REMSCHEID, Germany— August 20, 2020 — Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 59th Global Fiber Congress, which this year was going to take place in Dornbirn, Austria, will now be presented online as a Webinar Week September 16-18, 2020. Also involved in the presentations and discussions are three technology experts from the Manmade Fibers segment of the Swiss Oerlikon Group.
The focus of the Dornbirn-GFC 2020 – Webinar Week will be on speeches and discussions on the following topics: “Smart, Integrated, Digital Textile Production Chain,” “Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – a Challenge for the Industry in Europe?,” “New Recycling Technologies – what are the Challenges?,” “Circular Economy in the European Industry Recovery” and “Future Rules & Regulations for Textiles – what should be expected from the EU?.”
The opening speech comes in the form of a keynote on the topic of “The Green Deal and its Implications for the Textile Industry” by Leonore Gewessler. She has been the Federal Minister for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology for the Republic of Austria since January 2020. Furthermore, she was the managing directive of the Global 2020 environmental organization between 2014 and 2019.
Digitalization and sustainability
Tracking and tracing products in complex production processes using state-of-the-art digitalization technologies is at the core of the speech to be given by Sylvain Huck, technology manager digital at Oerlikon Manmade Fibers. He will be talking on the topic of “Yarn DNA supported by Digitalization” September 16, 2020, from 1-1:20 p.m. The following day, Markus Reichwein, head of Product Management at Oerlikon Manmade Fibers, will be addressing another important current topic. “On the Road to a Sustainable Manmade Fiber Industry” is the title of his presentation, which he will be giving on September 17, 2020, from 2-2:20 p.m. In his speech, he will be presenting the mechanical and chemical recycling solutions that the man-made fiber industry is currently pursuing. All speeches will be delivered in English.
Protective masks
The hot topic of discussion currently is protective masks and apparel. As a result, the demand for filter media — and those made from meltblown nonwovens in particular — has been extremely high since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The Oerlikon Nonwoven meltblown technology is recognized by the market as being the technically most efficient method for producing highly-separating filter media made from plastic fibers. The capacities for respiratory masks available in Europe to date are predominantly manufactured on Oerlikon Nonwoven systems. In his “Leading Meltblown Technology for the Production of Face Mask Filter Media” presentation, Dr. Ingo Mählmann, head of sales and marketing at Oerlikon Nonwoven, will take the participants on a journey between 9:40-10 a.m. on September 17, 2020, introducing them to the secrets of meltblown technology. Because manufacturing protective masks, which help us control the dangerous coronavirus, requires ramping up the filter performance considerably. For this, spunbond and meltblown materials have to be electrostatically-charged. Here, the Oerlikon Nonwoven ecuTEC+ electro-charging unit is the key to success.
Tradition maintained
One tradition of the Global Fiber Congress has to be maintained even in the age of the coronavirus pandemic. To this end, the Paul Schlack/Wilhelm Albrecht Prize awards ceremony will still take place within the context of the digital Webinar Week. For additional information as well as options for registering, visit: www.dornbirn-gfc.com
Posted August 20, 2020
Source: Oerlikon
