2014 IFF Innovation Awards recognize four top entries

November 24, 2014  |  Industry News

The Innovation Award is presented annually by the Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF) to one exemplary company for an entry that is distinctive from other products currently manufactured or processes in use; benefits the specialty fabrics industry or consumer; is practical; and is cost-effective. Th…
Read More
Game Changer boot wins Outdoor Life accolades

November 24, 2014  |  Industry News

Rocky Boots’ Rocky Athletic Mobility Game Changer has been named an Editor’s Choice among knee-high boots by Outdoor Life magazine. Featuring a liquefied-polyether upper that is thinner than most rubber boots, the boots weigh less than 1.5 pounds each and fit more like athletic footwear than …
Read More
Sigmatex selects South Carolina plant site

November 24, 2014  |  Industry News

Carbon-fiber-textile maker Sigmatex has selected Matthews Industrial Park in Orangeburg County. S.C., as the location for its next facility, which is expected to be in operation by mid-2015. The company will invest $12 million and create 50 jobs over the next five years. Sigmatex will be the first c…
Read More
Owens Corning release free fabrics guide app

November 21, 2014  |  Industry News

Orlando-based Owens Corning has released a U.S. version of its Technical Fabrics Guide app for industrial, marine and transportation applications. The free app, which was launched in Europe in March, has been updated for the U.S. market and is available for both Apple and Android mobile devices. The…
Read More
Settlement announced in weight-loss shapewear claims

November 20, 2014  |  Industry News

Trade Commission (FTC) charges that slimming claims for their caffeine-infused products were false and not substantiated by scientific evidence. The proposed orders settling the FTC’s complaints bar Norm Thompson Outfitters Inc., and Wacoal America Inc., from making false and unsubstantiated claim…
Read More
Keynotes offer overviews

November 10, 2014  |  Industry News

Keynote addresses at IFAI’s Advanced Textiles Expo offered an impressive amount of critical information for participants in a variety of advanced textiles markets. Dr. Behnam Pourdeyhimi of North Carolina State University’s Nonwovens Institute discussed how nonwovens have developed from mostly d…
Read More
NILIT to purchase INVISTA plant

November 7, 2014  |  Industry News

NILIT, manufacturer of nylon 6.6 for thermoplastics and apparel applications, has signed an agreement to acquire INVISTA’s Americana, Brazil, manufacturing site and will continue the site’s nylon 6.6 operations. The parties expect the transaction to close in the fourth quarter of 2014 pending r…
Read More
TMI acquired by River Associates

November 7, 2014  |  Industry News

TMI International LLC (TMI), a Pittsburgh-based supplier of workplace environmental management systems and PVC-based products, has been acquired by private-equity firm River Associates Investments LLC of Chattanooga, Tenn. TMI makes products and solutions designed to improve work safety, cleanliness…
Read More
Designing for failure prevention

November 6, 2014  |  Industry News

As C.S. Lewis would have it, “Failures are finger posts on the road to achievement.” Haskell Beckham of the scientific and engineering consulting firm Exponent Inc. likely would agree. Speaking on “Failure Analysis of Industrial Fabrics and Design for Failure Prevention” as part of the 2014 …
Read More
SBI secures license for Unequal’s military-grade protection

November 5, 2014  |  Industry News

SBI Inc.—a supplier of armor, apparel and accessories to the military, government and police—has signed a worldwide exclusive agreement with Unequal Technologies Co. to launch the EXO Skeleton line of tactical protective apparel and equipment. A military-grade version of Unequal’s patented…
Read More