From the Sector

• Bemberg™ presents a great deal of novelties with a true key-statement for sustainability: Let’s Make it Circular!
• The lifespan of Bemberg™’s regenerated cellulose fiber Cupro derived from cotton is fully circular: from the source to manufacturing.

“Sustainability is the founding pillar of our company,” says SHUNSUKE SATO, sales manager of Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei. “Indeed, the smart fiber is made from a cotton linter which is pre-consumer material, a natural derived source, that doesn’t deplete forestry resources”.

In Bemberg™’s production the whole sustainable closed-loop process is supported by the LCA study, signed by ICEA (Istituto per la Certificazione Etica e Ambientale) and validated by President of Ecoinnovazione Paolo Masoni ex Research Director of ENEA (Ente per le Nuove tecnologie, l’Energia e l’Ambiente).

While recyclability is granted by the Global Recycle Standard - GRS certification by the renown Textile Exchange (an influential guarantee that involves the whole production process and supply chain behind the company’s smart yarns), Bemberg™ yarns are also entirely biodegradable and ecotoxicity-free - meaning that at the end of their life circle they break down into the environment leaving no trace in terms of toxic substances as attested by the Innovhub-SSI report.

A special focus deserves Velutine™ Evo, the new fibrillation finishing technology for Bemberg™ fabrics only that guarantees another level of sustainable benefits without sacrificing the Bemberg™ amazing and unique touch. As part of the company’s continuous innovation, Velutine™ Evo brings better environmental, energy and water profiles for the benefit of Bemberg™ partners in the manufacture of their ranges.
The sustainable achievements of the new finishing technology have been measured by LCA - Life Cycle Assessment study by ICEA and proved to guarantee environmental benefits such as -16.5% of greenhouses gas emissions and -21% of overall consumption of energy resources. On top of that Velutine™ Evo means also -20.5% of electricity savings, -15.9% of steam production and -19.5% of water consumption.

The first Bemberg™ partner to present a commercial collection enriched by Velutine™ Evo is the Portuguese Matias & Araújo. With an innovative spirit, dynamism and a determined entrepreneurial spirit, the company is a leading knitwear producer for the textile industry.

Bemberg™ collaborated also with the premium brand CAALO that is making its mark in the outerwear market with its Sustainably produced Functional-Luxury proposal. For SS20, CAALO uses Bemberg™ lining because of the sustainability properties and it’s unique colour.

CAALO uses as much eco-friendly and sustainable materials as possible without compromising on design or quality. This Bemberg™ lining was a perfect fit. This versatile blazer features a removable hood, hidden welt pockets, button closure, and removable cargo pockets.

And finishings of the E.C.O. KOSMOS cross-collection, continuing its ethical and sustainable path and having also exclusives collaborations with international brands
Italian Converter, a leading manufacturer of innovative fabrics for fashion, footwear and accessories, expands E.C.O. Kosmos, the fully traceable, transparent and 100% Made in Italy cross-collection. The acronym E.C.O. - Ecologic, Conversion, Optimization perfectly reflects the founding values of the Italian Converter philosophy and represents a further step in the company's responsible path. E.C.O. Kosmos has also been selected to be part of C.L.A.S.S. (Creativity Lifestyle and Sustainable Synergy) and also welcomed with enthusiasm the proposal to support C.L.A.S.S. Smart Materials Bank, the educational platform and e-shop of C.L.A.S.S. designed for young designers who want to discover and experiment with innovative and sustainable textile solutions from the best manufacturers in ways suitable for their reality.

Here are some highlights of the collection:

• E.C.O. Alba – E.C.O. Aurora, fabrics made of 50% casual cotton combined with AMNI SOUL ECO ® technology.
• E.C.O. Sonica is a semi-shiny satin with an elegant and refined appearance. the textile sector at an international level.
• E.C.O. Aly is a vintage effect raffia, a very trendy theme right now.

Bemberg™ gears up for Première Vision - February 11th-13th, Paris, France; with a great deal of novelties and a key statement on sustainability: Let’s Make it Circular! That’s why the Japanese brand of regenerated cellulose fibers joins the fair with two booths, one in the yarn-focused sector – Hall 6 C52 6D53 – the other one in the Smart Creation area, the curated district showcasing cutting-edge sustainable innovation for the textile and fashion business. Hall3 S14.

“We simply could not miss out on the Smart Creation Area as sustainability is the founding pillar of our company,” says SHUNSUKE SATO, sales manager of Bemberg™ by Asahi Kasei. “Indeed, the smart fiber is made from a cotton linter which is pre-consumer material, a natural derived source, that doesn’t deplete forestry resources. The strategy beyond our double presence is to highlight our deep commitment to responsible innovation to a larger target of professionals.”

Let’s take it circular! is the motto at the Smart Creation booth. The lifespan of Bemberg™’s regenerated cellulose fiber derived from cotton is fully circular: from the source to manufacturing. The whole sustainable closed-loop process is supported by the LCA study, signed by ICEA and validated by Paolo Masoni. Recyclability is granted by the Global Recycle Standard - GRS certification by the renown Textile Exchange. An influential guarantee that involves the whole production process and supply chain behind the company’s smart yarns. Bemberg™ yarns are entirely biodegradable and ecotoxicity-free – meaning that at the end of their life circle they break down into the environment leaving no trace in terms of toxic substances as attested by the Innovhub-SSI report.

On show at Première Vision some of the most recent collaborations with GRS-certified partners such as FIVEOL, SMI TESSUTI, TESSITURA UBOLDI, INFINITY, SIDONIOS, MATIAS & ARAUJO, TINTEX, IPEKER, EKOTEN, for fashion fabrics as well as PEZZETTI and BRUNELLO & G.CRESPI from lining partners.

The first Bemberg™ partner to present a commercial collection enriched by Velutine™ Evo is the Portuguese Matias & Araújo. With an innovative spirit, dynamism and a determined entrepreneurial spirit, the company is a leading knitwear producer for the textile industry.

In the Hall 6 Bemberg™ displays key commercial items developed by premium brands such as CAALO that is making its mark in the outerwear market with its Sustainably produced Functional-Luxury proposal. For SS20, CAALO utilized Bemberg™ lining because of the sustainability properties and it's unique colour.

CAALO looks to utilize as much eco-friendly and sustainable materials as possible without compromising on design or quality. This Bemberg™ lining was a perfect fit.

Sustainability is part of SEEK’s internal make-up and has always been part of the team and community experience. Over 80 sustainable brands make up the brand portfolio, including players like Veja, Dedicated and Kings of Indigo. Experts will be sharing their experiences on this market-defining topic as well, with a host of live podcasts, talks and panel discussions, and will be shaping SEEK’s programme of content.
 
BIG PLAYER: the new SEEK Culture
 
SEEK is Europe’s most successful trade show for pop, street and sneaker culture. This is where the key players meet, where the looks of tomorrow are showcased, modelled and retold, where classics are celebrated, authenticity rules the roost and where icons take their positions alongside shooting stars. SEEK is essential participation for anyone looking to curate a modern, youthful and relevant range.

The shift from a niche event to a large trade show is now complete with a new logo and campaign design. SEEK has emerged from its transformation to reveal that its content and visual look are as relevant as ever!  

Together with creative agencies Karl Anders and Haebmau, the SEEK team has been working for weeks on the brand’s new branding. The result: a visual concept with a strong message.

“The handshake is the right imagery and commitment to our stance and that of the SEEK community.”

“SEEK stands for strength and business just as much as for communality and good vibes! ‘Get Along’ articulates a feeling of agreement, of moving forward and getting to grips with things. We all want to shape a positive future for our industry – as partners and by joining forces.”, explains Fashion Director Maren Wiebus.

CREATIVE CONNECTION: Karl Anders and Haebmau
 
The Hamburg-based agency Karl Anders, which was established by Claudia Fischer-Appelt and Lars Kreyenhagen, was commissioned to come up with the creative concept and design language for the logo and campaign.

“With the new look we are entering a new era for SEEK as a brand. Lots of brands have chosen a design using Helvetica in recent years,” says Claudia Fischer-Appelt, Creative Director at Karl Anders. “We are now signalling a clear shift in another direction. Confident, bold and independent. With the logo we are inviting the viewer to play with the linear layout in their head; we are breaking viewing habits, making a statement and revving things up a gear. SEEK, there it is.”
 
The artwork is the result of a process of in-depth debate with the SEEK brand that took place over several weeks both within the team and also with the support of lifestyle agency Haebmau. Workshops, research and analyses ultimately led to a new, strong brand identity. SEEK is focussed on both established and new players and stands for the WE.

“I have known SEEK since it was in its infancy, so to me it was always like a little brother of the large, successful PREMIUM. Quirky and different, always interesting but somehow not quite so imposing,” says Markus Bublitz, Executive Creative Director at Haebmau. “SEEK today is more grown-up, confident and sharper. Thanks to its position in the market, which it has conquered over the years, it no longer needs to please everyone but can afford to be controversial. This can offer space for new, creative ideas.”

SEEK is edgy, clean-cut and unpolished.

We are all about statement design, new classics, denim and sportswear. SEEK is the trade show event for the fashion community. SEEK knows who calls the shots; it boosts sales and is the place for the next generation of decision-makers to get together. Unlike all the others, SEEK is unconventional and the antidote to boring.

• Interfilière Shanghai, 26th-27th September 2019, Booth 1C11

Able to offer an alchemy of design and sustainable features, Iluna Group with ROICA™ by Asahi Kasei join the latest edition of Interfilière Shanghaiwith a range of developments capable of combining innovation, aesthetics and quality.

"Ethical" lace and stockings, where quality standards go hand in hand with fashion content, respecting both the environment and humans, an offer already selected among the protagonists of the Sustainable Thinking Exhibition of the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum, for its value in the field of responsible innovation.Experts in the production of stretch lace  since 1985 ILUNA today represents the largest European laces’producer. 

Thanks to the effectiveness of their responsible innovation strategy, Iluna Group has been the very first lace producer to have gained the GRS(Global Recycled Standard) for their  transformed products together with the company certification STeP (Sustainable Textile Production by Oeko –Tex®).

A relevant  achievement for the firm that, thanks to the Green Labelcollection, now even richer, make responsible innovation an asset for production that focuses on smart ingredients as ROICA Eco-Smart™ family andQ-Nova® by Fulgar.

Miles Johnson and Creative Room™ designed a capsule collection “Light on the Land”, for men and women to showcase ISKO™’s R- TWO™ program.

As the world’s leading ingredient denim brand, ISKO™ is at the forefront of the sustainable and responsible fashion movement. ISKO™, who loves to partner with likeminded designers, brands and retailers in the  industry that have a passion for Responsible Innovation™, is proud to announce its partnership with renowned British fashion designer Miles Johnson. Together they have created a visionary collection that will be launched at a private showing event on September 12th, at the Fremin Gallery in New York City.

For those who love denim and cherish the planet, this partnership is a perfect match as  Miles is known for prioritizing sustainability and responsibility in his work. Miles has held leadership positions such as Design Director at Levi Strauss & Co. and Senior Creative Director of Product Design and Development at Patagonia, Inc., where he served as a pioneer in creating clothing using sustainably sourced materials. For this capsule collection, Miles worked side by side with ISKO™’s Research & Development team utilizing the ISKO R-TWO™ program which combines a mix of reused and recycled materials. The reused cotton comes from ISKO™’s own production loss, which they continuously track and trace. This has the CCS (Content Claim Standard) certification. They combine this reused cotton with recycled polyester derived from PET bottles. Depending on the content, fabrics can have the RCS (Recycled Claim Standard) certification or GRS (Global Recycled Standard) certification.

The creative direction for the collection takes form with “Light on the Land” and the whole collection is made using low impact materials and responsible finishing techniques. Miles and the ISKO™ team carefully crafted 34 designs at the Creative Room™ in Italy. The styles incorporate responsible design principles which include:

• Minimal washing;
• Removable trims made of eco-metal;
• Natural based buttons and labels;
• Green bar tacks;
• Embroidered rivets.

Environmental messages are embroidered on six of the pieces, by the artist Giulio Miglietta. The garments are built to last and the more you wear these pieces, the more beautiful they become.

Filo d’Oro has been selected by Première Vision to exhibit within the SMART CREATION area, the key research and sourcing space for those looking for new generation of sustainable solutions. An informative, educational, visionary and multimedia space where exhibitors, designers, buyers and fashion brands can experience and truly visualize the progress the industry is making in terms of responsibility. At the show in Paris above all they will present a consolidated system of collaborations and a virtuous network that works side by side to make the difference with certified superior quality products for the international market.

Within Filo D’oro, on the occasion of the inclusion in the Smart Creation, they present innovations that reflect "a real commitment to cultural sustainability as well as industrial and production". The organic silks are made with natural fibers from organic farming, the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification guarantees both the quality of the raw materials and the sustainability of all production processes. The FSC® certified viscose comes from forests with sustainable management that respects the environment and the population, other viscose developments are made with Ecovero™ yarn from certified and controlled sources. The polyesters are GRS certified, they are made with Newlife™, a yarn born from the transformation through mechanical process of post-consumer plastic bottles collected in northern Italy, whose production process is entirely 100% Made in Italy. Some proposals combine Newlife™ with ECOANTEX, a yarn resulting from the transformation of post-industrial waste and the selective collection of Pet packaging.

• Inspired by the health megatrend, the keynote theme for DOMOTEX puts wellbeing, naturalness and sustainability at the top of the agenda  
• Stronger focus on contract business
• Manufacturers invited to creatively frame their products as expressions of the keynote theme

Preparations are already ramping up for the 2020 edition of the world’s leading trade show for carpets and floor coverings DOMOTEX. The upcoming show, to be held from 10 to 13 January 2020, has ATMYSPHERE as its keynote theme, symbolizing its central focus on all those qualities of floors and floor coverings that contribute to wellbeing, naturalness and sustainability.
 
Examples of products from the floor coverings industry that possess these qualities include floors with acoustic properties or sound-insulation components; carpets that bind fine dust particles or have thermal insulation properties; resilient floor coverings that are hypo-allergenic; and natural-wood floorboards that improve the interior climate by capturing excess humidity and releasing it again when the air in the room is dry. Other qualities that enhance positive indoor atmospherics include softness and pleasantness to the touch, sustainability, and aesthetic details that help transform rooms into oases of personal wellbeing.
 
“This year, as indeed in previous years, the lead theme is inspired by a current megatrend,” explains Sonia Wedell-Castellano, Deutsche Messe’s Global Director DOMOTEX. “And that trend is society’s heightened focus on health. Health is synonymous with quality of life and living well – and therefore translates into high expectations of the spaces around us. Alongside this, considerations of sustainability and recycling – and hence natural materials – continue to play a major role in our society. In terms of floor coverings, these are considerations and themes that are currently very much to the fore with our exhibitors and their work, especially given the great importance of floors as elements of creative interior design. With the right materials and design, carpets and floor coverings can be important factors in personal wellbeing and in the design of homes and workplaces that promote it. That is why ATMYSPHERE is of such definitive importance for all our exhibitors and visitor target groups.”

The “Framing Trends” showcase at DOMOTEX 2020 is a unique opportunity for manufacturers, artists and students to stage interior designs inspired by the ATMYSPHERE keynote theme and hence position themselves as trend leaders in innovative products and solutions for today’s modern floors and their positive, lifeaffirming qualities. Applications for participation at the “Framing Trends” showcase  are now open. Interested exhibitors and flooring-industry companies are invited to submit their ideas for displays of indoor oases of wellbeing that are built from the floor up.

Textile innovator Devan Chemicals will launch two new technologies at the upcoming Techtextil show in Frankfurt (May 14-17). Bio-flam, a bio-based flame retardant product and Odour Breakdown, a wash durable, non-biocidal odour control solution.
As tradition goes, every two years Devan participates in Techtextil, the leading international trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens. In the quest for sustainability and transparency every company faces these days, the new Devan technologies offer answers to product developers and portfolio designers.

Bio-flam
Some facts & figures: There are at least 5000 fire incidents each day in the EU. Yearly, about 70 000 people are hospitalised with fire-related injuries. Fires cause pollution. So sustainable fire performance of products is an economic, environmental and human necessity. Take the example of mattresses: tests indicate that when on fire, non-FR treated products give less than 5 minutes escape time. Unfortunately, that is not enough time for the fire brigade to arrive. Needless to say that to increase escape time, to reduce the risk and to save lives, products need to be flame retardant. The challenge is to obtain flame retardant properties in the most natural way, to find the right balance between safety for the people and for the planet.

Companies can do this by replacing raw materials from a non-renewable source, by bio-based FR treatments, which are made from renewable sources and do not contain halogens or heavy metals, as described in the norm EN 16785 1:2015. Bio-based FR treatments, like Bio-flam, are made from renewable, vegetable sources and enable the FR treated products to be biodegradable. The active components are 100% halogen- and heavy metal-free. A welcome innovation for the bedding industry, as the European Commission requires mattresses to be recyclable by 2030 in order to reduce landfill.

Bio-flam P307 is the first introduction in the new Devan BIO-FR family, and is biodegradable and is developed to be used on 100% cotton or cotton/viscose mixtures, in order to create an ecological concept, safe for people and planet, whatever might happen. Bio-flam P 307 is developed for mattress ticking to pass EN 597 1&2. The Devan researchers are developing other bio-based products for other market segments and for other fire standards.

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

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

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

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

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