The Oerlikon Nonwoven plant can produce meltblown fabrics for 500 million masks per year, along with other medical and non-medical grade products, filtration products, sanitary items, antiseptic wipes and more. Rainer Straub, head of Oerlikon Nonwoven, says: “We are very proud that we can now for the first time supply our Oerlikon Nonwoven meltblown technology to Australia. Due to the short delivery time, we hope to make our contribution to the Australian population and their safe sup-ply of high-quality protective masks as soon as possible.” OZ Health Plus director Darren Fooks says: “Australia has access to raw polypropylene feedstock but lacks the plant to convert that raw material to specialized spunbond and meltblown fabrics. These fabrics are essential for local mask manufacturing. The Australian-based Oerlikon Nonwoven plant will fill the production chain gap for Australia by producing the fabrics we need for mask production and many other products – it will reduce Australia’s protective mask supply chain from thousands of kilometers, to tens of kilometers.” “Our decision in favor of Oerlikon Nonwoven was a given once we had analyzed the material samples. It was a matter of course for us that the Business Unit of the Oerlikon Manmade Fibers segment could supply high-quality machines and systems,” adds Fooks. OZ Health Plus’ new facilities will take up 15,000 m2 of manufacturing space and will employ 100 full-time roles once the second stage of the project is complete. OZ Health Plus continues to work with both Queensland and Federal Government stakeholders and values their support in bringing this vital capability to Queensland. Oerlikon Nonwoven meltblown technology, which can also be used to produce nonwovens for protective masks, is recognized in the market as the technically most efficient method of producing high-separation filter media from plastic fibers. Most of the protective mask capacities available in Europe to date are produced on Oerlikon Nonwoven equipment. 07.07.20 Queensland company OZ Health Plus will establish Australia’s first manufacturing plant to make the critical fine plastic material used in most protective face masks. OZ Health Plus has purchased a plant of the Swiss-based technology company Oerlikon to establish a Queensland-based production plant for spunbond and meltblown nonwovens. These fabrics are essential for Australia’s face mask manufacturers, who currently produce about 500 million medical and industrial masks per year. However the fabrics have to be imported from overseas and access to these materials has been severely disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Oerlikon’s German-based business unit Oerlikon Nonwoven has now executed legal and commercial arrangements to supply the specialized machinery which can manufacture the nonwoven material locally. The same machinery is used to make almost all face masks material manufactured in Europe. The world-leading Oerlikon Nonwoven meltblown plant will commenc...

Diaper Testing International, a laboratory in Houston, TX, specializing in testing and consulting services for the absorbent personal hygiene industry, announced the release of US Walmart Report: All Good and Rascal + Friends. Readers will gain insight into the two new Walmart exclusive baby diaper brands that have made their way to the aisles of the U.S.’s biggest retailer. The report will provide context into these new brands including: Photos of their packaging, relative price per unit, and value proposition to consumers Diaper core performance benchmarks including rewet, speed and capacity and comparing against the range and average of 17 brands in the U.S. market Estimated GSM of various nonwoven components compared to the U.S. benchmark Close up photos with 40X magnification of nonwoven and hook & loop components of each brand The free report is available at: https://diapertesting.com/walmart-update-report/.

Over 1300 business and product developers converged at Chicago’s Navy Pier for the inaugural edition of FiltXPO, North America’s only exhibition and technical conference dedicated exclusively to filtration and separation products and processes. Well over 100 exhibitors (several exhibitors from China had to withdraw due to the COVID-19 situation) displayed their products and services to an inquisitive crowd that included many first-time attendees, and the concurrent Technical Conference featured seven distinct sessions and 31 outstanding presenters during the three-day event Feb. 26-28. Many exhibitors praised the high-quality interactions they had with senior-level decision makers they met on the floor for the first time. These new acquaintances were seriously looking for new materials and solutions to current design challenges they are facing. “The ability to forge new connections with first-time attendees in new business areas provided strong value that will generate high returns,” says Doug Brown, president, Biax-Fiberfilm. New technologies featured on the FiltXPO show floor included: TSI International demonstrated automated filter testers Albarrie representatives discussed new designs and presented fabric samples for air and liquid filtration Ahlstrom-Munksjö shared their new approaches on protecting the environment and people with its industrial filtration offerings Air Techniques International tested filter media on site for efficiency and resistance The Technical Conference, chaired by Behnam Pourdeyhimi, Ph.D., associate dean at North Carolina State University and executive director of its Nonwovens Institute, featured sessions on Biopharmaceutical Filtration, Membrane Filtration, Air & Gas Filtration, Nanofiber Filter Media, Water Filtration, Macro/Nano Modeling and Separation & Filter Media Technology. Conference attendees were impressed with the caliber and content of the speaking professionals. The two-day Filter Media Training Course, conducted by Chris Plotz, director of Education & Technical Affairs at INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, drew the maximum of 35 attendees who were extremely pleased with the level and quality of the instruction provided. FiltXPO replaces the International Filtration Expo and Conference, which was organized annually by INDA for 27 consecutive years and, in the later years, alternated between Chicago and Philadelphia. FiltXPO is intended to be broader in scope, covering separation and membrane technologies, processes, and equipment. FiltXPO will be fixed in location at the Navy Pier in Chicago and take place every 18 months, with the next edition taking place October 12-14, 2021. 

02.28.20 By ordinance entering into force on February 28, 2020 at 10 a.m., the Swiss Federal Council has prohibited all events bringing together more than 1,000 people. In the current circumstances, the situation is qualified as a force majeure event. As a result, taking into account the negative evolution of the situation, INDEX20 is postponed to October 20-23, 2020. The situation has recently significantly deteriorated with the appearance of the first confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Switzerland. The organizers had no other choice than to review their assessment of the situation and to act in strict compliance with the ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council.  “We sincerely regret this situation, as large numbers of people around the world have invested in ensuring that the event takes place. However, the well-being and health of all INDEX exhibitors, visitors, and exhibition staff, as well as their business needs and expectations, remain our highest priority. We trust that all participants will understand this forced decision,” says Pierre Wiertz, EDANA general manager. The world continues to discover the important role of nonwovens in protecting healthcare staff and patients through medical devices and personal protective equipment, such as surgical masks, respirators, gowns, drapes and coveralls. It is of course unfortunate that the biggest nonwovens trade show ever, with over 730 exhibitors and covering 24,700m2, has had to be postponed because of the largest epidemic in decades. PALEXPO and EDANA remain at disposal for any further information. Please consult www.indexnonwovens.com and www.edana.org for any updates.

Following its temporary cutting back of production at the Nanjing site in China, Lenzing has now once again ramped up operations on all production lines to reach full capacity. Recently supply shortages of important raw materials arose as a result of intense transport controls in connection with the current situation surrounding the coronavirus. For this reason, output from two production lines was scaled back for a short time. All production lines are now fully operational again after the successful resumption of the required supplies to the manufacturing facility.  

Mondi, a global leader in packaging and paper, has developed a new Carded Airlaid Carded (CAC) line to create a more sustainable three-layer nonwoven for wipes. These can be used for personal hygiene and cleaning purposes. This new line will use 100% cellulose content, including viscose and pulp from certified sources, resulting in a nonwoven material that is fully biodegradable. The new technology being used for the planned CAC line—located at Mondi's plant in Ascania, Germany—will make it possible to combine three layers into a highly functional and stable composite material. This will deliver optimal absorption and lotion load for high-quality biodegradable wipes and uses fewer resources than comparable carded mono-structures. The technology will be able to produce the entire sustainable nonwoven material in-line, while enabling hydro-embossing to increase softness and improve cleaning power. “The innovative technology means we can produce 100% biodegradable, high-performance nonwovens for wipes that are more accessible, and we are looking forward to introducing this to the market.” explained Kelly Wright, Mondi’s product expert for Personal Care and Components. The new line is set to be fully operational by 2021