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Features

Held in Frankfurt, Germany, in January each year, Heimtextil marks the start of the events calendar for many in the textiles industry. High on the agenda at this year’s event were the impact of artificial intelligence on the home textiles industry, the need for natural and biodegradable fibres for the manufacture of home and contract textiles, and a preview of what to expect at Techtextil and Texprocess. Editor James Bakewell reports.  

After the flagship event for the composite industry, JEC World, Editor James Bakewell reviews recent developments in the use of flax fibres for the reinforcement of composites. 

Despite some very well-established and streamlined supply chains, the recovery and recycling of technical textiles is still far from easy, according to Nonwovens Editor Adrian Wilson, reporting from the Dornbirn Global Fiber Congress  (GFC).

After its postponement in 2022, the eighth edition of ITMA Asia + CITME is due to take place in Shanghai, China, on 19–23 November 2023. Ahead of the combined shows, Editor James Bakewell picks-out a few likely highlights.

ITMA (held most recently in Milan, Italy, on 8–14 June 2023 ) served to showcase the current key trends among machinery builders—increasing automation, machines designed to make composite reinforcements and the increasing need to process recycled textile waste, and how they will shape the future of the textile manufacturing industry, writes James Bakewell.

2023 sees IFG International Fibres Group is celebrating the ten-year anniversary of its launch of a fibre made from the biopolymer polylactic acid (PLA). Here, the company describes the benefits of the biodegradable thermoplastic for the production of fibres, the research and development work it has undertaken over the last ten years, and the role that PLA could play in the future of the technical textiles industry.

Founded in 1880 and with its headquarters in Belgium, Bekaert describes itself as a global market and technology leader in the material science of steel wire-transformation and coating technologies, and has 27 000 employees. In recent years, the company has been finding innovative applications for its metal/metal-alloy yarns in smart textiles, reports James Bakewell. 

Suppliers of chemicals and builders of machinery for the finishing, and the coating and laminating of technical textiles will present technologies designed to minimise the environmental impact of manufacturing processes at ITMA (to be held in Milan, Italy, on 8–14 June 2023). James Bakewell picks out some highlights.

Manufacturers of machinery for knitting and weaving save their big announcements for ITMA (to be held in Milan, Italy, on 8–14 June 2023) and while many will announce developments in software for the automation of their machines and their connection over the Internet, developments in hardware remain key, according to James Bakewell.

Technical Textiles International’s preview of ITMA (in Milan, Italy, on 8–14 June 2023) concludes with the latest developments in software, and auxiliary equipment and machinery. James Bakewell picks his highlights.

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