09.11.24
Dallas, TX
www.kimberly-clark.com
2023 Nonwovens Sales: $1.5 billion (estimated)
Key Personnel
Michael Hsu, chairman and chief executive officer, Kimberly-Clark; Russ Torres, president, North America Consumer Business, Kimberly-Clark; Ehab Abou-Oaf, president, Kimberly-Clark Professional; Lori Shaffer, vice president, Global Nonwovens
Location
Global Nonwovens Manufacturing Facilities
Corinth, MS; Hendersonville, NC; LaGrange, GA
ISO Status
Corinth, MS; Hendersonville, NC; LaGrange, GA
Processes
Spunbond, meltblown, SMS, BCW, hydroentangled, film lamination, airlaid and Coform
Brands
Kimberly-Clark Professional: Protective Fabrics: Block-It, Dustop, Evolution and Noah; Filtration Media: Intrepid, Powerloft, Cyclean; Delivery Systems: Hydroknit
Kimberly-Clark Personal Care: Huggies, Depend, Kotex, Poise
Major Markets
Filtration, construction, acoustics, consumer hygiene, industrial, medical, packaging, protective, sorbents, textile linings and wet wipes
Kimberly-Clark continues to see nonwovens as a key driver of innovation and growth for its brands, which include Huggies diapers, Kotex fem care and Depend incontinence products. In addition to serving these multinational businesses, K-C’s nonwovens are also sold externally to markets like filtration, construction, acoustics and critical cleaning.
“Both our consumer business and Kimberly-Clark Professional businesses are experiencing strong growth as we continue to innovate to deliver against our consumers’ unmet needs better than competitors,” says Lori Shaffer, vice president, Global Nonwovens.
Three main drivers continue to guide nonwovens innovation—skin health, garment-like comfort and sustainability—which all tie back to the benefits being delivered to consumers. For skin health, K-C develops material solutions that improve the condition of skin; garment-like comfort offers silky soft materials that move with the body without irritation.
“Because we make products that either replace underwear or are used in conjunction with underwear, achieving a more garment-like fit and feel is important and much of the technology we are developing helps create softer, stretchier materials,” Shaffer says.
The development of the Huggies Skin Essentials diaper, launched this year in North America, leverages a textured nonwoven liner to deliver skin health benefits for baby by more efficiently and effectively pulling mess away from the skin and trapping it in the absorbent core.
“We continue to invent new classes of materials that deliver improved breathability, comfort, fit and skin health in our core categories of adult, feminine, baby and childcare,” Shaffer adds.
Huggies Skin Essentials diapers feature a textured nonwoven liner.
Sustainability also continues to be a top priority for K-C, and this shows up in its innovation pipeline for nonwovens where the company has multiple technology pathways focused on delivering more sustainable solutions for its consumers. “We’re continuing to develop more sustainable materials—inventing new processes that deliver raw material efficiency (reducing plastic content in our products) and leveraging bio-based resins to reduce environmental impact,” Shaffer says.
Examples of how K-C has strengthened its product offerings through the development of more sustainable solutions include the introduction of the first-ever Kotex paper pouch, and launching reusable menstrual and incontinence solutions in markets around the globe. Kimberly-Clark also continues to prioritize the procurement of fibers from sources with sustainable forest management certification while pursuing ongoing investments in alternative fiber solutions. The company has reduced its plastics footprint by 16.4% towards its goal of a 50% reduction by 2030 over its 2019 baseline.
These efforts have been supported by a 150,000-square-foot expansion to Kimberly-Clark’s plant in Corinth, MS, which was reportedly the company’s largest-ever investment in nonwovens. The investment is allowing Kimberly-Clark to combine its unique technical expertise in global nonwovens with new innovative technology to continue to deliver value and raise the bar on performance. “We installed a state-of-the-art nonwovens asset in Corinth that continues to unlock innovation opportunities for our brands across multiple benefit spaces—comfort, sustainability and fit,” Shaffer says.
The expansion has allowed Kimberly-Clark to expand manufacturing of components for Huggies, Pull-Ups, Poise and Depend products using unique raw materials with a particular focus on comfort and skin health, as well as sustainability.
www.kimberly-clark.com
2023 Nonwovens Sales: $1.5 billion (estimated)
Key Personnel
Michael Hsu, chairman and chief executive officer, Kimberly-Clark; Russ Torres, president, North America Consumer Business, Kimberly-Clark; Ehab Abou-Oaf, president, Kimberly-Clark Professional; Lori Shaffer, vice president, Global Nonwovens
Location
Global Nonwovens Manufacturing Facilities
Corinth, MS; Hendersonville, NC; LaGrange, GA
ISO Status
Corinth, MS; Hendersonville, NC; LaGrange, GA
Processes
Spunbond, meltblown, SMS, BCW, hydroentangled, film lamination, airlaid and Coform
Brands
Kimberly-Clark Professional: Protective Fabrics: Block-It, Dustop, Evolution and Noah; Filtration Media: Intrepid, Powerloft, Cyclean; Delivery Systems: Hydroknit
Kimberly-Clark Personal Care: Huggies, Depend, Kotex, Poise
Major Markets
Filtration, construction, acoustics, consumer hygiene, industrial, medical, packaging, protective, sorbents, textile linings and wet wipes
Kimberly-Clark continues to see nonwovens as a key driver of innovation and growth for its brands, which include Huggies diapers, Kotex fem care and Depend incontinence products. In addition to serving these multinational businesses, K-C’s nonwovens are also sold externally to markets like filtration, construction, acoustics and critical cleaning.
“Both our consumer business and Kimberly-Clark Professional businesses are experiencing strong growth as we continue to innovate to deliver against our consumers’ unmet needs better than competitors,” says Lori Shaffer, vice president, Global Nonwovens.
Three main drivers continue to guide nonwovens innovation—skin health, garment-like comfort and sustainability—which all tie back to the benefits being delivered to consumers. For skin health, K-C develops material solutions that improve the condition of skin; garment-like comfort offers silky soft materials that move with the body without irritation.
“Because we make products that either replace underwear or are used in conjunction with underwear, achieving a more garment-like fit and feel is important and much of the technology we are developing helps create softer, stretchier materials,” Shaffer says.
The development of the Huggies Skin Essentials diaper, launched this year in North America, leverages a textured nonwoven liner to deliver skin health benefits for baby by more efficiently and effectively pulling mess away from the skin and trapping it in the absorbent core.
“We continue to invent new classes of materials that deliver improved breathability, comfort, fit and skin health in our core categories of adult, feminine, baby and childcare,” Shaffer adds.
Huggies Skin Essentials diapers feature a textured nonwoven liner.
Sustainability also continues to be a top priority for K-C, and this shows up in its innovation pipeline for nonwovens where the company has multiple technology pathways focused on delivering more sustainable solutions for its consumers. “We’re continuing to develop more sustainable materials—inventing new processes that deliver raw material efficiency (reducing plastic content in our products) and leveraging bio-based resins to reduce environmental impact,” Shaffer says.
Examples of how K-C has strengthened its product offerings through the development of more sustainable solutions include the introduction of the first-ever Kotex paper pouch, and launching reusable menstrual and incontinence solutions in markets around the globe. Kimberly-Clark also continues to prioritize the procurement of fibers from sources with sustainable forest management certification while pursuing ongoing investments in alternative fiber solutions. The company has reduced its plastics footprint by 16.4% towards its goal of a 50% reduction by 2030 over its 2019 baseline.
These efforts have been supported by a 150,000-square-foot expansion to Kimberly-Clark’s plant in Corinth, MS, which was reportedly the company’s largest-ever investment in nonwovens. The investment is allowing Kimberly-Clark to combine its unique technical expertise in global nonwovens with new innovative technology to continue to deliver value and raise the bar on performance. “We installed a state-of-the-art nonwovens asset in Corinth that continues to unlock innovation opportunities for our brands across multiple benefit spaces—comfort, sustainability and fit,” Shaffer says.
The expansion has allowed Kimberly-Clark to expand manufacturing of components for Huggies, Pull-Ups, Poise and Depend products using unique raw materials with a particular focus on comfort and skin health, as well as sustainability.
