Welcome to DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR

Volume 2 | Issue 7 | March 2014 Middle East and North Africa Carpet World

New Flooring Perspectives!

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR 2014 opens new flooring perspectives (new markets, new products, new

concepts) to the floor covering industry.

• New promising markets: while the rest of the world’s economies may be uncertain, Asian flooring markets are booming with opportunities. China alone reported flooring sales of 377 million sqm in 2012!

• New products: an improved “InnovAction Flooring” marketing campaign will highlight new innovations in floor covering so ex-hibitors can present unique new products to their targeted professional audience;

• New themed concepts: showcase events throughout the exhibition ground will draw attention to specific flooring products and categories. Details on the showcased themed concepts will appear in the next show’s press releases. Examples are an event area dedicated to hand-made car-pets producers in hall W5 and hall E7 that will feature the best known Chinese wood brands over the last 20 years.

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR is the larg-est international flooring trade exhibition in the whole Asian Pacific region, and the sec-ond largest in the world.1,122 exhibitors joined the show in 2013,

filling the Shanghai New International Exhibition Centre (SNIEC) for a total of 130,000sqm gross exhibit space.

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR stands as a strong industry platform for Chinese and overseas companies to present new products and promote brands. This leading exhibition encourages the communication within the industry, brings numerous busi-ness opportunities and actively promotes the development of the floor covering in-dustry in Asia and beyond.The show exhibit profiles include: wood & laminate; carpets & rugs; flooring machin-eries (Floortech Asia); cleaning and main-tenance technologies; resilient flooring; industrial flooring.Fueled also by a high-level comprehensive events’ program, the show attracted some 42,165 professional visitors in 2013 to its

www.menacarpetnews.com

Meet Belgian Exhibitors at DOMOTEX Asia .........................5

INSIDE

Philips and Desso announce part-nership to develop light transmis-sive carpets.................................2

MENA Carpet News

FREE DISTRIBUTION ; DOMOTEX CHINA 2014

The Iranian Hand-Made Carpet Data Bank

Shirazi Tradingwww.shirazitrading.com

Persian Hand-Knotted Carpet Think Tank

Turkey’s car-pet exports

to touch $2.4bn in 2014: IHIB

Exports of carpets from Turkey are expected to

touch US$ 2.4 billion in 2014, said Istanbul Carpet Export-ers Association (IHIB) chair-man Ibrahim Yilmiz, during a press conference.Turkey has exported carpets worth $2.19 billion in 2013, which makes it the second largest exporter of the prod-uct after China, Mr. Yilzmiz added.

According to the IHIB of-ficial, around 40 percent of the world’s machine-made carpets are exported from the country, and the carpet indus-try believes it could achieve the export target of $2.4 bil-lion in 2014.Mr. Yilmiz informed that car-pets made in Belgium and the Netherlands sell for €150 to €200 per sq ft, whereas Turk-ish carpets sell between $5 and $15 for the same length, which is one of the main fac-tors increasing the sales of Turkish carpets. However, the Syria crisis may decrease the exports of Turkish carpets to the Mid-dle East, but demand is ex-pected to pick up gradually and Turkey’s carpet industry can reach the export target of $5.5 billion by 2023, he added. Last year, the country ex-ported carpets worth $2.19 billion, indicating a rise of 9.3 percent compared to the exports of carpets made in 2012.

Paisley Pattern.........................6

Domotex Gaziantep 2014............9

THIS FAIR IS ORGANIZED WITH THE PERMISSION OF THE UNION OF CHAMBERS AND COMMODITY EXCHANGES OF TURKEY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAW NUMBER 5174.

Organizer Supporter

Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce

YOU ARE INVITED...

Middle East Exhibition Center

DOMOTEX GAZIANTEP MACHINE MADE CARPET FAIR

26-29 MAY 2014Middle East Exhibition Center/ Gaziantep-Turkey

domotexgaziantep.com

Persian Silk Textile History..........11

The textiles industry in Norwich.................................12

General survey of Iran carpet weaving industries.....................14

17

The World of Flooring

17 – 20 January 2015Hannover ▪ Germanydomotex.de

DOMOTEX Laying the ground for success

Be With MENAOn Carpet

Bissnes Line!

Sponsored by:

Kohan Textile Journal

successful 15th edition. The show is vis-ited every year by both international and domestic industry players belonging to the following business profiles: buyer, agent, distributor/wholesaler, retailer, franchise dealer, architect/designer, contractor/project manager, real estate developer, owner, government official, association, and manufacturer.

As part of the DOMOTEX shows group, DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR, with its 15 years of experience, has proven to be the outstanding promotional platform for companies targeting the world most promising market: Asia..

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MENACarpetNews

2 March 2014Mena Carpet News, Ambassador of Carpet of Mena Region

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Philips and Desso - global leaders in lighting and carpets respectively - to-day announce a partnership agree-

ment to develop solutions that combine LED lighting with light transmissive carpet. This innovation will further unlock the potential of LED integration into surfaces and adds an exciting dimension to interior design and space planning. The solution will transform the way people interact with information and their environment in offices, hotels, confer-ence centers and other public buildings. These LED light emitting carpets will provide many benefits in the areas of information, di-rection, inspiration and safety, such as:• Guiding people around buildings, including

Philips and Desso announce partnership to develop light transmissive carpets

safety exits and routes• Enhancing the ambiance and atmos-phere of the interior of buildings com-bining lighting with design and colour• Helping to de-clutter spaces by mak-ing information visible only when need-edThe solution is designed for high traf-fic areas and comes in different colors, shapes and sizes - enabling highly flexible application of the new technol-ogy.“This light transmissive carpet solu-tion is designed to engage directly with people’s senses and the eyes’ natural inclination to seek out light. The tech-nology takes advantage of people’s

tendency to be guided by the floor when moving through and interacting with space. It brings information, direction, inspiration and safety via the carpet you walk on. This partnership of market leaders is focused on bringing meaningful innovations to the mar-ket.” Ed Huibers, Marketing and Sales Director, at Philips Lighting“We know people spend 90% of their time in-doors and our vision linked to this is to create innovative flooring solutions that contribute to people’s health and wellbeing. This new solution developed with our partner Philips, meets this need and offers exciting ways to enhance the interaction between the interior space and its users.”Alexander Collot d’Escury, CEO DessoThe partnership is an agreement to work ex-clusively together in developing the markets in EMEA. In addition to this, a joint develop-ment agreement has been signed focusing on a seamless integration of this solution into new and existing buildings. The prod-uct name will be revealed in 2014 as part of the full go-to-market launch, but Philips and Desso are already working on pilot projects in key markets.Combining the many benefits of Desso’s carpet, such as improved indoor air quality, acoustics and comfort with the benefits of Philips’ LED lighting, this innovation reflects Philips and Desso’s common goal to improve people’s lives, whilst bringing a new level of design freedom to architects, designers and end-users.

Pakistan carpet exporters seek stake in PM’s loan scheme

Vying for a stake in Prime Minister’s (PM) Youth Business Loan Scheme, the Pakistan Carpet Manufacturers and Exporters

Association (PCMEA) has urged the Government to collaborate to-gether for the disbursement of the loans under the PM’s scheme for creation of jobs in rural areas, empowerment of womenfolk and en-hancement of exports. According to the PCMEA, the carpet industry is best suited for em-ployment generation in rural areas, which is the primary focus of the loan scheme. In a written request to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, PCMEA chairman Akhtar Nazir Khan has emphasized that such loans could be used to establish small manufacturing units with 5 to 10 handlooms in rural areas.Mr. Khan said that PCMEA would offer its services to scrutinize and recommend eligible candidates for these loans, and he also sug-gested that in order to ensure repayment, such loans should be dis-tributed through exporters. In the letter, PCMEA has urged the PM to reserve Pk Rs. 1 billion for the handmade carpet industry to create 13,000 employment opportunities in most poor areas and bottom five percent section of the society. Noting that the carpet industry remains a labor-intensive industry, with high number of women workers, who work from home at lowest employment cost, Mr. Khan suggested that the Government should re-think on the criteria for extending loans, and emphasize more on trained manpower rather than education.According to PCMEA, handmade carpet industry in Pakistan employs over one million people, and produces 100 exportable products with a minimum 600 percent value addition. However, despite being the largest cottage industry in the country, the industry remains highly unorganized.On the eight percent mark-up, PCMEA vice chairman Kamran Razi noted that the handmade carpet production being a lengthy and time-consuming process, the industry cannot afford such high mark-up rate. He thus suggested that the loans shall be provided at three per-cent service charges..

MENACarpetNews

3March 2014

MENACarpetNews

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MENACarpetNews

March 2014 5

FlandersInvestment & Trade (FI&T) promotes sus-tainable international business,in the interest of both Flanders-based companies and overseas enter-

prises.Whatever sector you are involved in, FI&T helps you establish contact withthe Flemish companies you are looking for. This includes not only products or services you may be sourcing, but also various types of business relationships,from joint ventures to technology transfers. FI&T also enhances Flanders’ positionas the gateway to Europe for inward investors.

Fedustria is the Federation of the Belgian Textile,Woodworking and Furniture industry, acting both as spokesman and as a sounding board for develop-ments affecting the industry’s interests. Fedustria is the ideal organization to turn to when you want in-depth

information about aparticular activity, product or service provided by above industry. Fedustria,Division Carpets and Interior Textiles, is the promoter of the commercial interests of the mainly Flemish home-textiles industry and deals with producersof machine made wall to wall carpets and rugs, upholstery and curtaining fabrics, window decoration, mattress ticking, bed/bath/table and kitchen linen,wall coverings, etc.

Organizer: What is typical and significant for carpets and rugs from Belgium ?What make them different from other carpets/rugs?Belgium Pavilion: The Belgian carpet and rug manufac-turers have a very broad range of products in all kinds of techniques (woven, needlefelt, tufted,..), in all kinds

.Turkey produces 2.25mn tons of cotton in 2013: TUIK

Turkey produced around 2.25 million tons of raw cot-ton during last year, as per the data released by the

Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK).

According to the crop production data released by TUIK, during last year, cotton growers in the country sowed cotton on 4.50 million hectares and produced around 2.25 million tons of cotton, which is a decline compared to the cotton produced in the country during 2012.As per the TUIK data, during 2012, Turkish cotton farm-ers harvested cotton on 4.88 million hectares of land, and produced 2.32 million tons of cotton.The TUIK data also states that the area planted for cot-ton in the country has been decreasing over the years. As per the data, cotton was planted on 5.42 million hec-tares in the country during 2011, whereas in 2012 the area sown for cotton declined to 4.88 million hectares and further to 4.50 million hectares in 2013.According to a statement issued by the Turkish Union of Chamber of Agriculture (TZOB), the decrease in cot-ton production in the country is due to the decline in the area planted for cotton, which has been decreasing continuously owing to the challenges faced by produc-ers during the harvesting period.TZOB chairman Shams Bayraktar said that the area planted for cotton in the country has been declining continuously, however, the demand for cotton has been rising, owing to the development in the domestic textile industry.Cotton imports in the country have been increasing due to the rise in demand for raw materials by the textile sector of Turkey, he added.As per TZOB, during 2012, Turkey imported around 613,000 tons of cotton, which is a rise of 442.5 percent, compared to the 113,000 tons of cotton imported in 1995.

of styles (classic, modern, dyed,printed,..), in all kind of structures , in all kind of layouts (rugs, mats,broadloom, custom made, tiles, ..) and in all kinds of materials (wool,viscose, polyamide, polyester, polypropylene,..). Moreover, next to the top quality of their products, the Belgian carpet manufacturers are world famous for their brilliant service at all levels.

Organizer: What are the latest developments and trends in the manufacturing of carpets/rugs in the past year?Belgium Pavilion: We feel some contradiction between more individual, modern, custom made carpets and rugs on the one hand and moreclassical designs avoiding any risk on the other hand. Nevertheless, we see that more and more colour is used.

Organizer: What is a good short explanation of why visitors should visit the Belgian pavilion? What new products will be presented?Belgium Pavilion: In spite of its very limited surface Belgium (in the center of Europewith Brussels as capital) is by far the leading EU-carpet manufacturer and the big-gest carpet exporting country in the whole world. Both for the residential and for the commercial world, the Belgian industry is offering a complete range of appropriate rugs and textile floor coverings. Although most companies are still fully owned by the founding families, they were forced to invest in a strong vertical integration (from yarn production to finish) with ultra-modern and high-tech ma-chinery. It is a highly capital-intensive business, however with respect for tradition and crafts manship.

- Meet Belgian Exhibitors in hall W1, W3 and N5.- Meet Belgian Pavilion in hall W1.

Meet Belgian Exhibitors at DOMOTEX AsiaInterview with Belgium Country Pavilion By DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR

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MENACarpetNews

6 March 2014

Paisley or Paisley pattern is a term in English for a de-sign using the boteh or buta, a droplet-shaped vegeta-ble motif of Persian origin. Such designs became very

popular in the West in the 18th and 19th centuries, following imports of post-Mughal versions of the design from British In-dia, especially in the form of Kashmir shawls, and were then imitated locally. The pattern is sometimes called “Persian pickles” by American traditionalists, especially quilt-makers, or “Welsh pears” in Welsh textiles as far back as 1888.

OriginsResembling a twisted teardrop, the kidney-shaped paisley is of Iranian and Indian origin, but its western name derives from the town of Paisley, in central Scotland, a centre for textiles where paisley designs were produced.

In Iran the design, known as Boteh Jegheh, has been used in Iran since the Sassanid Dynasty (AD 224 to AD 651).Some design scholars believe it is the convergence of a styl-ized floral spray and a cypress tree: a Zoroastrian symbol of life and eternity. A floral motif called Buteh, which originated in the Sassanid Dynasty (200–650 AD) and later in the Sa-favid Dynasty of Persia (from 1501 to 1736), was a major textile pattern in Iran during the Qajar Dynasty and Pahlavi Dynasty. In these periods, the pattern was used to decorate royal regalia, crowns, and court garments, as well as textiles used by the general population. According to Azerbaijani his-torians, the design comes from ancient times of Zoroastrian-ism and is an expression of the essence of that religion. It subsequently became a decorative element widely used in Azerbaijani culture and architecture.

The pattern is still popular in Iran and South and Central Asian countries. It is woven using gold or silver threads on silk or other high quality textiles for gifts, for weddings and special occasions. In Iran and Uzbekistan its use goes be-yond clothing – paintings, jewelry, frescoes, curtains, table-cloths, quilts, carpets, garden landscaping, and pottery also sport the buta design. In Uzbekistan the most frequently found item featuring the design is the traditional doppi head-dress. In Tamil Nadu the manga maalai (mango necklace) with matching earrings is a traditional feature of bharathan-atyam dance. It is a prominent design in Kanchipuram saris. It has some-times been associated with Hinduism.

In other languagesThe modern French words for paisley are boteh and palme, the latter being a reference to the palm tree, which, along with the pine tree and the cypress tree, is one of the tradi-tional botanical motifs thought to have influenced the shape of the paisley element as it is now known. In various languages of India and Pakistan, the design’s name is related to the word for mango:

• In Bengali: Kalka• In Tamil: mankolam, mango pattern.• In Marathi: koyari, mango seed.• In Urdu: carrey, mango seed.• In Punjabi: ambi, from amb, mango.

Paisley Pattern

European introduction Silk sari with mankolam design, made in KanchipuramImports from the East India Company in the first half of the 17th century made paisley and other Indian patterns popular, and the Company was unable to import enough to meet the demand. It was popular in the Baltic states between 1700 and 1800 and was thought to be used as a protective charm to ward off evil demons. However, in modern culture, Western youth have used it as a symbol of rebellion.

Local manufacturers in Marseilles began to mass-pro-duce the patterns via early textile printing processes at 1640. England, circa 1670, and Holland, in 1678, soon fol-lowed. This, in turn, provided Europe’s weavers with more competition than they could bear, and the production and import of printed paisley was forbidden in France by royal decree from 1686 to 1759. However, enforcement near the end of that period was lax, and France had its own printed textile manufacturing industry in place as early at 1746 in some locales. Paisley was not the only design produced by French textile printers; the demand for pais-ley which created the industry there also made possible production of native patterns such as toile de Jouy. In the 19th century European production of paisley in-creased, particularly in the Scottish town from which the pattern takes its modern name. Soldiers returning from the colonies brought home cashmere wool shawls from India, and the East India Company imported more. The design was copied from the costly silk and wool Kashmir shawls and adapted first for use on handlooms, and, after 1820, on Jacquard looms.From roughly 1800 to 1850, the weavers of the town of Paisley in Renfrewshire, Scotland, became the foremost producers of these shawls. Unique additions to their hand-looms and Jacquard looms permitted them to work in five colors when most weavers were producing paisley using only two. The design became known as the Paisley pat-tern. By 1860, Paisley could produce shawls with fifteen colors, which was still only a quarter of the colors in the multicolor paisleys then still being imported from Kashmir.

In addition to the loom-woven fabric, Paisley became a ma-jor site for the manufacture of printed cotton and wool in the 19th century, according to the Scotland’s Paisley Museum and Art Gallery. The paisley pattern was being printed, rath-er than woven, onto other textiles, including cotton squares which were the precursors of the modern bandanna. Being able to purchase printed paisley rather than woven pais-ley brought the price of the costly pattern down and added to its popularity. The key places of manufacture for printed paisley were Britain and the Alsace region of France.

Contemporary stylePaisley was particularly popular during the Summer of Love, heavily identified with psychedelic style and the inter-est in Indian spirituality and culture brought about by the pilgrimage of The Beatles to India in 1968. Also, Fender Guitars made a Pink Paisley version of their Telecaster guitar, by sticking paisley wallpaper onto the guitar bodies. Prince paid tribute to the rock and roll history of paisley when he created the Paisley Park Records recording label and established Paisley Park Studios, both named after his 1985 song “Paisley Park”.At the 2010 Winter Olympics, Azerbaijan’s team sported colorful paisley trousers. A Russian publication noted that “Azerbaijan has no chance of winning at the Winter Olym-pics; however, the country had already left its mark on the games”..Paisley ties

Wood handstamp for Textile printing traditional “paisley” designs, Isfahan, Iran

Persian silk brocade with gold and silver thread (golabetoon),1963.

MENACarpetNews

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MENACarpetNews

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NEWS

MENA Carpet News

www.menacarpetnews.comwww.carpetour.com

EDITORIAL Editorial Borad Alireza Ghaderi (Art and Hand Made Carpet Department)

Behnam Ghasemi (Textile and Machine Made Carpet Department)

Consulting Editors Mario CortopassiEditoral Coordinator Sepastian Pedrosa

ADVERTISING and SALESCommerical Director (China) Zhang HuaSales Manager (USA) Navid HadiasharSales Manager International Alireza Nagahi

GRAPHIC DESIGN Carpetour Art Studio art@carpetour.netGraphic Assistant Hanif Ghaderi

MEDIAMedia Coordinators MENA Carpet News

DISTRIBUTIONCirculation Manager Mahboobeh Ghayedi

CONTACTSDubai Head Office P.O Box: UAE - RAK - 10559 Tel: 00971 7 2041111 00971 509385718 Fax: 00971 7 2041010

Tehran Office info@menacarpetnews.com www.menacarpetnews.com P.O Box:16765 - 465 Tehran–Iran

SPONSORS Kohan Textile Journal The Iranian Hand-Made Carpet Data Bank (carpetour)

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Volume 2 | Issue 7 | March 2014 The Middle East & North Africa Carpet & Textile Newsletter

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Bugaboo to launch rugs and pram accessories made from Australian wool

Bugaboo is a Dutch pram and stroller

producer headquarter in Amsterdam with offic-es around the globe es-tablished in 1999 by de-signer Max Barenbrug and physician Eduard Zanen has launched a range of rugs and pram accessories created exclusively with Aus-tralian wool. The seat liner, mattress cover and blanket will be sold in 2000 stores around the world. These prod-ucts will be part of their permanent collection sold globally. They will fit all four of their models of stroller. Australian fine wool will keep babies riding in luxury in 50 countries.Bugaboo co-founder Eduard Zanen, chief sales offi cer Mieke van der Loo and chief marketing officer Madeleen Klaasen arrived from Holland to launch the new line at Lal Lal Estate, south of Ballarat last week. Lal Lal Estate was selected as the venue for the launch because it is a Wool-mark certifi ed farm. This is a fifth generation farm.It presented the three Bugaboo executives with an opportu-nity to see the production process for Australian wool. The Bugaboo mattress protector is produced using 19.5 mi-cron wool, while the seat cover uses 23-27 micron wool. Australian Wool Innovation had approached Bugaboo in Holland about a potential partnership as Bugaboo is one of most high-quality stroller brands and they do accessories.

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With the commissioning of the 500,000th BD spinning posi-tion and the 1,000,000th Zinser spindle from the plant in Suzhou, Schlafhorst in China can celebrate two out-

standing events at the same time this year. Once again, the com-pany thus impressively confirms its status as the most successful textile machinery manufacturer in China. Schlafhorst has marked the handover of the anniversary spindles to the Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group and the Linqing Huaxing Textile Co. Ltd. at an exclusive ceremony on 24 and 25 February 2014 with other distinguished customers and high-ranking representatives from the world of politics and the economy.

A unique success story Textile machines from Schlafhorst were creating a stirin China half a century ago, laying the foundation for the company’s excellent image in what is now the world’s biggest market for textile machin-ery. Schlafhorst itself has been active as a company in China since 1990. The plant in Suzhou was opened in 2002. Since then Schlafhorst has been producing BD rotor spinning ma-chines there for the global market. Average annual production rose from nearly 8,000 spindles in the first year to such an extent that in around just ten years 500,000 BD spinning positions accrued – a unique success story.

Spurred on by this success, the plant was extended to include the production of the Zinser 360 ring spinning machine. Following this earlier model, Schlafhorst now manufactures the Zinser 71 gen-eration of ring spinning machines for the Chinese and some other markets there. Now the 1,000,000th ring spindle has left the plant. The success hasn’t come about by accident. Schlafhorst under-stands better than any other company how to satisfy the demands of the Chinese market with the German concept of quality, innova-tive technology, efficient local production and a unique cost-benefit ratio. Targeted technology transfer and Schlafhorst’s wholly owned production facility in China make it possible to achieve the mini-mum time to market for technical innovations. Both the BD rotor spinning machines and the Zinser ring spinning machines are tai-lored to the special needs of the markets. Schlafhorst thus suc-ceeds in remaining a step ahead of the competition.

Innovation, performance, motivation and consistent customer ori-entation are integral elements of the excellent corporate culture of Schlafhorst China and another building block in the success story. Highly skilled employees who have shown their loyalty to the com-pany over many years ensure continuity in customer relationships and an unsurpassed quality of service. They inspire their custom-ers by their professionalism, expertise and genuine commitment.

All the company’s activities are geared to one aim alone:to enable customers to react more quickly, flexibly, efficiently and success-fully to the demands of their markets. Schlafhorst has been real-ising this aim for decades with optimal, uncompromising quality, solution-oriented innovations and customer-oriented service. BD innovations delivered from China The BD rotor spinning machine from Schlafhorst is a success story. It has also been manufactured in Suzhou, at Schlafhorst’s Chinese plant, since 2002 and with its innovative technologies the BD has been blazing a trail in the sector right from the outset.

The very first generation of machines produced in Suzhou, the BD 320, attracted huge interest with its fascinating innovations. Not only was it the first semi-automatic rotor spinning machine to at-tain a rotor speed of 100,000 rpm in practice, it even featured Joint Spinning In back in 2002 – a synchronous quick-start system that is unique up to this day and has been developed and improved continuously by Schlafhorst. The current machine generation, the BD 448, thus attains full productivity in less than 10 minutes, a unique productivity advantage. Another pioneering feature was the BURMASTER technology, the piecing technology of the BD machines. This makes piecing easier and has been advanced and improved in many respects. On the BD 320 Schlafhorst also up-graded the machine operating concept, setting new standards in user friendliness thanks to visualisation and simple user menus. Intelligent control of the motor speeds using frequency inverters also significantly increased process reliability.

The BD 330, introduced in 2005, was the first machine with elec-tronically controlled sliver intake – an innovation that has since become state of the art at Schlafhorst. Likewise EVA (Electronic Vacuum Adjustment), the electronic suction system for the spin-ning vacuum, a feature with which the BD 330 was years ahead of the competition. Another factor crucial to the success of the BD ro-tor spinning machines in the global market was the option of using the new European high-end yarn clearer Corolab on the machine. In 2005, Schlafhorst China also launched the BD 350 Fancyna-tion, a semi-automatic rotor spinning machine with fully integrated software for the production of fancy yarns.

The BD 380 followed in 2008, beginning the next chapter in the unique success story of Schlafhorst China. Longer than its prede-

cessor and designed for even higher rotor speeds of 120,000 rpm, this machine generation was already breaking new ground in terms of productivity some years ago. The new NSB 38 spinbox guaranteed optimum fibre guidance and trash separation, high spinning stability and consistently good yarn values for all yarn counts and raw materials.

The machine length was increased still further a year later on the BD 416. With this machine it was possible to spin even coarse yarns of outstanding quality. The latest generation of machines, which came onto the mar-ket in 2012, is the BD 448. It has created a stir with its reduced operator requirements, higher flexibility, reproducible pack-ages and considerable energy savings compared with earlier BD generations. The success story is firmly set to continue; the Schlafhorst engineers are already working on future machine generations that will deliver more surprising innovations.

The Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group The 500,000th BD spindle was handed over to Mr Wan Qi-usheng, the president of the Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group, by Cem Yalcin, the president ofsales of Schlafhorst, at a special ceremony on 25.2.2014. The company was founded in 1988 and is now one of the 500 biggest private compa-nies in China. It is in the top 20 companies in the Chinese textile industry. The Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group manufactures around 12,000 tonnes of cotton yarn annually in counts ranging from Ne 12 to Ne 50. 80% of the yarns are exported, making the group one of the leading export firms in the textile industry. The company’s production machinery comprises 44 BD 448 rotor spinning machines from Schlaf-horst with a total of 19,712 spinning positions. Features of the Schlafhorst machines that are especially appreciated by the vertically integrated company are their high level ofpro-ductivity, easy operation and optimal link-up with downstream processing stages in the company’s own weaving mill. Pro-ductivity across all stages of the textile production process has been increased significantly thanks to the BD 448. For the customers of the Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group, the quality of the yarns and packages in downstream processing is the key criterion. The company is able to satisfy the require-ments of even the mostdemanding customers in the long term with the help of machines from Schlafhorst China.

Excellent quality, outstanding economy and maximum cost ef-ficiency were not the only reasons why the group opted for Schlafhorst rotor spinning machines, however. The textile en-terprise knows how rapidly market conditions can change in the industry. “In the next few years we will increase the level of automation further to remain competitive in the face of rising labour costs. Schlafhorst leads the way when it comes spe-cifically to automation. We expect, therefore, that Schlafhorst will react quickly to the demands of the market with innova-tive automation solutions,” says Mr Wan, the Chairman of the Shandong Linqing Sanhe Textile Group. “We are convinced that we will retain our productive edge with Schlafhorst and ensure our success in the markets of the future.”

Schlafhorst, the number 1 in China

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MENACarpetNews

9March 2014

THIS FAIR IS ORGANIZED WITH THE PERMISSION OF THE UNION OF CHAMBERS AND COMMODITY EXCHANGES OF TURKEY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAW NUMBER 5174.

Organizer Supporter

Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce

YOU ARE INVITED...

Middle East Exhibition Center

DOMOTEX GAZIANTEP MACHINE MADE CARPET FAIR

26-29 MAY 2014Middle East Exhibition Center/ Gaziantep-Turkey

domotexgaziantep.com

Domotex Gaziantep 2014 - TurkeyFirst-ever DOMOTEX to be staged by Deutsche Messe

Hannover Fairs Turkey Fuarcılık A.Ş. – the Turkish subsidiary of Deutsche Messe based in Hannover, Germany – is launching a new

trade fair in Turkey dedicated to machine-made car-pets. The new show will be held in Gaziantep from 26 to 29 May 2014 as the DOMOTEX Gaziantep Machine-Made Carpet Fair, in affiliation with the DOMOTEX parent event held annually in Hannover. Gaziantep and the Gaziantep Ortadoğu Fair Center venue were chosen due to the city’s role as a major Near East exportation hub for machine-made carpets. Exhibitors will have the opportunity to showcase their products on approximately 29,000 square meters of gross floor space.Alexander Kühnel, General Manager of Hannover Fairs Turkey, pointed out that Gaziantep serves as a major carpet trading hub with a long tradition and a prime location thanks to its close proximity to the Arab world. He added that:“Gaziantep has become a major center for the pro-duction and global distribution of machine-made car-pets. We at the Hannover Fairs Turkey team are very pleased to stage the DOMOTEX Gaziantep Machine-Made Carpet Fair at the heart of the Turkish carpet scene. We constantly strive to identify the needs and expectations of exhibitors and visitors, also by means of market research conducted together with related associations and partners. As a result of these efforts, we decided to bring the machine-made carpet sec-tor together this year at the Gaziantep Ortadoğu Fair Center, and we believe that this will lead to a very sat-isfactory outcome for all concerned. The DOMOTEX Gaziantep Machine-Made Carpet Fair is being organ-ized in collaboration with the Gaziantep Chamber of Commerce.”

The DOMOTEX Gaziantep Machine-Made Carpet Fair gives exhibiting firms the perfect opportunity to establish or further develop business relations with Turkey and the Middle East. The event aims to boost the sector’s trade volume by putting all the right buy-ers in touch with all the right sellers – all at one con-venient time and place.The 2014 fair will also feature a special program tar-geting Anatolian Delegations, thus attracting a select group of sector professionals from various regions of Turkey. For even greater attendance, the fair is be-ing promoted in Turkey and the Middle East in close cooperation with international TV broadcasters and radio channels, newspapers, websites and other relevant media. As a subsidiary of Deutsche Messe, Hannover Fairs Turkey Fuarcılık A.Ş. is also promot-ing the fair via Deutsche Messe’s international rep-resentatives, and sending invitations to major buyers and procurement agencies in the Middle East.DOMOTEX Gaziantep 2014 is focused on machine-made carpets from the region. As of 2015, the show will be staged as DOMOTEX Turkey, in a September/October timeslot. The new DOMOTEX Turkey will then cover the sum total of everything on display so far at DOMOTEX Middle East and DOMOTEX Gazi-antep. In this way, Turkey will boast an outstanding international showcase for carpets, floor coverings and related goods and services.

About DOMOTEX worldwide:Deutsche Messe Group of companies is the organizer of four DOMOTEX events worldwide.DOMOTEX Gaziantep Machine-Made Carpet Fair (May 26–29, 2014 in Gaziantep) serving the Turkish and Middle Eastern markets. Organized by Hannover Fairs Turkey Fuarcılık A.Ş., a subsidiary of Deutsche Messe.DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR, (March 25–27, 2014 in Shanghai). The largest international flooring show in the Asia-Pacific region. The show is jointly organ-ized by VNU Exhibitions Asia, Build Your Dream and Hannover Milano Fairs Shanghai, a subsidiary of Deutsche Messe.

DOMOTEX Russia, (April 1–3, 2014 in Mos-cow). Features exhibitors from Russia and abroad, and trade visitors from all Russian-speaking countries. The show is organized by Deutsche Messe RUS, a subsidiary of Deutsche Messe.DOMOTEX in Hannover, Germany, (January 17–20, 2015) is the world’s leading trade fair for carpets and floorings. The show is organ-ized by Deutsche Messe.For detailed information:Hannover Fairs Turkey Fuarcılık A.Ş.

For detailed information: Hannover Fairs Turkey Fuarcılık A.Ş.İnci Polat Tel.: +90 212 334 69 00 E-mail: inci.polat@hf-turkey.com Web: http://www.domotexgaziantep.com

MENACarpetNews

10 March 2014

MENACarpetNews

11March 2014

During the 17th century, the Persian ar-istocracy wore their social status on their sleeves. They were anything but

timid about flaunting their rank through the use of rich textiles. They regaled themselves and their horses with these luxurious woven accoutrements and spread them unabashedly on the walls, floors and furniture of their mag-nificent palaces, even using them to decorate their coffins. In many cases, the textiles were given to royals as tribute.

Persia’s shimmering woven silk textiles, often inspired by poems and miniature paintings, exuded a refinement that is a great source of inspiration for design today a sometimes vivid, sometimes pale palette, urbane and understated composition, with cosmopolitan touches imported by way of the merchants of Venice. These gracious courtly works, with their origins based upon naturalistic images of flora and fauna, established the sophisticated design vocabulary of the Safavid Empire in its sumptuous textiles as well as its majestic Per-sian carpets. They are quite a contrast to the geometric abstractions found in a wide range of colorful tribal designs one associates with Persian textiles and rugs woven in the outlying villages.

The history of brocaded silk weaving dates back to the time before the Sassanid dynasty. At that time this handicraft was exported to Europe and Rome. After the Sassanid pe-riod, due to the fact that the use of gold was prohibited for men, so weaving of this kind of cloth was almost stopped. During the Mogul era, the textile industry was almost forgotten in Iran, and the masters, for fear of their lives, lived in hiding. The textile industry was revived during the Safavid period, and during the reign of Shah Abbas, brocade artists were asked to migrate to Isfahan, and start working in the royal workshops.

During the period between the 11th and 13th lunar hijira centuries, weaving of brocaded silk declined; and during the Qajar era and the past regime, brocaded silk and velvet were used in formal dresses, upholstery of furniture and curtains of courts. At the present period, some masters such as Mahmoud Farshchian, have put forward novel designs by increasing

or decreasing some ornamental elements. Brocades are woven by means of old tools, and its raw materials are silk and gold and silver lace (braid) and are dyed by means of natural stuffs and materials.

In ancient times, ornament making workshops produced valuable textiles for home consump-tion as well as for exports. Some samples of silk materials from the beginning of the Islamic period and woven in Sassanid style are avail-able now and can be found in private collec-tions and in European churches. For example, the design of the face of Jesus Christ is found in Saint Victoria Church, and the piece of cloth on which the design of elephant is woven, is preserved in “Sceance” Cathedral.

According to historical narrations, two thou-sand years ago some pieces of cloth were made with gold and silver laces used in their design and fabric. As far as proportionality and coordination of designs and color are con-cerned, the designs of the Sassanid cloth at-tained the utmost degree of artistic perfection. The Sassanid designs are mostly birds, ani-mals, hunting ground and horsemen as well as some abstract designs. After the Sassanid period, on account of the fact that men were forbidden to use gold, so, brocades were not made for a relatively long time until the Seljuqi period. During the Islamic period, the brocade and gold designs of animals and birds such as lions, phoenix and eagles made on the fabric of cloth were quite glorious, demonstrating the progress of textile technique during the Selju-qi period. Among the decorative elements of cloth weaving during this period, one could mention the designs of tulips and water lily.

During the succeeding periods, new designs were initiated by designers and textile weav-ers, which laid the foundation for an independ-ent, genuine and creditable identity of textile of the Safavid period. But before that date that is during the Mogul period the textile was forgot-ten in Iran for many years, and brocade mak-ers lived in hiding for a long time out of fear of their lives.

The Golden Period for Textiles begins from the Safavid Era. The silken Safavid pieces of cloth are of three

kinds:

1 - Simple fine silk; 2 - Brocade or gold silk; 3 - Silken velvet.

Three pieces of cloth were used for dresses of aristocrats, commanders, kings and cour-tiers. They were decorated by designs of human beings, animals, birds, flowers and plants as well as scenes of war and feasts. During the period of Shah Abbas, the second, valuable brocade and golden velvet pieces of cloth continued to be woven skillfully and with a great care, which bore the name of the weaver, called “Ghias”. There are two small pieces of dated silk cloth from the Shah Abbas era in Metropolitan museum. The name of the weaver, Shah Hossein, and the date 1008 lu-nar hijira year are inscribed on it. The famous weavers of this era were: Ghias, Abdullah, Bin Mohammad, Moezeddin, Ibne Ghias and Issa Abbasi.

During the Shah Abbas era, some royal work-shops were established and brocade artists were asked to migrate to Isfahan and revive this ancient art. Their cooperation showed that the community of brocade makers could produce and market valuable pieces of work. During this period, in addition to Isfahan, Yazd and Kashan were centers of brocade artists in Iran. During the period between 11th and 13th hijira centuries, production of brocade and silk cloth was reduced and was replaced by calico and various kinds of needle lace. Brocades and gold cloth were used mostly by dignitar-ies and commanders, whereas other kinds of decorative pieces of cloth, such as velvet and satin were worn by men and women. Brocades and golden velvet, in their histori-cal course, attracted the attention of brocade artists during the Qajar period, and this art was retained, more or less, from one genera-tion to another; and in the past regime too, it was used as decorative clothes, upholstery of court’s furniture, ceremonial dresses as well as curtains of general or special halls.Making of Silk in Nature

In Iran, during the spring month of Ardibehest

(late April), the process of spinning silk thread starts with silkworm breeders buying boxes of eggs of the silk moth, Bombyx mori (Latin for ‘silkworm of the mulberry tree’). They place the eggs in a warm place or in an incubator to help speed the hatching of the eggs, a process that takes about ten days. The eggs will hatch into larvae called silkworms.

At the same time, mulberry trees will have grown new leaves which silkworm breeders buy to feed their silkworm larvae. in Iran, mul-berry trees grow in Gilan, Mazandaran, Kho-rasan, Eastern Azarbaijan, Isfahan, Yazd and Kerman. Once the larvae hatch they eat the leaves of the mulberry continuously.

In Yazd, the town of Taft situated some 18 km southwest of Yazd city is a major silkworm breeding centre.

After the larvae (the silkworm) have moulted four times, that is when they are in the fifth in-star, they loose their appetite and are ready to transform themselves into moths. To protect themselves while they are in a vulnerable al-most motionless transformational pupa state, they enclose themselves in a protective co-coon enclosure. The cocoon is made out of silk thread, a continuous natural protein filament that they produce in their salivary glands and exude to form the filament.

The larvae’s cocoon is built up from about 300 to 900 metres (1,000 to 3,000 feet) of silk fila-ment. The filament is fine, lustrous, and about 10 micrometers (1/2,500th of an inch) in diam-eter. Each cocoon consists of about a kilome-tre of silk filament, and about 2,000 to 3,000 cocoons are required to make a pound of silk.

For the making of commercial silk thread, the cocoon’s filament is unravelled. The filament from several cocoons are then passed over a pulley, wound together and spun into a thread. Two or three threads are in turn spun together to build a yarn and several strands of yarn can be spun further spun together to make a nett thread. Along the way, the yarn or thread is dyed if needed after which it is ready for weav-ing.

Persian Silk Textile History:

“Woven from the Soul, Spun from the Heart”

.

MENACarpetNews

12 March 2014

The textiles industry in Norwich By: Fiona Strodder

This text is a general introduction to the history of the Norwich Shawls industry and is adapted from the text to the ‘Style

and Splendour’ exhibition, Norwich Castle Mu-seum, 1995, written.

Norwich was an important centre of textile man-ufacture from medieval times, with its golden age in the mid-18th century. At that time color-ful worsted stuffs were popular in Britain and across the world. When these fabrics became less popular in the 19th century, local weavers turned to making patterned shawls. Textile pro-duction had dominated the city’s economy and made Norwich prosperous. The textile trade be-gan to decline in the late 18th century. Foreign wars, trouble at home, the rapid expansion of the cotton industry and increased mechaniza-tion in other parts of the country were all impor-tant factors.Fortunately, new businesses were developed which brought new life to the textile trade in the 19th century. The manufacture of Norwich shawls was one of the most important of these, and it helped to sustain Norwich’s textile busi-ness into the late 19th century. The origins of the shawlShawls were first widely produced in the Kash-mir, India. They were imported into Britain in the late 18th century, and were very expen-sive. Before long, British weavers tried to make shawls of their own in wool to compete with imports from Kashmir The English word ‘shawl’ comes from the Persian ‘shal’, meaning a ‘type of woven fabric’. The finest shawls were made in Kashmir using the soft fleece of the moun-tain goat. They were extremely expensive, and were worn mainly by noblemen, draped over the left shoulder and the head.

Kashmir ShawlsKashmir shawls were woven on hand looms us-ing tapestry twill weave. The weft (horizontal) threads pass over two or three warp (vertical) threads at a time, giving a distinctive diagonal line. Until the end of the 18th century these long rectangular shawls had a decorative border at each end. Narrow vertical borders, woven sep-arately, were stitched down the sides. Each col-our was put in with a separate shuttle, and the shawl could sometimes take up to 18 months to weave. It was no wonder they were so pre-cious and expensive. Many of the design ideas originated in Persia, and the decorative motif most used on the end borders was a Persian/Indian motif known as a ‘buta’ or ‘boteh’. This was first styled as a graceful flower, complete with roots, but the motif changed gradually into a more recognisable cone’ or ‘pine’ shape.

The shawl comes to BritainThe British were quick to become interested in shawls as a fashion garment. During the last quarter of the 18th century, they began to be im-ported into England. Kashmir shawls were ide-ally suited to draping over fashionable gowns of the time. Various textile centres also tried to produce a woollen shawl which could compete with the quality of the Kashmir ones. Norwich was at the forefront of this development.

Early years of the Norwich shawl industry

Alderman John Harvey is credited with the intro-duction of shawl manufacture in Norwich in the 1780s. The city led the way in the race to make a shawl as soft and fine as imported Kashmir ones. Sometimes a combination of wool and silk was used. There were also experiments in blending Spanish and Norfolk wools, in import-ing mountain goat fleece, and even at naturalis-ing the Kashmir goat in Britain. The design on the very early shawls was often embroidered on rather than woven in. This was generally a quicker and so cheaper method of decoration, especially as children could be employed to do this work.

Norwich shawls with woven designs, produced in the early years of the 19th century, were highly valued as a warm and colourful comple-ment to the light cotton dresses of the time. These shawls were either like wide scarves, with plain centres and pine decorated borders, or they were about one yard square, with wo-ven borders and fringes sewn on all round. Wo-ven borders, either narrow of wider, are com-monly found.

The Indian design of a pine or cone was used by Norwich shawl makers to great advantage: such as the use of pines in formal rows would form the end borders of the long shawl, or cone shaped sprays of exotic flowers to cover the central part of a square or rectangular shawl. Patterns were always developing, however, and each year brought new variations.

Workers in the shawl industryBy 1800 the shawl trade was well established and there were some 20 shawl manufacturers named in local directories The industry provided employment for a large number of men, women and children .In the first half of the century most weavers worked from their own homes in par-ishes near the river Wensum.

Textiles had traditionally suffered from periods of boom and slump and the shawl trade was no

exception, it saw a major decline in the second and third decades of the century, mainly due to competition from other parts of the country. By 1826 there were complaints that only one third of the looms in the city were working, wages had fallen and substantial numbers of weavers were destitute. Attempts by the larger manufac-turers to introduce new ideas and machinery was strongly resisted in the fear that this could only worsen things for the workforce. Persis-tence won the day. The 1830s saw a gradual improvement in the trade and the production of particularly beautiful shawls. Gradually those manufacturers who survived won a name for the quality and novelty of their shawl designs. The best fillover designs produced on the draw looms sold at between 12 and 50 guineas. Norwich manufacturers competed at the inter-national trade exhibitions and won the patron-age of royalty. Shawls were produced in great variety, size and shape to appeal to all markets, although care was taken to preserve the city’s reputation for quality.

Fillover shawl stylesFillover shawls were the name given to Norwich shawls woven on the draw loom in the early part of the century. The draw loom allowed more elaborate patterns to be woven than the ordinary hand loom. Fillover shawls were wo-ven face down. The weft (horizontal) threads not needed for the pattern were allowed to float free on the back of the fabric. When the shawl was finished, these floating threads were trimmed off to reduce the weight of the shawl. This left an uneven velvety texture on the back. By contrast, Kashmir shawls had their wefts woven in on the back.

The shawls of the 1830s were typically around 1.5m square with fringes sewn on or knotted on all round or else or large rectangles, with

fringes made from the warp (vertical) threads at two ends. They featured wool ‘fillover’ designs of small blue and red flowers on a plain cream ground. Those of the 1840s had a different feel, with larger flowers in reds, pinks, yellows and greens, either in stripes or in mirror patterns, on a cream, black or red wool and silk ground. The manufacturers Towler and Campin produced the finest quality examples at this time. Rival trades: Norwich, Edinburgh and Paisley

The pine motif was in highly fashionable and marketable. Other centres of textiles manufac-ture, most notably Paisley and Edinburgh had developed their own successful variants of the shawl. Since style and technologies were very similar, there was extensive rivalry and numer-ous examples of piracy of design. The Norwich take on this period was that quality Norwich items were imitated in Scotland more cheaply, with disastrous effects on the price for that par-ticular design. In practice however, there were areas of collaboration as well as competition, and the excellent Norwich dyeing technology was often employed by the Scots. The use of the pine motif is sometimes seen as being syn-onymous with the Paisley Shawl. The irony of the fact that Norwich shawls are frequently de-scribed as ‘Paisley’ is not lost locally!

From 1842 it was possible to protect patterns or designs by registering them at the Public Records Office. Between 1842 and 1849, 315 designs for printed and woven shawls were registered by seven Norwich manufacturers. Photographic copies of these designs, held at Carrow House have enabled us to identify and date several of the shawls in the museum’s col-lection. Sometimes only a small part of the de-sign has been used; in some cases elements from two or three registered designs have been combined in one shawl..

Embroidered shawl border

Pine motif, Carrow House Early styles and designs

Female power loom weavers at Willett and Nephew, Bridewell Museum

Registered design for Norwich shawl

MENACarpetNews

13March 2014

Retail sales in China amounted to nearly $2.1 trillion in 2010, nearly one half of the US retail market.

- China is the second largest luxury market in the world.

- Chinese consumption will reach $16 trillion by the end of this decade making China the largest consumer market in the world.

- Between 1.6 billion and 1.9 billion square meters of new floor space will be needed each year between now and 2025 to ac-commodate China’s urban migration. This yearly increase is the size of the entire US market.

- US exports of floor covering to China increased by 36.8% in the first eight months of 2011.

- Floor covering is viewed as a building material, not as a decora-tion in China.

- Most floor covering is retailed and installed by manufacturers.

- China’s floor covering market in 2011 was estimated at 42 bil-lion square feet.

The growing opportunity in China

in china New cities housing millions of people now stand over what was farm land only a few years ago. While much of the world suffers economic paralysis, China con-tinues its economic climb and will soon become the world’s larg-est economy. The only question is when it will happen, not if. The USA has been slow to recover from the housing downturn.The American floor covering industry has contracted 30% over the last three years while China’s flooring industry is growing at the rate of 15%per year.

Catalina Reports estimates that China’s floor covering market was 42 billion square feet in 2011, more than twice the size of the US market which is estimated At 17.6 billion square feet. The opportunity and future need for floor covering is so large it’s staggering,even difficult to calculate. While millions of Chinese remain poor, hundreds of millions will see their disposable incomes grow dramatically in the next few years. The government has targeted increased consumerism and development of Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities in the Western and Central regions as two major goals to be accomplished in the 12th Five Year Plan (2011- 2015).

Economic growth and increased consumption will require im-proved logistics to get products to the new consumers. China is focused on addressing the weaknesses in the existing logistics and distribution system to enable the country to meet the chal-lenges it has set out for itself in the current Five Year Plan.

The new market and spending power due to China’s rising con-sumerism holds enormous potential for manufacturers around the world but many do not know how to enter the market or even where to begin an investigation. There are many international companies already operating inside China. China has grown to be General Motors’ largest market and yet other foreign compa-nies have failed. Hard lessons were learned by Best Buy and B&Q which have closed all of their stores in China. It gives pause to those considering this foreign market. Why do some fail and others prosper?

Some fail because they simply don’t understand the Chinese market, others because they have an inappropriate business model, still others fail to navigate the many unique hurdles the Chinese market offers, everything from government regulation to poor logistics. Entering the Chinese market will be challenging and will require overcoming unanticipated difficulties. The best way to mitigate these difficulties is to study and understand the market dynamics that are currently in place and a through a

willingness to listen, learn and change along the journey toward success. This report is the most definitive overview of the Chi-nese floor covering industry to date. The questions we set out to answer in this year’s research project are :

I s there enough consumerism growth in China’s residential mar-ket to create a viable opportunity for new flooring companies? How do Chinese consumers buy flooring? What is the status of the country’s logistics channel and how does product get to market? What is the best way to learn about the Chinese culture, market and industry players? While this paper does not seek to provide definitive answers for any individual’s approach to the Chinese market, it does provide an authoritative view of critical factors companies must consider when assessing whether and how to participate in the world’s fastest growing economy.

China’s floor covering marketAccording to Stuart Hirschhorn, president of the Catalina Re-ports, the Chinese domestic floor covering market dwarfed the US market in 2011with and estimated 42 billion square feet of flooring sold vs. the US which is estimated to have been 17.6 billion square feet. Consumption in the US is 56 square feet com-pared to 32 square feet in China.Another major difference in the markets is the average price per square foot of flooring sold. The high percentage of low-cost ce-ramic tile that makes up the preponderance of the Chinese mar-ket drives the overall average cost of flooring in China down to $0.60 a square foot compared to $1.00 in the US.

Wood flooring’s market share has been increasing by about 7% yearly since 2008 and is desired by new home owners. Carpet is largely used in the commercial hospitality market. Resilient floor-ing, while making up only 5% of the market still represents over 2 billion square feet. One major Chinese resilient manufacturer stated that China can-not keep up with the growing demand for resilient flooring. A major driver in the growth of the Chinese flooring market is its continued urbanization and resulting construction boom..

China Briefing: The Growing OpportunityA look at China’s economy, consumer market, floor covering demand and logistics channels for the floor covering industry

Researched and Prepared by : Jim Gould, President - Floor Covering Institute

MENACarpetNews

14 March 2014

General survey of Iran carpet weaving industriessurvey of Iranian carpet weaving factories establishment process in past four decades

By: Ehsan Nasaj - Tachnikanpars Company

Part 1: History of first Iranian carpet weav-ing factory establishment Machine Made Carpet production in Iran

dates back to the 1971, in that time the BEH-SHAHR Industrial Group seeks a specialized complex unit carpet weaving factory projects in KASHAN.For this purpose prior to it, in KASHAN silk & velvet fabric factory, that was active in produc-tion of velvet and silk fabrics, attempted ex-perimental production of carpet, and adding it to their products. Therefore, in 1350, the first Iranian machine made carpet was produced by weaving jacquard velvet machines in this fac-tory. The carpet released to the market with rel-atively short pile and shiny synthetic fibers and light weight. Before that there was no machine made carpet production in Iran and no machine made carpet import to Iran, It was not custom-ary to use carpets in Iran and most people used handmade carpet and rug and glim.At the same time, a group of businessmen entered machine made carpets to the Iranian market from Belgium. And Iranian tastes were familiar with the phenomenon machine made carpets. Becouse the machine made carpets was fairly well accepted by the people. Then BEHSHAHR Industrial Group Investors started to implement their projects.thus the first Iranian carpet weaving factory with capacity of 12 mil-lions square meters per year was launched in KASHAN in 1974. This plant received estab-lishment license with the name of KASHAN RA-VAND Industry Carpet Company. This plant is located at kilometer 12 of Qom and KASHAN road.This Complete Production Carpet complex was the largest and most modern factory with an area of more than one hundred hectares with a newest and most modern organization in terms of Management & Engineering, Procurement & Financial Management, Sales & Administration, Services & Welfare.

The plant organization was respectively con-sisted of Management and Industrial Engi-neering (production, quality control, laboratory equipped, warehouse system), engineering services (utilities ,electricity, power plant, boiler installations, repair workshop and maintenance of buildings) and procurement , sales , finan-cial services (Finance and Trade sales Rep-resentatives) public utilities (residential, hotel, transport, restaurant, swimming pool, gardens and land). All management and engineering personnel’s were selected through the best experts educat-ed through the most elite universities.From the beginning, the founders of the com-pany were considered creation of Industrial En-gineering Department in this factory. All matters related to production and quality control would be supervised in this section.this was done by quality control laboratories equipped and a set of the standards and continues inspection and monitoring the various stages of production op-erations in plant. Carpet production operations begin entering raw materials as different fibers into production processes and then converting to yarn and then dyeing and preparing yarn for weaving, weaving ,completing. All this op-erations have been made in several equipped carding ,spinning ,dyeing, arrangements, weav-ing, finishing, sizing, packing halls and rooms.This plant achieved to significant success in producing and exporting and a worldwide repu-tation in a short time, in the beginning of start up the factory, workers for production lines were provided from Asian countries, particularly female workers.

Part 2: statistical results of Iranian carpet weaving factories establishment process in past four decades

Since Carpet production in Iran dates back to 40 years ago, this study included all activated carpet factories which have operating license from Iran Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade, and have been built from the beginning of car-pet production in Iran since 1974, It is clear that during this period several units have been launched or established, and then their license have been revoked which has not been consid-ered in the statistics study. And then summa-rized results are presented in Tables 1 and 2. In this part we will pay only to Statistical obtained results, and statistical analysis will be present-ed in the next part.By examining the specifications of all current and activists carpet production units have op-erating license from the Ministry of industry and trade and mine in the nationwide obtained es-tablishment Specifications and production ca-pacity of carpet factories in past four decades table.(table-1) .

Review of statistical results:By reviewing table1,units had been established during the year 1974 to the present can be sorted in the six categories. this classification presented in table2 ,as the six period of Estab-lishment Specifications carpet factories in past four decades table.

First Period: During this 5 years period be-tween 1974 till 1978, the table shows progress in construction of new units, 2 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 0.4 carpet factories, each with average nomi-nal production capacity of 1200,000 square meters. In other words, it have been added the average annual nominal production capacity of 480000 sq. m to the nominal capacity produc-tion of country. At the end of this period, the total nominal production capacity of machine made carpets of the country was 2400000 square meters.

second Period: During this 8 years period between 1979 till 1986, the table shows a low progress in construction of new units compared to the previous period, 3 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 0.4 carpet factories, each with average nominal production capacity of 387,000 square me-ters. In other words, it have been added the average annual nominal production capacity of 155000 sqm to the nominal capacity production of country. At the end of this period, 1239000 square meters was added to the total nominal of machine made carpets production capacity of the country, which shows low growth.

Third Period: During this 7 years period be-tween 1987 till 1993, the table shows a relative increase in construction of new units compared to the previous period, 13 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 1.85 carpet factories, each with average nominal production capacity of 377,000 square meters. In other words, it have been added the average nominal production capacity of 697000 sqm to the nominal capacity production of country. At the end of this period, 4878000 square meters machine made carpets was added to the total nominal production capacity of the country, which shows relative growth.

Fourth Period: During this 11 years period between 1994 till 2004, the table shows a sig-nificant increase in construction of new units compared to the previous period, 434 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 40 carpet factories, each with average

nominal production capacity of 85,000 square meters. In other words, it have been added the average annual nominal production capac-ity of 3412000 square meters of carpet to the nominal capacity production of country during this period.At the end of this period, 37531000 square meters machine made carpets was added to the total nominal production capacity of the country, which shows significant growth.

Fifth Period: During this 7 years period be-tween 2005 till 2011, the table shows a more significant increase in construction of new units compared to the previous period, 518 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 74 carpet factories, each with average nominal production capacity of 150000 square meters. In other words, it have been added the average annual nominal production capacity of 11149000 square meters of carpet to the ca-pacity production of country during this period. At the end of this period, 78043000 square me-ters machine made carpets was added to the total nominal production capacity of the country, which shows more significant growth.

Sixth period: During this 1.5 years period be-tween 2012 till 2013, the table shows a more significant decrease in construction of new units compared to the previous period, 15 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. During this period, were added the average annual 10 carpet factories, each with average nominal production capacity of 229000 square meters. In other words, it have been added the average annual nominal production capacity of 2290000 square meters of carpet to the capac-ity production of country during this period. At the end of this period, 3436000 square meters machine made carpets was added to the total nominal production capacity of the country.

Part 3: statistical analysis the results of Ira-nian carpet weaving factories establishment process in past four decades In the second part of the paper, the statistical results were presented in Tables 1 and 2, iden-tified a six period process for the construction of Iranian carpet factories during four decades. Let us now analyze Tables 1 and 2 according to our information and experiences and records from past.

First period: The range between the years 1974 to 1978 can be seen as the beginning of construction of carpet factories.During this pe-riod a small number of production units have been launched but relatively large and compre-hensive units with a capacity of over one mil-lion to 12 million square meters have been built even. The main features of these units are good quality and lower price productions.This facto-ries in their period have been, dynamic and developing and employment and entrepreneur. These units also have transferred technical knowledge to the Iranian carpet industry effec-tively. Very few of these companies are active currently, even with a very low capacity.

Second period: The range between the years 1979 to 1986 can be named as the revolution and war period. During this period a small num-ber of production units have been launched. 3 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active. Units founded in this period have aver-age nominal production capacity of 377,000 square meters per unit of factory. In the final years of this period, about year 1979 a team of engineers and technical and experienced ex-perts in KASHAN carpet industry began mak-ing carpet weaving machines by benchmarking of similar machinery made by foreign ,which was the beginning of change in the carpet in-dustry in IRAN.

MENACarpetNews

15March 2014

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Third period: The range between the years 1987 to 1993 can be named as establishment carpet factories with Iranian carpet weaving ma-chines period. In beginning years of this period benchmarking team succeeded in manufac-turing of first Iranian carpet weaving machine. First Iranian carpet Shuttle weaving machine with relative performance was made by the MILAD Company. This machine was sold to an investor interested in the production of machine made carpet. Observing the success of this new venture company entered other investors to the construction of carpet factories with Ira-nian carpet machineries.

This period coincides with the end of the Iran-Iraq war, and the government began recon-struction and opened more space to starting a business. Groups of professionals involved in textile and carpet industry and some factory owners were active in other fields of textile car-pet until that time, began creating new carpet weaving units. And boomed embracing locally manufactured Shuttle carpet machines gradu-

ally. The new shuttle machines manufacturer companies were established to gain new mar-ket share. Competition for manufacturing carpet weaving machines was a new phase.Because of expansion of local carpet machinery manu-facturers and carpet machines were provided with competitive and good price establishment of carpet weaving companies also increased. Units constructed in this period were in type of small and medium industries and each of the units had the average annual nominal capac-ity of approximately 377,000 square meters.13 numbers of units which were built in this period are currently active.

Fourth period: The range between the years 1994 to 2004 can be named as mutational and sustained growth of very small carpet weaving companies. A significant increase in construction of new units compared to the previous period. Several carpet factories in Is-fahan and Mashhad, KASHAN and Yazd and MAZANDARAN and others were set up around the country. This trend continued over the dec-

ade. In later newer units were started with the pur-chase of second-hand machines carpet which had recently been allowed by government. These second hand carpet machines have had more new technol-ogy compared with shuttle technology. 434 Noun’s of units built in this period are currently active.

With moving experienced professionals personnel from large national companies to private the new plants, new competition in carpet manufacturing units in the private sector was created. From the middle of this period began the carpet evolution in the private sector and grew tendency to buy more advanced models carpet weaving machines from Belgium and Germany with more speed production and more color carpet. While very few exploitation license issued in the previous period, but the growth rate of factory establishment accelerated suddenly from 1988. Gradually, more units received exploi-tation license. Due to growing demand the carpet industry saw bright future ahead. Therefore, large investments were made in Iran and most of this in-vestment has been in KASHAN and ARANBIDGOL. This volume of industrial investment provides em-ployment for thousands of local residents.

In this period, we see jumping growth in number of established carpet factories and was added the an-nual average of 40 plants to existing plants of coun-try. Units constructed in this period were in type of very small industries and each of the units had the average annual nominal capacity of approximately 85,000 square meters. 434 numbers of units which were built in this period are currently active.

But the lack of local carpet machines manufacturer of attention to the promotion and development the quality and quantity and update of their products, Lack of competitiveness with foreign manufactur-ers, tendency of carpet weaving machines buyers to purchase foreign modern machines, and some other factors during this period, particularly in the late, It caused a sharp reduction in demand faced by the local manufacturers, so they have shut down or been in decline at now.

Fifth period: The range between the years 2005 to 2011 can be named as mutational and sustained growth and renewal and modernization of small

carpet weaving companies. A significant increase in construction of new units compared to the previous period. The construction of the new units shows in-crease over the period before.In this period, we see jumping growth in number of established carpet factories and was added the annual average of 74 plants to existing plants of country. This period also continued to grow with a high-er jump in production capacity and with a higher number of units under construction and established carpet factories and was added the annual average of 74 plants to existing plants of country which shows near double growth compared to the pe-riod before.

Units constructed in this period were in type of small industries and each of the units had the average annual nominal ca-pacity of approximately 150,000 square meters which shows double growth com-pared to the period before. 518 numbers of units which were built in this period are currently active which shows 20% over compared to the period before. During this period the average annual nominal production capacity of established units is 11149000 square meters which rep-resents a growth of more than 3 times compared to the period before. At the end of this period, the total nominal produc-tion which had been added to capacity of the country is 78043000 square meters, which represents a growth of more than 2 times compared to the period before.

Sixth period: The construction of new units in the range between the years 2012 to 2013 show significantly reduced. Al-though the course is short and should wait until later next year, but during 1391, 15 new units have been exploitation license. Another feature of this period is increase in exports to neighboring countries and more inclined carpet industry to improve the quality of their carpet products..

MENACarpetNews

16 November 2013

Antique Persian Kerman Shawl Wool TermehHand wovenQajar Dynasty1795 -1925 A.D Circa 1840

Antique Persian Termeh Shawl

Persian Hand-Knotted Carpet Think Tank

◄ Antique Persian Kerman Shawl Wool Termeh

Hand wovenQajar Dynasty1795 - 1925 A.D Circa 1800Size 56” x 38”Size 143 x 96 cm

▼Antique Persian Termeh Shawl Antique Persian Kerman ShawlSafavi Dynasty1501-1722 A.D Circa 1750Size 23’’ x 21’’Size 58 x 53cm

Antique Persian Termeh Shawl

MENACarpetNews

18 March 2014

By : Fiona Ellis

For centuries, paisley patterns have wound their way in and out of fashion favor. The swirling, stylized tear-drop shape borrows its English name from a small

town just outside of Glasgow, Scotland, but its origins are a wee bit more exotic. Taking root in ancient Babylonia (where it decorated everything from plates to palaces) and moving west with the East India Company in the form of luxury shawls that became a status symbol for the stylish women of the Napoleonic era.

My own fascination with paisley patterns was sparked by an exhibition of Kashmir shawls at the Textile Museum of Canada. While there, inspiration struck me—how could I interpret the Paisley patterns in a knitted form? As I experi-mented with the stitches (the result is Paisley) I found my-self wanting to learn more about the history of this iconic motif. This led me on a journey where I not only spent several afternoons in the library at the museum in Toronto but also on a pilgrimage of sorts to the Paisley Museum in Scotland.

Originally depicted as a naturalistic plant with roots and flowers, paisley began with the Boteh, (“flowering plant” in Farsi) a design said to represent the date palm. As deco-ration on jewelry it can be traced back to the second and third centuries; later it appeared in other decorative arts from Persia. By the seventeenth century it was springing up on textiles woven in Kashmir. Presumably the motif was transplanted by the migration of people from region to region.

In the early eighteenth century, the simple floral motif grew more flowers and the roots morphed into a vase. It even-tually lost its naturalistic look, becoming abstracted, elon-gated and transformed into a scroll-like element, part of a complicated allover pattern. By the middle of the century it became recognizable as what is known in the west as a pinecone.

This pinecone motif was fashionable for decoration in In-dia, Persia and Turkey where the shawls were worn only my men. (In Persian the word shal described a woven fab-ric made of fine wool, not an article of clothing. It wasn’t until 1662 that the word shawl was used in the west to describe the garment worn by women.) Persian men wore the cloth as a girdle, wrapped around the waist; in India it was carried across the shoulders. It is this versatility that still appeals to us today.

The political land-scape plays a big part in the paisley shawl story. Shawls first found favor with British women in the eighteenth cen-tury, when men who worked for the East In-dia Company brought them back to Eng-land for their wives and sweethearts. In the 1800s officers in Napoleon’s army re-turned from the war in Egypt (which was un-der Turkish rule at the time) bearing pais-ley pieces as gifts to their ladies. (Empress

Twist Collective Pondering Paisley

.

Josephine was said to have quite a large collection.) The shawls quickly became a status symbol—their high cost and a growing fascination for all things Oriental made them highly prized.

During the nineteenth century technological advance-ments in Jacquard loom weaving wielded its influence over paisley design. Older looms limited paisley patterns to five to six inches (12 to 15 centimeters) in size, but the more modern looms made it possible for one repeat to cover the whole shawl. This ability to create a larger design tied in quite nicely to the changing silhouette of women’s dress. At the beginning of the century an artistically draped shawl added interest to the simple silhouette of the Empire-line gown. But as waistlines fell and the leg-o-mutton sleeve ballooned into vogue, the shawl, folded carefully to display all four borders, created a pleasing silhouette that empha-sized the shoulders. The ever-increasing width of crino-line skirts had ladies discarding their coats and donning shawls for warmth as well as fashion. The large centered motifs, made possible by the new looms, were shown to their best advantage over such a wide expanse.

Middle-class women eagerly followed the style of the ar-istocracy, making the shawl an essential item of dress. European weavers quickly recognized a lucrative market and began to make copies of the Kashmir styles to meet the demand. In a strange turn of events the Europeans de-veloped their own designs (inspired by Asian patterning), which were then sent back to Kashmir for manufacture.

In Britain, production of the shawls was pioneered in Nor-wich; Edinburgh soon followed suit. By 1808 the weav-

Fashionably Wrapped: The Influence of Kashmir Shawls (2009), Textile Museum of Canada. Photo: Jill Kitchener

◄ The Boteh be-gan showing up on Kashmir textiles sometime in the seventeenth cen-tury. Illustration by Fiona Ellis.

◄ Paisley progression. By the eighteenth century the design had morphed to clusters of flowers with roots forming a vase. By mid-century it had be-come a more stylized design. Illustrations by Fiona Ellis.

ers in Paisley had become the foremost producers of the shawls. In 1812 they introduced an innovation that greatly facilitated the weaving of multicolored patterns As a result, the Paisley weavers could quickly turn out copies of the Kashmir patterns for a fraction of the cost of the originals. Shawl shipments from Kashmir were met by merchants in London and within eight days imitations, woven in Pais-ley, would be for sale in fashionable London shops for a fraction of the price of the originals. Women shopping for shawls would ask to be shown the Paisleys, a subtle re-quest for the lower price shawls. In time, the Paisley name became shorthand for the type of patterning on the fab-ric—the teardrop or pinecone motif we now know as the paisley.

The shawl market peaked between 1850 and 1860 and declined as the crinoline gave way to the bustle skirt. This new fashion put the focus on the back of the dress; shawls, which obscured this new shape, fell out of favor. The status of the shawls was further undermined by the introduction of a printed version, which could be bought for just shillings. Something once deemed exotic and highly prized had now become vulgar and commonplace.

Paisley patterns remained in the back of the closet for decades, a victim of fickle fashion tastes and an oversatu-rated market. The pattern reemerged in the 1970s when designers and a youth culture, looking to the east for spirit-ual enlightenment, brought the swirling shapes back to the fashion forefront. Paisley has swirled in and out of favor ever since and is currently enjoying the spotlight, showing up in the Spring 2012 collections of Jil Sander, Stella Mc-Cartney, Etro, and many more.A more abstract, scroll-like version of the paisley appeared in the nine-

teenth century. Illustration by Fiona Ellis.

MENACarpetNews

19March 2014

Whether it’s the ghouls trick-or-treating on Halloween, the gobbles of great food on Thanksgiving, or the gatherings of loved ones over the holiday season, you will likely be hosting an event at your home in the upcoming months. Food and

friends make the perfect pairing for celebrations – but that can mean spills and splashes on carpets. There’s no need to panic when you know the tricks the pros use to treat tough holiday carpet stains.“It is important to treat spots and stains promptly and properly to avoid letting them do permanent damage to the fibers,” explains Barry Lichtenstein, a certified master textile cleaner and owner of Amcho Carpet Cleaning in Framingham, Mass.. “This can cause damage to either the color or texture of the fibers.”From splashes of punch and gravy to smears of caramel and cranberries, the holiday season can leave your carpet looking drab. Lichtenstein says many homeowners with good intentions are actually making stains worse by incorrectly treating the spots. He advises homeowners to avoid these common mistakes when treating carpet stains:

• Do not over-saturate the stain with cleaning products. This just makes a small spot larger.• Do not rub the carpet. This can cause damage to the texture of the carpet.• Do not put water on a dry soil. Rather, make sure to vacuum it first.

When fighting the inevitable drips and dribbles of entertaining at home, Lichtenstein says there are a few general best practices for treating carpet stains.

1. First, remove as much stain material as possible. If it is dry, vacuum up as much as you can. If it is semi-solid, scrape or scoop it up with a spoon or dull knife. If it is liquid, blot it up. 2.Next, blot the stain with cool water, and then blot dry.3.Make foam using a mixture of 1/4 teaspoon liquid dishwashing soap in a cup of tepid water. Be sure to always test any cleaning agents in an inconspicuous area of the carpet first to ensure there is no adverse reaction with the flooring. If not, apply the foam with a sponge or soft brush to the stained area in a wiping motion going toward the center of the spot. If you start in the center with circular motions, the stain will spread.4.Finally, blot with cool water, then blot dry.

From candy canes to fudge to Grandma’s famous yams, most stains can be cleaned us-ing these techniques. For additional stain removal information, Lichtenstein recommends visiting the Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) Residential Spot Solver on carpet-rug.org,or choosing a spot remover from the CRI list of tested and certified products.In addition to stains, parties mean more foot traffic in your home. As people come and go during your holidays, you’ll likely notice extra soil on carpets and other flooring. There’s no need to panic that your carpet investment is compromised. Simply vacuum regularly with a quality vacuum that has received the CRI Seal of Approval, which means it’s been tested thoroughly for soil removal, filtering and the ability to maintain the texture and appearance of carpet.Frequent vacuuming is also a great way to keep the air in your home clean, especially during the long months of winter when we spend most of our time indoors. A high effi-ciency vacuum from the Seal of Approval list removes 80 percent or more of the soil in a carpet – making carpet a good option even for allergy sufferers.

“Carpets and upholstery fabrics should be cleaned on a regular basis before they show overall soiling or staining,” Lichtenstein says. “When a high level of overall soiling or staining has been reached, there is always some permanent damage that has occurred. For the best results, clean the fabrics before they reach that level of soiling.”

How often should you vacuum? The CRI recommends high-traffic or pet areas be vacu-umed daily, medium-traffic areas be vacuumed about twice a week and light-traffic areas should be vacuumed weekly. For tough holiday stains or deep set-in soils, it may be time to call in the professionals for help. Working with an IICRC certified firm (a leading certifying body for the cleaning and restoration industries) that uses CRI Seal of Approval equipment and cleaning agents ensures your carpets and upholstery will be cleaned the right way by knowledgeable experts..

CARAMEL TO CRANBERRIES: HOLIDAY STAIN-BUSTING TIPS KEEP CARPETS BRIGHT

Nepal carpet exporters urge govt to reduce tax

The Nepal Carpet Exporters’ Association (NCEA) has urged the Government to reduce

tax to stop the decline in carpet exports from the country, The Himalayan Times reported. Addressing the ninth annual general meeting of NCEA, the organization’s president Anup Bahadur Malla said Nepal’s carpet exports have fallen to about 600,000 metres at present from about 3.3 million sq m exports in the early 1990s.Explaining the reason for drop in carpet exports from Nepal, Mr. Malla said the price of Nepali carpets in the international market is higher compared to Indian and Chinese carpets.Nepali carpets are becoming expensive in global markets due to increase in cost of imported raw materials, rise in labour cost and lack of subsidies provided by the Govern-ment, he added. He suggested that the Nepali Government reduce the tax by placing the carpet industry under the cottage and small scale industries, as it existed prior to 1998. He also pleaded for complete tax exemption on carpet exports. Stating that the Nepali carpet industry at present provides jobs to around 100,000 people, directly or indirectly, he urged the Government to introduce a policy to retain foreign job migrants to minimize the labour cost. Mr. Malla said the Indian and Chinese carpets are about 30 percent cheaper than the Ne-pali ones, and hence the Government should reduce taxes and give subsidies to enable the Nepali carpet sector to compete in the international market. Ram Sharan Mahat, who recently took office as Nepal’s Minister of Finance, gave assur-ance that the Government would try its best to promote the country’s exports..

MENACarpetNews

20 March 2014

domotexasiachinafloor.com

the Leading Platform for Flooring in Asia-Pacific

New Flooring Perspectives!

The Asian flooring markets have much to reveal.

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR 2014 - the industry’s favorite place to find new products and partners.Give your business a boost and explore opportunities in the unique markets of this region.

1200 exhibitors - 45000 professional visitors – a whole range of flooring solutions.

A wide array of rugs, carpets and technologies in the largest venue ever: W1 to W5

New launch: World of Handmade Carpets – discover it in hall W5

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR is proud to an-nounce a joint venture with Floor Covering Weekly (FCW) to bring the GreenStep Environmental

Awards program to Asia during the region’s largest floor covering show March 25-27, 2014. The goal of Green-Step Asia Awards program is to recognize and give vis-ibility to green initiatives and progress made in the area of environmental sustainability in Asia and honor both companies and individuals behind their efforts in green.

“GreenStep Asia Awards motivates all flooring compa-nies working in Asia to think green, seriously consider the benefits coming from the environmental practices and the value of sustainable development in the floor-ing industry,” said Santiago Montero, FCW’s publisher. “GreenStep Asia will lead Asian suppliers down the path of sustainability, will increase the number of sustain-able options available in flooring, and will increase the

amount of recycled content being used in new flooring products coming out of the region, and it will help Asian companies find more reasons every day to justify the investments in green practices.”

FCW and DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR offer all the flooring companies operating in Asian de-veloped and developing countries an excellent opportunity to “Tell the World you Stepped into the Green!” GreenStep Asia Awards also offer the industry and show visitors the chance to choose the right business partner and choose green in Asia.

GreenStep Asia will feature four awards catego-ries for the flooring industry: best green product, best green practice/process, best green promo-

tion/communication and best green pinnacle. An authoritative jury composed by the lead-ers of some of the world’s most famous flooring and green associations will judge and award the green most remarkable commitments in Asia.

FCW started the GreenStep Awards program five years ago and it is now recognized by all major U.S. flooring industry associations and suppliers. FCW chose DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR to launch GreenStep in Asia because the show is the unrivaled leading platform for floor covering in the region. DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR is pleased to work with FCW in this pioneering program for the Asian flooring industry which is at its first edition of many to come.

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR goes green with GreenStep Asia Awards

.DOMOTEX asia/CHI-

NAFLOOR 2014 Show Highlights

DOMOTEX asia/CHINAFLOOR launch-es the show new MOBILE APPA new APP for iPhone and Android will be

available beginning the end of January 2014. The APP functions will include online free pre-regis-tration, a showcase area for the new products pre-sented by the InnovAction Flooring campaign with information on related exhibitors, a detailed floor plan and an agenda to help organize the onsite visit in a productive way. It also includes the event pro-gram with locations and times, a QR Code scan-ning function to join onsite interactive activities, and much more. Go to domotexasiachinafloor.com to download the mobile APP.

A sampling of DOMOTEX asia/CHINA-FLOOR 2014 exhibitors:CARPET & RUGS: Shanhua, Haima, Beaulieu, Balta, Desso, Tibetan Sheep, CTTCC, Judong, OFC, Kaili, Suminoe, Mannington, Oriental Weav-er, Alsorayai, Solomon, Abbas Nishaburi;

WOOD & LAMINATE: Nature, Shiyou, Dasso, Kronoswiss, Kronotex, Unilin, Stile, Parla, NWFA/AHEC Pavilion, Berry Alloc, Novofibre, Beaulieu Group, LM Flooring, Euyopia, Granorte;

FLOORTECH: T&C Decorative, Zhongyuan, Fengchaou, Jun Shiau, Homag, Timberex, Loba, Osmo, Muylle, Klumpp, Dynea, Treffert, Winter-steiger, Leuco, Yasuda;

CARPET-TECH: Invista, Universal, Aquafil, Wools of New Zealand, Honghua, Shunlong, CEO, Freudenberg, TRCC, Kolon, Unitika, Oerlikon, Tru-etzschler;

RESILIENT: Armstrong, Gerflor, Forbo, Mondo, LG Hausys, , Mapei, Diseno, DaJuLong, WeiKang, HuaJing, MeiGaoMei, ChangLong, YiHua, DiLong, JianChen, HanWha , Nox, MeiJer, DaeJin, Sika.

Country Pavilions from eight different countries are confirmed: Turkey, Pakistan, USA, Belgium, Ger-many, The Netherlands, India and Iran; many are taking part in the newly launched World of Hand-made Carpets section. Chinese pavilions include Changzhou, Anji, Tianjin and CICF.

MENACarpetNews

21March 2014

DOMOTEX 2014, the world’s flagship fair for carpets and floor coverings – came to a highly successful conclusion on, January 14, having attracted a total of approximately

45,000 visitors from more than 80 nations. “DOMOTEX 2014 has delivered an impressive performance thanks to its uniquely international appeal, high attendance, the well-received ‘Innova-tions@DOMOTEX’ concept, plus a considerably more buoyant mood in the industry” stated Dr. Jochen Köckler as the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe responsible for DOMOTEX, who add-ed: “Staging DOMOTEX as a key business platform and idea-giver at the outset of the year makes it an extremely attractive event for carpet and floor covering buyers and decision-makers from around the globe.”

1,350 companies from 57 different nations showcased their lat-est products and collections at the Hannover Exhibition Center, with the industry making a strong showing in terms of quality and innovativeness. “The huge array of invitingly cozy carpets, so-phisticated parquet and laminate flooring, stylish designer floor coverings, and masterful hand-woven rugs on display sported captivating designs and an astounding variety of materials, colors and patterns which all testify to the highly innovative spirit of the international floor coverings industry – an industry which is clearly in great shape for the upcoming season,” said Köckler. The mood in the exhibition halls made it clear that the mood in the industry had taken a considerable turn for the better, with exhibitors speaking of greatly improved business prospects and an anticipated upturn in sales.

Innovations@DOMOTEX off to successful startMaking its debut this year, the “Innovations@DOMOTEX” show-case put a fresh spin on DOMOTEX as a trendsetting event with lots of fresh ideas to offer. The concept – which is aimed at sparking heightened interest in select innovations and designs on show by participating exhibitors – proved to be “a major suc-cess right from the start”, said Köckler. The more than 60 high-lights featured within Innovations@DOMOTEX represented the “very essence of the tradeshow”, he continued, adding that “visi-tors gave top marks to the new showcase” and that it would now be a centerpiece of DOMOTEX for years to come.

Exhibitors, too, were full of praise for Innovations@DOMOTEX: “The new approach generated a lot of interest, and visitor traf-fic proved that it struck a nerve with attending professionals,” remarked Robert J. Munisteri, Director of International Sales at Masland Contract based in Saraland, Alabama. The new format was also warmly embraced by architects and interior designers and decorators. Innovations@DOMOTEX provided visiting pro-fessionals with a convenient and inspirational source of orienta-tion and information, while the Innovations@DOMOTEX Talks featured well-known personalities from the architecture scene and fostered valuable dialogue on a host of topics related to floor coverings. “The Innovations@DOMOTEX areas enabled archi-tects and interior designers to get a quick, concise overview of the many highlighted innovations, and the Innovations@DOMO-TEX Guide helped them to explore the innovations in advance so they could plan their tradeshow agenda efficiently.

Highly international appeal – great satisfaction among ex-hibitorsExhibitors at DOMOTEX were sought out by potential business partners from every corner of the globe. 57 percent of the show’s visitors came from outside Germany – approximately two thirds of them from other European countries, plus around 20 percent from Asia and about 10 percent from the Americas. The biggest visitor nations included the United Kingdom, Turkey, the Neth-erlands, the United States and Italy. Remco Teulings, Presi-dent of the EMEA division of Tarkett based in Nanterre, France, praised the event’s international character by saying: “For us, DOMOTEX is the most important tradeshow in the world – the only place where we can present our innovations to such a wide audience.” Further praise was expressed by Mohamed Farid Khamis, Chairman of Oriental Weavers Holding based in Cair: Nowhere else can you see such a highly international gather-ing of industry players displaying the latest products, trends and technologies. Our company operates worldwide, which is why we place such great importance on generating international busi-ness leads. DOMOTEX is really and truly a sales exhibition, with all the major buyers coming here to do business.”

Also in terms of the caliber of its visiting professionals, DOMO-TEX delivered right on target, with over 70 percent indicating that they play a major role in their companies’ purchasing decisions. The main visitor categories at DOMOTEX consisted of whole-sale and retail buyers – at 25 and 34 percent, respectively. Pur-chasers from home furnishing and furniture retailers as well as architects were also well represented. Attendance by members of the skilled trades was clearly on the rise, reaching 25 percent

17

The World of Flooring

17 – 20 January 2015Hannover ▪ Germanydomotex.de

DOMOTEX Laying the ground for success

DOMOTEX 2014 delivers impressive performance as the world’s leading event for the floor coverings industry

of the total.The second edition of the Wood Flooring Summit (Hall 9) was a major success, serving as a networking hub for the interna-tional parquet and laminate flooring sector. “The Wood Flooring Summit at DOMOTEX brings together all the key names in our business.

You can tangibly feel how this trade fair gives the industry a boost. All the effort that went into attracting a large audience has definitely paid off,” remarked Volkmar Halbe, Chairman of the Management Board at Parador in Coesfeld, Germany. The “Future of Home Living” lectures also drew a lot of interest, with

top-flight speakers sharing their visions on living environments soon to become reality.

The special display entitled “1st Rug Avenue” demonstrated how traditional Oriental rugs can serve as a perfect complement to trendy interiors. And the best hand-woven carpets were honored by the industry’s key competition: the Carpet Design Awards, which drew participation by 329 international designers, with 33 entries making it to the final round.

The next DOMOTEX will be staged from 17 to 20 January 2015.

.

MENACarpetNews

22 March 2014

Interior Design

It’s the place where you wake each day,rest your head each night, and go to when you need to escape the stress of daily life. If

there’s one room in the house that should be a personalized retreat for homeowners, it’s the master bedroom. And with a few simple tips from design experts, you can easily take your master bedroom from boring to beautiful and add to your home’s overall value.

“When designing a space in your home, it’s always a good idea to go through the process in a methodical way to achieve the results you want,” says Jill Winninger, Allied ASID, CID, and senior interior designer with Seaside Home in La Jolla, Calif. “Foundation, function and finish-ing details make the process fun and effective.”Here is Winninger’s three-step process for cre-ating a grand master retreat:

Step 1: Foundation Start by choosing the flooring that matches your personal style and the functionality of the space. Nothing beats the comfort of carpet in a master bedroom. Carpet and a high quality pad keep floors warmer and enhance privacy by absorbing noises. Today’s top trend in carpet is super soft and silky fibers that feel luxurious when you step, lie or lounge on them.

Think carpet is out because you have aller-gies? It’s time to think again, Numerous medi-cal and other studies show that people who suffer from allergies and even asthma do not have to live without the comfort and softness of carpet. That’s because the dust that falls to a carpeted floor has a much stronger tendency to stay on the carpet until it is vacuumed away. Dust on hard floors, however, is stirred with every passing movement or footstep right back up into a room’s breathing space.

Of course, regular maintenance is important. Frequent vacuuming with a high efficiency vacuum like the ones on the Carpet and Rug Institute’s Seal of Approval vacuum list, as well as periodic deep-cleanings are musts. And, no matter what kind of floor you have, high-traffic areas should be vacuumed daily, with less fre-quently-used areas vacuumed once or twice a week.Another important foundation element is the walls. When selecting colors, select hues that work with the rest of your home’s decor so the spaces flow smoothly. You can’t go wrong with

basic neutrals. Foundation details like crown molding, wainscoting or wallpaper can add a splash of personality. When deciding on foun-dation elements, keep in mind the focal points of the room. Is there a fireplace? A gorgeous wall of windows highlighting an exquisite view? Do you have a bed with a statement headboard that will be prominent? Highlight these focal points within your design decisions.

Step 2: FunctionBeauty is just one part of the equation when designing a grand master bedroom. The space needs to function and suit your lifestyle. Function is particularly important when select-ing furniture. Do you need storage for clothes and accessories? Do you want to hide electron-ics? Do you have a specific bed size? After consid-ering your options, choose wisely and allow enough room between furniture pieces so that you can move freely.Privacy is also an important consideration. Like carpet, window treatments also help to control noise, plus they offer the added benefit of mask-ing windows in the evenings and when high levels of privacy are needed. From a decorative perspective, window treatments add softness and style, critical to designing a stunning room.

Step 3: FinishSome of the most important elements of master bedroom design are the details. This is where you can add a few personal touches to the space to create a truly individualized sanctuary.Start by choosing comfortable, inviting bedding, pillows and throws. Create clustered vignettes of photos or personal collections to give the space your unique stamp. Appropriately scaled art and accessories add visual interest.

Remember, accessories are a good way to add splashes of color to your master bedroom. If you like a particular tone – like rich teals, ruby reds or baby blue – select a few accessories that feature that hue and strategically place them throughout the room. Accessories that feature different textures add interest and char-acter as well. “From carpet and furniture to pho-tos and duvet covers, creating a master retreat you’ll love is simpler than you think,” says Win-ninger. “Just focus on the foundation, function and finishing touches, and the result is sure to be gorgeous.”

SIMPLE DESIGNER TRICKS FOR CREATING A STUNNING MASTER BEDROOM

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HOTEL Industry News

Accor has opened a three-property development en-compassing Ibis, Adagio and Novotel hotels in Fujairah, increasing the UAE emirate’s room inventory by 40%

Created in partnership with the Fujairah National Group, the hotel’s opening was attended by a host of local dignitaries and tourism officials. The three-hotel de-

velopment comprises a four-star, 182-key Novotel, a 180-room ibis economy hotel and the Adagio Fujairah with 72 fully equipped studios for long-stay guests. Speaking at the opening, His Highness Sheikh Saleh Bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, chairman of the Fujairah Department of Industry and Economy said: “The UAE is currently witnessing an urban and cultural revival complemented by the remarkable growth of business, hospitality and infrastructural sectors. Fujairah’s vast natural attractions and unique location between the mountains in the east coast have con-tributed significantly in making the emirate a prime tourist destination.” Located near to Fujairah International airport, the hotel development has been de-signed to appeal to corporate and leisure guests with a range of MICE facilities including a ballroom, meeting rooms and a 1400 square metre spa which is under still construction. Cluster general manager Karim Zaki commented that the hotel is now focused on marketing itself, saying: “We’re knocking on every available door to target every segment”, highlighting that the hotel is being promoted under the strapline ‘Fujai-rah’s true hospitality icon’, owing to its diversity of brands.

Moevenpick to open new hotels across MENA region

Moevenpick Hotels & Re-sorts has announced new

hotels in Turkey, Mongolia and Morocco, as well as the take-over of a landmark property in Pakistan and the opening of a new ‘hotel within a hotel’ in Egypt. The new ‘hotel within a hotel’ at Moevenpick Hotel Cairo Pyra-mids is a 144-room, four-storey hotel extension to the existing garden village bungalow re-sort. All the new rooms have terraces, some with views of pyramids, with the extension featuring the Lotusall-day dining restaurant. Speaking about the expansion plans, Moevenpick Hotels & Resorts president and CEO Jean Gabriel Pérès said: “Considered organic growth has become a hallmark of Moevenpick Hotels & Resorts and these stunning new projects illustrate this phi-losophy perfectly.” In addition to the Egypt property, Moevenpick will open two more hotels in Moroc-co, with the company taking over management of the 184-room Moevenpick Hotel Casablanca, featuring a rooftop pool, spa, three restaurants and six meeting rooms. Known as Hotel Casablanca Plaza, the 16-storey hotel was completely renovated in 2011 and will see further enhancements to its restaurants and lounges.

Bahrain Bay to receive $300mn additional funding

Indian real estate firm Ajmera Mayfair Realty Group has

said it will increase its invest-ment in Bahrain Bay ten-fold to $300mn. The group, a joint venture be-tween The Ajmera Group and Mayfair Housing, will build a 50-storey commercial tower on a prime waterfront plot in the development, with construction to begin by the end of the year. “We have reaffirmed our interest in the Bahrain Bay project, a unique waterfront development that encouraged us to choose it as our first overseas investment desti-nation,” spokesmen Rajnikant Ajmera and Nayan Shah said in a statement. The $2.5bnn master development covers 43 hectares of reclaimed land slightly north of the capital Manama’s central business district and is expected to become a 24-hour downtown hub. Launched in 2006, Bahrain Bay had faced significant financial setbacks during the global financial crisis but in October CEO Robert Lee told Arabian Business he ex-pected nearly half of the masterplan to be completed this year.