Invista Fetes Dacron Anniversary

By Cecile B. Corral -- Home Textiles Today, 10/5/2009 12:00:00 AM

New York —

Invista celebrated the 50th anniversary of its own Dacron-branded polyester fiber for home product use, and touted the rollout of several new eco-friendly initiatives in both bedding and rug fibers at last month's market.

Carol Haslach, marketing communications manager for Invista bedding, told HTT that the DuPont Fiber division, which today is Invista, originally launched its Dacron fiber in the apparel business. In 1959, DuPont extended Dacron's use into the home side as a fiber fill.

Today, Dacron is applied as an insert to utility bedding pieces like pillows and mattress pads, and to fashion bedding products like comforters, she explained.

To mark Dacron's golden anniversary, Invista launched three new "re-energized" versions of the fiber at market last month. The company presented these introductions both to manufacturers and suppliers of bedding products as well as to retailers, in order to educate the marketplace about the products "and get them excited about it," Haslach said.

They are:

Dacron Ecofluff, a cushiony, resilient fiberfill that contains 60% recycled polyester;Dacron Freshloft, which combines comfort with lasting freshness that repels bad odors;Dacron Hollofil, designed for consumers who want more fullness and bounce in pillows.

Invista has created these new Dacron fiber technologies to accommodate value pricing "across all retail channels," she added.

On the rug side of Invista's business, the company introduced its new and softer bath rug fiber, called 780, and announced the extension of its across-the-board environmental initiatives for all of its rug fibers — from conception to production to final product.

"We have millions of rugs in market and we want to have an impact in all of them," said Jorge Vizcaya, business manager, rug fibers. "We've really come up with breakthrough developments."

Vizcaya told HTT that 780 reaches the lowest denier-per-filament (DPF) level at 2.5, making the softest nylon fiber for rugs the company currently offers. By comparison, typical carpet fibers measure 8 DPF, and Invista's Comforel-branded fibers originally measured 3 DPF and are now being offered at the new 2.5 level.

Vizcaya said the environmental efforts for premium Invista fibers target a minimum of 1% to 2% renewably sourced materials derived from castor bean oil, and for mainstream fibers a minimum of 4% post-consumer recycled content.

Additionally on the eco-friendly front, new Invista 1010 and 948 fibers featuring the company's own Macro Bulk technology will result in a higher bulk and reduced raw material usage.