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INDA's WOW conference attracts full wipes supply chain

03 Jul '17

3 min read

Courtesy: Inda

Entire wipes supply chain had gathered at the 11th annual World of Wipes international conference to discuss issues and advance business in this important and growing sector. Experts from various sectors discussed topics such as natural opportunities in ingredients, emerging technologies, new regulations, consumer insights, market trends, and flushability.

The conference held during June 12-15, 2017 was organised by INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry.

“This year’s WOW conference offered one of the best combinations of networking opportunities, conference content, quality of attendees, and meeting venues of all WOW events,” said Nick Santoleri, VP of Operations, Rockline Industries.

WOW 2017, held in Nashville, Tennessee, attracted 476 participants from companies representing the entire wipes supply chain to discuss issues and advance business in this important and growing sector. Topics on tap included industry insights on “natural opportunities in ingredients, emerging technologies, new regulations, consumer insights, market trends, and “flushability” from the most forward leaders in each category.

“This year’s strong turnout reinforces the dynamic growth in this segment. Wipes professionals from 20 countries convened for three days to make valuable business connections and keep up on the exceptional technology and continued innovation in this industry,” said Dave Rousse, INDA president.

Kicking off the conference was a blue-ribbon panel of sustainability experts from Walgreens Boots Alliance, Suominen, The Sustainability Consortium, Burt’s Bees, Rockline Industries and the Procter & Gamble company with global perspectives on wipes sourcing, communications, research and development, manufacturing, and environmental stewardship.

“It was great to get a summary of regulatory and legal issues in a few hours of talks…it probably saved me days of reading and tracking down information,” said John F Poccia, associate research and development director, Platform Research Johnson & Johnson Consumer.

Speaker highlights included the keynote presentation “Marketing across generations” by consumer psychologist Kit Yarrow, Professor Emeritus, Golden Gate University, who described the psychological differences by generation as a strategic aid in marketing wipes products more effectively.

“The World of Wipes conference has become a nexus for professionals in wipes markets to meet, discuss, share, and enjoy the camaraderie in this important and growing global market,” said Janet O’Regan, director Nonwovens Marketing, Cotton Incorporated.

Participants connected face-to-face with hundreds of wipes professionals. Preceding the conference, INDA’s Wipes Academy was conducted by instructor Rob Johnson, PE, Principal, Smith, Johnson & Associates. The Academy is the first and only comprehensive wipes training for the entire wipes supply chain.

Berry Plastics’ Chicopee Microfibre Floor Care System was the recipient of this year’s World of Wipes Innovation Award. The annual award recognises the product that most expands the use of nonwovens and demonstrates creativity, novelty, uniqueness, and technical sophistication within the entire nonwovens wipes value chain. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India