Top trade challenges and opportunities in 2021

July 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

The list of trade issues facing Washington policy makers in 2021 is long and complex. How these issues will be addressed affects a range of industries, and the textile industry is no exception. With member companies driving innovation in materials essential to health care, advanced technologies and …
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A giant leap for technical textiles

July 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

The International Achievement Awards (IAAs) began in 1946 as a photo contest for awning and canopy projects, and 75 years later, the program continues to honor exceptional work in those fields. But as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the IAAs in 2021, we can marvel at the wide range of projects …
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DITF celebrates 100 years of textile innovation

June 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

The German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research (DITF) is the largest textile research center in Europe, with roots that go back 100 years to the first German Research Institute for the Textile Industry, established in Reutlingen in 1921. As the institute expanded to additional locations in Stut…
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Electric and solar vehicles drive the future of automotive textiles

May 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

Recent reports illuminate key factors that will influence the automotive textiles segment in the future. Most notably, the automotive lightweight material market is expected to reach $247 billion by 2026, according to Global Market Insights Inc.
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Responsive textiles: The future of athleisurewear

May 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

Most of us still can’t (realistically) answer the siren song of working in pajamas. However, we’re certainly becoming au fait with the comfortable, functional clothing that can help us power through long, testing days at an essential workplace or hours of Zoom meetings for those working from hom…
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Hemp on the horizon

March 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

COVID-19 has upended a way of life that we may have taken for granted. With the economy suffering as a result, and with the need to create growth and employment, the manufacturing sector has its work cut out for it. Effective use of resources, reviving the manufacturing sector and enabling self-suff…
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Commercial viability boosts the visibility of wearable technology

January 1, 2021  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

In the midst of the reworking of so many segments of the textile industry due to the pandemic, one market segment that has been able to stay focused on the basics of what it does is e-textiles, including conductive fibers and yarns. This technology is no longer just an interesting experiment but has…
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Textiles and 3D technology

December 1, 2020  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

The advent of 3D printing (3DP) has drawn considerable interest from academia, industry and amateur hobbyists as a novel method of producing objects layer-by-layer (LbL) via a bottom-up manufacturing approach. This method of “additive” manufacturing (used interchangeably with the term 3DP) build…
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Breakthroughs in advanced textiles: 3D printed mesh, antiviral jacket and more

November 1, 2020  |  Advanced Textiles, Markets

3D-printed flexible mesh Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have designed pliable 3D-printed mesh materials with the flexibility and toughness to be tuned to emulate and support softer tissues such as muscles and tendons. With the ability to tailor the intricate structures in eac…
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The pandemic is driving more sustainable PPE

November 1, 2020  |  Advanced Textiles

by Debra Cobb From community masks and health workers’ kits, to hospital gowns, drapes and wraps, disposable personal protective equipment (PPE) is playing a critical role in the battle against COVID-19 infections. But now there is a mountain of disposable PPE that’s creating a whole new set of …
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