#Recycling / Circular Economy

2021-02-17

Polyester-based tricot fabric with elasticity – a new development from KARL MAYER

If, for example, discreet comfort stretch for the clothing sector is required, KARL MAYER’s new fabric offers an ecological alternative.

Elastic yet still recyclable

The textile industry is responsible for huge mountains of waste in Europe: in Germany alone, 390,000 tonnes of textile waste are produced every year. Only Italy tops this figure with almost 466,000 tonnes per year, as shown by a study on waste disposal behaviour in 15 EU countries commissioned by the fashion label Labfresh. According to further study results, every German person produces 4.7 kilograms of textile waste, of which only 0.5 kilograms are recycled and 0.4 kilograms are reused without treatment. The rest is incinerated or dumped. /1/

A key reason contributing to the low recycling rate is the purity of the material. Many clothing textiles consist of fibre or yarn mixtures that cannot be separated for the treatment process or can only be separated with great difficulty. If, for example, discreet comfort stretch for the clothing sector is required, KARL MAYER’s new fabric offers an ecological alternative. The textile is made from yarns of different polyester polymers: a semi-dull version for a soft look and a bicomponent fibre that offers moderate mechanical elasticity with a well-thought-out structure. The elements of the stretchable fibre consist also of different polymers and show different shrinkage behaviour: when heated, a spiral crimp is formed. As the bulky deformation is not mechanically induced – unlike in textured yarns – it produces a more permanent and pronounced elongation in comparison.

The two polyester yarns were processed into a dense fabric on a high-performance HKS 3-M tricot machine in gauge E 32. The fabric weighs 202 g/m². It stands out thanks to its dense, rich feel and a heavy drape. Clothing made from it is comfortable to wear, easy to wash, does not need to be ironed and can be recycled – after removing accessories such as buttons and buckles.

KARL MAYER puts textiles centre stage

For KARL MAYER, textiles are much more than just materials – they express function, emotion and progress. And they are at the heart of its customers' activities. KARL MAYER is now focusing more than ever on its customers' needs and plans and therefore on the textiles made on its machines: WARP KNITS. At the upcoming ITMA ASIA + CITME, the company will demonstrate how textile solutions are providing new impetus in the categories of Fashion & Clothing and Technical Textiles.

STOLL in focus:

At the beginning of this year, KARL MAYER announced that it would be shifting its focus back to its core areas of warp knitting, warp preparation and technical textiles. As part of this strategic realignment, the flat knitting machine business under the STOLL brand will be discontinued. The Reutlingen plant will close down on 31 October 2025. Production in China will end in December 2025. This was an extremely difficult decision for KARL MAYER.

KARL MAYER develops seersucker WARP KNITS with even more character and style

Seersucker fabrics are icons of the clothing industry and assure their manufacturers' success. Just in time for ITMA ASIA + CITME 2025, the textile product developers at KARL MAYER have succeeded in creating brand new variants of this material. These fancy newcomers feature unique bubble effects and, with their new dimensionality, inject extra dynamism into the textile surface – and into the market.

matterr at K – Where innovation meets industry

At this year’s K trade fair, matterr took the stage to showcase its technology and demonstrate how it drives circular polyester at an industrial scale. Insightful conversations, strong new connections, and great energy — all together reminds how powerful it is when innovation meets industry. The momentum from Düsseldorf shows: circular transformation is no longer a vision — it’s happening.

BCI warns against ‘dangerous dilution’ of EU corporate directives

The approval of the European Commission’s Omnibus I proposal by the European Parliament’s Committee on Legal Affairs, accepting controversial changes to key sustainability directives is of great concern. These changes, namely to the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD), threaten to significantly dilute business reporting and due diligence obligations.

Pioneering open-source framework shows how early innovation drives a just and net-zero fashion future

The non-profit H&M Foundation, in collaboration with Accenture, has unveiled From Signals to Systems Change, an insight report calling on the fashion industry to rethink its role in transformation. At its core is the Reimagined System Map, a pioneering open-source framework that visualises how early-stage innovation could drive a just and net-zero textile future.

Groz-Beckert showcases textile innovation at ITMA Asia + CITME 2025 in Singapore

From October 28 to 31, 2025, the global textile industry will gather at ITMA Asia + CITME at the Singapore Expo, where Groz-Beckert will present its latest highlights and innovations across its six product areas – Knitting, Weaving, Nonwovens, Tufting, Sewing, and Spinning – at Hall 5, Booth B301.