#Associations

2024-07-24

Fifth transnational ADDTEX meeting in Prato

From 1 to 5 July 2024, the fifth member meeting of ADDTEX took place in Prato at PIN s.c.r.l. Educational and Scientific Services for the University of Florence. Parallel to the meeting of the project partners and in the same building in Piazza Giovanni Ciardi, 25, PIN organised a textile innovation boot camp with students from Sweden, Spain, Romania, Ireland, Italy and Portugal.

Joint photo of the ADDTEX partners and the summer school students in front of the entrance to the PIN in Prato. Photo: ADDTEX, Alessandro de Rosa

Preparations for workshops and webinars are in full swing

The meeting of the ADDTEX project partners served to find out about the current results of the individual partners of the EU Erasmus+ project and to discuss further activities. Following the meetings in Terrassa, Spain, Vila Nova de Famalicão, Portugal, Limerick, Ireland and Athens, Greece, the fifth meeting took place in the Italian textile centre of Prato in Tuscany. The IVGT e.V. is one of the 12 ADDTEX partners as a major textile trade association in Germany and was once again present in Prato.

Summer school for students

The textile innovation bootcamp in the form of a summer school was organised by PIN and involved the participation of 25 students and 5 trainers from the universities of Boras (Sweden), UPC (Spain), PIN (Italy) and TUS (Ireland) and was offered as an in-depth supplement to the hackathons organised in May 2024.

The aim of the bootcamp was to foster innovation and collaboration and equip students with knowledge and skills to promote green, digital and smart transformation in the textile industry. The methodology used included face-to-face teaching, group work, company visits and field reports and was inspired by design thinking. Social moments were also incorporated to promote team spirit. This resulted in demonstrators made from materials such as sensor fabrics, e-textiles, knitwear and membranes, which were presented at the end together with exemplary business plans and marketing plans. In line with ADDTEX's focus, attention was paid to sustainability across the entire product life cycle through to recycling concepts. The students had acquired the necessary basic information in advance using the 45 training videos and training units from the free and public Smart, Digital and Green Skills Academy at https://addtex.eu.

Design Thinking

Design thinking is an interactive process that uses empathy to understand the users at the centre of the product or solution being developed. It is a solution-focused approach that allows people to develop a variety of ideas that can be quickly prototyped, tested and improved. For these reasons, it is often used by teams that want to innovate and solve complex challenges.

In the first phase of the bootcamp, students had the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the design thinking process and learn about smart textiles, eco-design principles and digitalisation in manufacturing. They also had the opportunity to get in touch with real-life examples (Knitronix and Sensing Tex) and visit the companies Comistra and Rifinizione Nuove Fibre SpA, which are based in the Prato area.

Fabrizio Tesi from Comistra shows the Summer Scholl students recycled wool fibres. Photo: ADDTEX, Katja Brencic

In the second phase of the process, the students began the creation process of their product, also familiarising themselves with the Lego® Serious Play® method. In the third phase of the boot camp, ideas were developed and prototypes were built. Finally, the students were instructed on how to prepare their pitch, which was then delivered on the last day of the bootcamp. The pitches started with a short introduction about the team and the product and ended with the presentation of the business model. The different teams showed a high level of motivation at work and several brilliant ideas emerged. Overall, the bootcamp was a great success for the AddTex project.

Comistra is a recycling company that produces high-quality mechanical wool from textile waste. Photo: ADDTEX, Iris Schlomski

Among other things, a webinar is planned for September 2024 to present the results of the hackathons and the bootcamp.

www.ivgt.de

International practical experience for textile students

As part of the European Erasmus+ project AddTex, the partner institutions organised several hackathons simultaneously from 15 to 17 May 2024 at the universities in Borås (Sweden), UPC (Spain), PIN (Italy) and TUS (Ireland). The aim was to develop practical solutions to real challenges facing the textile industry. The German family-owned company Schmitz Textiles, a specialist in complete textile solutions for indoor and outdoor use, challenged students at the University of PIN in Prato to increase the recycled content of yarns for awning production to 100 per cent.

6th AddTex project partner meeting in Prague

On January 21 and 22, 2025, the 6th AddTex project partner meeting took place in Prague at the invitation of the Czech cluster for technical textiles CLUTEX. After an update on the activities of the eleven European partners, the IVGT presented a draft business model that will ensure sustainable activities beyond the end of the project.

Meadow Grove Research joins ITMF as Corporate Member

Meadow Grove Research is a commodity research firm specializing in supply, demand, and trade analysis in cotton and other soft commodities. Providing clarity to the complex nature of the global fiber supply chain is one of its most formidable services. The firm thrives on customer engagement and providing the best framework for critical decisions.

Sustainability: European industry calls on EU to keep Single-Use Plastics Directive unchanged

A broad coalition of European industry associations, including EDANA, Euratex and Plastics Europe, has urged EU institutions to maintain the current legal framework of the Single-Use Plastics Directive (SUPD). In a joint statement, the organisations argue that reopening the Directive at this stage would create legal uncertainty, increase regulatory complexity and undermine investment, while its implementation across the European Union is still incomplete.

Textile machinery: Italian technology charts the course for revival

Operating in a scenario characterized by geopolitical instability, slowing industrial investments, and new protectionist pressures. This is the main challenge for the Italian textile machinery industry that emerged during the General Assembly of ACIMIT (Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers), held today in Milan at the Shareholders’ Hall of Palazzo Edison.

New skills for a circular textile economy

Based on the results of a comprehensive analysis, the Erasmus+ project Skills4Circularity is developing three practical training modules covering recycling technologies, eco-design for the circular economy and sustainable manufacturing. The content of the first module, Recycling Technologies, has now been developed and validated together with industry representatives. The module provides participants with knowledge of regulatory requirements, material sorting and the preparation of textile waste for recycling.

Rieter sees Barmag integration on track as orders and sales rise

The first half of 2026 was shaped by the successful completion of the largest acquisition in Rieter’s history. The Man-Made Fiber Division enables entry into the growth segment of man-made fibers and sustainably strengthens Rieter’s market position in the Asia region. The expanded Group is now the world’s leading system supplier for the processing of natural and man-made fibers. In the first half of the year, initial cost savings in material costs and operating expenses have already been realized. The targeted synergies are expected to amount to at least CHF 20 million by the end of the 2028 financial year. Due to the completion of the acquisition on February 2, 2026, the first half of the year for the Man-Made Fiber Division only amounts to five months.