From the Sector

New ideas were exchanged, brainstormed, and discussed freely at members’ booths at the Swiss Textile Machinery Pavilion during the recent Techtextil in Frankfurt. “Customers and researchers met Swiss textile machinery companies to explore the possibility of the not-yet-invented. “We regard our Pavilion as the place where future innovations catch a spark,” says Cornelia Buchwalder, Secretary General of the Swiss Textile Machinery Association. Further developments in the field of hybrid yarns were a hot topic. One example of this involves producing a yarn which has all the typical characteristics and advantages of carbon – but which also prioritizes careful use of resources, combining carbon fibres with thermoplastics.

Technical textiles cover a vast range of applications, and it’s still growing thanks to intensive research by specialist institutes and universities. Many members of the Swiss Textile Machinery Association maintain long-standing partnership with such bodies. Innovations are often joint efforts.

Feel-good technical fabrics
Some technical textiles feel like a second skin. A well-known example is activewear from the ‘sport tech’ field. Activewear includes breathable clothing, usually consisting of a three-layer-laminate: an inner lining, a breathable membrane in the center, and an outer fabric. The challenge is to bond the individual layers without losing breathability or softness, while meeting technical requirements such as resistance to a number of wash cycles.

Bonding solutions meeting top quality requirements, as well as ambitious standards for environmental protection and sustainability, were reinvented by the Cavitec brand from the Santex Rimar Group. This company’s hotmelt technology uses one-component polymers applied to textiles in a hot, molten state. Bonding based on hotmelts is both water- and solvent-free. Drying and exhaust air cleaning are not necessary, which is an ecological advantage. Energy consumption is also significantly lower. Cavitec hotmelt technology is also developed for laminated medical protection fabrics which are safe, high-quality and sustainable. These fabrics can be washed, sterilized, and used again.   

A second skin with added value is the result of Jakob Müller Group’s cooperation with an institute for an established outdoor fashion brand. They have devised a heating mat applied as an inner jacket. Outdoor gear with a heated inlay offers the wearer a comfortable feeling even in a cold climate. The heating mat is particularly light, breathable, flexible and adjustable to three temperature levels.

Fabrics with these advantages are now possible thanks to multi direct weaving (MDW) technology from the Jakob Müller Group. A lacquer-insulated heating strand is inserted into the base textile as a ‘meander’ using MDW technology. The technology is offered with both label weaving machines and the latest generation of ribbon weaving machines. The textile pocket calculator is another MDW based future-oriented application developed in cooperation with a textile research institute.

Safety and health
Life-saving reliability is a must for vehicle airbags. They have to fulfil high security aspects, and must remain inflated for several seconds when an accident occurs. Airbags made of flat-woven fabric – cut and seamed – can show weakness at seams during the inflation phase. Latest Jacquard technology by Stäubli enables one-piece-woven (OPW) airbags to be produced, creating shape and structure in a single process. The final product is an airbag consisting of a sealed cushion with woven seams. OPW airbag weaving reduces the number of production steps, and increases the security aspects.
Another big advantage of Stäubli’s new weaving technology is the flexibility in formats required in today’s mid- and upper-range cars, where lateral protection (in the seat or in the roof over the door) has become standard and is designed in line with the car shape. Safe airbags are woven on modern high-speed weaving machines. The warp material, the variety of fabric patterns, and the importance of precisely shaped airbags require the use of a robust and reliable Jacquard machine.

A revolution for orthopaedic patients is a knitting machine from Steiger Participations, which uses compressive yarns developed to meet the needs of the specific health market. This machine model was exclusively designed for production with inlaid elastic yarns and offers optimum performance with guaranteed final product quality.

In the orthopaedic field, many Steiger flat knitting machines have already been operating as automatic, custom-made production systems. For example, the dimensions of an injured limb are taken by the doctor and fed into a web-based application. The doctor selects the compression class in the various sections of the item and a data file created by the software automatically applies a preconfigured program. With no human intervention required, the program is generated and produced on the machine, precisely matching the patient’s dimensions. Each product is different, and generally available within 48 hours.

Archroma will be at Techtextil 2022 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, from 21 to 24 June 2022, to launch its latest innovations and system solutions aimed to help textile manufacturers with optimized sustainability, productivity and value creation in their markets.

Archroma will present 9 new solution systems and 3 innovations, and will hold 2 booth events.

3 innovation highlights

• PFC-free* Smartrepel® Hydro SR, a new solution developed for the repellence of water-based soil;
• Biocide-free OX20, a new odor-neutralizing technology newly launched by our partner SANITIZED AG;
• Perapret® AIR, a new mineral finishing technology for air purification is activated by natural and artificial light sources and can be applied on all fabrics

9 new solution systems
Archroma introduced its first ever solution systems at the Techtextil 2019 edition, and since then has developed more than 30 systems for technical textile and nonwoven applications.

• CLEAN AIR, a mineral air purification system that stays put on all kinds of fabrics and is activated by artificial and natural light, for as long as there is light; ➔ based on the new Perapret® AIR;
• CONSCIOUSLY DEEP, a metal-free one-step scouring and dyeing system for medium to very dark colored nylons that stay deep and bright day after day, and are good for you and the planet;
• EARTH SOFT, a biomass-based and vegan softening system that is suitable for all kind of fibers and makes you comfortable in your own skin;
• NATURE BOUND, a compostable binder system for food filtration materials that protect you and the planet;
• ODOR CONTROL 2.0, a system for odor-free sportswear where permastink cannot build up on your favorite clothes, that’s applicable on polyester, cotton and nylon; ➔ based on the new OX20;
• RAG N’ROLL, a compostable binder system for nonwoven cleaning rags, that protect you and the planet;
• SAFE SEATS NextGen, a PFC-free* and halogen-free* modular surface treatment system for safer and cleaner seating materials, ➔ based on the new Smartrepel® Hydro SR;
• SWEET DREAMS, a metal and particle free* system that redefines protection for mattress ticking fabrics, with long-lasting hygiene and outstanding softness, that protects you and the environment;
• TAKE A BREATH, an enhanced filtration system that keeps your air clean and fresh for longer putting health first and your competition behind;

2 booth events
A WORLD WITHOUT ODORS, FIGHT OR FLIGHT?
Innovation highlight: Biocide-free OX20 odor management solution by SANITIZED AG

Speakers:

• Nuria Estape, Panel Moderator, Head of Marketing & Promotion, Brand & Performance Textile Specialties, Archroma
• Georg Lang, Head of CC Finishing, Archroma
• Stefan Müller, Head of BU Textiles Additives Sanitized
• Yann Ribourdouille , Global registration expert Product Stewardship, Archroma

A WORLD WITHOUT PFC, DREAM OR REALITY?
Innovation highlight: PFC-free* Smartrepel® Hydro SR

Speakers

• Nuria Estape, Panel Moderator, Head of Marketing & Promotion, Brand & Performance Textile Specialties, Archroma
• Roland Borufka, Head of Competence Center Repellents, Archroma
• Wolfgang Knaup, Head of R&D repellents, Archroma
• Yann Ribourdouille, Global registration expert Product Stewardship, Archroma

International technology group ANDRITZ will be presenting its innovative nonwovens production and textile solutions at Techtextil in Frankfurt from June 21 to 24. The ANDRITZ product portfolio covers state-of-the-art nonwovens and textile production technologies, such as air-through bonding, airlay, needlepunch, spunlace, spunbond, wetlaid/WetlaceTM, converting, textile finishing, recycling, and natural fiber processing. For Techtextil, special focus lies on technologies for textile recycling, needlepunch, airlay, wetlaid glass fibers and textile calendering.

TEXTILE RECYCLING TECHNOLOGIES BASED ON TEARING
With the acquisition of ANDRITZ Laroche SAS, ANDRITZ has expanded its product portfolio to include airlay and recycling technology as well as bast fiber processing technologies. Complete recycling lines for post-consumer and industrial textile waste to produce fibers for re-spinning and/or nonwoven end-uses are one focus of this product range. Customer awareness and regulations are forcing clothing brands to recycle their textile waste in their own products. Recycled fibers can also be used in the nonwovens industry for various applications, for example in the automotive industry, for insulation, mattresses, and furniture felts.

ANDRITZ Laroche offers a complete process range of tearing lines from 50 up to 3,000 kg/h, which can be used for almost all types of pre/post-consumer textile waste. The aim is to preserve the character of the original fibers, for example cotton, by maximizing fiber length, strength and feel.

The DiloGroup informs at Techtextil in Frankfurt (June 21 – 24, 2022) about new developments aimed at improving production technologies with a focus on needlefelts.

It becomes more evident that the textile industry comes into the focus of regulatory authorities who push respecting sustainability principles and who initiate a new body of laws. Hence all industrial sectors are requested to achieve savings in material and energy. The textile machine building, of course, plays an important role by seizing this initiative and offering solutions for fibre pulp recycling and reduction of energy, water and ancillaries. DiloGroup has made big efforts to meet these challenges together with a circle of partner companies. In this regard focal points of the development work are:

1. Intense Needling
   Needling per se is a mechanical production method with a high energy efficiency. For this reason, the development efforts of DiloGroup aim at producing nonwovens by “intense needling” instead of water entangling, even for light nonwovens made of fine fibres for the medical and hygiene sector with an area weight of 30 – 100 g/m². This would result in a reduction of the environmentally relevant production costs; per annum to about 1/3 to 1/5 of current.
   Despite the prospective advantages of the mechanical intense needling method over the hydrodynamical, water entanglement is at the moment the most important production method for low area weights and highest production capacity and is also offered by the DiloGroup as general contractor in cooperation with partner companies.
2. “Fibre Pulp Recycling”
   Fibrous material in nonwovens and particularly used clothes can be successfully recycled, if staple length can be conserved in the tearing process. In the classical tearing process, staple lengths are dramatically reduced and therefore these fibres can only be used as base material for inferior uses in thermal or acoustic insulation or in protective textiles, transportation or protective covers etc.
   When recycling textile waste in the context of the collection of used clothes, the so called “filament-saving” tearing using special tearing machines and methods must be used to produce fibres with longer staple lengths which can be fed to a nonwoven installation. Hence product characteristics can be better specified and controlled.
3. Additive nonwoven production
   The additive production method of the “3D-Lofter” is especially suited for automotive parts with differently distributed masses; but there may also be potential for increasing uses in the sector of apparel and shoe production.
4. “IsoFeed”-card feeding
   In the field of card feeding, the “IsoFeed” method offers great potential for a more homogeneous card feeding at the same time reducing the variation in cross-machine fibre mass distribution and thus the fibre consumption while conserving the end product quality.

The Techtextil and Heimtextil Summer Special exhibitions, taking place together in Frankfurt from June 21-24, represent an opportunity for Monforts to showcase its finishing and coating technologies for two of its major markets – especially at a time when energy prices continue to soar for textile manufacturers in Europe.

Existing customers of Monforts include many manufacturers in the field of home textiles, as well as those making geotextiles, automotive fabrics and other functional materials – all of whom will be well represented in Frankfurt this June. Dedicated Montex lines have also been supplied to producers of airbags, flame retardant barrier fabrics and spacer fabrics, as well as high-temperature filter materials.

Energy prices are rising steeply everywhere and a particular emphasis for Monforts in Frankfurt will be on the energy and heat recovery that can be achieved with Montex stenters, through features such as better insulation of the treatment chambers or the MonforClean system, in which waste heat from the drying process is used to pre-heat the drying air resulting in a radical reduction in the conventional heat supply required compared to gas and thermal oil heating. The modular system for heat recovery can also be extended for exhaust air cleaning and odour elimination. Monforts can provide a range of further resource-saving and energy recovery options tailored to each individual line installation including modification of the heating source.

With the Qualitex 800 visualization software, all article-specific settings can be stored and the formulations for thousands of treatment processes called up again at any time. Individual operators can also personalise their dashboards with the most important machine functions and process parameters.

The Qualitex 800 system is available for the automatic and continuous operation of the company’s Montex stenters, as well as its Thermex continuous dyeing ranges, Monfortex shrinking systems and Montex®Coat coating units.

Monforts Montex®Coat coating units serve an equally diverse number of markets, including tents, tarpaulins and awnings, black-out roller blinds and sail cloth, automotive interior fabrics and medical disposables. Full PVC coatings, pigment dyeing or minimal application surface and low penetration treatments and solvent coatings (in explosion-proof conditions) with knife coating, roller coating or screen printing can all be accommodated with this system.

All of these very different materials require coating and finishing for maximum efficiency, using Monforts technologies which provide the ultimate in flexibility and the ability to switch quickly from one fabric run to the next, without compromising on the economical use of energy or raw materials.

The Monforts EcoApplicator offers further potential for sustainably achieving perfect finishes via a precise direct application system, as an alternative to conventional padding – where fabrics are immersed in a bath of the required finishing chemicals. It can significantly further reduce the energy and water required and finishes can be applied on just one side of the fabric, or both, and even separately on each side, to be sealed in place via different heating zones in the stenter.

Monforts will highlight its advanced finishing and coating technologies for the production of technical textiles at Techtextil North America, which takes place at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta from May 17-19.

The company and its US representative PSP Marketing, of Charlotte, North Carolina, will be part of the centrepiece VDMA German Pavilion at the show.

Energy prices
With energy prices continuing to go through the roof, an emphasis at Techtextil North America will be on the energy and heat recovery that can be achieved with Montex stenters, through features such as the MonforClean system, in which waste heat from the drying process is used to pre-heat the drying air. This results in a radical reduction in the conventional heat supply required. A range of further resource-saving and energy recovery options can be specified per individual line installation.

Advanced machine operation
With the highly intuitive Qualitex 800 visualization software, all article-specific settings can be stored and the formulations for thousands of treatment processes called up again at any time. Individual operators can also personalise their dashboards with the most important machine functions and process parameters.

The Qualitex 800 system is available for the automatic and continuous operation of the company’s Montex stenters, as well as its Thermex continuous dyeing ranges, Monfortex shrinking systems and Montex®Coat coating units.

Versatility is the key
Monforts Montex®Coat coating units serve an equally diverse number of markets, including tents, tarpaulins and awnings, black-out roller blinds and sail cloth, automotive interior fabrics and medical disposables. Full PVC coatings, pigment dyeing or minimal application surface and low penetration treatments and solvent coatings (in explosion-proof conditions) with knife coating, roller coating or screen printing can all be accommodated with this system.

After three-days of product sourcing and business networking, Techtextil India 2021 in Mumbai concluded in a strong and positive note. The trade fair emerged as a crucial meeting place for the technical textile players to rebuild their supplier links, promote industry integration and engage in lucrative knowledge exchange.

The eighth edition of Techtextil India stood out to be a ground-breaking business platform for the technical textile sector to build a new and strong foundation in the new normal. The aim of the new edition was to promote industry unification and business recovery across the value chain of technical textiles.

The event held at Bombay Exhibition Centre was inaugurated by major dignitaries, including Shri Ajit Chavan, Secretary – Textiles Committee, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. Over the course of its three buzzing days, the show garnered an attendance of 4,087 visitors drawn by live demonstration of latest products, technologies and innovations exhibited by over 150 technical textile brands on the show floor.

The event received an overwhelming response, reflecting industry’s keen interest to explore new developments and opportunities in technical textiles. In regards to the same, Mr Abhijit Kulkarni, President – Textile Engineering Group, A.T.E. India, stated: “It was the first and best physical show also on hybrid mode filled with enthusiastic buyers and customers who visited our booth and had very fruitful discussions with us. Several leading textile manufacturers visited our stalls, including: Strata Geosystems India, SKAPS Industries, Reliance Composites, Paramount Textiles, and Welspun, to name a few.”

Alok Masterbatches Pvt Ltd, Khosla Profile Pvt Ltd, ATE Group, Lucky International, Meera Industries Limited, Park Non-Woven Pvt Ltd, Sarex Chemicals, SICAM, Suntech Geotextile Pvt Ltd and Weavetech Engineers, were among the leading Indian companies exhibiting at the show.

The significance of the three-day fair was further elevated by the German pavilion. Technical textile manufacturers from Germany, such as Autefa Solution Germany GmbH, DILO Systems GmbH, Emtec Electronic GmbH, Georg Sahm GmbH & Co, Karl Mayer Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Merz Maschinenfabrik GmbH and Oerlikon Barmag Zweigniederlassung der Oerlikon Textile GmbH & Co, displayed their latest technologies on the show floor, which garnered significant attention from the Indian buyers.

The first Digital Symposium was another highlight of Techtextil India 2021. The forum delved into a series of crucial topics in technical textiles discussing PLI schemes, FDI opportunities and policies, investment opportunities in Tamil Nadu, & New Investment Opportunities, Sustainable Technical Textiles and Global sustainable approach for Textiles with Antimicrobial Performance.

Concluding on a successful note, Techtextil India 2021 emerged as a platform of new beginnings for the technical textiles sector and for businesses trying to retain their shape and seeking momentum after the tough pandemic phase.

India’s leading trade fair in technical textiles, nonwovens and composites, Techtextil India, is ready to make a comeback through its hybrid edition launch from 25 – 27 November 2021. With a series of live product demonstrations, insightful knowledge sessions and B2B networking opportunities, the multimodal trade fair will provide a strong avenue for technical textile professionals to reimagine their business potential.
 
After a successful grand edition in 2019, Techtexil India is all set to return for the very first time since the pandemic. The three-day exhibition will be hosted in a hybrid format from 25 – 27 November 2021, Bombay Exhibition Centre, Goregaon which will unite technical textile players from across its varied application areas. Top technical textile brands including JB Ecotex, PARK Nonwoven, Loyal Textiles Lenzing, Mehala, Meera Industries, amongst many others will showcase their latest products at the hybrid fair. Moreover, leading German brands exhibiting at Techtextil India 2021 will be hosted under the German pavilion.

The conjunction between the physical exhibition and the online business matchmaking platform will make way to a wider range of networking. Local and international visitors who are unable to attend the venue will be able to witness the exhibition virtually through the ‘MFI virtual app’ which will host live knowledge sessions and product demonstrations for visitors. The two-day multimodal trade fair allows the visitors to search for specific products like fibers, yarns, nonwovens, machinery, coated textiles with easy-to-use filters further to which they can share their query or connect directly with the respective exhibitors.

At the same time, visitors attending the venue will be welcomed under a well-organised physical exhibition following the government-authorised safety protocols of ‘MFI SafeConnect’. These protocols will enable visitors to engage in secure face-to-face interactions with exhibitors and witness the latest technical textile technologies and innovations in-person.

Alliance with the Government of Tamil Nadu
In a bid to strengthen indigenous production through the state and attract investors, the nodal agency for investment promotion and facilitation for the Government of Tamil Nadu – Guidance has signed up for Techtextil India 2021. Furthermore, technical textile players from Tamil Nadu such as Cyber Textiles India Pvt Ltd, Jayashree Spun Bond, Lenzing Ag India, Liester Technologies, Loyal Textile Mills Ltd, Milltex Engineers Pvt Ltd, Superfil Products Pvt Ltd, Uster Technologies (India) Pvt Ltd have also confirmed their participation for the exhibition.
Announcing a close co-operation with Messe Frankfurt India for the 2021 edition, Ms Pooja Kulkarni, IAS MD & CEO, Guidance Tamil Nadu, stated: “While there are several inherent advantages for the growth of technical textiles in Tamil Nadu specifically, many raw materials used in the production of sanitary products, artificial ligaments, seat belt webbings, airbags are still heavily imported. In this context, the alliance with Techtextil India Forum can help us reduce import dependency and bring investments in R&D, manufacturing, innovation by partnering with global technical textiles companies.”

With 50% of India’s textile mills in Tamil Nadu and complementary clusters of knitting, weaving and medical devices manufacturing in Coimbatore, and Tiruppur, the region provides immense opportunities for Meditech investments. Two petrochemical and refinery units – One in Cuddalore and another in Nagapattinam by CPCL is in the process of being established in Tamil Nadu. These units will enable availability of MMF raw material for the textile industry across the state. Hence, manufacturing in Tamil Nadu can be a win-win arrangement for investors as India provides access to the burgeoning market as well.

International expertise with German pavilion
Techtexil India 2021 edition will feature an exclusive German Pavilion showcasing products and technologies from top German manufacturers, including Autefa Solution Germany GmbH, DILO Systems GmbH, Emtec Electronic GmbH, Georg Sahm GmbH & Co, Karl Mayer Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Merz Maschinenfabrik GmbH and Oerlikon Barmag Zweigniederlassung der Oerlikon Textile GmbH & Co.

• Pushing technical textile investments into the State

In a bid to strengthen indigenous production through the state and attract investors, the nodal agency for investment promotion and facilitation for the Government of Tamil Nadu – Guidance has signed up for Techtextil India 2021 – the leading International Trade Fair for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens. The TN Government will be promoting technical textile policies through both physical and virtual segments of the hybrid fair, enabling investors to set up integrated facilities. Leading technical textile players from Tamil Nadu and across the nation confirm participation for the three-day business event.
 
As one of the first major business events in India for the technical textile sector since the pandemic, Techtextil India 2021 will reunite the industry to present a strong showcase of technical textile technologies crucial for the development of India across industries such as healthcare, agriculture, construction, infrastructure, sports, apparel etc. The first hybrid edition will take place from 25 – 27 November 2021 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Mumbai.
 
Announcing a close co-operation with Messe Frankfurt India for the 2021 edition, the Government of Tamil Nadu further shared that it will be promoting textile policies and highlighting investment prospects at the trade fair in a bid to attract companies and investors to the state. Ms  Pooja Kulkarni IAS MD & CEO, Guidance Tamil Nadu said: “While there are several inherent advantages for the growth of technical textiles in Tamil Nadu specifically, many raw materials used in the production of sanitary products, artificial ligaments, seat belt webbings, airbags are still heavily imported. In this context, the Techtextil India Forum can help us reduce import dependency and bring investments in R&D, manufacturing, innovation by partnering with global technical textiles companies.

• The Techtextil and Texprocess trade fairs have a positive view of the future and invite the sector to take part at Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre from 21 to 24 June 2022.
• Exhibitors who register well in advance benefit from an early-booking discount.

The dates for the next editions of Techtextil and Texprocess have been set and the leading international trade fairs for technical textiles and nonwovens and for the processing of textile and flexible materials are set to attract exhibitors and trade visitors from all over the world to Frankfurt am Main from 21 to 24 June 2022. Thus, the fairs are shifting the biennial cycle of events from odd to even years, which fits in perfectly with the sector’s international event calendar. Companies that book exhibition space at one of the two trade fairs no later than 31 August 2021 benefit from an early booking discount. “We see the future in a positive light and are confident that we will finally be able to give the sector the opportunity to meet and exchange ideas and information in June 2022. The desire for personal encounters, direct communication and new impressions is growing from day to day”, says Olaf Schmidt, Vice President Textiles and Textile Technologies.

Elgar Straub, Managing Director, VDMA Textile Care, Fabric and Leather Technologies, emphasises that, “Texprocess and Techtextil are the world’s foremost trade fairs for our innovative sector by a large margin. Both events offer customers an unrivalled overview of state-of-the-art innovations and technological developments – and beyond. Particularly when it comes to the latest trends for sustainability and digitalisation, Texprocess and Techtextil in Frankfurt represent the most important, future-oriented market. This makes it all the more important for both the exhibitor and visitor sides of the sector that we have the opportunity to obtain an overview of the latest market developments, to exchange ideas and information and to initiate new business. We are very relieved about this and hope that, next year, we will once again have the chance to generate new momentum for our sector in the international market.”

For the first time, Techtextil and Texprocess will occupy the western sector of Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre with a total of four exhibition halls and, with a hybrid format, offer the best of both the physical and immaterial worlds: personal communication, virtual networking opportunities and maximum digital coverage. With a comprehensive hygiene and safety concept, Messe Frankfurt will ensure that all visitors and exhibitors can take part safely and with a good feeling.