The year 2013 was an extremely busy and rewarding one for INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry.

Kicking off the year was the annual VISION Consumer Products Conference held January in Orlando, Florida. Over 325 industry executives were on hand to listen to thought provoking presentations and workshops and the growing role of nonwovens in consumer products.

Following the well-received VISION 2013 event, was the Annual Meeting & Leadership Conference where INDA Members were given the State of the Association, voted on Association business and listened to two outstanding speakers deliver information on game changers for the nonwovens/engineered fabrics industry with regards to the oil/gas boom in the US and the leadership changes in China. The new Board of Directors was also announced and introduced to the INDA Membership.

In April, the IDEA 2013 International Engineered Fabrics Conference & Exposition was held in Miami Beach, Florida. This IDEA event was INDA’s most successful show in its history.

With over 475 exhibitors, IDEA attracted over 7,000 participants from around the world to do business with global suppliers. IDEA also represented the full handover of INDA’s reigns to its new President, Dave Rousse, from Rory Holmes, Past President, who had announced his impending retirement in the fall of 2012.

On the heels of the IDEA show was the annual World of Wipes Conference held during June in Atlanta, Georgia. The universal feedback from participants was very positive with a full slate of informative, relevant topics to the wipes industry along with multiple business contact opportunities.

The World of Wipes was also a vehicle for the preview of the new third edition Flushability Guidelines and the accompanying Code of Practice for Communicating Appropriate Disposal Pathways for Disposable Nonwoven Products. The Guidelines and Code of Practice were formally rolled out by INDA and EDANA in September to the industry at large.

The summer also saw the July 23 release of the long-awaited rule modifying the federal hazardous waste management regulations that apply to non-laundered and laundered wipes contaminated with solvents that are used in tens of thousands of industrial and other facilities across the United States.

The move by the US Environmental Protection Agency was praised by INDA and the nonwovens industry as it provides more flexibility and increases the options for thousands of businesses who use industrial wipers.

The 4th annual RISE Conference was held in late September/early October in Denver, Colorado and brought together technology seekers in the global nonwovens/engineered fabrics value chain for two and a half days of thought-provoking, boundary expanding discussions about the latest technical innovations and how they can be applied to help create value-added, more competitive products.

Over 200 executives were in attendance and represented diverse functional areas including development leaders and technical scouts, marketing, business development and R&D. Rounding out 2013 was the FILTRATION International Conference & Exposition at Navy Pier in Chicago mid-November. The theme for this year’s event was “Filtration Protecting Health & Environment.”

Filter media and component suppliers, customers and the entire filtration value chain from around the world met for three days of education, as it relates to filtration and human health, and business interactions. FILTRATION is one of the largest and most important filtration industry events in the world, drawing over 1500 attendees from more than 30 countries.

Liberally peppered throughout the year were INDA training courses – both an elementary nonwovens training course aimed at educating those executives and professionals who are unfamiliar with nonwovens needing to learn the basics and an advanced nonwovens training course for those who wish for more in-depth knowledge of nonwovens.

INDA also rolled out the new Filter Media Nonwovens Course in early December which was created for INDA by Dr. Christine Sun, Principal, Textile Research Associates. Attendees valued their experience at the Filter Media Course and were appreciative of the level of expertise that was shared by Dr. Sun as instructor of the course.

Dave Rousse, INDA President, commented on the year, “2013 saw INDA expanding its relevance to the nonwovens/engineered fabrics industry. From thought leadership to meaningful business interactions on a global scale, INDA events brought the world of nonwovens together whether it was via an event, impactful rulemaking or streamlining guidelines and test methods to assist wipes manufacturers and their business.”

Rousse continued, “This year was one of INDA’s busiest years ever and we look to continue that trend for 2014. I will be providing a recap of all this year’s accomplishments and path forward during INDA’s Annual Meeting & Leadership Conference to be held March 10-12, 2014, Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. All INDA Members are welcome to attend. We have a rich program content along with numerous informal opportunities in which to do business. I encourage all to mark their calendars and save the date.”

About INDA

INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, serves hundreds of member companies in the nonwovens/engineered fabrics industry doing business globally. Since 1968, INDA events have helped members connect, learn, innovate and develop their businesses. INDA educational courses, market data, test methods, consultancy and issue advocacy help members succeed by providing them the information they need to better plan and execute their business strategies.