The recent news of Alfa Group's decision to close its filament polyester production plant in Mexico has sent shockwaves throughout the industry. Companies that once relied on Akra's products are now faced with the daunting task of finding suitable alternatives. While many high tenacity polyester fibers can be readily replaced, the Akra Type 161 presents a unique challenge due to its distinct physical properties.

Because continuous multifilament polyester yarns are used in a wide variety of applications and conditions, polyester yarn manufacturers are required to have diverse product portfolios to accommodate them, including yarns in a wide denier range with various physical properties.

Polyester is a category of polymers, and all polyesters share certain characteristics however there are some significant differences in physical properties among all the types of multifilament polyester.  Not all polyesters are the same.

In October 2017 DuraFiber Technologies, previously Performance Fibers, once a leading US supplier of high-tenacity polyester fibers, engineered fabrics, sewing threads and advanced materials, closed its three facilities in the United States

DuraFiber produced a number of widely used types of polyester in the United States and the different types are still referenced by companies searching for quality alternatives today.  Many of the available alternatives happen to have more consistent properties with tighter tolerances but this ultimately depends on the type of alternative polyester. 

Meta-aramid and para-aramid fibers may be similar, but they have some significant differences. To better understand these differences, let’s look at the physical properties of each of these and see how they compare to a commodity high tenacity polyester.

On September 17th the United States Trade Representative (USTR) Office announced additional tariffs of 10 percent on 5,745 items with an approximate value of $200 billion USD. As most of the world is aware, the Trump Administration and China are in a heated economic battle.

In part one of this series, I talked about how to understand polyester pricing swings and why rising costs and a dynamic market has thrust the industry into a volatile time. In part two, I touched on understanding market, spot and indexed pricing. In this post, I’ll focus on index formulas, particularly once a supplier and client decide to index a price, what does it look like? In general, designing a simple index formula is the best strategy. The difficult part is agreeing to the finer details up front. Both parties must carefully consider the following aspects.

DuraFiber Technologies, (formerly Performance Fibers), submitted a WARN notice on July 13, 2017 announcing steps to prepare for the possible closure of their U.S. plants in Salisbury, Shelby, and Winnsboro. 

In part one of Service Thread’s blog series on polyester yarn pricing, I discussed the reason for the unpredictable cost swings with polyester yarn pricing. In addition to understanding the global dynamics that effect these swings, it is also important to understand the pricing strategies used.