Textile Insight

November/December 2017 ~ Textile Insight • 11 textileinsight.com Katana-based garments are designed for hot weather – both hot and dry and hot and tropical, because of its open structure, evaporative cooling, low water gain, and quick dry time. on the industry, but on the consumer market as well." O Gore Military Fabrics Debuts New Offering At the recent Association of the United States Army's (AUSA) 2017 annual meeting, Gore Military Fabrics previewed its new Katana fabric, a high- tech material Arc'teryx LEAF uses in the lightweight combat uniforms designed for special operations forces. The tex- tile features Gore Katana, a 5.3-ounce, No Melt/No Drip Nylon-Cotton-ePTFE blended weave. Katana represents a major shift from W.L. Gore's traditional Gore-Tex products. Cheryl Booth, a product specialist at W.L. Gore, describes Katana as a highly breathable, lightweight, fast-drying, durable fabric that blends 37.5 percent nylon, 37.5 percent cotton and 25 per- cent ePTFE. The combination makes the Katana fabric much more effective than 50/50 nylon-cotton blend found in many military uniforms, Booth said. With the Katana weave, "we have removed weight and our fiber is hydro- phobic — so it won't gain moisture, so it won't gain weight … so it will dry faster and that is super important," Booth maintains. "Reducing the weight of the fabric has opened up the struc- ture, so now it's air permeable," she said. "It takes less than a second for water to move through this system where it takes almost a minute for a water drop to move through nylon/cotton blend," adds Booth. O DuPont Teijin Films Intros FR Product Recent reports have predicted growth rates over seven percent per year in flame retardant polymer usage, driven by more stringent fire safety requirements in the construction, automotive and other industries. A new class of flame retardant PET polyester films from DuPont Teijin Films promises to help designers in the industrial, transportation, construction, electronics and label industries provide improved safety at low cost. The halogen-free, clear Melinex FR2XX series of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) films combines the inherent polyester film properties with the VTM-0 flame rating certified by UL's UL 94 flame classification testing. "Traditional PET polyester films are well-known for their performance and reliability characteristics, and this new film type has combined those properties with the highly desired VTM-0 certification," said Scott Gordon, business development manager, DuPont Teijin Films. "We have worked closely with key customers to develop a clear flame retardant film that meets the needs of several industry segments." Some commercial polymer film types offer inherent flame retardance, but often at a price point of up to 30 times higher than PET films. Meanwhile, most PET polyester films are known for their physical durability, chemical resistance and low water absorption, but with typical flame classification ratings at only the VTM-2 level. Consequently, PET polyester films have been used in a limited range of applications, or in some cases the PET polyester film's flame retardance was achieved through the use of expensive specialty adhesives, or through halogen containing film additives which are no longer permitted in many industries. O Invista Photoa: iinvista.com/en/brands/lycra.html, invista.com/en/apparel/index.html FIBERVISIONS RECENTLY COMMEMORATED 50 years of business at its Covington, GA location. In 1967 Hercules Incorporated, which provided polypropylene fibers to the carpet and upholstery industries, built the fibers plant near Dalton, GA – at that time known as the Carpet Capital of the World. In the early 1980s, Hercules' focus shifted to staple fibers for the hygienic and industrial markets. The Hercules Fibers group formed a joint venture in 1997 with the Danaklon Group of Danish company Jacob Holm & Sons, becoming FiberVisions; and was acquired by Indorama Ventures Limited in 2012. The facility currently employs 230 people and has capacity to produce 180 million pounds of olefin- based fibers per year. Tom Zaiser, FiberVisions CEO, notes, "The manufacture of synthetic fibers has a long and proud history in the United States, particularly in the Southeast. Companies such as FiberVisions and our Covington plant continue to thrive in today's global marketplace through innovative technology, cutting-edge manufacturing facilities, superior customer service, and a dedicated team of employees." O FiberVisions Celebrates 50th Anniversary of GA Plant The FiberVisions Covington, GA plant was originally built to produce Herculon fiber.

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