News blog

Miller Weldmaster was awarded the President’s “E” Award for Exports at the ceremony in Washington, D.C.

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Saving money, enhancing curb appeal and reducing your carbon footprint are just a few benefits.

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Miller Weldmaster lost an inventor, a creative mind and an inspiring mentor.

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This year’s IFAI Japan Forum will be held March 7, at the Tokyo Bay Ariake Washington Hotel, Tokyo, Japan.

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Gallery of images from the last 100 years, reflecting the legacy of IFAI and the industrial fabrics industry.

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Click here to catch up on all the latest info, updates, insights and sound bites.

Innovation lives at U.S. manufacturer

For anyone in a funk about the decline of big U.S. innovators like Kodak, the Wall Street Journal highlights companies like Milliken & Co., maker of textiles, that have innovation exactly right. John Bussey has details on ...

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Focus Electric is first vehicle with interior materials made of 100% clean technology, including the use of REPREVE recycled fibers; seating in each vehicle interior uses roughly 22 recycled plastic bottles

Ford, through the use of REPREVE®, plans to divert about 2 million post-consumer plastic bottles for use in the new Focus Electric and other new vehicles...

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America's $29 billion specialty fabric business soon could lose jobs to companies in South Korea, an exec fears

Specialty fabrics serve an array of markets -- everything from awnings to auto airbags to protective gear for soldiers and firefighters.

Unlike apparel textiles, the U.S. specialty fabric business has continued to grow, but according to industry...

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Seat Fabric in All-New Ford Focus Electric Uses Waste To Create a Better World

IFAI member UNIFI has created REPREVE, a polyester fiber made from a hybrid blend of recycled materials including used plastic water bottles and post-industrial waste. Through the use of REPREVE, each all-new Ford Focus Electric keeps 22 plastic bottles out of landfills.

Sitting...

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Congratulations to the companies and craftspeople who designed these great projects representing design excellence in the specialty fabrics industry.

View the presentation video (shown at IFAI Expo Americas 2011); and then browse photos and descriptions of the 84 winners in 33 project categories. Winners were selected based on complexity, design, workmanship, uniqueness and function.

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Ruddick Corp., the parent company of the Harris Teeter grocery chain, is selling its American & Efird Inc. industrial thread operation to a private investment firm for $180 million.

Two affiliates of KPS Capital Partners LP will get American & Efird’s 23 plants and 11,000 global employees in the deal. That includes plants in Mount Holly and Gastonia.

“This...

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Industrial Fabrics Association International recognized four members for their contributions to the specialty fabrics industry at the organization's annual Gala dinner at IFAI Expo Americas in Baltimore, Md.

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The Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF) chose TenCate’s new water-wicking geotextile, Mirafi® H2Ri, to receive this year’s Innovation Award. 

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Following IFAI’s annual meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 25, attendees were treated to a reasoned and occasionally biting analysis of U.S. politics by Charles E. Cook Jr., editor and publisher of the Cook Political Report. 

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SPECIAL NOTE -

The Neiman Marcus Christmas Book fantasy gifts, including Rainier's Dream Folly yurt, will be set up in Manhattan (week of Oct. 24, IFAI Expo Americas 2011 week) and will be featured on the Today Show Thursday morning (Oct. 27th, final day of IFAI Expo Americas).

Looking for a Christmas present for someone who has...

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Editor’s note:

A geosynthetics breakthrough at the federal level was accomplished Oct. 13 when a letter from Congressmen John Duncan and Frank LoBiondo was sent to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a study to investigate “costs and benefits of incorporating innovative materials in pavements … such as the addition of geosynthetic materials in...

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WASHINGTON--Congress passed three long-awaited free trade agreements on Wednesday, ending a political standoff that has stretched across two presidencies. The move offered a rare moment of bipartisan accord at a time when Republicans and Democrats are bitterly divided over the role that government ought to play in reviving the sputtering economy.

The approval of the deals with South...

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IFAI member Fabritex Inc. in Hartwell, Ga., has been awarded a multiyear tensioned fabric structure contract from NATO.

Fabritex will supply a minimum of eight structures to Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Ga., to be used as temporary hangers for C-130 aircraft that are undergoing routine maintenance.

“This is an excellent opportunity for Fabritex and our Atlas...

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WASHINGTON — There are still a few textile mills in the Carolina piedmont, making futuristic fabrics that cover soldiers’ helmets and the roofs of commercial buildings.

There is also a new threat on the horizon. A proposed free trade agreement with South Korea, which the House and Senate are scheduled to consider this week, would open the American market to a manufacturing...

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Co-branded website and marketing to premiere during New York Fashion Week, September 8-15

INVISTA, the manufacturer of LYCRA® fiber, is releasing a co-branded marketing campaign with six leading denim brands during New York Fashion Week, September 8-15. The latest designs from 7 For All Mankind, Citizens of Humanity, DL1961, Henry & Belle, Marc...

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U.S. Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) and U.S. Rep Brad Miller (D-NC) visited the facilities of Greensboro-based yarn maker Unifi as part of the “Hill to the Mill” campaign designed to give lawmakers a better understanding of innovation and investments in textile manufacturing.

Burr toured Unifi’s (NYSE:UFI) Repreve Recycling Center in Yadkin County while Miller visited the company’s...

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U.S. tarps supplier, Tarps Plus, will donate tarps to movie about homeless.

The leading U.S. tarps supplier, IFAI member Tarps Plus, has signed on to support the independent feature film, The Guitar Player. The film is about a homeless man. Tarps will be donated by Tarps Plus to supply the feature film for "tarp drives." The tarp drives will be held at homeless...

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The November issue offers a special focus on retractable awnings, rolling shades and shade structures. It offers a history of the market, the business behind the products and a state-of-the-art market overview. This issue will be read from cover to cover by readers who participate or want to participate in the sun control business.

Ad close date is September 17.

Go to Print Rates.

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The Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) has launched a new Integrated Media website.

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