Tara Olivo, Associate Editor03.10.22
Nonwovens producers that manufacture products for residential and commercial spaces are expressing optimism. Many of these manufacturers are attributing growth in categories such as wallcoverings, furniture, bedding and acoustics, among others, to home improvements that have taken place during the coronavirus pandemic. Extra time at home over the last two years has given people an opportunity to make aesthetic and structural changes to their households. At the same time, as buildings and workplaces continue to open up, companies are reshuffling layouts to give workers more comfortable personal space.
According to Henrik Kjeldsen, CCO of Fibertex Nonwovens, which supplies a range of products for the furniture, bedding, flooring and indoor acoustic industries, the Covid-19 pandemic has increased business in these segments. “It appears that many families have invested in home improvements during the pandemic as more time has been spent at home and restrictions have resulted in savings on travel and restaurants expenditures, which has been used to improve quality of life at home,” he says.
During this time Fibertex has seen a trend towards improved acoustic environments at home, as well as in the workplace. The company designs a range of sound absorbing nonwoven products for ceilings and walls, which offers manufacturers, architects and specifiers advanced acoustic performance. Several of these products have been introduced quite recently and have already received a positive response in the market, Kjeldsen explains. “Most importantly, as noise is annoying by definition, these products improve quality of life both at home and work due to highly improved acoustic performance,” he says. “Likewise, there is a trend towards improved walking comfort relating to the flooring industry and on improved impact noise damping within the construction industry.”
Another category that has been performing well as of late is wallcoverings. As consumers have been encouraged to spend more time in their homes during the pandemic, Anna Brikh, product manager BU nonwovens, Ahlstrom-Munksjö, says they wanted to make these places more comfortable, functional and as reflecting of their personality as possible. “Changing wall decor is a good way to achieve these goals,” she adds. “We are confident that nonwoven wallcoverings will keep on increasing their presence on the wall decoration market.”
The Finnish nonwovens producer makes wetlaid and drylaid (needlepunch) nonwovens for wallcoverings at plants in Malmedy, Belgium; Brignoud, France; Arches, France; and Windsor Locks, CT, in the U.S. The company recently doubled production capacity at its Malmedy plant, a €10 million investment, which diversified the production to also cover filtration materials.
Ahlstrom-Munksjö offers a wide range of nonwovens for the high-end wallcoverings segment. According to the company, the market for high-end wallcoverings is expected to continue to grow due to increased demand for digitally printed wallcoverings, new and innovative textures and colors, supported by increased customers’ demand for home decoration and new trends in interior design.
“This investment will further strengthen Ahlstrom-Munksjö’s position in delivering unique fiber-based solutions for both wallcovering and filtration markets. It highlights our agility in responding to changes in market demand and enables us to support our customers also in the future,” says Pierre Mary, vice president, Nonwovens and Abrasives.
In new product news, Ahlstrom-Munksjö recently enhanced its WallStar range with new functional products. WallStar is an extensive range of premium quality facings and backings for high-end and luxury wallcoverings. Part of WallStar, WallStar Digital is its widest range of digital nonwovens suitable for all digital printing technologies. They comprise wide variation in structure and surface effects. Meanwhile, the company’s WallStar Facing FiberArt range of Premium wallcoverings has been enriched by a new high fibrous nonwoven in 130 gsm. The grade is suitable for direct printing with screen technology. “This new grade completes our range of fibrous surface nonwovens and meets the market request for structured wallcoverings whilst giving original aspect to the walls,” says Brikh.
Additionally, its range of nonwovens for digital printing has a new WallStar Digital heavy weight product, Matte Durable 240, which has a high level of thickness and opacity. It also benefits from a high tear index and fitting with U.S. Type 2 requirements. “It also includes recycled synthetic fibers, allowing us to propose a truly sustainable alternative to PVC-coated products,” Brikh explains.
The company’s wallcovering range also includes Ahlstrom-Munksjö WallWise, the widest range of value-for-money nonwoven facings and nonwoven and paper backings, designed to bring competitive advantages at an affordable price, and Ahlstrom-Munksjö Wall Liners, high quality nonwovens designed for overpainting, for both the professional and residential markets.
Another specialist in the wallcoverings area is Lahnpaper of Lahnstein, Germany. Lahnpaper’s basepapers are produced on a unique inclined-wire paper machine in a wetlaid process, followed by a range of finishing possibilities, as well as calendering and/or coating machines. Founded in 1911, the company has over 100 years of experience in the development, manufacture and processing of fiber products such as specialty papers and nonwovens.
Lahnpaper’s newest products are nonwovens with better opacity and a smooth surface to get better printing results. Soon, the company plans to launch an optimized carbon footprint product, as the topic sustainability is very important to the company.
Compared to paper-based wallcoverings, nonwoven-based wallcoverings have several advantages, including, for example, “paste-the-wall,” says Uljana Nowak, business unit manager Wallcovering, Lahnpaper. “You can directly put the wallpaper on the glued wall and will not lose time for cutting and preparing the wallpaper in advance. Nonwovens are dimensionally stable and can be easily put off the wall again, as they are dry-strippable. Renovation and decoration are very easy.”
In Europe, Nowak says there is a trend to have smooth walls and there is another trend to decorate individually. “For both trends, Lahnpaper GmbH has perfect answers: smooth nonwovens for smooth walls, and nonwovens for digital printing, where the customer can decide the design he likes for his wall,” she explains.
On the sustainability front, Lahnpaper has implemented an energy management system and is certified according to DIN EN ISO 50001, as well as according to DIN EN ISO 9001 for quality management. Its products are certified for sustainably managed forests (FSC COC). Lahnpaper is also permanently testing sustainable and renewable raw materials and is working constantly on optimizing the carbon footprint of its products.
During the pandemic, Nowak says there was a big demand for wallcoverings, and the industry experienced big growth in turnover. “Due to the pandemic restrictions, people were forced not to travel and to stay at home, so they had more time to invest their time in renovation and make their home cozier.”
In the years ahead, the company expects the market to be stable.
In the wallcovering category DuPont manufactures a polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) film called Tedlar, which can be laminated to nonwovens, as well as wovens and paper, to significantly enhance the wallcoverings longevity and cleanability. Tedlar has also been used in applications ranging from metal building exteriors, to aircrafts, to solar panels and much more for over 60 years.
Tedlar film for wallcovering provides a protective barrier against a range of cleaning agents and solvents, meaning the wall is highly cleanable and remains undamaged, with a good-as-new appearance that can be maintained over a long period of time. “This cleanability is increasingly critical in a post-Covid world,” says Corynn Sheridan, global marketing manager, DuPont. “It was always important in healthcare spaces and restaurants, but it’s becoming more emphasized in other areas as well, such as schools and hospitality.”
Tedlar film can be printed on and is compatible with a range of wallcovering types. It is also stain/graffiti as well as mold and mildew resistant.
Additionally, wallcoverings laminated with Tedlar can be GreenGuard Gold Certified, meaning they reduce emission of VOCs and can contribute to LEED and other environmental certs for a building. “Tedlar film takes a Type 2 wallcovering to a Type 3 wallcovering (at Type 2 weight) by providing the highest level of wall protection, excellent for high traffic areas that require durability and easy-clean,” says Sheridan. “Because of the longevity of Tedlar, it reduces the need to replace wallcoverings in demanding and high traffic areas, protecting a building owner’s investment and reducing material use over the lifetime of a space.”
From a growth perspective, DuPont is seeing increasing trends for wallcovering, as well as a lot of interest in graphic printing. “I think the trend toward wallcovering, from my understanding and what we’re hearing from our customers, has a lot to do with it being a more sustainable and highly customizable interior décor solution,” Sheridan says. “Wallcoverings are also coming back into vogue in residential, so that’s where we’re seeing a lot of the growth now.”
Freudenberg Focuses on Sustainability
In the home textiles market, one of Freudenberg Performance Materials’ latest offerings is Evolon New Generation, which is twice as dense as the original Evolon, significantly increasing its filtration performance.
“Thanks to a perfect balance of breathability, permeability to water vapor and thermal insulation, Evolon New Generation provides the best combination of thermo-physiological properties for unparalleled comfort,” says Frank Heislitz, CEO, Freudenberg Performance Materials. “Furthermore, with its premium appearance and luxury feel, Evolon New Generation complements the original Evolon by creating a new product for top-quality bed linen.”
Evolon technology is usable in washable, durable applications in home furnishing. With Evolon New Generation, Freudenberg has opened up new perspectives by fulfilling the durability requirements of the hotel and hospital sectors for bedding.
Additionally, Evolon New Generation products for bedding applications are endorsed by Eco-Check because they provide enhanced durability and lower environmental footprint over the complete lifecycle. Freudenberg launched the Eco-Check label in 2020 to help customers quickly identify sustainable products.
Today, design trends are highly influenced by comfort and sustainability, with recycled content, recyclability, light weight and durability gaining more and more importance, according to Dr. Heislitz. “Architects, home furnishing companies and construction companies are requested by their customers to use components and products with low environmental footprint,” he says. “In this matter, Freudenberg engineers work continuously to decrease our manufacturing footprint and help our customers to improve their handprint.”
Requests for lighter weight products have been pushed over the past few years. “Lighter weight is generally ‘greener,’ and this has led to primary carpet backing weights reducing this year,” he adds.
In 2021, Freudenberg launched Evolon RE made from recycled PET made bottles. One single mother roll with an average of 2000 sqm of typical Evolon RE material gives new life to approximately 5500 plastic bottles. Freudenberg also strives to provide lighter products while increasing the durability and wash resistance.
Additionally, due to the turbulent market conditions in 2021, one of Freudenberg’s focuses was to assure reliable supply of constant high-quality products to its customers. “Following Freudenberg’s commitment to sustainability, we have been working on the ecological foot- and handprint of our spunbond nonwovens,” Heislitz says. “Measures to reduce CO2 emissions during production and developments to enable carpet recyclability at the end of a product’s lifetime are ongoing.”
Precision Textiles Grows in the U.S.
Throughout 2021, New Jersey-based Precision Textiles was in expansion mode. In October the supplier of coated fabrics, nonwovens and laminations for the bedding, automotive and healthcare industries, opened its new 160,000 square-foot plant located on a 25-acre campus in Troy, NC.
After 34 years of manufacturing products domestically solely out of its headquarters facility in Totowa, NJ, Precision Textiles’ second manufacturing facility is located near many of the company’s customers in the bedding industry. Proximity was critical factor in Precision Textiles’ choice for the location of the site.
“This location puts us right where we need to be,” Scott Tesser, CEO, said during the opening of the new facility. “We have been manufacturing out of our New Jersey facility for many years, and now we’re taking the next step. It’s critical to our growth to be located right here, in the heart of one of the largest areas for bedding manufacturing in the Southeast. This opening marks our commitment to the industry, our customers and also our employees.”
Once a textiles production plant that serviced the automobile industry, the Troy facility will eventually double the manufacturer’s needlepunch nonwovens production and boost its highloft quilting fiber output by 50%. The new factory will enable Precision to better serve the needs of its customers throughout the nation and, in particular, reduce shipping times for its customers in the Southeast. The added capacity will also enable the company to meet the needs of both existing and new customers as it seeks new avenues for growing its business down the road.
Meanwhile, in November, Precision Textiles announced plans to open a nonwovens plant at a 50,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution center in Phoenix, AZ, that will serve its customers throughout the western U.S.
“Demand for our products is high in the bedding industry, which has fueled our expansion. The Arizona facility is close in proximity to many of our customers, which was a primary factor in the choice for this location. Not only will it enable us to be more responsive to our partners in the western region, but it will also allow us to reduce shipping time and deliver product to them more efficiently,” says Tesser.
In new product news, Precision recently launched PurLoft to help manufacturers meet consumer demand for natural, more sustainable mattresses. PurLoft is an environmentally friendly alternative to 100% synthetic high loft fire barriers for bedding products. It is offered in varying weights and made with renewable wool fibers, which are naturally flame retardant. Incorporating wool directly under the sleep surface offers a high-performance, sustainable alternative that is not only FR compliant, but also creates air pockets, which act as natural insulators to help regulate body temperature. PurLoft also offers superior moisture management as well as odor and allergen protection. In addition, the naturally crimped wool fiber helps products retain shape longer, making it more durable.
According to Henrik Kjeldsen, CCO of Fibertex Nonwovens, which supplies a range of products for the furniture, bedding, flooring and indoor acoustic industries, the Covid-19 pandemic has increased business in these segments. “It appears that many families have invested in home improvements during the pandemic as more time has been spent at home and restrictions have resulted in savings on travel and restaurants expenditures, which has been used to improve quality of life at home,” he says.
During this time Fibertex has seen a trend towards improved acoustic environments at home, as well as in the workplace. The company designs a range of sound absorbing nonwoven products for ceilings and walls, which offers manufacturers, architects and specifiers advanced acoustic performance. Several of these products have been introduced quite recently and have already received a positive response in the market, Kjeldsen explains. “Most importantly, as noise is annoying by definition, these products improve quality of life both at home and work due to highly improved acoustic performance,” he says. “Likewise, there is a trend towards improved walking comfort relating to the flooring industry and on improved impact noise damping within the construction industry.”
Another category that has been performing well as of late is wallcoverings. As consumers have been encouraged to spend more time in their homes during the pandemic, Anna Brikh, product manager BU nonwovens, Ahlstrom-Munksjö, says they wanted to make these places more comfortable, functional and as reflecting of their personality as possible. “Changing wall decor is a good way to achieve these goals,” she adds. “We are confident that nonwoven wallcoverings will keep on increasing their presence on the wall decoration market.”
The Finnish nonwovens producer makes wetlaid and drylaid (needlepunch) nonwovens for wallcoverings at plants in Malmedy, Belgium; Brignoud, France; Arches, France; and Windsor Locks, CT, in the U.S. The company recently doubled production capacity at its Malmedy plant, a €10 million investment, which diversified the production to also cover filtration materials.
Ahlstrom-Munksjö offers a wide range of nonwovens for the high-end wallcoverings segment. According to the company, the market for high-end wallcoverings is expected to continue to grow due to increased demand for digitally printed wallcoverings, new and innovative textures and colors, supported by increased customers’ demand for home decoration and new trends in interior design.
“This investment will further strengthen Ahlstrom-Munksjö’s position in delivering unique fiber-based solutions for both wallcovering and filtration markets. It highlights our agility in responding to changes in market demand and enables us to support our customers also in the future,” says Pierre Mary, vice president, Nonwovens and Abrasives.
In new product news, Ahlstrom-Munksjö recently enhanced its WallStar range with new functional products. WallStar is an extensive range of premium quality facings and backings for high-end and luxury wallcoverings. Part of WallStar, WallStar Digital is its widest range of digital nonwovens suitable for all digital printing technologies. They comprise wide variation in structure and surface effects. Meanwhile, the company’s WallStar Facing FiberArt range of Premium wallcoverings has been enriched by a new high fibrous nonwoven in 130 gsm. The grade is suitable for direct printing with screen technology. “This new grade completes our range of fibrous surface nonwovens and meets the market request for structured wallcoverings whilst giving original aspect to the walls,” says Brikh.
Additionally, its range of nonwovens for digital printing has a new WallStar Digital heavy weight product, Matte Durable 240, which has a high level of thickness and opacity. It also benefits from a high tear index and fitting with U.S. Type 2 requirements. “It also includes recycled synthetic fibers, allowing us to propose a truly sustainable alternative to PVC-coated products,” Brikh explains.
The company’s wallcovering range also includes Ahlstrom-Munksjö WallWise, the widest range of value-for-money nonwoven facings and nonwoven and paper backings, designed to bring competitive advantages at an affordable price, and Ahlstrom-Munksjö Wall Liners, high quality nonwovens designed for overpainting, for both the professional and residential markets.
Another specialist in the wallcoverings area is Lahnpaper of Lahnstein, Germany. Lahnpaper’s basepapers are produced on a unique inclined-wire paper machine in a wetlaid process, followed by a range of finishing possibilities, as well as calendering and/or coating machines. Founded in 1911, the company has over 100 years of experience in the development, manufacture and processing of fiber products such as specialty papers and nonwovens.
Lahnpaper’s newest products are nonwovens with better opacity and a smooth surface to get better printing results. Soon, the company plans to launch an optimized carbon footprint product, as the topic sustainability is very important to the company.
Compared to paper-based wallcoverings, nonwoven-based wallcoverings have several advantages, including, for example, “paste-the-wall,” says Uljana Nowak, business unit manager Wallcovering, Lahnpaper. “You can directly put the wallpaper on the glued wall and will not lose time for cutting and preparing the wallpaper in advance. Nonwovens are dimensionally stable and can be easily put off the wall again, as they are dry-strippable. Renovation and decoration are very easy.”
In Europe, Nowak says there is a trend to have smooth walls and there is another trend to decorate individually. “For both trends, Lahnpaper GmbH has perfect answers: smooth nonwovens for smooth walls, and nonwovens for digital printing, where the customer can decide the design he likes for his wall,” she explains.
On the sustainability front, Lahnpaper has implemented an energy management system and is certified according to DIN EN ISO 50001, as well as according to DIN EN ISO 9001 for quality management. Its products are certified for sustainably managed forests (FSC COC). Lahnpaper is also permanently testing sustainable and renewable raw materials and is working constantly on optimizing the carbon footprint of its products.
During the pandemic, Nowak says there was a big demand for wallcoverings, and the industry experienced big growth in turnover. “Due to the pandemic restrictions, people were forced not to travel and to stay at home, so they had more time to invest their time in renovation and make their home cozier.”
In the years ahead, the company expects the market to be stable.
In the wallcovering category DuPont manufactures a polyvinyl fluoride (PVF) film called Tedlar, which can be laminated to nonwovens, as well as wovens and paper, to significantly enhance the wallcoverings longevity and cleanability. Tedlar has also been used in applications ranging from metal building exteriors, to aircrafts, to solar panels and much more for over 60 years.
Tedlar film for wallcovering provides a protective barrier against a range of cleaning agents and solvents, meaning the wall is highly cleanable and remains undamaged, with a good-as-new appearance that can be maintained over a long period of time. “This cleanability is increasingly critical in a post-Covid world,” says Corynn Sheridan, global marketing manager, DuPont. “It was always important in healthcare spaces and restaurants, but it’s becoming more emphasized in other areas as well, such as schools and hospitality.”
Tedlar film can be printed on and is compatible with a range of wallcovering types. It is also stain/graffiti as well as mold and mildew resistant.
Additionally, wallcoverings laminated with Tedlar can be GreenGuard Gold Certified, meaning they reduce emission of VOCs and can contribute to LEED and other environmental certs for a building. “Tedlar film takes a Type 2 wallcovering to a Type 3 wallcovering (at Type 2 weight) by providing the highest level of wall protection, excellent for high traffic areas that require durability and easy-clean,” says Sheridan. “Because of the longevity of Tedlar, it reduces the need to replace wallcoverings in demanding and high traffic areas, protecting a building owner’s investment and reducing material use over the lifetime of a space.”
From a growth perspective, DuPont is seeing increasing trends for wallcovering, as well as a lot of interest in graphic printing. “I think the trend toward wallcovering, from my understanding and what we’re hearing from our customers, has a lot to do with it being a more sustainable and highly customizable interior décor solution,” Sheridan says. “Wallcoverings are also coming back into vogue in residential, so that’s where we’re seeing a lot of the growth now.”
Freudenberg Focuses on Sustainability
In the home textiles market, one of Freudenberg Performance Materials’ latest offerings is Evolon New Generation, which is twice as dense as the original Evolon, significantly increasing its filtration performance.
“Thanks to a perfect balance of breathability, permeability to water vapor and thermal insulation, Evolon New Generation provides the best combination of thermo-physiological properties for unparalleled comfort,” says Frank Heislitz, CEO, Freudenberg Performance Materials. “Furthermore, with its premium appearance and luxury feel, Evolon New Generation complements the original Evolon by creating a new product for top-quality bed linen.”
Evolon technology is usable in washable, durable applications in home furnishing. With Evolon New Generation, Freudenberg has opened up new perspectives by fulfilling the durability requirements of the hotel and hospital sectors for bedding.
Additionally, Evolon New Generation products for bedding applications are endorsed by Eco-Check because they provide enhanced durability and lower environmental footprint over the complete lifecycle. Freudenberg launched the Eco-Check label in 2020 to help customers quickly identify sustainable products.
Today, design trends are highly influenced by comfort and sustainability, with recycled content, recyclability, light weight and durability gaining more and more importance, according to Dr. Heislitz. “Architects, home furnishing companies and construction companies are requested by their customers to use components and products with low environmental footprint,” he says. “In this matter, Freudenberg engineers work continuously to decrease our manufacturing footprint and help our customers to improve their handprint.”
Requests for lighter weight products have been pushed over the past few years. “Lighter weight is generally ‘greener,’ and this has led to primary carpet backing weights reducing this year,” he adds.
In 2021, Freudenberg launched Evolon RE made from recycled PET made bottles. One single mother roll with an average of 2000 sqm of typical Evolon RE material gives new life to approximately 5500 plastic bottles. Freudenberg also strives to provide lighter products while increasing the durability and wash resistance.
Additionally, due to the turbulent market conditions in 2021, one of Freudenberg’s focuses was to assure reliable supply of constant high-quality products to its customers. “Following Freudenberg’s commitment to sustainability, we have been working on the ecological foot- and handprint of our spunbond nonwovens,” Heislitz says. “Measures to reduce CO2 emissions during production and developments to enable carpet recyclability at the end of a product’s lifetime are ongoing.”
Precision Textiles Grows in the U.S.
Throughout 2021, New Jersey-based Precision Textiles was in expansion mode. In October the supplier of coated fabrics, nonwovens and laminations for the bedding, automotive and healthcare industries, opened its new 160,000 square-foot plant located on a 25-acre campus in Troy, NC.
After 34 years of manufacturing products domestically solely out of its headquarters facility in Totowa, NJ, Precision Textiles’ second manufacturing facility is located near many of the company’s customers in the bedding industry. Proximity was critical factor in Precision Textiles’ choice for the location of the site.
“This location puts us right where we need to be,” Scott Tesser, CEO, said during the opening of the new facility. “We have been manufacturing out of our New Jersey facility for many years, and now we’re taking the next step. It’s critical to our growth to be located right here, in the heart of one of the largest areas for bedding manufacturing in the Southeast. This opening marks our commitment to the industry, our customers and also our employees.”
Once a textiles production plant that serviced the automobile industry, the Troy facility will eventually double the manufacturer’s needlepunch nonwovens production and boost its highloft quilting fiber output by 50%. The new factory will enable Precision to better serve the needs of its customers throughout the nation and, in particular, reduce shipping times for its customers in the Southeast. The added capacity will also enable the company to meet the needs of both existing and new customers as it seeks new avenues for growing its business down the road.
Meanwhile, in November, Precision Textiles announced plans to open a nonwovens plant at a 50,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution center in Phoenix, AZ, that will serve its customers throughout the western U.S.
“Demand for our products is high in the bedding industry, which has fueled our expansion. The Arizona facility is close in proximity to many of our customers, which was a primary factor in the choice for this location. Not only will it enable us to be more responsive to our partners in the western region, but it will also allow us to reduce shipping time and deliver product to them more efficiently,” says Tesser.
In new product news, Precision recently launched PurLoft to help manufacturers meet consumer demand for natural, more sustainable mattresses. PurLoft is an environmentally friendly alternative to 100% synthetic high loft fire barriers for bedding products. It is offered in varying weights and made with renewable wool fibers, which are naturally flame retardant. Incorporating wool directly under the sleep surface offers a high-performance, sustainable alternative that is not only FR compliant, but also creates air pockets, which act as natural insulators to help regulate body temperature. PurLoft also offers superior moisture management as well as odor and allergen protection. In addition, the naturally crimped wool fiber helps products retain shape longer, making it more durable.