DE-LYCRA/DCC
9.5.2024 03:01:32 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
The LYCRA Company, a global leader in developing innovative, sustainable solutions for the apparel and personal care industries, announced today that it has signed a letter of intent with Dairen Chemical Corporation (DCC) to convert QIRA®—the next generation of 1,4 butanediol (BDO)—into low-impact PTMEG, the main ingredient in patented bio-derived LYCRA® fiber. Dairen will be the first company in the world to mass produce this low-impact bio-PTMEG at scale.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240509462079/en/
Left to Right: Steve Stewart, chief brand and innovation officer, The LYCRA Company, and Shean-Tung Lin, Chairman, Dairen Chemical Corporation (DCC), sign a letter of intent for DCC to convert QIRA® into low-impact PTMEG for bio-derived LYCRA® fiber. (Photo: Business Wire)
In September 2022, The LYCRA Company and Qore® announced they were joining forces to enable the production of bio-derived LYCRA® fiber made with QIRA®. Now, DCC joins this distinctive collaboration, converting QIRA® into bio-PTMEG. This unique PTMEG will make up the renewable portion of LYCRA® fiber, accounting for 70% of the fiber’s content. It is being made exclusively for The LYCRA Company to its stringent specifications. With its low-impact allyl alcohol process, DCC has pioneered a technology that creates the lowest-impact PTMEG available, which is cleaner and has a lower carbon footprint than product produced with natural gas or coal.1
The LYCRA Company, Qore®, and DCC are united by a shared commitment to R&D, health and safety, sustainability, and conservation. To mark this event, Steve Stewart, The LYCRA Company’s chief brand and innovation officer, presented DCC with a Green Partner Award. The award acknowledges DCC’s ongoing sustainability efforts and commitment to creating low-impact products.
“Our collaboration heralds a brand-new era of environmentally conscious production activities, fueled by our shared commitment to reducing carbon footprints and developing world-leading eco-friendly solutions,” said DCC’s chairman, Lin Shean-Tung. “Sustainability is not merely a trend, but an imperative for the future of our planet. We are honored to receive the Green Partner Award and embark on this journey alongside The LYCRA Company, advancing sustainable practices in the industry.”
Available in early 2025, patented bio-derived LYCRA® fiber made with QIRA® will be the world’s first renewable spandex available on a large scale. By using annually renewable dent corn, an initial screening calculation indicates that the carbon footprint of LYCRA® fiber potentially could be reduced by up to 44 percent2 compared to LYCRA® fiber without bio-derived materials. Further, the fiber will offer equivalent performance to traditional LYCRA® fiber, making it an easy replacement for mills, brands and retailers.
“We are excited to collaborate with DCC to bring bio-derived LYCRA® fiber made with QIRA® to market and realize our shared vision for a more sustainable value chain,” said Stewart. “Given the combination of using bio-derived input from corn, plus conversion at a state-of-the-art QORE® facility run on wind power, and transformation to PTMEG using DCC’s low-impact process, we anticipate the potential for additional reductions as we go into production.”
For many years, Dairen has demonstrated its sustainability efforts in raw materials management, waste elimination, process enhancement, innovations, and more. It has also achieved significantly lower carbon emissions in its product offerings than its competition.
“Sustainability has evolved from fulfilling requirements to being a competitive advantage,” said Simon Chuang, vice president of global sourcing and procurement at The LYCRA Company. “We’re committed to selecting, promoting, and expanding our business with supply partners like DCC who embrace and drive meaningful sustainability efforts.”
Visit lycra.com/qira to learn more about bio-derived LYCRA® fiber made with QIRA®.
1Estimate from Cradle-to-Gate Screening PCF for a representative DAIREN PTMEG manufacturing facility, year 2023, prepared by DNV Business Assurance Co., Ltd.
2Estimate from Cradle-to-Gate Screening LCA for a representative LYCRA® fiber manufacturing facility, June 2022, prepared by Ramboll Americas Engineering Solutions, Inc.
About The LYCRA Company
The LYCRA Company innovates and produces fiber and technology solutions for the apparel and personal care industries and owns the leading consumer brands: LYCRA®, LYCRA HyFit®, LYCRA® T400®, COOLMAX®, THERMOLITE®, ELASPAN®, SUPPLEX® and TACTEL®. Headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., The LYCRA Company is recognized worldwide for its sustainable products, technical expertise, and marketing support. The LYCRA Company focuses on adding value to its customers’ products by developing unique innovations designed to meet the consumer’s need for comfort and lasting performance. For more information, visit lycra.com.
About Qore® LLC
Formed through a joint venture by Cargill and HELM AG, Qore® helps leading brands replace fossil-based chemistries with bio-derived intermediates. At the heart of the joint venture is the production of QIRA®, the next-generation bio-derived 1,4-butanediol (BDO). Made biologically through the fermentation of plant-based sugars, QIRA® can save up to 86% of greenhouse gas emissions when replacing today’s widely used chemical intermediates made from traditional fossil sources. Bio-derived QIRA® can be used the same way as its fossil counterpart but with significantly better environmental performance. Qore® and QIRA® are trademarks of Qore® LLC. For more information and inquiries visit https://www.myqira.com/.
About Dairen Chemical Corporation (DCC)
Founded in 1979, DCC is a leading maker of acetyl and allyl chemicals. The company board has been chaired by Mr. Lin Shean-Tung since June 2019. DCC operates seven production sites in Asia and serves customers in more than one hundred countries. Major products include Vinyl Acetate Monomer, Vinyl Acetate Ethylene (VAE) Emulsion, VAE Redispersible Powder, Allyl Alcohol, 1,4-Butanediol and PTMEG. Headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, its productions sites are in Taiwan, China, Singapore and Malaysia. Under the leadership of Chairman Lin, DCC is expanding its international activities and enhancing its global presence.
LYCRA® is a trademark of The LYCRA Company.
QIRA® is a trademark of Qore®.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240509462079/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Rehlko Joins Wisconsin Data Center Coalition as Newest Energy Resilience Member, Reinforcing Its Role at the Center of AI and Digital Infrastructure Growth27.8.2026 15:15:00 CEST | Press release
Global Energy Resilience Leader Reinforces Its Role at the Center of AI and Digital Infrastructure Growth Through Mission-Critical Power Expertise Rehlko, a global industrial energy resilience platform providing custom-engineered, integrated power solutions for mission-critical infrastructure worldwide, today announced it has joined the Wisconsin Data Center Coalition (WIDCC) as the organization's newest energy resilience member. The membership reflects Rehlko's commitment to advancing Wisconsin's role as a leader in responsible AI infrastructure development, built on reliable and scalable power. Rapid growth in hyperscale and enterprise data center investment is reshaping markets across the world, and Rehlko is building the power infrastructure that makes it possible. Sitting at the intersection of the structural forces driving AI infrastructure expansion, grid reliability, and accelerating electrification, Rehlko brings more than a century of engineering depth and lifecycle capabilit
GenNx360 Capital Partners Closes Fourth Flagship Fund at $865 Million27.8.2026 14:30:00 CEST | Press release
Fund IV success is the result of two decades of proven performance backing lower middle market industrial services and business services companies GenNx360 Capital Partners (“GenNx360” or “the Firm”), a New York City-based private equity firm investing in U.S. lower middle market industrial services and business services companies, today announced the successful closing of GenNx360 Capital Partners IV, L.P. (“Fund IV” or “the Fund”), with $865 million in commitments, exceeding its target. Fund IV is the largest fund raised in GenNx360’s history. Fund IV was supported by a diverse group of existing and new investors including leading pensions, asset managers, insurance companies, foundations, and family offices, reflecting conviction in the firm’s disciplined investment approach, operational value creation model, and tenured, diverse team. Fund IV will continue GenNx360’s differentiated strategy of partnering with lower middle market founders and management teams to scale essential serv
Alipay Ant Forest Turns 700 Million Users’ Daily Green Actions into 700 Million Trees Over a Decade of Technology-enabled Environmental Program27.8.2026 14:02:00 CEST | Press release
Alipay Ant Forest, Ant Group’s green initiative that encourages people to participate in environmental protection through simple, everyday low-carbon actions, today announced that more than 700 million users across China have joined the program as of August 2026. Together, they have helped support the planting of over 700 million trees, contributing to ecological restoration efforts in some of China’s most arid and environmentally fragile regions. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260827995848/en/ Before (2019) and after (2026) comparison of Ant Forest Project No. 464 in Inner Mongolia. Launched in 2016 within the Alipay app, Ant Forest transforms individual environmental choices into collective climate action. When users make greener lifestyle choices, such as taking public transportation, cycling, paying bills online to avoid paper invoices, or choosing digital services, they earn virtual “green energy points”
Visa Expands Support for its Clients and the Industry as Organizations Navigate New AI Era of Cybersecurity27.8.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release
Latest Visa Vulnerability Agentic Harness release moves AI-powered cyber risk management from discovery to validated remediationNew services from Visa Consulting & Analytics help clients identify the vulnerabilities that matter most and act before bad actors do Visa (NYSE: V) today announced enhancements to its cybersecurity portfolio to help organizations identify and fix vulnerabilities more effectively. Unveiling the next evolution of the Visa Vulnerability Agentic Harness (VVAH), its open-source, model-agnostic framework, Visa is helping organizations significantly reduce the Mean Time to Adapt (MTTA), the time between discovery and resolution of attack paths, with some resolutions shrinking from weeks to hours. And to help clients navigate this evolving threat landscape, Visa also announced the expansion of its Visa Consulting & Analytics (VCA) Cybersecurity Advisory Practice with new advisory services designed to help clients assess risk, prioritize remediation efforts and streng
Omilia Appoints Michael Weiss as Vice President, DACH27.8.2026 14:00:00 CEST | Press release
Five9 veteran joins Omilia to lead go-to-market strategy across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland as the region's most regulated enterprises look past first-generation automation Omilia, a global leader in Self-Learning Agentic CX, today announced the appointment of Michael Weiss as Vice President, DACH. Weiss will lead Omilia's go-to-market strategy across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, as the company expands its European footprint, with a focus on regulated sectors where enterprise demand for AI that moves past pilot-stage containment is accelerating. In his new role, Weiss will be responsible for enterprise sales, partner development, and go-to-market execution across DACH, building the team and customer relationships needed to scale Omilia's presence in a market where large, heavily regulated enterprises have historically been slow to move off legacy IVR and first-generation AI. Weiss brings more than two decades of enterprise sales leadership in SaaS, cloud, and customer exper
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom