To serve rapidly growing customer demand, global specialty materials provider Eastman on Tuesday said it was increasing its capacity to produce Naia filament yarn at its Barcelona site by 30 percent by the middle of this year and plans to expand that capability by more than 50 percent by the end of 2022.
The company, based in Kingsport, Tenn., said demand for sustainable fibers has led to strong Naia fiber growth in various textiles segments.
“The growing importance of sustainability and circularity as key market drivers is accelerating adoption of sustainable fibers,” Burt A. Capel, Eastman vice president and general manager of fibers, said. “As a result, Naia cellulosic filament yarn is gaining a lot of traction among our customers. Our vision is to make sustainable fashion accessible to all and we have a very committed team at our Barcelona site actively working to bring this expansion onstream as soon as possible to serve our customers across the globe.”
The expansion will support new brand adoptions of Naia in women’s wear, where there is a growing demand for sustainable fibers, Eastman noted.
Last month, Eastman launched its Naia Renew cellulosic staple fiber in the growing women’s casual wear and loungewear market. Sourced from 60 percent wood pulp and 40 percent recycled waste plastics, it can be produced at scale to help brands increase their sustainable offerings.
Naia Renew staple fiber has inherent softness, is quick drying and reduces pilling on garments. The company says it blends well with other eco-friendly materials such as lyocell, modal and recycled polyester to produce sustainable fabrics and garments that are ideal for everyday comfort wear.
In November H&M came to market with its new Conscious Exclusive collection made with Eastman Naia Renew. It marked the first time H&M used Naia Renew in a collection.
Also this past fall, Eastman and DuPont Biomaterials teamed up to launch a fabric collection made with sustainable, biobased materials. The collaboration blends Naia from Eastman and DuPont Sorona fibers to create garments with exceptional stretch and recovery, luxurious drape and a smooth, soft hand.