July 27, 2005 - Ingeo™ Fiber Takes The Prize

FIRA recognizes versatile Ingeo™ fiber with its important Innovation Award

London - July 27, 2005 - Ingeo fiber has taken another important step towards the position as the world’s leading man-made, natural based fiber, by earning one of the highest accolades available to the furniture industry: the FIRA Innovation Award, which will be awarded at the House of Commons on September 16, 2005.

FIRA’s (Furniture Industry Research Association) judges offered wide praise in presenting the Innovation Award to NatureWorks for its Ingeo fiber. “All of the judges were extremely impressed with Ingeo fiber and fully agreed that it met the necessary criteria for the FIRA innovation award”, said Sue Brighten, FIRA’s Research Consultant & Expert Witness in all matters relative to Foam and Fibers.

The Furniture Industry Research Association is internationally recognized as the world’s leading independent furniture technology centre, and its Innovation Award is a prestigious award valued by manufacturers and buyers alike. Each year FIRA honors several outstanding companies that provide differentiation of their products from those of their competitors, including introducing innovative and unique products to the market. The award is a way of recognizing companies that use forward thinking attitudes to create something that distinguishes them from the crowd.

Ingeo fiber stands apart by definition. The very word “Ingeo” means “ingredients from the earth.” It is the first man-made fiber created from 100% annually renewable resources – a novel product that combines the best of both worlds: the performance of a synthetic fiber and the advantages of a natural material. And because it is derived entirely from natural sources, Ingeo fiber contributes to reducing dependence on limited fossil fuel resources such as oil, the higher costs of which are currently being seen by the textile industry at large.

Today, Ingeo fiber is used in everything from socks to sofas because of the benefits of proven performance, environmental sustainability and competitive price. In Europe alone, Ingeo fiber is already present in more than 8,500 retail locations in the home furnishings and textiles market.

Combining the look and feel of a natural fiber with performance comparable to that of traditional synthetics, fabrics made of Ingeo fiber outperform PET and cotton fabrics in breathability and thermal insulation. In addition, Ingeo fiber outperforms other synthetics in resistance to UV light, retaining strength, color, and original performance properties over time. The fiber can be manipulated to create a variety of finishes and textures - from linen to silk - and can be used to create a high performing insulating fiber fill. Ingeo fiber also creates a fabric that quickly wicks moisture away from the body and is *extremely low smoke and heat generation, outperforming conventional synthetic fibers.

As a nature-based product, it is compostable, chemically recyclable and leaves no end waste. The careful attention paid to its creation and production result in up to 60% less greenhouse gasses than are emitted in producing other similar materials.

This combination of high performance and environmental sustainability has made it an appealing product in clothing, home furnishings, interior design and more. Today, Ingeo fiber is used in a vast range of products by key international companies like; Sealy Europe, Bossi, Zucchi, Karstadt, Galerie Lafayette, Printemps and Copertificio Zambaiti for hometextiles; Herman Miller and Allsteel for office furnishings; and Versace Sport, Diesel and Napapijri for apparel.



About NatureWorks LLC
Founded in 1997, NatureWorks LLC is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA. It is the first company to offer a family of commercially available polymers derived 100 percent from annually renewable resources with the cost and performance to compete with petroleum-based packaging materials and fibers. The company has achieved this breakthrough by applying unique technology to the processing of natural plant sugars to create a proprietary polylactide polymer, which is marketed under the NatureWorks® PLA and Ingeo™ fiber brand names. For more information about NatureWorks and its brands, please visit www.ingeofibers.com.

* Smoke Generation (ASTM E1354). In independent testing, fabrics made from untreated Ingeo fibers generated significantly less visible smoke than fabrics made from untreated polyester.
Heat Release (ASTM E1354) Fabrics made from Ingeo fibers outperformed materials made from untreated polyester and cotton.

Ingeo and the Ingeo logo are trademarks of NatureWorks LLC.