April 2010 Issue

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Features

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Markets

  • Installation of the turn system had little impact on regular landfill operations. Photo: Mike Ayers, Closure Turf LLC.

    Clearing a landfill impasse

    Synthetic turf system shows benefits beyond efficient erosion control.

  • Awnings that handle the snow

    We had a lot of snow this winter, and now I have a customer who wants an awning that can ‘handle’ snow without collapsing or that can even melt snow. Do those things exist?

  • Geotextiles protect shipwrecks from shipworms

    Approximately 100 shipwrecked vessels in the Baltic Sea are infested with shipworms, a species of bivalve mussel often called the “termites of the sea” because they break down wood structures immersed in water.

  • When alpine skier Lindsey Vonn reached the end of her gold-medal downhill run, family members greeted her with a Vonntastic banner. Photo: Banner Creations.

    Eco-friendly banners tout support for Lindsey Vonn

    More than 3.5 billion people worldwide tuned into the 2010 Olympic Winter Games during 17 magical days in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

  • Photo: NASA/Sean Smith

    Researchers test expandable cushion to lessen crash force

    NASA aeronautics researchers at Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., recently dropped a MD-500 U.S. Army helicopter from a height of 35 feet (simiulating a relatively severe crash) to see whether an expandable honeycomb cushion called a deployable energy absorber could lessen the destructive force of a crash.

  • Disposable protection suit made of spunbound nonwovens

    High-performance protection garments from Unitika are made with a soft and breathable laminated material that uses the company’s unique technology for construction of spunbond nonwovens.

  • Testing results (available from UMF Corp.) show that PerfectClean AM wipes eliminate 99 percent of infectious pathogens in less than five minutes, while the same result with standard microfiber wipes may take hours. Photo: UMF Corp.

    Antimicrobial wipes fight bacteria, viruses and fungi

    Experts estimate that one of ten hospitalized patients acquires an infection, despite scrupulous cleaning and infection control measures in health-care facilities.

  • Military hospitals on ship and shore need privacy curtains; the Cubicle Curtain Factory landed more than $159,000 in military contracts from 2000-2008. Photos: Cubicle Curtain Factory.

    Privacy curtains featured in Hollywood

    The Cubicle Curtain Factory, West Palm Beach, Fla., continues its quest to bring privacy and cost savings to health care facilities with its Simply 66 curtains.

  • AWP training and safety

    A new educational document will clarify what is required for general training and model-specific familiarization of aerial work platform (AWP) equipment.

  • Global Rental Alliance meets

    The Global Rental Alliance held its eighth annual meeting in February in Orlando, Fla.

  • Cold-climate tent enables remote polar research

    A custom-built, modular, shelter system, the RacTent was developed specifically for the support of scientific research in remote polar regions.

  • On February 5th, 50 scouts from the West Department International Scouts of Haiti worked alongside the 82nd Airborne and set up 70 tents in four hours for the displaced earthquake survivors in the Palace East, central Port Au Prince. Photos: ShelterBox.

    Earthquake survivors find shelter in tents

    Earthquake survivors struggling to find food, water and shelter in Jacmel, an area in southern Haiti, received 250 boxes from an organization founded by the Rotarians.

  • World Cup fans to be tented

    South Africa hosts the World Cup soccer tournament in 2010 and expects to be inundated in June and July by die-hard fans cheering on their home teams.

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News

  • AWP training and safety

    A new educational document will clarify what is required for general training and model-specific familiarization of aerial work platform (AWP) equipment.

  • Global Rental Alliance meets

    The Global Rental Alliance held its eighth annual meeting in February in Orlando, Fla.

  • AATCC, ASTM test methods workshop

    AATCC’s Introduction to Textile Testing Workshop will cover tests of physical properties published by ASTM International, as well as performance tests published by AATCC.

  • World Cup fans to be tented

    South Africa hosts the World Cup soccer tournament in 2010 and expects to be inundated in June and July by die-hard fans cheering on their home teams.

  • ASTM subcommittee takes up reinforcement

    Changes in reinforcing fibers and fabrics for tires, belts, flaps, floor mats, hoses, pipes, tarps and concrete have spurred changes in how the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) evaluates standards for those and other items.

  • ITMF reports textile industry rebound

    The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF), a Switzerland-based industry group, has confirmed the recovery of textile industries in China, India and Brazil following the global recession.

  • In memoriam: Curtis J. Leslie

    Curtis J. Leslie, age 58, a longtime contributor and supporter of IFAI’s Automotive Materials Association and 20-year employee for Ford Motor Co., died February 2, 2010.

  • Expanded workspace at A&R Tarpaulins Inc.

    Even during a lingering recession, it’s business as usual for A&R Tarpaulins Inc., which recently expanded its facilities in Fontana, Calif.

  • New Itochu president wants China-ready staff

    Employees hired at the Japanese trading company Itochu Corp., Tokyo, Japan, will spend their first year on the job in China studying the language, and in the U.S. learning business fundamentals.

  • Printing with nanotechnology-based inks

    Xennia Technology, a subsidiary of Royal Ten Cate, Almelo, The Netherlands, recently demonstrated a process of printing with nanotechnology-based inks that add function to textile substrates.

  • Hungary’s Szefo patents antibacterial fabric

    Szefo, a nationally-owned textile firm that employs primarily disabled workers, collaborated with the Szeged University of Sciences, Szeged, Hungary, to develop an antibacterial fabric incorporating silver nanotechnology.

  • Fiberweb and Chisso: opportunities in China

    Specialty nonwovens, such as new-generation spunbond and spunmelt fabrics used for hygiene and personal care, will continue to be a strong market.

  • Gale Pacific recruits Scuncio

    To extend the reach of its architectural shade cloth, commercial netting and engineered fabrics business in the western U.S., Gale Pacific USA Inc., Altamonte Springs, Fla., has created a new sales management position and appointed Jonathan Scuncio to the role.

  • Mekenkamp joins Heytex Group

    Arnoud Mekenkamp brings almost 20 years of experience working with large-format printing media to his new role as product division manager for Heytex Technical Textiles, Bramsche, Germany.

  • New leadership for Genesis Plastics

    Dolph Smith, president of Genesis Plastics Welding, Fortville, Ind., has announced his retirement in June 2010; Tom Ryder, currently chief operating officer, will assume the leadership role of president and CEO.

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Products

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Business

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Projects

  • Photo: NASA/Sean Smith

    Researchers test expandable cushion to lessen crash force

    NASA aeronautics researchers at Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., recently dropped a MD-500 U.S. Army helicopter from a height of 35 feet (simiulating a relatively severe crash) to see whether an expandable honeycomb cushion called a deployable energy absorber could lessen the destructive force of a crash.

  • Cold-climate tent enables remote polar research

    A custom-built, modular, shelter system, the RacTent was developed specifically for the support of scientific research in remote polar regions.

  • Disposable protection suit made of spunbound nonwovens

    High-performance protection garments from Unitika are made with a soft and breathable laminated material that uses the company’s unique technology for construction of spunbond nonwovens.

  • Space is the final frontier in the VCU Brandcenter, where padded tent walls create an intimate conference room as easily as a large exhibit hall. Photos: VCU Brandcenter.

    Fabric walls enable customization of classroom space

    A historic, three-story brick carriage house at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, Va., needed updating, repair and an image makeover to attract graduate students in advertising and media.

  • The Stedelijk Museum’s 1895 building receives a modern facelift this spring, when an expanded home for the museum’s 60,000 works of art debuts with an extension made of para-aramid/carbon fibers. Photo: Stedelijk Museum, Benthem Crouwel Architekten.

    Museum gets makeover with hybrid para-aramid and carbon fibers

    Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, the Netherlands, a municipal modern art museum, closed in 2008 to launch a major makeover—including a futuristic building extension built from hybrid para-aramid and carbon fibers.

  • Testing results (available from UMF Corp.) show that PerfectClean AM wipes eliminate 99 percent of infectious pathogens in less than five minutes, while the same result with standard microfiber wipes may take hours. Photo: UMF Corp.

    Antimicrobial wipes fight bacteria, viruses and fungi

    Experts estimate that one of ten hospitalized patients acquires an infection, despite scrupulous cleaning and infection control measures in health-care facilities.

  • Military hospitals on ship and shore need privacy curtains; the Cubicle Curtain Factory landed more than $159,000 in military contracts from 2000-2008. Photos: Cubicle Curtain Factory.

    Privacy curtains featured in Hollywood

    The Cubicle Curtain Factory, West Palm Beach, Fla., continues its quest to bring privacy and cost savings to health care facilities with its Simply 66 curtains.

  • Wayfinding towers at the 2010 Winter Olympics used backlit graphics and cycling LED lights to guide visitors to the Vancouver event sites. Photos: Rainier Industries Ltd.

    Fabric towers guide Olympic visitors

    Each destination at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver featured a 40-foot wayfinding tower changing from red to white to blue, showing visitors the way to Cypress Mountain, Whistler Olympic Park, BC Place and nine other competition venues.

  • When alpine skier Lindsey Vonn reached the end of her gold-medal downhill run, family members greeted her with a Vonntastic banner. Photo: Banner Creations.

    Eco-friendly banners tout support for Lindsey Vonn

    More than 3.5 billion people worldwide tuned into the 2010 Olympic Winter Games during 17 magical days in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

  • On February 5th, 50 scouts from the West Department International Scouts of Haiti worked alongside the 82nd Airborne and set up 70 tents in four hours for the displaced earthquake survivors in the Palace East, central Port Au Prince. Photos: ShelterBox.

    Earthquake survivors find shelter in tents

    Earthquake survivors struggling to find food, water and shelter in Jacmel, an area in southern Haiti, received 250 boxes from an organization founded by the Rotarians.

  • Geotextiles protect shipwrecks from shipworms

    Approximately 100 shipwrecked vessels in the Baltic Sea are infested with shipworms, a species of bivalve mussel often called the “termites of the sea” because they break down wood structures immersed in water.

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Resources

  • Awnings that handle the snow

    We had a lot of snow this winter, and now I have a customer who wants an awning that can ‘handle’ snow without collapsing or that can even melt snow. Do those things exist?

Back to Top