From the Sector

CELLIANT® with REPREVE®, introduced by Hologenix with global textile solutions provider UNIFI®, makers of REPREVE®, has been awarded a Top 5 Selection in the Accelerated Eco category of the Spring/Summer ISPO Textrends 2025 Awards.

Last fall CELLIANT with REPREVE was also awarded a Selection in the Fibers & Insulation Category of the ISPO Textrends Fall/Winter 2024/2025. In addition, in the spring the fiber was shortlisted in the Drapers Sustainable Fashion 2023 Awards in the Sustainable Textile Innovation category.

Twice a year, ISPO recognizes innovative fibers, fabrics and components that are used to manufacture sports apparel. Both companies are excited that this innovation, whereby CELLIANT infrared (IR) technology is embedded into REPREVE, a brand of recycled fiber, has achieved these honors. CELLIANT with REPREVE is a performance fiber made from recycled materials that have been enhanced with IR technology to provide wellness benefits to the consumer.  

CELLIANT is a natural blend of IR-generating bioceramic minerals, which, when embedded into textiles, allows them to convert body heat into infrared energy, returning it to the body and temporarily increasing local circulation and cellular oxygenation. This aids in muscle recovery, increases endurance, and improves overall performance in healthy individuals, among other benefits.
 
REPREVE recycled performance fiber consists of high-quality fibers made from 100% recycled materials, including post-consumer plastic bottles and pre-consumer waste. It is also certified and traceable with UNIFI’s U TRUST® verification and FiberPrint™ technology, which provide assurance that the product comes from recycled materials. Compared to virgin fiber, REPREVE helps to offset the use of petroleum, conserving water and energy and emitting fewer greenhouse gasses.

This award marks the third year in a row that Hologenix has had its CELLIANT technology recognized in the ISPO Textrends Awards. CELLIANT in pure white was a Top Ten Winner in 2022. The prior year, CELLIANT Viscose was a Selection Winner as well. 

The thermal insulation in the product series comfortemp® soft HO 80x from Freudenberg Performance Materials Apparel (Freudenberg) has achieved Gold status in the Material Health category of the Cradle to Cradle Certified® Product Standard Version 3.1.

The soft thermal insulation of the HO 80x soft series (HO 803, HO 804, HO 805, HO 806) is made from polyamide 6 wadding and is multiple recyclable in terms of a sustainable circular economy. The wadding is also characterized by high wearing comfort, making it suitable for sustainable applications in the luxury, sportswear and outdoor sectors. Thanks to its construction as roll goods, the wadding does not clump and can endure multiple wash cycles at 40°C.

Certifications by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute are based on testing for hazardous materials in products and processes. Plus, the impact of chemical substances is assessed on the three product life cycle phases: final manufacture, use and end of use. Freudenberg will continue optimizing its products to ensure material safety and quality for future use and cycling.

B.I.G. Yarns unveils its new “SustainableYarns” platform, with Clerkenwell Design Week visitors the first to be invited to get on board and focus on what matters most for the design and manufacture of sustainable soft floorings.

The expert in polyamide (PA) 1 step 3 ply yarns offers a range of options for manufacturers to introduce sustainable yarns into carpet solutions and reach sustainability targets faster and more efficiently.

The Sustainable Yarns range creates opportunities to design with recycled content yarn (EqoCycle), to work with renewable resources (EqoBalance), and, following the launch of new polyamide 6 (PA6) EqoYarn at Clerkenwell Design Week, to also leverage the low-impact value chain.

New addition EqoYarn is a new low-impact PA6 carpet yarn based on the most recent innovations in polymer production, which enable yarn manufacturers to lower their carbon footprint by nearly 50% and give carpet manufacturers more options to reduce their impact.

For its EqoYarn Bulk Continuous Filament (BCF) production process, B.I.G. Yarns has selected the few best-in-class partners that have made major steps forward in terms of sustainability, and reduced their greenhouse gas emissions thanks to continuous investments in process efficiency, green energy, heat optimization and waste reduction. The result is EqoYarn with a carbon footprint of 4 kg CO2 eq/kg yarns, which is a CO2 reduction of up to 50% compared to conventional PA yarns.

EqoBalance PA6 yarns enable customers to reach an even higher CO2 reduction of up to 75%. Manufactured with polymers made from renewable resources such as organic waste from cooking oil instead of virgin or fossil feedstock, these yarns have a carbon footprint of 1.98 kg CO2 eq./ kg yarns. They help carpet manufacturers to create products with an extremely low carbon footprint.

EqoCycle PA6 yarns are fully recyclable and incorporate 75% recycled content originating from recycled and regenerated PA6 granules. With a carbon footprint of 4.64 kg CO2 eq./ kg yarns, they deliver the same high-quality performance of virgin PA6 yarn with the benefit of 37% CO2 reduction. EqoCycle yarns offer carpet manufacturers a sustainable alternative to help reduce the ecological footprint of their products and move towards a circular economy without jeopardizing the end-product quality.

In addition to the different CO2-reducing options, B.I.G. Yarns’ customers can access an unlimited colour range to elevate their designs. Its BCF technology for polyamide yarns, twisted and heat-set yarns, one-colour to multi-colour, between 650 and 15000 dTex, along with its colour studio, are available to support their creation of customised collections.

Carbios has been selected among the 22,000 start-ups in the French Tech ecosystem to represent French innovation at the 6th “Choose France” Summit.  “Choose France” is an international business summit dedicated to the attractiveness of France launched at the initiative of Emmanuel Macron, the President of the Republic. Only ten companies, including Carbios, have been chosen to exhibit their technologies at the Château de Versailles.  On this occasion, Carbios announces that it has joined the Coq Vert community launched by Bpifrance in partnership with ADEME^[1] and the Ministry of Ecological Transition, to connect with other environmentally committed business leaders and advance its international deployment.

“With INRAE^[2], we chose to highlight Carbios at the Choose France summit as a symbol of French economic dynamism,” comments Philippe Gassmann, Secretary General Choose France 2023 (French Treasury). ” With its innovative “Made in France” biotechnologies that bring plastic into the circular economy, Carbios illustrates the wealth of  innovation within the French cleantech ecosystem.  I thank Carbios for its ambassadorship for this ecosystem to the 200 foreign guests attending the 6th Choose France Summit with the theme: Investing for a sustainable future.”

“Carbios is honored to have been selected by the Elysée Palace for Choose France.  This international summit provides an opportunity for meetings between the President of the Republic, members of the Government and the leaders of major foreign and French companies to discuss France’s economic ambitions and attractiveness,” commented Emmanuel Ladent, Chief Executive Officer of Carbios. “Carbios is in the midst of a major industrial rollout, with a first plant planned in the Grand Est region, and the international commercial deployment of our processes.  We are very grateful for the French Government’s support at this strategic time for the company.”
(Emmanuel Ladent, CEO, and Alain Marty, Chief Scientific Officer, representing Carbios at Choose France)

The Coq Vert community
Launched by Bpifrance, in partnership with ADEME and the Ministry of Ecological Transition, this community brings together 2,000 members who are players in sustainable development and are convinced of the need to act for energy and ecological transition.

^[1] ADEME = The French Agency for Ecological Transition
^[2] INRAE = France’s National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment

A total of 20 European fashion and design schools took part in the 2nd “Fashioning Sustainability” competition organized by Freudenberg Performance Materials together with Macpi and Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei, two co-branding partners in the textile industry.

Freudenberg invited talented young designers to create and submit their ideas for sustainable clothing. The initiative aims to show that sustainability is a key factor in the fashion industry.

Two of the most innovative outfits from each school were selected for the final round and presented to an international jury at the “Bagni Misteriosi” event location in Milan in May. Fashion design experts and opinion leaders as well as journalists were invited to select the most sustainable designs in the categories of “Technology” and “Design”.

The winners
First place in the “Technology” category went to Judith Marquant while the second to Jagoda Sokolowska, both students of the fashion school Esmod in Paris. Ilaria De Martino, from the fashion institute Modartech, Italy, and Xiaodan Liao from Polimoda, Italy, were awarded first and second place in the “Design” category. The first-place winners received €2,000, while the second places won €1,000.

All participants benefited from the platform to network with leading players in the garment industry and learn more about concrete steps for embracing sustainability. Creating true sustainability in the fashion industry means reducing the material flow of clothing, addressing both sustainable production and consumption.

Members of the Jury:
Cristiano Zanetti, Sales Director Italy, Freudenberg Performance Materials
Maurizio Cazzin, Male Modeller, Maison Giorgio Armani
Riccardo Bullio, Apparel Industrial Division Director, Dolce & Gabbana
Caterina Cuoghi, Industrial Director, Area NYC
Simone Bigi, Style and Product Office Manager FAY line, Gruppo TOD’S
Roberto Cibin, Model and Pattern Development Manager, Caruso
Bruno Landi, Sales Director, Vitale Barberis Canonico
Luisella Allegretti, Pattern Designer Boss MW Business Specialist, Hugo Boss
Eugenio Balordi, Product Manager, Maison Margiela
Ettore Pellegrini, Sales and Marketing Manager, Asahi Kasei Fibers Italia

Groz-Beckert will be represented at ITMA with its six product sectors and will showcase its various innovations. The presentations at the booth will be supported by augmented reality applications. This allows visitors to discover the products both live and virtually.

The Knitting product sector will be represented at the Groz-Beckert stand with its four product groups circular knitting, flat knitting, legwear and warp knitting. In the circular knitting segment, for example, two newly developed knitting systems will be on show which have been realized in collaboration with machine manufacturers. The developments focus on energy savings, extended cleaning intervals and increased process reliability.

In addition to the machines for weaving preparation, the Weaving product sector will present its recently expanded portfolio of technical weaving reeds. The new weaving reeds make it possible to supply customers who produce fabrics with high densities. The weaving reeds are used in the production of special fabrics, for example, in technical filtration, membrane technology, solar cells or touch screens.

Products and services for classic needling and hydroentanglement will be presented by the Felting (Nonwovens) product area. In the field of felting needles, visitors can look forward to two innovations: a new notch shape and the Groz-Beckert felting needle module. In the felting needle module, the needles are embedded as a module in a plastic mold for the first time. The needle modules are characterized by high deformation resistance and offer new dimensions in needle density.

For the production of tufted floor coverings such as carpets, bath mats or artificial turf, the Tufting product sector will be presenting its proven Gauge Part system.

Various new and further developments will also be shown by the Carding product area. For those interested in the nonwovens industry, for example, the world's finest Interlocking wire for reduced risk of crashis included. For customers of the spinning industry, the division will be presenting further developed stationary flats and revolving tops. The new revolving tops have been adapted to the processing of fine yarns, while the stationary flats have been provided with a new, resistant aluminum profile.

The Sewing product sector is focusing on the presentation of its special application needles, SANTM. The sewing machine needles of the SANTM series have been specially developed for demanding sewing operations – e.g. for sewing technical or finest textiles. The division will also be presenting its new Needle Finder. The Needle Finder is an interactive tool in the online customer portal that helps customers select the right needle.

• Carbios has developed an ultra-high throughput microfluidic screening of PET-depolymerizing enzymes in partnership with the Paul Pascal Research Center^[1], a joint research unit of the CNRS^[2] and the University of Bordeaux
• Microfluidics enables millions of enzymes to be screened in a day, compared with a few thousand a week with conventional technologies
• Future polymers of interest will benefit from this acceleration of the R&D phase, enabling Carbios to develop its portfolio of innovations on different types of plastic more rapidly

Carbios has accelerated its enzyme screening process with a microfluidic technology developed in partnership with the Paul Pascal Research Centre (a joint research unit of the CNRS and the University of Bordeaux, which specializes in microfluidics). This technology enables the screening of millions of enzymes in just one day, speeding up the process to optimize enzymes breaking down PET. This competitive advantage enables Carbios to reduce the time between the R&D phase and the production of its proprietary enzymes, and therefore to develop concrete solutions to plastic pollution even faster.

Microfluidics
Microfluidics allows the production of devices handling very small amounts of liquid. Each droplet generated can be considered as an independent microreactor having a volume in the picoliter range (10-12 liters) and containing a particular enzyme whose PET depolymerization activity will be screened. These droplets move through analysis units the size of a microchip allowing ultra-high throughput screening of 150 enzymes per second.

Previously, conventional robotic systems allowed screening in microplate format with a volume in the milliliter range (10-3 liters) and with rates of around one enzyme per minute.

The use of microfluidics to screen for more efficient or new enzymes will become widely adopted in the coming years, therefore accelerating the development of bioprocessing. Currently used by Carbios for the development of its PET depolymerization process, microfluidics should be used to accelerate the development of new enzymes for other types of plastic such as polyamide.

Carbios researchers specialized in microfluidics
Microfluidic processes require special expertise. At present, two researchers at Carbios are dedicated to microfluidics and based in the cooperative laboratory with TBI^[3] hosted by INSA^[4] Toulouse.  Alexandra Tauzin, Researcher in Enzyme Engineering and Microfluidics, and Alexandre Gilles, Engineer specialized in robotics, work in partnership with the Paul Pascal Research Center.

^[1] Centre de Recherche Paul Pascal (CRPP)
^[2] Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) = National Center for Scientific Research
^[3] Toulouse Biotechnology Institute
^[4] National Institute of Applied Sciences

At ITMA 2023, XORELLA, a specialist in steam setting and conditioning equipment for yarns and fabrics, will launch XO AUTOMATION for the double door XO SELECT conditioning machine series, and XO SOLID, a new machine series to complement XO SMART, XO TREND and XO SELECT machines.

XO AUTOMATION
The new XO AUTOMATION system consists of roller conveyor systems for loading and unloading two-door XO Select conditioning machines. Additional pallet wrapping machine with a turntable, weighting station, label printer, safety fence and security system can complete the system. The XO Select controller and automation system can handle and store individual customer-specific material and packing programmes.  

XO SELECT and XO AUTOMATION are designed for yarn steaming on multiple pallet dimensions and heights up to 2,650mm. The linear material flow passing conveyor and steaming machine avoids any mix between steamed and un-steamed materials. XO AUTOMATION fills the gap between the XO automated moving platform and the fully automated transport system – from spinning hall to warehouse.

XO SOLID
The new cubical XO SOLID combines a high loading space of 1,800mm x 1,700mm x 4, 000mm (H x W x L) through double row pin trolleys or pallets for easy manual loading of six units on floor level without a pit or platform. XO SOLID is therefore designed for installations on upper floor levels. The new frame design combines all necessary components factory preinstalled on a single frame, for easy ‘plug and play’ installation at the customer site. Additional smaller steamer dimensions for two and four loading units are also at the planning stage.

The new XO SOLID incorporates all the renowned features of XORELLA machines based on the long term experience in high temperature dyeing vessel production of FONG’s, including:

• A Siemens controller with OPC UA interface and XO data tool for batch storage.
• A XO EcoPac waterless claw pump or two-stage water ring vacuum pump.
• A high energy efficient accumulator for steam, electric and combined heating.
• Vessel and piping in world-class stainless steel.
• European key components such as pumps, heating elements, valves and sensors

Established in Switzerland in 1967, XORELLA became known in the global textile industry for its innovative indirect steaming system. Since 2002 the company has been a member of the CHTC Fong’s International Group, and a member of SINOMACH Group (China National Machinery Industry Corporation) since 2019.

International technology group ANDRITZ entered a partnership with Pellenc ST and Nouvelles Fibres Textiles to set up the very first industrial-scale automatic textile sorting line in France combining automated sorting and recycling technology.

The partners have expert knowledge in sorting technologies (Pellenc ST), textile machinery and processes (ANDRITZ), as well as post-consumer textile value chains from sorting to manufacturing (Nouvelles Fibres Textiles newly founded by Les Tissages de Charlieu and Synergies TLC).

The new textile sorting line being built is the first to combine Pellenc ST's automated sorting technologies with ANDRITZ’s recycling technologies. It will process post-consumer textile wastes to produce recycled fiber engineered for the spinning, nonwoven and composite industries. Starting operations in mid-2023, it will serve as a production line for Nouvelles Fibres Textiles, as an R&D line for the three partners, and as a test and demonstration center for their customers.

Nouvelles Fibres Textiles aims to become a reference in both industrial grade material production and industrial scale post-consumer textile sorting, thanks to innovative technologies with hard point removal providing pure fibers, selective colors, and differentiated fiber types.

Nouvelles Fibres Textiles’ partners also work closely together in R&D at the ANDRITZ Laroche and Pellenc ST technical centers to keep pushing technical boundaries.

Renewcell is the recepient of the Fast Company 2023 World Changing Ideas Awards for the Sustainability/Energy category with the development of recycling unused textiles into pulp, branded as CIRCULOSE®, used for man-made cellulosic fiber production of viscose, modal, lyocell, acetate and other fibers. Additionally Renewcell is recognized as a finalist in the Europe, the Middle East, and Africa category, as well as a finalist in the climate category for the 2023 World Changing Ideas Awards.

World Changing Ideas Awards honor sustainable designs, innovative products, bold social initiatives, and other creative projects that are changing the way we work, live, and interact with the world.

This year’s World Changing Ideas Awards showcase 45 winners, 216 finalists, and more than 300 honorable mentions—with health, climate, energy, and AI among the most popular categories. A panel of Fast Company editors and reporters selected winners and finalists from a pool of more than 2,200 entries across urban design, education, nature, politics, technology, corporate social responsibility, and more. Several new categories were added this year including rapid response, crypto and blockchain, agriculture, and workplace. The 2023 awards feature entries from across the globe, from Italy to Singapore to New Zealand. Fast Company’s Spring 2023 issue (on newsstands May 9, 2023) will showcase some of the world’s most inventive entrepreneurs and forward-thinking companies that are actively tackling global challenges.