Flocus™ offers eco-responsible innovation for the leather goods and footwear industry

Flocus™, the trademark for kapok fibers, provides a variety of kapok textile materials such as fibers, yarns, fabrics, and nonwovens. The company offers the most efficient and low-carbon footprint solutions based on Flocus™ kapok for the leather goods industry, a sector that is making significant strides toward sustainability in terms of processing and raw materials.

In terms of nonwovens, among their most popular products in the leatherware industry are: – Maliwatt – 50% Kapok, 50% PLA (based on corn), a 100% biodegradable non-woven that can be used in shoe soles. Maliwatt can be Thermo pressed/heated pressed into a paper/cardboard structure that is lightweight. Because of its quick-drying, antibacterial, hydrophobic, hypoallergenic, and insulating qualities, it is ideal for sneakers, casual, and active shoes. Other common applications include automotive, construction, and vehicle panels, sound absorption and acoustics panels, and geotextiles.

Another product is HDE/Hydroentanglement – 50% Kapok, 50% Organic Cotton It is a completely natural and biodegradable substance that can be used in the shoe industry as a sole, innersole, or padding for shoes and bags. It is used for a wide range of applications due to its thermoregulating, lightweight, hypoallergenic, thermo-conductivity, insulation, soft-touch, hydrophobic, anti-moth, and anti-mite qualities. It is widely used in the clothing business as a cruelty-free filling for winter jackets, replacing duck down, and in the home sector as a stuffing for mattresses, duvets, furniture, and sleeping bags.

Flocus™ kapok-based fabrics in various blends and weights are also available for the leather goods industry as linings, coatings, fabric inserts, accessories, and components with high performance and style. Kapok and organic cotton with GOTS certification, kapok with Tencel and recycled polyester (Repreve), kapok with linen, organic cotton, and a small amount of Spandex, to name a few.

These materials were displayed at Lineapelle’s September 2021 edition in the exhibition “A New Point of Materials,” which was dedicated to eco-responsible advances in technology, applications, materials, and machinery.