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Making the most of Expo 2022
October 1st, 2022
If you are attending IFAI Expo 2022 this month in Charlotte, N.C., welcome. For more than 100 years, Expo has been the place where industry stakeholders and leaders connect, learn and make purchases to grow their businesses. This year promises to be even better. You’ll learn new strategies and hear from your peers who may […]
Inflatable stretcher secures patients
October 1st, 2022
With fold-up sides, a head immobilizer and built-in straps, the stretcher securely wraps patients in comfort and protects them from falling. Photos: Shih Chien University An industrial design student at Shih Chien University in Taiwan has invented an inflatable stretcher made of reinforced vinyl to securely hold a patient immobile while being transported. This is […]
A new use for waste wool
October 1st, 2022
Woola’s Bubble Wool performs like plastic wraps, and is biodegradable. Woola, a startup based in Estonia, has found a way to use waste wool to replace the plastic used in packaging. In a previous incarnation as an e-commerce business, the company relied on plastic packaging made of fossil fuels. But ecologists say plastic is not […]
Silicone synthetic leather for cars
October 1st, 2022
A cutaway view of Sage-ONF’s silicone synthetic leather product. Photos: Sage-ONF Sage-ONF, a synthetic leather supplier based in Shanghai, China, has begun manufacturing silicone synthetic leather, a petroleum-free, non-carbon-based product solution for today’s automobile interiors. Automotive interiors must be tough enough to tackle mile after mile with a super resilient resistance to extreme temperatures. Tested […]
An acoustic vest
October 1st, 2022
The Pneumo.Vest uses multiple built-in acoustic sensors located on both sides of the garment. The stethoscope has been used by medical professionals for more than 200 years, giving instant audio feedback on a patient’s lungs, heart or other organs. Researchers of the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS in Berlin, Germany, have developed […]
Copper-based medical garments
October 1st, 2022
Swiss Precision says its copper and natural patented materials in scrubs and other medical gear will kill or slow the spread of microorganisms. Photo: Swiss Precision Swiss Precision, an apparel brand for the medical scrub, uniform and accessories markets, hopes to disrupt the medical sector with antimicrobial copper-based garments and accessories. Swiss Precision describes […]
New life for an abandoned mill
October 1st, 2022
Company owner Deanna Hodges cuts the ribbon to open the renamed Sparty Mill as some of her employees look on. Photo: Devin Steele, eTextileCommunications A new cut-and-sew manufacturing operation, called Sparty Mill, has opened in Lincoln County, N.C., as part of a plan to revive an old mill building. The mill, built in 1905, had previously […]
Bio-Based Spandex
October 1st, 2022
Hyosung TNC has developed the world’s first spandex products derived from corn rather than petroleum products. Photo: Hyosung TNC Hyosung TNC, one of the world’s largest spandex manufacturers, has created the world’s first bio-based spandex. Called Creora Bio-Based, the spandex uses a natural material extracted from corn instead of coal, and obtained a global eco-friendly […]
Glove senses and grips objects
October 1st, 2022
Chanhong Lee and Ravi Tutika test the Octa-Glove in the lab of Michael Bartlett. Photo: Alex Parrish/Virginia Tech. Scientists at Virginia Tech have developed a glove for grasping things underwater with rubber suckers and a sophisticated sensing capability that mimics an octopus’s unique muscular and nervous systems. The octopus is well equipped to handle objects […]
3D printed shoe adapts to ergonomics
October 1st, 2022
In a reinterpretation of classic shoe design, German design studio Wertel Oberfell’s Auxetic Wear is a 3D printed shoe that uses an auxetic structure to adapt itself to the ergonomics of its wearer’s foot. Combining traditional shoemaking with modern technology, the designers emulate techniques from classic craftsmanship to devise a design that displays a stitched […]