L
ocated at the crossroads between Europe, the Middle East and Asia, the Republic of Turkey
is well-poised to take advantage of its strategic location with regard to international relations
and trade. It is currently in European Union membership discussions and has instituted a range of
economic reforms, prompting a revitalization of its manufacturing sector. The country had signed 17
free trade agreements as of January 2006. Apparel and textiles are today counted among the nation’s
main exports.
According to the General Secretariat of the Istanbul Textile and Apparel Exporters
Associations (ITKIB), technical textiles in particular have gained importance in terms of import
and export dollars.
(See “Turkey: Ancient Crossroads, Modern Textiles,”
TW Asia, September/October 2007).
Turkey and the city of Istanbul will welcome visitors to the Hightex 2007 Technical
Textiles and Nonwovens Trade Fair, Safetech 2007 Protective Textiles & Technologies Fair and
International Technical Textiles Congress to be held November 30-December 2 at the Istanbul Expo
Center.
Promoting The Industry
Teknik Fuarcilik Ltd., a textile
publishing and fair organization based in Istanbul — Turkey’s largest city — hopes to promote the
continuation of these trends when it hosts Hightex 2007 Technical Textiles and Nonwovens Trade
Fair, and Safetech 2007 Protective Textiles & Technologies Fair November 30-December 2 at the
Istanbul Expo Center. Hightex exhibitors will be located in Halls 9 and 10, while Safetech
exhibitors will be located in Hall 11.
Hightex 2007
Visitors to the second edition of
Hightex — the first and only technical textiles event in Turkey — will include those involved in
the apparel, geotextiles, home textiles, building, automotive, packaging, medical/cosmetics,
hygiene and food industries. They will see a range of exhibited products and technologies that will
include:
• airlaid, crosslapper, drylaid, meltblown, needlepunch, spunbond, spunlace, stitchbond,
thermobond and wetlaid technologies, among others;
• bonding and separation, narrow weaving, converting, fiber tearing, flocking/impregnation,
embossing machinery, coating and lamination, tufting, technical textile weaving; needling; lab
measurement; drying systems; nonwovens processing; structural composites; and waste packaging and
waste recycling machinery, among many others;
• raw materials such as fibers and filaments, yarns, polymer chips and granules, adhesives,
hot melts and surface processing chemicals, among others;
• textile end-products for application in agriculture, construction, apparel, road and
ground work, decoration, industry, food, medical, hygiene, cleaning, cosmetics, transportation,
environmental protection, packaging, protection and sports; and
• smart textiles.
Exhibitors will be organized into 14
textile categories — agricultural, apparel, building, cosmetics, ecological, food, geo, industrial,
medical, home furniture, packaging, protection, sports and transport.
Touting the event as the largest technical textiles meeting of its kind in the Middle East
and Eastern Europe, organizers hope to improve upon the 10,000 visitors and 318 companies that
attended the first Hightex, held in 2005. More than 200 companies have registered to exhibit at
this year’s event as of
Textile World Asia
’s press time.
Safetech 2007
In order to accommodate overwhelming
demand from protective textiles and accessories manufacturers who wished to exhibit at Hightex, a
separate show, to be held concurrently with Hightex at the same venue, was created to highlight
that sector of the nonwovens and technical textiles industry. Organizers attribute this demand to
the booming growth of the protective textiles market, both in Turkey and around the world.
The inaugural edition of Safetech will attract visitors from a wide range of industries
including textile manufacturers; local, regional, state and federal governments; military, police,
fire and security forces; hospitals; pharmaceutical companies; dye and enzyme producers; automotive
manufacturers; chemical material manufacturers; printers; cargo/transportation businesses; mining;
petrochemicals; steel/iron; and aviation, among others.
Exhibitor categories will include respiratory protection, fire protection, eye protection,
hand protection, video protection, foot protection, head protection, noise protection, workwear and
rescue equipment.
Exhibitors will display products related to:
• clothing and equipment for personal security including fireproof, waterproof and
bulletproof clothing; high-visibility clothing; medical clothing; noise and pollution protection;
and protective helmets, gloves and shoes, among others;
• indoor security equipment including isolation materials, security and warning systems, and
natural hazard detectors, among other products;
• outdoor security equipment including anti-pollution systems, anti-noise systems and
refinement equipment, among others; and
• rescue equipment including heatproof clothing, ropes and belts, protective hats and
helmets, and waterproof tents, among other products.
International Technical Textiles Congress
The third edition of the
International Technical Textiles Congress, first held in 2002, will be held alongside Hightex and
Safetech, December 1-2, at the Istanbul Expo Center. Organized by Dokuz Eylul University’s
Department of Textile Engineering, the congress is sponsored by ITKIB, Teknik Fuarcilik, Aegean
Exporters’ Association, Izmir Chamber of Commerce and A-Teks Irfan Aydin.
Congress topics will include agricultural textiles; automotive textiles; civil engineering,
constructive textiles and geotextiles; composite materials; filtration textiles; high-performance
fibers; industrial textiles; medical textiles; military textiles; packaging textiles; protective
clothes; and smart textiles and clothing.
Opening speeches will be given Saturday morning, December 1, and will be followed by three
sessions held throughout the day. Four more sessions will be held Sunday, December 2. The closing
ceremony, to be held Sunday evening, will be incorporated into the day’s last session.
Visitors to the upcoming Hightex 2007
show may take the opportunity to visit Topkapi Palace, one of Istanbul’s popular tourist
attractions.
Venue
The Istanbul Expo Center, spanning
30,000 square meters, is centrally located in the heart of Istanbul, and just 200 meters from the
Atatürk Havalimani airport. Transportation facilities are available.
Visitor Services
Visitors to www.hightex2007.com or
www.teknikfuarcilik.com will find sections devoted to obtaining a visa, finding accommodations in
Istanbul and freight forwarding. These websites also provide online registration for both attendees
and exhibitors. Those who wish to register for the International Technical Textiles Congress may do
so at www.technicaltextiles2007.com.
For more information about Hightex
2007 and Safetech 2007, contact Teknik Fuarcilik Ltd. +90 212 541 92 34; fax +90 212 599 38 82;
info@hightex2007.com; www.hightex2007.com, www.teknikfuarcilik.com. For more information about the
International Technical Textiles Congress, contact Dokuz Eylul University +90 232 388 28 69; fax 90
232 388 78 67; tekniktekstil2007@deu.edu.tr; www.technicaltextiles2007.com.
September/October 2007