Specialty Fabrics Review August 2024 - 84

[ MARKETS ] PRODUCT TRENDS
coatings and finishes
something that performs the same,
how much more cost is it going to be
and is the end user going to be willing
to pay for that? " Price asks.
Haartz's Sadavarte notes that original
" We're just as much of
a chemical company as
we are a textile company.
So the idea is to make
some of these paints and
plastics that we produce
and not just apply them
to fabrics but also to
roofing materials and
other items. "
Doug Johnson
Graniteville Specialty Fabrics
equipment manufacturers also are
considering overall carbon footprint
in purchase decisions. " So if we are
making a synthetic leather that gets
wrapped on an instrument panel,
we have to do the entire calculation
and say, 'OK, this 1 square foot has
1 kilogram [2.2 pounds] of carbon
dioxide impact.' It's not just 'I'm going
to use this bio-based chemical and now
I have a sustainable product.' We're
going to look at the entire picture. "
In that picture, he says, " You have
to have that good balance between
the environmental, the social and the
economics. Sustainability comes at a
cost. " Some bio-based products also
may require more energy to process.
Such new products undergo testing
at Haartz's quality and performance
lab to check for things such as heat and
humidity exposure and flex, abrasion
and wash durability. Both Haartz and
Graniteville use xenon chambers to
test for outdoor exposure. The Atlas
Weather-Ometer®, says Price, puts
kilojoules of exposure, correlating to
sunlight, onto fabric. The tests, she
says, are checking for " Does the fabric
fade? Does it lose its strength? What
happens to the coating after 'X' amount
of exposure? "
Graniteville's testing lab employs
a subzero chamber to test if coatings
crack or delaminate at temperatures
reaching -40 F to -60 F. Plus, the
company tests for flame resistance
and for strength. " How much force
does it require a fabric to break
or tear or push water through it? "
Price explains. Graniteville also has
a development lab; about 30% of
product development initiates with
84 SPECIALTY FABRICS REVIEW / August 2024
the company. The rest comes from
customer requests, many of them
custom. " We custom-formulate our
coatings based on whatever needs
our customer has, and we can custom
pigment shade match, " Price says.
" About five years ago, " says Johnson,
" we had a couple of our marine
manufacturers come to us and say,
'Can you make a black boat cover
that doesn't get hot?' " Additionally,
the military wanted liners with
temperature emissivity, " which is
basically, if it's hot outside, you try to
keep the contents cool inside; if it's
cold outside, you try and keep them
warm inside, " he explains. Using
a blend of ceramics and metallics,
Graniteville was able to respond to
these requests and is now applying the
technology to awnings and yurts.
" We're just as much of a chemical
company as we are a textile company, "
Johnson says. " So the idea is to make
some of these paints and plastics that
we produce and not just apply them
to fabrics but also to roofing materials
and other items " that would benefit
from the innovation.
At Haartz, where the traditional
market is automotive applications,
the company has already expanded
into industrial, pipe rehabilitation,
luggage, apparel, marine and defense
areas. On the bucket list, says
Sadvarte, are biocompatible surfaces
for medical applications, smart
surfaces and increasing performance,
including higher durability and
abrasion properties.
" These are all great challenges to
have, and it's certainly keeping us
busy, " he says. " Overall, coatings
has a great future. "
Joanna Werch Takes is a writer and editor
based in Minnesota.
Specialty Fabrics Review August 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Specialty Fabrics Review August 2024
