Huntsman Textile Effects has further updated the High IQ performance assurance program to help mills, brands and retailers meet consumer demand for textiles that stay looking newer for longer.
The global leader in intelligent effects has extended the world’s only color retention program with High IQ Lasting Color and Lasting Color eco, plus High IQ Lasting White with cutting-edge fluorescent whitening agents and stain management technologies.
Consumers want garments that retain their new look through multiple home launderings. At the same time, there is a global call for more environmentally friendly textiles, produced with less water and energy. Alkaline washing powders, hard tap water and mechanical abrasion from washing machines and clothes driers can rapidly dull colored textiles, while everyday stains can leave whites looking dull.
“With our High IQ Lasting Color and High IQ Lasting White programs, we offer brands, retailers and mills a way to achieve better economic and environmental sustainability. In today’s competitive global market, this means being able to cost-effectively produce fabrics that delight consumers with brilliant whites and vivid colors that stay and won’t wash away, backed by an assurance that they conform to stringent environmental standards,” said Lee Howarth, Global Marketing Manager at Huntsman Textile Effects.
Through the new High IQ Lasting Color and updated High IQ Lasting White programs, Huntsman Textile Effects helps consumers choose sustainable textile products that retain their vivid colors and bright whites to deliver a longer usable life. Only mills that meet Huntsman’s stringent requirements earn the right to use the High IQ hang tags as point-of-sale product branding.
High IQ Lasting Color is the world’s only color retention program, is powered by specially selected Novacron dyes, and lets mills produce fabrics that retain their exciting vibrant colors and dark shades even after repeated washings. Based on tests using EU and U.S. home-laundering programs, fabrics made under the High IQ Lasting Color program will not fade, and there is little risk of color staining on other garments during washing.
As an extension, Huntsman is also introducing the High IQ Lasting Color eco program for textiles produced with a minimal environmental footprint. It relies on Huntsman’s award-winning Avitera SE reactive dyes to reduce water and energy consumption by up to 50% compared to the best-available technologies. Excellent washing-off performance shortens processing time and increases productivity.
High IQ Lasting White delivers very high and brilliant whites on cellulosic fibers, combining Huntsman’s latest generation of Fluorescent Whitening Agents under the well-known Uvitex range with environment-friendly fluorinated (C6) or non-fluorinated stain repel and release technologies. It is wash-fast in production and home laundering, even at high temperatures, and it resists and washes out household stains to ensure that the garments keep their newness longer.
High IQ Lasting White is ideal for ready-to-wear, business wear, underwear, casual wear and home textiles that need to withstand the rigors of everyday life and retain their brilliant whiteness.
The dyes in the High IQ Lasting Color range and the technologies used to produce High IQ Lasting White comply with the requirements of Bluesign, the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals Roadmap and the Restricted Substances Lists of the world’s most demanding global brands. Fabrics produced under Lasting Color or Lasting White are suitable for OEKO-TEX Standard 100.
Huntsman’s High IQ global performance assurance program helps mills, brands and retailers produce high-performance textiles with enhanced comfort, sun protection, friction reduction and water repellence, in bright whites and color that lasts. The program is based on innovative dyes and effects and unparalleled technical support and application know-how from Huntsman Textile Effects to help mills improve their productivity and competitiveness.