In the dynamic and global textile fiber industry with its various manufacturing processes and end-uses, news and information is breaking on a daily basis. International Fiber Journal is tracking stories relevant to our industry from manmade to natural to bio-based fibers, innovations in nonwoven, woven, braided and technical textiles, technologies for additives, bonding, coatings and polymers, and applications from apparel to hygiene to transportation, and more. Here we will post news stories relevant to textile fibers and their downstream applications on an ongoing basis. Please check back for regular updates. If you have news that you feel should be added to this summary report, please email it to Ken Norberg at [email protected].
Most recent update: August 11, 2026
NC State to Spearhead 10-Year, $480 Million Effort to Bolster Defense Textile Manufacturing
North Carolina State University has been chosen to lead a 10-year Department of War initiative aimed at modernizing textile manufacturing in the United States to support the defense industry. The FutureTEX award – which includes $36 million in its first year and has a ceiling of $480 million over a decade – brings together industry, government, university and nonprofit partners to advance manufacturing technologies of textiles for military and domestic applications. FutureTEX will champion workforce development and modernization of facilities and equipment to increase U.S. competitiveness.
FutureTEX’s goal is to work with American manufacturing to capitalize on digital infrastructure and other emerging technologies making the domestic supply network more robust for the defense industrial base. Core partners in establishing FutureTEX include Drexel University, Gaston College, Georgia Tech, ISAIC and UMass Lowell.
FutureTEX will empower American textile manufacturing by adopting advanced technologies and techniques to enable manufacturing of new materials and improve capability industry-wide. The initiative is actively recruiting industry partners to be part of the project, and has already received more than 100 letters of support from industry organizations.
“North Carolina and NC State University have an enduring legacy with both the military and textiles industry, with NC State having the only college in North America dedicated to textiles,” said NC State Chancellor Kevin Howell. “We are honored to serve thousands of military affiliated students and participate in research partnerships that support our armed forces, like FutureTEX. I am proud our university will play a critical role in this national effort that will strengthen our economy and defense infrastructure.”
One of NC State’s first objectives under FutureTEX is to work with Gaston College to establish a nonprofit organization that will assume administrative oversight of the initiative. This new institute will be housed at the Gaston College’s Kimbrell Campus in Belmont, N.C., with hubs in Raleigh, N.C., Philadelphia, Pa., Lowell, Mass., Atlanta, Ga.
“FutureTEX is focused on creating a cutting-edge national ecosystem for defense textiles that simply doesn’t exist today,” said David Hinks, chief strategic partnerships officer of FutureTEX and the Prakash Chand Kochhar Dean of NC State’s Wilson College of Textiles. “This will involve commercializing applied research to help American textile manufacturing meet the needs of both the warfighter and the domestic textile industry.
“NC State is a leader in technology commercialization, and the Wilson College of Textiles is a leader in applied research and education, so we’re spearheading this project,” said Hinks. “Transferring administrative oversight to a new nonprofit organization will allow us to focus on our strengths – education, innovation, and commercialization.”
“North Carolina and Gaston County have deep roots in the textile industry dating back to the late 19th century, making it only natural that our state is anchoring an initiative aimed at strengthening advanced textile manufacturing and supporting warfighters,” said John Hauser, president of Gaston College.
“With Gaston College’s deep-rooted commitment to workforce development and the textile industry, we are uniquely positioned to propel this manufacturing innovation institute forward with all of our partners.”
“Drexel embraces new models of innovation that eliminate borders between traditional disciplines,” said Genevieve Dion, director of Drexel’s Center for Functional Fabrics. “FutureTEX brings together a collaborative group dedicated to securing the future of textiles across the US supply chain. We are excited to join this crucial effort.”
“NC State is a national leader in technology transfer and industry collaboration,” said Krista Walton, vice chancellor for research and innovation at NC State. “Our extensive expertise in applied research is evidenced by the many products and successful companies that started at NC State – and as a member of more Manufacturing USA institutes than almost any other university in the nation, our long track record of leadership brings unique advantages to this initiative to advance the future of manufacturing.”
Kimberly-Clark Unveils Alternative Natural Fiber Innovation Program
Kimberly-Clark Corporation has unveiled a proprietary innovation program focused on advancing alternative natural fibers as the foundation for a next-generation, high-performance, sustainable materials platform, furthering the Company’s commitment to Better Care for a Better World. Company researchers and scientists developed a patented technology platform by transforming fibers from a rapidly renewable succulent plant into sustainable material. This breakthrough has the potential to power the Company’s future hygiene products with enhanced performance, quality, and sustainability.
“This represents an exciting moonshot for Kimberly-Clark and the culmination of more than two decades of materials and plant science expertise,” said Craig Slavtcheff, Chief Research and Development Officer at Kimberly-Clark. “We have developed a highly proprietary technology platform rooted in alternative fiber research and believe that these novel natural fibers will form our next great materials platform – an innovation with the potential to reshape the hygiene category. While testing continues, we are optimistic by early results and believe this material will provide curve-bending performance in our products while strengthening our long-term growth and supply chain resilience and accelerating our journey toward a future less dependent on traditional fiber sources.”
The Alternative Natural Fiber program reflects Kimberly-Clark’s consumer-led innovation platform model, which focuses on making strategic investments in disruptive technologies. This approach aims to deliver the best product at the lowest cost, while upholding responsible stewardship of the resources essential to the Company’s offerings. Kimberly-Clark expects products developed with this alternative fiber to support its strategy of focusing on higher-value, differentiated spaces where it has the right to win.
Indorama Ventures Reports Strong First-Falf 2026 Earnings
Indorama Ventures Public Company Limited (IVL), a global sustainable chemical producer, reported significantly stronger first-half 2026 earnings, reflecting favorable market conditions together with continued progress in strengthening the Company’s operating fundamentals.
For the first half of 2026, the Company reported revenue of THB 245.3 billion, up 4% year-on-year, and EBITDA of THB 29.7 billion, up 61%. Second-quarter EBITDA was particularly strong, with all four business segments delivering year-on-year improvement. Operating cash flow after maintenance capital expenditure increased 78% to THB 25.9 billion. Strong cash generation supported further deleveraging, with Net Debt-to-Equity improving to 1.56x, reaching the Company’s Capital Markets Day target for 2026 ahead of schedule.
Looking ahead, Indorama Ventures expects some of the exceptionally strong second-quarter market tailwinds to normalize. The Company’s priorities for the remainder of 2026 are to deliver sustainable earnings under normalized spreads, convert those earnings into free cash flow, reduce absolute net debt, and improve returns on capital.
Greenply Orders Second Pressurized Refining System From ANDRITZ
Greenply Speciality Panels Pvt. Ltd. has placed a repeat order with ANDRITZ for a pressurized refining system for its medium-density fiberboard (MDF) production facility in Vadodara, Gujarat, India.
The value of the order was not disclosed. It is included in ANDRITZ’s order intake for the second quarter of 2026.
The scope of supply comprises a complete pressurized refining system with a capacity of 25 t/h. The system features the ANDRITZ C-Feeder concept and a plug screw feeder equipped with AdvaProtect segments for enhanced wear resistance and operational reliability. In addition, ANDRITZ will supply an S 1056 refiner and a pressurized digester to further improve refining efficiency.
ITMA 2027 Receives Strong Industry Response
ITMA 2027 has unveiled its sector plan, marking progress towards the 2027 edition as planning continues ahead of the show.
The ITMA 2027 sector plan covers 12 halls at the Messegelände Hannover venue, spanning over 180,000 square metres, and features 20 sectors of the textile and garment making processes, from spinning to finishing, software and automation, recycling, and fibres, yarns and fabrics.
The textile and garment technology industry has responded strongly to ITMA 2027, with more than 1,500 companies from 43 countries already securing their participation. CEMATEX, the European Committee of Textile Machinery Manufacturers comprising nine national associations ACIMIT, AMEC AMTEX, BTMA, GTM, SWISSMEM, SYMATEX, TMAS, UCMTF and VDMA, continues to demonstrate its leadership and confidence in ITMA as the premier global platform for textile manufacturing innovation. Manufacturers represented by these nine national associations account for 43% of all applicants and over 60% of exhibition space booked to date.
Beyond Europe, manufacturers from across the world account for more than 50% of all applicants and around 40% of the exhibition space booked to date. China leads international participation, followed by India, Türkiye and Japan, reflecting strong demand from key textile technology manufacturing markets worldwide. This breadth of international participation reinforces the role ITMA 2027 plays for global textile machinery manufacturers, to launch innovations, demonstrate technologies, and engage with customers across the manufacturing value chain
ITMA 2027 takes place September 16-22, 2027, at Messegelände Hannover, Germany.
INDA Brought Nonwovens to Thousands of Policymakers
INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, recently concluded a successful presence at the 2026 National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit, held in Chicago, Illinois. Drawing over 9,000 attendees from across the country, this year’s summit marked the fourth time that INDA exhibited at the prestigious event.
Representing the association in the exhibit hall, Wes Fisher, Director of Government Affairs, and Kevin Conroy, Senior Manager of Government Affairs, engaged with thousands of state legislators, legislative staff, international delegates, and key industry stakeholders. Conference attendees visited INDA’s booth to gain insights on critical legislative and technical topics, including flushability standards, the California Collection Study, state-level wipes labeling legislation, and the broader economic footprint of the nonwovens sector.
“Securing a booth for INDA during the 2026 NCSL Legislative Summit provided numerous opportunities to speak directly with state legislators and policy stakeholders on wipes labeling and other issues prevalent in the nonwovens industry today,” said Wes Fisher, Director of Government Affairs at INDA. “The high-level conversations and product demonstrations we had were instrumental in highlighting the crucial role of nonwoven fabrics in consumer households and industrial applications.”
As one of the nation’s largest and most influential gatherings of state lawmakers, policy experts, corporations, and trade associations, the annual NCSL Legislative Summit serves as a premier platform for shaping state-level policy discussions. INDA’s participation ensures that the nonwovens industry remains a leading, science-backed voice as state legislatures consider regulations impacting essential consumer and industrial products.
Kimberly-Clark Announces Research Program to Replace Forest Fiber in Tissue Products
Kimberly-Clark, the maker of Kleenex, Cottonelle, and Scott, has announced a new plan to replace wood pulp with hesperaloe, a drought-tolerant desert plant. Wood pulp for tissue products is a major driver of clearcut logging in the boreal forest of Canada and other climate-critical forests. Following years of engagement and advocacy from Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and other organizations, Kimberly-Clark stated it would take steps to eliminate natural forest fiber from its entire product line and announced this year that they achieved their interim goal of cutting natural forest fiber in half.
“Kimberly-Clark spent two decades and a quarter of a billion dollars researching sustainable alternatives to forest fibers. That happened because consumers started asking where their toilet paper comes from, and because shareholders started asking how long a business built on clearcut forests can last. Forest fiber stopped looking like a safe default,” said Shelley Vinyard, Director of Global Nature at NRDC
“This is just the beginning, but signals a potentially market-shifting breakthrough. If Kimberly-Clark can scale up production of this fiber sustainably and without displacing other native ecosystems, this could alleviate significant pressure on the forests currently used to make tissue products. We also encourage Kimberly-Clark to use this same innovative spirit to continue increasing its use of recycled materials, which have the lowest carbon footprint of all tissue fibers.”
BICO BCF Yarn Delivers Impressive Performance in Field Testing
In a joint development project with other partners, Barmag and Object Carpet have successfully tested BICO BCF yarn in the carpet manufacturing process. The results show that this innovative yarn technology offers significant performance advantages and opens up new possibilities for recycling-oriented carpet constructions.
These trials marked an important developmental milestone for the carpet industry. For the first time, the bicomponent technology—already known from other synthetic fiber applications—was successfully transferred to the BCF process and validated across the entire carpet value chain. The trials demonstrate the potential of a new class of yarn that combines improved performance characteristics with new possibilities for modern carpet constructions.
“The tests show that a BICO BCF carpet offers more volume, high elasticity, and proven heavy-duty performance compared to standard carpet yarn. The PET-based material combination also enables recyclable carpet concepts,” said Product Manager Markus Reichwein, summarizing the test results.
The yarn was manufactured on a Neumag S8 BCF line equipped with a BICO spinning beam. The principle of bicomponent yarn is already well-established in other synthetic fiber spinning processes—what is new, however, is its successful integration into the BCF process. Due to the differing shrinkage and elongation properties of the polymers used, the unique material combination causes the yarn to self-crimp, thereby creating its characteristic voluminous structure.
The successful trials on a Neumag S8 BCF system now demonstrate that this approach can also be implemented on an industrial scale for the carpet industry. Likewise, all subsequent process steps—from cabling and heat setting to tufting and coating—consistently yielded good results.
After heat setting, the yarn exhibited pronounced bulk combined with high elasticity. The material also performed well in the tufting process: despite the increased titer, the yarn could be processed without any problems. Thanks to the yarn’s elasticity, it was also possible to produce more running meters of raw fabric than initially anticipated.
Furthermore, the yarn is characterized by its good coverage of the substrate. Process reliability was further confirmed during the coating process—both woven and knitted fabrics could be processed.
Nonwovenn Targets Doubling of USA Revenue With Appointment
One of the world’s leading nonwoven fabric-tech companies, Nonwovenn has appointed leading industry expert, Robert Green, as Business Development Director for its US operations. Green brings with him over 30 years of knowledge of the US market and a track record of driving commercial growth having most recently built and led the first commercially successful biopolymer fiber / nonwovens business bringing high-performance solutions to a range of markets.
In the next phase of Nonwovenn’s growth, further solidifying the position within the US market will be a key element. 25% of revenue currently comes from the US market, with an expectation that this will grow to 50% within the next three to five years. Nonwovenn identified the need for a senior leader to head up the US operations and strengthen client relationships, with Robert perfectly fitting that position. He will be focused on growing sales and delivering high-performance products and solutions in the market, specifically across the PouchTech and ProTech divisions. The business is also seeking acquisitions in the US technical materials sector, which Robert can lend his expertise to.
Alongside his commercial and technical experience, Robert has been actively involved in leadership positions with the two major global nonwoven industry associations, INDA and Edana. Robert served on the INDA Technical Advisory Board and chaired the RISE Nonwovens conference for the last several years. For EDANA Robert sat on the Board of Governors for several years while growing the biopolymer nonwovens business. Robert was also a co-author of a series of articles on biopolymers recently featured in International Fiber Journal.
BW Converting to spotlight Baldwin TexCoat® G4 at Guatemala’s 33rd Apparel Sourcing Show
BW Converting will introduce textile manufacturers to the capabilities and production benefits of the company’s Baldwin TexCoat® G4 precision spray finishing system at the 33rd Apparel Sourcing Show, taking place Aug. 18-20 at the Tikal Futura Convention Center in Guatemala City. BW Converting will participate through its local agent, Maprimaq, at booths 25 and 26.
The Apparel Sourcing Show is the only trade show in Central America dedicated specifically to the apparel and textile industry in the DR-CAFTA region. The event brings together the region’s complete supply chain, including yarn, textiles, inputs, machinery and specialized services, creating an important forum for manufacturers seeking new ways to strengthen productivity and competitiveness.
“Textile producers throughout Central America are facing the same challenge we see across the global market: They need to increase output and maintain high finishing standards while gaining tighter control over water, energy and chemistry costs,” said Rick Stanford, Vice President of Global Business Development, Textiles, BW Converting. “TexCoat G4 gives mills a practical way to address those priorities by increasing the productivity of an existing finishing line rather than requiring a major expansion of production capacity.”
The TexCoat G4 uses non-contact precision spray technology to apply a controlled and uniform amount of chemistry to one or both sides of the fabric. Because the system applies only the amount required, it can reduce wet pick-up by up to 50 percent compared with conventional finishing methods. The lower moisture load can decrease water consumption and reduce the energy required for drying by as much as 50 percent.
The system also recycles chemistry during fabric and chemical changeovers, supporting zero chemical waste from the changeover process. Automated cleaning routines, rapid job changeovers and recipe control help mills maintain production uptime while improving consistency and traceability.
Results reported by Zaman Textile Mills in Pakistan illustrate the business impact the technology can deliver in a production environment.
Lenzing Reports Strongly Improved Half-Year Results
Despite a persistently challenging market environment in the first half of 2026, characterized by volatile energy and raw material prices, subdued global consumer demand and intensified competition from Asia, the Lenzing Group achieved a significantly positive result. Net result after tax more than doubled to EUR 35.6 mn, compared with EUR 15.2 mn in the previous year. Free cash flow improved to EUR 45.8 mn. EBITDA amounted to EUR 239.2 mn, while revenue totaled EUR 1.27 bn.
“The results for the first half of 2026 demonstrate that our sales initiatives and disciplined cost management are delivering results. At the same time, they confirm both the necessity and the potential of our strategic realignment. With ‘Grow Nonwovens, Reset Textiles’, we are laying the foundation for a structurally more profitable and resilient Lenzing Group,” said Mathias Breuer, CFO of the Lenzing Group.
Freudenberg Performance Materials acquires Foshan United Medical
Freudenberg Performance Materials, a leading global manufacturer of technical textiles, has acquired Foshan United Medical Ltd., effective July 31, 2026. The sellers are UMT founder Dr. Xiaodong Wang and a private Chinese founding partner. UMT is a leading full-service supplier of advanced wound care products. The company with headquarters and state-of-the-art production facilities in Foshan, China, has a workforce of some 200. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price.
“Freudenberg Performance Materials and Foshan United Medical are a perfect strategic match. Going forward, the merger will enable us to offer a unique portfolio of technologies and products as an innovative full-service supplier in the market for advanced wound care,” said Dr. Andreas Raps, CEO of Freudenberg Performance Materials. Dr. Xiadong Wang, CEO and founder of UMT, added: “The innovative strength and high level of customer orientation characteristic of both our companies make for an ideal fit, they are the cornerstone for expanding our success.”
UMT has state-of-the-art technologies at its disposal. Core competencies range from fiber manufacturing or functionalization to nonwoven production and final packaging, sterilization and marketing authorization.
UMT’s regulatory know-how, successful international first approvals for products as well as patents granted in China, Europe and the USA are another key element for expanding the healthcare business of Freudenberg Performance Materials. With the UMT takeover, Freudenberg Performance Materials can cover all important steps in the value chain in-house and thus offer one of the broadest technology platforms in the market for advanced wound care. In future, the company will provide a wide range of solutions for different applications: dressings made of polyurethane foam, with silicone coatings or antimicrobial agents such as silver. Alginate-based absorbent fiber solutions, chitosan- and CMC-based wound dressings supplement the portfolio. The broad technological foundation unlocks comprehensive options for individual adaptation and enables tailormade solutions for customers all over the world.
