In the past few years, the global spinning and melting capacity has expanded rapidly, not only taking advantage of the growth of the global health market, but also meeting the growing demand of the medical care market. Many nonwoven manufacturers have transferred their production to local areas to meet the local demand.

According to Inda, in North America, about 5 spunbond / melt production lines will be launched this year, and 6 will be added in 2023. From this perspective, from 2014 to 2016, 8 spunbond / melt production lines were added in the region, and 5 were closed in the following three years. New production lines to be put into production may be replacing old and inefficient machines, and some may be closed to maintain market balance.

These new investments include a $75 million investment by pfnonwovens to expand its North American headquarters in Hazelton, Pennsylvania. The 3.2m wide production line of reicofil5 was completed earlier this year. The new production line accounts for half of the expansion, i.e. about 75000 square feet, with another 75000 square feet of space for growth.

Pf nonwovens announced the expansion of its Hazleton plant at the end of 2020. The new production line is the first of the two lines, which will enable the company to produce revolutionary cotton soft sanitary products for the North American market, and have the two-component capacity to produce biological resources and other special products, and allow the company to expand its medical fabric production in Hazleton. The company also added reicofil R5 technology to its plant in Cape Town, South Africa, with an investment of US $40 million. The new production capacity is planned for the end of this year.

FITESA, a Brazilian nonwoven manufacturer, has also invested in the spinning and melting technology of reicoifil 5. In South Carolina, the company is adding a production line at its Simpson Ville plant, which is expected to be completed this year. Due to its unique versatility in producing differentiated materials for a wide range of applications and markets, executives describe the new machine as unique. A key characteristic is the ability to convert biological and circular polymers into high-quality and high productivity spunbond nonwovens. The company has also recently invested in a spinning and melting production line at its plant in Cosmopolis, Brazil, and will add a new multi bundle reicofil 5 production line in Europe, which is planned to be put into production in the second quarter of 2023.

At the same time, uniquetex, a Chinese nonwoven manufacturer, increased the spinning and melting capacity. The company will add two production lines at its plant in Grover, North Carolina. The company was established in 2016 and is wholly owned by Foshan Nanhai bidefu nonwoven fabric Co., Ltd. (BTF), one of the largest nonwoven fabric enterprises in China. One of the production lines is a 3.2m three bundle spinning fusion line with a capacity of 8000 tons. This production line is located in the existing facilities of uniquetex, which is operating two non-woven production lines & mdash& mdash; A 96 inch double bundle spinning and melting production line and a 126 inch spinning and melting production line. The second production line will be built in a new 50000 square foot facility dedicated to reifenh & auml with a capacity of 4.2 meters and 15000 tons; User reicofil (Rf3) is designed for SMMs production line.

Uniquetex's total gross floor area in Grover is currently 410000 square feet on 100 acres. With a total investment of US $31.6 million, the company plans to add two more production lines in the next five years to form a factory with six production lines. Two recently identified investments will bring the site's output to 38000 tons, targeting the industrial, health, healthcare, home and technical textile markets.

According to the company, future investment may focus on polyester and BICO materials, depending on the commitment of customers and the strength of the proposals received. The company is also studying vertical integration into finished products of medical and personal protective equipment.

Meanwhile, in Turkey, mogul, a nonwoven manufacturer, added two new meltblown production lines to its operations during the epidemic. The two production lines are 160 cm wide and can produce fabrics in the range of 15-100 g / m2. They are put into production six months apart, one of which will be put into production in January 2021 and the other in June 2021. Both production lines have electrostatic charging capability and can manufacture N95 and more efficient masks, as well as efficient filtration applications and other industrial applications.

In addition to melt blowing, mogul's microfilament product Madaline can also be used in surgical and industrial mask applications. In addition, its wide range of spunlace products, including stronger versions of parallel mesh and cross mesh, are widely used in the medical and health care fields. Aquaface and Durell are used in gauze and wound care applications, while their polyester spunbond products are used in blood filtration applications. For clothing and bed sheet applications, mogul's SMS products can be used.

During the epidemic, many new PP Spunbond, SMS or meltblown manufacturers emerged in this market. However, as a diversified and firm participant in this market, mogul will provide long-term services to customers. It is believed that the supply chain will change after the epidemic. The European Union and the United States will strive to increase supply in China and surrounding countries. After facing supply problems during the epidemic, this will be conducive to the medium - and long-term development of mogul.

Another manufacturer that has recently added meltblown production lines is Taiwan KNH enterprise, which invests in high-efficiency, low air resistance meltblown and microfiber production. The new capacity is expected to increase by 8000 tons per year.

Due to its elasticity and flexibility, KNH's high-efficiency melt blown fabric provides better protection and comfort for medical masks. At the same time, the company's new microfiber products have the characteristics and structure of microfiber and are suitable for personal protective equipment such as medical masks, wet wipes, disposable medical gowns, protective clothing and abrasive clothing. Due to the influence of covid-19, KNH indicated that the demand for disposable medical products is growing rapidly. In the long run, the medical market has a bright future, thanks to the aging population who are seeking better care and have begun to pay attention to their own health.