The Next Generation in Thermal Regulating FabricsSagar Doshi and Erik Thorste test an elbow sleeve with one of their novel sensors.  Photo courtesy of the Univ of Delaware University of Virginia (USA), in collaboration with Penn State, the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, have invented a “switching effect” for thermal conductivity and mechanical properties that can be incorporated into textiles and garments.Using heat transport ...

MTC is leveraging its global manufacturing expertise to offer niche brands total packages – made in the U.S. “Our goal is 2,000 shirts per month or 150-170 a day.  Right now, with 30 workers, I’m getting about 100,” said Sanjay Israni, partner at MTC USA, discussing the challenges of running a domestic factory that focuses on smaller orders.   To make money, MTC needs to hit that target. Smaller orders mean that workers lose productivity every tim...

What different Brexit deals could mean for the UK's fashion industry.

China continues to invest in infrastructure to support strong growth in exports and imports.

Staying warm can now be eco-friendly with these new developments. Thermolite T-Down EcoMadeWith its 500+ fill power Invista’s Thermolite T-Down EcoMade insulation delivers lightweight warmth to cold weather outerwear, sleeping bags and accessories. This insulation delivers the look and performance of down while offering a sustainable alternative at a lower cost.This latest addition to Invista’s EcoMade products, which has earned Global Recycle Standard (GRS) certification, is a ...

The quest to make omni-channel work is a priority for most brand and retailers heading into 2019. One thing everyone agrees on:  establishing seamless integration between online and offline is essential.  Where opinions differ:  1) how to achieve this and 2) whether online or physical retail should be the priority. With a growing number of e-commerce service providers offering different options – and an increasingly complex market – just mapping out a st...

Artistic Fabric & Garment Industries (AFGI) has collaborated with Denimite to produce a fashion garment hangtag made from recycled denim.AFGI converts post-consumer recycled denim into fibers by processing discarded jeans, destined for landfills, using its state-of-the-art shredding facility. Denimite then turns this material into eye catching, edgy hangtags.The hangtag is made using an innovative 7-step process to turn old denim into new bio-based resin composites.The two companies designed...

Politics has become even more unpredictable and so no one is entirely certain about the outcome the G20 Summit - especially concening US-China trade relations.However there were sparks of a possible easing - a truce (at least temporarily) - of the highly publicized, and until recently, escalating, tensions between the two nations.A 90-Day TruceThe US will hold off on raising tariffs (from 10% to 25%) on $200 billion worth of Chinese imports.China agreed to buying a 'very substantial' (bu...

Polartec (USA) has introduced the upgraded Polartec  Power Fill  insulation, now made from 100% post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials.This best-in-class fill insulation led the industry when it was introduced with 80% recycled content just one year ago, and now has reached this sought after milestone more quickly than previously thought possible.Polartec has now upcycled over one billion post-consumer plastic bottles into hundreds of fabric styles and category-creating platforms. Pola...

American & Efird (A&E) has introduced REPEL, an advanced, perfluorocarbon (PFC)-free, water repellency enhancement. Repel is an additional feature customers can order and have applied to A&E’s global sewing thread brands.Repel is ideal for backpacks, footwear, athletic wear, uniforms and workwear.Repel will carry A&E’s PFCZERO  designation as it contains no perfluorocarbons. Perfluorocarbons are considered greenhouse gases which have been linked to global warming...