Industry News
Milliken Naming Investment Fuels NC State Research In The Textile Protection And Comfort Center
A new $1.5 million investment from Milliken & Company will further elevate ground-breaking research at NC State’s Textile Protection and Comfort Center (TPACC) in Raleigh, North Carolina, through a five-year, fixed-term naming.
The newly named Milliken & Company Charitable Foundation Textile Protection and Comfort Center, housed within the Wilson College of Textiles, is poised to reach new heights. The center will continue to build on its global reputation for advancing innovation and enhancing comfort in high-performance protective apparel. This important work safeguards first responders, military personnel, and other frontline workers who depend on protective fabrics to keep them safe, secure, and able to perform in the line of duty.
- “This generous investment from Milliken & Company is a powerful affirmation of our shared mission to lead in textile innovation,” says David Hinks, Dean of the Wilson College of Textiles. “It will expand research in protection and performance, open doors for student discovery, and fuel the next generation of breakthroughs at the Milliken Textile Protection and Comfort Center.”
- David Darko, a sophomore textile engineering major, researches the effect of color on heat stress for firefighters by setting up the manikins outside in the sun to measure their physiological output.
- With 30 years of specialized expertise, TPACC remains the only academic center in the United States that researches, tests, and evaluates the comfort and protective performance of textile materials, garments, and ensemble systems in one location.
- As a global manufacturing leader focusing on the science of materials, Milliken produces specialty chemicals, flooring, and performance textile materials for a variety of industries, including household care, personal care, agriculture, and dyes.
- “Milliken and TPACC are aligned in a bold vision to develop breakthrough materials and technologies that shape the future of protective apparel textiles,” says Halsey Cook, president and CEO at Milliken & Company and chair of the Milliken & Company Charitable Foundation. “This collaboration reflects our deep commitment to purposeful textile innovation that impacts lives, transforms industries, and ensures that NC State remains a global leader in the field.”
- With government grants and industrial partnerships, TPACC innovates Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for first responders, and medical and military personnel.
- TPACC has generated nearly $80 million in research and technical service awards since its founding in 1994. Each semester, the center’s faculty and staff mentor 15 graduate students, with 60 students, on average, using the center’s 9,500-square-foot state-of-the-art laboratories, office, and collaboration spaces in TPACC-related courses.
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John Morton-Aslanis, research scholar and thermal lab manager, and Roger Barker, TPACC’s founder and director, run a test using the PyroMan, a life-size manikin used to evaluate the performance of thermal protective clothing, in the Milliken Textile Protection And Comfort Center on Centennial campus.
At the naming ceremony on April 4, key leaders of the expanded industry partnership shared a moment of celebration. From left to right: Burlington Distinguished Professor Roger Barker, founder and director of the newly named Milliken Textile Protection and Comfort Center; Halsey Cook, president and CEO of Milliken & Company; and Cone Mills Distinguished Professor David Hinks, dean of the Wilson College of Textiles.
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