Polartec®, the premium provider of innovative and sustainable textile solutions, announces the latest advancement of award-winning Polartec® Power Air™ fabric technology. The knit construction that encapsulates air to retain warmth and reduce fiber shedding is now made to be 100% recyclable and circular, and also 25% lighter than the initial product.
Polartec® Power Air™, launched last year with brands like Houdini, Adidas, Burton and NOBULL, is an innovative platform offering advanced thermal efficiency by encapsulating lofted fibers within a multilayer, continuous yarn fabric construction. Insulation that effectively regulates core body temperature has traditionally been achieved via lofted or high-pile knit structures that hold warm air. As the first fabric construction to encase air with a continuous yarn, initial versions of Polartec® Power Air™ are proven to shed at least five times less than other premium ‘mid-layer’ weight fabrics. The foundational technology platform will eventually provide shedding reduction to all existing apparel categories (including insulation, lightweight next to skin, and extreme weather protection).
“Polartec® Power Air™ is a step forward in reducing the environmental impact of what we make and wear,” says Steve Layton, President of Polartec®. “It’s a whole new experience with its distinctive aesthetics and drag-free, lively performance. We continue to tap into the potential of this new fabric construction, and we’re now able to make it fully recyclable and circular, while simultaneously making it lighter weight.”
The culmination of a multi-year development consisting of thousands of work hours and countless iterations, Power Air™ is a product of Polartec® Eco-Engineering™. Polartec® invented the process of knitting technical fleece from post-consumer plastic bottles in 1993, upcycling over one and a half billion bottles to date, and continues to lead the industry in offering durable fabric technologies made of recycled and recyclable content. Polartec introduced its 100% recycled Polartec® Power Fill™ insulation in 2018, which eliminates the need for wasteful and non-recycled carrying agents used in other insulation options. Now fully recyclable and circular Power Air™ is the latest product of the Polartec® Eco-Engineering™ mission to create fabrics that further reduce environmental impact.
Polartec® Power Air™ has received numerous awards around the world for its breakthrough future fabric construction technology. A full list of recognitions is below.
- ISPO Award 2020: Houdini Mono Air
- Outdoor Retailer Innovation Awards 2020
- Trail Magazine Ethical Choice
- ISPO TexTrends 2019 – BEST PRODUCT
- 2019 SKI Gear of the Year
- 2019 R&D 100 Award
- 2019 Sourcing Journal ‘Sustaining Voices’ Honoree
- EcoSport Awards
- Backpacker 2019 Editors’ Choice Awards – Green Award
- World Textile Information Network ‘Future Textile Award for Best Innovation: Sustainable Textiles‘
Crafted from recycled polyester and elasterell-polyester, 100% recyclable Polartec® Power Air™ fabric will become available to consumers in Fall 2020, when Swedish sportswear brand Houdini releases its Houdini Mono Air Half-Zip and Houdi products.
About Polartec
Polartec is the premium provider of innovative and sustainable textile solutions. Since inventing modern technical fleece in 1981, the engineers at Polartec continue to advance the science of fabric, creating fabric technologies that solve problems and improve the way products are designed and used. Polartec products range from lightweight wicking and cooling fabrics, to insulation and weather protection textiles, and are utilized by leading consumer brands, the U.S. Military and other global militaries, flame resistance, workwear, and contract upholstery markets. For more information, please visit Polartec.com and follow Polartec on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.