Nonwovens live

Sensor partner for geotextile monitoring

Roctest, the world’s largest manufacturer of fiber optic sensors for civil engineering applications, is to collaborate with TenCate on the development of its GeoDetect geotextile monitoring solution.
GeoDetect will provide unprecedented details about the properties of embankments, slopes, walls, levees, roads, railways and other earth structures and users will benefit from the real-time monitoring of every square metre of land for ground movement, soil erosion, settlement and other changes.
Through its subsidiary Smartec SA, Roctest is now working with TenCate Geosynthetics on the technical and commercial development of geotextiles equipped with optical fiber sensors and related monitoring services.
TenCate began the development of geosynthetics with monitoring capabilities several years ago. Since then several pilot projects have been initiated, including those with the French Railways (SNCF) and with water management projects funded by the Dutch governmen. GeoDetect is the first sensor-enabled geotextile to provide soil reinforcement, structural health monitoring and an early warning system in one package, and in combination with Smartec’s wide range of sensors, including fiber optic, vibrating wire and conventional types will provide an unparalleled package of data analysis tools for structural engineering and geotechnical applications.
These technologies can be incorporated into a single user interface developed by Smartec called SHMLive. The SHMLive platform is designed for continuous monitoring through real-time data transfer via a secure online database and can be used to store and share all documents related to a monitoring project, including reports, plans and other useful information. SHMLive is offered for a fixed monthly fee that includes all the sensors, data acquisition units, aggregation device, upload transmission link, secure database storage, real-time analysis, web-based data access and reporting, with performance levels guaranteed for the contract duration.
 “For Roctest, the TenCate Geosynthetics relationship increases our ability to provide customers with the most integrated and innovative products for structural health monitoring, and reinforces our strategy of offering the most complete toolbox of solutions to our customers”, said Francois Cordeau, president and chief executive officer of Roctest.
“The future FOR TenCate Geosynthetics is less about products and more about providing solutions for geotechnical challenges through a systems approach,” added Dave Clarke, group director for TenCate Geosynthetics. “Coupling our application expertise with Roctest’s sensoring technology provides a differentiated approach to detecting potential failures and/or problems for civil engineers.”

Explosive growth for Fibertex in Asia

Having not yet completed a €7.5 million expansion at its plant in Malaysia, the Personal Care division of Fibertex has announced plans to install a completely new line at the same location.
A $50 million investment will see a new, ultra-modern production line in place to complement the two existing lines which are producing around the clock for Asia’s hygiene industry.
The additional extrusion beam on one of the existing lines announced late last year is expected to becom fully operational in the second half of this year, while the new production line will be completed in eighteen months.
“With this latest investment we will increase the capacity of the Malaysian plant by approximately  25,000 tonnes annually – an 80% increase of production capacity,” said Fibertex Personal Care CEO Mikael Staal Axelsen.  “At the same time, we expect to employ another 55 people.
Both investments are part of a strategy by the company, headquartered in Aalborg, Denmark, to keep up with demand in the Asian market while ensuring the plant’s ability to continue to deliver high quality products:.
“We have been ready to expand further for some time but have of course also considered if the global economic downturn would affect the market growth in Asia,” said Mr Axelsen. “However, as demand continues to grow almost explosively, we have launched the new investment so we can continue to meet the Asian demand for softer, lighter and very consistent products.”
Fibertex Personal Care supplies a wide range of spunbond and spunmelt nonwoven products for use in baby diapers, sanitary napkins, incontinence products and different products for the medical industry.
Fibertex Personal Care established the plant in Malaysia in 2003 and today is among the largest nonwoven suppliers in its segment in the Asian market and the largest non-Japanese supplier in Japan.
At Fibertex Personal Care’s plant in Aalborg, three production lines are also said to be running around the clock.

New plant in India for Tredegar

Tredegar Film Products Corporation has broken ground for a new plant near Pune in India to begin the production of films for the hygiene industry in the fourth quarter of 2010.

 “We believe India to be very strategic for Tredegar, extending our global footprint into a region with tremendous growth,” said CEO Nancy M. Taylor.

The new plant is located in the Ranjangaon MIDC (Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation), close to Pune, the eighth largest city in India. 

The plant will begin operation with two production lines, and the structure’s design will enable production to expand as demand increases.

“There is a wealth of very talented local professionals that we will be tapping into, said Monica Moretti, President of Tredegar Film Products. “By bringing on local management and staff, we will be able to learn quickly and adapt our offering to regional market needs.”

Tredegar Film Products currently serves every region of the world, with two plants in China, one in Brazil, three in Europe and four in North America. 

New web handling seminar

Principles of Web Handling, a two day technical seminar, will be held at the Holiday Inn Birmingham M6 in Birmingham, UK, from April 7-8.
The seminar focuses on the fundamentals and process know-how needed to handle any web handling issue. From exploring the theoretical to understanding practical applications, participants will be able to diagnose and treat existing problems and also accurately identify the specifications needed for new webs.
Critical areas of tension control, web tracking, roller choices and their effects, machine alignment and web defects such as roping, telescoping, and staring will be covered at various levels. Although theory is included, the emphasis is placed on practical problem solving techniques for the plant engineer.
Instructed by Chris Watson, a web handling technology authority, the course is applicable to any web-based product, including paper, film, metals, nonwovens, textiles, or any combination of coated or laminated webs.  It is intended for product and process designers, process engineers, quality, maintenance and lead operators, as well as sales and service personnel.
Contact: Seminars For Engineers USA.
Tel: +1-877-755-2272. info@seminarsforengineers.com
www.seminarsforengineers.com/converting

Swine Flu boost for Alpha Pro Tech

Despite record sales in 2009, Alpha Pro Tech reports that it would have performed even more strongly were it not for supply chain problems, when goods from Asia for its Disposable Protective Apparel business were delayed due to high demand in response to the Swine Flu pandemic.
Even so, the Infection Control business of the company, which is based in Nogales, Arizona, USA, increased its sales by 194.7% to a record $21.7 million in 2009 compared to $7.4 million in 2008.
And mask sales in 2009 were up by a staggering 283.3%, or $12.8 million, to $17.4 million, while shield sales climbed by 86.8%, to $3.8 million.
The company’s Building Supply business (formerly Engineered Products) also performed strongly, with sales up by 86.1% to a record $15.3 million, compared to $8.2 million in 2008
This was primarily due to a 103.6% increase in sales of the company’s REX Synfelt synthetic roof underlayment and a 41.0% increase in sales of REX Wrap house wrap. The sales mix of Building Supply sales for the year of 2009 was 72% for synthetic roof underlayment and 28% for house wrap, compared to 64% for synthetic roof underlayment and 36% for house wrap in 2008.
In the event, the company’s Disposable Protective Apparel business achieved 2009 sales of $22.7 million, a 12.4% year-on-year increase, and the company’s overall sales increased by 66.8% to $59.7 million, compared to $35.8 million in 2008.
 “We continued to see substantial sales growth in our REX Synfelt synthetic roof underlayment and, to a lesser extent, our house wrap products in 2009,” said the company’s president Al Millar.” We are currently working on opportunities with existing and new distributors, and we are optimistic about the Building Supply business throughout 2010 and further into the future. In Disposable Protective Apparel, we expect increased sales from a broad base of our distributors in 2010, but sales to our largest distributor, which were up in 2009, are expected to soften in 2010. Our N-95 Particulate Respirator face mask sales started to slow down in the latter part of the fourth quarter and are expected to return to pre-H1N1 levels in 2010, unless concerns relating to the global H1N1 Influenza A pandemic resume.”
Alpha Pro Tech’s gross profit increased by 86.5% to $28.9 million for the full year, from $15.5 million in 2008.

Private label on the up

Private label faces new challenges and opportunities as retailers across Europe now rely more than ever on their own brands to attract loyal shoppers and improve financial results.
The growing importance of private label will be examined from different perspectives by seminar speakers at PLMA’s 2010 ‘World of Private Label” trade show at the RAI Centre in Amsterdam on May 17th.
The viewpoint of a top retail executive will be given by Serge Papin, president of système U in France. He will discuss how private label is playing a pivotal role in the supermarket retailer’s strategy to succeed against increasing competition from discounters and other formats.
New product development and marketing is essential for private label to keep gaining market share at Lu Ann Williams, head of reseach at Innova Market Insights, will focuse on emerging trends and how retailers and manufacturers can take advantage of them.
Another seminar presentation will examine an EU initiative that could have an impact on retailer brands. Xavier Durieu, secretary general of Eurocommerce, will provide the latest on a proposed study concerning the effect of retailer brands on small and medium size enterprises.
 “Retailers are turning to their private label programmes to meet the extraordinary competitive challenges in today’s marketplace,” says PLMA president Brian Sharoff. Future success depends on retailers and manufacturers working together even more effectively than in the past.”
To help accomplish this goal, PLMA is introducing a new executive education programme, to be held 18-19 May, with courses cover a range of industry topics and offered in multiple languages.
The 2010 PLMA World of Private Label trade show exhibition will be the biggest ever, with more than 3,200 exhibit stands, including 40 national and regional pavilions. Manufacturers from 70 countries will show their new products and packaging innovations
New product and packaging from around the world will be on display at the Idea Supermarket, which has become one of the event’s most popular features. There will be hundreds of food and non-food products from more than 60 retailers from Europe, North and South America and Asia. In addition, PLMA’s New Product Expo displays products and packaging that are new to private label.
Further details: www.plmainternational.com

Rude health for Fiberweb

‘No gain without pain’ is certainly a maxim that applies to leading nonwovens manufacturer Fiberweb, which has just posted a terrific set of results for its 2009 financial year.
Following three years of considerable restructuring, the UK-headquartered company achieved profits of UK£23.1 million for the year, compared to £18.8 million in 2008, on 2009 turnover of £454.2 million.
Given the financial climate throughout last year, the result is little short of miraculous.
 “The success of the restructuring actions of the past three years is apparent in these strong 2009 results and the board believes that this marks the end of the turnaround phase for the company,” said chairman Malcolm Coster. “Fiberweb is very well positioned to make further progress in today’s challenging markets, and through innovation and investment, to capitalise on the eventual upturn in construction and industrial markets.”
“We delivered strategic and operational progress in both the industrial and hygiene divisions in 2009, enabling further steady margin progression during the year,” added CEO Daniel Dayan. “Our Hygiene business demonstrated its defensive characteristics, benefiting from recent investment and a strong first five month’s trading from the FitesaFiberweb JV, with especially good volumes in Brazil and Mexico. The Industrial business suffered from weak volumes, as expected, but saw margin expansion from innovation and improved efficiencies.
“The economic outlook remains uncertain, but we have taken significant measures over the past three years to build a robust business that can deliver growth and increased profitability.”
During 2009, Fiberweb’s portfolio changed markedly with the creation in July  of the FitesaFiberweb 50/50 joint venture with Petropar of Brazil. This venture accomplished several strategic goals. Firstly, Fiberweb is now active in the growing markets of South America from a very competitive site in Southern Brazil. Secondly, Fitesa’s independent plan to invest in the USA will now be implemented together with iberweb on a Fiberweb site, reducing risk and cost.
The JV also enjoys very strong relationships with both major global branded customers as well as regional branded and private-label customers. In addition, Fiberweb acquired the outstanding 50% of the successful Coronor JV from Nordenia, focused on producing medical laminates at a Fiberweb site in Germany.
The relative stability of the Hygiene business, comprising airlaid and consumer fabrics, provided the group with a degree of resilience during a period of almost unprecedented volatility. Volumes of these products – which are consumed overwhelmingly in the production of consumer staples such as baby diapers and sanitary towels – remained stable overall, with a fall of around 10% in the first half countered by a similar recovery in the second half as destocking by producers and retailers was reversed. Fiberweb’s production lines continued to be well-utilised overall.
Despite fairly stable demand, over-capacity in Europe for consumer fabrics emerged as a number of new investments came on-line and many fabrics were further lightened, creating some price pressure. Thanks to recent investments by the group, management was able to react firmly with the announcement in January 2009 of detailed plans to remove uncompetitive lines at Fiberweb sites in Sweden, Germany and France, coordinated with the commissioning of the new Italian spunbond line in mid-2009. These initiatives were all completed as planned during the year, with the desired effect on margins and competitiveness.
The Industrial business was impacted to a much greater extent than Hygiene by the turmoil in many markets during the year, especially those serving the construction industry. The decline in house-building in the USA continued and similar issues were experienced in Western European markets. In these challenging circumstances the performance of the company’s Typar housewrap products in both US and Canadian markets demonstrated strong resilience, with market share held in both countries even while volumes fell dramatically. In Europe, roofing products produced strong margins thanks to new product innovation and cost reduction.
Filtration products had a strong year, demonstrating the resilience of a business largely based on replacement sales and benefiting from strong sales of specialist meltblown fabrics for face-mask applications in response to the swine flu epidemic during the year.
New products for air filtration applications were developed for both European and North American markets. In the UK, Terram continued the recovery apparent since 2007, with record output from its remaining production line in South Wales and progress in developing sales in the Middle East and Russia in particular.
Investments were made in new technologies and production assets to improve product performance and to reduce waste and energy consumption, and programmes were launched to improve the information systems infrastructure of the company.

Pegas to proceed with Line 9

After a year of deliberation, Pegas, the leading manufacturer of spunlaid nonwovens based in the Czech Republic, has decided to commence with the construction of a new production facility.
Pegas has entered into a contract with technology supplier Reifenhäuser Reicofil to supply its ninth production line, which will be located in Znojmo-Přímětice, Czech Republic.
The Reicofil 4 type production line will produce materials mainly for the hygiene segment, with the option of production for other applications. The total invested amount in the new facility will not exceed €50 million, the company says, and will enable the expansion of annual production capacity by up to 20,000 tonnes, depending on the product portfolio. The company expects to launch production on the line in the second half of 2011.
“We believe that the new line, which will be our most technologically advanced yet, will strengthen our position as the technological leader in the field of nonwoven textile production,” said CEO said František Řezáč. “It will open a new window of opportunity for mutual cooperation with our customers, with an even stronger focus on ultralight materials, new bicomponent applications and other new materials that are planned to go into commercial production between 2012 and 2014.”

Three orders for Oerlikon Neumag

Oerlikon Neumag reports a strong start to 2010 with the sale of three new meltblown nonwoven lines.
They will be supplied to well-known players in the industry for production sites in Europe and China, with technology dedicated to the production of meltblown materials of the highest quality to be utilized mainly in the iltration markets.
The Oerlikon Neumag meltblown plants are based on the technology of J&M which it acquired in 2006 and has subsequently further developed and improved. They will all start up in the second half of 2010.

US incentives yet to be seen

The geosynthetics market in North America is showing no signs of recovery, according to the Netherlands-headquartered TenCate Group.
Reporting total group revenues of €842 million for 2009 – down by 18% on the €1,033 million achieved in 2008 – TenCate said that the promised incentives from the American government in respect of infrastructure projects have not yet resulted in a recovery of projects. It now sees more opportunity for its geosynthetics in new infrastructure and environmental projects in the rapidly growing Asian market.
TenCate became a major player in nonwoven geotextiles following its acquisition of Polyfelt five years ago. The business is now part of its Geosynthetics & Grass Sector, which achieved sales of €392.1 in 2009, compared to €497.8 in 2008, with earnings (EBIT) falling by more than 50% from €37.8 million to €16.8 million.