Delivering more sustainable nonwoven solutions TWE Group

DELIVERING MORE SUSTAINABLE nonwovEn solutions

The TWE Group is a global market leader in the design and manufacture of nonwoven products for a broad variety of industrial applications. These range from filtration, automotive, living and building to cleaning, healthcare and hygiene. Philip Yorke reports on a company that continues to lead through innovation, and the development of more sustainable, value-added nonwoven products.

The TWE Group was founded in 1912 in Emsdetten, Germany and is one of the biggest and most advanced companies of its kind in the world. TWE started as a jute weaving company and today specialises in the design and manufacture of advanced nonwoven products for a broad range of industrial applications.

The TWE Group operates 14 state-of-the-art production facilities across Europe, Asia and the United States. The company’s non-woven products fall into seven distinct categories: Hygiene, Medical, Mobiltech, Filtration, and Building and Construction, as well as Wipes and Comfort. The hygiene division is focused on the manufacture of unique, threelayer ‘Slimcore’ Acquisition Distribution Layers (ADL). This is in addition to the production of top sheets and back sheets for baby, fem-care and adult incontinence products.

TWE leads the field with its special manufacturing processes and this makes it possible to produce significantly thinner diaper layers, thus reducing transportation costs and providing a competitive edge for its customers. Another of its many strengths is its extensive product portfolio and its leadership in the area of sustainability.

Advancing nonwoven technology

When it comes to medical nonwovens the company focuses on three key areas of operation: Orthopaedic Cast Padding (OCP) bandages, wound-care products and disposable gloves for hospital use. The company’s Mobiltech division mainly serves the automotive sector where its products are utilised for hundreds of different applications, as advanced technical components. These high-tech products can

soundproof, seal and filter. They can also be located in heated car seats and car trunks as well as for many other automotive applications.

TWE’s filtration division has two main areas of operation: air filtration and liquid filtration. Its diverse range of products can provide secure filtration and durable performance in spray booths, vacuum bags and kitchen hoods. In the wipes division, too, the company meets the most stringent customer demands – especially when it comes to anti-bacterial protection, coating and refining.

The building and construction industry continues to play an increasingly important role in TWE Group’s overall product portfolio. The company’s products can be found in all areas of the home, where they are used for both interior and exterior applications. The company also makes nonwoven products for other sectors such as furniture, bedding and apparel. Furthermore, under its leading Isosoft label it offers a broad spectrum of durable and sustainable insulation products that offer high performance in relation to its weight, coating layer construction and fibre length.

Putting quality and sustainability first

All of TWE’s manufacturing plants subscribe to the same high standards of sustainability and product excellence. Every one of its production facilities are certified to ISO 9001, as well as the energy management certification 5001. The company’s commitment to quality can be seen from its receipt of many prestigious industry awards.

Recently the TWE Group added to its green product portfolio with the acquisition of a leading US company that specialises in producing nonwovens from natural fibres such as Hemp, Flax, Kenaf and Jute in combination with other approved product components. These are environmentally friendly and offer even greater application versatility. This makes the acquisition of ‘Isowood’ a perfect partner for the TWE Group, which at the same time is expanding its own natural fibre product portfolio and thus securing a bigger stake in a promising future market.

Globally the trend is towards more sustainable and lightweight products and the company has embraced this trend by developing textiles that ensure that the demands of its customers for more environmentally friendly products are met in full. The TWE Group sees

big growth opportunities in the market for thin nonwoven products and innovative material combinations that also offer energy savings and other ecological advantages.

Focus on value-added products

For some of its products, logistics costs are an important factor, especially for comfort products, where the costs of transportation can be prohibitive and restrict the number of regions where they can be sold. Therefore the establishment of production facilities in strategic global locations is an obvious solution.

In recent years the company has moved away from purchasing raw materials based on price considerations alone, and are now clearly focused on the development of high-end, value-added products.

Today the creation of innovative products and meeting its customer’s changing needs is more important than price alone. With more investment going into R&D than ever before TWE is staying one step ahead of its competitors. Furthermore, in order to remain successful in the years to come the company says that it must be inventive and develop new solutions by working closely with both its customers and suppliers. TWE’s unrivalled experience, modern R&D labs and know-how offer its partners significant added-value solutions and its international sales teams work with a future-orientated focus designed to maintain and increase its market-leading position. n

For further details of the TWE Group’s latest innovative nonwoven products and services visit: www.twe-group.com