From the Sector

Wie funktioniert Zusammenarbeit in der Modeindustrie und darüber hinaus in Zeiten von Social Distancing? Wenn erprobte Lösungen und etablierte Jahrespläne ihre Gültigkeit verlieren, müssen Prioritäten neu gesetzt werden. Wie das aussehen kann, zeigt die Winterausgabe der Neonyt, vom 19. bis 21. Januar 2021 in Berlin.

Together. Now and here. – unter diesem Motto kommt die Neonyt-Community im kommenden Januar in Berlin zusammen. Der globale Hub für Mode, Nachhaltigkeit und Innovation erfüllt damit das Bedürfnis der Branche, enger zusammenzurücken und stärker miteinander zu kooperieren. Brandaktuelle Themen, die die gesamte Modebranche beschäftigen, definieren dabei die Agenda: Glokalisierung und Kollaboration finden im Januar ebenso einen Platz auf der Neonyt wie Diversity und Digitalisierung.

„Für viele kam der Wandel praktisch über Nacht – er hat verdeutlicht, wie vernetzt und gleichzeitig fragil das gesamte System ist“, sagt Thimo Schwenzfeier, Show Director der Neonyt. „Wie ernst wir es mit der Nachhaltigkeit wirklich meinen, müssen wir durch unser Handeln zeigen – hier und jetzt!“ Die weltweite Corona-Pandemie deckte Ungerechtigkeiten in der textilen Lieferkette auf – gleichzeitig wurde eine internationale Diskussion über Gleichheit und Gerechtigkeit entfacht. Einzelhändler mussten ihre Läden schließen und damit, zumindest beim stationären Einkauf, ihre Kunden ausschließen. Marken stornierten ihre Aufträge in Produktionsländern und Arbeiterinnen und Arbeiter wurden ohne Lohn und soziale Sicherheit von heute auf morgen entlassen. Anders in der Fair Fashion-Branche: Hier wurde, wenn immer möglich, Solidarität gezeigt. In der gesamten Textil- und Bekleidungsindustrie findet ein Umdenken statt – Rufe gegen kurzsichtiges Konkurrenzdenken und für lokale Zusammenarbeit werden lauter. Zwischen Wettbewerbern bilden sich Synergien, die allen einen Vorteil bringen.

Brands der Fair Fashion-Community gehen teilweise schon jahrelang mit gutem Beispiel voran, denn echte Partnerschaften mit Zulieferern aus dem In- und Ausland zahlen sich auch für Modelabels aus. Neonyt-Aussteller wie beispielweise Langerchen und Lanius machen es vor: Sie haben die Fair Fashion Solidarity-Bewegung ins Leben gerufen und geben Labels und Shops konkrete Empfehlungen an die Hand, wie sie sich gerade auch in Zeiten von Covid-19 für faire Bedingungen in der Modeindustrie einsetzen können. Durch enge Kollaborationen können nachhaltige Produktionsstandards und transparente Lieferketten gewährleistet werden. Glokalisierung, Kollaboration, Diversity und Digitalisierung – von September 2020 bis Januar 2021 sind das die Themen der Neonyt auch auf den Social Media-Kanälen und im Newsletter: Aussteller und langjährige Partner schildern ihre Perspektive dazu und gewähren der Fair Fashion-Community Insights in ihr Business. Nur zusammen kann ein positiver Wandel in Gang gesetzt werden – Together. Now and here.

Die beiden internationalen Leitmessen für technische Textilien und Vliesstoffe sowie für die Verarbeitung textiler und flexibler Materialien blicken positiv gestimmt auf die kommenden Ausgaben vom 4. bis 7. Mai 2021 in Frankfurt am Main. Mit zusätzlichen digitalen Formaten, einem umfangreichen Hygiene- und Sicherheitskonzept, neuen Claims und einem Wechsel des Geländeteils kündigen beide Messen Veränderungen an.  

Vom 4. bis 7. Mai 2021 versammeln sich erneut internationale Anbieter technischer Textilien und Vliesstoffe sowie von Maschinen zur Verarbeitung textiler und flexibler Materialien zur Techtextil und Texprocess in Frankfurt am Main. Vor dem Hintergrund der weltweiten Corona-Krise sieht die Messe Frankfurt als Veranstalter positiv auf die kommenden Ausgaben. Mit zusammen 1.818 Ausstellern aus 59 Ländern und insgesamt rund 47.000 Fachbesuchern aus 116 Ländern fanden im Mai 2019 die bislang größten Ausgaben der Techtextil und Texprocess in Frankfurt statt.

Veränderte Hallenplanung und neue kommunikative Ausrichtung
Neuerungen ergeben sich auch für die Geländebelegung beider Messen. Mit der Ausgabe 2021 nutzen die Techtextil und die Texprocess mit den Hallen 8, 9, 11 und 12 erstmals das Westgelände der Messe Frankfurt.

Mit einer Neuausrichtung in der Kommunikation schärfen die Techtextil und die Texprocess zur kommenden Ausgabe ihr Profil weiter. Im ersten Schritt erhalten beide Messen neue Unterzeilen. Ab sofort kommuniziert die Messe Frankfurt die Techtextil mit dem Zusatz „Performance. Function. Future.“ und die Texprocess mit „Technology. Efficiency. Progress.“ Damit sollen der Dynamik und Innovationskraft der Branche stärker Ausdruck verliehen werden.

Vielzahl an neuen Formaten – physisch und digital
Neben den Präsentationen der Aussteller auf der Techtextil und Texprocess bieten beide Messen erneut eine Vielzahl an  Rahmenveranstaltungen, Highlight-Themen und Sonderformaten.
Zusätzlich zu den geplanten physischen Formaten setzen die Techtextil und die Texprocess verstärkt auf digitale Ergänzungsformate für Aussteller und Besucher. Geplant sind unter anderem Live-Streamings von Konferenzformaten, neue digitale Präsentationsmöglichkeiten für Aussteller und Möglichkeiten zum digitalen Matchmaking zwischen Ausstellern und Besuchern.

Erstmals zeigt die Texprocess in einer Denim Future Factory die Zukunft der Denim-Verarbeitung mit besonderem Fokus auf die Aspekte Nachhaltigkeit und den wachsenden Luxussektor für Denimprodukte. Ausgebaut wird zudem auf beiden Messen das Thema Nachhaltigkeit, indem erstmals auch Produkte und Nachhaltigkeitsansätze von Ausstellern herausgestellt werden, die zwar noch nicht zertifiziert sind, aber Nachhaltigkeit in der Branche vorantreiben. Die Techtextil und Texprocess Innovation Awards prämieren zudem nachhaltige Innovationen. Abgerundet wird das Angebot auf der Techtextil durch ein neues Format einer Modenschau zu Smart und Functional Textiles. Das Techtextil und das Texprocess Forum bringen hochrangige Branchenexperten in Vorträgen, Workshops und Paneldiskussionen auf die Bühne.

Heimtextil erstmals parallel zur Techtextil und Texprocess
Die Techtextil und Texprocess teilen sich im Mai 2021 erstmals das Messegelände mit der Heimtextil, der größten Fachmesse für Wohn- und Objekttextilien. Hintergrund der terminlichen Verschiebung der Heimtextil sind die aktuelle Situation im Rahmen der Corona-Pandemie und die damit verbundenen internationalen Reisebeschränkungen.
Die Fachmesse findet normalerweise jährlich im Januar in Frankfurt am Main statt und bietet 2021 die einmalige Chance, zusammen mit der Techtextil und Texprocess zusätzliche Synergien entlang der textilen Kette zeitgleich auf dem Frankfurter Messegelände abzubilden. Fachbesucher aller drei Messen erhalten durch die Parallelität der drei Messen einen umfassenden Überblick über funktionale Materialien für Wohn-und Objekttextilien bis hin zu deren Verarbeitung. Bereits jetzt spricht das Messe-Duo Techtextil und Texprocess mit dem Segment „Hometech“ die Heimtextilien-Branche an.

Umfangreiches Hygienekonzept
Die aktuelle Lage rund um Covid-19 macht es notwendig, auch weiterhin mit Auflagen bei großen Veranstaltungen zu rechnen. Im Mittelpunkt der Planungen für die Techtextil und die Texprocess im Mai 2021 steht daher die Gesundheit der Aussteller, Besucher, Partner und Mitarbeiter. Die Messe Frankfurt arbeitet auf Basis eines Konzeptes, das detaillierte hygienische, medizinische und organisatorische Maßnahmen umfasst. Hygiene, Abstand und Frischluftzufuhr sind wichtige Faktoren des Konzepts, das die Messe Frankfurt kontinuierlich mit den zuständigen Behörden abstimmt. Die Aussteller der Techtextil und Texprocess erhalten Hinweise und Empfehlungen für ihren Messeauftritt, die den aktuellen Bestimmungen entsprechen.

Aktuelle Informationen zum Schutz- und Hygienekonzept der Messe Frankfurt sind hier http://techtextil.com/hygiene und hier http://texprocess.com/hygiene zu finden. Zudem gibt eine Corona-Hotline unter der Nummer 069 / 75 75 – 6699 täglich von Montag bis Freitag von 8 bis 16 Uhr Auskunft zu allen Gewerken und den Maßnahmen der Messe Frankfurt zur Durchführung von Veranstaltungen während der Corona-Pandemie.

The 26th edition of Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles concluded on 26 August, following a successful three-day run at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). It was Messe Frankfurt’s first event to take place in Shanghai in 2020 following disruptions from the pandemic. Amid the challenges presented by the pandemic, this year’s fair provided a vital opportunity for the international home and contract textile industries to source and reconnect through virtual and in-person meetings. Offering a comprehensive range of home and commercial textile products, the fair welcomed over 600 exhibitors and attracted more than 25,000 trade buyers.

Speaking as the fair concluded, Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd commented: “Intertextile has always been dedicated to providing an ideal platform for the international home textile industry and we are delighted to continue to do so during these unprecedented, challenging times. In view of the current global travel restrictions, this year’s fair offered a series of digital tools in addition to the traditional exhibition, allowing the fair to reach as wide an audience as possible. We are glad that this new format was highly recognised by the participating exhibitors and buyers alike.”

“Whilst economic activity in China is progressively recovering and domestic consumption continues to grow, the country’s exports are taking longer to rebound,” Ms Wen added. “One of the main objectives of this year’s fair was to connect domestic and international suppliers and buyers who are eager to make personal contacts and get back to business. As evidenced by feedback from numerous exhibitors and visitors, the fair has been able to help and support the industry’s recovery, so we are delighted with the results.”

Online business matching platform connected worldwide companies
 
In view of the current international travel restrictions, this year’s fair launched a brand new online business matching platform, which connected around 200 buyers from over 50 countries and regions to 60 exhibitors. The platform introduced multiple new functions, such as live-stream product presentations and a real-time chat platform to better facilitate business exchanges between suppliers and buyers from around the world. One exhibitor participating in the platform was Suzhou Roufang Textile Technology Co Ltd. “Yesterday we had a live-stream product presentation, which attracted around 200 buyers. The online platform is useful for us as we could showcase our new products and design concepts to overseas buyers, and let them know that we are still here to serve them,” the company’s Business Manager Ms Yu Qian Ru explained.

Mr Azam Osman, Manager of the Factory Depot (Pty) Ltd from South Africa expressed his satisfaction about the online platform: “I am glad that the fair provided the online business matching service where I have seen a lot of quality furniture and decorative fabric exhibitors. I’m interested in connecting with them.” Another buyer, Ms Elena Freyuk from Ziptown Trading Inc. said: "I am pleased that the fair offered both live-stream and video recording product presentations as I was unable to watch the live presentation due to time difference. The services were very thoughtful!”

A source of inspiration for the industry
 
To ensure fairgoers can discover the latest design and industry trends and insights, this year’s fringe programme presented a series of high quality events, covering the industry’s hottest topics. Some of the highlights included the 2021 Intertextile Trend Forum, which was led by Shen Lei, the Chinese representative of the Intertextile International Lifestyle Trend Committee. The forum brought together five prominent Chinese designers including Ben Chen, Ben Wu, Meng Ye, Paul Pang and Xie Ke, who presented an in-depth interpretation of the theme of 2021 Intertextile Trends, “BOUND”. Other events included Ride the Storm – Home Textile Digital Printing Forum, Tmall Seminar on industry digitalisation, Furniture & Home Textile Direct Negotiation Event and more.

Asia’s leading trade platform for the home and contract textile industry, Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles, is ready to welcome over 600 exhibitors to China’s commercial hub from 24 – 26 August. As China’s economy continues its recovery, the upcoming fair will serve as a key platform for the industry to reconnect and prepare for the seasons ahead. Taking consideration of current international travel restrictions, Intertextile has launched a brand new online business matching platform, enabling participation for those who cannot travel to Shanghai.

Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd commented: “2020 has been a difficult and unpredictable year for every business and industry across the world, so we are pleased to be providing a platform for the home textile industry to connect and recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles is the first physical trade event for the sector held by Messe Frankfurt since January, so we hope that the fair assists the sector to join forces and overcome this challenging year together.”

Ms Wen continued: “Our first priority is to create a clean and hygienic space for all participants to source and network. To achieve this goal, the fair will implement extra health care and hygiene precautions onsite. On the other hand, we are aware that a number of travel restrictions are still in place across the world. With this in mind, Intertextile will offer a series of online services for those who are unable to travel to Shanghai, allowing the fair to reach as wide an audience as possible.”

2020 fair highlights

To provide buyers with greater efficiency, the fair, which covers four halls, will be divided clearly by product categories: Household Hall (hall 3), International Brands / Upholstery Hall (hall 4.1), Brand Fabrics Hall (hall 5.1) and Sofa Fabrics Hall (hall 6.1).

In addition, the Contract Business 360° concept will return this year, with over 40 premier upholstery exhibitors presenting their latest textile products and furnishing solutions for contract use. Exhibitors include Guangzhou Yuanzhicheng Home Textile, Haining Julai Textile, JAB, Morgan Shanghai, Symphony Mills, Suzhou Roufang, Ter Molst International, Zhejiang Hexin and Zhejiang Maya Fabric. Furthermore, top brands such as Agmamito from Poland and Wollsdorf Leather from Austria will be exhibiting for the first time at Intertextile.

Online business matching platform offers new sourcing landscape

Although face-to-face interaction is irreplaceable, a virtual complement has become more important as a result of the worldwide pandemic. To support the industry during these unprecedented times, Intertextile has launched a brand new online business matching platform. With this free service, participants are able to source and network at their fingertips. The virtual platform will offer many new features including:

• Easy sourcing: exhibitors are categorised by product groups including Sofa / Decorative Fabrics, Curtains and Accessories, Bedding and Finished products, Shading and Accessories, and Editors
• Live-streamed product presentations of exhibitors
• Smart recommendations: pre-selected exhibitor lists will be provided to buyers based on their personal preferences and interests
• Convenience: participants are able to use the service through computers or portable devices without the need to download any software

High quality fringe programme covers comprehensive topics
 
The fair’s event programme will once again provide the industry with the latest trends and insights in four topics: Design Inspiration, Business O2O, Textile & Technology and Industry Empowerment. One of the highlights will be the 2021 Intertextile Trend Forum, led by Shen Lei, the Chinese representative of the Intertextile International Lifestyle Trend Committee. The forum will bring together five prominent Chinese designers including Ben Chen, Ben Wu, Meng Ye, Paul Pang and Xie Ke, who will delve into the theme of 2021 Intertextile Trends–“BOUND”, as well as the Chinese market conditions. The event will be held on day 1 of the fair, from 14:00 – 17:00 in hall 5.1 booth C18, and streamed live online.

Another not-to-be-missed event is the Ride the Storm – Home Textile Digital Printing Forum, which will include an array of educating seminars that cover the latest digital textile printing trends and technologies. The forum will be held on day 2 of the fair, from 13:20 – 17:20 in hall 3, booth M12.

Furthermore, joining forces with Tmall Global, the largest cross border B2C online retail platform in China, the fair will host a series of seminars delivering the solutions and strategies for industry digitalisation during the afternoon of day 1. In addition, the well-received Furniture & Home Textile Direct Negotiation Event will return to provide an excellent opportunity for furniture companies and fabric brands to collaborate.

Additional health care and hygiene precautions will be in place

As trade fair co-organisers, Messe Frankfurt’s number one priority always remains the health and safety of fairgoers. To maintain a clean and hygienic environment for visitors and exhibitors to meet in, extra measures will be in practice at the fair. These include: real-name registration, onsite temperature checks, frequent sterilisation of public areas and distancing measures for forum / seminar audiences, amongst others.

Messe Frankfurt India has announced new dates for the Mumbai edition of Screen Print India - the leading trade fair for screen, textile, sublimation and digital printing technologies The exhibition will be held in parallel with Gartex Texprocess India, from 19 – 21 March 2021 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Mumbai. With the gradual re-opening of commercial activities and businesses, the co-located fairs will enable the industry to channel their efforts back towards business development and cater to the needs of screen printing, textile and garment manufacturing industry players as it gears up to bring the production and manufacturing value chain under one roof.
 
While the focus segments under Gartex Texprocess India will draw attention to innovations in garmenting & apparel machinery, the product launches and live demos at Screen Print India will enable business visitors and traders to track technological advances in digital textile and screen-printing technologies. The secure, business-focused ambience will enable both printing and textile sector players to showcase, source and strengthen their supply chains and keep pace with the shifting demand for screen printing, textile printing, digital and sublimation technologies across other sectors.
 
Screen Print India will also host a series of sessions on processes and innovations related to the graphics industry. Another key highlight of this successful trade fair is the Screen Print Excellence Awards that upholds a strong tradition of honouring technology inventors and trailblazers within the screen-printing industry. With this in mind, the Mumbai edition will curate a special “SPI Gallery” to showcase award winning pieces of screen-printing excellence.

Carbon dioxide-based fibre for climate protection and interdisciplinary training with novel Smart Textiles test rig

The Wilhelm-Lorch-Stiftung, based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, honours a project of the Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University, short ITA, and awards a sponsorship prize to the ITA graduate Ricarda Wissel on 25 June 2020. She is awarded for her outstanding bachelor thesis " Implementation of elastic yarns made from carbon dioxide based thermoplastic polyurethane in socks " with funding for a subject-specific continuation of her education. The ITA receives the project sponsorship prize for the project "Smart Textiles - an interdisciplinary training course to promote young scientists in future technologies", which was submitted to the Wilhelm-Lorch-Stiftung by ITA´s PhD candidate Simon Kammler.

Carbon dioxide-based fibre from industrial waste contributes to climate protection

ITA scientist Dr.-Ing. Pavan Manvi has developed a melt spinning process at ITA for the production of elastic yarn from thermoplastic polyurethane, in which carbon dioxide is used as one of the raw materials. In her bachelor thesis, Ricarda Wissel successfully developed a process chain for the CO2-based yarn in a textile end product for the first time. In cooperation with the company FALKE and Dr Manvi, who supervised Ms. Wissel's work, the yarn was used to produce a sock (see figure "FALKE sock with carbon dioxide filaments").

By reusing carbon dioxide from industrial waste as a raw material for textile and clothing products, the carbon dioxide balance can be improved and thus contributes directly to climate protection. The sponsorship prize of the Wilhelm-Lorch-Stiftung is endowed with 6,000 € for the specialist further training of Ms. Wissel.

Interdisciplinary training with development of a new type of measuring stand for the future-oriented research field "Smart Textiles

The development of textiles with additional digital functions, so-called "Smart Textiles", is considered a future-oriented field of research. In his project submission, ITA´s doctoral candidate Simon Kammler presented a concept for a lecture series on Smart Textiles at ITA and develops a new type of measuring stand for measuring the capacity and conductivity of fibres. The project is funded by the Wilhelm-Lorch-Stiftung with a prize money of 10,000 Euro.

Smart Textiles enable the textile to interact with the environment and the human user. Today they are therefore in demand in many areas of everyday life such as sport, health, living, life and mobility and offer completely new practical solutions. In combination with digital networked services, Smart Textiles promise support and innovation in almost all situations of daily life.

With the conception of a new lecture series, Mr. Simon Kammler is supporting ITA in its goal of providing the best possible training for young scientists. The focus is on imparting far-reaching interdisciplinary skills in order to master the challenges of current fields of research.

Background:

The Wilhelm-Lorch-Stiftung supports particularly talented young people from all areas of the textile industry. Its purpose is the promotion of subject-specific education and further education as well as the promotion of projects at universities, academic schools and vocational schools, which are characterised by the sustainable communication of innovative learning content in science and research. In total, thirteen sponsorship prizes were awarded in 2020. Due to the Corona crisis, the forum of TextilWirtschaft, which is normally the venue for the awards ceremony, unfortunately had to be cancelled in 2020.

Mitten in der gegenwärtigen Coronakrise erfährt die Heimtextil für ihre nächste Ausgabe vom 12. bis 15. Januar 2021 in Frankfurt am Main sehr großen Zuspruch: Mehr als 95 Prozent der 2020 belegten Fläche sind bislang gebucht.

Eine Neuerung erwartet Aussteller und Besucher der Heimtextil in Sachen Programmstruktur: Um die zahlreichen Events, die auf diverse Zielgruppen ausgerichtet sind, klarer und übersichtlicher zu ordnen und eine gute Orientierung zu bieten, stellen die Messeverantwortlichen die Heimtextil künftig auf drei Säulen auf: „Show“, „Trend“ und „Conference“ werden ab sofort die drei wesentlichen Elemente der Messe sein, die den Heimtextil-Teilnehmern umfassende Informationen und Inspirationen bieten.

„Show“ steht dabei für die Präsentationen der internationalen Aussteller an deren Ständen in den Hallen 3 bis 12 – also für die Messe im eigentlichen Sinne. Die Highlights der Messe bekommen Besucher bei geführten Touren vorgestellt. Zum Beispiel führen renommierte Architekten und Einrichtungsexperten die Besucher gezielt zu innovativen und trendsetzenden Unternehmen machen spannende Produktlösungen erlebbar.

Als Trendbarometer und erste Anlaufstelle in Sachen Design-, Trend- und Marktprognosen bietet die Heimtextil mit dem „Trend“ eine weltweit einzigartige Präsentation und erstklassige Inspirationsmöglichkeiten. So tiefgreifend und umfangreich wie keine andere Veranstaltung weltweit, bildet der „Trend Space“ in der Halle 3.0 Farben, Materialien und Designs der kommenden Saison ab – kuratiert und inszeniert von Anja Bisgaard Gaede und ihrem Team von SPOTT Trends & Business.

Die dritte Komponente „Conference“ bündelt alle Vorträge, Diskussionsrunden und Workshops, die auf der Heimtextil in fünf Arealen für unterschiedliche Besucherzielgruppen angeboten werden. Workshops und Vorträge von Einrichtungsexperten gibt es im DecoTeam (Halle 8.0). Darüber hinaus bietet die Heimtextil Expertenbeiträge zu den Themenkomplexen „Textile Technologies“ (Halle 3.0), „Design Dialog“ (Halle 4.2), „Sleep“ (Halle 11.0, Foyer) und „Green“ (Halle 11.0, Foyer).

Focus on Sustainability and Climate Change

Passion for Cotton: The 35th International Cotton Conference Bremen starts on 25 March in the Hanseatic city’s historic Town Hall. But before subject-specific questions are discussed in depth in the individual sessions, the concise and inspiring keynotes by leading business experts from science and industry will draw attention to the current trends and challenges in the industry at the start of the conference. A large part of the presentations is shaped by the current discussion on environmental and sustainability issues and the resulting consequences for the global economy.

Climate Change and Sustainability

“Climate change - a storm in a teacup?” asks Kai Hughes, Executive Director of the International Cotton Advisory Committee, Washington D.C., USA, in a provocative speech. The aim of his presentation is to work out the challenges of climate change especially for agriculture and cotton production. This should form the basis for later discussion on concrete approaches and solutions within the cotton community.

With his lecture “The HUGO BOSS sustainability programme ... and what our customer has to do with it” Andreas Streubig, Director of Global Sustainability at Hugo Boss AG, Metzingen, Germany, rolls up the textile value chain from a different angle, starting at the consumer level. As a representative of a premium brand for women's and men's clothing, Streubig discusses sustainability as a strategic element of the corporate strategy and provides information on how elements of the strategy are being implemented at Hugo Boss.

Rüdiger Senft, Head of Sustainability at Commerzbank, Frankfurt am Main, Germany, looks at the changing role of banks in financing the cotton market. In addition to a general introduction to the topic of sustainability and banking regulation, Senft's presentation deals with the financing of the cotton trade from a social and ecological point of view.
The opening session on 25 March is hosted by Bill Ballenden, founder and owner of Dragontree, Swindon, UK, an online auction platform for the cotton trade. As a former cotton manager for Louis Dreyfus in Europe and Asia, Bill Ballenden has many years of experience in the industry.

Cross-Cutting Issues: Digitalisation, Gender, Value Chains

The subsequent session in the conference programme with the headline “A Wider View” is devoted to currently defining trends and important cross-cutting issues in the industry. This goes far beyond classic cotton themes.

A lecture by Mark Messura, Senior Vice President, Global Supply Chain Marketing for Cotton Incorporated, Cary, North Carolina, deals with the role of cotton in an increasingly digitally controlled supply chain. Significant keywords here are faster delivery times, vertical integration, transparency and traceability.

The presentation by Roger Gilmartin, Managing Director of Tri-Blend Consulting, Charlotte, USA, entitled “The secret recipe for timely, cost-optimised and high-quality cotton clothing” promises exciting and enlightening insights. Tri-Blend Consulting conducts studies on the performance of different cotton varieties during the entire consumption process to the finished yarn and evaluates them from an economic point of view.

Amy Jackson, from the Better Cotton Initiative, London, UK, presents ICA Liverpool's “Women in Cotton” initiative. With this commitment, the initiative aims to increase the influence of women in the cotton industry and give them a stronger voice, for example by building networks in cooperation.

Navdeep Singh Sodhi, International Strategic Management Consultant at the Gherzi Textile Organisation, Switzerland, gives an insight into the current development of the value chain for cotton, textiles and clothing in Africa. Looking ahead to the coming decades, also in view of population growth, Africa is seen as having a high potential for building economic structures to improve income and prosperity.

Thomas Schneider, Professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Berlin and active in the field of production planning and control, textile materials and materials testing will host the session. A leading light in his field, Thomas Schneider has more than 30 years of experience in scientific and application-oriented research in the textile and fibre sector, including at the Fibre Institute Bremen e.V.

The origins of both Industry 4.0 and an awareness of the need for more sustainable manufacturing methods can arguably be traced back to the year 1971.

It was in 1971 that the first microprocessor was introduced by Intel, and also that the first and perhaps now most well-known environmental campaigner, Greenpeace, was founded.

As such, a direct line can be charted from that year to today’s automated textile manufacturing machinery concepts, as well as the drive to develop more increasingly resource-efficient processes.

All of the recent innovations which have been introduced to the market by A. Monforts Textilmaschinen GmbH & Co. KG, for example, are being powered by the possibilities of Industry 4.0 and developed in response to the market demand for more sustainable production.

They include the new ‘digital twinning’ capability introduced in 2019 for all Monforts machines, with advanced sensor technologies which make it possible to access comprehensive technical machine data from any location using the company’s Smart Support and Smart Check apps. In addition, the digital twin system provides information on individual wear parts, such as, for example, converters or gears.

These latest developments have been very favourably received by Monforts customers, especially in Europe.

50th anniversary
The very first Heimtextil – the leading trade fair for the home textiles market – was also held in Frankfurt in January 1971 and Monforts customers Bierbaum Group and Konrad Hornschuch AG are amongst the German companies who were there from the very start and have attended every annual show since.

Bierbaum Group, based in Borken, is the company behind the well-known Irisette bedding brand and is celebrating its own 125th anniversary in 2020. It has also introduced products bearing the German government’s new Grüner Knopf textile seal of approval for sustainable production.

As a specialist in synthetic leathers for home surfaces, as well as vehicle interiors, Konrad Hornschuch AG, of Weissbach, has been a member of the €44 billion automotive giant Continental AG since 2016.

Representatives from both companies received memorial trophies at a special presentation held on January 7th during the 50th anniversary Heimtextil show.

The home textiles market remains very strong in Germany, with sales amounting to some €9.6 billion in 2019, according to analyst IFH Cologne.

Global growth
The first Heimtextil in 1971 was a significant success, attracting 679 exhibitors from 26 countries.

This year’s show, however, attracted a total of 2,952 exhibitors from 66 countries, reflecting not only the growth of the home textiles industry, but also the globalisation which has taken place over the last half century.

Monforts now has customers for its advanced finishing technologies around the world, with home textile customers from India and Pakistan being particularly well represented at Heimtextil 2020.

Among stand outs from Indian companies at this year’s show was the 2020 collection of Welspun India’s famous Christy England brand, inspired by botanical studies of the gardens of British stately homes. Welspun towels meanwhile benefit from the company’s HygroCotton hollow core yarn technology, produced by a proprietary spinning method which ensures they become softer, fluffier and more absorbent after every wash.

An equally ground-breaking new technology is being introduced by Trident Group, which is one of India’s largest vertically-integrated home textiles manufacturers and two years ago installed five complete Monforts finishing ranges for its new linen department.

Trident’s patented Air Rich yarns feature pores throughout their cross sections for high breathability and absorbency, as well as rapid drying.

Monforts home textile customers from Pakistan stressed the resource efficiency of their processes and products as a result of investments in advanced technology, and during the show the ‘Sustainable Pakistan’ initiative was announced.

Supported by GIZ, the German Society for International Cooperation, the initiative aims to reshape global perceptions of Pakistan’s manufacturers and their innovations. So far, twenty producers have been carefully chosen to be presented on this global platform and will help rebrand Pakistan’s textile industry at the Heimtextil exhibitions going forward.

Heimtextil’s organiser Messe Frankfurt also announced its own new alliance with the United Nations Office for Partnerships, in order to support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Constancy
Many things have changed since 1971 and home interiors are certainly no longer predominantly orange and brown – and perhaps unlikely to ever become so again.

It’s clear, however, that there has been a constancy in the push to consistently improve textile technologies, processes and products that may have originated in Europe, but have subsequently spread around the world.

And the significance of both microprocessors and sustainability in 2020 could only have been guessed at back in 1971.

Die 50. Ausgabe der Heimtextil lieferte mit einem contentgetriebenen Programm starke Impulse für den Start der neuen Einrichtungssaison. Nachhaltigkeit avancierte dabei zum alles überstrahlenden Top-Thema. 63.000 Besucher informierten sich bei den 2.952 Austellern auf der weltweit führenden Fachmesse für Wohn- und Objekttextilien über die großen Themen der internationalen Branche. Wie erwartet sorgte insbesondere der einmalig frühe Termin für eine Delle bei den Besucherzahlen.

„Die Branche steht momentan vor immensen Herausforderungen. Das bekamen einige Beteiligte auf der Heimtextil zu spüren. Dennoch: Die Ausstellerzufriedenheit ist auf dem gleichen, guten Niveau wie im Vorjahr. Und die Zufriedenheit der Besucher ist sogar gestiegen – von 93 auf 95 Prozent. Neben des frühen Termins liegen die Gründe für den Dämpfer bei den Besucherzahlen vor allem bei der starken Konsolidierung der Fachgeschäfte beziehungsweise bei der Entwicklung vom stationären Handel in Richtung E-Commerce. Auch konjunkturell ist der Trend abgeschwächt“, erklärt Detlef Braun, Geschäftsführer der Messe Frankfurt. „Dazu passt, dass ganze 34 Prozent unserer Aussteller die aktuelle Branchenkonjunktur als schlecht bewerten, im Vergleich zu gerade mal 18 Prozent im Jahr zuvor.“