Odour control and capture solutions are the most innovative technologies in the field of antimicrobial solutions of the apparel sector currently, as per an antimicrobial solutions provider.

"Dual technology odour control and odour capture solutions for performance sports apparel are the latest technological innovations," Lisa Owen, global business development (senior director) for the textiles sector of Microban told fibre2fashion.com.

With increased use of synthetic activewear, there has been a growth in long term odour that will not go away, she states. "This is what they call 'permastink'," she adds.

Microban has focused on a combination of technologies to control both short- and long-term odours to mitigate this growing consumer concern. It engages with consumer panels for wear and odour control testing. Its social media outreach enables them to have an open dialogue with consumers about their preferences, she adds.

On a further note, Owen says that enhancing existing antimicrobial durability is very important for the textiles market. Innovation in healthcare applications address more stringent performances and regulatory requirements, such as technologies that work on a wider spectrum of bacteria and perform at a faster rate of action.

"Washing clothes is very abrasive, which drives our focus on not only the efficacy of our technologies, but also on the ability of those technologies to withstand an increasingly longer product life requirement as desired by our customers," she concludes.

Click here to read the complete interview