New partnership brings maximum cool
A partnership between AWI and technology giant INVISTA has resulted in the development of a textile that is durable and soft, a textile that makes life more comfortable – what more could be asked from fashionable textiles today?
The Merino Coolmax® blend has created a textile with enhanced performance attributes, fashionable qualities and a unique handle and drape that will benefit an entire range of designers from active outdoor apparel, through to intimate lingerie and haute couture designs.
Charlotte Mills, head of product development at INVISTA, says "the benefits of Australian Merino wool are the ultimate match for the Coolmax® fibre. The natural durability, moisture absorbent qualities, and luxurious softness of Merino add a new dimension to Coolmax®."
Coolmax® has been designed to move moisture away from the body and enhance the fabric's drying rate, thus keep the wearer feeling cool and dry. Coolmax® lightweight fabrics deliver performance and comfort through the use of proprietary polyester fibres with unique engineered microchannel cross sections, and/or specifically engineered two-sided, denier gradient fabrics made using Coolmax® qualifiable polyester or nylon yarns.
Merino Coolmax® is aimed at enhancing comfort: breathability, softness, machine-washability, excellent drape and freedom from chemical treatments are all attributes built into the fabric.
Australian Merino and Coolmax® can be combined prior to spinning, or as an end-on-end yarn in twisting or fabric plaiting during the knitting process.
Merino Coolmax® was on display to the fashion and textile industry at the influential Pitti Filati trade exhibition in Florence, Italy, at the end of January, and will also be exhibited at the major Spin Expo trade exhibition in Shanghai, China, in March.
"The innovation has come to fruition through a strategic partnership between AWI and INIVSTA," says Jimmy Jackson, AWI's global product development manager.
"Together we have identified a real consumer need to extend the seasonality of Merino garments with a key focus on high performance/sportswear as well as leisure and ready-to-wear garments. Merino Coolmax® is a great innovation that we are ecstatic to show at key trade shows across the globe with INVISTA."
More information: Melissa Grace, 02 9299 5155, melissagrace@woolinnovation.com
See information about product development or return to Beyond the Bale Issue 26 index page.