From the Sector

• Participants Embrace Renewed Face-to-Face Business with Global Leaders in Nonwovens & Engineered Materials at IDEA® 2022 and FiltXPO™

Approximately 5,000 participants embraced the opportunity to again engage in face-to-face business meetings with global leaders in nonwovens and engineered materials at IDEA® 2022 in Miami Beach, Fla., co-located with the second FiltXPO™,  North American’s only exhibition and conference dedicated exclusively to filtration and separation.

Industry participants at IDEA® 2022,  the 21 st edition of the world’s preeminent event for nonwovens and engineered fabric professionals, expressed their business confidence through the floor exhibits and the return to face-to-face business interaction. Scott Beir, Executive Officer, CFM Global, called IDEA® 2022 “an exceptional show.”

Bob Usher, Technical Director, US Fibers, added that his company made valuable business connections. According to Rolk Kammermann, Head of Sales and Marketing, Innovative Swiss Made Nonwovens, “the size and scope of IDEA and FiltXPO have been excellent for us as both exhibitors and as visitors.”

Organized by INDA, IDEA® also featured five essential nonwovens training classes; market presentations from China, Asia, Europe, North America and South America; industry recognitions with the IDEA® Achievement Awards and the IDEA® Lifetime Achievement Awards; and a welcome reception celebration.

Also, organized by INDA, FiltXPO™ featured five panels of global leaders in filtration and separation for the first-ever “Summit for Global Change,” discussing societal challenges such as indoor air quality, environmental sustainability, pandemic readiness, clean water, and filtration standards.  The event also featured a 1.5-day filter media training course, and sessions highlighting filter media market trends and filtration industry statistics.  

Exhibitors and attendees noted the welcome return to meeting face-to-face among industry senior leaders participating in the three-day event.

A highlight of IDEA® was the announcement of the IDEA® Achievement Awards by INDA, in partnership with Nonwovens Industry magazine. Moderated by Rousse and Karen McIntyre, Editor, Nonwovens Industry the awards recognize the leading introductions in equipment, raw materials, short-life, long-life and nonwovens products, and sustainability, since the previous IDEA® Exposition in 2019.

In addition, INDA presented the IDEA® 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award to Val Hollingsworth, board chair and CEO of Hollingsworth & Vose, and Nonwovens Industry presented the IDEA® Entrepreneur Achievement Award to Doug Brown, president of Biax-Fiberfilm/5K Fibres at the event.

IDEA® 2022 Achievement Awards winners:

• IDEA®  Equipment Achievement Award – Elastic Thread Anchoring (ETA) Sonotrode – Herrmann Ultrasonics, Inc.
• IDEA®  Raw Material Achievement Award – ODOGard – Rem Brands, Inc.
• IDEA® Short-Life Product Achievement Award – LifeSavers Wipes – LifeSavers LLC
• IDEA® Long-Life Product Achievement Award – Nanofiber Cabin Air Filter – MANN + HUMMEL GmbH
• IDEA®  Sustainability Advancement Award – Fiber-based Screw Caps – Glatfelter Corp. and Blue Ocean Closures
• IDEA®  Nonwoven Product Achievement Award – HYDRASPUN® Aquaflo – Sustainable Nonwoven Substrates – Suominen Corporation
• IDEA®, the Preeminent Event for the Nonwovens & Engineered Fabrics Industry, will next be held on its new 24-month schedule on April 23-25, 2024 in Miami Beach, Florida.

Names of the IDEA® Achievement Award honorees pictured:

Row 1, Left to right:
IDEA® Long-Life Product Achievement Award winner, Jon Nichols, MANN + HUMMEL, GmbH and Dave Rousse – Nanofiber Cabin Air Filter – MANN + HUMMEL, GmbH
IDEA®  Nonwoven Product Achievement Award winners, Pramod Shanbhag, Suominen Corporation, Karen McIntyre, Nonwovens Industry Magazine, and Avinav Nandgaonkar, HYDRASPUN® Aquaflo – Sustainable Nonwoven Substrates – Suominen Corporation
Row 2, left to right:
IDEA® Short-Life Product Achievement Award winner, Georgia Crawford, LifeSavers Wipes – LifeSavers LLC, and Karen McIntyre, Nonwovens Industry Magazine
IDEA® 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Val Hollingsworth, Hollingsworth & Vose, and Dave Rousse, President, INDA
IDEA®  Equipment Achievement Award winners, Uwe Peregi, Dave Rousse, and Thomas Herrmann – Elastic Thread Anchoring (ETA) Sonotrode – Herrmann Ultrasonics Inc.
Row 3, left to right:
IDEA®  Raw Material Achievement Award winner, David Schneider, ODOGard – Rem Brands, Inc. and Dave Rousse, INDA
IDEA®  Sustainability Advancement Award winner, Chris Astley, and Karen McIntyre Fiber-based Screw Caps – Glatfelter Corp. and Blue Ocean Closures
IDEA® Entrepreneur Achievement Award winner, Doug Brown, Biax-Fiberfilm / 5K Fibres

• Cifra selects ROICA™ for a new generation of sportswear in the name of wellness and sustainability
• Performance Days, Hall C1 – stand N08

Cifra, a leading Italian company in Warp Knit Seamless, has chosen ROICA™ by Asahi Kasei, an international reference for premium and smart stretch, for a new generation of clothing dedicated to wellbeing, travelwear and athleisure, made with Cifra exclusive and patented technology in the name of uniqueness and sustainability.

Innovative garments for men and women that combine fashion and function, guaranteeing optimal comfort at any time of the day. Base layers, tops, leggings, jumpsuits made with natural yarns, or recycled pre and post-consumer yarns in combination with ROICA™ EF, the first recycled stretch yarn certified Global Recycled Standard (GRS) able to complete proposals that offer design, performance and responsibility.

The design of the garments, created in Cifra's design office, combines a perfect shape with body mapping technology that creates dedicated ventilation zones for a feeling of comfort and freshness as well as an innovative aesthetic impact.

And when it comes to comfort, ROICA™ activates a new generation conversation linked to the demands of the contemporary consumer looking for well-being in line with the concepts of safety and healthiness emerging in all aspects of daily life. In fact, ROICA™ by Asahi Kasei is the secret stretch ingredient of the modern wardrobe, able to "activate" garments by giving comfort, beauty, quality together with responsible and certified values.

All of this translates into the synergy of development with Cifra. The products, the materials that compose them, along with the way of production and who produces them, transparency and traceability are all aspects that become an integral part of the common proposal that Cifra and ROICA™ are able to offer by joining forces.

"We firmly believe in the new generation of companies oriented towards the creation and supply of valuable products, fully respecting people and the environment, while meeting the performance required by contemporary lifestyles," says Shinichiro Haga, Senior Executive Manager of the ROICA™ Division.

• 2021 Annual Results: First IFRS consolidated statements integrating the subsidiary Carbiolice
• Plan to build a first industrial facility with a strong financial support from the French Government and the Grand-Est Region: site selected in France in partnership with Indorama Ventures, world leader in the production recycled PET
• Successful commissioning of a demonstration facility in September 2021 and confirmation of the validity of the scale-up of Carbios’ enzymatic recycling technology
• Takeover of Carbiolice and full integration in the consolidated IFRS statements since June 4th, 2021
• Appointment of Philippe Pouletty as Chairman of the Board of Directors on April 1st, 2022
• Appointment of Emmanuel Ladent as CEO of the Company on December 1st, 2021
• Strengthening of Carbios’ financial structure: capital increase of €114 million with French and International investors and €30 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB)
• Group’s cash position of €105 million as of December 31, 2021, which does not include the €30 million EIB loan due to be drawn down in the first half of 2022

Carbios, a pioneer in the development of enzymatic solutions dedicated to the end-of-life of plastic, announced its operating and financial results for the year 2021. The financial statements as of December 31, 2021, were approved by the Company’s Board of Directors at their meeting on March 31, 2022.

“In 2021, Carbios achieved several technical and industrial milestones testifying of the soundness and successful execution of our strategy. The excellent results obtained from our demonstration plant confirms the industrial scale-up potential of our biological technology for the recycling of PET plastics and fibers. Together with our Consortium members, we also produced the world’s first food-grade PET sample bottles produced entirely from enzymatically recycled plastics; a world first. In addition, we have strengthened our financial structure by raising a landmark €114 million in May 2021 and we have taken full control of Carbiolice in June. In line with our objectives and with a strong financial support from the French Government and the Grand-Est Region, we will soon enable France to host the world’s first industrial facility dedicated to the biological recycling of plastics. Carbios’ enzymatic process will make it possible to recycle more than 50,000 tons of PET plastic waste per year,” comments Emmanuel Ladent, CEO of Carbios. “Our priority for 2022 is to finalize the terms of our partnership with Indorama Ventures, which will host the world’s first industrial facility operating our biological recycling process at its French production site in Longlaville. This year will also be about optimizing our commercial strategy, while continuing our innovation efforts on the end-of-life of other polymers.”

Click here to for further information.

The winner of the IMAGINING SUSTAINABLE FASHION competition was announced during a webinar broadcast on March 30 at 4pm attended by Giusy Bettoni, CEO of C.L.A.S.S. Eco Hub, Anna Detheridge, President of Connecting Cultures, Dio Kurazawa, Founding Partner of The Bear Scouts, Stefania Ricci, Director of the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum.
 
Vishal Tolambia, 24, a graduate with an MA in Fashion Futures from the London College of Fashion and in Fashion Design from the National Institute of Fashion Technology India, is a Fashion Sustainability researcher and a multidisciplinary designer. In 2021, Vishal founded the organization Humanity-Centred Designs (HCD) with the aim of transforming "human-centred design into humanity-centred designs through sustainable practices to foster the Fashion Industry."
 
In his communication project, the "Fashion Affair" video proposes a speculative view of fashion dating - derived from dating apps - a tool to effectively evaluate brands and their products, in the form of augmented reality. The consumer is not only informed in real time about the brand and supply chain, but the app also becomes a platform for matching products based on individual sustainability goals and commitments. "Fashion Affair" also won the special social media contest open to the public among the finalists selected by the jury for being the most voted project by Instagram followers on C.L.A.S.S.' profile.
 
Vishal ranked first among the finalists selected by the international jury composed of:
- Anna Detheridge, Founder and President, Connecting Cultures
- Giusy Bettoni, CEO and Founder, C.L.A.S.S.
- Rita Airaghi, Director, Gianfranco Ferré Research Center            
- Paola Arosio, Head of New Brands & Sustainability Projects, Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (The National Chamber for Italian Fashion)
- Jeanine Ballone, Managing Director, Fashion 4 Development
- Evie Evangelou, Founder and President, Fashion 4 Development
- Chiara Luisi, Sustainability Projects Coordinator, Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (The National Chamber for Italian Fashion)
- Sara Kozlowski, Director of Education and Sustainable Strategies, Council of Fashion Designers of America
- Dio Kurazawa, Founding Partner, The Bear Scouts
- Renata Molho, journalist and fashion writer, former editor-in-chief of L'Uomo Vogue and editor-at-large of L'Uomo Vogue, Vogue Italia, Casa Vogue
- Stefania Ricci, Director, Salvatore Ferragamo Museum.

Suominen launches a carbon neutral nonwoven, BIOLACE^® Zero. BIOLACE^® Zero is an excellent product for many kinds of wiping applications like baby, personal care, and household wipes. It has excellent wet and dry strength and it’s very soft. It is made of 100% cellulosic lyocell fibers and the product is 100% biodegradable, compostable and plastic free.

BIOLACE^® Zero utilizes VEOCEL™ Lyocell fibers from Suominen´s long-term partner Lenzing. BIOLACE^® Zero is made of 100% carbon neutral VEOCEL™ Lyocell fibers.

“We are very excited to introduce BIOLACE^® Zero, which is not just Suominen´s first carbon neutral product, but also one of the first carbon neutral nonwovens on the market. BIOLACE^® Zero will be available as part of Suominen's sustainable product portfolio”, says Marika Mäkilä, Senior Manager, Category Management, Europe.

Suominen’s BIOLACE^® Zero and Lenzing’s VEOCEL™ Lyocell fibers are certified as carbon neutral products by globally recognized company, ClimatePartner. Carbon neutrality means that the greenhouse gas emissions of nonwoven have been calculated – from the raw material production to the client’s production facility – reduced and are offset through certified carbon offset projects.

Suominen is a pioneer in sustainable nonwovens and we have a wide range of sustainable nonwoven products for different applications. Suominen’s R&D team has excellent know-how on sustainable fibers and we are also continuously collaborating with innovative partners to develop new and innovative solutions with a reduced environmental impact into our product portfolio.

“With this new carbon neutral product BIOLACE^® Zero we are able to support our customers in their greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. Innovating new products in collaboration with partners such as Lenzing by using carbon neutral VEOCEL™ Lyocell fibers is well aligned with our strategy and vision to be the frontrunner in sustainable nonwovens”, says Noora Rantanen, Manager, Sustainability & Marketing.

• Innovation begins with creativity
• A pioneer of the manmade fiber industry

When the manmade fiber age began a century ago, a German company was responsible for the pioneering work involved. Barmag, established in 1922, was one of the world’s first companies to construct machines for the large-scale production of synthetic staple fibers. To this day, the leading manufacturer of manmade fiber spinning systems and texturing machines in Remscheid – a brand under the aegis of the Swiss Oerlikon Group since 2007 – has shaped technological progress in this sector; in future, with ever more innovations focusing on sustainability and digitalization.

Barmer Maschinenfabrik Aktiengesellschaft (Barmag) is founded in Barmen, located in the Bergische Land region, on March 27, 1922. The German and Dutch founders enter unchartered technological territory, one created as the result of a groundbreaking invention: in 1884, French chemist Count Hilaire Bernigaud de Chardonnet used nitrocellulose to produce the first so-called artificial silk, later known as rayon. The following decades see rapid development focusing on the search for synthetic textile fibers and their manufacturing technologies. As one of the first machine factories, Barmag battles its way through the eventful early years of the manmade fiber industry, the ‘Roaring Twenties’ and the Great Depression – and suffers the extensive destruction of its factories at the end of World War Two. Rebuilding is successful. With the unstoppable success story of purely synthetic plastic fibers such as polyamide, the company flourishes from the 1950s through to the 1970s, establishing sites in all international, for the textile industry at the time important, industrial regions and garnering prestige across the globe in the process. In the ups and downs of expansion, global competition and crises, Barmag reaches the very pinnacle of the market and becomes the preferred technological development partner for the manmade fiber industries in China, India and Turkey. The company has been a high-impact brand under the umbrella of the Oerlikon Group since 2007.

On the wings of innovation
Today, Oerlikon Barmag is a leading supplier of manmade fiber filament spinning systems and part of the Manmade Fibers Solutions business unit of the Oerlikon Polymer Processing Solutions Division. And our aspirations have not diminished: “The striving towards innovation and technological leadership has been, is and will always be part of our DNA”, emphasizes Georg Stausberg, CEO of Oerlikon Polymer Processing Solutions. In the past, this has been observable in such trailblazing innovations as the revolutionary WINGS generation of winders for POY in 2007 and WINGS for FDY in 2012. Currently, the focus of new and further developments is very much on digitalization and sustainability. Here, Oerlikon Barmag has – as one of the world’s first systems manufacturers – been implementing fully-networked smart factories for globally-leading polyester manufacturers since the end of the last decade. Within this context, digital solutions and automation are also helping to provide greater climate and environmental compatibility. This sustainability commitment is not only evidenced by the e-save label introduced for all products back in 2004: Oerlikon is endeavoring to also make all its sites carbon-neutral by 2030 and to acquire its energy exclusively from renewable sources. An ambitious target, whose achievement could be helped by the Oerlikon Barmag anniversary, states Georg Stausberg: “Innovation begins with creativity. And remembering the past provides plenty of motivation and inspiration for the future.”

• Revenue Increases to HK$8,316 Million with Net Profit After Tax Surging Significantly
• Recording a Turnaround to HK$381 Million
• Re-Establishes ESPRIT’s Market Leadership

ESPRIT HOLDINGS LIMITED has announced its audited financial annual results for the year ended 31 December 2021, highlighted by a significant increase in both revenue and profit attributable to shareholders of the Company to HK$8,316 million and HK$381 million respectively, in which the profit attributable to shareholders of the Company also recorded a turnaround versus the loss attributable to shareholders of the Company of HK$414 million for the six months ended 31 December 2020. Gross profit margin was 48.6%, 7.0% higher than the Corresponding Period. Please refer to the Company’s results announcement for the Current Year for further details.

Such financial improvement was attributable to various reasons, including (i) the new infrastructure and strategies instituted by the current management team; (ii) improvement in sales with higher gross profit margin; (iii) positive results of efficient cost control measures; (iv) improved inventory management; and (v) growth in E-commerce.

Although revenue in the Current Year was affected by lockdowns in the Company’s major European markets during the first quarter of 2021, and due to increased restrictions on entry requirements into stores during the fourth quarter of 2021, the Group generated revenue via three main channels: E-commerce, wholesale, and owned retail stores. As the ESPRIT brand website and third-party E-commerce partners continued to trade during lockdown, a large portion of the Group’s sales were generated online. This business model allowed it to mitigate some of the negative impacts of the Pandemic in the retail segment. Another driver of growth came from selling fewer discounted products from the Company’s retail business compared to 2020.

The Group has not forgotten the ESPRIT mission and long-standing commitment to sustainability. The Company has continued to work tirelessly towards developing cutting-edge materials that set new standards in terms of environmental sustainability. The Company has formulated and further advanced its ESG strategies to establish ESPRIT as an industry pioneer. Such strategies involve the greater use of sustainable fibers, developing new and innovative product options that support a circular economy, and ensuring environmental awareness is a key message that underpins all of the Group’s projects. To achieve these objectives, the Management has identified four key pillars of growth (Sourcing and Procurement; Marketing and Product; IT, Internet, and E-commerce; and The ESPRIT Brand Story) that are paramount in maintaining the loyalty of existing ESPRIT patrons and attracting new customers.

Looking ahead, the global economy is anticipated to be negatively affected by the lingering effects of the coronavirus pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine. The already unstable logistics industry and disrupted supply chain will likely be further impacted, which in turn will result in higher logistic service costs. Despite the unfavorable global economic outlook, the Group believes that under the leadership of its current management and with the support of dedicated staff members, the Company is on track to ongoing profit growth.

Less than 24 hours after winning Paint the Future awards, three startups have already signed their letters of intent to continue working together on sustainable business opportunities with AkzoNobel.

It’s the next step of a continuing collaborative innovation journey. The startups had the opportunity to explore their solutions with their mentors and industry experts through each phase of the global startup challenge, including an intense three-day bootcamp. Now having signed the letters of intent, they will develop their solutions even further with AkzoNobel.

“The winning startups are joining our go-to-market acceleration program, connecting them to a global network of people and resources,” says Menno van der Zalm, Director of the AkzoNobel Incubator. “Over the next six months, we’ll work together to validate their solutions for our customers and develop a joint value case.”

The following three solutions won over the international jury of experts and business leaders:

• Winner: SolCold
  The solution from Israeli startup SolCold is a sustainable self-cooling coating based on anti-Stokes. It uses the sun’s energy to keep the inside temperature much cooler without having to use any electricity.
• Winner: Aerones
  Latvian startup Aerones brings a robotic solution to wind turbine maintenance. Their crawling robot allows technicians to safely and efficiently perform inspections, cleaning and repairs at height.
• Winner: SprayVision
  From the Czech Republic, SprayVision brings a data-driven approach to optimizing spray application of paint, offering customers full control over the process. The solution helps to reduce environmental impact by saving material and improving quality.

• Complete fibre portfolio for geotextiles, hygiene & wipes, floor coverings, automotive, upholstery, filtration, RTM and construction
• Increasing nonwoven & engineered fabric performance with new fibres that reduce carbon footprint & support design for recycling
• Exploring new possibilities for collaboration using BFI’s expertise, pilot line and equipment

 Beaulieu Fibres International, the largest and most differentiated European staple fibre producer, turns the spotlight on future-focused solutions for nonwovens & engineered fabrics at IDEA®22, 28-31 March. A key priority is innovation in polyolefin and BICO fibres to advance sustainable design, end-of-life recyclability, and resource and carbon footprint reduction for industrial and hygiene applications.

Sustainability is key to Beaulieu Fibre International’s long-term strategy, and the company is heavily focused on defining its green portfolio to support evolution in diverse market applications.

Bio-based fibres
From June 2022, Beaulieu Fibres International will offer ISCC+ certification on mono-PP and BICO PP/PE fibres. The fibres will be offered in 1,3-8,9 dtex and will be available with all the main available finish classes (ie. hydrophilic, hydrophobic, etc.) suitable for the main carding and consolidation technologies. These drop-in solutions with no loss in quality will support customers looking to reduce reliance on virgin fossil carbon in their nonwoven and engineered fibre applications. The bio-based fibres enable customers to contribute to the transition towards a circular economy.

Achieving material savings
For customers in industrial segments like geotextiles, high-tenacity HT8 staple fibres enable customers to achieve nonwovens for construction projects with high mechanical performance but with 15% less weight. The durability of the fibres means that customers can use less raw material for a longer service lifetime, supporting more sustainable design in addition to resource reduction.
For hygiene nonwovens, the Meralux fibres provide significant sustainable design advantages. Meralux fibres deliver substantial sustainability benefits including around 55% savings in raw materials, with equivalent carbon emission savings. These emission savings are thanks to weight reduction in nonwovens with the same coverage level and also the higher recyclability of PP/PE compared to BICO materials.

The three winners of the Paint the Future global startup challenge are all set to accelerate their innovative solutions for the paints and coatings industry. Following an intense three-day bootcamp, these startups were selected by an international jury to continue working with AkzoNobel on sustainable business opportunities.
 
These are the three winners of the Paint the Future global startup challenge:

• SolCold (Israel) - Sustainable self-cooling coating based on anti-Stokes
• Aerones (Latvia) - Robotics for wind turbine maintenance
• SprayVision (Czech Republic) - Data-driven approach to optimal spray application of paint

“Through Paint the Future, we’re bringing innovation and sustainability together as a key driver of our business,” says Thierry Vanlancker, AkzoNobel CEO. “In our ecosystem, we collaborate with startups, suppliers, customers and academia around exciting solutions that will ensure a more sustainable future.”

Paint the Future startup challenges are designed to connect startups with industry knowledge and expertise to help accelerate their solutions in the paints and coatings industry. This Paint the Future global startup challenge launched May 18, 2021, attracting 245 submissions from 62 countries. Ten finalists were invited to Amsterdam to participate in the bootcamp program.
 
This is AkzoNobel’s second global startup challenge, following its industry-first predecessor in 2019. Regional startup challenges have since been held in Brazil (2020), China (2021), and most recently in India (2022).