From the Sector

The EU-funded Project, in which Devan Chemicals is a key partner, held a kick off meeting end of February 2019 at the EU Commission in Brussels, Belgium. The project consortium, led by Belgian R&D centre CENTEXBEL, consists of 17 European partners from across the value chain including design, manufacturing, NGOs, and research and innovation.

The focus of the consortium is on coated and painted textiles and plastic materials which are currently not recyclable. Ambitious plastic recycling targets of 50% have been set by the European Plastics Industry, and to meet these targets, smart solutions to enable the circular use of textile and plastic parts with multi-layer coatings must be considered.

DECOAT has therefore been established to investigate triggerable smart polymer material systems and appropriate recycling processes. The solutions will be based on smart additives (like microcapsules or microwave triggered additives) that will enable the efficient of coatings and other finishes, activated by a specific trigger (heat, humidity, microwave, chemical) to permit recycling.        

Devan’s specific role is in the development of microcapsules that will release its active core on application of a certain trigger (e.g. heat) at the end of life of the article. This active core material may be something that, for example, will promote the detachment of different coating layers (by separating them), opening the possibility for recyclability/re-use of the base materials. Different active core ingredients will be evaluated, and Devan will develop processes for each type of core ingredient and for each type of coating layer/matrix.

The bold aim of the four-year project is to decrease landfill by 75% of coated articles that are presently difficult to recycle, such as clothing, electronic goods and automotive components. A reduction in the carbon footprint by at least 30% for the considered products is aimed for. By enabling the recycling of such materials, DECOAT is expected to generate in the medium term a new market valued at over 150 million Euros in Europe.

Reinach, Switzerland - Archroma, a global leader in color and specialty chemicals towards sustainable solutions, today announced that the production of its new aniline-free* Denisol® Pure Indigo has been accelerated due to the high demand encountered on the market.

Aniline-free Denisol® Pure Indigo 30 liquid was first announced in May 2018 at the Planet Textile Conference held in Canada, and allows a cleaner way to produce the traditional, iconic indigo blue color that consumers associated with denim and jeans.

Archroma makes the Denisol® Pure Indigo 30 dye in the most sustainable way as currently possible. The new dye is produced in Archroma’s facility in Pakistan, a plant that made the headlines in 2012 for being what Archroma believed to be the industry’s first zero liquid discharge plant.

“True to our commitment towards continuous innovation, Archroma challenges the status quo in the deep belief that we can make our industry sustainable. Denisol® Pure Indigo is result of our efforts to challenge accepted technologies in order to find a better way to advance sustainability, and it is therefore extremely exciting to see that brands, retailers and manufacturers are eager to offer a more sustainable denim to consumers. We owe the successful launch of Denisol® Pure Indigo to the shared vision of the textile value chain to preserve our planet and its people, after all – it’s our nature”, comments Alexander Wessels, CEO of Archroma.

* Below levels of detection
Denisol® is a trademark of Archroma registered in many countries.

• Oerlikon presents its expanded nonwovens product portfolio at the IDEA 2019 in Miami

Neumünster – Oerlikon presents its complete nonwoven plant portfolio for the production of airlaid, meltblown, spunbonded and hybrid materials at this year’s IDEA in Miami from 25–28 March. The focus of its presentation will be on solutions for hygiene, medical and other disposable nonwovens. Visitors to this year’s IDEA can inform themselves on the wide range of products at Oerlikon’s exhibition stand (no. 1724).

Two strong partnerships for disposable nonwovens

While two years ago the Nonwoven business unit of the Oerlikon Manmade Fibers segment focused almost exclusively on solutions for technical applications, the company has now expanded its product portfolio to include solutions for disposable nonwovens by establishing strong partnerships.

Oerlikon & Teknoweb Materials – two strong partners for the nonwoven industry

As early as spring 2017, Oerlikon Manmade Fibers' Nonwoven business unit had entered into a strategic partnership with the Italian company Teknoweb Materials. Teknoweb Materials is an established technology supplier in the field of wipes and other disposable nonwovens. With its LEVRA technology, the company has its own patented, particularly efficient manufacturing process for wipes. It also has extensive process know-how on the making and further processing of these nonwoven materials. The Nonwoven business unit of Oerlikon’s Manmade Fibers segment completes this partnership with its well-established machine and plant solutions. Teknoweb Materials will also be represented at IDEA at the Oerlikon exhibition stand (no. 1724).

Cooperation with Shaoyang Textile Machinery

For spunmelt systems solutions for hygiene and medical applications, Oerlikon has been in cooperation with the Chinese machine and plant manufacturer Shaoyang Textile Machinery since Autumn of last year. The goal of these cooperation partners is to advance the international marketing of spunmelt plants outside of China. Oerlikon Manmade Fibers’ Nonwoven business unit contributes its plant engineering know-how and is responsible for product and process guarantees. Oerlikon also assumes the overall project responsibility as well as world-wide customer service outside of China. In return, Shaoyang, with its headquarters in the city of the same name in the Hunan province, supplies the plant technologies.The advantage for the customer: competitive solutions at an attractive price level with comparatively low investments.

The study "Technologies, Markets and Players" by E-Textiles 2018-2028 predicts a 2 billion dollar growth of the smart textile market. This growth can only be achieved by replacing the existing approaches, mostly manual production, with series production. With the Smart Textiles Micro Factory, the Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University, short ITA, will be demonstrating for the first time on the Texprocess stand, stand number C02, in the transition from Halls 4.1 and 5.1 how a smart textile can be manufactured from design to finished product together with various partners by producing a smart cushion.

The product and the manufacturing process are the result of co-innovation. In the future, co-innovation for smart textiles is to be implemented via the GeniusTex platform. As part of the German Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy's major strategic project for the “Smart Service World”, ITA is working with partners from industry and research to develop the online platform for smart textile innovation.

At the joint stand of the Aachen Centre for Integrative Lightweight Construction (AZL) in Hall 5A, booth D17, the Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University (ITA) will demonstrate its expertise in the field of glass fibres, preforms and textile concrete 12-14 March 2019 in Paris.
The exhibits come from various fields of application and address the automotive, aerospace and mechanical engineering sectors.

1. Innovative glass fibre research at ITA
   The newly constructed induction heated glass fibre production line enables increased flexibility in research. For the first time, glass fibres will be produced live at the ITA booth at JEC World. One of the innovations of the system is the inductively heated bushing. It features a flexible design and consists of a platinum/rhodium alloy (Pt/Rh20) for use in high-temperature glasses.
   The glass fibre production line was designed in such a way that new concepts and ideas can be tested quickly. The modular design allows a high flexibility, the induction system a significantly faster operability.
   Research and development projects can therefore be carried out faster and more cost-effectively.
    
2. DrapeCube - Forming of textile semi-finished products
   The DrapeCube offers a cost-effective design for the production of fibre preforms from textile semi-finished products. It is used in the production of preforms for prototypes and in small series and is suit-able for companies active in the production of fibre-reinforced plas-tics (FRP).
   In the production of FRP components, the preforming process de-fines a large part of the subsequent component costs. In small- and medium-sized enterprises, this process step is often still carried out manually. This results in high quality fluctuations and component prices. Especially in the case of highly stressed structural components, the fluctuation in quality leads to oversizing of the components.
   Thus, the lightweight construction potential of fiber-reinforced plastics is underused. One solution is offered by the stamp forming process adapted from the sheet metal forming industry for shaping rein-forcing textiles. The textile is inserted between two mould halves (male and female) and automatically formed. Due to high plant and tooling costs, this process is used almost exclusively in large-scale production.
   The ITA has developed the DrapeCube forming station which offers a cost-effective alternative and is able to completely reproduce the current state of the art for forming textile half branches. The process steps will be demonstrated in a video at the booth.
    
3. Carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) preform
   The CFRP preform consists of carbon multiaxial fabrics formed by expanded polystyrene (EPS) to optimise draping quality. Preforms of increased quality can be produced by gentle, textile-compatible forming with foam expansion. For the first time, foam expansion was used to form preforms in such a way that the draping quality is improved compared to classic stamp forming.
   The advantages of the CFRP preform lie in the savings in plant costs, as the investment is much lower. In addition, the proportion of waste is reduced because near-net-shape production is possible. In addition, rejects are reduced, as fewer faults occur in the textile.
    
4. Embroidered preform with integrated metal insert
   The 12k carbon fibre rovings are shaped into a preform using Tai-lored Fibre Placement (TFP) which is a technical embroidery pro-cess. For the further layer build-up, a fastener is not only integrated under the roving layers but also fixed by additional loops. The highly integrative preforming approach offers the possibility of reducing weight and process steps as well as increasing mechanical perfor-mance.
   Until now, inserts were glued or holes had to be drilled in the com-ponent. Bonded fasteners are limited by the adhesive surface. The bonding of fasteners into drilled holes results in high drill abrasion and thus high tool wear.
   The advantages of the embroidered preform with integrated metal fasteners are the reduction of scrap due to TFP preforming and the increase in the specific pull-out force. In addition, it is possible to automatize the production of integrative preforms. This makes the preform with integrated metal fasteners interesting for the automotive and aerospace industries.

• Company to showcase innovation while marking its 100th anniversary

Paper Converting Machine Company (PCMC), part of Barry-Wehmiller, will showcase its extensive nonwovens converting experience at IDEA19, held March 25 to 28, 2019, in Miami. Attendees may visit booth #1660 to learn how PCMC’s modular equipment serves a variety of market needs, as well as join the festivities when the company commemorates its 100th anniversary with a cake celebration from 2 to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 27.

Offering hygienic, high-speed folding solutions, crossfolding machines that provide quick product changeovers and multi-servo cutting modules, PCMC can meet a wide range of production demands and enhance customers’ profitability, whether they’re creating cosmetic, medical, baby, dispersible, scientific, cleaning, polishing, sanitizing or drying wipes.

For interfolded and non-interfolded flat-pack wet wipes, PCMC’s modular, low-maintenance Clipper series can achieve 800 cuts per minute in hygienic and non-hygienic designs. With the compact footprint of the Marlin Pro, crossfold wipe customers can save space, while also reducing waste and achieving the lowest cost per wipe.

After the success of the two first editions, JEC World organizes the third edition of Startup Booster, the leading startup competition in Composites, where ten startups will present their innovation in front of a jury of experts.

EC Group launched Startup Booster programme in 2017 to get closer to the startup world, to attract the new generation of composites entrepreneurs and put them at the forefront of the industry.

The program gives the floor to 10 startups, each of them having five minutes to present their innovation, on March 12, 2019, from 10.30 AM in Agora Stage (Hall 5) in front of a jury of experts from the composites industry.

These 10 startups will be also showcasing within the Startup Booster Village, during the three days, and will benefit from a dedicated program, including workshops with Startup Booster Main Innovation partners’ Airbus & Daimler, and Innovation partner’s Altair.

“Daimler being one of the main Innovation Partner of the Startup Booster, we are looking for innovations, in particular sustainable technologies and processes”, said Dr. Karl-Heinz FUELLER, Responsible for material innovations and BIW concept development, Daimler AG.

“As a main Innovation Partner of the Startup Booster competition we get fantastic direct engagement with the innovators who are defining solutions for the future”, said Jelle BLOEMHOF, Head of Manufacturing Technologies of Composite at Airbus.

Color Solutions International, a member of the DyStar® Group, has issued their COLOR ANALYSIS report for Autumn/Winter 2020.

The trend and color experts at CSI are delighted to bring you the sixth issue of the Color Analysis report. New for this season, the experts at Color Solutions International have delved deeper by giving more detail for each color using their proprietary Relative Color Popularity process (RCP). RCP is a marriage of color validation with trend color forecasting. The RCP report has been organized into four categories to help validate your color selection.

In this issue, 54 ColorWall™ colors are featured along with additional color validation, color evolution, and direction by hue. "This season’s Color Analysis for Autumn/Winter 2020 found its inspiration in our heritage and reconnection of our roots. We look from the past to present day reality to shape the themes of trends reflected in the spirit of time we are living in. From a time gone by to this moment of now, themes take shape as they transform historic elements into modern day life, intertwining together to create a new existence full of creative energy and vitality.

Reminiscent of a time gone by, all that we consider heritage to be, has developed into a level of loyalty and trust over time. The quality in make and the care that goes into construction found in the ideas of heritage goods begin to resurface into a lifestyle of quality over quantity. In the present and future looking forward, we also continue to explore innovative lifestyle trends as we are becoming more conscious about the environment and the impact our choices have.

Do not miss the perfect opportunity to experience the new Naturally Advanced solutions by TINTEX Textiles. A great chance to touch and feel, that is also the best way to get to know something more on the wide range of fabrics that embody responsible innovation and creativity. Smart ingredients take the lead being enhanced by the unique TINTEX’s dyeing and finishing expertise. The seasonal collection that fuses science and innovation, leading the way towards a more conscious evolution is to be presented at Munich Fabric Start.

TINTEX, driven by its strong DNA toward responsible innovation, take the chance to be at Munich Fabric Start to introduce a brand new project who has born in Germany and is now flying at international level thanks to a group of pioneers key players who are implementing it. A unique initiative called THE BLUE LAB, created by the NGO Drip by Drip aimed at developing alternative textile solutions with the lowest possible water footprint, in collaboration with a network of participants. Among the key partners, Lenzing that provides the fibers, Tearfil supplying the yarn, TINTEX realizing the fabrics, Blue Ben creating the garments, Montebelo that works closely with brands, organizations and manufacturers to create responsible fashion products and with Agroho the non-profit organization that is working for marginalized communities in Bangladesh.

Driven by its natural inclination for the implementation of smart and innovative solutions fully in line with the latest global fashion trends, Iluna Group with ROICA™ by Asahi Kasei join the latest edition of the Parisian tradeshow for lingerie, and activewear materials and accessories.

Experts in the production of stretch lace since 1985, ILUNA today represents the largest European producer. Thanks to the effectiveness of their approach and to their solid and continued commitment, Iluna Group has been the very first lace producer to have gained the GRS (Global Recycled Standard) for their transformed products, together with the company certification STeP (Sustainable Textile Production by Oeko –Tex®).
A relevant achievement for the firm that, thanks to the Green Label collection (a peculiar range that features a 360-degree responsible approach) make responsible innovation an asset for production that focuses on smart ingredients as ROICA Eco-Smart™ family, Tencel™ Lyocell and Q-Nova® by Fulgar.

Of major interest is the fact that the Iluna fashion R&D based its strategic choice for the S/S2020 on the extension of Textronic offer, that belongs to Ultralight series, enriched with new multicolor galloons and raschel allovers. The change of the color of thread in the background as well as in the design gives the green to the reinvention of the same article now perceived in a completely different and impactful way.