Techtextil 2026 concentrates Textile Chemicals & Dyes in a separate product segment for the first time. It thus emphasises the broad range of applications and the growing economic importance of these products. The leading trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens is responding to the growing demand from users and the requirements of suppliers for a centralised and concentrated industry platform for textile chemicals and dyes. Techtextil is creating new synergies with this future bundling. Textile Chemicals & Dyes will be located in the same hall as Fibres and Yarns and Performance Apparel Textiles. Preliminary stages, suppliers and users will come together in the immediate proximity of each other. This makes it easier for them to communicate specific requirements and needs and find solutions more quickly.

‘Textile Chemicals & Dyes are becoming increasingly important for the production of technical and performance textiles. At the same time, the demands on suppliers and users are increasing, for example with regard to environmental regulations or supply chains. At Techtextil, we will bring the players even closer together in future. In this way, we enable dialogue, comparability and raise even more awareness for this promising sector,’ says Sabine Scharrer, Director Brand Management Technical Textiles & Textile Processing at Messe Frankfurt.

Their growing importance is underlined by a 2021 analysis by the market research firm ‘MarketsandMarkets’.[1] According to the study, the global market for textile chemicals is expected to grow to a volume of 33.1 billion US dollars by 2026. The study cites a number of factors as drivers of this growth, including the increasing demand for chemicals for the rapidly growing technical textiles market.

Techtextil is the most important international platform for technical textiles, nonwovens, functional apparel textiles and textile technologies. Textile Chemicals & Dyes are an important part of this portfolio and are relevant for all application areas such as outdoor and protective clothing, industry, automotive, aerospace, medical technology, filtration and construction.

Whether for nonwovens, coated textiles or functional clothing textiles - chemicals and dyes are indispensable for textile production. In various pre-treatment, dyeing and finishing processes, they determine the visual appearance of fibres, yarns, nonwovens and textile surfaces. More importantly, they give them important functions. Textile chemicals give outdoor rain jackets their water-repellent impregnation, work clothes their performance and ensure crease-free and soft bed linen despite frequent washing. Moreover, they sterilise medical textiles for safe use in operating theatres, protect erosion protection fleeces in road construction from UV radiation and make industrial textile filters oil and water repellent. They also ensure the flame protection of firefighter suits and improve the durability of airbags so that they function reliably for the life of the car.

[1] Market Research Report, MarketsandMarkets, Aug. 2021, Textile Chemicals Market by Fiber (Natural, Synthetic), Product Type (Coating & Sizing, Colorant & Auxiliaries, Finishing Agents, Desizing Agents, Surfactants), Application (Apparel, Home Textile, Technical Textile) & Region – Global Forecast to 2026