The European Apparel and Textile Confederation (Euratex) and the International Apparel Federation (IAF) have officially announced their support for Texprocess, the new international trade fair for processing textiles and flexible materials, in Frankfurt from 24 to 27 May 2011.

Both associations will be represented with an exhibition stand at Texprocess and invite their members to visit the exhibition.  Additionally, Euratex will hold a meeting of the ‘Technical Clothing Group' on 25 May and the ‘European Technology Platform' on 26 May while IAF will hold its ‘Board meeting and General Assembly' on 23 and 24 May. Texprocess will take place concurrently with Techtextil, which runs  from 24 to 26 May 2011.

The conceptual partner of Texprocess is Germany's VDMA Garment and Leather Technology organisation. Detlef Braun, Member of the Board of Management of Messe Frankfurt, says:

"Texprocess is the new meeting place for the German and worldwide garment industry. Proof of the international orientation of the fair are our two new partners, Euratex and IAF. Together with the ‘GermanFashion' association, we thus benefit from the support of important key communicators on the national, European and international levels."  

For Francesco Marchi, Euratex Director General, innovations and creativity are key factors for the competitiveness of the garment industry in the European Union. The concept of Texprocess - which embraces the entire innovative portfolio of products, including potential developments, in a shorter cycle of events - is an important benefit for all concerned. 

Holding the new fair parallel to Techtextil is another great advantage. Therefore, Euratex has decided to recommend its national associations and their members to visit Texprocess.

Han Bekke, Secretary General of IAF, also sees a new chance for the international garment industry in Texprocess:

"The international garment sector needs a powerful platform where players from all producing nations can meet. We are sure that, thanks to its great experience of organising textile fairs worldwide, Messe Frankfurt can achieve this. For our members, the Source it! sourcing platform is an interesting supplementary service - a decisive criteria for choosing Frankfurt."

According to the organisers, the range of products to be seen at Texprocess covers the entire value chain from pattern design and cutting, via processing technologies, to textile processing, finishing and logistics.

The new fair will be accompanied by an extensive complementary programme including the Network@Texprocess IT market place, which will give software companies an inexpensive opportunity to present their products, and the Source it! sourcing platform, which will bring together production companies and fashion labels from all over the world.

Also on the programme are the Texprocess Innovation Award and Texprocess Campus promotional programme for young people. Around 500 exhibitors and 25,000 trade visitors are expected at the première of Texprocess. Further information about Texprocess can be found at www.texprocess.com.