Hyosung to expand in Turkey to up global spandex capacity to 221,000 tons

[Photo provided by Hyosung]

South Korea’s leading textile company Hyosung Corp. announced on Tuesday it would be investing $27 million to beef up capacity from its spandex operation in Istanbul, Turkey, by 5,000 tons amid increasing demand from European and Middle Eastern markets.

After it completes expansion in Turkey by the first half of next year, annual spandex capacity would reach 25,000 tons. By then, it would also be ready to open a new factory in Quzhou, China, with annual capacity of 16,000 tons. The company’s total global spandex output capacity would be ramped up to 221,000 tons next year.

In 2009, Hyosung built a spandex factory in Çerkezköy, Tekirdağ, about 100 kilometers away from Istanbul. Due to sharp increase in spandex from Europe and the Middle East, the textile company decided to construct a new factory on a site of 87,000 square meters near the existing factory. The company expects its market share of creora®, Hyosung’s spandex brand, to grow to over 31 percent after the capacity increase.

“We would make ceaseless efforts to increase the supply of spandex and develop products to meet the customers’ demand at the same time,” said Cho Hyun-Joon, president of the company.

Spandex is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is widely used for underwear, swimsuits, jeans and sportswear, as well as diapers and gloves for industrial use. It has been recently used in hijab, traditional clothe of Islamic women.

The textile company developed spandex with its own technology for the first time as a Korean company in 1992 and, since then, it has targeted the global market. The company has topped global market share in spandex for the last six years.

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