TEXTILES.ORG
Arlon announces social media contest
April 6th, 2015
Arlon Graphics LLC has launched #PrintItWrapIt, a social media photo contest focusing on Arlon’s digital films for applications including exterior and interior wall wraps and full and partial vehicle wraps. The company invites its social media followers and customers to submit high-resolution photos of their work featuring one of the above applications for a chance […]
IFAI seeking candidates for board of directors
April 3rd, 2015
Applications due May 25 The IFAI Leadership Development Committee is seeking candidates for the following positions on the IFAI Board of Directors: first vice chairman (two-year term); second vice chairman (two-year term); and two director positions (three-year terms). Contact Cherie Schmit at +1 651 225 6985 or 800 225 4324 to obtain an application. Candidates […]
An awning of a different color
April 2nd, 2015
Carrying the load: Framed awnings and tensile awnings must meet different engineering and code standards. Erik Jarvie, structural engineer and sales manager for TensionStructures (a division of Eide Industries Inc., Cerritos, Calif.) lays it out straight on the curvy business of tensile awnings: “Tensile awnings typically have fabric that is under a significant amount of […]
IFF Innovation Award entries due June 6
April 2nd, 2015
Winners will be featured at IFAI Expo 2015 Presented annually by the Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF), the Innovation Award aims to encourage companies around the globe to not only develop fresh, creative ideas, but to make them happen. Companies within every market segment of the specialty fabrics industry are invited to submit their stories of […]
SBA to offer free webinar on supply chain disaster preparedness
April 2nd, 2015
Strategies and best practices for engaging suppliers, vendors and partners. The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), along with co-sponsor Agility Recovery, will host a free webinar titled “Disaster Preparedness & Your Supply Chain” on April 7 from 2 to 3 p.m. EST. The discussion will focus on proactive steps companies can take to mitigate the […]
Forethought: The division of labor
April 1st, 2015
The recent “Manufacturing and Distribution Outlook” report from CliftonLarsonAllen LLP includes the results of a national survey of manufacturers about the goal of “continuous improvement” over the next 12 months. Forty percent listed cost reduction; 20 percent chose increasing capacity; 19 percent listed quality; followed by 8 percent for ontime delivery, 3 percent for inventory […]
Capturing philanthropy
April 1st, 2015
Janet Echelman’s large-scale, aerial creations of thread have captured attention worldwide, so when the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in Seattle, Wash., wanted a sculpture that expressed the spirit of the foundation and established the center of its new global campus, Echelman got the commission. Her permanent installation, “Impatient-Optimist,” delicately floats between two buildings, changing […]
Path to success
April 1st, 2015
FiberTect® illustrates a successful strategy for commercializing a new technology. By Seshadri Ramkumar, Ph.D. “Applied research deserves Nobel prizes,” proclaimed the editorial of Nature Materials in January 2010. Although the Nobels are known to be rewarded only to basic discoveries, there are plenty of examples to showcase rewarding research of applied nature—for example, the 2014 […]
At face value
April 1st, 2015
Despite the hype, it isn’t all about social media. By Lena Hewitt Contrary to popular belief, social media isn’t the only way to communicate with the masses. Ed Keller, CEO of the Keller Fay Group LLC, explains why good, old-fashioned face-to-face communication is still king when it comes to marketing. Given the sheer number of […]
Behind the curves
April 1st, 2015
Tensile structures add exciting new dimensions —and distinct engineering challenges— to the commercial shade products market. It could be said, like the mythical Greek lion-goat-snake beast the chimera, that the tensile awning is a creature of blended ancestors. Not long ago, structures with tensile fabric characteristics started appearing in places often reserved for framed awnings […]