In December 2024, the team at IFG Drake lost a very special former colleague, Gerry O’Rourke.

Having worked for the company since the late 1970s, Gerry had IFG in his veins, and will be sorely missed by his colleagues and friends.

Former colleagues Andy Wilkinson and Paul Briggs shared some of their memories and insights into Gerry.

“Gerry initially worked for Plasticisers (IFG’s old name) and then transferred to Plasticisers Engineering. He moved to Emerson & Renwick when Plasticisers Engineering was sold to them.  Following redundancy from Emerson & Renwick Gerry had a spell at home, before John Parkinson at Drake Extrusion Inc., USA offered him a temporary post, which lasted 10 years! Gerry was instrumental in the installation and commissioning of machines at Drake Extrusion prior to their start up in the mid 1990s. He came back to IFG Drake, Drighlington in 2001 and stayed with us until his retirement on 30th September 2022.”

“Gerry was always happy to pass on his extensive experience and knowledge – there wasn’t much he didn’t know about process and extrusion, yet he would always kindly share his wisdom to train and advise the wider members of the team. Even after his retirement he was always available to give help and advice on the end of the phone if it was needed, especially helping with the move from Drighlington to Golcar, advising the new Maintenance Manager and helping where he could, firefighting where it was needed to ensure the smooth amalgamation of the two sites.”

In addition to his stint in the US, Gerry also represented the company overseas in other areas, visiting Iran, China, India, Turkey and Poland throughout his career.

“Initially employed as an electrician, Gerry moved through the ranks to Electrical Engineer, and then prior to his retirement was Maintenance Manager of IFG Drake. In his spare time he was a classic car enthusiast and had a very distinctive vintage yellow mini which could often be seen parked outside IFG. He was also passionate about rescuing donkeys, something he kept very quiet, and loved his dogs and a pint at his local pub. Having come over from Ireland in the 1970s, he also enjoyed a trip to his homeland.”

“He loved Plasticisers so much that it was mentioned in his eulogy – the priest struggled to pronounce it which raised a smile!”

“Gerry was just a really good bloke” said Andy. “We all miss him”.

RIP Gerry, thank you for everything, from all of your friends and colleagues at IFG.

Recycled PP is produced from both post-industrial and post-consumer waste. Post-industrial waste comes from manufacturing and production processes, while post-consumer waste consists of PP-products that have been used by end-users.

At IFG, the post-industrial waste is being collected and send to a specialised recycling company. The waste goes through a process of cleaning and sorting, before being mechanically recycled. The resulting material could either be mixed with virgin PP or can be used on its own, depending on customers’ required properties and their final desired application.

In the final stages, the recycled PP is transformed into fibres through a spinning process. According to customers’ needs, we can apply various additives that we offer on our website such as fire retardant, UV, colours, etc.

The rPP significantly reduces CO2 emissions compared to virgin PP, with a lower carbon footprint. Certificates confirming the carbon footprint values of our fibres are available upon request.

At IFG, we are ready to provide innovative solutions to meet the rising demand for products made through sustainable processes.

PLA is produced from renewable resources such as corn or sugar cane. The process begins by extracting and purifying sugars from these plants. Next, raw sugar is transformed into lactic acid using a natural fermentation process. The lactic acid is polymerized to create PLA. Finally, IFG spin it into fibres and can add various additives according to customers’ needs.

The qualities of PLA make it a fitting solution for various applications, including ground stabilisation projects, ground coverings and agricultural textiles. More applications along with specific data can be found in the data sheet.

PLA is both biodegradable and industrially compostable, which means it can naturally and safely break down into non-toxic components under industrial composting conditions. This makes PLA an ideal, environmentally friendly choice for various sustainable applications.

PA11 is derived from the castor bean, which comes from the castor plant. These plants are environmentally friendly as they don’t require harmful fertilizers, use minimal water, and do not contribute to deforestation or compete with food crops.

The seeds from this plant are collected and pressed to extract castor oil. Our partner company Arkema transforms it into a substance called 11-Aminoundecanoic acid, which is the building block for PA11. This material undergoes polymerization and is then spun into fibres. Finally, IFG’s team add various additives tailored to meet our customers’ needs.

PA11’s qualities that make it suitable for a wide range of applications. It offers good UV stability, minimal water uptake and low density. Additionally, it significantly reduces CO2 emissions, as its carbon footprint can be up to 70% lower than conventional polyamides. Further information and specific data can be found in the data sheet.

These qualities make it an ideal solution for companies that want to use more sustainable materials in their applications.

To recycle PA, the waste from IFG’s production is collected and sent to a specialised recycling company. They clean the collected waste and put it through a process of depolymerisation, where large polymer molecules are broken down into smaller units called monomers. After cleaning the material to remove impurities, they repolymerise it. Once this process is complete, the recycled polymer is returned to IFG. Afterwards, we proceed with fibre spinning and incorporating necessary additives tailored to meet our customers’ specifications. 

Compared to virgin PA, recycled PA offers a significant decrease in CO2 emissions – at IFG, its carbon footprint is lowered by 78 %! Certificates confirming the carbon footprint values of our fibres are available upon request. 

Despite this reduction, the recycled PA retains the same qualities as the virgin PA. This enables their versatile use across all PA6 applications, demonstrating our commitment to sustainability without compromising performance or customization options. 

To continue with the important topic of sustainability at IFG, we are committed to offer not only recycled polypropylene (rPP), but also recycled polyamide (rPA).

During July 2024, Vladimir Vykoukal joined the team at IFG Asota, Linz, Austria as an intern.

Early in July, Vladimir introduced himself:

“I am 22 years old and I come from the Czech Republic. I study international business as the University of Economics and Business in Prague. Besides my studies, I enjoy playing sports like tennis or football. I am also always eager to learn new things!”

We asked him about how he had found his first week:

“The first week working here at IFG Asota was really interesting. The team welcomed me warmly and we started working on a couple of projects focused on promoting sustainability at IFG. We have also started working on enhancing the website. It has been really rewarding to apply the knowledge I gained from my studies in a real company setting, and I am very excited to see what the rest of my internship has in store!”

During Vladimir’s second week, we asked him his general thoughts on sustainability in business – it’s always interesting to hear new views on the subject. Here’s what he had to say:

“These days, “sustainability” is often overused and is used in a lot of marketing campaigns of big companies. For me personally, it is important that it is not just a marketing strategy, but that the company really follows a sustainable path.

There is no doubt that climate change is a real thing, and we need to act to prevent it. It is not an issue that could be solved by one person alone, it requires collective effort. While consumers can make a difference by sorting waste, choosing eco-friendly products, and reducing energy and water usage, a lot can also be changed by businesses.”

 

In week 3, Vladimir shared more of his thoughts on the sustainability practices at IFG:

“I’ve been really impressed by what IFG is doing to be more sustainable. The R&D team is continuing to come up with more sustainable innovations. IFG is using more and more recycled and bio-based materials in their production. It’s important that companies are starting to apply changes like this.

Now, these actions seem complicated, they may be more expensive or time consuming, but in the future they will be worth it.

During my internship, I learnt a lot about IFG’s different fibres. As I am working on the Sustainability Promotion Project, my focus was on the recycled and bio-based fibres.

To get a better overview, the Asota team and I tried to summarise the key characteristics of sustainable fibres in a graphic

While learning more and more about sustainable fibres, I realized that there is a clear trend à higher sustainability and performance comes at a higher cost.

To be more sustainable, companies need to invest more. This could decrease their short-term profitability, but as I already said last week, these actions will pay off in the future.”

Finally, we asked Vladimir to summarise his time at IFG.

“My father works as a representative for IFG and was able to introduce me to them. It’s important whilst studying International Business to get real-time experience at a company that operates internationally, and for me to see first hand how it works. I have gained some valuable inside experience of business issues experienced in the real world.

I have largely focused on marketing, which will play its part in any future role I have, even if it’s not my sole focus. The key things I have noted during my experience is the attention to detail required in marketing to ensure the company is represented correctly and that we are presenting facts in any campaigns that the company runs. IFG really cares about the work they do and want to be the best in the industry.

Chemistry and Physics aren’t necessarily my strong point, however R&D leader Andreas really helped me to understand the technical details of the fibres.

Most of my time was spent with Debby – we got on really well, and with her experience we worked together and came up with some really good ideas – together we worked on presenting some suggestions to the wider marketing team, of how things could be improved. We also worked on some case studies of real life applications of IFG’s fibres.

IFG Asota is a small team with a friendly atmosphere, everyone was very welcoming and friendly.

I would definitely recommend IFG Asota as a place to undertake an internship. The team is welcoming, products are interesting and as they have a lot of uses, their fibres are really important in industry. It was great to get experience in both business and learn more about the technical aspects of fibre production.

The key takeaway is attention to detail – marketeers really need to consider how their writing can influence the perception of information.

I am really grateful for the opportunity that IFG gave me. It has been a really nice experience being in Linz for a month, living in a different country. I met new people, had many new experiences. We will keep in touch and I hope our paths cross again in the future.”

Vladimir’s blogs and social content ideas will be rolled out over the coming months, we thank him for his time spent at the company and his valuable contribution.

With over 30 years’ experience in the sector under our belt, IFG’s fibres can create durable and hard-wearing surfaces for use both inside and out. We can design and produce fibres for a variety of indoor and outdoor applications, all fully colour-customised with UV resistant additives with a carefully selected range of colour pigments to provide the full range of shades required. Examples of our work include sports and utility surfaces, children’s play areas and swimming pool areas. 

IFG PP and PE fibres are melt-spun and specially developed for processing into a wide range of products. These fibres are suitable for being processed into needled and thermo-bonded felts and yarns. Today there is a growing market for technical applications in both nonwovens and spun. 

Additional UV protection is required for certain applications to help increase the lifetime of the final product. Here at IFG we offer a wide range of UV grades and protection, including: 

  • No Additional UV stability – This type of fibre is mostly used in applications where there is no exposure to sunlight, such as composites in “non-visible” products, which are widely used in automotive products such as wheel arches and compartment liners. 
  • LOW UV stability – Fibres in this version of UV-stability have UV-stabilisers added to meet the requirement of a certain lifetime of the final product. This meets the majority of applications; it is associated with a half-life of the fibre strength of a minimum of 1000 hours, meaning that after 1000 hours of exposure, the fibre still retains at least half of its original strength. 
  • MEDIUM UV stability – Fibres with medium UV stability have a higher content of additives, which makes it possible to obtain products for outdoor applications, like sports surfaces or artificial grass. Half-life time reaches 3000 hours. 
  • HIGH UV stability – Due to various climatic conditions with extreme UV radiation, we see a demand for super UV-stabilised fibres with a long service life. In these cases, we have developed a synergistic blend of UV stabilisers that can give a half-life time up to 4000 hours. 

 

All our UV packages and tailored formulas are available with both natural and coloured fibres and can be used along with other performance additives. 

We are delighted to be exhibiting at Techtextil in Frankfurt from the 23rd to 26th April 2024. Please do come and visit the team in Hall 9.1 Stand number D50. We look forward to seeing you there!

Techtextil is the leading international trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens, which IFG have been exhibiting at since 1986. As a result we are delighted to be being honoured as a founding exhibitor on Wednesday 24 April at 09:00 a.m. in the Techtextil Forum in Hall 9.1, Stand E70.

What are they, what are they for, and why are IFG’s the best? 

Low melt binder fibres are fibres with a low melting point. When they are utilised without any pigment being introduced, they produce a clear melt effect. Low melt binder fibres are mainly used for floor coverings, for example carpets. 

Historically the preferred material for binder use was latex, but this is becoming less popular due to not being recyclable and therefore having a poor environmental impact. Using melting binder fibres as a latex substitute improves the recyclability of the end product. IFG’s binder fibres are made from 100% low melting polymer derived from PP and PE (Polypropylene and Polyethylene) 

Depending on construction and specific product requirements, the blending ratio of PE fibres with for example PP fibres can vary. A thermal treatment of approximately 125°C is required to create a bonding effect. 

At IFG, our unique approach to colouring allows us to match any given colour to our fibres, using a range of tried and tested techniques, and the best colourists in the industry. We use a mixture of pure pigments and computer assistance to develop our coloured fibres. This results in us both meeting and exceeding customer expectations, setting us apart from our competitors. 

Once the colours are developed, their application to client specific products is tested on our pilot line – the samples provided show the customer how the pigments harmonise and gives them the chance to view the fibres before they go into production. 

We’ve seen colour trends change significantly over the last few years, with a growing demand for more muted tones as opposed to the strong and vibrant colours we saw historically. Our ability to shift our colour production processes in line with industry trends is another way we set ourselves apart from the competition. 

We also need to make sure that our colours work well with other fibres additives as these develop – UV filters, water repellents and antimicrobial properties are regularly requested, and it’s important that the colour additions work well alongside. 

We are able to colour across our range of PP, PE, PA and PLA and offer customised solutions. We continue to invest in research and development across our entire offering, bringing us in line with our customers exacting expectations.