World’s largest TENCEL® factory opens its doors

The new TENCEL® factory is the hot topic at the Parisian trade shows. With the construction of the world’s largest production facility for Lyocell fibers, Lenzing demonstrates its innovative strength on an industrial scale.

The most modern fiber plant in the world went into operation after just 24 months of construction work. With investment costs totaling € 150 million, the construction of the plant in Lenzing, Austria went according to plan both financially and in terms of the time. The plant is fully operational and running at full capacity.

Milestone for the textile industry

With TENCEL®, Lenzing offers the industry a fiber material for the future. In terms of ecology and innovative strength, the fiber represents a milestone. In the last few years TENCEL® has demonstrated that the fiber holds great potential. A plethora of textile applications has been derived from the new generation of fibers. From Activewear to denim and shirting, TENCEL® has proven its strength. “This season in particular we are very excited about knitwear developments. Until now woven products of TENCEL® were chiefly promoted. However, new finishing processes and special TENCEL® fibers for knitwear applications lead us to perceive tremendous potential in the fashion knitwear segment. Here too TENCEL® can provide an added value when it comes to the quality. Thanks to its bright colors and more attractive appearance, TENCEL® will set a new standard in this sector,” Robert van de Kerkhof, CCO at Lenzing, explains.

Lenzing puts the finishing touch to its technological leadership

The search for a cellulose fiber with an ecological and economic production process led researchers to Lyocell. Lenzing and the former fiber producers, Courtaulds, nurtured Lyocell to market maturity as a result of intensive research work and their strong belief in the new fiber of the future. The first production facility was started in Mobile in 1992. In 2004 Lenzing was able to pool all of its resources as a result of buying the TENCEL® brand and capitalize on this expertise in textile processing and fiber production. This new factory in Lenzing is the first in the industry to feature a single production line with an annual nominal capacity of 67,000 tons.

Previous TENCEL® production lines were usually only one quarter as large. The new plant design incorporates lessons learned from the longstanding experience of the three existing Lenzing Group TENCEL® production plants located in Austria, USA and Great Britain. As a result, the new TENCEL® plant in Lenzing represents the world’s leading generation of TENCEL® technology.

Brand name generates trust

As a result of purchasing the TENCEL® brand name, Lenzing was able to market the entire Lyocell-business under this well known fiber name. The brand name is well established in the textile industry and in commerce and is associated with eco-friendliness, skin friendliness and a high quality. Leading global retailers use the fiber brand name as an “ingredient brand” and see the added value of TENCEL® in their products. The brand name program is linked to an origin check and gives consumers assurances concerning the origin of the material. A global marketing and service team performs random sampling of the textile products at retail to check both the quality and the production chain. The TENCEL® brand name is protected worldwide and stands for more than 20 years of commercial expertise in Lyocell fiber technology.

Source

Lenzing, press release, 2014-09-18.

Supplier

Lenzing Gruppe

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