#Associations

2022-03-17

AATCC announces new interest group: Rising professionals

AATCC’s newest Interest Group is focused on the needs of new members. The new AATCC Rising Professionals Interest Group will concentrate on career development, networking, diversity, mentorship, leadership, and other similar aspects of a career in textiles.

The Rising Professionals Interest Group desires to be the AATCC “home” for individuals new to the industry—whether recently-graduated students or professionals recently employed by a company in this industry—and new to AATCC. The Interest Group hopes to foster involvement, engagement, and leadership within AATCC and to benefit the industry.

The “nickname” the Rising Professionals Interest Group will use is RISE—standing for:

• Reach (programs & events)

• Information (educational content, training materials)

• Services (member services)

• Empowerment (mentorship program)

The new Interest Group grew out of AATCC’s Young Professionals Committee—which has opened its membership to members of all ages, as long as they are interested in the aims and organizational pillars of the Interest Group.

The pillars for the RISE Interest Group will be responsible for include:

• Education: Interest Group Discussion meetings, Textile Discovery Summit content

• Empowerment: mentorship program, diversity & inclusion, leadership development

• Member Services: (understanding AATCC as a valuable resource) including AATCC Committee Best Practices, training materials to function well in committees, other services and activities available to members

• Students/Academia: representation of students’ ideas, needs, and interests

• Professional/Industry: representation of professional ideas, needs, and interests

Current RISE officers are Interest Group Acting Chair, Tyler Pickett, and Acting At Large member R. Bryan Ormond, North Carolina State University. (pictured below)

Interest Group officers serve as AATCC Board of Directors members. AATCC members can nominate new Interest Group officers until March 31. Only AATCC members who are voting members of the Rising Professionals Interest Group may vote for the RISE officers who will be on the Board of Directors. For more information about the AATCC Board of Directors and their duties, visit https://aatcc.org/bod/

If you are new to the textile industry and want to get involved, network, or learn more about AATCC and the industry, join AATCC’s Rising professionals Interest Group! It is a great place to get started within AATCC. To learn more about all AATCC interest groups, visit https://aatcc.org/join/#ig. Not sure about joining an interest group yet but would like to join AATCC? Become a member of AATCC at https://aatcc.org/join/!

AATCC announces 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition winners

The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) recognized the winners of the 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition. Founded in 1982 to give student members the chance to conduct and present original research, the competition was renamed in 1994 in honor of Herman and Myrtle Goldstein, following their US$60,000 endowment. Their gift is a lasting remembrance of their dedication to young people in the textile industry.

New funding available for textile research

The AATCC Foundation Student Research Support Grant Program provides financial assistance for undergraduate and graduate students pursuing textile-related projects. Students may submit proposals now for funding to be awarded January 2026. Applications must be submitted by October 1, 2025, to be considered.

Business situation weakens slightly, but the industry stays cautiously optimistic

The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) has published the results of its 39th Global Textile Industry Survey (GTIS), conducted from 14 to 22 July 2026 among companies along the entire global textile value chain. Worldwide, 10% of participants rated their business situation as good, 53% as satisfactory and 37% as bad — a balance of -26pp, down from -17pp in May but still well above the 2023 lows. All regions are now in negative territory, from South Asia at -3pp to North & Central America at -58pp.

Italian textile machinery orders show quarterly recovery in Q2 2026

In the period between April and June 2026, order intake for Italian textile machinery manufacturers showed mixed but encouraging signals for the second half of the year. The order index at constant prices stood at 46.6 points (taking 2021=100 as the base year), showing a slight decrease of 3% compared to the same quarter of 2025. This trend was largely due to the contraction recorded in the domestic market, which fell by 25% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year.

SHIMA SEIKI brings new flat knitting technologies to FEBRATEX 2026

Leading flat knitting solutions provider SHIMA SEIKI MFG., LTD. of Wakayama, Japan, together with its Brazilian representative BRASTEMA TECNOLOGIA TEXTIL LTDA., will exhibit at the Brazilian Textile Industry Fair (FEBRATEX 2026) this month. On display will be a roundup of SHIMA SEIKI computerized flat knitting technology, represented by WHOLEGARMENT® knitting machines, computerized flat knitting machines featuring a brand-new model with high productivity and excellent cost performance, a glove knitting machine and the latest digital solutions.

Lenzing reports improved half-year results and advances strategic transformation

Despite a persistently challenging market environment in the first half of 2026, characterized by volatile energy and raw material prices, subdued global consumer demand and intensified competition from Asia, the Lenzing Group significantly improved its financial performance. Net result after tax more than doubled to EUR 35.6 million, compared with EUR 15.2 million in the first half of 2025. Free cash flow increased to EUR 45.8 million, while EBITDA amounted to EUR 239.2 million. Revenue totaled EUR 1.27 billion, compared with EUR 1.34 billion in the previous year.

Trützschler’s latest spinning and card clothing innovations at CAITME 2026

From September 8 to 10, 2026, Trützschler will present its latest innovations in spinning and card clothing for state-of-the-art fiber processing at CAITME in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Visitors are invited to meet the experts at Pavilion 2, Booth D50 and explore solutions designed to increase productivity, streamline processes, and ensure consistently high yarn quality. Key topics include the next-generation card TC 30i, the integrated draw frame IDF 3, the high-performance comber TCO 21XL as well as Trützschler Card Clothing’s new flat top series STEELTOP®.