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Business and industry

Koch to buy Georgia-Pacific

1 January 2006
US consumer products and packaging giant Georgia-Pacific, which produces around 40 000 tonnes of airlaid nonwovens a year, is to be acquired by Koch Industries.
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Ecoprogress to acquire diaper and adult incontinence technology

1 January 2006
Consolidated Ecoprogress Technology has announced an agreement in principle with Tailored Technologies (TTI) of Winston-Salem,North Carolina,USA,for the acquisition of certain patented diaper and adul
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Ten Cate completes acquisition of Polyfelt,and sale of Permess and Multistiq

1 January 2006
Following on from earlier reports, Royal Ten Cate announces that the Polyfelt acquisition process has been formally completed, making the takeover a reality (see also, Technical Textiles International
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More DSM investment in US high-performance polyethylene

1 January 2006
DSM is to invest several tens of millions of dollars in another new production line for its highperformance polyethylene fibre Dyneema(r) fibre in Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
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DSM Dyneema files lawsuit against Chinese company

1 January 2006
DSM Dyneema, the inventor and manufacturer of the strong ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) Dyneema(r), has filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against Hangzhou Pivot International Co Lt
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Management buy Benninger Textile Systems from Charles Peter

1 January 2006
The current management and a leading Swiss private equity firm Capvis will succeed Charles Peter as owner of textile machine company Benninger Textile Systems.
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Buyer's Guide 2006 --amendments

1 January 2006
On page 62 of our Buyer's Guide (Technical Textiles International, October/November 2005, the contact details for Cavitec/ Santex are incorrect.
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DuPont invests in aramid capacity

1 January 2006
DUPONT IS increasing its supply capacity for the para-aramid (p-aramid) fibre Kevlar(r) by investing at its existing production site in Maydown, Northern Ireland, UK.
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Diolen Industrial Fibers invests in polyester technology and capacity expansion

1 January 2006
Diolen Industrial Fibres is again investing in modernizing the machinery and expanding the capacity of its production facility in Emmen, The Netherlands.
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Anglo-French alliance to sell activated carbon textile products

1 January 2006
Mast Carbon Advanced Products, a UK-based specialist developer of activated carbon textiles, and PICA, a French manufacturer and global distributor of activated carbon, have formed an alliance.
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Medtex 07 to be held in Bolton,UK

1 January 2006
The centre for Materials Research and Innovation at the UK's University of Bolton will host the Third International Conference and Exhibition on Healthcare & Medical Textiles on 17-18 July 2007 at
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Successful IFAI Expo 2005 sets scene for 2006 and debut of Megatex in Atlanta

1 January 2006
The Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) has announced that its IFAI Expo 2006 will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, from 31 October to 2 November.
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Partners sell BSN Medical joint venture to equity investor

1 January 2006
Beiersdorf and Smith & Nephew have sold their 50/50 joint venture BSN Medical to Montagu Private Equity for Euro1.03 billion.
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Fourth Techtextil North America

1 January 2006
The fourth edition of Techtextil North America (TTNA), the International Trade Fair and Symposium for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens, will be held 28-30 March 2006, at the Cobb Galleria Centre in At
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Merger to form Molnlycke Health Care Group

1 December 2005
Molnlycke Health Care, Regent Medical and Medlock Medical have merged to form a new corporate organization, the Molnlycke Health Care Group.
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Fiberweb to be sold

1 December 2005

BBA Group has announced plans to sell its Fiberweb nonwovens operations.

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NatureWorks begins to explore the market opportunities in China

1 December 2005
Natureworks LLC - a supplier of commercially available polylactide (PLA) polymers that are derived wholly from annually renewable resources - has begun market development efforts in The People's Repub
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DelStar opens manufacturing facility in People's Republic of China

1 December 2005
Delstar Technologies Inc has established a new manufacturing plant in China.
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Ten Cate buys European market leader in geosynthetics Polyfelt

1 December 2005
Royal Ten Cate has acquired European market leader in geosynthetics Polyfelt GmbH from OMV Refining & Marketing GmbH of Vienna, Austria.
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Survey predicts US glass fibre demand to reach 3.63 Mt in 2009

1 December 2005
Glass fibre demand in the USA is forecast to increase 1.8% a year to reach 3.63 Mt (8 billion pounds) in 2009, valued at $6.2 billion, according to the latest study.
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Freudenberg Nonwovens to build new spunbond line in Taiwan

1 December 2005
Freudenberg Nonwovens, the world's leading nonwovens producer, will install a second polyethylene terephthalate (PET) spunbond line in Ta-Yuan,Taiwan.
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Agreement for development of a wound healing product

1 November 2005
Innocoll Technologies, a subsidiary of Innocoll of Aston, Pennsylvania,USA,has entered into an agreement with Greek company Medexis, part of the Gerolymatos Group, for the development of a wound heali
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Ten Cate buys European market leader in geosynthetics Polyfelt

1 November 2005
Royal Ten Cate has acquired European market leader in geosynthetics Polyfelt GmbH from OMV Refining & Marketing GmbH of Vienna, Austria.
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Smith & Nephew and Beiersdorf prepare divestment of BSN Medical

1 October 2005
Smith & Nephew and Beiersdorf are preparing for the divestment of their 50/50 joint venture medical device company BSN Medical.Created in April 2001, the company is engaged in orthopaedics, phlebo
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Chinese/Irish wound care partnership agreement

1 October 2005
Dublin, Ireland-based Alltracel Pharmaceuticals has announced a partnership agreement with the Yunnan Baiyao Group, China's largest consumer wound care company, for the development and co-marketing of
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Wearable power-generating technologies

1 October 2005
Konarka Technologies Inc and Textronics Inc have formed a joint development programme to create prototype garments and fashion accessories with portable,wearable power-generation capabilities.
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Brazilian police force picks Dyneema UD composite for boat armour

1 October 2005
Brazil's newly created Sea Police National System (NEPOM) has chosen DSM Dyneema as the preferred supplier to armour its patrol boats.
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Ten years in charge at Hohenstein for Stefan Mecheels

1 October 2005
In July, Dr Stefan Mecheels celebrated his 10th anniversary as manager of the Hohenstein Institutes in Bonnigheim,Germany.
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Rieter Perforjet and NSC nonwovens businesses to cooperate

1 October 2005
NSC Groupe, France, and Rieter Textile Systems, Switzerland, have signed a cooperation agreement between their nonwovens businesses: NSC nonwoven (Asselin-Thibeau), France, and Rieter Perfojet, France
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EMS and Showa Denko end speciality nylon joint venture

1 October 2005
With the lapse of the agreed period of five years,EMS-Chemie AG of Switzerland and Japan's Showa Denko KK have ended their speciality nylon joint venture EC-Showa Denko KK.
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International group forms to develop protective wear for emergencies

1 October 2005
An international team has formed to develop critically needed protective garments for first responders to natural disasters and bio-terror attacks.
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Diolen sells North American plants to Performance Fibers

1 October 2005
Performance Fibers Holdings Inc has acquired the North American business of Diolen Industrial Fibers Inc from Acordis.
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Authorities issue approval for Saurer's acquisition of Fehrer

1 September 2005
The Cartel Authorities have approved Saurer's takeover of the Austrian company Fehrer AG in Linz.
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Europe announces more details of plans for future of industry

1 September 2005
Following The Launch of the European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and Clothing in December 2004, Europe's textile and clothing industry and research community during the first half o
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Itema to reorganize business

1 September 2005
Italian Industrial Group Itema has begun a radical reorganization of its different business areas.
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Diolen to increase capacity for polyester tyre yarns in Emmen

1 September 2005
Diolen Industrial Fibers has announced an investment in a new spinning line to further increase capacity for the recently introduced one-step polyester tyre yarns, at the company's facility in Emmen,T
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Report investigates markets and technologies for smart textiles

1 September 2005
International Newsletters Ltd has published a market survey that aims to establish the true status of smart textile technologies, to describe current and future markets for products using these techno
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Kimberly-Clark to close 20 production sites by 2008

1 September 2005
Kimberly-Clark,manufacturer of Huggies disposable diapers, is to sell or close 20 of its production sites by 2008 and reduce employee numbers by 6000 -- 10% of the current workforce.
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Synergy offer for Shiloh

1 August 2005
Synergy Healthcare has made a recommended cash offer for UK healthcare group Shiloh. The offer values Shiloh at GBP8.7 million.
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HT Group to launch Oasis biomaterials in Italy

1 July 2005
Healthpoint of Fort Worth,Texas, USA, has signed an agreement with Italy's HT Group to market Oasis Wound Matrix and Oasis Burn Matrix products in Italy.
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Agreement for Fitti branded diaper business in Dominican Republic

1 July 2005
Synergy Brands has announced that its subsidiary PHS Group is to enter the Dominican Republic's disposable diaper market as a result of an exclusive sales agreement with Associated Hygienic Products (
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Saurer enlarges nonwovens portfolio with acquisitions of Fehrer and Kortec

1 July 2005
Saurer describes its recent acquisitions of Fehrer and Kortec as an important milestone towards realizing its nonwoven strategy: the development of a complete technology platform.
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US demand for coated fabric will reach $6.6 billion in 2009

1 July 2005
Demand for coated fabrics will increase 3.4% a year, reaching 573 million m2 (685 million square yards) in 2009, according to the latest study.
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EDANA members elect Knud Waede Hansen as new Chairman

1 July 2005
At EDANA's Annual General Meeting, held in Budapest on 2 June 2005, members unanimously elected Knud Waede Hansen, Managing Director, Fibertex as Chairman for a oneyear term of office.
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Paul Hartmann sells Fixies diaperb brand to Novacare of France

1 June 2005
Paul Hartmann of Heidenheim,Germany, is selling its Fixies baby diaper brand to French hygiene product manufacturer Novacare.
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Keratin-based biomedical technologies to be commercialized

1 June 2005
Keratec of New Zealand has entered into an agreement with US-based Keraplast Technologies for the commercialization of keratin-based biomedical technologies for orthopaedic and wound care products.
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Ontex expanding in Europe

1 June 2005
Ontex, Europe's largest private-label disposable hygiene products manufacturer, is reported to be expanding or building factories in four countries in the greater Europe region.
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Sale of Molnlycke Health Care to Apax Partners' funds

1 June 2005
Nordic Capital and other major shareholders have agreed to sell Molnlycke Health Care to funds advised by Apax Partners.
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Alltracel in nanotechnology wound-care partnership

1 June 2005
Alltracel Pharmaceuticals of Dublin, Ireland, has signed a technology and product development agreement with nanofibre technology specialists Elmarco of Liberec, Czech Republic.
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Invista expands nylon 6,6 airbag capacity at Canadian plant

1 June 2005
Invista Performance Fibers is to increase its capacity for hightenacity, low decitex per filament (dpf) yarns at its plant in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The yarns are used in automotive airbags.
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