From the Sector

Sappi is expanding its product range for corrugated board applications with Fusion Nature Plus.

With Fusion Nature Plus, Sappi is launching an uncoated, fully bleached and completely recyclable virgin fibre liner. The company provides a unique variety of packaging and speciality papers. The specialist in paper-based solutions also offers a wide range of products in relation to labels. Fusion Nature Plus offers excellent printing results in flexographic, digital and offset printing processes.

• Ultra-bright, uncoated virgin fibre paper with excellent printing results
• Ideal for attractive corrugated board as well as premium shopping bags
• Can be used as topliner, liner or fluting
• Available in grammages of 80 to 130 g/m²

The virgin fibre liner is based on the concept of the successful Fusion Topliner. In contrast to the double-coated Fusion Topliner, Fusion Nature Plus has a natural, uncoated surface with a more tactile feel, in response to the growing market appetite for this type of product. The liner is also provided in very low grammages.

Fusion Nature Plus enhances brand appearance

Brand owners, corrugated board processors, manufacturers of display cartons and folding cartons as well as designers all benefit from the versatility of the new Fusion Nature Plus. In contrast to conventional uncoated liner papers, the material offers high brightness, brilliant colour reproduction and consistently high quality. These features make the product the perfect choice for corrugated board or solid board packaging, where a very bright appearance is needed for topliners, inner liners and corrugating applications. Whether used as an inlay in cosmetics or confectionery packaging, or as a liner in shipping packaging to ensure an exceptional unboxing experience, Fusion Nature Plus is called upon wherever an enhanced appearance is desired.

Another area of application is paper carrier bags, where uncoated paper qualities are often preferred.

Fusion Nature Plus is ideally suited to a range of printing processes: the product achieves outstanding results in flexographic and offset printing. The pre-treated surface and high brightness offer clear advantages with regard to primer requirements and print behaviour, especially for inkjet-based digital printing. Bernd Gelder, Head of Sales Containerboard at Sappi Europe: ‘With its exceptional print quality and impressive colour reproduction, Fusion Nature Plus particularly appeals to packaging customers who value a natural look and feel in paper. The response from the market, in which packaging based on corrugated board still needs to take on a bigger role, is enormous, of course, with the result that we have succeeded in completing a number of interesting end applications and customer projects with Fusion Nature Plus shortly after market launch.’

Virgin fibre vital for recycling

In continuous recycling use, fiber that has already been recycled is subject to a progressive weakening of quality, resulting in a weakness in the products that incorporate them, but also, crucially, over time they will ultimately degrade to a point where they become unrecoverable. As a result, a certain amount of virgin fibre needs to be introduced into the cycle on a regular basis. Without continuous virgin fibre contribution to the pulp cycle, recycled producers will in the end run out of raw material. The premium virgin fibre liner Fusion Nature Plus from Sappi plays an important role here in maintaining the quality of the recycling substrate.

Thanks to the central location of Sappi’s production site in Ehingen, Fusion Nature Plus can be supplied quickly throughout Europe. The shorter transportation distances reduce transport related fossil emissions and protect the environment. The shorter production cycles in turn ensure high availability and rapid supply.

Fusion Nature Plus is currently available in six grammages from 80 to 130 g/m² in both sheet and roll form. Sappi can also provide Fusion Nature Plus with FSC or PEFC certificates on request.

The machines are quick and reliable, with very little downtime, which is massively important to me as a business owner.”

Kornit Digital (Nasdaq: KRNT), a worldwide market leader in digital textile printing technology, announced United Kingdom-based Kitlocker has implemented two Kornit Avalanche Poly Pro systems for efficient, retail-quality production of branded and customized apparel on demand.

Kitlocker operates within several sectors of the sports and leisurewear market, providing team gear for schools, football clubs, and other sporting organizations, managing e-commerce platforms on behalf of those organizations. Enabling their customers to embellish popular styles on demand, in any quantity, drove them to explore available technologies for speed and versatility, particularly regarding polyester apparel, a cornerstone of sportswear. Kornit’s Poly Pro system is the only single-step digital direct-to-garment (DTG) technology developed specifically for imprinting polyester and poly-blend materials, extending the company’s patented process for waste-free production with durability, precise graphic detail, and the broadest colour gamut to popular sports and athleisure apparel.

“The Kornit Avalanche Poly Pro allows for far superior quality of finish for embellishment compared to traditional print techniques,” says Mike Kent, Co-Owner of Kitlocker. “When we were shopping around for alternatives, it was obvious the sort of single pass, and its ability to print on polyester, was certainly market-leading—there was no alternative that could do that. The machines are quick and reliable, with very little downtime, which is massively important to me as a business owner.”

According to Kent, the technology has enabled Kitlocker to approach new markets that had always been off-limits previously, driving incremental business and building out new product ranges. The process lent itself to simple integration with their workflow and online design tools, empowering customers to visualize their own pieces and receive finished gear, with superior retail quality and precise logo colour matching, in mere days.

“The system allows us bigger print areas, more colours, and more elaborate designs, and our customers to uniquely embellish their garments on a wide range of products from different brands with lots of different kinds of creative outputs,” adds Kent.

“Our systems help brands like Kitlocker sync supply with demand, eliminating waste and making them more reactive to customer needs,” says Chris Govier, KDEU Managing Director. “Kornit Avalanche Poly Pro extends the efficiency, sustainability, quality, and logistical benefits of digitization to the booming sports and athleisure apparel market. Being able to give their customers the widest assortment of gear, customized in any quantity, on demand, is a winning game plan for Kitlocker.”

• BIONIC-FINISH®ECO Fluorine-Free, Water Repellent Finishes for Ultimate Performance

In recent years, many scientists have shifted from favoring a “primordial soup” in pools of water to hydrothermal vents deep in the ocean as the original source of life on Earth. Regardless what the real beginning really was, water was certainly involved in the process some 3,5bln years ago. And since then, Mother Nature designed many ways to benefit of water and to be sheltered from it. Many engineering challenges humans face can be solved by turning to those 3,5bln years of experience and by using natural design as springboard. That’s biologically inspired engineering or, in short, bionics. BIONIC-FINISH®ECO of RUDOLF GROUP is Mother Nature’s work reproduced on textiles and apparel to protect us from water. To perform.

Back in 2003, RUDOLF GROUP borrowed from Mother Nature the idea of dendrimers (from dendron, Greek word for ‘tree’), molecules made of multi-functional branches that interact among themselves, co-crystallize, and self-organize into highly ordered, multicomponent systems. These hyper-branched polymers attach to the textile and embed fluorine-free, durable water-repellent performance.
In 2021 BIONIC-FINISH®ECO comes as a reviewed and extended family of unique nonhalogenated, APEO-free, fluorine-free formulations suited for different materials and designed for different applications and needs. Still very much based on patented dendrimer technology, the new and strengthened BIONIC-FINISH®ECO’s product portfolio:

• Provides non-fluorinated and highly durable water repellent textile finishes for high-performance, professional applications (e.g. when brushing resistance is required);
• Delivers highly efficient and durable performance with low application amounts thus not affecting fabric feel and appearance (e.g. when remarkable softness is important);
• Fulfills a range of challenging technical requirements (e.g. minimal impact on flame retardant properties of technical fibers);
• Is suitable for both sportswear and outdoor applications, as well as for casual apparel and fashion clothing;
• Is bluesign® approved, ZDHC chemical gateway certified and compliant with most RSLs;

BIONIC-FINISH®ECO new portfolio includes universal and versatile solutions targeting the most standard requirements, as well as customized solutions that meet more demanding and specific expectations such as improved resistance to dry-cleaning. “None of us can entirely predict where our voyage will lead” says Dr. Gunther Duschek, RUDOLF GROUP Managing Director. “However, BIONIC-FINISH®ECO of RUDOLF GROUP will always be the fluorine-free, durable water repellent for ultimate  performance. As it is today”.

• Combined HCl acid and steam generation enables significant energy savings and increased cost efficiency

SGL Carbon delivered a Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) synthesis unit with integrated steam generation to Travancore-Cochin Chemicals Ltd. (TCCL), a major producer in the chlor alkali business in South India. End of January, TCCL officially inaugurated its plant in Kochi in India’s Kerala state. Since then, the unit has already been ramped up at the customer’s site to full capacity.

The synthesis unit uses the efficient membrane wall technology and has a capacity of 60 tons of HCl per day. As an additional benefit, this innovative design enables the recovery of waste heat generated in the synthesis unit from the reaction of Hydrogen & Chlorine to produce up to 33 tons of steam at the high pressure of 10 bar every day. This steam can be used elsewhere in the chlor alkali plant, for example when concentrating caustic to flakes. As a result, the energy efficiency of TCCL’s plant goes up substantially since a huge portion of their steam demand can be covered by SGL’s unit. Thereby this helps to save costs as well as reduces CO2 emissions by more than 1.500 tons per year potentially.

The HCl synthesis has been completely engineered and produced at SGL’s production site in Pune, India. Scope of supply also included civil modification services at the customer site on a turnkey basis.

 “Our innovative combined HCl synthesis and steam production units offer a great business value to our customers in the growing Indian chemical market. Together with our proven technical and engineering competence on a global scale we can help our customers to enhance their energy efficiency as the example of TCCL shows”, comments Suneet Sangam, Sales Manager at SGL Carbon India.

“By engineering and producing our units also at SGL’s production site in India, we further strengthen our position as a global process solution provider for corrosive applications leveraging our extensive expertise from our worldwide network. Realizing such ambitious projects in these challenging times of Covid restrictions shows how capable our global team is.“ says Christoph Koch, Director Sales EMEIA at SGL Carbon.

A decade long collaboration between Swiss textile innovator HeiQ and Spanish premium synthetic fiber manufacturer Nylstar, has resulted in the innovation of a revolutionary new premium antiviral and antimicrobial textile with zero pollution sustainable benefits, Meryl® Skinlife Force powered by HeiQ Viroblock Permanent, winner of ISPO Textrends Award for the Best Product.

The new technology is used exclusively on Meryl® Skinlife Force, an hi-tech fabric that combines the silver-ion active principle antimicrobial properties developed by HeiQ and Nylstar’s hydrogen-based technology which allows the creation of yarns with a very strong molecular cohesion structure. The Hydrogen molecular structure makes Meryl® Skinlife Force a high-performance fabric in terms of moisture management and breathability, offering a natural stretch without elastane as well as excellent durability thanks to its continuous and high tenacity filaments. The robust durability of HeiQ Viroblock Permanent is achieved thanks to the silver particles being added directly into the raw polymer of the yarn thereby keeping these properties active for the lifetime of garments. Fabric samples successfully demonstrated a very strong antimicrobial efficacy with over 99.99% reduction of both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria after 100 washes. Antiviral test is underway.

Both HeiQ and Nylstar will be “exhibiting” at ISPO Munich Online from February 1st to 5th. Nylstar won the Textrends 2021 Award for the Best Product in the Base Layer Category.

• The Bavarian Kelheim Fibres GmbH has become the first viscose fibre manufacturer worldwide to receive EMAS certification.

“Our aspiration is that our fibres offer an eco-friendly and high-performance alternative to synthetic materials”, says Craig Barker, CEO at Kelheim Fibres. “So, it’s not enough that our fibres are made from renewable resources and that they are fully biodegradable – our environmental awareness must include the whole production process and all that goes with it if we want to safeguard our credibility.

The EMAS certification proves that we take this responsibility seriously.” EMAS stands for “Eco Management and Audit Scheme” and is a standardised eco management certification system developed by the European Union. EMAS includes the globally applicable ISO 14001 standard and goes beyond its requirements by demanding more transparency and continuous improvement: Certified companies report in their annual EMAS Environmental Statement on their environmental goals and their progress in meeting them.

During the audit preceding the certification, the independent environmental auditor thoroughly investigated all departments of the company, from the production itself to the company canteen. He found no non-conformances and was impressed by the competence and the high sense of responsibility among Kelheim’s employees. In contrast to the EU Ecolabel and similar certifications, EMAS does not apply to individual products or services, but certifies the complete environmental performance of the company. This benefits not only the protection of the environment and climate, but also the improvement of a company’s ecoefficiency.

Craig Barker: “An efficient environmental management system ensures that economy and ecology go hand in hand – that gives us a decisive competitive edge.”

• Leading Turkish textile printing company Hamle has installed a new Monforts Thermex dyeing range as part of its ongoing strategy of continuous investment.

“Investment in new technology and capacity expansions are very important to us, in order to stay ahead in terms of sustainable, high quality production,” says general manager Gürkan Uzuner. “We carefully assess the benefits of each advanced new technology in order to thrive in a sector that is constantly changing.

“The Zara Group is a major European customer for us, along with well-known Turkish brands such as LCW and De-Facto, and it’s no accident that Çorlu, due to its proximity to Istanbul and the ease of supplying to Europe, has become the epicentre of Turkish textile production. The quality of textiles coming from the region is now very well proven.”

Integration

Hamle’s plant in Çorlu already houses a Monforts ten-chamber Montex stenter and two Monforts sanforizing ranges on which the company carries out an extensive range of finishing processes. The new Thermex range further integrates a number of processes on technology all from a single supplier. The Thermex universal hotflue for continuous dyeing, condensing and thermosoling achieves unrivalled reliability even at maximum fabric speeds, for exceptional cost-effectiveness when dyeing both large and small batches of woven fabrics. The new range installed for Hamle benefits from the Econtrol® process* for reactive dyestuffs. This is quick and economical one-pass pad-dry and wash off process, with drying in the hot flue at 120-130°C and controlled humidity (25-30% by volume) to obtain fixation in 2-3 minutes.
Econtrol® ensures excellent reproducibility of all colours, improved dye penetration on difficult fabrics and no risk of the browning of cotton or other cellulose fibres due to the low fixation temperature.

As such, it is the ideal process for fast change technology and operational savings. “The new Thermex range has some very advanced automation features which ensure our machine operators have full control over the entire system,” Mr Uzuner concludes. “ As the Monforts representative in Turkey, Neotek has been our solution partner in the installation and commissioning and has been with us every step of the way.
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* Econtrol® is a registered mark of DyStar Colours Distribution GmbH, Germany.

In pandemic year 2020 circular knitting machine manufacturer Mayer & Cie. (MCT) has further improved its leading position in Turkey. So the country continues to be one of the company’s strongest and most consistent sales markets. Even in difficult years, the manufacturer and its longstanding Turkish representative Mayer Mümessillik have achieved positive results. The reasons for this year’s success, as Mayer & Cie. sees it, are the transfer of production to locations close to Europe, Turkey’s state-of-theart machinery and the increase in demand for comfortable clothing that is suitable as home office wear.

Turkish market is a growth market despite corona setback
“Compared to 2019, we anticipate a growth in the Turkish market even though the corona situation was a serious setback in the second quarter of 2020,” says Stefan Bühler, Mayer & Cie.’s regional sales manager for Turkey.

Mayer & Cie. got off to a strong start on the Bosporus in the first quarter of 2020 with additional positive effects until mid-March. This was due to a desire for production locations close to Europe. In the second quarter, during the lockdown, demand largely ground to a halt. Government measures helped to cushion the downturn. Says Ahmet M. Öğretmen, general manager of MCT’s Turkish sales partner Mayer Mümessillik: “In the second quarter, GDP was down by about 10 percent, so we got off lightly.”

Since July 2020, orders for Mayer & Cie. circular knitting machines have bounced back again. Ahmet M. Öğretmen sees an interplay of reasons for this recovery. The main reason, he says, is the low exchange rate of the Turkish lira, which has boosted exports of ready-made textiles. The Turkish daily Hürriyet reports, with reference to the Turkish state news agency, 11 percent year-on-year growth in August 2020. The most important export markets, the newspaper says, are Germany, the UK and Spain. Between them, they account for around half of exports totalling € 1.27 billion.* “This demand must be fulfilled,” Öğretmen says. “That leads to investment in machinery by manufacturers.”

Relanit is synonymous with single jersey
The machines of choice for Turkish knitwear manufacturers are regularly Mayer & Cie. machines. The long-established German firm’s share of the Turkish market is substantially higher than in other markets. The manufacturer’s position is particularly strong in the market for plain single jersey fabrics, with the Relanit 3.2 HS being the machine of choice. It achieves an extraordinarily high level of productivity, especially in processing elastomer yarns. It also handles a wide range of yarns reliably.

“Interlock is Mayer & Cie.”
Mayer & Cie. is one of the leader in the second major circular knitting discipline, rib and interlock fabrics. The machines used for double jersey fabrics are the OV 3.2 QCe, the D4 2.2 II and the D4 3.2 II. The OV 3.2 QCe knits interlock, 8-lock structures, spacers and fine gauge with 3.2 systems. The D4 2.2 II is another stalwart for rib, 8-lock and interlock. The 8-lock D4 3.2 II is the machine of choice for firms that want to manufacture structures such as Piqué, Punto di Roma or Thermal in addition to interlock.

The MBF 3.2 is another top seller in Turkey. A three-thread fleece machine, it knits fabrics for sportsand leisurewear such as hoodies and is very much in keeping with the trend in home office year 2020. “Comfortable clothing is circular knitted,” says Ahmet M. Öğretmen, “and we benefit from that of course.”

One of the world’s most state-of-the-art machine parks are in Turkey
Another advantage is the modernity of the Turkish machine park, which is doubly attractive in view of Turkey’s weak currency. Says Mayer Mümessillik general manager Öğretmen: “In the past 10 to 20 years there has been very heavy investment in high-quality machines. As a consequence we have the world’s youngest and most up-to-date production facilities.” Combined with geographical proximity to the main export markets in Europe that should prove a growth driver in the years ahead – and keep demand for Mayer & Cie. machines brisk and high.

*More informationen here.

Shanghai, China - DyStar, a leading specialty chemical company with a heritage of more than a century in product development and innovation will exhibit in the 20th China International Dyestuff Industry, Pigments and Textile Chemicals Exhibition - China Interdye 2020. DyStar will showcase the latest product innovations at Hall 1 booth #A330.

The three-day annual event will be taking place at Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Center (SWEECC) and opens doors on 8th November. DyStar’s managers will be onsite to support visitors from production houses, manufacturers, and Brands and Retailers with essential information, helping them to make meaningful and notable decisions based on tangible benefits such as reduction of water, waste and energy consumption, thereby improving their end-products and quality.

DyStar’s sustainable solutions can further optimize productions, processes, and reduce costs. Some of these products and concepts are highlighted at the event as follows:
•    Recent launch of Cadira® Polyamide and Cadira Polyester/Cellulosic Exhaust
•    Total collection of eleven Cadira® modules
•    High Fast Dianix® XF2 Range
•    Sera® Wash M-VFN
•    Levafix® CA and Remazol® SAM offer

Despite a year full of global economic challenges, with the supply chain and stakeholders heavily strained by the global pandemic, DyStar is determined to support the industry and its customers. They can benefit from our legacy of innovations and product offerings, so that they can continue to drive sustainability and growth in their respective domains, contributing in a responsible and yet sustainable manner for a cleaner future.

Neumünster – Success is built by connecting the right people with the right product. In a global marketplace, this means collaboration is just as important as competition. Companies need to focus on their strengths, while finding practical ways to innovate and expand upon their capabilities.

An exclusive license from Procter & Gamble offers the best for nonwovens

In order to do so, working together often makes the most sense. This is what motivated Procter & Gamble and Oerlikon Nonwoven – Teknoweb Materials to agree on an exclusive license agreement to market and sell the Phantom platform worldwide.

The patented process for hybrid nonwovens combines the best of both airlaid and spunmelt technologies to deliver new, flexible ways of creating wet and dry wipes. Phantom technology offers additional benefits by reducing resources and cost, while increasing overall performance. The exclusive license gives Oerlikon Nonwoven – Teknoweb Materials distribute this technology worldwide. In addition, Oerlikon Nonwoven – Teknoweb Materials have further refined the process into their own Levra technology – an entry-level option which offers tailored production volumes with lower investment costs but is still suitable to be upgraded to the premium Phantom model in the future.

Quality products that cost less

Essentially, Phantom technology was developed to produce hybrid substrates. The spunmelt and airlaid processes are merged into one step to combine cellulose fibers, long fibers such as cotton, or even powders with polymer fibers in unprecedented ways. This technology has clear advantages in terms of resources, performance, and cost compared to the previous processes on the market. By removing hydroentanglement, it is no longer necessary to dry the material. Adjusting the process can optimize relevant product characteristics such as softness, strength, dirt absorption, and liquid absorption. In the end, this even increases the quality of the product itself.

The greater freedom for formulating continuous and discrete fibers allows for more flexible and absorbent structures and highly textured materials. Wipes feel softer to the touch while providing more protection for the hands. Up to 90% of the material can consist of pulp fibers, although natural alternatives like cotton or synthetic fibers can be added to the mix.

Phantom technology has not only found a practical application in a variety of wipes – such as hygiene wipes, anti-bacterial wipes, surgical wipes, or industrial wipes – but also in absorbent cores, for instance indiapers or fempro products. With so many applications, Oerlikon Nonwoven – Teknoweb Materials are fully prepared to deliver Procter & Gamble’s innovative Phantom technology to the global nonwovens market.