Functional fabrics and performance textiles specialist Schoeller Textil, and Swiss-Norwegian start-up Osmotex, have launched the first clothing product using their electro-osmotic membrane technology for moisture management.
The two companies first introduced the Hydro_Bot technology at sporting goods trade fair ISPO early last year. The technology is designed to solve one of the biggest challenges in sports, work and protective clothing: namely, to transport moisture at the same rate as humans sweat in various climates, conditions and activity levels. It effectively allows wearers to sweat without feeling wet.
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Schoeller signs production deal for Hydro_Bot technology
Norwegian ski brand Kjis has been the primary product development partner and so will be the first brand to take Hydro_Bot to market in selected skiwear products planned for the 2018/19 season.
“I have tested prototype jackets under demanding conditions in the Norwegian mountains, and the effect was much greater than I dared to dream of. I did sweat without feeling wet,” says managing director and executive chairman, of Hydro_Bot, Joacim Holter.
Since the technology launch, Schoeller has signed a production agreement with Osmotex. The Swiss leading textile manufacturer will market Hydro_Bot to its own clients, and Schoeller showcased the technology at ISPO last week. “We are very pleased with the progress towards commercialisation and this revolutionary technology will play a crucial role in our vision to stay at the forefront of the global textile industry,” says Schoeller CEO, Sigried Siegfried Winkelbeiner.
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At ISPO, Osmotex confirmed a new strategic partner for electronics. Applycon, a Czech-based developer and producer of electronics for clothing, will be the preferred supplier for all integrated electronics.
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By GlobalData“Applycon’s more than 13 years of experience in wearable solutions and textile integration will be a strong contribution for how to bring a unique technology together with other products towards end-users,” says Milan Baxa, managing director of Applycon. “We have already delivered the first electronic units that work with the specially developed Hydro_Bot application.”
Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, has played a key role in conducting cutting-edge materials and technology research as well as clothing physiology analysis of the Hydro_Bot system incorporated in jackets, which confirmed the efficacy of the technology. In all tests the jackets were said to have performed better than existing state-of-the-art jackets, and when the electronics were switched on the difference was “remarkable”.
“Empa has been delighted to orchestrate the technological development and to validate the innovation that makes Hydro_Bot a revolutionary moisture management solution. While this is a first-generation product, our physiological analysis already shows that electro-osmosis will make it possible to manage moisture in an entirely new way,” says Prof Dr Gian-Luca Bona, CEO of Empa.
