IFF 2018 Innovation Award Winner: W.L. Gore & Associates

Published On: October 17, 2018

W.L. Gore & Associates Inc., Newark, Del., is the winner of the 2018 IFF Innovation Award. The company’s GORE-TEX® PYRAD® fabric won in the category of Fabrics, Fibers and Films. Photo: W.L. Gore & Associates.

The Industrial Fabrics Foundation (IFF) has announced W.L. Gore & Associates Inc., Newark, Del., as the winner of the 2018 IFF Innovation Award. The company’s GORE-TEX® PYRAD® fabric won in the category of Fabrics, Fibers and Films. The award was presented at IFAI Expo 2018 at ATA’s annual meeting, held Wednesday, Oct. 17, at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.

Innovation is the heart of creating a specialty fabrics industry that will inspire technology in the 21st century. The IFF Innovation Award helps to transform ideas into action.

GORE-TEX PYRAD is a revolutionary new technology that offers weather protection utilizing a waterproof, windproof and breathable GORE-TEX membrane combined with enhanced protection from flash-fire incidents: a unique blend of flame resistance, thermal insulation and thermal stability. Products made from PYRAD fabric are also lightweight, fast-drying, abrasion-resistant, and available in various colors and print patterns.

Currently utilized in workwear for oil and gas workers as well as electrical utility linemen, the fabric technology originated in military tent applications, eventually making its way to wider use in FR Shell/Outerwear technology for warfighters. PYRAD technology is seeing expanded use on a global level, particularly in military uniforms overseas.

Join the Industrial Fabrics Foundation as it fosters the next generation of specialty fabric industry innovators. The IFF is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) organization dedicated to education and research in specialty fabrics. For more information, contact Linden Wicklund, ATA’s Director of Events and Member Programs, at 651 225 6920 or llwicklund@ifai.com.