With a total of 117 participating nations, around 63,000 visitors and 2300 exhibitors, the successful re-launch of the international textile fairs at the Frankfurt exhibition center was achieved. Across all three events Italy, France, Turkey, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Poland, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Pakistan and the USA formed the top visitor nations.

Visitor satisfaction also remained stable at a high level for all three events, averaging 91%. Intensive live discussions with old and new partners, new global contacts in personal exchanges, spontaneous cooperations in direct dialog – all this was finally possible again.

textile network was also on site from June 21 to 23 and captured some trade fair highlights in pictures:

• Image gallery Day 1

• Image gallery Day 2

• Image gallery Day 3

For the first time, Techtextil and Texprocess were also held virtually. In the Digital Extension platform, exhibitors presented themselves digitally and thus extended their presence at the trade fair. The digital platform of Techtextil and Texprocess will be available until July 8, 2022 enabling Messe Frankfurt's conference formats, such as the Techtextil and Texprocess forums, to still be accessed.

Techtextil Innovation Award

After a Corona-related break of three years, the leading trade fairs Techtextil and Texprocess once again presented the renowned Innovation Awards. 13 winners from seven categories were honored at a public awards ceremony at Techtextil and Texprocess on 21 June, 2022.

• First woven heart valve without postfabrication: In the “New Product” category, the Techtextil Innovation Award went to the Institute of Textile Machinery and High Performance Material Technology (ITM) at the Technische Universität Dresden.

• Reuse of waste from a natural source: In the “New Material” category, RBX Créations (France) received the Innovation Award for a novel cellulose fiber made from hemp waste.

• Fiber shielding technology for hospitals, electric cars and server farms: The Techtextil Innovation Award in the “New Technology” category went to Aachen-based FibreCoat GmbH and Deutsche Basalt Faser GmbH from Sangerhausen (Saxony-Anhalt) for the joint development of an aluminum-coated basalt fiber. It combines the strength of basalt with the electrical conductivity of aluminum.

• More sustainable hygiene products such as diapers: Kelheim Fibres GmbH from Kelheim in Bavaria and the Saxon Textile Research Institute (STFI) in Chemnitz received the Techtextil Innovation Award in the “New Concept” category for the development of novel, thermally bonded nonwovens based on cellulose for the production of reusable products with high absorbency.

• Waste from the automotive industry as a resource: Another Techtextil Innovation Award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” honors a process that uses natural leather waste from the automotive industry to produce innovative textile coatings. It was developed by CITEVE, the Technology Center for Textile and Clothing in Portugal, and partners ERT Têxtil Portugal, CeNTI and CTIC (all Portugal).

• Compostable textile coating: The Techtextil Innovation Award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” went to the textile research institute Centexbel (Belgium) for a bio-based and compostable dispersion for textile coatings and printing inks.

• Fashion from pineapple peel: The Italian company Vérabuccia is honored in the "Performance Fashion Award" category for an innovative production process for the fashion and design sector. The patented process is designed to transform fruit waste into fashion highlights.

• 100 percent compostable binder for nonwovens: In the “New Technology” category, the company OrganoClick (Sweden) received the Techtextil Innovation Award for the development of a 100 percent bio-based binder for nonwovens applications that is made from waste components and is therefore said to be fully compostable. The innovation is designed to replace plastic-based binders.

• Formaldehyde-free & bio-based coating system: The third award in the category “New Approaches on Sustainability & Circular Economy” went to Deutschen Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung Denkendorf (DITF) from Baden-Württemberg and the company TotalEnergies - Cray Valley (France). Together, they have developed a novel, formaldehyde-free coating system.

Texprocess Innovation Award

In the “New Technology” category of the Texprocess Innovation Award, as many as three winners will receive the prestigious award this year:

• Cold gluing robot is set to revolutionize seam bonding: The welding and sewing machine manufacturer Vetron Typical Europe GmbH (Kaiserslautern) was honored for a new type of cold gluing robot. For the first time, it is to perform the sealing of seams with adhesive tape on the reverse side completely automatically.

• “Reinvention of the embroidery head”: The second award in the “New Technology” category went to ZSK Stickmaschinen GmbH from Krefeld for a new type of embroidery head for single- and multi-head embroidery machines. According to ZSK, the "R-head" is designed to achieve embroidery speeds of up to 2000 stitches per minute.

• Increasing productivity and reducing fatigue of sewing machine operators: The third winner in this award category is Juki Central Europe (Poland), which has developed an AW-3S automatic bobbin thread winding and feeding device.

• Advancing digitalization in the sewing industry: The industrial sewing machine manufacturer Dürkopp Adler received the Texprocess Innovation Award in the category “New Digitalization” for its software module “QONDAC Guided Working”. The company from Bielefeld wants to take digitalization in the sewing industry to a new level.

Sustainability as a clear focus of Heimtextil

The Heimtextil Summer Special was trend-setting with its clear focus on sustainability. A wide range of products – from fibers made from PET bottles and fair trade natural materials to textile products with QR codes for tracking the entire production process - enabled visitors to experience the megatrend of sustainability in its entirety. Linen in combination with other natural fibers such as hemp and wool as well as bed linen made of cotton coated with cork were also part of the green global product portfolio. In this context, the daily Green Tours with insights into recyclable textiles were also well received.

Fresh impulses were provided by the Heimtextil Trends for the industry. The Trend Space put the spotlight on unusual approaches to avoiding waste and economic imbalances. Other crowd-pleasers were the Green Village with reliable certificates as well as the Heimtextil Conference “Sleep & More” on the mega-topic of sleep and the sustainable hotel industry, and as well the range of lectures and guided tours as part of Interior.Architecture.Hospitality.

• The next Heimtextil will take place from January 10 to 13, 2023.

• The next Techtextil and Texprocess will be held from April 23 to 26, 2024.