CARY, NC — February 1, 2007 — Fifteen of the most innovative, successful new products in the nonwovens and engineered fabrics industries of the past three years have been nominated as finalists for the prestigious IDEA07 Achievement Awards. The finalists were selected from hundreds of submissions in five categories and the winners will be announced during the IDEA07 International Engineered Fabrics Conference and Expo, April 24-26, 2007 in Miami Beach, Fla.

The IDEA07 Achievement Awards, co-sponsored by INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, and Nonwovens Industry magazine, recognize the leading new products in five categories – Short-Life End Product, Long-Life End Product, Roll Goods, Raw Materials, and Machinery/Equipment – in the global engineered fabrics industry that have been introduced since IDEA04.

The Achievement Awards have been presented at every IDEA Show since 2001 and have become a measure of success for suppliers along all links of the industry’s supply chain.

“These IDEA Achievement Awards promote innovation and recognize outstanding achievement within the worldwide engineered fabrics community and it is fitting that they will be presented during IDEA07, the most important industry trade show of the year,” says Rory Holmes, President of INDA, the organizer of the triennial IDEA Conference and Exposition.

Rod Zilenziger, Jr., publisher of Nonwovens Industry, agrees that IDEA07 is an ideal venue for promoting and rewarding innovation in the industry. “We have been intimately involved in this industry for more than three decades, and this partnership with INDA allows us to recognize the individuals and companies that have made the industry what it is today,” Zilenziger said.

The industry will select the recipients in each category through online voting beginning February 1 at both
http://www.nonwovens-industry.com and www.inda.org . Voting will remain open through March 10.

In addition to the five categories, an IDEA07 Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to an individual who has made a significant career contribution to the business of nonwovens. Also, an IDEA07 Entrepreneur Award will be presented to a company formed since the previous IDEA04.

The finalists:

Short-Life End Product
Huggies Pull-ups with Cool Alert, Kimberly-Clark
Pull-Ups Training Pants with Cool Alert have a special Coolness Zone inside of the pant that provides a brief cooling effect within seconds of becoming wet to help toddlers learn the difference between wet or dry.

Swiffer Deep Ridges, Procter & Gamble
Swiffer Deep Ridges are a collaborative development effort between P&G and PGI. The spunlace structure achieves a three-dimensional depth and clarity of pattern design while also preserving the strength and openness of the structure at a low basis weight.

Love’N Sanitary Napkin/Panty Liner, Baby/Feminine Care Wipes, WIP srl (Wellness Innovation Project)
The construction of the natural feminine hygiene products under the LOVE'N brand name, along with the Naturaè Baby and feminine care wipes, utilizes a mix of eco-friendly and technologically advanced materials, including PLA fiber from Far Eastern Textile (INGEO); Lysac natural superabsorbent (Lysorb) and biodegradable film from Novamont (Mater-Bi). 

Long-Life End Product
HEPA Membrane Filters made with DuPont Teflon, APC Filtration
The first product offered under a worldwide manufacturing and distribution agreement with DuPont is a series of nonwoven filter bags for OEMs of industrial, commercial and domestic central vacuum cleaners. The Teflon brand offers allergen protection, providing additional benefits of long filter life since the Teflon membrane keeps dust from sticking to the filters.
  
Eco-Logix Carpet Cushioning System, Shaw Innovation Flooring Systems
This carpet cushion foundation system is made from 90% post-consumer recycled material. EcoLogix is a composite fabric that contains both a leno weave woven component and a needlepunch nonwoven component.

GeoPleat Air Filter, Filtration Group
Filtration Group’s GeoPleat high-efficiency air filter blends a patented rigid nonwoven filter media from Kimberly-Clark with thermal embossing pleating techniques. The result is a low pressure drop, long-life air filter that utilizes up to 50% less raw materials. The three dimensional pleat design and advanced media combine to give the GeoPleat the lowest possible resistance to air flow.

Roll Goods
SpectraMax, CEREX Advanced Fabrics
SpectraMax is a low denier, uniform nylon 6,6 fabric with superior strength, filtration efficiency, opacity, softness and drapeability in addition to the natural advantages of nylon such as thermal resistance, dyeability and gamma stability. Target markets include automotive trim, specialty wipes, shoe components, medical fabrics, home furnishings, protective apparel and aerospace media.

Hybrid Membrane Technology, DuPont
DuPont HMT is a membrane-like sheet product composed of continuous sub-micron fibers with resultant sub-micron to low micron pores and high surface area. HMT provides an option to fill the performance gaps between microporous membranes and traditional nonwovens.  HMT depends completely on the mechanical structure of the media, thus concerns over filtration performance over the life of the filter are alleviated. 
   
Coated glass fiber-based nonwoven, Owens Corning
The coated glass fiber-based nonwoven was developed and supplied to Georgia-Pacific by Owens Corning as a facer for gypsum wallboard. It replaces traditional paper facer on gypsum wallboard and addresses concerns over mold/mildew/moisture. GP puts the Owens Corning nonwoven facer on its DensArmor Paperless Interior Drywall.

Raw Materials
Dur-O-Set Elite Ultra binder technology, Celanese
Celanese’s Emulsions and PVOH business received a U.S. patent for its Dur-O-Set Elite Ultra binder technology. The technology improves the wet strength characteristics of nonwovens and other substrates in both water and solvent applications.

Sorona Polymer, DuPont
Sorona polymer is based on 1,3 propanediol (PDO) and its beneficial properties are derived from a semi-crystalline molecular structure and is a fiber-grade, which means it has a uniform microstructure and a high molecular weight. It can be spun into fiber or made into fabric in existing facilities that now process PET.

Fortrel Wellcare ADM, Wellman
Fortrel Wellcare is an EPA-registered fiber that kills dust mites in bedding, as well as in other applications, and is durable through home washings.

Machinery/Equipment
Quik-Set Automatic Positioning Systems, Dienes
The Quik-Set positioning system maximizes time savings by moving all knife holders simultaneously with the benefit of high accuracy placement via computer control. In addition, Quik-Set can re-position individual holders while maintaining the cutting action.

Twin Crown Needle, Foster Needle
The Twin Crown needle fills the gap between the traditional triangular crown needle design and the more aggressive fine fork needles in the structuring of random velour brush apron products. The advantages of both barbs being an “open” barb design increases the needling efficiency and transfer of fiber to the face of the product, giving a more dense appearance or the possibility of increased production speeds.

Cheetah Folders, S&S Specialty Systems Inc.
The Cheetah production lines fold with a small folded footprint that opens to a full-size napkin. The resulting compact package size gives marketers new options for packaging, shipping and store shelf space strategies.

For more information on IDEA07 International Engineered Fabrics Conference and expo, go to www.inda.org

For more information on Nonwovens Industry: www.nonwovens-industry.com