve gone through a series of backward integration steps to become fully vertical,” said AGI Denim executive director Ahmed Javed, at Kingpins24 Flash. “In our latest expansion, we revisited every step of the production processes in order to make resource savings.”

Innovations have included the installation of proprietary robotics for garment finishing, but the most attention has been paid to water savings.

“Pakistan is one of the largest cotton-producing companies in the world and we’re fortunate that the type of cotton that is grown here is well suited to denim production and also helps us lower our carbon footprint, with everything done in close proximity,” Javed said. “In the lifecycle of a pair of denim jeans, however, cotton fibre production contributes 68% of water consumption. While we cannot control how much water cotton needs for it to grow, we can rethink the way we use it in our factory.”

Refresh-branded denims are washed from 100% recycled water as a result of the company’s new wastewater treatment plant, which puts production wastewater through a series of steps beginning with equalisation, followed by aeration and concluding with sedimentation. The water travels through filtration and ultrafiltration systems before being subjected to an activated carbon system and finally a reverse osmosis system to reduce any dissolved salts.

AGI now recycles 4.4 million gallons of water each month – enough to wash a million pairs of jeans.

Sustainable
Monforts has a leading position in the field of denim finishing with its well proven Thermex continuous dyeing systems, Montex stenter dryers and other lines for resource-efficient and economical processing.

“Our denim partners are constantly setting themselves new goals in respect of sustainable production – and more importantly, achieving them,” says Hans Wroblowski, Monforts Head of Denim. “We work closely with them with the aim of constantly optimising processing parameters and achieving further savings in energy, water and raw materials throughout the dyeing and finishing stages of production.”

The latest Monforts innovation for denim is the CYD yarn dyeing system. This technology is based on the effective and established dyeing process for denim fabrics that is now being applied for yarn dyeing. The CYD system integrates new functions and processes into the weaving preparation processes to increase quality, flexibility, economic viability and productivity. A full CYD line is now available for trials at the company’s Advanced Technology Centre in Mönchengladbach, Germany.”

With the spring textile trade fair season in China just around the corner, a number of leading domestic and international suppliers are confirmed to take part in Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Spring Edition. The fair will now take place at a slightly later date of 17 – 19 March. Together with the concurrent fairs Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics, Yarn Expo, CHIC and PH Value, these five events will form the first major in-person gathering for the textile industry this year.

From bedding and towelling, rugs and table & kitchen linen to home textile technologies and textile designs, buyers will have a wide range of the latest collections to source from this month at Shanghai’s National Exhibition and Convention Center. International exhibitors such as Lenzing and Cotton Council International as well as leading domestic brands including Coolist, Luolai, Soluffy and Yunjie Textile are amongst those signed up to take part this year.

Exhibitor highlights

• Lenzing Fibers: will showcase their flagship brand for textiles, TENCEL™. Used for a variety of highly specialised applications, TENCEL™ fibres are soft to the skin and excellent in thermal regulation and moisture absorption.
• Cotton Council International (CCI) is a non-profit association that promotes US cotton fibre and cotton products throughout the world.
• Zhangjiagang Coolist Life Technology: this Chinese company designs and produces a range of functional pillow collections including their Filmless Gel, Hydrophilic, Air, Flexible and Organic pillow series. Their unique Coolist design features patented technology, and is made from organic and environmental-friendly materials.
• Anhui Million Feather: located in Anhui province’s Lu’an city, known in China as the ‘Kingdom of Geese’, the company produces a range of down and feather products and various bedding items.
• Wujiang City Yunjie Textiles: specialising in wide-width fabrics including microfibre, satin and suede.
• Yantai Zhonglian Industry: their main products include sheets, pillowcases, quilt covers, bed skirts, comforters, coverlets, pillows and more.

• Partner to Enable Sustainable Microbe- and Odor-Resistant Textiles
• Huntsman Now Delivers Complete End-to-End System for Protection Effects

SINGAPORE – Huntsman Textile Effects and Sciessent have entered into a strategic partnership to bring revolutionary antimicrobial and odor-control solutions to textile mills and brands worldwide. As consumers around the world begin paying more attention to health and hygiene, Huntsman Textile Effects and Sciessent will cooperate to help mills and brands deliver active wear, outerwear, home textiles and other products with long-lasting protection against microbial growth and odor. Huntsman Textile Effects will also become the exclusive distribution partner of Sciessent’s Agion® Antimicrobial*, Lava XL® anti-odor solution, and dual-action Active XL®.

“Both Huntsman Textile Effects and Sciessent share a deep commitment to innovation, environmental sustainability and customer service. As partners, our joint goal is to offer the highest level of protection for textiles so that they stay fresher for longer,” said Rohit Aggarwal, President of Huntsman Textile Effects. “Huntsman Textile Effects now has one of the industry’s most complete end-to-end systems for high-performance protection effects, with a full range of innovative and sustainable protection and comfort technologies from pre-treatment to coloration and finishing.”

“Our presence in the global textile and apparel market has been rapidly expanding based on the strength of our solution set and reputation for delivering an exceptional customer experience,” said Sciessent CEO Paul C. Ford. “Through this partnership, we are both extending our reach to manufacturers and enhancing our offerings by coupling them with Huntsman Textile Effects’ broad range of innovative and sustainable protection technologies. It is a great opportunity for manufacturers to differentiate their products through the combined strength of our brands.”

Sciessent is recognized for the proven effectiveness and safety of its antimicrobial and anti-odor technologies throughout the global textile and apparel industry.

Sciessent Agion® Antimicrobial is the industry-leading antimicrobial solution. Designed with smart-release technology, it delivers long-lasting protection by releasing its active antimicrobial agents only when needed. It can be built-in or applied via padding, exhaust or package yarn to any textile alongside other functional finishes, dyes, inks and pre-treatments. Durable up to 100 home washes, Agion® is also customizable to meet brands’ performance and cost goals. Agion® Antimicrobial has been used on FDA-approved medical devices.*

Sciessent Lava XL® is a next-generation non-bioactive odor-control solution, ideal for sportwear and athleisure wear. While other odor-control technologies capture odors and release them during laundering, Lava XL®’s triple action technology utilizes zeolite minerals with a large surface area to capture, absorb and degrade odors as they pass through the fabric.

Sciessent Agion Active XL® combines the advanced dual technologies of Agion® Antimicrobial and Lava XL® to deliver outstanding odor protection. The antimicrobial fights odor-causing bacteria on the garment, while the odor-control solution captures odor generated by sweat on the skin. The result is that garments smell fresher for longer and sustain a high level of performance for more wears.

The Sciessent solutions are easily integrated into the finishing process and can be combined with a range of other finishes, including Huntsman Textile Effects’ durable water repellents and comfort systems to cost-effectively produce high-performance textile products that are safe and sustainable.

Huntsman Textile Effects and Sciessent both champion environmentally responsible products that help the textile industry meet its regulatory obligations and the expectations of the world’s most exacting brands and consumers. The Agion®, Lava XL® and Active XL® products are all bluesign® approved and listed on the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Foundation ZDHC Gateway, complying with ZDHC Level 3 requirements.

*The Agion® Antimicrobial is presently registered by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as a preservative and bacteriostatic agent for use in treated articles under 40 CFR 152.25a. The information presented herein is not intended to support or endorse public health claims for treated articles. The Agion® Antimicrobial is also used in medical devices under the Food and Drug Administration; those medical device claims are based on safety and efficacy testing and are limited to those approved by FDA.

Reinach, Switzerland, and Westlake, Ohio, 2 February 2021 - Archroma, a global leader in specialty chemicals towards sustainable solutions, today announced a strategic partnership with technology innovator CleanKore, aiming to advance sustainable dyeing processes throughout the denim supply chain.

The agreement will allow Archroma and CleanKore to promote the benefits of each other’s technologies. This includes Archroma’s robust catalog of dyes and specialty chemicals along with CleanKore’s patented process of dyeing yarns at the denim mill that completely eliminates the need for potassium permanganate (PP) spray and laser booster to achieve the bright white abrasion effect in the garment finishing process. The result is a large and circular bright white core with a small ring of indigo dye. The technology does not just eliminate the chemicals associated in the PP spray and laser process, which is much safer for denim workers, it also allows to save significant amounts of water and energy throughout the manufacturing process from fabric to garmenting.

CleanKore initially looked at eliminating potassium permanganate due to its being classified as hazardous if inhaled or ingested, or in case of contact with the skin or the eye. It is also considered very toxic to aquatic life. No new equipment or capital expenses are needed to implement the CleanKore technology, which works on all denim fabric, including dark indigo, sulfur top/bottom and sulfur black.

This is where Archroma comes into the picture. Its global technical team of denim coloration specialists will provide support to denim mills seeking to implement the CleanKore technology and develop the desired looks and effects - with the right colors and chemical systems for their production set-up.

CleanKore estimates that the technology allows to save up to 15 liters of water per garment, or the equivalent to the drinking needs of 5 people per day, and up to 0.51 kWh of energy per garment, or the equivalent of five 100-watt light bulbs on for 1 hour. The CleanKore technology also leads to a 10% to 20% increase in production throughput, as a result of a faster garment wash-down and the elimination of PP spray.

For CleanKore CEO Darryl Costin Jr., the announcement comes at an ideal time for CleanKore: "We have successfully proven the technology with mill partners such as Arvind and other denim mills in Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, Thailand and the United States. The response from the industry has been overwhelmingly positive. Having a partner in Archroma, one that is highly respected for their innovation and emphasis on sustainability throughout the industry, will allow us to take CleanKore to the next level.”

Umberto Devita, Global Indigo Manager at the Archroma Global Competence Center for Denim & Casualwear, adds: "CleanKore is perfectly aligned with the 3 pillars of 'The Archroma Way to a Sustainable World: Safe, efficient, enhanced'. 'Safe' through the elimination of a potentially harmful substance and the protection of the denim workers, 'Efficient' through the reduction of resource consumption, improved productivity and cost-effective profile. And 'Enhanced' through the gorgeous colors and effects allowed with Archroma's innovations and systems, in particular our aniline-free* Denisol® Pure Indigo and Diresul® sulfur dyes. We look forward to help promoting an innovation that will help with many of the challenges facing our denim customers throughout the world. Because it’s our nature."