The Amsterdam PLMA Show continues to be one
of the best value-for-money exhibitions for any European involved with nonwovens
for retail because unlike other nonwoven exhibitions, it is well attended by
retailers. Admittedly, taken as a whole, it is very much biased towards food
products, but the non-food halls attract a wide range of exhibitors, and many
stands display products using nonwovens that are never seen at INDEX, IDEA or
ANEX. You can see most of them easily in a day, but it can be rewarding to go
round a second time in the last afternoon, because by then the exhibitors know
exactly what the retail buyers are looking for.
This year most exhibitors said the retailers
at the show were “going crazy” for products with supportable sustainable or
environmental claims. The “Natural” theme was more evident than ever before and
wipes producers (wet and dry) were cashing in with new “Biodegradable”,
“Organic”, “Eco-Cert”, “Fair Trade” and similar labelling.
Two new diapers (from Valor/Mabe and Arquest)
featured “more sustainable” claims based on relatively minor increases in
biodegradable materials including PLA spunbond. Flushable materials were less
popular, some arguing that their development was being held up by the continuing
lack of a suitable test method, others that flushability was emerging as only
relevant to wet toilet tissue and toilet wipes. Kimberly-Clark, Tyco and SCA who
had a major presence at previous Amsterdam shows, did not take part this time.
Numerous cleaning mitts and gloves, both
knitted and nonwoven, were on display, including microwavable bathing gloves
based on heavily embossed hydroentangled fabric and intended for patient care in
hospitals and nursing homes. Opinions differed on whether the new pulp/spunbond
wipe substrates were going to be soft enough to replace the carded
viscose-containing products but most agreed its success will depend on being
sufficiently cheaper and more available than the current HE viscose staple
products.
Unlike the traditional nonwoven exhibitions,
PLMA stand personnel are rarely nonwoven experts, and could not always describe
the nonwovens used, so in the following summary of conversations, some
speculation will be evident.
Albaad/FHW ( Israel )…
…were displaying both insect repellent wipes, and
insect-bite soothing wipes the latter presumably for use when the former ran
out. Also newly available on this stand: wet cosmetic pads, barbecue-cleaning
wipes, self-tanning wipes, tie-cleaning wipes and shoe-cleaning wipes. Most were
carded/hydroentangled products.
Arquest ( UK )…
…were featuring an eco-friendly diaper, the only change
from standard diapers being the PLA backsheet. They said Tesco was demanding a
change to more sustainable, eco-friendly products and this was the first and
easiest move they could make. Progressive moves to increase the percentage of
sustainable materials in the disposable diaper formulation would inevitably
follow, and some consumers were expressing the hope that diapers would achieve
full sustainability, biodegradability, and even flushability in the next 5 to 10
years.
CIP4 ( Italy )…
…were showing “Bio-Spunlace” wipes said to be flushable
and biodegradable being made from 100% viscose - probably flat section, seeming
somewhat bulkier for their basis weight than normal viscose. Compared with
wet-laid and airlaid flushables, this nonwoven had the advantage of being
binder-free. Binder-containing products were said to be finding it hard to get
eco-certification.
Codi ( Holland ) …
…were showing their usual comprehensive range of wet
wipes including a new fabric softner wet wipe for use in tumble driers. Their
“Bio-Care” range of products was based on viscose and woodpulp, both made from
certified forest wood. As this certification proved rather restrictive,
non-certified wood products were used in the standard range. Codi divided their
family of Bio products into “Lakes” and “Mountains”. “Lakes” were made from
hydroentangled viscose, PLA and cotton, organic cotton versions being
considered. The “Mountains” range contained woodpulp in blend with viscose
and/or cotton and were generally hydro-embossed as well as entangled.
Tencel was used, but despite its environmental
credentials, it's presence remained undeclared in marketing and labelling. J W
Suominen, owners of Codi and makers of the nonwovens, regarded Tencel as just
another type of viscose and used the two fibres interchangeably depending on
price and availability. JWS still make thermal-bonded nonwovens, but here they
concentrate on the creative development of niches, using polypropylene in blend
with viscose and cotton. Asked if JWS was likely to move into spunbond/pulp to
get away from the over-competitive card/HE route to wipes, a spokesperson said
not yet. Spunbond/HE processes with or without pulp were expensive and were not
yet proven, and it seemed compromises on softness (compared with pulp-free
products) were still necessary. Maybe the level of hydroentanglement needed to
get the softness right removed too much pulp and gave filtration problems.
Dr Schumacher ( Germany )…
…had an Ahlstrom-type rotating tube flushability tester
rotating continuously on the stand, containing water and an incompletely
dispersed wipe. This was intended to promote their new “Bio-Spunlace” wipes
which were biodegradable and flushable by virtue of rapid dispersibility. The
target market was “moist hygiene paper for toddlers”, baby-wipes and “luxury
moist toilet paper”
Dynamic Wipe Industries ( Israel )…
…were featuring their Simply Organic natural
biodegradable range of wipes. These were available as baby-wipes with chamomile,
aloe and calendula extracts, as eye-make up remover wipes and as Beauty wipes
for normal skin (with cucumber and calendula extracts), for sensitive skin (with
aloe and chamomile) and for mature skin (with organic grape seed extract). They
also displayed Kimberly-Clark's “Sammy” impregnated wash mitts for kids
alongside “Watch Me”, their own version apparently made of through-air bonded
high loft nonwovens. Their adult-size 2-sided mitts with a PE film liner were
hydroentangled dry-laid, one face being overprinted with an abrasive latex. It
was unclear whether these were positioned for human or pet cleaning.
Flash bv ( Holland )…
…were displaying a full range of disposables including
what looked like simple rectangles of a coverstock-weight thermal-bonded PP
staple as impregnated dust wipes for attaching to a Swiffer®-like mop. The
impregnant could not be perceived. They also had a roll-wipe dispenser for what
looked like a polyester/cotton needlepunched nonwoven at about 100 gsm. This
tough fabric was perforated to allow a strong man to tear squares from the roll.
Groupe Lemoine ( France )
…had none on display, but claimed to be developing
organic cotton disposables under pressure from the retailers. They would be 50%
more expensive than normal production and would sell to the wealthy who cared
for the planet. If the price could be reduced to a 10% premium these could have
mass-market appeal, but then there would not be enough organic cotton to make
the required volume.
Hydra (France)…
…were promoting “Bo-Coton” pads and wipes said to use a
bio-equitable, organic, fair-trade, long-fibre, new (as opposed to reclaimed),
peroxide-bleached cotton from South Africa . The packaging was also organic,
biodegradable and chemical-free. These were launched a year ago and were now
selling at a premium in French supermarkets, Leclerc, System U, Casino being
mentioned, and also in Morrisons in the UK , and in Austria . The products were
slightly yellower than the non-organic varieties, and there were specks of leaf
or seed visible. This material was reminiscent of the old J&J ( South Africa
) nonwoven made by hydroentangling raw cotton and then bleaching the fabric –
the logic being that raw cotton was very easy to card and entangle compared with
bleached cotton.
They were also promoting a large version of an organic
make-up removal pad as a baby wipe intended for use on sensitive skins where
lotions caused problems. The three-layer product had HE cotton skins pressure
bonded through a loose cotton wadding core.
Innovate ( Holland )
Melchior van Haren (Managing Director) described their
three new offerings at this show:
• “Fast and Fresh” microwavable bathing
mitts for patient care in nursing homes and hospitals. These are being sold to
start with into the US market under their own AMcare label, where they are
cheaper than the other microwavable bathing towels. The glove is preferred by
nurses, and while there are currently eight in a pack to clean the whole body,
Innovate feel a 4-pack would be acceptable to do the same job because each side
of the mitt can be used separately. The fabric is a very strong heavyweight
hydroentangled viscose/PET blend with a pronounced “knobbly” hydro-embossed
surface which helps cleaning. The 2 halves of the mit are sewn together.
• Computer screen wet-wipes made for Rogge
who market the wipes with approval from the main computer makers
• Nanotec surface coatings, one of which was
designed to coat windscreen glass with a hydrophobic layer which makes it easier
to wipe and easier to see through at night. This is applied by a microfibre
cloth. Single sachets are available now, and a multipack is being developed.
They were also developing a new facial treatment mask
based on a spunbond/pulp hydroentangled fabric which was quite attractive. Mr
van Haren was aware that the substrate had probably been made for baby wipes and
commented that the baby-wipes market was now impossible to make money in. These
wipes were certainly slightly harsher than the non-pulp versions, but he felt
the consumers going for the cheaper products would not worry about this.
Innovate claim to have developed the first embossed baby-wipe for Aldi and now
everyone wants embossed products.
Intertex SRL ( Italy )…
…attracted attention with their “100% Natural Viscose”
display on what turned out to be a nicely made and finished mitt of knitted
heavy-denier viscose continuous filament yarn. This was a coarse yarn made of
fine filaments very like a tyre-reinforcement yarn. The mitt was made by folding
and stitching a single piece of knit. It was said to be brilliant for cleaning
shiny surfaces such as glass.
Their “Supermicrofibre dust eating glove” was knitted
from a 100% nylon microfibre texturised chenille yarn the whole being
elasticised for a “one size fits all” claim. They appeared to be seamfree and
knitted in one piece. A rectangular pad of the same material was “suitable for
use with all types of floor polishers”.
The “Spongecloth for absorbing and deep cleaning”
appeared to be a double-jersey knit of an untexturised version of the polyamide
microfibre yarn on one face (White) and a 50/50 cotton/acrylic yarn on the other
(Yellow). This material was also produced as a floor cloth (“pannobello”) with a
chequerboard pattern of the absorbent/non-absorbent yarns on each face.
These were very nice products just waiting to be
reproduced at a lower price in a real nonwoven.
Nice Pak ( UK )
…said the supermarkets were going crazy for anything
with environmental/fair-trade/organic/renewable/sustainable/biodegradable
claims. The problem was that they also needed the claims to be certified by some
reliable independent body. Certified organic cotton for instance is hardly
available for nonwovens: maybe what little there is is all going into textiles.
This time the demand for eco-friendly materials was real. It was not a fad. The
consumers are now prepared to pay, and these environment-related themes will
drive the nonwovens industry for decades. In Nice-Pak's view, the spunbond/pulp
hydroentangled wipes now emerging were comparable to the viscose/PP HE
baby-wipes they were designed to replace and it would be up to the consumers to
decide which was better value.
Ningbo Sanbang Home Products Co Ltd ( China )…
…is producing polyester microfibre and showed wipes made
from these fibres by a development partner. Their new microfibre yarn plant will
start up later this year and produce 20,000 tonnes of a variety of unique
microfibre products. The “Unic Sani-Pro” range of cleaning cloths were mainly
woven and knitted yarns including chenilles, but they also promoted nonwovens in
the form of chamois substitutes, microfibre spunlace and textured, electrostatic
disposable dusters with various patterns and apertures. A window cleaning system
appeared to be a lightweight derivative of Wet-Jet Swiffer®. It had a water tank
and spray which could be activated from the end of a telescopic handle, and one
face was fitted with a microfibre pad for washing the glass, the other having a
rubber squeegee for scraping the glass dry. Also of interest:
• a kiddies cleaning kit comprising apron,
kneepads, cleaning mitts, cleaning slippers (removable microfibre soles) and a
cleaning cloth.
• A toilet cleaning system with impregnated
nonwoven pad which was gripped in a plastic handle and could be ejected and
flushed after use.
Orlandi ( Italy )
… having recently sold their nonwovens
production to Ahlstrom had a large stand featuring converted products only.
Spunlace nonwovens had been slit and twisted into yarns to make mop-heads and
had also been woven into bulky 650 gsm fabric for wipes.
Rostam ( Israel )…
…was celebrating 25 years in business and the fact that
they were now the leading private label tampon producer supplying the US market.
They make the Wal-Mart tampons and have done for 7 years despite their
production plant being in Israel . They have a US warehouse which, along with
tampons in transit from Israel , allows 12 weeks of inventory in or on the way
to the USA . They import the cotton from the USA and claim it's simply the low
labour costs in Israel that give them the edge over US-based tampon-makers. They
displayed open- and round-ended cardboard applicators (biodegradable, in
biodegradable wrapper), pearlised plastic applicators in standard and compact
versions, and 8-groove digital tampons.
Rockline ( UK )…
…expressed the view that flushable wipes would be no
more than a niche outside kids wet-toilet tissue and toilet cleaning wipes.
However they had made such flushable wipes from Kelheim's flat viscose fibre
which passed one of the tests currently in use. With regard to spunbond/pulp HE
wipes, they thought these were good when a thick wipe was needed, but there were
aesthetic issues related to the thinner varieties. Viscose-based HE wipes were
getting too expensive so maybe some compromise on softness would be acceptable
in a cheaper construction.
Reach Global Industries ( Holland )…
…was showing the “Travel John” portable unisex urinal.
This was simply an opaque polythene bag containing a bag of superabsorbent
granules, said to be “Liqsorb” biodegradable SAP, with a funnel at the top. They
claimed the bag, which looked just like a spunbond PP topsheet, was
biodegradable and contained cotton. Maybe it was a PLA spunbond. Nevertheless
the product was attracting attention and was selling in supermarkets. The pack
indicated it had been designed and engineered in the USA .
Sandler ( Germany )…
…was showing a hydroentangled Viloft/PLA (70/30)
flushable fabric, but said the flushables development was held up by the lack of
a suitable test method. They also showed a 100% bamboo HE nonwoven which they
agreed could be made from viscose obtained from a supplier who used bamboo
woodpulp.
The wet wipe business was still difficult, and getting
more so as viscose became expensive and scarce. Pulp could not be used to
replace viscose without most wipes substrate lines having a major refit. Even
adding tissue, or air-laid webs would give filtration and logistical problems.
Furthermore it was not yet clear in the marketplace that the way forward in
wipes involved using more pulp.
Sisma Spa ( Italy )…
…was promoting “Bio-cotton”, a new range of organic
disposable wipes which sold at a 20% premium over their standard cotton range.
This was a 1 day a month production for them, and they had to clean the machines
thoroughly before feeding the organic cotton. One Italian supermarket chain was
buying it, but they were getting interest from Northern Europe and the USA . The
high price would prevent it from growing much.
Tosama ( Slovenia )…
…showed both digital and compact applicator tampons. The
“Viriana” digital tampons featured a “Feel-Satin” surface coating described as a
thin fibre layer (presumably the overwrap). The “system Compac” applicator
tampons were described as digital tampons in a plastic applicator.
Valor Brands ( Spain ) & P I Mabe ( Mexico )…
…presented a new eco-friendly disposable “Bio-Baby”
diaper, the eco-friendly claim being based on this diaper having reduced
fossil-fuel content compared with conventional diapers. How so? By replacing 20%
of the SAP with a corn-starch based superabsorbent, and by using a PLA film
backsheet covered with a PLA nonwoven. They also claimed the topsheet – a fairly
normal-looking and feeling spunbond – contained cotton. Overall the product was
said to contain over 50% of sustainable materials and would biodegrade in 2
years.
