Man-made cellulose fibers with Lenzing Fibers…

min.jpeg">Tricia Carey, Director of Global Business Development for fibers.com/en/home/">Lenzing Fibers, a company manufacturing and marketing man-made cellulose fibers (bio), joins Stephanie Benedetto, Samanta Cortes and guest host Marc Raco on location at TexWorld USA 2017.

TexWorld, measuring softness, and blending

Carey discusses Lenzing’s man-made cellulosic fiber, all from wood pulp from min.jpeg">trees, which are ingredients of manufacturers and retailers around the world. She shares how being at shows like TexWorld allows convening, getting together with industries, yarn spinners and fabric mills, exchanging info, and how nothing takes the place of face to face meetings. The Lenzing Innovation Center, highlighting a new fabric concept TENCEL blended with wool for premium fabrics for high-end fashion. A focus on softness, with a measurement of softness demonstration between two fabrics, how everyone is looking to call out the value a garment has and being able to quantify claims, how there is great compatibility to blend with other fibers, blending as a huge trend, creating a unique mix that adds performance, strength or softness to garment.

Range of product use, closed loop, and Made in USA

min.jpeg">End products, how Lenzing makes 1 million tons of fiber, is a $2 billion company, making baby wipes, facial masks, top of bed sheets, towels, socks, denim, active wear, and industrial applications. The importance and advantages of a closed loop circular system, using wood pulp from trees, adding a solvent, extruding via spinnerets, creating Tencel, and how many brands require it. A closed loop can reuse the solvent at 99.4-99.6 %, sustainability, economic benefit, a win-win story, environmentally responsible, how Lenzing has always manufactured with environment in mind, the importance of Made in USA, the manufacturing facility in Mobile, AL. How planning a $295 Million expansion there is a sign from an Austrian company to commitment to manufacture in the US.

History, international innovation, and a travel story that keeps giving

min.jpeg">The history of Lenzing, how Tricia came to be in her position, where she started, graduating FIT, a domestic heat transfer company, then fabric buying at a women’s sports apparel company, and extensive travel. International implications in innovation, including knit applications out of Korea, and with denim a lot happening out of Turkey and Pakistan are both innovative. Garment production in Central America, and more on Made in America keeping up with innovation within the US. Accessibility for designers, Carved in Blue for explaining what can be done with denim, and a fabric certification program to be eligible for hangtags. How Lenzing doesn’t just make fiber, do a lot more. Favorite cities, Barcelona, Munich, NYC, Shanghai. Weird travel experiences, crawling out the window, and Fitbit as a must-have.

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