Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, August 27, 1995 TAG: 9508250012
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: F4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAVID REED ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WAYNESBORO LENGTH: Medium
DuPont offered Lycra, a material that can stretch up to 500 percent and recover its original shape, as a solution to swimsuit droop. In the 35 years since, the fiber has woven its way into bust-boosting bras, form-fitting jeans, skin-tight athletic wear, men's suits and even shoes.
Now, DuPont is expanding the Virginia plant that first produced Lycra and building two more factories overseas. In addition, competitors are increasing the volume of elastic fiber - known in the trade as spandex - that they produce. That expansion comes despite a global glut of spandex.
``We see the future of Lycra in constantly finding new uses, new markets,'' said Salim Ibrahim, an inventor of the fabric.
Don Bocovan, manager of DuPont's Waynesboro plant, said the company wants to be sure there is plenty of Lycra on hand when supply falls back into line with demand.
For 20 years, DuPont had the spandex market virtually to itself and remains the dominant producer. The fabric is blended in amounts ranging from 2 percent to 30 percent with such fibers as cotton, silk, wool and nylon to produce cloth appropriate for any garment.
In wool and cotton sweaters, for example, a bit of spandex can keep the sleeves and waistlines from getting loose after a few trips through the washing machine.
Ibrahim said DuPont has invested $1 billion in the past five years in support of the Lycra business. In 1987, he and a team of engineers and scientists began trying to improve on Lycra, right down to its molecular structure.
Last year, DuPont introduced a wavy triangular tag bearing the Lycra brand name and tried to have clothing makers display it in stores on garments that use the fiber. The campaign featured fashion designers who used Lycra in clothing, including Gianni Versace, Donna Karan and Richard Avedon.
``It's a mark of quality that helps garment manufacturers and retailers know what they are buying,'' said DuPont marketing strategy director Elizabeth Browning.
Ibrahim estimates Lycra is woven into more than $50 billion worth of apparel sold in retail stores around the world. Men's wear accounts for only about 10 percent of the market.
With nine plants worldwide, DuPont annually produces about half of the world's 160 million pounds of spandex. New DuPont plants in China and Singapore will use the same technology as the Waynesboro plant and produce another 10 million pounds each year.
Three weeks before the spring groundbreaking in Waynesboro, Bayer Co. announced the opening of a new spandex plant in Charleston, S.C. The other U.S. supplier, Globe Manufacturing, also increased its capacity.
Browning said she thinks DuPont can stay ahead of the competition by forming apparel industry partnerships and launching new products.
``It's differentiation we're looking for,'' Bocovan said. ``We want people to go in a store and look for Lycra, not generic spandex.''
by CNB