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Help wanted: the next generation of manufacturing workers
May 1st, 2018
The dearth of skilled labor is an increasingly common lament heard from manufacturers of all stripes. It’s not a sudden or inflated complaint. According to recent data provided by the Manufacturing Institute (the Institute, or MI), an affiliate of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) based in Washington, D.C., 364,000 manufacturing jobs are going unfilled. […]
Suited for speed
May 1st, 2018
The only naturally refrigerated bobsled track in the world, the Olympia Bob Run St. Moritz-Celerina, is located in Switzerland’s Engadine Valley. Dating back to 1904, it is also the world’s oldest track, built for vacationing British guests. In March, the local Cristal Da Glatsch club held a bobsled race to support the track. Racers were […]
A smarter jacket for first responders
May 1st, 2018
Smart technology offers endless practical applications, but its potential for first responders has lifesaving possibilities. The technology company Nokia, working with South Korean apparel company Kolon and Czech Republic software developer GINA, has introduced a prototype jacket for police, firefighters and other emergency responders. Called the CHASE (connected health and safety equipment) LifeTech FR (first […]
GOTS hosts U.S. roundtable
May 1st, 2018
The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) hosted a roundtable for the textile industry in Charleston, S.C., in February. The theme was “Making a Business Case for GOTS Certification.” These types of roundtables take place around the globe to help stakeholders define challenges and opportunities and to provide feedback to GOTS on specific sector or regional […]
The future is… comfy
May 1st, 2018
In the 1980s science fiction hit “Back to the Future,” Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) travels through time wearing a pair of high-flying, self-lacing Nike Air Mags. In real life, Nike produced 89 pairs of the techno sneakers in 2016 to benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research to the tune of $6.5 […]
Ascend Performance Materials supports its employees and communities
May 1st, 2018
After a tornado outbreak swept through northern Alabama in 2011, Ascend Performance Materials LLC sprang into action. The Houston, Texas-based company provided housing for employees from their Decatur facility who lost everything, and volunteers from the company helped with cleanup and rebuilding efforts. Out of that tragedy, it founded the Ascend Cares Foundation to support […]
Tracking supplier compliance for sustainable textile companies
May 1st, 2018
The issue of compliance can be complicated for textile companies, which have to comply with various regulatory and voluntary company standards for product safety and restriction of substances. In the United States, for example, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) contains provisions that aim to improve the safety of children’s products. The European Union […]
Tradition and transition
May 1st, 2018
Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire. ~ Gustav Mahler I can’t help but date myself if I tell you that when I started working at IFAI in 1988, staff were still allowed to smoke in the office, we had a fax machine that was so large it had its […]
Mike, Joe and Dan Reilly: leadership transition for Miami Awning
May 1st, 2018
"A lot of what I’ve accomplished in this industry was about survival—being able to have what I need to get the job done,” says Mike Reilly, owner and CEO of Miami Awning Co. in Miami, Fla. “Now, my aim is to convey what knowledge I can to my sons to make it easier for them […]
Insulating fabric, or polar bear pelt?
May 1st, 2018
Polar bears have a thick pelt that keeps them warm in the arctic environment even when temperatures average -40°F during the winter months. Scientists at China’s Zhejiang University College of Chemical and Biological Engineering studied the microstructure and thermal insulation qualities of the polar bear’s coat and have developed a fiber that mimics it. The […]