INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, presented the Lifetime Service Award and Lifetime Technical Achievement Award on the first day of the World of Wipes conference.
 
Jan O’Regan received the INDA Lifetime Service Award. O’Regan retired last year after a long career in nonwovens including her most recent role as the director of strategic initiatives nonwoven marketing Cotton Incorporated.

"When I ponder the multitude of professionals who have dedicated their time, intelligence and wisdom to the advancement and betterment of our nonwovens industry, I am truly honored and humbled to be chosen as a Lifetime Service Award recipient for 2023. I stand on their shoulders and value the experiences and relationships that service to INDA and the nonwovens industry have brought my way. This work has been a rewarding cornerstone of my career," she says.

At Cotton Incorporated, from where she retired in 2022, O'Regan uncovered new opportunities for cotton to bring value into the nonwovens industry. Her work included leading efforts in strategic planning, technical and market project management, and sharing new ideas and results with the global supply chain.

O’Regan spent over four decades in the nonwovens industry in various roles, including sales, marketing, strategic planning and business management. Market responsibilities included consumer and industrial markets on regional, national and global teams. Over the most recent years, she applied these broad experiences to new markets for cotton in nontraditional applications.

Serving and volunteering with INDA for decades, O’Regan most recently chaired the World of Wipes committee, which she efficiently organized to produce innovative conferences for the wipes industry.  She was a frequent speaker at INDA, INSIGHT, EDANA, and other events, and for nearly two decades was a go to source of information for cotton fibers in nonwovens and hygiene. O’Regan earned a BS in Textiles and Business, summa cum laude, from Penn State University and an MBA from New York University's Stern School of Business.

Additionally, Seshadri Ramkumar, received INDA Lifetime Technical Achievement Award from INDA.

“I am very humbled with the recognition and the award is an acknowledgment of over two decades of work carried out by many students from many countries in my laboratory. I am thrilled to note many of these students are contributing to the global nonwovens sector in leading research and marketing positions. I thank INDA, its staff, and colleagues in the industry for supporting our nonwovens research at Texas Tech University when I initiated it in 1999.”

Ramkumar has over 25 years of experience within the technical nonwovens space, conducting industry leading research and educating nonwovens professionals at Texas Tech University (TTU).  At TTU, he established the Nonwovens Laboratory. Many of Ramkumar’s students have gone on to become technical leaders within their organizations and the nonwovens industry.

Ramkumar has numerous patent and invention disclosures, including Fibertect toxic chemical decontamination wipes which have been recognized by the American Chemical Society as a notable success of federally supported innovation, endorsed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and adopted by multiple branches of the military.

In addition to many peer-reviewed publications, articles, and columns, collectively over 500, including one on nanofibers that has been cited over 2100 times, Ramkumar has contributed his expertise on the editorial boards of multiple fiber, nonwoven and textile journals. Ramkumar has also organized conferences for nonwovens and textiles and actively promoted INDA and its technical training offerings for over 20 years.

He is a longtime member of the INDA Technical Advisory Board, has been recognized by TAPPI, Society of Dyers and Colorists (U.K.), the Textile Institute (U.K.), and the Textile Association (India), and received numerous awards from TTU.