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Techtextil North America 2010....................................................................................................................................................................

Optimism in the airWith a number of new products and innovations launched, and both exhibitors and

visitors pointing to continuing signs of a recovery, Techtextil North America had an

upbeat mood throughout. Kathlyn Swantko reports from Atlanta

here was a hopeful energy thatresonated throughout thetrade show floor at TechtextilNorth America, which took

place from May 18-20 in Atlanta, Georgia.The show was co-located with SPESA EXPOand ATME-I/MEGATEX, and generatedconfidence across several segments of theindustry, which was also echoed byexhibitors and attendees.

James Chesnutt, president of NationalSpinning Co., said: “The show hit a homerun this year. There was a good cross-section of suppliers represented. This isdefinitely the best show I’ve attended infour years. It was well-organised and ourcompany benefited greatly.”

Even prior to the show, there were positivesigns for some exhibitors. Charles Saunders,president of Saunders Thread Company,explained: “We’ve seen a strong pick-up inour business since November of 2009. Wealso had a very strong April this year, whichwas the best in many years. With the

Toptimism I see at this show, I’m hopeful thistrend will continue.”

Bolstered by a supporting manufacturingsegment that is performing reasonably well,the industry as a whole projected a hopefulattitude surrounding the technical textilemarket that has kept things upbeat.

Tom Murphy, executive VP at RSMMcCladrey, Minneapolis, Minnesota, said:“Never before have we seen such a high levelof productivity and improvements during arecession. Contrary to public opinion, anddriven by inaccuracies in fact-based mediareporting, the US manufacturing sector is stillthe largest in the world. As the globerecovers from the Great Recession, one ofthe most significant opportunities is theincreased global demand for USmanufactured products. Excluding Europeand Japan, economies outside the US arecreating new markets for US manufacturedgoods, and some manufacturers are alreadycapitalising upon this opportunity.”● www.techtextilna.com

Fibres/yarns/threadsRadiciSpandex Corporation is the USsubsidiary of the Italy-based Radici Group.At Techtextil North America, RadiciSpandexdescribed its newest customised solutionfor the disposable diaper market withspandex fibre that provides a comfortableclose fit around the legs of the diaper.

According to Frank Nickerson Jr., technicalsales representative, RadiciSpandex hascreated a larger spandex package, whichcan be made in numerous deniers andpackage sizes to streamline the disposablediaper production process and increase theproduction efficiency regardless ofequipment speeds.

Nickerson said: “To our knowledge, thisnew package will run twice as long asprevious packages; and to our knowledge,we are the only US supplier of spandexthat has this capability.”● www.radicispandex.com

American & Efird, Inc. has been in thetextile business for nearly 120 years, andremains one of the world’s largestmanufacturers and distributors of industrialsewing thread, embroidery thread andtechnical textiles.

Headquartered in Mount Holly, NorthCarolina, A & E showcased a variety ofapparel and technical sewing threads atTechtextil North America. Anefil Dry is thecompany’s continuous filament non-wickthread, which provides moisture resistanceand reduces leaking at seams. Applicationsfor this thread include Gore-Tex footwear,and other outdoor products such asbackpacks, luggage, and tents. Anothertechnical product is the company’s SS-110high performance aramid/stainless steelsewing thread. This thread is ideal forspeciality thermal applications andcomposites, and includes FR and staticcontrol qualities.

On the technical yarn side, A & Epresented its twisted, flat, and air-entangled technical yarns in both dyedcolors and natural versions, along with awide range of other converted yarnsTechtextil North America was busy throughout the three-day show.

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including aramids, which are targetedtowards the narrow fabrics industry.Another featured yarn with technicalapplications was the water swellable yarn,Camel, made from polyacrylate fibre. Thisperformance yarn is primarily used to blockmoisture in wires and cables. When wet,the yarn has the capability to absorbmoisture and swell up to 40 times of itsnormal weight.● www.amefird.co.uk

Saunders Thread Company, a Gastonia,North Carolina-based manufacture oftechnical threads for the industrial, military,aerospace, and safety and protectionmarkets, presented a complete line ofcontinuous filament nylon,polyester,polypropylene,Vectran, Nomex,and Kevlar

sewing threads for heavy dutyapplications. The company alsofeatured its spun Nomex, spun Kevlar,and blends, along with its stockprogramme of Tenara-expanded PTFEthread, conductive and anti-static

threads and yarns. Saunders is theexclusive manufacturer of Spun Gold

para-aramid thread for use in sewingupholstery and bedding fire barriers.

According to J. Charles Saunders, thecompany can dye a full range of colours inspun Kevlar. All of its products can beprovided silicone-free to meet specialrequirements, and can be wound to anytype of put-up from parallel tubes, tocones and king tubes. Saunders’ Nomexand Kevlar products are UL approved.● www.saunders-thread.com

Protective fabricsGlen Raven Technical Fabrics, LLC, a globalleader in high-performance, thermalprotective fabrics for the utility, petroleum,racing, and industrial apparel markets,showcased its GlenGuard FR andGlenGuard Hi-Vis fabrics at the show.GlenGuard FR is targeted towardsapplications where flash fires or electricarc fires are possible. The 6.5 oz.GlenGuard Hi-Vis is a knit fabric madefrom a blend of FR modacrylic/Kevlar.The woven GlenGuard FR fabric,available in 4.5 oz. and 6.4 oz. weights,is made from a blend of Kermel/FRmodacrylic/anti-static carbon fibre.

Gary Zumstein, VP of sales andmarketing for the company’s Protective

Segment, said: “If you’re in the FRmarket, you need FR/Hi-Vis

fabrics. You need a fabricthat balances heat stress,comfort, protection, and

pricing. Our GlenGuard FR fabrics have thatbalance, and have grown in double digitsevery year for the last 5 years.”● www.glenraven.com

King Tech Industries used Techtextil NorthAmerica to promote its printed KTTEXreflective fabrics, which are now incompliance with the minimum arearequirements specified in the newANSI/ISEA 107-2010 Standard, issued inJanuary 2010.

According to the Association of SafetyEquipment Association (ISEA), the newdesign requirements specify that garmentswithout reflective material encircling thesleeves are now required to have aminimum of 150 cm2 (23.25 in2) ofreflective material in the shoulder area, toprovide 180° visibility for the wearer. Theshoulder area is defined as measuring15cm (5.9 in) down from the shoulderhigh point, on the front and back of thegarment. Printed reflective fabrics likeKTTEX meet these standards, because thereflective print occupies the specifiedminimum of 50% of the reflective shoulderarea. These lightweight KTTEX reflectivefabrics allow hi-vis clothing to becomemore fashionable and comfortable.● www.king-tech.com

SNS Nano Fiber Technology, LLC, featuredits nano-structured Nanosan nonwovens atthe show. Originally developed by theInstitute of Polymer Science at theUniversity of Akron, the Nanosan materialsare composed of super-absorbent particlesthat have been added to nanofibres tocreate a future generation of absorbentdisposable products.

When compared to conventional fibres,Nanosan offers numerous advantages such

Techtextil North America 2010...........................................................................................................................................................

SS-110 Kevlar stainless steel sewing thread from American & Efird.

A babywearing adisposablediaper madefrom Radici’sspandex fibre,used to create aclose fit aroundthe legs.

July 2010

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as high surface area, small pore size andhigh pore volume. These characteristicslend themselves to many innovativeapplications including wound care,filtration, fuel cells and a variety ofpersonal care products for consumers.Laura Frazier, director of SNS, explainedthat until now, large-scale production ofnanofibres for many applications was cost-prohibitive.● www.snsnano.com

Recycled materialsRentex Mills, a Canadian knitter, featured anew warp knit construction at TechtextilNorth America, targeted towards thecycling, triathlon, rowing, and swimwearmarkets. The fabric is a blend of 56% EcoCircle fibre and 44% PBT polyester. EcoCircle is an innovative system developed byTeijin that employs unprecedented chemicalrecycling technology to enable repeatablerecycling of used products into recycledyarns with no qualitative deterioration. ThePBT (polybutylene terephthalate) fibre is atexturised 100% polyester filament yarnwith stretch and elasticity properties. PBThas higher stretch and recovery comparedto standard polyester.

David Turk, national sales manager forRentex, explained: “The stretch qualities ofour new Eco Circle/PBT fabric are equal tothose of a spandex fabric, but while spandexwill degrade with laundering, the stretch ofthis fabric will improve with every wash. Inaddition, the fabric incorporates abrasionresistance, chlorine and perspirationresistance, excellent stretch and recoveryproperties, and it’s sustainable.”● www.rentexmills.com

Vulcana, LLC, is a New Jersey-basedcompany, specialising in the development,manufacturing and distribution of materialsmade from recycled car tires. The companyused Techtextil North America to promote itsrubbRe™ and fuzun™ products.

rubbRe is a nonwoven sheet rubbermaterial incorporating recycled post-consumer tires into a versatile, eco-friendlymaterial suitable for a variety of applications.It is produced in a variety of colours andthicknesses for use in upholstery, wallcoverings, outdoor furniture, tarps, flags andbanners, bags and luggage, and home andoffice accessories.

fuzun is a nonwoven sheet rubber material,which has a fabric face and a rubber back,and is created by bonding rubbRe to awoven fabric. The fuzun line currentlyconsists of rubbRe bonded to 100% hempburlap. However, should a customer have aneed, Vulcana is able to bond othermaterials to our rubbRe, provided the fabricmeets certain characteristics.● www.vulcana.net

Techtextil North America 2010....................................................................................................................................................................

Founded in 1922, Leigh Fibers is one ofthe world’s leading processors of textilewaste and fibre by-products, and hasalways been an active buyer and seller oftextile waste. Today, it is the largesttextile waste and by-product reprocessingcompany in North America.

Leigh Fibers used Techtextil North Americato promote its new Safe Leigh FR material,

which is made from recycled aramid fibresgenerated from pre-used firemen’s jackets.

According to George Martin, executive VPof sales and marketing, the new fibre canbe blended with other fibres to meet theASTM standards for a particular end-useapplication. Current applications includemattress pads and various automotive uses.● www.leighfibers.com

Leigh Fiber’s Safe Leigh FR shoddy, made from 100% recycled aramid fabrics.

Vulcana’s fuzun bonded material featuring 100% hemp burlap on the face and Vulcana’s rubbResheet rubber on the back.

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