Invista to boost Lycra in China

By David Reed, UT EditorWichita, Kansas-Invista, which comprises many parts of the former DuPont fibres and intermediates businesses, announced that its board of directors has approved a new production facility for urethane-based elastomeric fibres in Foshan, in China's Guangdong province. The expansion, costing more than $100 million, will maintain the company's position as the world's largest producer of branded and generic spandex in the world, according to a 10 Sept. statement. It also creates more than 100 new jobs for the area, Invista added.Construction was expected to begin this autumn, as soon as all commercial agreements with local entities were in place. The plant will increase Invista's spandex capacity by 12 kilotonnes a year by mid-2006, but its capacity can readily be doubled, the statement indicated. The plant "will help us fill the escalating local demand for quality spandex and Lycra-branded apparel in China- offering products specifically designed for local producers," Invista added."