Busy times for technical textiles
The second quarter was a busy period for the global technical textile sector, according to a report entitled ‘Global Technical Textiles Business Update, Second Quarter 2008’, available from Research and Markets.
It reveals that synthetic turf supplier Edel Grass was taken over by TenCate and Oranjewoud while Dow Chemical acquired the intellectual property assets of Advanced Design Concepts (ADC). The Staple Fibres business unit of Xentrys agreed to buy the polypropylene and polyethylene staple fibres business of Propilan in Spain.
In business news, DSM won claims against Armor USA after alleging that the latter infringed the Dyneema trademark by using the brand name Unima. It was decided that Techtextil North America (TTNA) will be staged annually and its venue will alternate between Atlanta, Georgia, and a site in the Western region of the USA.
In investment news, Hyosung has started to make Creora elastane (spandex) fibre at its new factory in Cerkezkoy, Turkey. In China, Toray has begun to make spunbondmeltblown- spunbond nonwovens at Toray Polytech Nantong (TPN), a joint venture between Toray Saehan, Toray Industries and Toray Industries (China). Unilever Ventures is investing in ion-mask plasma-based technology, developed by P2i, which helps to create waterproof breathable surfaces.
Markets for nonwovens and technical textiles in India are forecast to grow by 13.3% per annum between 2005 and 50, according to Texas Tech University.
According to the report, the Institute of Nanotechnology predicts that nano-based products and processes will be worth $4.9 billion to the textile industry by 2015. Also, about 25% of textile products available in 2015 will incorporate some form of nanotechnology.
