BASF will be participating at the ITMA Asia + CITME 2008 exhibition in Shanghai from July 27 - 31 (Hall E3, Stand C19). Visitors will be able to see and discuss about the wide range of ecological solutions for the textile industry under the three key aspects of ecology that are consumer safety, resource saving and climate protection.

“Ecology is certainly not new to BASF, but a special focus on consumer safety, resource saving and, especially, climate protection is crucial as this will be a major challenge to the textile industry in the near future,” explains Janardhanan Ramanujalu, Head of Global Business Management Textile Chemicals, BASF South East Asia Pte. Ltd. “By doing so, we want to continue shaping the future of the textile industry together with our customers,” he adds.

BASF has been committed to the sustainable development of the textile industry for over 100 years. “Putting *FUTURE into Textiles” is the name given to this course, emphasizing BASF’s commitment to continue offering solutions that contribute to better textiles and a better future.

At the fair, BASF will present its innovative ecological solutions and how they are “Putting *FUTURE into Textiles”, such as:

Consumer Safety

Formaldehyde-free textile processing: Formaldehyde has been under scrutiny for many years. The regulatory standards, as well as requirements of retailers and brands are becoming increasingly strict. BASF contributes to a peace of mind of customers by offering solutions that ensure zero “add-on” of formaldehyde to textiles while fulfilling the highest quality standards. Dyeing, printing and finishing are the sources of formaldehyde in textile processing. These can be replaced with BASF’s formaldehyde-free solutions, such as the formaldehyde-free Helizarin® pigment printing system for printing and Fixapret® NF for formaldehyde-free easy care finishing.

Resource Saving

Cyclanon® ECO Plus is a bio-eliminable solution for reduction clearing. When applied under acidic condition, there are no additional steps required for adjusting the pH level. This leads to significant savings in time, water and energy. Additional benefit to the environment: due to the increased productivity in comparison to alkaline based reduction clearing process, the overall effluent is reduced.

Helizarin® ECOSOFT Printing System is the solution for customers seeking for an eco-efficient printing solution. It significantly reduces the consumption of water and energy compared to reactive printing due to its shorter processing time. Helizarin® ECOSOFT Printing System also shows outstanding performance in terms of soft feel, brilliance and excellent fastness.

Super Performance Finish: BASF has been the pioneering inventor of resin finishing that allows clothes to look good without any ironing. Non-iron finishing offers not only comfort to end-consumers, but contribute to reducing the usage of energy for ironing. However, as fabrics finished with resin lose tensile and tearing strength, they encountered abrasion problems, especially in the necklines and cuffs of a finished garment. The latest innovative solution from BASF – Super Performance Finish – can solve these problems. On top of improved strength and excellent abrasion resistance, the finished garment fulfills the highest quality standards. The garments look new for longer with very good shape retention, anti-crease property and the superb anti-abrasion feature giving a longer life-cycle compared to conventional resin finishing. Non-iron and longer life-cycle: the smartest choice for resource saving.

Climate Protection

Carbon footprint of textiles: In order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to climate protection, one must first understand the impact textiles – from production to disposal – have on climate change. Carbon footprint of specific textiles can be measured by utilizing the results from BASF’s Eco-efficiency Analysis. By determining the impact – carbon footprint, potential for reducing carbon emissions can be evaluated applying BASF’s eco-efficient products and solutions. For example, BASF Color Fast Finish is a one-step process of pigment dyeing and finishing that shortens the total processing time significantly. This reduces energy and hot water use and thereby carbon dioxide emissions.

About BASF Textile Chemicals

The Textile Chemicals business unit of BASF offers textile auxiliaries for weaving, pretreatment and dyeing, as well as comprehensive solutions for pigment printing, finishing and textile coatings. BASF products are manufactured and marketed worldwide. BASF is one of the leading suppliers in these fields. More information on our website: www.basf.com/textile.

About BASF

BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from oil and gas to chemicals, plastics, performance products, agricultural products and fine chemicals. As a reliable partner BASF helps its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF has more than 95,000 employees and posted sales of almost €58 billion in 2007. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN).

Source: www.basf.com