At this week’s Oulook conference in Barcelona (September 24-26), PGI announced plans to increase its European capacity for personal care speciality materials to 100,000 tons and also introduced its new Soft range of materials based on proprietary technologies. 

PGI will significantly increase its SMS spunmelt nonwovens capacity at its site in Tarragona, Spain by 2015, and also invest in speciality carded capacity at the plant in Terno, Italy.  

“PGI is constantly evolving its technologies to help customers grow,” said Jean-Marc Galvez, PGI’s European president. “This capacity increases PGI’s position to assist customers with growing demand for speciality materials in hygiene and healthcare applications.” 

The company also continue to look for new investments in the Europe and Middle East Africa region.

The new Soft portfolio consists of speciality soft nonwovens to address the needs of the baby, incontinence and  femcare markets with solutions that enhance visual, tactile and haptic soft properties including:

Premium Soft and KamiSoft are patented mechanically produced soft nonwovens with strong visual cues promoting a quilted or embossed look, enhanced hand and excellent strength-to-softness ratio. The two unique patterns offer different value propositions with PremiumSoft supporting improved drape and discretion attributes and KamiSoft supporting an improved coefficient of friction for optimal converting.

• Premium King Soft (PKS) targets back-sheet, cuff and top-sheet applications and offers a differentiated smooth or silk like feel when compared to standard spunbond.
• PGI Soft’s special formulation provides a silk-like touch that is often desirable in femcare, incontinence bladder control pads and other top sheet applications.
• The Vista product range utilizes PGI’s patented Apex technology to generate a high loft soft fabric. It is available in basis weights between 25 and 50gsm and helps to neutralise the impact of thinner diapers with a three dimensional image and a cloth like feel. All Apex images are fully customisable to provide a unique product identity in baby and adult top sheet or back sheet applications.
• PGI’s BiCo technology provides a soft hand that translates into comfort and softness attributes when converted into an end product. BiCo provides a dry silky touch, perfectly suited for skin contact nonwovens.
• Airten is a family of airthrough bond carded materials which maximizes performance in hygiene applications.  Airten can be designed with very high levels of softness and has a masking effect as a top sheet for feminine pantyliners and sanitary napkins.  Using customized fiber blends, bulkiness and cushion attributes can be maximized to provide the desired level of softness.
• TricTrac, PGI’s thermal bond carded material with a distinguished embossed pattern provides enhanced softness and visual aspect suitable for top sheet and outer cover applications.

The new Soft portfolio complements the existing and well established S-Tex technology which offers nonwovens that provide enhanced softness, elongation and aperture attributes used in topsheet, backsheet and elastic lamination applications.

“PGI´s focus is on innovative products to benefit consumers with safer, cleaner & healthier specialty materials”, said Galvez. “We have invested more than €400 million in innovation over the past three years.