European grant for TenCate Digitex project
10 October 2006

TenCate has reached an agreement with the European Commission on the Digitex project submitted. This project relates to the technological development of digital textile finishing. Textile finishing processes enable functional characteristics, such as fire resistance and self-cleaning properties, to be applied to fabrics. This digital technology will also make it possible to develop new applications for textile materials and to achieve advantages relating to processes, which will increase the competitiveness of the European textile industry.

A significant additional advantage is the reduction that can be achieved in the area of environmental impact and energy costs. One characteristic of the textile industry in general is its large-scale consumption of water and the costs that this entails. Even though environment-friendly chemicals are already being widely used within this sector, the costs involved in doing so will also be reduced. The project will thus contribute to the achievement of a clean manufacturing industry.

This innovation project comes within the framework of the Europe-wide promotion of innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SME-IP 6th Framework Programme).

Within this programme companies and knowledge centres work in innovation projects that are considered strategically important for the technological development of various industrial sectors within the European manufacturing industry.

In this project TenCate is acting as the initiator and coordinator of 26 partners (10 universities and 16 companies). The total budget for the project is € 12.7 million, for which an amount of € 6.8 million will be received in subsidy. The timescale is four years. TenCate is participating in the total budget for € 2.6 million.

A key factor for TenCate is that this project will enable the company to gain access to an important new technology, in which development will occupy a pivotal role. On the one hand, the project will focus on the development of hardware and software, enabling the surface treatment of textile materials for finishing processes on a nanoscale. On the other hand, developments will be set in train that are aimed at expanding this technology to various areas of application in the market. Both suppliers and users of the technology will be able to benefit from it.

TenCate occupies a leading position in Europe in the field of textile finishing and this new technology will strengthen its competitive position in the global market. The significance of cooperation with partners is that the technology will be able to benefit from a broad area of application and that related developments can take place simultaneously. Pagina 2/2

Ten Cate Advanced Textiles bv is acting as the coordinator and the full list of partners appears on the TenCate website (www.tencate.com).

Almelo, 10 October 2006

Royal Ten Cate

Read the complete press release in .pdf