Manufacturing for Good Booth volunteers sew bags for Raintree Children and Family Services
September 29th, 2017
Christine Gerard (left), IFAI division supervisor, and Whitney Armentor (right), Raintree Development Coordinator, are pictured at IFAI Expo 2017 in the Manufacturing for Good Booth. Several companies contributed supplies, equipment and labor to sew 70 large tote bags for young people who receive services at Raintree Children and Family Services. Raintree is a nonprofit that […]
How to inspire the next generation
September 29th, 2017
A critical issue in the textile industry is how to attract and inspire the next generation. North Carolina State University in Raleigh may have an answer: develop student/industry partnerships that solve real-life open-ended problems. During a presentation at EXPO, co-directors Jesse S. Jur and Russell E. Gorga, from the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and […]
Sewing a quality product depends on asking lots of questions
September 28th, 2017
Getting a contract sewing job is great, but making sure a customer’s needs align with one’s business capabilities is a key consideration. “Company fit” is all important, according to Chad Miller, director of contracting at American National Manufacturing. American National Manufacturing was started by Miller’s father in the 1970s. What began as a water bed […]
Tips for navigating social media madness
September 28th, 2017
“Post with a purpose,” says Sam Armijos of Fabric Architect LLC. “Understand that you’ll be wasting someone else’s time if you don’t have a purpose for posting.” Armijos presented a campfire session on “Social Media Madness” during IFAI Expo 2017 in New Orleans, La. Armijos shared some tips and tricks to help navigate social media […]
Understanding ITAR and export controls
September 28th, 2017
IFAI’s Advanced Textiles Conference in New Orleans began Tuesday in New Orleans with presentations organized into four tracks: Medical, Military, Testing and Smart Fabrics. The Military track covered a range of topics from protective materials to the DoD budget. It also addressed a critical topic for any company that exports beyond U.S. borders, or is […]
E-textiles experts field questions at IFAI Expo
September 28th, 2017
A group of trainblazers in the world of e-textiles offered ideas and fielded questions in a casual setting on IFAI’s EXPO show floor yesterday. Many of the audience were experts themselves, so the discussion was, one might say, among colleagues in this segment. Standards for smart textiles was on the minds of many. One audience […]
2017 Student Design Challenge Winners: Advanced Textiles
September 28th, 2017
Advanced Textile Products (ATP) and the Narrow Fabrics Institute (NFI), both divisions of IFAI, announced the winners of the 2017 Advanced Textiles Student Design Challenge during the IFAI Expo Awards Ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 28. This year’s challenge was to use textiles as a major component to design aerospace, medical, military, safety/protective or other wearable […]
Advanced Textiles Division membership growing
September 28th, 2017
The Advanced Textiles Division of the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) held an open meeting Tuesday at IFAI Expo. The division leadership announced that it is the fastest growing division at IFAI and has increased to 219 members – a significant jump in just the last year, said incoming chairman, Amit Kapoor. He credited the […]
2017 IFF Innovation Award winner announced at IFAI Expo
September 28th, 2017
The Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF) has announced the winner of the 2017 Innovation Award: UltraTech International Inc., Jacksonville, Fla., won this year in the category of “Chemicals, Coatings and Compounds” with the EverShield® C6 water-based fabric treatment. The company was awarded a prize of $5,000. EverShield was developed under a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) […]
This year’s Show Stopper winners
September 28th, 2017
All the best from New Orleans: Thursday morning at IFAI Expo led off with lists of winners for the year, including the most popular products on the show floor. The sixth annual Show Stopper competition was designed to showcase the best of the best in the industry, from fabrics, equipment and chemicals to services and […]