California Apparel News

Sun Capital Partners’ Performance Fibers affiliate has inked a deal to acquire Invista’s German polyester yarn business for an undisclosed sum.

The agreement includes manufacturing operations of Invista Resins & Fibers GmbH, which is based in the German cities of Bad Hersfeld, Bobingen and Guben, as well as the company’s commercial operations in Hattersheim, Germany.

The company produces low- and high-denier industrial fibers for sewing thread and industrial applications for hoses, safety belts, webbing, filtration fabrics and rope.

The Invista deal is the latest in Performance Fiber’s recent expansion efforts.

In August, the company acquired Diolen Industrial Fibers’ North American business. Diolen produces high-tenacity polyester yarns for technical applications and tire reinforcement. In January, Performance Fibers announced plans to expand its existing manufacturing operations in China.

“The addition of these German operations will expand Performance Fibers’ presence in Europe, add to our product portfolio and enhance our technical and research capabilities,” Greg Rogowski, Performance Fibers president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Boca Raton, Fla.–based Sun Capital Partners Inc. is a private investment firm that focuses on leveraged buyouts and investments in market-leading companies. The company’s efforts have helped it acquire more than 100 international companies with consolidated sales in excess of $30 billion. Sun Capital’s holdings include Anchor Blue, Mervyns, Levi’s and Dockers Outlet by Most outlet stores, Consoltex, DIM Branded Apparel, Lee Cooper, Linq Industrial Fabric, Rag Shop and Stila Corp.Polo’s Insulation Initiative

New York–based apparel giant Polo Ralph Lauren is spearheading a volunteer campaign to help renovate a five-story building in New York for Habitat for Humanity.

The company’s efforts are organized through its philanthropic arm, the Polo Ralph Lauren Foundation and its G.I.V.E. (“Get Involved Volunteer Exceed”) campaign.

The company will donate eco-friendly UltraTouch insulation, which is made from recycled jeans.

Several celebrities, including Lindsay Lohan, Gwen Stefani, Tobey Maguire and Sheryl Crow, already have donated jeans to the cause.

David Lauren, senior vice president of advertising, marketing and communications at Polo Ralph Lauren Corp., will spearhead the company’s efforts. On June 1, Lauren and several volunteers were on hand to install the insulation in the 19th-century building in the South Bronx. Once completed, the building will include eight residential units.

Since September, Polo has been collecting jeans through its “Give Your Old Jeans a New Home” campaign. In addition to celebrities, the company has been collecting jeans from its employees, as well as from college and high school students. Approximately 20,000 pairs of jeans have been collected and converted to 80,000 square feet of UltraTouch “denim” insulation, which will be used in the South Bronx project, as well as in other Habitat for Humanity efforts in New York and in the hurricane-affected Gulf Coast.

Habitat for Humanity International’s “Operation Home Delivery” in Canton, Miss., will receive about 60,000 square feet of “denim” insulation for its efforts rebuilding homes in the Gulf Coast region. Polo has partnered with Volunteer Mobile, Alabama and the Points of Light Foundation, to help rebuild two houses for families who lost their homes during last year’s hurricane season.

The process of converting jeans to insulation is done with the help of Brownsville, Texas–based JBM Fibers, which cleans and shreds the jeans. Chandler, Ariz.–based Bonded Logic Inc. manufactures the UltraTouch insulation, which is made from 100 percent denim and does not include carcinogens or formaldehyde. According to the company, the insulation is more effective against extreme cold than traditional insulation materials and provides better noise reduction. Textiles Get Eco-Label

North American makers of environmentally friendly and organic apparel and textiles are beginning to take advantage of a standardized labeling system available in Europe.

Textiles that meet the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 are guaranteed to be manufactured without harmful substances or processes. The labeling system is used for apparel, home furnishings and upholstery, as well as for textile companies that supply the automotive and medical industries.

A growing number of companies in North America and Asia have begun seeking Oeko-Tex certification. There are about 30 North American companies that have met the requirements to bear the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 label, according to the Austrian Textile Research Institute (Ouml;sterreichische Textil-Forschungsinstitut) in Vienna.

The institute first began testing textiles, apparel and floor coverings for harmful substances in the late 1980s. By 1991, the organization developed its certification guidelines and had certified 10 companies under its ecological standards.

In setting the guidelines, the institute looked at several factors, including determining whether the textiles use substances that are harmful to humans. If the textiles did contain harmful substances, the institute then looked at whether the substances were present in sufficient amounts to be considered harmful to humans and whether the substances would be harmful if they were ingested, inhaled or merely placed in direct contact with the skin. The institute also looked at whether testing a small sample would be representative of a full-scale production run and how to make the entire testing process simple enough to encourage voluntary participation. Lastly, the process had to be transparent, allowing consumers to easily determine how the standards were met.

Testing is conducted at facilities that have been Oeko-Tex licensed to issue the certification.

There is also a certification process for mills, which ensures that they do not use certain chemicals and have an environmental management system in place.

Lawrence, Mass.–based Malden Mills is among the North American companies that has taken advantage of the Oeko-Tex certification process. Malden’s performance fabric line, Polartec, has met the certification process.

Montreal-based T-shirt maker Gildan has been certified since 2004. And Portland, Ore.–based childrenswear maker Hanna Andersson features its Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certification in its catalog.

More information about the Oeko-Tex certification process is available at www.oeko-tex.com.Cotton Inc. Expands on the Art of Sweaters

New York–based Cotton Inc. has released a new CD-ROM in its educational CD series for textile professionals. “The Art of Sweater Manufacturing” is the latest in the series, which debuted in 2002.

Other titles in the series include “The Art of Knitting,” “The Science of Dyeing and Finishing,” “The Art of Weaving,” “The Basics of Yarn Manufacturing,” “The Art of Printing” and “The Science of Shrinkage Control.”

“The Art of Sweater Manufacturing” covers every aspect of the sweater production cycle from spinning, knitting and weaving to the dyeing and finishing processes. There also are sections on sweater history and the fundamentals of design and construction.

The CD-ROMs are tailored for industry professionals and feature 3-D animation and video clips of manufacturing processes.

Each also includes technical illustrations and a glossary of terms.

Each CD-ROM costs $25. “The Science of Shrinkage Control,” which is a two-CD set, sells for $50. The new CD-ROM, as well as others in the series, is available at www.cottoninc.com.