In the dynamic and global textile fiber industry with its various manufacturing processes and end-uses, news and information is breaking on a daily basis. International Fiber Journal is tracking stories relevant to our industry from manmade to natural to bio-based fibers, innovations in nonwoven, woven, braided and technical textiles, technologies for additives, bonding, coatings and polymers, and applications from apparel to hygiene to transportation, and more. Here we will post news stories relevant to textile fibers and their downstream applications on an ongoing basis. Please check back for regular updates. If you have news that you feel should be added to this summary report, please email it to Ken Norberg at ken@ifj.com.
Most recent update: May 17, 2024
INDA Releases 2024 Nonwovens Supply Report
INDA, the Association of the Nonwovens Fabrics Industry, announces the publication of the eleventh edition of the annual North American Nonwovens Supply Report.
Based on extensive research, producer surveys and interviews with industry leaders, this report provides a comprehensive view of the North American supply of nonwoven materials including the key metrics of capacity, production and operating rates, and regional trade through 2023.
“INDA provides valuable data and actionable industry information to enhance decision making in our capital-intensive industry. This report is the most complete and accurate portrayal for both rolled goods and other nonwoven materials produced in North America. These supply and demand balance metrics are essential for strategic planning and business investment decisions,” said Tony Fragnito, INDA President.
The Executive Summary from annual Supply Reports, the quarterly INDA Market Pulse and monthly Price Trends Summary are provided to INDA members on a complimentary basis as part of their membership. The data gathered for this annual report serves as the foundation for both the biennial Global Nonwoven Markets Report to be published in October 2024 and the biennial North American Nonwovens Industry Outlook, which was published in October 2023.
Findings from this year’s Supply Report include:
- North American capacity continues to increase with investments being made across all processes and for a variety of end-uses. Production output is shifting and has slowed down in 2023 to reflect larger machine installations just now coming on-line.
- In 2023, the capacity of nonwovens in North America reached 5.713 million tonnes, an increase from the previous year of over 230,000 tonnes.
- Many new nonwoven production lines were installed in 2023, but mostly in the long-life sectors which shows a positive move towards sustainable goals across the board.
“Similar to 2023, we had quite an impressive producer response from the industry. The markets are shifting to adjust to competitive pressure within the global supply chain. This report highlights significant metrics describing the changes and the reasons behind them,” said Mark Snider, Chief Market and Industry Analyst.
NatureWorks’ Ingeo PLA Manufacturing Expansion Attracts Record Financing from Krungthai Bank PCL of Thailand
NatureWorks, a leading manufacturer of polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymers made from renewable resources, announced the historic financial support from Krungthai Bank PCL to optimize the capital structure for the new fully-integrated Ingeo™️ PLA manufacturing facility in Thailand. The financing from Krungthai Bank, Thailand’s third largest bank, amounting to $350M USD (12,600M Baht Equivalent), is one of the singular largest loans in the bank’s decades-long history and shows confidence in NatureWorks’ market leadership and global economic impact. Today, the companies participated in a signing ceremony to celebrate this milestone.
In alignment with its ESG values and sustainable finance solutions, Krungthai Bank funded NatureWorks’ newest manufacturing facility for Ingeo PLA biopolymer, a biobased material used in plastic and fiber applications. The funding will support the construction of the plant and its ongoing operations. NatureWorks was chosen because of its market leadership in defining bioplastic technologies and how those solutions will move Thailand’s Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) economy forward. BCG leverages technology and Thailand’s biological diversity to enable a more sustainable, innovation-driven, and values-based economy.
“This backing from Krungthai Bank not only validates our strategic global positioning within Thailand and the Asia Pacific region but propels us toward continued expansion to support the worldwide bioeconomy,” said Erik Ripple, President and CEO of NatureWorks. “The funding will enable us to expand our international customer access to fully biobased, low-carbon biomaterials that feature unique performance attributes valued by global downstream packaging and fiber markets.”
The new manufacturing facility is designed to be a fully-integrated PLA complex, including production sites for lactic acid, lactide, and polymer. With an annual capacity of 75,000 tons of Ingeo biopolymer, it will produce the full portfolio of Ingeo grades and support the rapid market growth across many markets in the Asia Pacific region, including 3D printing, nonwovens for hygiene, compostable coffee capsules, tea bags, flexible packaging, and compostable food serviceware. Ingeo biopolymers produced at this site will be made from sugarcane sourced from farms within a 50-kilometer radius of the Nakhon Sawan site. Construction is on track to support projected start-up activities and full production in 2025.
Goodwill Recycles Textiles as Part of Pilot Project
Goodwill Industries International (GII) convened leaders from the U.S., Canada, and Finland in Rochester, New York for a two-day summit focused on advancing textile circularity, recently. The event featured 60 Goodwill leaders and key partners from the textile recycling ecosystem, including Accelerating Circularity, TOMRA, Sortile, and researchers from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Participants engaged in demonstrations of textile sorting, garment deconstruction, and recycling machinery. Local Goodwill organizations shared results from innovative recycling pilots, including a Walmart Foundation-funded project transforming unwearable donations into raw materials for textile recycling. This project, in collaboration with Accelerating Circularity, aims to establish regional hubs for sorting and preparing textiles for reuse.
“For over 120 years, Goodwill has championed textile reuse,” said Steve Preston, GII President and CEO. “Our ongoing efforts, supported by partners like the Walmart Foundation, aim to minimize waste and maximize value through recycling.” The summit underscored Goodwill’s commitment to sustainability, which continues with the inaugural Sustainability Summit in Washington, D.C., this August, according to reports.
FixDye to Produce Recycled Dope-Dyed Filament Yarn with rPET Flakes on Systems of Oerlikon Barmag Huitong Engineering
The recycled polyester yarn manufacturer FixDye has opted for the polycondensation system manufacturer Oerlikon Barmag Huitong Engineering (OBHE) to increase its production capacities.
The company, based in Huai’an, China, is thus expanding its production capacities in melt preparation, the production stage upstream of the spinning mill. This will not only allow FixDye to better influence yarn quality, but also to keep an eye on the supply chain of its products, regardless of external influences. This is an unbeatable advantage when it comes to the ambitious goals of the circular economy.
The plant with a capacity of 3 x 180 tons per day of recycled bottle flakes for textile filament yarn is a clear commitment to the sustainable textile industry. From mid-2025, it will mainly produce FDY and POY/DTY for the European and US markets. The yarns produced are spun-dyed for ecological reasons, zero water dyeing method.
With its sustainability concept, FixDye is a pioneer in the textile industry. Certified by numerous recognized institutes such as GRS, BSCI and OEKO-TEX, the company produces everything from recycled melts to textile surfaces for well-known international textile and sporting goods manufacturers. “In the medium term, FixDye also wants to offer materials produced using the Textile-2-Textile recycling process,” explains Ivan Ye, CMO of FixDye. “Confidence in the reliability of the highly efficient systems and the sustainable, energy-saving concept were the decisive aspects in choosing OBHE as the supplier of the polycondensation system,” adds General Manager Kevin Wang.
https://www.oerlikon.com/polymer-processing/en
Essity Establishes R&D Center in France
Hygiene and health company Essity is investing in a new global center for research and development in Alsace, France, dedicated to tissue hygiene products. The state-of-the-art facility will focus on tissue to meet the evolving demands of branded tissue in both the consumer and professional hygiene markets.
Essity is continuously developing new methods to provide the market with sustainable and user-friendly products. The company’s current R&D center in Kunheim, France, has filed 25 patents in recent years for ground-breaking innovations such as Lotus Aqua Tube (a flushable toilet roll core), Lotus and Okay Sans Tube (coreless toilet paper), Tork SmartOne (dispenses one sheet at a time) and paper hygiene products based on alternative fibers.
The new R&D center, strategically located near the current facility, ensures the retention of Essity’s more than 80 experts and engineers working there today. Essity aims to create a larger, more efficient center equipped to address future challenges.
In addition to France, Essity has R&D centers in Mexico, Sweden, Germany and in the U.S., led by the company’s global unit focusing on brands, innovation and sustainability. In 2023, Essity invested SEK 1.7bn (approximately 1.2% of net sales) in research and development.
Kimberly-Clark Names Chief Growth Officer
Kimberly-Clark Corporation announced that Patricia Corsi will join Kimberly-Clark as chief growth officer, effective July 1, 2024. She succeeds Alison Lewis, who has decided to retire from the company after 35 years in the consumer products industry, including the last five years at Kimberly-Clark. Lewis will serve in an advisory role until September 1, 2024, to ensure a smooth transition.
Corsi joins Kimberly-Clark from Bayer Consumer Health, where she served as chief marketing, IT and digital officer and led a broad set of brand and commercial teams and oversaw the IT and Digital organizations. Among her accomplishments at Bayer, Corsi led the company’s margin accretive innovation pipeline, with new products representing the majority of Bayer Consumer Health’s sales growth over a five-year period. In 2023, she was named one of the Top Chief Marketing Officers by Cannes Lions, inducted into the World Advertising Federation (WFA) Marketer of the Year Hall of Fame, and recognized as an Adweek (AW) Brand Genius.
INDA and AFS Announce Partnership for the FiltXPO™ 2025 Conference Program
INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, and AFS, the American Filtration & Separations Society, announced they are entering into a strategic partnership to create the FiltXPO™ 2025 Conference Program. FiltXPO, the International Filtration Conference & Exhibition, will co-locate with IDEA®25 from April 29 to May 1, 2025, in the Miami Beach Convention Center, Miami Beach, Florida.
The theme for FiltXPO 2025 is “The Future of Filtration: Advancing Technology, Performance & Sustainability.” The two-day FiltXPO conference program will feature technical insights into filtration innovations and technologies from industry professionals worldwide. INDA and AFS will issue a call for abstracts in the next few weeks.
“The INDA and AFS partnership is an exciting combination. AFS’ expertise in the filtration market sector is key to producing a world-class FiltXPO conference program. We appreciate their technical insights and ability to bring together a diverse slate of speakers discussing filtration research and science. We look forward to working with AFS,” said Tony Fragnito, INDA President and CEO.
“We feel this is a great opportunity to provide premium content and expand AFS’ reach. AFS’ ability to plan a first-rate conference, combined with INDA’s ability to organize a well-respected show like FiltXPO, will create an exceptional experience for filtration professionals. We are pleased to partner with INDA and will release more information about the program in the coming months,” said Connie Rhea, Executive Director, AFS.
To reserve a booth, register, or sign up for sponsorships, visit www.filtxpo.com
Loop Industries and Ester Industries Ltd. Announce Joint Venture Agreement in India
Loop Industries, Inc., a clean technology company whose mission is to accelerate a circular plastics/fiber economy by manufacturing 100% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (“PET”) plastic and polyester fiber, has concluded an agreement with Ester Industries Ltd., one of India’s leading manufacturers of Polyester Films and Specialty Polymers, to form a 50/50 India joint venture. The purpose of the India JV is to build and operate an Infinite Loop™ India manufacturing facility which will produce a unique product offering of lower carbon footprint recycled dimethyl terephthalate (“rDMT”), recycled mono-ethylene glycol (“rMEG”) and specialty polymers in India, using the Infinite Loop™ technology which offers significant advantages over traditional mechanical PET recycling.
CARBIOS and Hündgen Enter Supply Agreement for World’s First PET Biorecycling Plant
CARBIOS, a pioneer in the development and industrialization of biological technologies to reinvent the life cycle of plastic and textiles, and Hündgen Entsorgungs GmbH & Co. KG, a waste management expert in logistics, sorting services and the recycling of recyclable materials from waste mixtures, announced a signing of a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding relating to the sourcing, preparation and recycling of 15kt/year of post-consumer PET waste using CARBIOS’ biorecycling technology at its first commercial plant in Longlaville, France, from end 2026.
The partnership will leverage Hündgen’s expertise and network in the sourcing and preparation of light packaging waste collected from German households. This PET waste will be prepared into flakes ready for biorecycling using CARBIOS’ enzymatic depolymerization technology, which produces food-grade PTA and MEG, further re-polymerized into PET.
The supply partnership with Hündgen contributes to securing the majority of CARBIOS’ feedstock needs for its first commercial plant in Longlaville, France. This plant will have a 50kt/year capacity when it will be fully operational and is currently under construction. This latest sourcing announcement comes in addition to previously announced agreements, such as with Landbell Group for food trays from Germany, and the winning CITEO tender for trays in France. The location of the Longlaville plant is strategically close to nearby waste supplies in Belgium, Germany and Luxembourg.
Suominen Invests in Sustainable Products in Bethune, US
Suominen strengthens its capabilities in sustainable products by enhancing and upgrading one of its production lines in Bethune, South Carolina, USA. The investment is made in line with Suominen’s strategy and supports company’s vision to be the frontrunner in nonwovens innovation and sustainability.
“With this investment we strengthen our position as the leader in sustainable nonwovens in Americas market and respond to the increased demand of environmentally friendly products. This investment also enhances our operational performance in terms of safety, quality and productivity,” says Tommi Björnman, President and CEO of Suominen.
The total value of the investment is approximately EUR 10 million and the investment project will be completed in the first half of 2025.
TMAS of Sweden Joins ITMF
TMAS, the Swedish Textile Machinery Association, has become the latest Associate Member of the ITMF (International Textile Manufacturers Federation), which continues to expand as the international forum for the global textile manufacturing value chain. ITMF members include companies responsible for approximately 90% of global textile and apparel production. The Federation’s reach continues to be extended through ventures such as this year’s Annual Conference, which will take place in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, from September 8-10, alongside the International Apparel Federation’s 2024 Fashion Convention. This follows on from the highly successful 2023 ITMF Annual Conference which took place in Keqiao, China. TMAS members have a similar global perspective as the leading Swedish companies providing textile technology.
ANDRITZ Production Line for Biodegradable Wipes Starts up in Türkiye
International technology group ANDRITZ has successfully started up a new nonwovens production line supplied to Teknomelt Teknik Mensucat San. ve Tic. A.S. in Kahramanmaras, Türkiye.
The new neXline wetlace CCP (carded-carded-pulp) line produces nonwoven roll goods for biodegradable, plastic-free wet wipes.
By combining the benefits of two technologies, spunlace and wetlaid, the line enables the use of bio-based fibers, like viscose and wood pulp, to produce a high-performance and sustainable wipe with the same technical product characteristics and performances as a conventional wipe made of synthetic fibers while protecting the environment. This perfectly supports Teknomelt’s sustainable development goals and opens new growth opportunities for the company.
