The SYFA recently held its spring conference in Charlotte, N.C., under the theme “Creativity, The Economy and Policy In 2024.”
TW Special Report
The Charlotte, N.C.-based Synthetic Yarn and Fabrics Association (SYFA) recently held its annual spring conference at the Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel in Charlotte.
The conference, entitled “Creativity, The Economy and Policy In 2024,” covered topics on the economy, technical fiber developments and trade.
Outgoing SYFA President Hardy Sullivan of Thies Corp. opened the event with a review of recent SYFA activities. The association also conducted a business meeting where it installed new President Meredith Boyd of Unifi Inc., as well as new board members (See sidebar).
On behalf of the membership, SYFA Secretary and Treasurer Alasdair Carmichael thanked Sullivan for his service to the organization, particularly during the celebration of its 50th anniversary, which occurred during his tenure.
A Variety Of Presentations
The event’s first speaker was Piedmont Crescent Capital’s Mark Vitner, whose “Economic Update” presentation reviewed the economic climate the industry is facing. Vitner, a well-known economist in U.S. textile circles, was realistic about the economic challenges facing textiles and the challenges of a global environment in a post-pandemic election year.
Andrew Talarico and Taylor Greene from Circ Inc. in Danville, Va., discussed the challenges of developing a circular product lifecycle that captures and recycles textile waste throughout the supply chain and at garments end-of-life in their presentation named “Addressing Textile Waste — a Blueprint for an Industry Wide Shift.”
Dr. Behnam Pourdeyhimi, The Nonwovens Institute (NWI), offered a presentation on designing polylactic acid (PLA) blends titled “Promising Materials Development Using PLA.” He noted that for this sustainable fiber to be an option in nonwovens, there needs to be an emphasis on elongation properties that enhance performance.
Fibers That Promote Health
With “The Future of Health and Wellness is…,” Jordan Schindler, C2 Clothing 2.0, discussed developments in using textiles for controlled delivery of therapeutics, as well as the bright horizon for new product development beyond what is currently available in the marketplace.
“Neolast™ Stretch Fiber from Celanese” was presented by Celanese’s Rick Tobar. This new polyester development offers elastane-like stretch characteristics and performance, while mitigating elastane’s sustainability issues (See “Quality Fabric: NEOLAST™: A New Way To Stretch,” TW, this issue).
Jasmine Cox offered a “Textile Technology Center Overview” of Gaston College, highlighting the Textile Technology Center’s focus on training and newly created in-depth programs that were developed to support manufacturing.
SYFA board member Bart Krulic, Palmetto Synthetics LLC, explored opportunities offered in synthetic fiber development in a presentation titled “For Staple Fibers…What if?” Krulic focused on product development and innovation by considering the “what if?” idea of creating performance fibers using an array of polymers.
Michael Hubbard of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina (EDPNC), presented “Opportunities in International Markets.” Hubbard, well-known for his long history with the industry, offered companies a look at unlocking new opportunities by exporting their products. He also introduced new EDPNC hire Jeri Barutis, highlighting her expertise in trade and textiles.
The final presentation of the conference was delivered by Pete Mento with DSV Air and Sea Inc. His discussion, titled “Shifting Economic & Geopolitical Issues Continue to Create Challenges for Supply Chains,” was dynamic and his background in standup comedy certainly helped him engage the crowd on less-than-exciting economic issues.
Conference sponsors included Diamond Sponsor Premier Fibers Inc.; Gold Sponsor Jomar Softcorp International Inc.; Silver Sponsors Goulston Technologies Inc., Pulcra Chemicals LLC and Unifi Inc.; Bronze Sponsors Burlington and DAK Americas LLC; and Patrons Milliken & Company and Polyspintex Inc. Gaston College Foundation also hosted an exhibit table at the conference.
A Forward Focus
Closing remarks were given by newly instated SYFA President Boyd. She has been an active member of SYFA for many years, and a generosity and willingness to share her knowledge and experience of the fiber industry have always been a great asset to SYFA.
SYFA will hold its fall conference October 24-25, 2024, at the Sheraton Charlotte Airport Hotel.
2024 Quarterly Volume III
