Nonwovens: embedded in the fabric of society: defining materials that escape the public's awareness.

When is a nonwoven not a nonwoven? It is when you appreciate the desirable and often extraordinary properties it offers. Most purchasers of products made with or containing nonwovens would probably refer to them by their brand or trade names; others would refer to them by their performance, function, appearance or dominant characteristics. Few medical personnel question the original manufacturing process that makes the blood filter or respirator protecting them from a virus. Patients appreciate having their hernia repaired yet never knew a nonwoven was used to make that repair. The police or military person appreciates the capability of a garment that will resist a bullet or object that can cause bodily harm without any knowledge that a nonwoven may be involved. An architect appreciates the advantages of a house wrap or roofing material because of the benefits it offers.

Some of the largest consumer markets for nonwovens are not recognized or appreciated for their fiber structures. Here, nonwovens are typically thought of in terms of brand names or the properties associated with that name. Users of diapers, wipes, cleaning aids and hygiene products are not cognizant of nonwovens technology. Manufacturers, converters and distributors of these products flood us with brand and trade names via television, magazines and other advertising media every day. Don't forget the displays in the retail stores and the packaging that also brings these brand and trade names to your attention without any mention of nonwovens.

There are numerous other products containing nonwovens but the end user is not aware of their presence. This consumer would need to understand the process or have other information to know that a nonwoven is part of a composite, laminate or coated finished product since there is no visible evidence.

The Processes

Each nonwovens process has the ability and versatility to create an astonishing range of products with various appearances and properties, yet we tend to think of a particular kind of material when a specific nonwoven process is mentioned. Needlepunched summons images of a fibrous surface that elongates or distorts when tensions are applied. However, there are needlepunched products that dramatically exceed these properties and may not be recognized even by another nonwovens manufacturer. Many of us forget that the needlepunch process can perform tasks other than entangling fibers to make a fabric. The process can combine two or more structures, punch holes, condense, provide various surfaces from smooth to rough or tufted, have a top surface completely different from its back, utilize a multitude of fiber types and blend fibers and colors. It can also be stable or designed to elongate to specification. Needlepunching is used to prepare a web prior to being stitch bonded and or hydro-entangled. We should not forget that some spun-bound fabrics are needle punched. One could ask when is a needlepunched structure not a needlepunched nonwoven. Other nonwoven processes have similar capabilities as well as the versatility to allow them to contribute to end products that make them invisible or change their typical appearances and properties.

The majority of nonwovens sold today are not recognized by their brand names or as nonwoven materials. Even those of us familiar with nonwovens would have difficulty making a meaningful list of brand names for nonwovens. Housewrap is a good example of this. In an attempt to recall the nonwovens producers marketing housewares, those familiar with nonwovens would probably think of companies before brand names.

Marketing An industry

This takes us back to the old question of how to market nonwovens. Should we promote, advertise and educate our potential customers regarding the types of nonwovens and their properties? Or, should we assist and rely on the converters or end product manufacturers to promote our products? Most nonwoven manufacturers today sell to a variety of markets and end uses that would require a complex and difficult approach to promotion and advertising, and end users would probably deem this task too expensive with a questionable return. A nonwovens manufacturer may sell to numerous end use markets. These may include home furnishings, filtration, health care, wipes, automotives, insulation, geotextiles, building and construction, apparel and other markets. How and where would a manufacturer advertise so many potential markets? Maybe nonwovens materials produced today should be described as metamorphosis materials. They undergo changes in form, structure or function as they are converted to end products.

New raw materials and improvements in processing have increased the complications of defining nonwovens and their properties. Fibers such as nano and micro, Alginate, carboxy methyl cellulose, Basalt, elastic, hollow, biodegradable, flushable, conductive and heat resistant have allowed the nonwoven manufacturer to make products that were not imagined only a few years ago.

The large and more successful application areas for nonwovens have accepted brand names associated with them and these brand names belong to the converter or distributor. These include such familiar products as diapers, hygiene and consumer wipes. These product areas offer larger volumes and typically lower profit margins for the nonwovens producer. The high-tech and unique nonwoven segments can offer higher profits with smaller volumes. You have to search to find either of these types of markets where the nonwovens has a brand name that sells the product.

Many of us have strived to get the names of processes and the types of fabric recognized and accepted by consumers and the companies that convert nonwoven materials. It appears that we have had significant success with the converters but little with consumers. One might compare our products to the company that makes nuts and bolts. The company that uses nuts and bolts is familiar with the hundreds of different types and their properties. These materials become an important and often necessary part of a finished product. After assembly, the finished product dominates the appearance and function and the nuts and bolts are taken for granted. Where would the world be today without nuts and bolts?