#Yarn & Fiber

2022-02-10

NILIT accelerates sustainable innovation with new leadership

NILIT, the global leader in high-quality Nylon 6.6 for apparel and owner of the SENSIL® sustainable consumer brand, has announced organizational changes that reinforce the company’s commitment to leading the textile and apparel industry to a more sustainable position in the global marketplace. Sagee Aran will lead product development and commercialization initiatives and Michelle Lea has joined the company to direct worldwide marketing programs.

New environmentally responsible Nylon solutions for apparel will launch in 2022

“I am happy to announce these new leadership positions in our organization. They will help us build on the significant progress we have made to establish NILIT as the most advanced provider of sustainable premium Nylon products,” says Ilan Melamed, General Manager of NILIT. “Sustainability requires creativity and collaboration throughout the value chain from fiber to the consumer. With this new structure, NILIT will more rapidly develop and implement sustainable premium Nylon innovations that appeal to today’s growing segment of conscious apparel consumers.”

NILIT recently launched multiple premium Nylon products in the SENSIL® portfolio. SENSIL® BioCare is specially engineered to decompose quickly in the anaerobic conditions in water and landfills, positively affecting the persistence of textile waste, especially in oceans. Sensil® WaterCare eliminates 100% of the water, chemicals, energy, and pollution risk associated with traditional textile dyeing wet processing.

NILIT is preparing to launch additional sustainable SENSIL® products in the coming months. The latest NILIT innovation is a ground-breaking premium Nylon that integrates renewable non-fossil biomaterials made from post-consumer waste. This first of its kind Nylon will be the foundation for sustainable apparel that repurposes waste and reduces CO2 generation without sacrificing performance, durability, or aesthetics. NILIT is working with several key brands to introduce this game changing Nylon.

As Chief Innovation and Sustainability Officer, Sagee Aran will continue to expand the SENSIL® portfolio with environmentally responsible, value-added performance and fashion products and drive implementation through partnerships with mills, brands, and retailers.

In her new role as Vice President of Global Marketing, Michelle Lea will connect the SENSIL® portfolio to conscious consumers through the brands and retailers they support. Lea has brand marketing expertise developed at leading performance fabric and apparel brands at W. L. Gore and Reebok. She will continue the work to market SENSIL® premium Nylon products that inspire designers of sustainable fabrics and apparel.

“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.

Expansive innovations converge in Shanghai as Yarn Expo Autumn 2026 opens doors next week

With just days to go, industry enthusiasm is building for the opening of Yarn Expo Autumn, Asia’s premier yarn and fibre trade fair, running from 25 – 27 August at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). Across 27,000 sqm in Hall 8.2, buyers will find nearly 600 exhibitors from 14 countries and regions, spread across seven specialised zones that range from cutting-edge man-made and regenerated fibres to time-honoured cashmere and silk. Beyond the extensive sourcing options, a fringe programme of trend showcases, presentations and product launches rounds out the three¬day event with design, innovation and market intelligence.

Dornbirn GFC 2026 expands conference program with new thematic sessions

For 65 years, Dornbirn GFC has stood for innovation and is one of the world’s leading conferences in the fiber industry. From September 16 to 18, 2026, the international fiber community will meet in Dornbirn, Austria, to discuss current trends, technological developments, and forward-looking solutions. More than 600 experts from industry and academia from over 30 countries are expected to attend. With around 100 presentations by renowned speakers, a 2,5-day conference program, and three parallel presentation rooms with moderated sessions, Dornbirn GFC provides a first-class platform for knowledge exchange, networking, and international collaboration. Together, participants will generate ideas and impulses that will sustainably shape the future of the global fiber industry.

Heberlein reinforces its commitment to the Chinese market

Heberlein, globally recognised as a leading provider of air interlacing and air texturing jets for synthetic filament yarns, is consolidating its success in the Chinese market with its APh- and APe-series for DTY applications. Particularly in the field of Air Covering, Heberlein technologies combine excellent quality with significant savings in compressed-air consumption. A new service hub in Shengze City underlines the company’s long-term commitment in the Chinese market.

RE&UP’s Next-Gen Cotton fibers power Zalando private label t-shirt collection crafted from innovative recycled textiles

RE&UP Recycling Technologies’ Next-Gen Cotton powers a new collection from Zalando’s private labels, marking a step forward in bringing textile-to-textile recycled fibers into commercial fashion production. Launching on Zalando in August, the collection comprises five t-shirts across YOURTURN by Zalando and Even&Odd by Zalando, made from a circular-knit fabric blending 80% organic cotton with 20% RE&UP Next-Gen Cotton — textile-to-textile recycled fiber produced from textile waste. This is the first time RE&UP's recycled fibers feature in Zalando's private label assortment.

Heimtextil Trends 27/28: ‘Home-Maxxing’ between performance and respite

Sleep better, recover faster, live more efficiently: the desire for optimisation has long since reached our homes. Under the title ‘Home-Maxxing – The Performance of Everyday Living’, Heimtextil Trends 27/28 show how our relationship with efficiency-driven thinking and technology is influencing the design of spaces and textiles. The more sleep, wellness, routines, materials and spaces are optimised, the stronger the desire for a home that does not demand even more of us.