#Techtextil 2024

2024-04-11

VDMA members at Techtextil: Focus on automation and digitalisation

Techtextil, taking place end of April in Frankfurt, will see a strong participation of VDMA member companies. More than 50 members will be presenting smart technologies for technical textiles in various application areas, seven of them at the VDMA group stand. A focus of the exhibitors will be on automation and digitalisation.

VDMA member companies are ready to support the transformation of the textile industry. This means the offer of innovative, highly efficient and resource saving production technologies and the provision of cutting-edge machines and equipment for recycling. In both cases, digitalisation is a means to improve both efficiency of the process and quality of the products. Automation and digital tools are also an answer to the increasing shortage of qualified personnel. With the help of digital systems, textile producers can optimise and automate their production processes and thus achieve a high level of process reliability and transparency. Automation and digitalisation of textile machines have already been developed and offered to market maturity.

VDMA Spotlight Talks at Techtextil 2022 © TexData International

Digitisation will only work in close cooperation between machinery builders and textile producers. In this respect, VDMA has organised a panel discussion that will take place at the VDMA group stand (12.0, C55) on April 24, 2:30 – 4 pm. The topic of the event is “Product passport – impact on the industry”. The regulatory process for the digital product passport for textiles continues to gather pace. As things stand, clothing manufacturers in all European countries are expected to require a Digital Product Passport (:) from mid-2027.

To discuss the impact of the digital product passport on textile machinery manufacturing and the apparel industry, VDMA has invited industry representatives and will welcome Mr. Andreas Schneider from Global Textile Scheme (GTS), who played a key role in the development of the : in the current CIRPASS project, launched by the EU Commission.

The VDMA group stand will also be a platform for junior engineers. On April 25, 4 – 5 pm the Chairman of VDMA’s young talent foundation (Walter Reiners Foundation), Peter D. Dornier, will award six young engineers with the Foundation's promotion and sustainability prizes. The prizes will be awarded in the categories bachelor's thesis and diploma/master's degree.

VDMA is looking forward to welcoming numerous visitors to the events.

VDMA Textile Machinery with new Executive Board

At the general meeting of VDMA Textile Machinery held in Hanover at the end of September, Dr Janpeter Horn, Managing Director of A. Herzog Maschinenfabrik, was re-elected as Chairman of the trade association. Regina Brückner, managing partner of Brückner Trockentechnik, and Verena Thies, managing partner of Thies Textilmaschinen, will once again serve as vice-chairs for the next four years.

Young talents honoured – 60 years Walter Reiners Foundation

At the Techtextil trade fair in Frankfurt at the end of April, Peter D. Dornier, chairman of the VDMA’s Walter Reiners Foundation, presented awards to five successful young engineers. Promotion and sustainability awards were presented in the categories of bachelor’s/project theses and diploma/master’s theses. Academic theses are eligible for the sustainability awards if, for example, they develop solutions for resource-efficient products and technologies.

Young researchers recognised for cutting-edge work in recycling, fibre technology and textile mechanics

At the Aachen-Dresden-Denkendorf International Textile Conference held in Aachen at the end of November, Peter D. Dornier, Chairman of the Walter Reiners Foundation of the VDMA, honoured five successful young engineers. Promotion and sustainability prizes were awarded in the categories bachelor/project theses and diploma/master theses. Academic theses that develop solutions for resource-saving products and technologies, for example, are eligible for the sustainability awards.

VDMA members at ITMA ASIA + CITME in Singapore

With 69 exhibiting member companies, ITMA ASIA + CITME 2025 is once again marked by a strong presence of VDMA companies. Altogether 82 companies from Germany will exhibit at the show, covering about 3,500 square meters of exhibition space, topped only by China and Italy. VDMA initiated a German Pavilion with two group stands (spinning in hall 4 and finishing in hall 7) with a total of 30 exhibitors.

Successful trade fair appearance of the IVGT members

With a total of 38,000 visitors from 102 countries and 1,700 exhibitors, the 20th Techtextil 2024 from 23 to 26 April in Frankfurt am Main once again maintained its position as the world's largest trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens. The Industry Association for Finishing – Yarns – Fabrics – Technical Textiles also draws a positive conclusion about the course of the trade fair for its members.

Georg Stausberg, a veteran of the textile machinery industry, takes over as Rieter Group CEO

Georg Stausberg, one of the most experienced executives in the international textile machinery industry, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Rieter Group with immediate effect from 4 November 2026. With more than three decades of industry experience and a long-standing leadership career at Barmag, Stausberg brings extensive technological expertise, international market knowledge and an established network across the global textile industry to his new position.

Jeanologia and BCome connect factory data with Life Cycle Assessment and Digital Product Passports

A new white paper by EIM by Jeanologia and BCome demonstrates how primary environmental data from denim finishing processes can be integrated into a garment's Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and prepared for use in a Digital Product Passport (DPP). A comparative case study highlights significant improvements at the production stage while also showing how these translate into the environmental performance of the finished garment.

Inside the Making connects denim and sportswear supply chains at Ecomondo 2026

Six European companies are joining forces at Ecomondo 2026 in Rimini to demonstrate how different stages of denim and sportswear production are interconnected. The new initiative, Inside the Making, highlights the importance of cooperation across the textile supply chain in addressing sustainability challenges, from reducing resource consumption to improving transparency and the reliability of environmental claims.

EDANA welcomes definitive EU anti-dumping measures on Chinese PET spunbond

EDANA, the international association serving the nonwovens and related industries, has welcomed the European Commission's decision to impose definitive anti-dumping duties on imports of PET spunbond originating in China. The association considers the measures an important step towards restoring fair competition and safeguarding European industrial capacity.