Hwasung International Invests in Empel, Water and PFAS Free Textile Finishing Technology

First for water and PFAS-free textile finishing platform in South Korea. Green Theme Technologies (GTT), headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and the supplier of the Empel water-free and PFAS-free textile finishing platform, is partnering with South Korean-based global textile innovator Hwasung International.

Hwasung is the first South Korean mill to offer the Empel high performance technology to global footwear brands and regional mill customers. Known globally for providing high performance textiles that incorporate functional yarns such as Dyneema, Kevlar and Cordura, Hwasung will now broaden its high performance and sustainable offerings by scaling Empel into its global supply chain.

“Traditionally, the use of sustainable textile finishes for water repellency, anti-wicking and stain release meant a loss of performance, but not anymore,” said Martin Flora, president of global business development for GTT. “Forward thinking textile suppliers such as Hwasung have now realised that Empel not only increases sustainability, but also increases performance, creating a win-win for producers, their partner brands and the environment.”

GTT’s Empel platform can be applied successfully to a wide range of synthetic knitted, woven and nonwoven fabrics, including those that are traditionally hard to treat. The diverse list of Empel markets includes outdoor, footwear, automotive, furniture, workwear, athleisure wear and military and because no water is used during the treatment application, it can remove pollution and waste from any textile manufacturing process.