Agricultural waste from banana and pineapple, which are eco-friendly and are found in abundance in Philippines, can be used as alternative materials for production of home textiles, apparels, non-woven and industrial fabrics and upholsteries.
Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) Philippine Textile Research Institute’s (PTRI) researcher Nora Mangalindan presented the findings of her research at a recent forum.
PTRI aims to help the domestic textile and allied industries in attaining global competitiveness through use of indigenous resources and by enhancing their technical competence in production of textiles and quality assurance.
According to the research, pineapple plantations span on almost 59,000 hectares in Philippines, with majority of them being in Northern Mindanao, Davao Del Norte, Western Visayas, Davao region and Eastern Visayas. This can yield 55,483 tons of pineapple fibre.
Read entire post Textile applications for pineapple and banana waste explored @ Fibre2fashion
The response to Texprocess Source it! has been very good: over 60 contract manufacturers have signed up to make presentations at the sourcing area of Texprocess, the new leading international trade fair for processing textiles and other flexible materials in Frankfurt am Main from 24 to 27 May 2011. The exhibitors are national pavilions and production companies from Egypt, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Italy, Lithuania, Lesotho, Kenya, Columbia, Mauritius, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Tunisia, Turkey and Vietnam. The focus of the presentations will be on technical expertise and the sourcing situation in the individual countries.
For Detlef Braun, Member of the Board of Management of Messe Frankfurt, this is a great success. “Particularly against the background of the upheavals taking place in the procurement markets, we offer the apparel industry access to future-oriented markets via the contract manufacturers from Eastern Europe, Africa and Latin America represented at Source it!. The idea of generating synergies with a sourcing platform at a technology fair has borne fruit.”
Messe Frankfurt offers an opportunity to make optimum preparations for Source it! with an online platform called i-tex – apparel sourcing system. Before the fair, fashion companies can research into which companies are of interest to them on the internet.
To do so, they only have to register free of cost with the i-tex online portal and complete a profile outlining, inter alia, which products they want to have made, i.e., men’s wear, women’s wear, children’s wear, sportswear, home textiles, etc. They then receive a list of companies that match their criteria. Hence, they can get in touch with the contract manufacturers concerned and make appointments with them before leaving for the fair. The contract manufacturers taking part in Source it! also create a profile for the business platform.
In view of growing demand for skin-friendly textiles and hence the increase in demand for Oeko-Tex Standard 100, Hohenstein India Pvt. Ltd. organized an information seminar on Oeko-Tex certification on 2nd February 2011 at Hotel Lords Plaza, Surat.
Entrepreneurs, Managers from QC and Marketing departments of the textile industry, garment and accessory manufacturing units, dyes & chemical companies etc. had assembled and took an active participation in this program.
Oeko-Tex Standard 100 is a product certification that concentrates on human ecology part of textile processing and products. The Oeko-Tex label contains the wording- Confidence in Textiles- Tested for harmful substances. This provides peace of mind to consumers and is an active decision making tool for a large number of overseas buyers.
Hohenstein India Pvt. Ltd. is a subsidiary of Hohenstein Institutes, Germany and the official representative of International Oeko-Tex Association in India. Hohenstein is a research institute having versatile facilities for testing, evaluation, research, inspection, auditing, certification etc. for a wide range of products and services in Textiles like fibres, garments, home-textiles, accessories, dyes/chemicals, technical textiles etc.
The basic objective behind organising this seminar was to create more awareness about the standard, its importance, benefits etc; giving the correct information to the participants and clearing doubts. The seminar also spread information about various services provided by Hohenstein mentioned above.
Marimekko is expanding its distribution and reinforcing its position in the United States by extending its collaboration with Crate and Barrel, a prestigious home furnishings retailer. According to the contract which was signed on 3 February 2011, Crate and Barrel plans to open 22 new Marimekko shop-in-shops by the end of the year 2013.
Crate and Barrel will have exclusive rights to retail Marimekko interior decoration products in the US and Canada in the home specialty and department store chain category; these exclusive rights will not apply to clothes, bags or accessories. In addition to furnishing products imported from Finland, the product range for Crate and Barrel’s stores will also include Marimekko products made under licence such as bedding and bath textiles.
In October 2010, Crate and Barrel opened a Marimekko shop-in-shop in its SoHo store in New York City. The first four of the new shop-in-shops will be opened this spring: on Madison Avenue in New York as well as in Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The shops’ range focuses on interior decoration products, including home textiles, ceramics and glassware, and some bags and accessories will also be on sale. Crate and Barrel will also open an online shop specialising in Marimekko products within its website in the spring, making available a comprehensive range.
Consolidated Fibers is expanding geographically with the launch of Consolidated Fibers Latinoamericana, based in Mexico City. The subsidiary will initially sell polyester textured filament and flat yarn into the Mexican market.
Work is already underway to expand the product offering to include polyester, rayon, polypropylene and other staple fibers for nonwovens, fiberfill and industrial end uses. Consolidated Fibers Latinoamericana also plans to serve customers in Central and South America once established in Mexico.
A signature feature of the new company is its ability to satisfy order quantities ranging from one box of filament yarn for small customers up to full truckloads for larger customers.
“Customer service is what sets Consolidated Fibers Latinoamericana apart. A team of individuals with more than 70 years of experience will provide local sales and technical service to our clients. Understanding the product, processing and logistical needs of our customers improves the value equation for them by saving time and money”, says General Manager, Paul Latten. Consolidated Fibers Latinoamericana has also developed a Spanish language website as another convenient option to connect with customers in Latin America.
Consolidated Fibers is a privately held company with a 50-year history as a producer, buyer, seller and consumer of fibers. Today, we are a leading fiber supplier to manufacturers across a range of industries - including hygiene, medical, filtration, automotive, furniture, home textiles, and more.
