South Asia Textiles partners with HeiQ Materials AG

• Partners with HeiQ Materials AG to use their textile technology HeiQ Viroblock on the knitted jersey fabric the company is producing a face mask program in the US
• HeiQ Viroblock NPJ03 is among the first textile technologies in the world to be proven effective against SARS-CoV-2 in the laboratory
• Tests conducted by Swiss textile innovator HeiQ with the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity in Melbourne, Australia (Doherty Institute) showed that treated fabric achieved 99.99% reduction of the virus in only 30 minutes

South Asia Textiles Ltd., a leading Sri Lankan textile manufacturer specialised in producing exceptional quality weft knitted fabric for leading brands across the globe and HeiQ Materials AG, a Swiss based global leader in textile innovation creating some of the most effective, durable and high-performance textile technologies currently available across the world, are collaborating to produce a specially treated fabric to be used for masks exported to the US.

South Asia Textiles’ knitted jersey fabric combined with HeiQ’s recently launched anti-viral and anti-microbial agent, HeiQ Viroblock NPJ03 was commissioned by a high-quality US brand working in close collaboration with partners in the US. 

Commenting on the partnership, South Asia Textiles Ltd. Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer Prithiv Dorai stated: “We are excited about the partnership with HeiQ and are hopeful that we can positively contribute towards the need of the situation. Our versatility and the ability to manufacture new technology enabled material within a short span of time is our key strength. The fact that we were nominated and selected for this project is a testament to consistency and superior quality standards that we maintain at South Asia Textiles.”

South Asia Textiles, a subsidiary of Ambeon Holdings PLC, commenced its commercial operations in 2004. The company also specialises in knitting, dyeing, finishing, printing, brushing, sueding and preshrunk fabric for leading global brands such as Victoria Secret, Next, Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Calvin Klein, Decathlon and Adidas.

“At a time when the world is battling to create a better place amidst current global pandemic, the Ambeon Group is pleased to be able to continue support towards the betterment of the people of  Sri Lanka and the world,” stated Ambeon Capital PLC and Ambeon Holdings PLC Group Managing Director Murali Prakash. 

“As a member of the Ambeon Group, South Asia Textiles is one of Sri Lanka’s leading manufacturer of textiles supplying to global brands, innovating products to suit various requirements that arise. As such it is with great pleasure that we partner with HeiQ, our trusted innovation partner who created HeiQ Viroblock, for these specialised masks which we believe will make a difference in this global fight against the Coronavirus pandemic,” concluded Prakash.

HeiQ is the global leader in textile innovation specializes in research, manufacturing and marketing of high-quality, high-performance textile finishing. The Swiss-based material science organization with offices, R&D centres and manufacturing facilities on four continents continues to serve brands and textile mills globally. 

The company’s latest innovation, HeiQ Viroblock is an antimicrobial/antibacterial/antiviral textile technology specially engineered to work against enveloped viruses, such as influenza viruses and human coronaviruses. 

HeiQ Viroblock is among the first textile finishing technologies that have been successfully tested against the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease, SARS-CoV-2, in the laboratory, using the Viral Stability and Persistence test method. HeiQ Viroblock treated fabrics showed over 99.99% reduction of SARS-CoV-2 viruses after 30 minutes. 

In the case of Sendai viruses, over 99.2% viruses are deactivated within two minutes based on modified ISO 20743 method. Compared to untreated face masks, HeiQ Viroblock treated FFP2 face masks showed greatly reduced virus infectivity of key virus types: H1N1, H5N1, H7N9, coronavirus (229E), and RSV in face mask testing.

VP South Asia Brandforce Musa Raibin stated: “The Team at South Asia Textiles is one of most skilled in the region, with the necessary openness and eagerness to pursue innovation at the right time. We had a seamless onboarding process with the finishing team going above and beyond to ensure that every requirement was met perfectly. It has been a pleasure working with the team so far and we hope to continue this smooth collaboration for many more years to come.”