HeatSource Textiles Project crosses the Himalayas

October 20, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Projects

The Himalaya mountain range touches six countries, boasts the world’s highest peaks and drains into lands housing 1.3 billion people—many of them living in poverty and herding domestic animals for sustenance. One Earth Designs (OED), Cambridge, Mass., was formed by two college students t…
Read More
Bedding reduces MRSA infections

October 16, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Projects

Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacterial infections, usually acquired in hospitals, kill an estimated 50,000 people in Europe each year. A trans-European project team led by the University of Limerick, Ireland, received a three-year research grant to develop MRSA-resistant textil…
Read More
Child restraint adds injury protection

October 14, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Projects

Seat belts save childrens’ lives, but the impact of a severe frontal collision can place huge restraint pressure on a child’s chest. Researchers at the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), Barcelona, Spain, working with Applus + Technologies Inc., Chicago, Ill., have designed a texti…
Read More
The advantages of inflatable structures

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Fabric Structures, Features

Flexible and economical, air-supported structures fill multiple market niches. By Holly O’Dell When it comes to inflatable products, many people think of bouncy castles, parade floats or dancing tubes used for advertising. But the world of air-supported structures, or inflatables, extends far …
Read More
Wristwatch features embedded airbag

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Projects

[Yardstick Enterprise Co. Ltd.] Taipei, Taiwan Airbags save lives on the road and a Taiwanese inventor, who has embedded an airbag in a wristwatch, hopes they will do the same in the water. Water sports enthusiast Tseng Tze-Kui came up with the idea of the inflatable bag in a watch as a lightweight …
Read More
Fighting earthquake damage with fabric

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Industry News

A group of 27 companies in 13 countries is on a mission to research, develop and manufacture sensor-embedded textiles for use in geotechnical and masonry applications. The European Union partially funds POLYTECT (Polyfunctional Technical Textiles against Natural Hazards) to find technical textiles m…
Read More
DSM Biomedical expands advisory board

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Industry News

Science-based businesses need the best advice to ensure successful product research and development. DSM Biomedical, Geleen, The Netherlands, manufactures coatings and biomedical polymers used in drug delivery and implantable devices, and recently added substance to its Scientific Advisory Board wit…
Read More
Demand for disposable medical supplies to increase

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Industry News

Demand in the U.S. for disposable medical supplies will increase 4.6 percent annually to $59 billion in 2013, according to a new study from The Freedonia Group Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. The projected increase in disposable products follows concern about hospital infections, a rise in home health care a…
Read More
Dermatologists sponsor shade grants

October 7, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Awnings & Canopies, Industry News

Malignant melanoma, a skin cancer, is diagnosed each year in approximately 160,000 Americans, and overexposure to UV radiation (sunburn) in children is one of the biggest risk factors. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) awards grants of $8,000 to purchase permanent shade structures for daycar…
Read More
Getting approval to sell medical products in the U.S

September 1, 2009  |  Advanced Textiles, Resources

Compiled by Juli Case My company has developed a medical product that we’d like to introduce into the U.S. market. What do we have to do to get it certified? Products intended for medical use that are made out of textiles are usually classified as medical devices. The governing body for these …
Read More