The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists’ 2012 International Conference will be held this year at the Hilton University Place in Charlotte, N.C., March 21-23. The conference will feature three educational tracks which mirror the Association’s interest groups: Chemical Applications, Concept 2 Consumer (C2C) and Materials.

The Chemical Applications track will address new advances in preparation and dyeing, antimicrobials and performance finishing. Sessions in the C2C track will include pathway to sustainability, beyond the borders, the power of social media, and “see it, wear it, explore it.” The Materials track will focus on protective textiles, medical materials, specialty materials, and innovative technologies. Also featured is a poster session covering all areas of textile and materials research.

Besides cutting-edge textile research, the conference features many activities for students, such as the Herman and Myrtle Goldstein Student Paper Competition and a student Textile Bowl.

AATCC’s 2011 recipient of the Olney Medal for outstanding achievements in the field of textile chemistry is Dr. Martin Bide, University of Rhode Island. Bide’s prestigious Olney Medal Address on Friday, March 23, is titled, “In Praise of Textile Chemistry.”

Attendees should register before February 24th for a significant pre-registration discount.

AATCC is a not-for-profit textile professional association, serving the industry since 1921. AATCC, headquartered in Research Triangle Park, N.C., provides test method development, quality control materials, and professional networking for members throughout the world.

Source: AATCC

The Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF) is offering five scholarships to specialty fabrics/technical textile industry students.

The importance of college and vocational training has been the core of IFF’s mission, and a hot button news story this past week in President Obama’s State of the Union address and in his speech Friday at the University of Michigan. The country’s new goal: Getting people the education and training they need so they’re ready to take on the jobs of today and tomorrow. Technical training is a critical part of the specialty fabrics/technical textiles industry for everyone from the chemist conducting R&D to the factory worker operating million-dollar high-tech machinery.

IFF was established in 1994, and awards several scholarships each year to students enrolled in accredited colleges, universities or technical schools. The foundation was set up by the board of directors of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI), a trade group with more than 1,800 member companies that has represented the U.S. specialty fabrics industry for 100 years.

Students interested in applying for the scholarships can visit IFF's website; the submission deadline is in May, and the scholarship applies to the following school year, paid directly to the students’ schools for fall semester tuition.

The IFF Board of Directors holds responsibility for application review and scholarship awards. Announcement of the scholarship recipients takes place during IFAI Expo Americas 2012, which will be held Nov. 7-9 at the Boston Convention Center.

The five scholarships offered

Don Williams IFF Student Scholarship ($3,000 each, up to three available). This scholarship is named in honor of the IFF board director who was instrumental in developing the foundation scholarship program. Recipients are selected on the basis of academic achievement, community service, and interest in a future career in the specialty fabrics industry.

IFAI Member Scholarship ($3,000 each, up to two available). This award pays for tuition expenses at an accredited college, university or technical school. Recipients are selected on the basis of academic achievement, community service, and interest in a future career in the specialty fabrics industry. To qualify, applicants must be employed by or related to an employee of an IFAI member company.

In addition to these IFF-funded scholarships, several market segment scholarships are made available through IFF by IFAI divisions:

Architect Student Scholarship ($3,000, one available). This scholarship award pays for tuition expenses at an accredited college or university architect program. The recipient will be selected on the basis of academic achievement, community service, and interest in a future career in the specialty fabrics industry. To qualify, applicants must be enrolled in a college or university architect program. This scholarship is funded by a donation from the Fabric Structures Association (FSA), a division of IFAI.

Fabric Graphics Association (FGA) Member Scholarship ($2,000, one available). This award provides tuition expenses at an accredited college, university or technical school. The recipient will be selected on the basis of academic achievement, community service, and interest in a future career in the fabric graphics industry. To qualify, applicants must be employed by or related to an employee of a FGA member company. This scholarship is funded by a donation from the Fabric Graphics Association (FGA), a division of IFAI.

Marine Fabricators Association (MFA) Member Scholarship ($2,000, one available). This scholarship award provides tuition expenses at an accredited college, university or technical school. The recipient will be selected on the basis of academic achievement, community service, and interest in a future career in the specialty fabrics industry. To qualify, applicants must be employed by or related to an employee of an MFA member company. This scholarship is funded by a donation from the Marine Fabricators Association (MFA), a division of IFAI.

Additional scholarships will be announced in February and March, 2012. For more information, contact Ruth Stephens, IFF managing director, at +1 651 225 6545.

Source: IFAI

The International Oeko-Tex® Association will offer a free online presentation on Wednesday, Feb. 15, at noon EST to provide information on the Oeko-Tex® Standard 1000 certification for eco-friendly textile production facilities. This webinar is offered free of charge to textile products manufacturers, brands, and retailers and members of the media. To register, please email Dina Dunn or call +1 336 471 5584 by Feb. 10.

The Oeko-Tex Standard 1000 is a testing, auditing, and certification system for textile production facilities at all stages of the global supply chain. The certification requires environmentally responsible management of energy, waste, raw materials, noise, and dust as well as social and product safety criteria. In addition, at least 30 percent of a facility’s textile products must be certified in accordance with the Oeko-Tex® Standard 100, which ensures that textiles are free from more than 300 hazardous substances that are suspected of being harmful to humans.

“Responsible textile manufacturers are now focusing on two related but distinct fronts,” says Dr. Sam Moore, representing Oeko-Tex in the United States. “First, they want to certify that their textile products are safe for use. Second, they want make those safe textile products in ways that are considerate of their workers and the environment. Oeko-Tex offers two textile-specific certification programs that address both critical components.”

Source: Oeko-Tex

Huntsman Textile Effects (HTE), Singapore, China, will join forces with the Chinese textile industry to increase the sustainability and quality of products made in China for the global textile market. HTE signed an agreement with the China National Textile and Apparel Council (CNTAC) in November 2011 to help with two initiatives to improve economic and environmental performance. In early 2012, HTE will provide CNCS color solutions to match 900 cotton shades to meet national performance standards, promote best available technologies with a range of Novacron® dyes and comply with ecological requirements. The second collaboration will be the launch of the Fabrics China Swing Tag program, a co-branding effort that will tout textile compliance with the highest international standards and value-added features, such as easy care, sun protection, water and oil repellence and long-lasting color.

Source: Huntsman Textile Effects

Airships, widely used before the 1940s for controlled motor-powered flight, gave way to fixed-wing aircraft early in the history of human flight. The early airships’ slow speed, large size and inability to maneuver made them cumbersome, and hydrogen gas made them highly flammable. Times change, however, and so did airships. Aeros, a Montebello, Calif., company that designs and manufactures lighter-than-air products, makes aerostats (moored unmanned balloons) for aerial observation platforms. For aerostats, the ability to hover in one place trumps speed and maneuverability.

The Aeros 3200, ideal for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions, is a mobile, mid-sized aerostat that provides a long-term surveillance platform with little need for operating personnel. It consists of enhanced envelop fabric filled with nonflammable helium, a digital flight-control system, robotic mooring system and the ability to carry cameras, radar, telecommunications equipment or scientific apparatus. The Aeros 3200 ISR operates at an altitude of 5,000 feet, deploys rapidly and is designed to withstand hurricane-force winds, snow loads, heavy rain, lightning and a wide range of temperatures (from Amazon rainforest to arctic climates). Aeros designs products to customer specifications, and all of the company’s products are certified by the Federal Aviation Administration as airworthy.

Source: Aeros

American Colors, Inc., a custom color house serving the plastics and coatings industries, recently appointed North Coast Chemical Sales as sales agent for thermoset composites.

“I am excited to put my years of sales experience in the thermoset composites market to work for American Colors, Inc.,” said Marty Holden, owner of North Coast Chemical Sales. “I look forward to helping molders, compounders and pultruders meet their color needs.”

“We are extremely pleased to have North Coast Chemical Sales and Marty Holden join the list of American Colors distributors and representatives,” said James Oram Wible, president of American Colors. “American Colors has always been proud of the fact that we only have the finest corporations and individuals representing the corporation and its products.”

Matthew Kosior, chief operating officer of American Colors added, “The partnership of American Colors with North Coast Chemical Sales brings together two organizations with strong technical abilities along with exceptional focus on quality, service and support of our composites customers. This reaffirms American Colors commitment as a leading participant in the composites industry.”

In addition to representing American Colors, Inc., North Coast Chemical Sales will continue to represent Technick Products in the thermoset composites market. Technick Products manufactures the Tech Lube line of internal mold releases, the Flame-Check line of flame retardants, and the Biogenic cleaning products for Non-HAPS cleaning applications.

Source: American Colors, Inc.

Millions of pilgrims flock to the mosque in Medina al-Munawwarah, Saudi Arabia, each year as part of Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam, a religious pilgrimage to Mecca and other holy sites that must be carried out by every able-bodied Muslim at least once in his or her lifetime. The Muslim lunar calendar is shifting the dates of Hajj toward hotter summer months, raising issues about keeping visitors cool. SEFAR® Architecture, Depew, N.Y., helped provide the shade for future pilgrims—250 huge umbrellas made from more than 1.5 million square feet of the company’s extra tough PTFE fabric. Each open umbrella is roughly 84 by 84 feet and 50 feet tall, providing the Medina Haram Piazza with an awe-inspiring environment that rivals displays of the grand-scale fabric artist Christo.

Shade fabric for this blistering hot climate had to withstand aggressive UV radiation, as well as possess extremely high tensile strength in strong wind, fire resistance, flexibility and appropriate light transmission. SEFAR Architecture, manufacturer of monofilament precision and ePTFE yarn fabrics, developed four actual-size prototypes of sand-colored fabric (white transmits too much light) with blue PTFE ribbon designs on the undersides for a beautiful decorative effect. The umbrellas, which completely shade a huge area when opened collectively, reduced ambient temperature by at least 8 degrees (C). Each umbrella can be closed within three minutes and the working parts are encased in an elegant narrow column.

ArtistJanet Echelman’s first visit to Phoenix, Ariz., left her “mesmerized by the broad, open sky… the shock of desert winds, whirls of dust, the crash of lightning, and that luminous blue turning to violet and orange, then velvety blue-black.” Recreating her vision took time, teamwork and meticulous planning. The resulting 145-foot aerial sculpture, “Her Secret is Patience,” dances gently over Phoenix’s new Civic Space Park, choreographed by desert winds and changing light and bringing people together to look up at the sky. It has become a blooming symbol of a revitalized downtown area and an award-winning representation of the best in public art.

Echelman created 3D forms on Maya software, imported into custom software by engineers at Buro Happold to develop patterns for fabrication of the recyclable high-tenacity polyester braided twine netting. Wind and structural analysis determined how strong the twine loomed into each net panel had to be, and generated construction documents, exact looming patterns and colors for each individual bobbin.

Painted galvanized steel and cables hold the sculpture above the park, hanging from 38 feet to100 feet in the air. A computerized lighting system colors, illuminates and conceals parts of the vortex shape at night, while the wind-shifted netting forms unique shadow patterns during the daylight hours.

Echelman’s distinguished artistic career, international reputation and academic credentials allow her to re-shape urban airspace around the globe, with installations such as “Water Sky Garden”; at the Vancouver Winter Olympics and “She Changes” in Portugal.

Humid, subtropical Brisbane, Australia, basks through an average 3,000 hours of sunlight each year, and in this environment, Australia’s Kingscliff-based Fabritecture has it made with the shade. Fabritecture designs, manufactures and installs tensile fabric structures throughout the world; the company won two Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) International Achievement Awards (IAA) at IFAI Expo Americas 2011 last October.

At the Eagle Street Pier in Brisbane, Fabritecture replaced existing shade structures at the Jade Buddha and Coffee Club with tensile fabric canopies that protect alfresco diners from rain and damaging UV rays while allowing light, airflow and an unobstructed view of the Brisbane River and Story Bridge. The PVC and PTFE membrane canopies were installed on both existing and new steel framing. The fabric structures were installed as part of a refurbishment project of Eagle Street Pier, with the purpose of providing a top-quality alfresco dining environment consistent with the unique city waterfront location and high standing of the award-winning establishments in the area. The project won the IAA Award of Excellence for tensile structures under 600 square meters.

Two shade canopies that curve around the $850 million Soul development project at Surfers Paradise Beach won another IAA Award of Excellence for free-standing structures of more than 112 square meters.

The awning business has been good to Ann and Ed Hunzinger, fourth-generation owners of the Evanston Awning Co., Evanston, Ill. The Hunzingers have been good for the industry in turn, serving in leadership roles in the Professional Awning Manufacturers Association and the Midwest Fabric Products Association. The next generation of Hunzingers in the business (sons Eric, Daryl and Aaron) bid to continue the tradition, with a twist. Using leftover scrap steel and Sunbrella® fabric from Evanston Awning, Aaron Hunzinger fabricates one-of-a-kind art lamps under his own AHdidit brand.

Aaron Hunzinger made his first lamp in 2006 and has created more than 50 to date, including table lamps, sconces and tall floor lamps. Galleries have discovered the unique and colorful AHdidit shapes and moods, including the Lemon Street Art Gallery in Kenosha, Wisc., and Simply Chicago Art, a thriving collective of artists. “I hand-built a replica of a Gibson Explorer guitar dubbed ‘Orion,’” says Hunzinger. “I used materials such as steel, Sunbrella fabric, copper, Plexiglas, carbon fiber and roughly 16 feet of LEDs to light it up.” Eclectic Design Source, Libertyville, Ill., offers several of the AHdidit lamps for sale.

“Flashing any pipe or conduit with a typical field wrap is labor intensive,” says Jerry Beall, product manager of FiberTite® Roofing Systems, manufactured by Seaman Corp., Wooster, Ohio. “It takes special talent to pattern the base and collar, so that they tie together in a way that’s watertight.” New FiberTite Wrapid Flash™ pipe flashing installs quickly and produces stronger, better-looking seals around rooftop conduits and pipes. Because Wrapid Flash is injection molded in one piece, installers can be more confident that a roof exterior will resist penetration.

The FiberTite fabric treatment makes Wrapid Flash both flexible and strong. Densely packed polyester fiber with a proprietary knit design is coated with adhesive that encapsulates each yarn. An applied back coating is formulated to provide superior welding properties, allowing for cleaner, tighter seams. A face coat containing, among other ingredients, DuPont™ Elvaloy® resins, gives FiberTite products the chemical resistance and flexibility in all climates that allows roofs to make it for the long haul. An average roofer can install Wrapid Flash in approximately five minutes.

“In the United States, the average person discards 70 pounds of their old clothing, shoes and household textiles in their local landfill each year,” says Eric Stubin, chairman of the Council for Textile Recycling (CTR). The CTR, a nonprofit organization promoting post-consumer textile recycling, recently launched a website to educate the public on recycling all clothes and textiles, not just those that are “gently worn.” “Our goal is to have zero post-consumer textile waste going into landfills by 2037,” says Stubin, a far cry from today’s current 15 percent recycling rate for post-consumer textiles. The CTR effort involves consumers, manufacturers, charities, retailers and recyclers in its campaign to eliminate the more than 21 billion pounds of textile waste that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates are landfilled each year.

During the 2008-2009 recession, many U.S. textile mills went into the red for a few quarters. In 2011, “all of the anticipated textile and apparel profit numbers look to remain solidly in the black,” according to Robert S. Reichard, economic editor for textileworld.com. Earnings in 2011 have been dragged down by the increased cost of cotton, other fibers, transportation, chemicals and dyes, says Reichard, but he sees some upbeat signs for the future of American mills. These include reduced consumer debt loads, a recovery of U.S. net worth over the recent recession, low interest rates, new government stimulus moves and the “huge amount of cash U.S. firms are sitting on.” Exports from China are fractionally lower every year, as internal inflation and rising currency crimps Chinese competition for U.S. consumer dollars.

The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), an association of governments in cotton-producing countries, is projecting global cotton planting to contract by 8 percent and production to decrease by 6 percent to 25.1 million tons. The sharp decline in prices in 2011-2012, from recent record highs in 2010-2011, has made cotton a less attractive crop to farmers. Cotton production is expected to decline in most countries, with the exceptions of the U.S., Uzbekistan and Australia. Use of cotton mills is predicted to pick up in 2012-2013, assuming global economic recovery. The Committee forecasts global cotton mill use to rise by three percent in 2012-2013, which could fuel a rebound in world cotton trade and exports.

Printing Industries of America (PIA) recognizes graphic arts companies for outstanding human relations efforts that contribute to successful workplaces with the Best Workplace in The Americas awards. The 2011 awards went to 14 “Best of the Best” and 19 “Best Workplace” companies, which range in size from small businesses to multi-plant operations. “The program is an excellent way to give employers instituting innovative yet cost-effective HR programs the recognition they deserve,” says Jim Kyger, assistant vice president of HR for Printing Industries of America. The entries are judged using more than 300 metrics, and the criteria include management practices, work environment, training and development, recognition and rewards, workplace health and safety, health and wellness, financial security and work-life balance.

The International Textile Manufacturer’s Federation (ITMF) reports that global yarn production rose 12.1 percent in the second quarter of 2011, due to higher output by Asia and, in particular, China. While yarn production in Asia increased by 13.9 percent, all other regions decreased. Production fell 7.3 percent in South America, 6.5 percent in Europe and 3.1 percent in North America. Inventories of yarn grew by 21.2 percent, especially in Asia and South America, according to ITMF statistics. Compared with the previous quarter, global fabric production rose by 4.4 percent, led by Asia and South America. Estimates for yarn and fabric production in the third quarter of 2011 are negative or flat, with improvement expected in fourth quarter outputs.

Somfy Systems Inc., a leading manufacturer of radio-controlled motors for interior and exterior window coverings, was recently awarded a 2011 EXC!TE Award from Custom Retailer Magazine for its Total Home Automation System, TaHomA™. The innovative, Z-Wave®-based home automation solution allows consumers to control, schedule and supervise their Somfy-powered window coverings, lighting and thermostats; the system is accessible from any Internet-connected computer, iPad® or iPhone®, within or outside the home. The award was presented on Sept. 9 at the CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis, Ind.

What if clothes or bedding improved oxygen levels in the body, stimulated healing, improved athletic performance, balanced body temperature or improved the quality of sleep? Fibers, yarns and fabrics containing Celliant®, a patented technology developed by Hologenix LLC, Newport Beach, Calif., may help users recycle their own electromagnetic energy. Five clinical trials back up the company’s claims. The unique technology incorporates 13 optically responsive minerals, embedded into the core of the fibers, which modify visible and infrared light. These fibers can be knit or woven into fabrics and, when worn or placed near the body, oxygen levels are increased. Celliant absorbs and stores energy emissions from the human body and re-emits them back into muscle tissues. The technology is already incorporated into apparel by Adidas, Reebok, Saucony and Asics; bedding by Serta, Fabrictech, Ironman and Ambient; and veterinary products by Draper, Equipedic and Soar Pet Products.

Futureguard Building Products Inc., Auburn, Maine, recently added Landon Luiten to its sales team to increase sales of NuImage and Bel-Aire brand awnings in the western states. Luiten brings extensive experience in direct sales, installation and service of Futureguard awnings as a former dealer. He has a B.S. from Eastern Washington University.

Each year at the Exhibit Designers and Producers Association (EDPA) Annual Conference, the Hazel Hays Award is given to recognize significant contributions to the exhibit industry. Charlie Corsentino, chairman, president and CEO of Moss Inc., Chicago, Ill., won the 2011 award for his 20 years of leadership in the industry. Among Corsentino’s accomplishments, both before and after his appointment as Moss’s top executive in 2006, are introduction of experiential marketing; development of offerings such as EMAX foam-core, no-tool wall system, DEXZ aluminum-based deck system, EZ Fabric Wall System and EZ Interactive Wall; and “steadfast management through one of the toughest economic periods the exhibit industry has faced.”

Jorge Young has been with DAK Americas LLC, a Charlotte, N.C., producer of PET resins and polyester fibers, since it was first established in 2001. In January, he was named president and CEO of DAK Americas, building on his work to achieve tremendous growth in the company’s PET resin business. Young’s promotion follows the retirement of Hector Camberos, who plans to return to his native Argentina to assume leadership of DAK Americas’ Argentina PET business and initiatives of parent company Alfa S.A.B. de C.V. The DAK Americas executive team will also be expanded and changed to consolidate operations after a period of rapid growth.

Growing up in coastal South Carolina, Jamie Martin became an avid boater and fisherman, comfortable in marine environments. He has joined Safety Components Fabric Technologies Inc., Greenville, S.C., as sales and marketing representative for WeatherMax, an engineered polymer product for marine, awning and other outdoor fabricating markets. Martin holds a degree from Clemson University and previously managed customer service, sales and maintenance at a commercial landscaping company.

Specialty Fabrics Review | February 2012

A new wing at the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, N.C., makes unprecedented use of daylight through an unusual system, which provides even illumination free of shadows and without excessive ultraviolet light. The one-story building’s roof was covered with hundreds of identical skylights; below each skylight rests a polymer sheet cast with thousands of prisms that break up the light, and below the sheet rests a fabric ellipse that lets more or less light enter the building, depending on the fabric used. The project, fabricated by Transformit, called for more than 400 identically shaped ellipses to be installed below the prism sheets, but above the fiberglass coffers in the ceiling. Because no attachment is visible from below, the fabric panels are unseen except for their effect.

2011 IAA Award of Excellence

Specialty Fabrics Review | February 2012

Eventscape Inc. designed an aluminum-framed, undulating textile ribbon and several framed, textile ceiling panels, wall panels and light boxes for a client that requested a playful, creative office environment. The sinuous atrium ribbon was originally conceived as a metal element, but because the form was so complex to build, it would have required expensive tooling. Eventscape suggested the textile and frame option as a cost-effective solution. An open railing system on adjacent walls was devised to hang the ribbon and for fastening lighting. At both ends of the ribbon, curved aluminum sheet metal, powder-coated to match the textile, transitions into a metal bench. The ceiling panels of framed textile incorporated both cove lighting and down lights. For the central two light fixtures, a sheet metal light baffle was engineered, essentially creating a six-sided, frameless, luminous fabric light box.

Specialty Fabrics Review | February 2012

The architect’s design for a sports stadium was based on a roofing system with a clearspan of 85 by 42 meters with no internal support columns. Due to engineering requirements, the outside could not be fully enclosed and had to let wind blow through, but the client needed weather protection for the court surface. The only way to meet requirements, without compromising the structural integrity of the building, was to use fabric sails. Sail Structureshelped to develop a concept that included overlapping membrane sails attached under the main roof, which projected several meters outside the playing surface. Set at a 45-degree angle with the lowest point four meters above the ground, the sails allow wind to blow through, but protect the playing surface.