Kelheim Fibres continues to witness innovation in the hygiene industry, and particularly in the feminine hygiene industry. After decades of relative standstill, there is new type of product on the hygiene shelves of supermarkets. This new product takes into account the needs of consumers: for individual solutions - because everyone is different. For high-performance solutions - because especially in such a sensitive area, you have to be able to rely on a product. And, of course, for ever more sustainable products - because sustainability is increasingly becoming a decisive purchasing criterion.

 
Kelheim fibres can make a significant contribution here: its bio-based fibres are designed very specifically to the needs of the end product during the production process and that are also fully biodegradable at the end of their product life. This has been Kelheim's recipe for success for many years – now more up-to-date than ever. Furthermore, this year Kelheim has added the area of "reusables" to our range of successful fibre concepts. Specifically, it has developed a concept for bio-based period underwear that offers high-performance due to our special fibres in the absorbent core. This concept earned us third place in the Cellulose Fibre Innovation of the Year Awards.

Another project, for which Kelheim won the Techtextil Innovation Award in the category New Concept, is the washable absorbent pad for the Sumo cloth diaper.

 
Here, the advantages of nonwovens in combination with speciality viscose fibres in terms of absorbency (through, for example, a more open-pored structures) have made a perfect transition from the field of disposable to the world of reusable products. For reusable products, however, there is another challenge to overcome: they must remain stable during washing and over several cycles of use. To ensure this, an innovative nonwoven construction was developed in close cooperation with the STFI. Furthermore, these nonwovens can be used as a stand-alone solution or integrated into a textile structure.

In the Sumo cloth diaper, the liquid management of the absorbent pad sets new standards. The new solution combines the worlds of nonwovens and textiles and provides proof that high-performance reusable absorbent products can be developed without fossil-based materials.”