The Nonwovens Institute
NC State University,
Raleigh, NC 27695-8301

by Behnam Pourdeyhimi

The Nonwovens Institute is the world’s first accredited academic program for the interdisciplinary study of engineered fabrics through an innovative partnership of industry, government, and academe.

Designed to operate on an “Open Innovation” platform, The Nonwovens Institute will enable industry and university experts to develop the next generation of nonwoven applications while educating and training future industry leaders.

Pictured are the NCRC Executive Committee members, Secretary Jim Fain, Vice chancellor Gilligan, Dean Godfrey and Dean Emeritus Bob Barnhart.

The growing U.S. nonwovens industry saw revenue of $22 billion in 2006 and has been enjoying six to eight percent annual growth rates. Nonwovens are materials that are neither woven nor knit and are widespread in products and materials people use every day. Nonwoven textile materials are used in automobiles, medical, industrial, clothing, air and water filters and a number of personal hygiene products such as household wipes, bandages, and diapers.  Some archeological data suggests nonwovens date back as far as 3500 BC, which is about 1500 years newer than the first evidence of woven fabrics.  So although not necessarily a new idea, most people today still do not recognize the importance and value these materials bring to every day life.  Nonwovens are everywhere around us in obvious as well as obscure applications. Regardless of where you find them, they still are valuable enablers that actually allow us to enjoy the quality of life we have today.

North Carolina has quickly become a hub of nonwoven industry activity, with 33 companies employing more than 2420 people. Seventeen companies have either gotten their start or expanded their North Carolina-based operations in the last three years, accounting for 1,000 additional jobs and representing more than $400 million in economic expansion.  The companies affiliated with nonwovens in the State contribute significantly to the economy of the State.  Altogether, the nonwovens and allied industries employ 16,000 people, and contribute more than $3 billion to the State’s economy.

The ability to grow the economy right here in North Carolina, conduct vital research and development in engineered fabrics, and provide a ‘test bed’ for our more than 78 industry partners demonstrates the university’s commitment to the region and the nonwoven industry.

The Nonwovens Institute was formally inaugurated on May 15 with speeches from North Carolina elected officials, university leadership, and top executives from Procter & Gamble, MeadWestvaco, Fiberweb,   and Eastman Chemical Co. The institute, which will be housed in NC State’s College of Textiles, was approved by NC State’s Board of Trustees at its February meeting.

“The Nonwovens Institute is making history. This innovative partnership model will serve as a national benchmark for industry and academic collaboration to enhance economic development and professional training,” says Robb Lovegrove, NCRC Industrial Advisory Board Executive Committee Member and Director of Global Marketing for Eastman Chemical Company. “It’s a notable first in higher education.”

The mission of The Nonwovens Institute is to develop, educate, and train the next generation of industry professionals. The Nonwovens Institute will serve as a central resource and support center for education, research, engagement and economic development for the nonwovens textiles industry in the United States.  The Nonwovens Institute combines the expertise of NC State University’s leading colleges of Textiles, Engineering, and Natural Resources.

As part of its educational mission, The Nonwovens Institute will offer online and short course training programs, through which enrollees can earn continuing education credits at NC State. The institute will also offer customized courses and training for nonwovens companies.

NC State’s Nonwovens Cooperative Research Center (NCRC), established in 1991 as a partnership between the State, the university and industry through a National Science Foundation grant, will now be housed under the umbrella of the new institute. NCRC will serve as the research arm of the institute with a goal of enhancing and developing nonwoven products.  NCRC has enjoyed tremendous growth over the last 10 years.  The graph below shows the number of partners in NCRC since its inception in 1991.

As the next step in its natural growth and to broaden its reach to companies that develop specialized products by using nonwovens, The Nonwovens Institute at NC State University, together with its partners at the universities of Akron and Colorado are establishing an Industry-university-cooperative research center sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF).  This multi-university center in filtration will be officially launched by July 2008. 

The filtration and membranes separation industry is a multibillion dollar industry crossing nearly every field of science and industry. Without filters devices such as disk drives and lithium batteries would not operate as well as they do today. Filters and membranes are essential to health, safety, product quality, and the environment. Yet, the filter industry is highly fragmented into application specific niches. The filtration technologies are common to most niche applications. What is needed is a research center that can address the broader issues important to filtration and membranes such as how to cost effectively separate nanoparticles from fluid streams or how to incorporate chemical reactions into membranes and filters.

This new center is a going to form as a multi-university, multi-disciplinary program and will build on the activities of the Nonwovens Institute and those of the partner universities at Akron and Colorado.

Polymers have been identified as a core technology important to Ohio and the US. This center is important to Akron because fibers and membranes are important applications of polymers and are essential for future technology advancements.  Equally, membranes and nonwovens are the backbone of the filtration and separation industry and both are important to University of Colorado and NC State. 

The members of the center will have access to researchers and students at multiple universities, leveraging of funds to solve fundamental science and engineering problems in fluid-particle separations, interactions with other companies having common interests in filters and membranes, prestige of being a member of the premier filtration and membrane research center in the US.

This partnership was forged to bring together a unique set of complementary expertise to provide solutions for the filtration and separations industries.  Each university brings unique skills and expertise to the center. Akron brings polymer technologies, electrospinning, nanofibers, material science, surface coatings and characterization, and filtration expertise.  University of Colorado brings expertise in membranes and separation technologies that complement the work at NC State in the areas of air and water filtration, bio/pharma and surface engineering and nonwovens science and engineering.
 
The College of Textiles and its Nonwovens Institute continue to lead the establishment of industry focused cross-disciplinary programs. 

College of Textiles
P.O. Box 8301
Raleigh, NC 27695-8301
Telephone: (919) 515-6632
FAX: (919) 515-3733
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Last Site Revision:
August 28, 2007