INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, wrapped up its 11th annual World of Wipes (WOW) International Conference, which took place from 12-15 June, with participants and board members giving the programme content, speaker presentations, and networking high praise.

"This year's WOW conference offered one of the best combinations of networking opportunities, conference content, quality of attendees, and meeting venues of all WOW events,” said Nick Santoleri, VP of Operations, Rockline Industries.

WOW 2017, held at the Gaylord Opryland Resort, Nashville, TN, attracted 476 participants from companies representing the entire wipes supply chain to discuss issues and advance business in this important and growing sector. Topics on tap included industry insights on “natural” opportunities in ingredients, emerging technologies, new regulations, consumer insights, market trends, and “flushability” from the most forward leaders in each category.

Dynamic growth

“This year’s strong turnout reinforces the dynamic growth in this segment. Wipes professionals from 20 countries convened for three days to make valuable business connections and up on the exceptional technology and continued innovation in this industry,” said Dave Rousse, INDA president.

Kicking off the conference was a blue-ribbon panel of sustainability experts from Walgreens Boots Alliance, Suominen, The Sustainability Consortium, Burt’s Bees, Rockline Industries and the Procter & Gamble Company, with global perspectives on wipes sourcing, communications, R&D, manufacturing, and environmental stewardship. 

“It was great to get a summary of regulatory and legal issues in a few hours of talks. It probably saved me days of reading and tracking down information,” said John F. Poccia III, Associate R&D Director, Platform Research Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc.

Speaker highlights

Speaker highlights included the keynote presentation Marketing Across Generations, by consumer psychologist Kit Yarrow, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Golden Gate University, who described the psychological differences by generation as a strategic aid in marketing wipes products more effectively. 

“The World of Wipes conference has become a nexus for professionals in wipes markets to meet, discuss, share, and enjoy the camaraderie in this important and growing global market,” said Janet O’Regan, Director Nonwovens Marketing, Cotton Incorporated.

INDA’s Wipes Academy

Preceding the conference, INDA’s Wipes Academy was conducted by instructor Rob Johnson, PE, Principal, Smith, Johnson & Associates.

Berry Plastics’ Chicopee Microfiber Floor Care System was the recipient of this year’s World of Wipes Innovation Award. Other finalists were Elsner Engineering’s Glueless Tail Tie for rolled wipes and Kimberly-Clark Corporation’s Huggies Natural Care Extra Sensitive Baby Wipes. The annual award recognises the product that most expands the use of nonwovens and demonstrates creativity, novelty, uniqueness, and technical sophistication within the entire nonwovens wipes value chain.

INDA announced that WOW 2018 will be held from 5-8 June, at the Sheraton Grand in Chicago, IL.

www.inda.org