#Textiles & Apparel / Garment

2023-06-15

Teijin Frontier develops new functional fabric featuring unique span-like texture and high stretchability

Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd., the Teijin Group’s fibers and products converting company, today announced the development of SOLOTEX® LIBERTE, a new functional fabric for sportswear and casual wear. SOLOTEX® LIBERTE fabric features a unique span-like texture and exceptional stretchability, as well as excellent colorability, luster and natural swelling. This innovative fabric combines comfort with sustainability, thanks to its incorporation of plant-derived raw materials.

SOLOTEX® LIBERTE uses polytrimethylene terephthalate (PTT) fiber featuring a proprietary low-shrinkage technology and a distinctive yarn processing method that maximizes the properties of PTT while controlling the raw yarn’s heat shrinkability. Specifically, this product uses side-by-side composite yarn (*), which Teijin Frontier cultivated with its variety of SOLOTEX® stretch fabrics, that combines PTT polymer as the core yarn with newly developed low-orientation, low-shrinkage PTT monocomponent as the sheath yarn. The result is a blended yarn with two different shrinkage properties. After the core and sheath yarns are randomly mixed using fiber processing technology, they are knitted using high-density knitting equipment.

Technical details for SOLOTEX® LIBERTE

*Side-by-side composite yarn achieves high stretchability by laminating two types of polymers with different heat shrinkability characteristics to form a coil-like crimp structure.

SOLOTEX® LIBERTE fabric features a soft texture and smooth finish. It also provides beautiful aesthetics, including vivid colors and a luxurious matte glossy appearance. The material has a high silhouette with a moderate drape. Apparel made with SOLOTEX® LIBERTE provides comfort, thanks to its soft stretch, light weight, water absorption and quick drying properties.

Material requirements for sportswear and casual wear are becoming more sophisticated. In addition to superior texture and appearance, consumers are demanding exceptional comfort and lower environmental impact. Teijin Frontier’s SOLOTEX® fiber delivers soft, smooth fabric with an attractive appearance, and supports sustainability by using approximately 40 percent plant-derived raw material.

SOLOTEX® has variety of lineups such as stretch fabrics using side-by-side composite yarn and soft and smooth fabric with colorability using PTT monocomponent taking advantage of PTT fiber’s characteristics. Teijin Frontier has been widely promoting SOLOTEX® in the global market and also developing fabrics that make the most of its characteristics, however, it could not achieve excellent stretchability and sufficient swelling at the same time due to the difficulty in controlling the heat shrinkage of PTT polymer.

Teijin Frontier will begin promoting SOLOTEX® LIBERTE globally for the autumn and winter 2024 collections of sportswear and casual wear. The company expects sales of SOLOTEX® LIBERTE to reach 500,000m by fiscal 2026.

Teijin announces availability of DPP-compliant products aligned with Europe’s ESPR Environmental Regulation

Teijin Limited announced today that it has started rolling out initiatives to enable aramid fibers and carbon fibers to be accompanied by Digital Product Passport (DPP) technology, which enhances supply chain transparency by verifying the origins of materials and supporting sustainability claims. The company is using the supply chain traceability system from Netherlands-based Circularise B.V., in which Teijin has invested since November 2024, to develop DPPs for each product.

Teijin Carbon showcases new eco-friendly Tenax Next™ R2S 513 6mm short carbon fiber at JEC World 2025

Teijin Carbon, a leading manufacturer of carbon fiber products, is presenting its latest development in sustainable materials at JEC World 2025 (hall 6, G22). New Tenax Next™ R2S 513 6mm is a short carbon fiber product in rice-shaped form for reinforcing thermoplastic compounds that not only offers exceptional performance characteristics but also reinforces the company’s commitment to environmental responsibility and circularity.

Teijin to invest in Circularise B.V. and adopt its supply chain traceability platform to promote the Circular Economy

Teijin Limited announced today that it will invest in Circularise B.V., a company based in The Hague, Netherlands, which develops product traceability management systems using blockchain technology. Teijin will also implement Circularise’s software to improve visibility into its global supply chain. Circularise’s proprietary “Smart Questioning”(*) solution, which utilizes Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) technology, provides both anonymity and transparency to ensure a highly reliable product traceability system.

NEUMÜHLE launches mono-material hoodie designed for textile recycling

With the Circular Mono Hoodie, Zurich-based label NEUMÜHLE introduces a new essential designed around a single-material principle. The textile construction is cotton throughout, right down to the sewing thread. Entirely free from elastane, the hoodie launches as a Limited Drop for CHF 139. Take-back, collection and existing recycling partnerships complement its circular design.

German textile industry and retailers form alliance to shape textile EPR system

Germany’s textile and fashion industry and retail sector have joined forces to establish the “Alliance for Textile Circularity” (Allianz für textile Kreisläufe). Initiated by the German Textile and Fashion Industry Association (Gesamtverband textil+mode) and the German Retail Federation (HDE), the alliance aims to contribute industry expertise to the development of Germany’s future Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for textiles and footwear.

SHIMA SEIKI to showcase digital product creation at Apparel Sourcing Week

Leading digital textile solutions provider SHIMA SEIKI MFG., LTD. of Wakayama, Japan will exhibit at Apparel Sourcing Week 2026 in Bengaluru, India next month. The exhibition provides a platform for the entire apparel value chain, bringing together manufacturers, brands, suppliers and solution providers in one location.

SNA GZ accelerates its on-demand production strategy with Kornit Digital

SNA GZ is leveraging the Kornit Atlas MAX PLUS to expand its music merchandise production, streamline e-commerce order fulfillment, and grow its print-on-demand business across Europe. This investment increases SNA GZ's textile production capacity by 150% (2.5×), enabling the company to meet growing demand and support its continued expansion.

New Cotton Review examines competitiveness, market risk, and opportunities

From moving record volumes of Brazilian cotton to market, to managing price volatility, unlocking Ethiopia’s production potential, and strengthening African textile trade, the latest edition of Cotton: Review of the World Situation examines some of the most consequential opportunities and challenges facing the global cotton industry.

Long John puts KARL MAYER's RDJ 7/3 into operation and strengthens its position as a market leader

KARL MAYER has just unveiled its new RDJ 7/3 Jacquard Double Needle Bar Raschel Machine in the international trade press, and the innovation is already causing a stir in the market: The Long John Group, a leading manufacturer of performance footwear fabrics and a long-standing partner of renowned brands, was the first customer to invest in the new machine and celebrated its official launch at its Indonesian plant on August 20.