The textile recycling black hole
New legislative measures aimed at protecting the environment within the European Union are likely to make things extremely difficult for synthetic fiber producers in the coming years. The European Green …
COVID-19 adds urgency in the move toward technology with remote capability
For the past few years now, Industry 4.0 concepts have been introduced by the leading European suppliers of technologies for the production of synthetic fibers and nonwovens. In 2020, some …
Mixed messages – the UK is at odds with the rest of Europe once again, this time over flushability
The further development of plastic-free and flushable products will be key themes at INDA’s World of Wipes (WOW) 2020, which will now be an all-virtual event Aug. 24-27. For my …
Rice and wood – building for the future on Japan’s natural resources and fiber legacy
Many of Japan’s major corporations began as fiber manufacturers, and their expansion has been decades long, typically involving diversification into other fields such as chemicals, plastics, pharmaceuticals, life sciences, real …
No alternatives to synthetics and single-use in the fight against COVID-19
With shortages of PPE constantly making headlines over the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized, more than ever, the world’s current reliance on synthetic polymers and fibers in …