
Chinese coated fabric producer signs up to Covestro partner program
Chinese polyurethane (PU) coated fabric producer Kunshan Xiefu New Material has teamed up with polymer materials supplier Covestro (formerly Bayer Materials Science) by signing up to its Insqin Partner Manufacturer Program.
The two companies will now collaborate to promote sustainable PU materials in such sectors as fashion apparel and footwear, as well as technical textiles, including automotive interior materials.

Call for rational decisions on investment and overcapacity
By Geoff Fisher, European Editor
Europe’s manmade fiber industry leaders have called on their Chinese counterparts to base future investment decisions on rational economics and reduce senseless overcapacities, especially in polyester fibers.
Addressing the 54th Dornbirn Man-Made Fibers Congress held in Dornbirn, Austria, in September, Heinz Meierkord, president of CIRFS, the European Man-Made Fibres Association, described how Chinese overcapacity represented 25% of global polyester fiber capacity in 2015.
Techtextil sets exhibitor and visitor records; drives innovation trends
A rail strike in Germany did little to dampen the enthusiasm for visitors to Techtextil last month, when around 42,000 from 116 countries made their way to Frankfurt am Main. …
Germany continues to lead the technical textiles sector
While the technical textiles industry has matured in many respects, the sector continues to grow, spurred on by a myriad of macro-drivers, such as growing populations in developing countries, maturing populations in developed economies.