The Teijin Group announced today that Thai Namsiri Intertex Co., Ltd. (TNI), a consolidated subsidiary manufacturing polyester textiles in Thailand, will launch a program for collecting used polyester items and then recycling them into new polyester materials through Teijin's ECO CIRCLE(tm) closed-loop recycling system. This will be the first such program launched by Teijin in Asia other than Japan.

The program includes the launch of a recyclable men’s jacket made of 100% polyester, branded KOH MR. SAXMAN in collaboration with a famous Thai saxophone player who goes by the same name. Distribution will be handled by Cassardi International Co., Ltd., an apparel company in the Boonsiri International Group, a leading distributor of men's wear in Thailand.

The casual stretchable jacket, weighing only 350 grams and made with just one piece of fabric with no lining or padding, invokes the image of a cool, stylish musician. The easy-care fabric is washable, wrinkle-resistant and iron-free, and to emphasize these unique features the jacket will be packaged and sold in a 100% polyester PET bottle. The KOH MR. SAXMAN jacket will be sold at Central Department Store, a high-end retailer, as well as local jazz bars beginning February12.

The closed-loop recycling program also will include the collection of used jackets for recycling via the ECO CIRCLE system developed by Teijin Fibers Limited, a polyester polymers, fibres and textiles company. Worn-out KOH MR. SAXMAN jackets collected by TNI will be sent to Teijin Fibers’ Matsuyama Plant in Japan, where they will be chemically decomposed and converted into new polyester raw material. The 100%-polyester jackets will be completely recycled using ECO CIRCLE.

The ECO CIRCLE system incorporates the world’s first chemical-recycling technology to decompose used polyester for conversion into new polyester material offering the same level of purity as that derived from petroleum. Since 2002, more than 100 apparel and sportswear manufacturers worldwide have cooperated with Teijin Fibers to develop and manufacture products made from recyclable materials, as well as to collect and recycle these products at the end of their useful lives.

TNI will strengthen its environmentally friendly initiatives by using the recycled polyester material to produce pants and coats in the near future. It also will introduce KOH MR. SAXMAN items in other South East Asian markets, as well as India and the Middle East. In addition, TNI is considering expansion of its collaboration with Central Department Store to establish a system where customers can return worn-out KOH MR. SAXMAN products to the store.

About Teijin

Teijin is a global technology-driven group operating in five main fields: synthetic fibers; films and plastics; pharmaceuticals and home health care; trading and retail; and IT and new products. Teijin Limited is listed on the Tokyo and Osaka stock exchanges and has a market capitalization of USD 4.1 billion. The company had consolidated sales of USD 10.3 billion in fiscal 2007, and employs approximately 19,000 people worldwide.