Toray Industries, Inc. (Chuo-ku, Tokyo; President & COO: Akihiro Nikkaku; hereinafter referred to as “Toray”) announced today that it would start selling MICROMAFIN™, an ultrafine nylon fiber with a delicate feel and superior softness. Toray in April started shipping the product to major apparel manufacturers, and it aims to achieve a sales volume of 25 tons in the first year on the market and 100 tons in three years primarily for making stockings and inner wears.

Toray succeeded in making the single yarn fineness of MICROMAFIN™ much finer than existing ultrafine nylon fibers. This fineness combined with the inherent flexibility of nylon gives MICROMAFIN™ its excellent texture.

MICROMAFIN™ is a new original yarn developed under the concept of “unforgettable fabric feel that makes you want to keep touching” and it sets itself apart from ordinary ultrafine nylon fiber by its delicate, fine and smooth feel. Its softness and drape characteristic produces a graceful and elegant texture as well as appearance, making it best suited for delicate products such as lingerie.

When used in textured yarn, MICROMAFIN™'s improved single yarn fineness enables precise cloth structure. It can also be used to develop thin and warm products as the fiber contains abundant layers of air within.

Close-up of yarn cross-section

Draping characteristics

(In both pictures: left side shows MICROMAFIN™ (56T-98F textured yarn) and right is conventional nylon (56T-40F textured yarn))

Toray developed and introduced an innovative facility, which enabled the production of MICROMAFIN™, an ultrafine nylon fiber that boasts the world's best single yarn fineness of 0.5 dtex^*2. A wide range of products using ultrafine nylon fiber with single yarn fineness of 1.0 dtex, called high-multi yarn, have been in the market for quite some time now. However, production and commercialization of nylon fiber with single yarn fineness below 1.0 dtex had been difficult, as it is harder to maintain the consistency along the fiber's length during production than polyester, in addition to it being prone to thermal degradation in the polymer melting process. Toray, in pursuing the ultimate yarn-making technology, succeeded in significantly improving the consistency along the fiber's length and in reducing the thermal degradation of polymer to the minimum, thus enabling mass production of stable ultrafine nylon fiber.

Under its long-term corporate vision “AP-Growth TORAY 2020,” Toray has identified the fibers and textiles business as one of its foundation businesses. The company intends to pursue the development of high value-added special yarns and continue to provide stable supply and offer products that meet the customer requirements.

Details of MICROMAFIN™ are as follows: