Can we begin with memorable episodes of your Company’s textile journey?
FISIPE is a producer of acrylic fiber - a raw material for the textile industry, operating since 1976. The period of its life with a bigger success was the 80’s, when the Portuguese textile industry, as well as the European, was strong and successful. At the beginning FISIPE sold 100% of its production in the domestic market and nowadays we export 95% of our products to the whole world.
For our visitors/ members, can you please name your company’s products and their application in textile industry sector-wise? Do you have products to be offered to Performance Textiles/Non Wovens sector?
FISIPE gradually developed from a manufacturer of standard textile fibers (raw staple, tow and top) to a producer of special acrylic fibers: pre-dyed fibers, functional fibers and fibers for technical applications.
Today our products are: FISIVON (staple, tow and top); Black FISIVON (a dope-dyed pigmented fiber using the carbon black pigment); Sunlast (an excellent sunlight and weather resistant fiber); Colour FISIVON (a gel-dyed fiber in a wide range of colors); Pil-Clean (a fiber with excellent anti-pilling results); Pluma (a fiber with a modified cross-section that provides bulkiness effects and an outstanding soft touch); Flat (an excellent imitation of fur with an incredible natural look and very high softness); Paper+ (a fiber with FDA approved finish); Pulp+ (ideal for the fibrillation process); Filter+ (a high tenacity fiber ideal for industrial filtrations); Asphal+ (to be used in bituminous mixtures) and Binder+ (to be used in plaster and cementitious matrices).
Globally, what is market scenario of synthetics fiber?
Very complicated, especially for the acrylic sector in view of the extremely high prices of its raw materials that cuts down the competitiveness of the acrylic fiber towards polyester and cotton.
Please elaborate the ethos behind six C’s mentioned in the presentation of your Company’s website?
Six C’s mean: Competence, Cooperation, Communication, Celerity, Credibility and Consistence. FISIPE’s number one characteristic as a company is its flexibility and its innovation and development capacity, which is evident in the diversity of products that we offer to the market.
What are your views on market potential and upcoming trends in technical textiles?
The technical textiles market shows a great potential and is the right track to follow for every textile company of the industrialized world.
How would you express your concern for rise in crude oil prices, and what will help FISIPE to maintain an upper hand on the market share?
As I already mentioned, the current price levels of the oil and other petrochemical products are our greatest concern and the only way to resist them is to make higher added value products, namely for technical applications.
If we talk about challenges, what all issues would you point out particularly for European synthetic fiber industry?
The synthetic fibers industry in Europe will continue to diminish, as happened in the United States. The future remains only in the fibers for technical uses.
Investing on R&D and extension of product portfolio is mainstay for success in the industry. How about R&D division of FISIPE? How tuned is it with the pace of technology?
FISIPE lays its hopes on its R&D Division as well as in its pilot plant. In this activity we have at present about 10% of our total staff and all the members of this team are highly qualified.
To make the world a better place, how well does FISIPE render its responsibilities towards environment protection and CSR?
In 1994 FISIPE voluntarily joined the Responsible Care Program of the European Chemical Industry and has consistent plans for the improvement of its environmental performances, which as a matter of fact is controlled by independent auditors.
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
