From the Sector

At the recent CAMX 2022 Composites and Advanced Materials Expo in Anaheim, California, The Heat Sealing Module – HSM from Zünd was recognized with an Unsurpassed Innovation Award. The HSM significantly facilitates the processing and handling of dry fiber materials with thermoplastic content. This new tool is Zünd’s answer to a demand in the composites industry for wider-spread use and easier processing of these types of materials.

The American Composites Manufacturing Association, ACMA, proclaimed the Heat Sealing Module – HSM the winner of the ACE Award for Unsurpassed Innovation in the “Manufacturing: Equipment and Tooling” category. This award is presented annually to equipment, tooling, a production aid, or software designed to improve manufacturing production, environmental sustainability, or product quality and performance in composites manufacturing.

During processing, dry fiber materials are prone to fraying along the edges. Using hot air, the HSM seals the fabric along the cut path in advance of the Zünd Power Rotary Tool – PRT cutting it. Because of this sealing process, the cut can then be performed at full speed, in any direction, and produces both higher-quality parts and greater production efficiencies.

The HSM helps create clean, sealed edges when cutting fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites. It benefits not only the cutting process itself, but other production processes downstream. Cutting this way leaves behind no loose or uncut fibers and maintains a clean cutting surface and uncontaminated production environment. At the same time, it ensures that cut parts maintain their shape, and this increased stability makes them much easier to handle, especially in fully automated production workflows.

Sustainable Chemistry for the Textile Industry (SCTI™) has appointed Dr. Isabella Tonaco as Executive Director, effective November 1, 2022. With a mandate to inspire and trigger action at a global level, she will lead SCTI to drive transformational change in the textile and leather industries.
 
Launched two years ago by seven of the world's leading chemical companies, the SCTI Alliance aims to enable brands, retailers and manufacturers to apply cutting-edge sustainable chemistry solutions that enhance the well-being of factory workers, local communities, consumers and the planet.
 
Dr. Tonaco will oversee SCTI activities to implement this mission. Based in Germany, she will work with SCTI member companies and stakeholders across the textile and leather value chain to help the industry achieve the highest levels of sustainability. Dr. Tonaco will report to the SCTI Executive Committee.
 
Dr. Tonaco has more than a decade of experience in sustainability and has held various strategic and commercial roles in the chemical industry. Most recently, she was Vice President of Strategy Execution and Marketing for Renewable Polymers & Chemicals at Neste, a global leader in renewable and circular solutions. Previously, Dr. Tonaco worked for BASF, where she established and executed the company's global leadership position in certified sustainable palm-based ingredients for the Personal Care industry.

BTMA member Sellers Textile Engineers is marking its 110th anniversary this year with the introduction of a new concept in carpet shearing, as the essential final step in ensuring tuft uniformity and ‘just new’ freshness in finished carpet rolls.

The company has for many years offered two options in the construction of its shearing cylinders – the first, namely the ‘strap-on’, incorporates spiral blades bolted to the cylinder body and the second, known as the ‘caulked-in’, includes spirals which are fixed very securely in a machined groove within the machine.

The new Sellers’ Hybrid Shearing Cylinder combines the benefits of both, resulting in an improved cut and finer finish, in addition to longer repeatable finishing and increased rigidity.

“The Hybrid Shearing Cylinder has all the advantages of the ‘strap-on’ spiral blade to provide a sharper and cleaner cut, along with enhanced rigidity which significantly lengthens the intervals between the necessary regrinding of the blade,” explains Sellers Director Neil Miller. “We currently have six Hybrid Shearing Cylinders operating in the field and the earliest, which has been installed in both No1 Head position, where the majority of the shearing operation and heaviest cut is performed, and also in No3 Head, where the sharper cutting angle has resulted in a much improved surface quality.”

Sellers shearing machines have led the field in carpet finishing for many decades, enabling the leading manufacturers to stay competitive by enabling the highest quality of finish to be achieved economically and efficiently.

The latest advanced features of these machines include a load cell tension control drive system, an automated touchscreen for easy operator control and fault diagnosis, an enhanced cleaning system including cylinder and blade separation and fully controllable pivoting beds. Further options include thickness monitoring, seam detection and metal detection systems.

“The Hybrid Shearing Cylinder will become standard on our latest machines and also be made available for retrofitting, to provide significant benefits to our existing users,” says Miller. “All of our equipment is designed, manufactured, assembled and tested at our plant in the UK, and as one of the few remaining European engineering companies to make all of our components in-house – with now over a century of accumulated know-how – flexibility in design allows our finishing solutions to be targeted to specific customers and their product requirements. Aligned to this is a lead in process control systems which ensure the accurate control, reliability and repeatability of the processing parameters on all of our machines.”

Sellers remains committed to providing complete finishing solutions for all carpet, tile and artificial grass products. Its range includes machines for tufted secondary backing, both conventional, powder and extrusion lamination, Wilton and Axminster products, artificial grass and foam lines, coating lines for bitumen, PVC, PU and other polymers, as well as shearing for all carpet products.

Ongoing developments on the company’s coating and drying lines have resulted in improved guiding and product tension control as well as dryer efficiency, reducing heat loss and optimising energy use. These include a re-design of the fan pressure boxes and impingement nozzles to increase airflow efficiency, modulating gas burners and introducing easy clean, accessible filters.

In addition, the proven dual zone system has been enhanced, giving a temperature differential of up to 80°C between top and bottom zones. Dryers can be heated by either gas or steam and operation and access have been simplified with controls via touchscreen and PLC.

An extensive range of ancillary equipment is available to provide maximum flexibility to cover product requirements, for both new processing lines and as upgrades to existing equipment.

“Carpet manufacturing is now based on well-established, tried and trusted processes and it’s rare for new innovations to be introduced into this sector,” says Jason Kent, CEO of the British Textile Machinery Association. “The new Sellers Hybrid Shearing Cylinder can provide a competitive edge for manufacturers which is currently being proven in the field. It’s one of a number of new innovations the company is planning to showcase at next year’s ITMA exhibition in Milan.”

• DiaperRecycle Wins RISE® Innovation Award for Technology that Transforms Used Diapers into Cat Litter

Product development and innovators in nonwovens & engineered materials gained expert insights on material science innovation and sustainability at the 12^th edition of RISE® — Research, Innovation & Science for Engineered Fabrics conference, organized by INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, and The Nonwovens Institute, North Carolina State University, Sept. 27-28 at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC.

More than 20 industry, academic, and government experts from across the globe presented technical developments in sessions focused on circularity and sustainable inputs from such sources as Polylactic Acid Polymers (PLA), natural fibers, biofibers, and waste products.

Highlights included presentations on Achieving Supply Chain Circularity, by Kat Knauer, Ph.D., Program Manager – V Research, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, NREL; The Global Plastic Crisis: Winners/Losers in the Marketplace, by Bryan Haynes, Ph.D., Senior Technical Director, Global Nonwovens, Kimberly-Clark Corporation; Sustainable Fibers – Development and the Future by Jason Locklin, Ph.D. Director, University of Georgia – New Materials Institute; PLA & PLA Blends: Practical Aspects of Extrusion by Behnam Pourdeyhimi, Ph.D., William A. Klopman Distinguished Professor, and Executive Director, The Nonwovens Institute, North Carolina State University; and Mitigation of Quat Incompatibility with Cotton and other Cellulosic-based Substrates, by Doug Hinchliffe, Ph.D., Research Molecular Biologist, USDA-ARS.

RISE® Innovation Award Winner
DiaperRecycle was awarded the RISE® Innovation Award for its innovative technology to recycle used diapers into absorbent and flushable cat litter. The annual award recognizes innovation in areas within and on the periphery of the nonwovens industry that use advanced science and engineering principles to develop unique or intricate solutions to problems and advance  nonwovens usage.

By diverting used diapers from households and institutions, and separating the plastic and fiber, DiaperRecycle strives to decrease the climate-changing emissions of diapers from landfills.  “I am thrilled and grateful to win this award — as it proves we are on the right track,” said Cynthia Wallis Barnicoat, CEO of DiaperRecycle.

Other award finalists included Binder BioHook® by Gottlieb Binder GmbH & Co. KG and Sero® hemp fibers from Bast Fibre Technologies, Inc. (BFT).

The 13^th edition of RISE® — Research, Innovation & Science for Engineered Fabrics conference will be held Sept. 12-13, 2023 at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC.

• More ambition and joint European efforts needed

On Friday 30 September, the EU Energy ministers approved a Council Regulation proposal to address high energy prices. The Regulation focusses on the electricity prices and electricity demand reduction, on a solidarity levy from the fossil fuel sector and a retail levy for SMEs. While these initiatives are driven by goodwill, they miss the point of bringing gas prices down – the one measure that would bring the biggest impact on European industry.

EURATEX – as the voice of the European apparel and textiles manufacturers – regrets this lack of ambition: the Regulation does not foresee any meaningful action to directly support the European industry. This can accelerate the de-industrialisation of Europe and loss of industrial capacity to secure the European standard of living and implementing the Green Deal.

“We call on the EU and Member States to pursue our common European interests. The hesitation to adopt a European price cap on natural gas, accompanied by massive national spending programs to subsidise domestic gas consumption, is a dereliction of duty”, said Director General Dirk Vantyghem.

Triggering competition among Member States rather than promoting cooperation in bringing gas prices down for all European companies will also prove ineffective: indeed, the industrial structure in the European Union is fully integrated. Once a segment of the value chain perishes because of the crisis in one country, all companies based in the EU will suffer its negative effect, driving prices up in the supply chain and adding further strain to our operations. The European industry will be saved as a unified industry, or it will not be saved at all. Fragmenting the internal market will not protect any Member State’s domestic manufacturing.

In addition to a EU-wide price cap on gas, EURATEX calls on the European Commission to swiftly amend the Temporary Crisis Framework, making sure the criteria and thresholds applied do not exclude vulnerable companies from possible support (e.g. in textile finishing and services). Euratex also encourages the European Commission to revise the ETS Indirect Carbon Leakage mechanism and include the man-made fibres, non-wovens, spinning and weaving sectors.

It is high time now for the European Union, said the association – in particular for Member States and the Commission – to step up their ambition and adopt a European vision: a chaotic and fragmented approach will not mitigate the crisis but accelerate it.

Hexcel Corporation has received Type Approval for its HexPly® M9.6GF prepreg products from Bureau Veritas (BV), a leader in testing, inspection, and certification services.

This certification enables carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy prepregs to be used in the production of parts for all BV-approved marine vessels. It also guarantees the quality, performance and consistency of the prepregs for ship and boat builders.

BV-approved HexPly M9.6GF prepregs can be reinforced with unidirectional, non-crimp and twill-weave fabrics. They are particularly suitable for use in the manufacture of masts and other large structural components for wind-assisted ship propulsion (WASP). To reduce reliance on engines and cut fuel usage, WASP vessels harness the power of ocean winds often using large carbon fiber-reinforced masts flying durable composite solid sails.

HexPly M9.6 prepregs were recently used to manufacture the mast for the Chantiers de l’Atlantique Silenseas project. The HexPly M9.6 prepregs satisfied all the requirements of the Silenseas consortium’s mast-section manufacturers for quality, mechanical performance, and processing characteristics, while also proving to be cost effective.

The Lenzing Group and VERBUND, an energy transition company, launched the first development stage of the largest ground-mounted photovoltaic system in Upper Austria. Together with its energy partner VERBUND, Lenzing is also paving the way for the transition to zero-emission mobility. The installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure at the company’s premises underlines Lenzing’s commitment to the energy transition process.

Thanks to the ground-mounted photovoltaic system at the “Ofenloch” landfill site, Lenzing, in conjunction with VERBUND, is consistently moving forward on the path to a carbon-free energy supply and has commissioned the first half of the new photovoltaic system with a peak power of 2,780 kWp. Full commissioning of the system with a peak power of 5,560 kWp is envisaged in mid-October. Annual electricity production will amount to 6,000,000 kWh, which is expected to cut CO₂ emissions by some 4,400 tonnes per year. The Austrian pioneer in fiber production already commissioned three rooftop photovoltaic systems in spring/summer of 2022, with a peak power of 1,454 kWp and annual electricity production of some 1,508,000 kWh. The electricity flows directly into the company’s on-site production and will also power electric charging stations in future. In the first development stage, 16 wallboxes are set to be installed by the end of the year. A further 32 charging points are planned for 2023. The charging stations will be accessible to staff, visitors and the company’s own vehicle fleet.

“VERBUND’s photovoltaic operator model allows us to make the transition to solar power without incurring investment costs or risks. Thanks to the constant expansion in renewable energy, we remain on course to ecologize the value chain, while optimizing our carbon footprint, cutting costs and reducing the load on the grid, as we are using nearly 100 percent of photovoltaic power in our production,” explains Christian Skilich, Chief Pulp Officer of the Lenzing Group.

Pincroft announced the adoption of an innovative precision spray technology that allows the application of many finishes for textiles, including permethrin for vector protection, to the face of the fabric to avoid contact with the skin.

The system is a more versatile and environmentally friendly alternative to the traditional application method of padding and offers the possibility of applying the chemistry on either face side or both sides of the fabric across the full width.

The benefits of this new equipment are countless not only for the end user but also for the environment. The system allows for a reduction of energy, water and wet pick up of up to 50%, while 100% of the chemistry is recycled. Thanks to the equipment’s precision application technology, less water and chemistry are needed, and its no immersion system means the fabric would require less saturation and a shorter drying time.

Mike Collins, Pincroft’s Managing Director: “This innovative equipment can be used in two ways. The single sided spray finishing can be used where the full effectiveness of the finish is only required on the face side of the end item, for example, vector, fluorocarbon and antimicrobial protection. The dual spray finish may be used to simulate the traditional padding method where full effectiveness of the finish is required dependant on end use, for instance, crease recovery, fabric softening, soil release and moisture management.”

This vector protection solution provided by Pincroft is ACTIGARD®, a branded technology developed by Sanitized AG, with long lasting active ingredients that have proved highly effective against mosquitoes and ticks. This product endures a high number of washes, is suitable for military uniforms and conforms to Standard 100 by Oeko-Tex®.

Kornit Digital is collaborating with furniture start-up Cozmo and London design studio Raw-Edges to showcase the unlimited creativity made possible by digitally produced custom sofa jacket designs at the London Design Festival, September 17th -25th. Dubbed “Cheek Prints,” the collection was created sustainably, quickly, and on-demand with Kornit’s digital fashion and textile production solutions. Each unique cover features visually designs intended to transform plain, standard sofas into custom creations with an entirely fresh look and feel. The collection was designed by Raw-Edges at their London design studio.

The sofa collection was produced using Kornit’s Presto direct-to-fabric digital production system. With the on-demand technology, designers can easily and rapidly embrace new possibilities to transform mere concepts into custom fabrics. Digital production removes typical limitations of one fabric, one design at a time – whether it’s a single sofa or many sofas – and at the same cost. For industries ranging from fashion and home décor to other advanced textile applications, the Kornit solution consistently unlocks unlimited creativity – producing garments and fabrics with a high quality and a soft feel.

Monforts has installed and commissioned a new Montex finishing range at the Baltic Works of Halley Stevensons in Dundee, Scotland, to further boost the weatherproofing specialist’s highly flexible operations.

The range, with a working width of two metres, was built at the Montex assembly plant in Austria and consists of a Montex®Coat coating unit in knife execution for paste and foam coating and a Montex 8500 6F stenter.

Founded in 1864, Halley Stevensons has amassed unique technical know-how and manufacturing experience in the art of waxed cotton for weatherproofed fabrics and is able to provide international orders in custom colours and finishes to very low minimum quantities where required. The company exports worldwide and its premium brand customers include Belstaff, Barbours, Filson and J.Crew.

The range has replaced one of the company’s older stenter/coating lines and has already enabled Halley Stevensons to recreate various products with lower coating applications at higher speeds than was previously possible.

Waxed cotton was originally developed by sailors in the early 15th century when Scottish North Sea herring fleets began treating flax sailcloth with fish oils and grease in an attempt to waterproof their sails. Remnants of these sails were used by the sailors as capes to withstand the high winds and sea spray.

By the mid 1850s, sailcloth was being treated with linseed oil, but while initially highly effective, it would yellow and stiffen through weathering over time and eventually lose its waterproofing qualities.

In the years that followed, various treatments were applied to cottons in an attempt to find the most effective weatherproofing solution, and the combination of densely-woven cotton impregnated with a paraffin waxed coating proved most successful. For over 150 years, Halley Stevensons created many different variations of both woven constructions and finishing treatments and now supplies thousands of metres of waxed cotton every year, with each roll produced to custom specifications.

“The beauty of waxed cotton is its durability and longevity,” says Managing Director James Campbell. “The fabrics are breathable, with the wax adjusting to ambient temperatures to be softer and more breathable in warm weather and stiffer and more wind proof in cold conditions.”
While traditional waxes are petroleum or paraffin based, Halley Stevensons has always been comfortable about using a waste product from industry and reusing it to make products that last a lifetime.  

“We are always exploring different finishing techniques and one of our most popular finishes is our hybrid aero – an emulsified blend of waxes,” Campbell says. “This fabric is water repellent but has little wax in the mixture so the handle is much drier to touch than the traditional wet waxes.”

The company has also recently launched a new 100% plant-based wax – Ever Wax Olive – consisting of a blend of olive oil, rape seed and castor bean with comparable water repellence to petroleum and a far better rating than other natural waxes which have come before it.

“The high tradition of skills and fabric innovation imposed by our original guildsmen is still our benchmark standard of honest workmanship today,” Managing Director James Campbell concludes “We use responsibly sourced cotton fabrics and processes that are gentle to the product and low impact to the environment. Our dyeing methods use very low levels of water and our waxes are simply heated up for application and cooled down to store when not in use, meaning no waste discharges. Now, with this new Monforts line, we are also achieving running speeds two-to-three times faster than with the older stenter, combined with less gas usage. It’s proved a great partnership.”