Dystar celebrates 115 years, expands China indigo capacity (China)

DyStar and its owner, the Zhejiang Longsheng Group, celebrate 115 years of technical Indigo synthesis at Ludwigshafen, Germany, where the first commercially feasible manufacturing process was launched.

The history of synthetic Indigo goes all the way back to 1897, with the introduction of, “pure indigo” from BASF. Demand for synthetic Indigo dyes was so huge that by 1913, natural indigo had been almost entirely replaced. To date, more than 260,000 tons of the dye has been produced at the Ludwigshafen production plant. This is sufficient to dye about 26 billion pairs of jeans which, if lined up end-to-end, would cover the distance from the earth to the moon 87 times.

With its patented DyStar Indigo Vat 40% Solution, DyStar has contributed to the continuing success story of synthetic Indigo. “Pre-Reduced Indigo is a very consistent and clean type dye” notes Dean Barley, Denim Dye Department Manager from Mount Vernon Mills. “Having a consistently clean Indigo helps us produce more first quality denim day in, and day out. More first quality goods also generate more money to the bottom line.”

The constant improvement of the manufacturing process over the years has paved the way for DyStar’s current success. The numbers speak for themselves with double digit growth rates in the major denim manufacturing areas e.g. 40% growth in South Asia.

“In anticipation of greater demand for DyStar Indigo Vat 40% Solution and an increased market share, the DyStar Group is planning to expand capacity at its Nanjing Indigo plant in China,” said Harry Dobrowolski, CEO of the DyStar Group. The expansion reaffirms DyStar’s commitment to the denim industry.

As global awareness of environmental issues created by the textile supply chain increases, Brands, Retailers and their industry partners are looking for more sustainable solutions for their businesses. With the recently announced project to develop electrochemical dyeing of Indigo in collaboration with RedElec, DyStar is maintaining its position as the leading sustainable solution provider.

About DyStar

DyStar, with a heritage of over 100 years of both product and application innovation, was founded in 1995 as a coloration specialist for the textile and leather industries. Since then, the company has transformed itself into a solution provider, offering customers a complete range of colorants, auxiliaries and services. The DyStar Group has offices, competence centers, agencies and production plants in over 50 countries to ensure expertise is both global and local for brands & retailers, mills and dye-houses.

Its DyStar Textile Services (DTS) division offers state of the art color communication through Color Solutions International (CSI), textile and ecology testing through Texanlab and ecology and environmental solutions and advice through its Ecology Solutions team, as well as offers Sustainable Textile Service programs which are specifically developed to help brands & retailers and their industry partners audit their supply chain and recommend sustainable solutions for improvement.

With a focus on sustainability and eco compliance, our team of well-trained staff and modern service labs in major markets ensure that customers all over the world receive fast and expert technical assistance and advice to reduce costs, shorten lead times and meet stringent quality and ecological specifications.

About REDELEC

A Swiss company founded in 2007, RedElec Technologie SA specializes in new electrochemical technologies which enable redox transformations (reduction of oxidation) to be carried out economically and with the least impact to the environment on production sites. RedElec’s electrochemical processes can be applied to textile dyeing, wastewater treatment, organic electro-synthesis and metal recovery.

About Mount Vernon Mills

Mount Vernon Mills, Inc. is a diversified and integrated producer of yarns, fabrics and related products for the apparel, industrial, and consumer goods markets. Mount Vernon also mixes, blends and reacts chemicals for both textile and non-textile uses. Headquartered in Mauldin, South Carolina, Mount Vernon employs about 2,700 people.

The company operates thirteen manufacturing facilities across the states of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Texas, plus it has trucking operations in South Carolina and Alabama. Mount Vernon also has foreign operations in Honduras, Mexico and China.