WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. — September 7, 2021 — Shawmut Corp., a global manufacturer of advanced materials and a leading global provider of automotive interior fabrics, today revealed its premium automotive interior fabric, Neoluxe™. Shawmut will be exhibiting the luxury Neoluxe fabric family to some of the world’s leading automotive manufacturers in partnership with the Zettl Group this week at the 2021 IAA Mobility Conference and Auto Show in Munich, Germany, from September 7-12.
Neoluxe is a premium synthetic suede alternative to urethane impregnated nonwoven microfiber materials, produced through a known, proven, and sustainable process within the automotive industry. The fabric delivers the luxurious look and feel of suede while providing the consistency and trimmability of a knit fabric. Neoluxe also features:
- A beautiful aesthetic that can be effortlessly enhanced through custom embossed, welded, embroidered, perforated, and printed techniques;
- A better and more homogeneous quality than other premium synthetic suedes, making the fabric a more attractive choice for a myriad of automotive interior component possibilities; and
- A reduced environmental impact compared to other premium suedes due to the careful selection of raw materials and processing technologies; Neoluxe can be produced using recycled content.
“As consumers increasingly seek out luxury-level features, our Neoluxe fabric delivers automakers a premium, sustainable fabric to elevate any vehicle in their lineup,” said Wade Martin, president, Automotive Division at Shawmut. “Additionally, with new trends like electric and sustainably-focused vehicles gaining market share, automakers need the right interior materials to match these vehicles in sustainability, appearance, and performance, and Neoluxe delivers on all fronts.”
As the world’s largest supplier of warp-knit fabrics for headliner and other automotive interior systems components, Shawmut’s addition of the premium Neoluxe fabric family to its existing portfolio of durable, high-performance solutions furthers its mission to help auto manufacturers continue innovating. Lightweight warp knit fabrics are standard in headliner applications, however the superior molding and tunable elongation performances of Neoluxe, compared to other premium suede alternatives on the market, allow this fabric to be worked into a wider variety of interior components.
In addition to headliner applications, Shawmut’s Neoluxe fabric can be applied to seating, pillars, sun visors, sunshades, doors, and more. With its in-house design, engineering, and production capabilities, and a manufacturing scale that allows it to supply customer’s low volume applications with high volume buying power, Shawmut has the unique ability to bring its Neoluxe fabric family to a wealth of customers with different needs and challenges.
“Neoluxe is such a fantastic fabric to work with because it molds and trims beautifully and accepts secondary processes well, allowing us to utilize the fabric in several areas of a car’s interior,” said Mollie Engel, vice president of Design & Development at Shawmut. “As a designer, I always have a vision for how I want to incorporate new fabrics into different designs projects, but sometimes that ideal doesn’t match up with the realities of the fabric. That is not the case with Neoluxe™ and working with this fabric makes the design process more exciting given its endless capabilities.”
Shawmut has partnered with Zettl Group, a premium automotive and interior solutions supplier, to display automotive seating finished in the Neoluxe™ fabric range at the IAA Summit Vendor Fair in the Zettl Group booth in Hall A2, Stand B22.
Posted September 7, 2021
Source: Shawmut Corp.
