Economic impact of nanotechnologyin the textile sector

Table of contents

• Bax & Willems CV

• ObservatoryNANO

• The European textile industry

• What Nano can do for the textile industry

• Concerns about the use of nanotechnology

• Existing “nano-enhanced” products

• Barriers for nanotechnology in the textile sector

• What can we expect for the future

• Conclusions

Bax & Willems Consulting Venturing

• Support clients across Europe in optimising the ratio between R&Dinvestment and future business creation

• Matching future businesses with future technologies• Searching & selecting business opportunities• Developing collaborative R&D programmes• Creating strategies to exploit opportunities• Exploring the future to decide now

• Since 1985

ObservatoryNANO in brief

Aerospace,Automotive, &

Transport

Chemistry &Materials

ICT TextilesEnvironment SecurityEnergyAgrifood ConstructionHealth, Medicine

& Nanobio

Consortium4 Years

16 Partners10 Technology/Market

sectors analysed

www.observatory-nano.eu

Let’s Focus… the European Textile Industry

• Turnover 2007: €210 billion

• Companies: 145,000 - Mainly Small & Medium-sized enterprises

• Employment: 2,5 million people (-6% compared 2006)

• Diverse sectors Clothing & apparel Home & interiors Technical textiles

• High competence of low-wage countries (North Africa, China,Pakistan,..)

• Search for new commercialization strategies & innovative products

How is the future for European Textile Industry?

According to the European TechnologyPlatform for the Future of Textiles andClothing…

Source: Strategic Research Agenda ETP for the futureof textiles & Clothing - June 2006 - EURATEX

Potential benefits of Nanotechnology

New and/or enhanced functionalitiesSelf-cleaning textilesAnti bacterial / anti-odour textilesUV - ProtectionConductive textilesReinforced textilesFlame retardant textile…

Reduction of material consumptionEnvironmentally friendly

But still, there are some general concerns….

How much will it cost me?

Is it safe to use nano-enhancedproducts?

Is it dangerous to produce them?

What is Nanotechnology

What are the benefits of using it

However.. Is it already possible to buy “nano-enhanced”products?

Self-cleaning / Lotus effect

Anti-bacterial

www.nanotechproject.org

Flameretardant

Water repellency

Moisturemanagement

Why we can find already “nano” products?

• Use of nanotechnology is considered to be a good marketingtool for certain properties

• Most of the current “nano-enhanced” products available in themarket are obtained by the application of “nano-enabled”coatings

• Does everything that claims to be “nano” containnaotechnology?

• Nano is not a protected term

What could be the “nano-enhanced” products in thenear future?

Technical textiles is the sub-sector with more potential• Reinforced textiles• Conductive textiles• Nano-encapsulates for medical applications• Fire retardant textiles• Optical effects• Nanofiltration

However growth is conditioned by several factors…

What are the barriers for nanotechnology to be widelyadopted by the textile industry?

• Textile industry is a fragmented/traditional sector reluctant tochange

• There is a general lack of knowledge about nanotechnology(Benefits & risks)

• Difficulties in process scale-up

• Lack of “nano-experienced” personnel at the industry

• Technical limitations Process reliability, difficulty to achieve the desired particle dispersion,

“wash-ability”, availability of nanomaterials and other functionalrequirements

What is the current situation of nanotechnology in thetextile industry?.. Facts

• Several “nano” textile products are already in the marketmainly in the apparel and home textiles sectors

• Main functionalities provided by nanotechnology are: self-cleaning & anti-bacterialIn most cases nanotechnology is just part of the solution

• Still there are some technical and economical challenges forwider industrial impact

• “Nano-enabled” products still represents a minor part of thetotal market (Significantly less than 1%)

What can we expect in the near future?

• Initial forecast predicted an exponential growth ofNanotechnology in the textile sector in the coming years…

• At present, these forecasts seem highly overrated due to: Current Nanotechnology penetration State of the art of nanotechnology developments Industry’s concerns regarding Nanotechnology implementation

(HSE issues, increase in final product costs, No perception of needto change, difficulty to replace existing processes, lack of qualifiedresources)

… present economic situation

Nanotechnology is around the corner….

But…

it is going to take a while before we get there!

Thank youfor your attention!

Contact details

Roger de Lluria 120E-08037 Barcelona, Spain

http://www.bwcv.es

Tel: +34 93 476 04 44Fax: +34 93 476 04 77

José Conde j.conde@bwcv.es

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