#Raw Materials

2021-11-18

COTTON USA SOLUTIONS improves profitability for Pakistani mill

Mills like Al Muqeet Textile (Pvt.) Ltd. in Pakistan are looking to COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ for greater profitability, improved productivity and the latest techniques.

“COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ improved efficiency, productivity, quality, maintenance and profitability,” said Ali Zaman, chief executive of Al Muqeet. “Plus, with U.S. cotton, you know what you will get and can plan much better – there are no surprises.”

Zaman said Al Muqeet, a COTTON USA™ licensed mill, plans to increase its usage of U.S. cotton to 95% based on its experience with COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™.

Zaman said he was impressed with the technical knowledge of the COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ technical team and calls the cotton consultancy the “first of its kind.” It is designed so that mills and manufacturers can optimize the use of U.S. cotton with cutting-edge offerings to transform their businesses profitably.

Cotton Council International (CCI) launched this unique program to help mill partners get the best technical and financial value from U.S. cotton, which independent studies have consistently confirmed is the world’s best performing cotton. The innovative techniques in COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ could save mills 10% to 25% with this best-in-class consultancy program.

CCI’s team of experts has created five business-building programs, providing unmatched expertise informed by work with over 1,500 mills in 50 countries:

• Mill Studies – based on controlled on-site testing by independent third-party companies to identify best practices in spinning cotton

• Technical Seminars – one-day sessions with advice on how to use and optimize U.S. cotton

• Mill Exchange Program – executive-level tour of COTTON USA™ licensee signature mills to exchange ideas with key textile mill leaders from around the world

• 1:1 Mill Consults – personalized, virtual or in-person, in-depth mill examination and consultation

• COTTON USA Mill Mastery™ Course – course of study featuring a collection of advanced practices, covering everything from raw cotton to quality control

Al Muqeet took advantage of a COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ 1:1 Mill Consult seeking continuous improvement of its mill, as well as a COTTON USA Mill Mastery™ course on profitability. Al Muqeet uses U.S. cotton for its contamination-free knitted fabrics for garments.

Customized to a mill’s unique needs, a 1:1 Mill Consult brings an expert right to your business for a three step, in-depth mill examination. The COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ team provides preliminary findings and solutions at the end of a one-day mill audit and a report two weeks later. Next, the CCI technical team conducts a field service visit to address those areas of improvement, followed by more detailed results, recommended practices and next steps up to two weeks later. Finally, the COTTON USA SOLUTIONS team will conduct a 6-month check-in to determine if the mill is getting its expected results and whether the measures are sustainable.

“It was an invaluable experience, and our team has learned a lot from the COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ visit,” Zaman said. “There were many suggestions that have been advised to our team, and we have already started to implement some of them. This consultancy service by CCI is a great advantage for us, and as a result, we have already started purchasing U.S. cotton for next year.”

Mills in Turkey, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand, China, Taiwan ROC, Mexico and El Salvador have also experienced how COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ can boost their businesses. To access the experience of the world’s leading cotton technical team, with decades of knowledge in ring and open cotton spinning methods, visit www.cottonusa.org/solutions and contact a COTTON USA representative near you. COTTON USA SOLUTIONS™ programs are complimentary for COTTON USA™ licensees with a U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol® membership.

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

AMSilk and Ajinomoto Foods Europe expand partnership to enable industrial-scale production of silk proteins

AMSilk GmbH (“AMSilk”), a global leader leader in biotech produced silk materials, today announced a significant expansion of its partnership with Ajinomoto Foods Europe (AFE), marking a key step in scaling the industrial production of its silk proteins. Building on the collaboration first established in 2023, the two companies have now entered into a long-term manufacturing and supply agreement, enabling the transition from industrial validation to dedicated, large-scale production.

Cotton made in Africa partners receive top marks in independent verifications

Cotton made in Africa® (CmiA) and CmiA Organic are two internationally recognised standards that aim to promote sustainable development in the African cotton sector south of the Sahara. To ensure the standards’ credibility among brands, retailers, and consumers, independent verifiers evaluate compliance on the ground. The verification results for 2025, now published in the Aggregated Verification & Implementation Report, were very strong: The verifiers awarded consistently very good remarks regarding management, people, prosperity, and the environment.

Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brings supply chain leaders together around cotton innovation

Cotton Incorporated’s Cotton ConneXions Insight to Impact brought together more than 300 industry leaders from 140 companies across 10 countries, including more than 45 top global brands and sourcing organizations, underscoring strong global interest in cotton-rich product development, sourcing and supply chain collaboration.

Ence and ShareTex begin initial testing of the ATENEA innovation project to promote textile recycling in Spain

Ence and ShareTex are making progress on the Atenea R&D project, which aims to develop a complete value chain for textile recycling in Spain. Specifically, the goal of the ATENEA project—which is funded by the Center for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI)—is to connect all the necessary stages for the recovery of textile waste, from collection and management, through recycling and transformation into new raw materials, to their incorporation into new textile products.

DePoly Inaugurates its Showcase Plant in Monthey Switzerland

What if used plastic bottles, PET packaging material and polyester textiles could become raw materials just as high performing as virgin resources? That is the ambition of DePoly, a circular materials company based in Sion, Switzerland which inaugurated its Showcase Plant in Monthey on July 6th & 7th. The first depolymerization facility of its kind and scale in Switzerland, this industrial Showcase Plant represents a major milestone in the company's growth and its journey toward commercialization.

Commission clarifies rules on plastic bottles recycling

The European Commission today adopted new rules on recycling of single-use plastic beverage bottles made primarily of polyethylene terephthalate (PET bottles). These rules establish, for the first time, a methodology to calculate, verify and report chemically recycled content. This is part of the Commission’s December 2025 plastics package.