TO USE MORE WOOL

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32774, 26 November 1971, Page 14

TO USE MORE WOOL

Officers of the International Wool Secretariat who have come to Christchurch for the meeting of the research and development committee of the secretariat this week have had some good news for woolgrowers.

Dr G. Laxer, director of research and development, is convinced that growing use of the artificial crimping process in the United States is going to lead to a significant increase in the demand for New Zealand carpet wools.

Seven carpet mills there are now using the crimping process and more than 6m lb of New Zealand wool is being given this treatment this year. By the end of next year Dr Laxer says that there should be at least 30 crimping machines in the

U.S.A. and, on a conservative basis, in 1973 between 25m and 30m lb of New Zealand wool will be crimped. The big point about the process, which gives bulk to wool, increases its covering power and gives improved wearing qualities in tufted carpets, is that it enables satisfactory carpets to be retailed in the relatively low price range, which brings wool carpets into the area of greatest growth. The development of a flame-resist process for carpet wools has also given protection to at least 50m lb of carpet wools, which might otherwise be bringing very much lower prices than they are today. Also needle-bonded carpets and sliver-knit fabrics for coats and the liners of coats have started to come into commercial production this year and are already taking up 5m lb of New

Zealand wool. With the right sort of marketing activities in support of these end products Dr Laxer thinks that at least 20m lb could be consumed in each of these end products in the next two or three years. Mr Maiden also reported that with the opening of the Woolblendmark programme in support of wool-synthetic blends indications were that the pay-off would be much greater than had been expected with millions of lb weight of wool being consumed that would not otherwise have been the case. This will come from companies embarking on programmes with wool rich blends or going into blends with a higher proportion of wool, and as a spin-off from the successful Woolmark programme with pure wool, some companies are seeking to use the Woolblendmark without any monetary, support for their programmes.