Nonwoven

By Geoff Fisher, European Editor

One of the biggest ever global nonwovens exhibitions took place in April in Geneva, Switzerland, with visitors and exhibitors alike declaring it an all-round success.
“With worldwide representation from across the nonwovens and related industries, displaying a diverse range of products and services, Index once again delivered on its promise to serve as a ‘global meeting point’ for the industry,” the organizers stated.
A total of 12,758 visitors were recorded at Index 17, an increase of more than 2% on the 2014 edition. The event featured 666 exhibitors, up 13%, from 41 countries on nearly 24,000 m2 of stand space.

The wetlaid process is a core process at nonwoven producers that focus on uniformity, light-weight and strength. Wetlaid products are suitable for many different technical applications such as automotive, filtration, medical, hygiene, wallpaper, packaging, embroidery, construction material, etc.
Wherever more demanding nonwoven products and papers with an outstanding uniformity and without any kind of defects are required, the wetlaid process is a good option for which fibers with good dispersion in water are essential.

Although there are no major textile machinery shows scheduled this year, 2017 will still be another eventful one for companies and organizations involved in the man-made fiber industry, particularly those touching on the nonwovens and technical textiles sectors.

Almost 500,000 tons of nonwovens are currently used annually in the production of filters, which corresponds to approximately 10% of current worldwide industrial nonwovens manufactured. Here, the filter market is split into two areas: air and liquid filtration. While in excess of 170,000 tons of nonwovens were manufactured for gas/air filters in 2015, the volume for liquid filters was almost double at around 295,000 tons.