Corporate Press Release

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A new beauty concept for finishes Alcantara® has changed the concept of beauty.
Beauty cannot be sheltered away from use, especially when dealing with finishes and coverings. Alcantara® finishes are aesthetically pleasing, and long-lasting. Their appeal is not only visual but also sensorial, and they offer several functions. Alcantara® has created a new type of beauty - that needs to be experienced to be fully understood - and in doing so it has developed a great affinity with the high end, internationally-minded and selective consumer: the Alcantara® style is contemporary and focused on the high end.

The Product
An Alcantara® cover does not need any special maintenance treatment. It can be dusted with a brush or a vacuum cleaner. If it is removable, it can be machine-washed, using a neutral detergent and stains can be removed with water (a maintenance booklet is available for explanation on how to treat all types of stains).

Alcantara® Lab
Alcantara® Lab is the laboratory in which creative professionals and companies can play an active role into projects from the start; an experimental place where the potentials and the characteristics of the different materials are tested up to the concept creation of ad hoc solutions that can respond to all the required needs. The Alcantara® Lab coach is Giulio Cappellini, who can appreciate and share the passion for experimentation and for new challenges of the Alcantara® Lab like no other.

Alcantara® in furniture
When an object or a piece of furniture is covered with Alcantara® it becomes luminous and features seductive tones; the comfort of this material goes well beyond softness and it is characterized by sensuality, involvement and emotion – like no other. The most well known names of Italian and international design have understood the exclusive characteristics of Alcantara® and, also thanks to “bespoke” coverings, now use it to realize unique collections. Creative, functional, bright and versatile, Alcantara® enhances the value of any application and provides the environment with a welcoming atmosphere and with a touch of a very special style.

Alcantara® in automotive
Alcantara® has grown into a fundamental component of car design. The interest of the major international car makers into this material has grown throughout the years and it has provided forever newer, more surprising results. Only Alcantara® can turn a car trip into a real pleasure. Anti-static, breathable, anchoring, Alcantara® is now universally acknowledged as the material that can provide a car with a new intrinsic quality. Its functionality and strength make it perfect for intense use, while its elegance and comfort renew the pleasure of driving every day.
It can cover with prestige and refinement the interiors of any car, also underlining its styling and design and for this reason Alcantara® is selected by the most prestigious car brands who look for an exclusive touch for all their cars.

Alcantara® in Fashion
Alcantara® has always been a preferred material for the most prestigious fashion designers in the creation of both clothing and accessories. Alcantara® is used for the creation of complete garments or to give extra value through details and to provide preciousness and originality to the elements that make up a collection. Extremely important accessory brands use it constantly in their designs because they appreciate its capacity to fully interpret their expectations in terms of style and elegance.

Alcantara® and LifeStyle
Many emerging sectors explore the various uses of Alcantara® and create new generations of products for the most demanding consumers. Hence Alcantara® covered mobile phones and laptops were created.
In the field of yachting, designers select Alcantara® not only for its prestige but also for its resistance to the marine environments and because it is extremely breathable.
For its technological and wellness characteristics, Alcantara® is used by helmet producers who want to offer the best in terms of comfort and transpiration.

The company
In 2006, ALCANTARA S.p.A. had a turnover of approximately 80 million euro of which 89% was coming from outside Italy. The 2006 turnover showed a 2,9% increase from the 2005 results and a net gain before tax of 56%. In percentages, the total turnover can be separated into different sectors: 57,2% from the automotive sector, 29,9% from interior decoration and 11,9% from the fashion and accessories sector. Applications related to a more contemporary lifestyle, like electronics, are showing very promising developments. Research activities count for 4,5% of the total turnover.

Production
Alcantara® products are born in the Nera Montoro factory: 200,000 square meters in which everything is avant-garde. The production process is extremely high tech and very research focused, one of the most up-to-date ever conceived by the chemical-textile industry world-wide. It is heavily automated and all production phases are constantly monitored, from spinning to coloring. Concerned and motivated to minimize its impact on the environment, the company has developed and deployed an environmental policy that guarantees eco-efficiency levels that are higher than the ones that are established by law.

Alcantara® has also obtained the following certifications: UNI EN ISO 9001 since 1993 and ISO/TS 16949 since 2002 (provided by the ICIM, Istituto Certificatore Industria Automobilistica) for the automotive sector industries; UNI EN ISO 14001, provided by Det Norske Veritas for the conformity of the Environmental Management System to the requirements of international law; Öko-Tex Standard 100, that since 1994 testifies the non-harmfulness of the products when they come in direct contact with the user.

R&D
The Alcantara® Research and Development department is always at the forefront not only as far as materials are concerned. It also constantly looks into ways to review and enhance the existing development process and into creating new processes focused on future market opportunities. In pursuing these objectives, the R&D Department of Alcantara® is very receptive of all technological developments: for this reason, Alcantara® has very close relationships with the most important European universities who research in all fields related to its products. The Alcantara® Center for New Applications Development is structured in two areas. In the Behavioral Testing Lab, the actual performance of the product is tested. In the Application Technologies Lab, new technologies are studied and developed as well as new manufacturing processes. The Center for New Applications Development can modify the characteristics of the material in order to provide the client with original, perfectly calibrated applications, to respond to his expressed requirements.

The Showroom
Alcantara® has opened its first showroom in Milan, in via Mecenate 86. The showroom is structured as a fresh itinerary among the latest design trends, a voyage of discovery into furniture objects, surfaces, materials – all in one exhibition. A sensorial tale that is told through the objects that partnering companies have designed and developed and the contemporary world of Alcantara®.