Wednesday, September 19, 2012

COURTAULDS HAS DESIGNS ON TENCEL FOR THE NEXT CENTURY (1993)

This is the first announcement of SL2, the Mobile plant expansion.  Clearly some aspects of the release failed to get across.  The fact that SL1 made a profit in its first year thanks to Japanese marketing, fashion and "shaping in acid baths" - whatever that was - is notable though.  I guess the "twice as much" referred to fabric not fibre costs.  If the original article surfaces it will be posted.

A new plant costing $134m manufacturing Tencel is to be built by Courtaulds in Alabama USA. Tencel costs twice as much than its rivals to produce but is proving popular within Japan and amongst certain fashion houses. It is very strong and can be shaped by treatments like acid baths; it is proving so popular that it made a profit in its first year of commercial sales. This new installation will increase Courtauld's production of Tencel from 18,000 to 43,000tpy, with another site planned in Europe in 1994.

Gilchrist S., The Times, no. 64,084, 18 Nov. 1993, p. 30

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