KINGSPORT, Tennessee — Eastman (NYSE: EMN) today announced a formal strategic partnership with Huafon Chemical to establish a joint facility to produce cellulose acetate yarn. The facility will be dedicated to localized production and product innovation of Eastman Naia™ cellulose acetate filament yarns in China.
“China is the world’s largest textile supply chain hub and a frontier for product and technology innovation,” said Ruth Farrell, general manager of Eastman’s textiles business. “This strategic partnership will provide us with greater capacity and further enhance the innovation and product development capabilities of Naia™ yarn while enabling Eastman to fulfill its brand promise of making sustainable textiles accessible to all.”
This collaboration demonstrates Eastman’s long-term commitment to the Chinese market and further deepens its market presence in China by enabling a more agile supply chain response to meet the market demand for high-quality, innovative and sustainable textile materials in the region.
“Through cooperation with Eastman, we look forward to combining local advantages with international resources to achieve a fully localized chain — from technological innovation, product development and production to service — and jointly promoting the sustainable development of the textiles industry,” said Congdeng Yang, director of the Huafon-Eastman collaboration program.