Toray Targets Athleisure Market With Newest Primeflex

April 12, 2019

The 4-way Stretch of PRIMEFLEX With a Smoother, Softer Hand

Friday, April 12, 2019 — Toray has added a new, innovative iteration to its PRIMEFLEX family of stretch textiles.

By employing “Nanodesign” to control the cross-sectional shape of the composite fiber, Toray has succeeded in creating a microfiber PRIMEFLEX polyester. The result is a thin core-sheath structure and a fine comosite yarn with a single filament count of 0.8 denier or less.

The single filament fineness provides a flat surface appearance, a smooth touch and a soft hand feel, all with the 4-way stretchability that PRIMEFLEX is known for.

The spiral yarn provides the flex, which allows the fabric to stretch and recover without using heavier water-absorbing elastics like Spandex or Lycra. Benefits include outstanding breathability, abrasion resistance and a softer feel against your skin, all in a much lighter package.

The result is a textile that hits the sweet spot Toray calls the “Soft-fit Zone”, ideal for the athleisure category, between the “Hard-fit Zone” of a fabric like Spandex and the “Loose-fit Zone” of reular textured yarn.

The use of a bio material derived from corn also uses less water during processing.

Debuting in 2010, the original version of PRIMEFLEX was a stretchable polyester with a bimetal structure.

PRIMEFLEX 2.0 was a bi-component nylon version, offering a 50% improvement in 4-way stretchability compared to competitive offerings, and a high degree of moisture absorbency.