Archroma Celebrates 100 Years Of Sulfur Dye Innovation
Archroma celebrated 100 years of sulfur dye innovation at its manufacturing and research hub in Castellbisbal, near Barcelona in Spain.
The milestone was marked at an on-site ceremony attended by more than 250 guests, including officials from the Catalan government, current and former Archroma staff, key customers and others.
“Delivering consistent product quality and breakthroughs that have shaped the development of sulfur dyes, Archroma Castellbisbal has a heritage of excellence that has stood for a century,” CEO Mark Garrett said.
“The expert team here is now poised to lead the next wave of advancements in the textile industry with a goal to continue to enhance the effectiveness and eco-friendliness of sulfur dyes and dyeing processes,” he added.
The Castellbisbal site traces its roots back to 1921, when Joan Cardoner Vidal founded a dye manufacturing company that was bought by Sandoz, then acquired by Clariant, and then SK Capital to create Archroma.
Its breakthroughs have helped sulfur dyeing technology become a staple in the production of denim, casual wear and workwear fabrics over the past 100 years, with excellent colour fastness and cost-efficiency.
The Castellbisbal site is particularly known for the creation of Archroma’s Diresul RDT range in the 1980’s, which entered the market as the first low sulfide pre-reduced sulfur dyes.
Recently, Archroma developed the cutting-edge Diresul Evolution Black which enables a significant impact reduction in the dye synthesis, allowing for the creation of new black denim styles.
Among patented technologies from the Castellbisbal-based research team are the Diresul EarthColors and FiberColors dyes, which use waste from the food and textile industries respectively as raw materials.
