From the Sector

A wide range of new technologies will be demonstrated by Vandewiele at the ITMA 2019 textile machinery show in Barcelona from June 20-26, including the latest RCE2+ digital carpet weaving machine.

All Vandewiele technologies are now being equipped for machine-to-machine interaction and learning, as part of the company’s comprehensive TEXconnect programme.

Meeting new industry needs
As a leader in complete carpet manufacturing systems – including BCF extrusion lines, heat setting systems and carpet weaving and tufting machines – Vandewiele has rapidly responded to the evolving needs of the textile industry for smaller and customised production runs, the most challenging of designs, and faster and more sustainable manufacturing.

The company’s sensors, software programmes and servers have become increasingly sophisticated as part of the TEXconnect program, and the real-time data from different machines – across connected manufacturing sites and across different countries and even continents – can be collected and shared. Digital models of both machines and production processes can be created and analysed for the optimisation of production settings, to vastly improve scheduling and planning and also make considerable savings in raw materials and energy consumption.

Virtual and remote control now allows for the Big Data analysis that is propelling the industry forward and will pave the way for AI applications. For carpet manufacturers, all of this is leading to the creation of truly Smart Factories.

RCE2 carpet weaving
The new RCE2+ Rug and Carpet Expert weaving machine is a truly digital workhorse, with all yarns continuously controlled and measured and the difficult bobbin changes of the past completely eliminated. This is as a result of Vandewiele’s latest Fast Creel, with the feed and tension of each pile yarn controlled by individual servomotors.

The pile yarns are now fed directly into the machine without having to pass pile-stop motions, to both increase efficiency and eliminate any waste yarns, while achieving previously unreachable industrial speeds.

The filling enters the machine smoothly via the latest IRO X3 winders, heavy duty filling brakes with multi lamellas, an active yarn recuperator and a high speed weft mixer, where again, all tensions are set electronically. Vandewiele’s servo-driven heddle frames (Smart Frames) are meanwhile already well proven in the industry.

TEXconnect further provides readily-available data on all yarn consumption, tension and threading, and then will supply the predictive maintenance that is paving the way to self-learning carpet weaving machines.

All of this would be unnecessary, if it didn’t result in allowing manufacturers to make the highest quality carpets at the most economic prices ever, with savings on the highest-bulk pile yarns from the Vandewiele extrusion lines, reduced waste yarns in the creel and industrial production speeds that have never before been attained.

At the Texprocess trade fair in Frankfurt/Main, Germany (May 14th to 17th 2019) VEIT Group will present on more than 400 m² the latest highlights in the areas of ironing, finishing, pressing and fusing in the garment industry as well as automotive and interior sectors.

"Pressing for Excellence" is the corporate slogan of the VEIT Group. In addition, this year's motto at Texprocess is "LOVEIT" which is a wordplay on "love it" or “love VEIT”. In the words of VEIT Group President Günter Veit: “Our motto stands for the passion that we have for the engineering of our products, our love of perfection and our devotion to our customers. This is the basis of their trust in our products. We want to offer our customers value not only now, but also for the future which we believe will be more digital and more sustainable. Both Industry 4.0 readiness, as well as the good of operator and environment are essential components of our product development efforts.”

Among the large portfolio of high-performance technology presented at the trade show, there is a significantly improved shirt finisher SF 26. With the new model SF 26, VEIT manages to further increase both the functionality and the ergonomics of the shirt finisher. For the customer, this optimisation in application technology is reflected in higher quality of the finished product and simplified operation.

Combined with the improved FS shirt folding table series – a highly successful product – VEIT offers true streamlining potential while maintaining high quality levels when folding shirts, blouses and polos in 3 versions.

Reacting to the customers’ demands, VEIT has equipped their popular BX fusing machines – BXT, the universal solution for shirts and outerwear – with a separate feeding belt and a 7” colour operating panel. These changes make the BX fully industry 4.0 ready and helps to further improve the ergonomics and energy efficiency.

In order to increase flexibility in the shaping of textiles, VEIT will present a new solution for high-quality finishing of the elbow seam in the area of BRISAY machines – the BRI 860 VC sleeve seam finish pressing machine. The 8430 universal multiform finisher was enhanced to cover an even wider range of applications. It can now also be used for finishing, among other items, also polos, T-shirts, blouses, blousons and jackets.

In addition to the innovative machine highlights, VEIT has also developed special solutions for customers' investment decisions. "More and more companies that are making investments are not only looking at the purchase price, but rather at the total lifetime cost of ownership," explains Vice President Christopher Veit. VEIT is presenting two interesting offers to meet this trend:
Customers may choose to buy a machine according to the “Pay Per Piece” system, which means that they pay for how much the machine is used, instead of a full up-front investment. This reduces the investment risk and allows more flexible reactions to especially to scalable business opportunities. Alternatively, when purchasing a machine the traditional way, customers can limit operating costs, extend the machine’s lifespan and achieve improved machine availability by signing a service contract. With its global service and partnership network, VEIT Group can offer this service worldwide.

TINTEX is this year recipient of the unique and prestigious annual recognition from The “Instituto de Apoio às Pequenas e Médias Empresas e à Inovação” (IAPMEI). TINTEX has been selected in recognition of its pioneering, Naturally Advanced global leadership, and the company’s superior and responsible fabric making for a fashion system that is driven by investments, transparency and fully traceable innovation.

TINTEX is pleased to open its doors as the Naturally Advanced centre of excellence in the latest IAPMEI OPEN DAY for textile leaders, protagonists, media and customers to experience, understand and enjoy the unique achievements TINTEX offers to the contemporary Portuguese textiles industry .
“We selected TINTEX to underline the importance of taking advantage of digitization and modernization at different levels in the textile industry being stunned by their commitment, shedding light on our territory’s most advanced and responsible processes and skills” José Marques dos Santos, president of IAPMEI.

In a fast moving globalized market, all companies must be able to adapt quickly and using innovation, creativity, and responsibility can help deliver successes. And here TINTEX can network between Technological Centers, Universities, and Knowledge Centers, as a strategic business and holistic imperative. And so sharing the Naturally Advanced strategy of TINTEX as a driver for change, IAPMEI recognizes this TINTEX OPEN DAY as a demonstration of practical market potential, and has partnered with CENTI  (Centre for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials the Institute for New Technologies) and CITEVE (an institution of national and international reference for the promotion of Innovation and Technological Development) as a way to guarantee this success.
 
Being able to drive material innovation, and to promote a new generation of sustainable values to contemporary fashion, active, sports and lingerie markets through responsible supply chains can be transformative for our future fashion systems, and TINTEX is proud to be selected as part of the Make Fashion Circular initiative by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, helping  to better activate these changes across the fashion industry for all to enjoy.

FONG’S EUROPE, based in Schwäbisch Hall, Germany, will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its flagship THEN brand for advanced dyeing technology with a special reception for customers and agents at ITMA 2019 in Barcelona.

The company, which has been a member of the CHTC FONG’S group since 2004, has its origins in the German city of Chemnitz, where back in 1919 Rudolf Then founded a barrel-making business which soon branched out into piece dyeing machines.

The company’s reputation for innovation began early, with the introduction of ceramic linings for dye baths, which were then made of wood, in order to avoid staining and allow easy cleaning. At the end of the 1920s, Rudolf Then was also quick to recognise the acid-resistant advantages of stainless steel for dyeing vessels.

Relocating to West Germany after World War 2, Rudolf Then ran a number of businesses in Schwäbisch Hall, eventually founding THEN in 1955 with partner Karl Kurz, who later took over the business specialising in dye vats and other textile equipment.

Throughout the 1960s and 70s, the company continued to further improve its technologies, but it was the introduction of the first THEN AIRFLOW system at ITMA 1983 in Milan which significantly boosted the company’s fortunes, representing a milestone in the development of dyeing machines.

Prior to this, the dyeing of just one kilo of fabric required around 150 litres of water and THEN’s AIRFLOW system, invented by engineer Wilhelm Christ and colleagues, drastically reduced the requirement to between just 35-40 litres. Instead of the traditional dye liquor used for hydraulic fabric transport it efficiently distributed much smaller amounts of dye liquor via aerosol. This technology has subsequently been further developed in successive machine models and has made an enormous impact on sustainable dyeing operations.

Now, as FONG’S EUROPE, the company continues to innovate, and at ITMA 2019 is showcasing the THEN SMARTFLOW TSF hydraulic high temperature dyeing machine, designed to achieve the lowest possible energy and water consumption rates available on the market for jet dyeing.

The company has a number of patents pending on the innovative new features of this machine, including the SMARTFLOW’s fabric transport design. This is based on a smart, winchless fabric transport system which eliminates the need for a loading rope, and a circular plaiter with programmable rotation speeds which provides full filling of the drop zone.

Its newly-developed nozzles and reel-less transport, in combination with smart controlled circular plaiting and variable chamber adjustment, provide even fabric treatment without entanglements and the highest loading capacity with the lowest kier volume

“Further developments, including the new THEN AIRFLOW PLUS system with a round design are in the development pipeline and will once again result in further reductions in power consumption without sacrificing performance,” says FONG’s Europe Sales Director Richard Fander. “Similar innovations are being made to our hydraulic long shape machine, the THEN SUPRATEC LTM. The ability to transport fabrics with reduced tension and without the need for a transport winch which is being introduced on all of our recent machines will allow new fabrics to be created and further increase the efficiency of textile finishing.

Fong’s Europe will be at stand D101 in Hall 2 at ITMA 2019.

Prompted by the need to offer an adequate in-depth analysis of topics such as the integration of sustainability in fashion and the importance of the transition to the circular economy, the shared journey of C.L.A.S.S., the multi-platformhub, a reference resource since 2007 for smart innovationin fashion and Polimoda, the internationally recognized institute, world-renowned for its independent approach and innovative vision in terms of “fashion education”, as a result of the perfect combination of business and design.

Eight sessionsduring which topicsrelated to smart innovation, the new role of the designer and the importance of a new generation of communication along withthe urgency of a transversalcooperation and the development of new business models strictly linked to a circular economy approach.
An inspirational path,intensive and engaging, aimed at involving Polimoda students of theFashion Design and Design ManagementMasters –in their future role of protagonists of the fashion industry.
A shared project, aimed at fostering the development of punctual knowledges on responsible innovation, which is to consider effective because of that concrete approach that involves the introduction of smart materials with a view to a circular economy approach.
This is how Polimoda, the fashion institute that boasts an innate and strong policy and strategic vision on the fashion universe at 360 °, and C.L.A.S.S, a reference point since 2007, specialized in the integration of smartvalues withinproducts and fashion companies, in addition to education, partneringto givelife to a driving force thattranslates into a culturalbackground for students.

ROICA™ discloses five key and influencing brands with unique outfits already available in the market, that demonstrate how ROICA™ is able to deliver and transform basic performant stretch in eco hi-tech valuable innovations interpreted in five, completely different, contemporary lifestyles!

Inspired by the need for style-conscious, sustainable garments that are versatile for every life situation, AEANCE was created as a brand that merges ready-to-wear with technical apparel. The brand`s values are timeless minimalism, substance and understated luxury. Less, but better. AEANCE is committed to creating garments with the least possible impact on the environment and has set up a supply chain focusing on eco-sustainability and ethical responsibility. The Women`s Light Padded Jacket of the look selected for ISPO is the result of a collaboration with the acclaimed industrial designer Konstantin Grcic.

Knowing the transformative power of fitness, DAQUÏNI® was founded in 2012 to help women bridge the gap between how they feel and how they think they look when they are working out. Each DAQUÏNI® item is made in the E.U. from highest quality Oeko-Tex® certified materials. The brand’s first choice in fabrics is SOFILETA (founded in 1911) with its luxurious technical fabrics with ROICA™ V550 premium stretch awarded with Cradle-to-Cradle Innovation Institute’s GOLD LEVEL material health certificate.

The New York based brand Erin Snow creates chemically safe, circularly designed, socially fair luxury performance apparel. The Teri pant is Erin Snow's most innovative and highly anticipated pant to date. Teri is made from the finest bluesign® approved Schoeller 4-way stretch fabric containing ROICA™ V550 premium stretch sustainable fiber. The pant is insulated with PrimaLoft® Gold Luxe and repels water and dirt without PFCs, thanks to Schoeller's ecorepel® Bio finishing while giving maximum freedom of movement.

The SCOTT Racing Team, the Italian Mtb Pro Rider Team born in 1988, selected the high performance for active clothing identifying Rosti, SITIP and ROICA™ as strategic partners to ensure unique and performant biking outfit composed by tights and jacket. Made with the special BEHOT fabric by SITIP, constructed with active performance materials belonging to the ROICA Feel Good™ family, it not only insulates, but generates up to 2 degrees of heat as you workout as certified by CeRism, Outdoor Sport Research Centre at Verona University. Long life stretch, superior shape retention and best breathability thanks to the Blizzard by SITIP fabric that ensures thermal comfort and easy care to the users. A valuable choice that perfectly matches the performances of an experienced team of specialists.

SITA hits the European panorama for the first time at ISPO with ROICA™ few days after the official launch in US and Saudi Arabia on January 31st. Its high-tech debut collection for Spring 2019 provides women with an all-new luxury concept of timeless foundational apparel made in New York balancing concealed performance features and style to meet womens’everyday dynamic lifestyle. The newly-created made in Italy SITATECH™ fabric includes permanent agents that neutralize odor, withstand machine wash, and exhibit superior quality. The intricately designed fabric takes on instant appeal with nanotechnology fibers and ROICA™ CF, a yarn with an active smart odor neutralizer property, then knitted in Italy by Maglificio Ripa.

At the booth, let's have a look at TINTEX exceptional, Naturally Clean® finishing process launched last September 2018. Naturally Clean® enhances the natural beauty of cotton and cellulosic fibres, takes a cost effective modern approach to eliminate aggressive treatments and optimizes clean surfaces, vivid colors, providing an exquisitely smooth handfeel. Naturally Clean® achieves this by using Novozymes technology, a company that is a world leader in biological solutions. Second, using textile chemicals Beyond Surface Technologies AG which have the lowest possible environmental impact, without compromising performance. Naturally Clean® maintains the original characteristics over an extended period of time. All materials are Oeko-Tex and can also be Bluesign® certified, which will evidence the future elimination of harmful substances.

Between the first and key adopters of TINTEX brandnew Naturally Clean finishing, shines Filippa K, a leading Nordic fashion brand with a modern, smart approach to the responsible development of their lines. Emblematic pieces for the SS 2019 main collection are the Linen Wrap Dress, the M Linen Long Sleeve Tee and the M Linen R-neck short sleeve Tee made with a TINTEX heavy stretch linen, made with ROICA Colour Perfect™ family of dyeable premium stretch yarn, enriched by the unique Naturally Clean finishing.

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.

PMsExciting news out of ISPO Munich, this year ROICA™ premium stretch innovations will be showcased within ISPO Brandnew, the biggest platform for sporty startups worldwide. The ROICA™ booth will have a new centralized position at ISPO Munich, with an even more centralal position, to lead the way toward responsible innovation. Make certain to visit the fantastic new collections created by ROICA™ partners that combine; function and contemporary values for the modern customer. Asahi Kasei, the leader in sustainable stretch guaranteed to wow ISPO attendees with the ROICA Eco-Smart™ family, an innovative range of the world's first responsibly made premium stretch fibers.
ROICA™ smart yarns are focused perfectly on responsible performance for the active sportswear, swimwear and athleisure categories. ROICA™ proudly presents sustainable solutions boasting impressive certifications:

• Global Recycled Standard (GRS) owned by Textile Exchange
• Cradle to Cradle Certified™ Gold Level for Material Health and Hohenstein Environment Compatibility Certificate - ROICA™ breaks down without releasing harmful substances.

ROICA™ will present The Modern Wardrobe concept in well-defined categories at ISPO:

• ROICA™ WARDROBE, fashion collections for Summer 2019 with beautiful premium stretch solutions.
• ROICA™ INNOVATION GALLERY, the latest textile performance innovations from partner mills that inspire creativityA rich fabric range that includes revolutionary ROICA Eco-Smart™ family of stretch fibers that are sustainably designed and the unique ROICA Feel Good™ family that promises a new level of well-being
• ROICA™ CLOSET: new garment designs from our experimental lab that highlight functional ROICA™ families.
• ROICA™ NOVELTIES DISPLAY, discover the latest ROICA™ innovations.

• conceptual and commercial garments presented at exhibition in London

After two years of research Mistra Future Fashion is honoured to present, in collaboration with Centre for Circular Design at University of the Arts London and Filippa K, an exhibition pushing the limits of ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ fashion. Started in 2017, the industry-embedded project Circular Design Speeds takes a unique systemic approach, showcasing what could be accomplished using existing value chains as well as what the future of sustainable fashion holds. Ground-breaking textile research from University of the Arts London is questioning normative use and design of garments in creating prototypes to be worn across a spectrum of 24 hours to 50 years. By implementing research into existing value chains, Filippa K have produced a coat that is 100% recycled and recyclable, as well as a concept dress that is 100% bio-based and biodegradable. The research results and garments will be presented at the launch event at the University of the Arts London, on November 23rd and open to public on the 24th and 25th of November.

On Friday November 23rd the exhibition Disrupting Patterns: Designing for Circular Speeds opens up at University of the Arts London. The exhibition is the results of a two-year research project called Circular Design Speeds aiming at pushing the limits of ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ fashion by testing new concepts for sustainable design in an industry setting. On display are exploratory prototypes, as well as commercial garments produced by industry partner Filippa K using existing value chains. In addition, research results on innovative materials, consumer acceptance, composting studies and Life Cycle Assessments are presented. The aim of this project is to implement research results in a real fashion industry context, focusing on speed of use and maximising fabric value retention in products.

The Service Shirt developed by Professor Rebecca Earley is designed to last for over 50 years. The concept garment explores the multiple complexities, challenges and opportunities associated with design for circular business models in extended use contexts. The Service Shirt was designed as a ‘deliberate extreme’ to have a total lifecycle of 50 years. This lifecycle includes in-house and external remanufacturing processes, as well as various use cycles – often moving between single ownership and rental and sharing contexts. It becomes the lining for a jacket and then crafted in to fashion accessories, before finally being chemically regenerated in the year 2068.

On the opposite side of the spectrum the Fast-Forward concept, developed by Prof Kay Politowicz and Dr Kate Goldsworthy, explores alternative modes of production and use for a sustainable ‘fast-fashion’ application. Advantages with regards to climate impact are enabled through lighter material choices, nonwoven fabric production, no launder, clear routes to recovery and redistributed manufacturing systems. A sliding scale of ‘speed’ from ultra-fast forward through to a more widely accepted length of use, with adaptations to production processes and end of life, is presented. The prototypes are made from a new bio-based nonwoven material co-developed with Dr Hjalmar Granberg at RISE Research Institute of Sweden & University of the Arts London. The composition of the paper is a mix of cellulose pulp and bio-based PLA fibre, making the garment 100% biodegradable or recyclable in existing paper recycling systems.

Working closely with industry partner Filippa K made commercial testing possible. By implementing research into existing value chains, Filippa K was able to produce a coat that is 100% recycled and recyclable, as well as a concept dress that is 100% bio-based and biodegradable. The garments are a part of Filippa K’s Front Runner series and will be available in selected stores on November 26th. With a focus on products’ length of use and maximizing fabric value retention, Filippa K are dedicated to becoming fully circular by 2030.

“Being part of the fashion industry comes with many challenges, especially when considering the fact that we are the second most polluting industry after oil. Our industry needs to change and we believe adapting to circular models, like nature’s ecosystem, is one important solution. We want to be able to offer beautiful clothing and to make business within the planetary boundaries.”
- Elin Larsson, Sustainability Director, Filippa K

To validate the design research presented, a Life Cycle Assessment was performed on the prototypes. Mistra Future Fashion affiliated Dr. Greg Peters, Chalmers University of Technology, together with additional LCA Researchers at RISE, conclude that the production of fibres and fabrics are the main processes impacting the environment during the garment life cycles. Therefore, to extend the lifetime of existing garments and design for re-use, as done in the Service Shirt, is indeed the superior alternative compared to a reference garment.

“Compared with garments of the same mass, the extended life garments represent a large improvement in environmental performance over the reference garments, outperforming the reference garments in all effect categories. This superiority is primarily a consequence of avoiding garment production via reprinting and reassembly of the initial garment to extend its useful life.”
- Dr Greg Peters, LCA Researcher at Chalmers University of Technology

Another way to circumvent the impacts of fast fashion is to develop materials with considerably lower impacts during production, and which also avoid the barriers to recycling faced by conventional garments. Instead of hinder consumers from buying new, the act of acquiring a new garment could in fact be sustainable. The paper-based short life garments considered in this assessment show considerable impact savings when compare to the benchmark garment. Dr. Peters says,

“The paper-based garments benefit from the lower impacts of the material (fibre production, spinning and knitting) compared with conventional cotton, from their relatively light weight and also on account of the lower impacts in garment production and use.”