Clothing & Footwear

ATCC, the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colourists, will be focusing on two main topics – filtration and UV protective clothing – during its April series of webinars.

The new edition of the ACIMIT Green Guide has been available since early March. It provides a summary of the actions taken by Italian textile machinery firms in the field of sustainability, in terms of savings in resources used during the textile production process. Raffaella Carabelli, President of ACIMIT commented: “This guide supports the strong commitment of Italy’s textile machinery industry to the issue of sustainability.” The Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers (ACIMIT) Green Guide illustrates the sustainable technologies supplied by Italian textile machinery manufacturers.

Adidas has launched a new cooling apparel technology called Climachill which incorporates an innovative knitted fabric with titanium and industry first 3D aluminium cooling sheres. The technology is said to provide an instant chilling sensation to help athletes' performance in warm conditions by lowering their body temperature so they can train harder, run longer, retain their focus and compete at the highest level. “At adidas we are constantly striving to create innovations to make the athlete comfortable so they can focus on performance,” said Heike Leibl, Senior Vice President of training at adidas. “The aluminium cooling spheres used in the Climachill range provide an instant chill effect to keep the athlete at their peak optimum temperature to perform at their best in any conditions.”

Groz-Beckert, the leading provider of industrial machine needles, will be presenting its new products and service highlights at ITMA Asia + CITME trade fair that is due to be held in Shanghai, China, from 16-20 June. In the centre of Groz-Beckert’s show presence stands the TexCar – a Mercedes-Benz E-Class model that was rebuilt so that nearly all of the textiles used in its manufacture were laid open. This exhibit allows a free view of woven and knitted fabric, nonwovens and seams, and demonstrates the diversity of textile applications. The use of textiles goes beyond seat covers, carpets and car mats. They are also featured in safety equipment, such as airbag and safety belt, and under the hood and at the wheels.

About two and a half million people in Germany regularly work for eight hours or more in the sun, the Hohenstein Institute reports. Their risk of developing skin cancer is twice as high as that of those employees who do not work outdoors. Only a very few of them wear special UV-protective clothing, as recommended by the trade unions and the German Social Accident Insurance Association (DGUV). However, the pressure on employers to require such clothing to be worn and make it available, may now increase considerably, the Institute believes. The Institute has developed combinations of materials in order to improve the functionality of protective fabrics, taking wearer’s comfort into account.

The 2014 winners for the FabricLink Network's Top 10 Innovation Awards include CRAiLAR , Edema Stocking, ELUTE, EQ-Top Seismic Wallpaper, Geckskin, GeoDetect , Mushroom Materials, PurThread, and QMilk, and RamTect. Kathlyn Swantko, President of the FabricLink Network, commented: “The research and development required to launch these award winning advancements often extends over several years. This year’s winners include products that can be used in a broad range of industries and consumer applications, and represent some of the best innovative achievements in the textile industry.”

Danish smart textiles consultancy Ohmatex ApS, has published its latest White Paper – Market Opportunities for Smart Textiles 2014 - just in time for The Wearable Technology Show which takes place in London today and tomorrow. The eleven page document, which can be downloaded at the foot of this article, outlines the position of smart textile wearable devices within the wider Wearable Technology industry.

The leading skate-wear manufacturer Hunter Sportswear will launch its latest innovation, a safety glove for ice-skaters with the highest class 5 cut resistance, at SPOVAK that will be held from 16-17 March 2014 in Biddinghuizen, the Netherlands. The glove represents a breakthrough in hand safety, the company reports. It is designed to offer users the highest level of cut resistance, combined with a high level of comfort. Thanks to its light weight, the glove is said to be able to provide wearer comfort comparable to that of standard sports gloves. Jeroen de Vries, Hunter spokesperson, commented: “These gloves have been well received in trials – and now that they have been successfully introduced, Hunter will continue to develop new solutions for other protective ice-skating wear, using advanced Dyneema Diamond Technology.”

The fourth combined ITMA ASIA + CITME exhibition that will be taking place from 16-20 June 2014 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre is gearing up for another mega showcase. The show will take 15% larger space than during the last edition in 2012. To-date, the event has attracted the participation of 1,351 textile machinery manufacturers from 27 countries and regions. Charles Beauduin, President of CEMATEX, the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers, said: “Textile machinery manufacturers are still buoyant about the Asian market, particularly China. Investments in cost-effective technology to help the textile and garment industry stay ahead of the competition are still strong. As such, our combined show will continue to be the unrivalled marketing platform for textile machinery manufacturers tapping into the vibrant China market.”

On 28 May 2014, the six-month Blue Dot space mission lifts off. A German astronaut from ESA will be among those on board the International Space Station ISS, who will be carrying out about 40 experiments. These will include the Specatex project, the first clothing physiology experiments to be carried out in weightlessness, which it is hoped will shed light on the interaction between body, clothing and climate.