Collaborating on a Career of a Lifetime

Excellence is something to celebrate, especially for those who have used their career achievements for the benefit of the others. The nonwovens industry is known for its collaborative and innovative professional community who persistently push the envelope on materials, technology, education, and applications for nonwoven solutions. Each year, INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, honors individuals who have accomplished all of this, and more. IFJ caught up with this year’s honorees to discuss their careers. Each one cites their peers as the defining factor to their successful work life.

Service to others is the highest form of career dedication. Throughout her career, Jan O’Regan could always be depended upon to volunteer her time and talents for the advancement of nonwoven applications.

As Director, Strategic Initiatives and Nonwovens Marketing, for Cotton Incorporated, she uncovered new opportunities for cotton to bring value into the nonwovens industry. Her work included leading efforts in strategic planning, technical and market project management, and sharing new ideas and results with the global supply chain.

She started her trek by earning a BS in Textiles and Business, summa cum laude, from Penn State University and an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Serving and volunteering with INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, for decades, O’Regan most recently chaired the World of Wipes® committee, which she efficiently organized to produce innovative conferences for the wipes industry. She was a frequent speaker at INDA, INSIGHT, EDANA, and other events, and for nearly two decades was a “go to” source of information for cotton fibers in nonwovens and hygiene.

Of her recent award, she said, “INDA’s Lifetime Service Award is an honor that belongs to a very, large group of industry professionals who over years have volunteered time, effort, and intelligence, with a sense of humor, for the benefit of the nonwovens industry. To be a team member with everyone has been a highlight of my career. Receiving this honor is something I never imagined.”

O’Regan spent over four decades in the nonwovens industry in various roles, including sales, marketing, strategic planning and business management. She notes her proudest accomplishment to be, “Opening doors for natural fibers in an industry engineered for compatibility with synthetic raw materials of defined specifications was a challenge. The opportunity to be a part of this evolution was extremely gratifying.”

Her market responsibilities included consumer and industrial markets on regional, national, and global teams. In recent years, she applied these broad experiences to new markets for cotton in nontraditional applications. Marketing is an important part of corporate strategy and her work directly contributed to the growth of cotton in nonwovens. “My first assignment with Cotton Incorporated involved research to determine if there was a place for cotton in the nonwovens industry. I must admit to lucky timing. This happened when the baby wipes market was growing very quickly. Marketing strategic ideas about cotton through consumer, technical, sustainability and economic research was crucial to stimulating interest in the potential for business success and motivating organizations to overcome the technical challenges.”

Along the way as the notion of sustainability grew, she witnessed the industry’s adoption of new mindsets. “Fifteen years ago seems like a lifetime ago! In the nonwovens industry, then, products and materials were promoted as sustainable when the particles were small enough to be ‘unrecognizable in the environment.’ That was a beginning,” she notes. “Over time, our global industry has evolved to embrace the complexities of sustainability throughout the supply chain. Today, there is a wealth of information to consider from how raw materials are produced through to end of life and/or next life for end products.”

She offers this advice to those blazing their own career path: “No one can do it all alone. Success is built upon a community. Make friends. Provide thought-provoking ideas. Listen. Share. Be willing to work hard at what you believe in. And ... enjoy the ride!”

Dr. Seshadri Ramkumar, Ph.D., has led a distinguished career built upon a strong foundation in academics and research with nonwovens in the United States and India. Recognized with the 2023 INDA Lifetime Technical Achievement Award, the association points to Ramkumar’s over twenty-five years of experience within the technical nonwovens space. As Professor, Nonwovens & Advanced Materials Laboratory conducting industry leading research and educating nonwovens professionals at Texas Tech University (TTU), in Lubbock, Texas, he is known for establishing the university’s Nonwovens Laboratory. Many of Ramkumar’s students have gone on to become technical leaders within their organizations and the nonwovens industry.

“The recognition by INDA shows that our industry values academic research and the collaboration between academia and industry,” says Ramkumar. “More importantly, as many of the students from academia are gainfully employed in the nonwovens and advanced textiles sector, the recognition is for all the students who have worked with me and enabled to advance the field. The award is for all the students from our laboratory, who are the pillars of the industry.” He continues, “We learn from students – which is an important aspect of my work on a daily basis. Many new ideas evolve based on student interactions. Interacting with energetic and enthusiastic students serves as motivation for me and academics in general.”

Ramkumar led his team in groundbreaking research leading to innovations that he says are his proudest career highlight to date. “Translation of research from our laboratory that finds use in the fields of human health, environmental safety, and personnel protection are of what I am most proud,” he says. “More importantly, our work such as FiberTect® and cotton-based nonwovens for toxic chemical decontamination and oil absorption have become very useful, which is humbling for us.”

FiberTect® is a three-layer, inert, flexible, drapable, nonwoven composite substrate for absorbing and adsorbing chemical warfare agents, toxic industrial chemicals, toxic industrial materials, and pesticides. It is com- monly used as the fabric of a handworn mitt or packaged wipes used primarily in emergency response. It has also been recognized by the American Chemical Society as a notable success of federally supported innovation, endorsed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and adopted by multiple branches of the government.

Providing insight into global nonwoven industry growth, he says, “The COVID-19 timeframe has clearly highlighted the usefulness and the need for advanced textiles such as nonwovens. With the help of INDA, we created awareness of the nonwovens sector in India way back in 2007. Today, this sector is receiving patronage from the Government of India and the advanced textiles sector is recognized as a growth engine in India.”

Ramkumar advocates that professionals surround themselves with peers as much as possible. “A career is always filled with ups and downs. Interaction with industry professional and fellow academics is very important in progressing. Associations like INDA enables people to progress, so it important that we engage in professional associations. Not only professional associations, but outreach and engagement with community is also important. These have helped me, and I would certainly encourage active participation with professional societies and the community.”

In addition to many peer-reviewed publications, articles, and columns (collectively over 500), including one on nanofibers that has been cited over 2,100 times, Ramkumar has contributed his expertise on the editorial boards of multiple fiber, nonwoven, and textile journals. He holds three patents and several invention disclosures.

Ramkumar has also organized conferences for nonwovens and textiles and actively promoted INDA and its technical training offerings for over 15 years. His work in India, organizing conferences and workshops, has helped to elevate India’s nonwoven textiles on the world stage.

He is a longtime member of the INDA Technical Advisory Board, been recognized by TAPPI, Society of Dyers and Colorists (UK), the Textile Institute (UK), and the Textile Association (INDIA), and received numerous awards from TTU.

Ramkumar holds a Bachelors of Technology (Textiles), Graduated with Distinction, and a Masters of Technology (Textiles), University First Rank in the Discipline, Anna University, India and a Ph.D. (Textile Materials) from the University of Leeds, UK.

The contributions to industry made by Ed Thomas take on many forms, which is being recognized by INDA in the form of its 2023 Lifetime Technical Achievement Award. “Being recognized by my peers is perhaps the most rewarding part of this,” he says. “I can get great satisfaction from accomplishing a task, especially if the solution is novel, but to be recognized by my peers for years of effort in the industry is, to me, quite remarkable and humbling. It has been a true pleasure to participate in and contribute to the technical advances that make nonwovens such an exciting industry.”

Thomas retired after 39 years, with 32 years in the nonwovens industry, and has remained active teaching the Intermediate Nonwovens Training Course for INDA and The Nonwovens Institute at North Carolina State University, as well as providing consulting services to the industry.

As an educator, the excitement of learning something new is a driving force. “Without exception, everyone in the courses is there to learn something new and their appetite is obvious. I enjoy watching them absorb the information, answering their questions, sharing personal insights and relative experiences, and very often watching them experience an ‘ah ha’ moment. This is when the light comes on and they now have something they can take back and use to advance their own or their company’s future.”

Thomas’ corporate experience includes Process Engineering Manager and Plant Management, DuPont; Technical Director, Reemay; VP of Research and Operations, VP of Operations and Technology, and Global VP of Research and Development for Fiberweb/BBA Nonwovens; and Head of Research and Product Development, First Quality Nonwovens.

He holds 10 U.S. nonwoven patents and he and his teams have been awarded more than 250 patents for numerous and diverse innovations that have played significant roles in the success of the nonwovens industry. These include applications for the global hygiene market, industrial nonwovens, and filtration media.

During his career, he led multiple teams to create textile solutions for various customers. “Most of my personal patents involved meltspun nonwovens, although my diverse teams were engaged in most of the nonwoven technologies,” he notes. “As a nonwoven producer, we constantly examined the industry trends looking for unmet needs whether they were articulated by a particular customer. In some cases, we would analyze competitive offerings and develop alternative options. Obviously intellectual property issues were forefront. In some cases, the customer’s goal or objective was either not well defined or only partially disclosed.”

In an industry where information is held tightly to remain competitive, he reflects on his team collaborations, “This ‘over the transom’ development as we called it was challenging. A particularly memorable experience was a discussion with a customer about a new material they were looking for; not a competitive replacement or something they had already prototyped themselves. We started with the basic physical and performance characteristics they were looking for and in a collaborative effort, came up with viable solutions by integrating our prior developments. In many cases, a novel idea is generated by an individual and, in some cases, by a small group of collaborators. But once the idea is reduced to practice, scaleup and commercialization, it requires different sets of skills, so that’s how we formed our teams. Activity would be transferred between team members as the work progressed.”

Thomas also has presented several keynote addresses and papers to industry conferences, participated in North Carolina State University’s Nonwovens Cooperative Research Center (NCRC) prior to it becoming The Nonwovens Institute (NWI), INDA’s Technical Advisory Board, INDA’s Sustainability Committee, and was Vice Chair of NWI’s Industrial Advisory Board prior to retirement and remains an Emeritus member. He is also a Vietnam veteran and received his mechanical engineering degree from SUNY Buffalo.

A highlight of his career is difficult to single out. “Perhaps it is this award,” he notes. “All our careers are filled with highs and lows but having the ability and responsibility to play from the initial conception to the ultimate manufacturing of novel and valuable materials is exhilarating. But leading an international group of scientists and engineers that collaborated closely with each other to deliver impressive results and being referred to as a wizard by a chief executive is high on the list.”

In the end, it is people he credits for his success, and he encourages others to put people first. “Manage by a set of principles and consistency rather than rules. Focus on each individual’s strengths, which builds powerful teams that can do more than any single person. Not all new ideas will be broadly accepted, so be passionate about yours and get creative about ways to convince others how your organization will excel with them.” pportunity” is a key word that Jim Robinson uses to describe his career, as he reflects on being a 2023 recipient of INDA’s Lifetime Technical Achievement Award. “Over my entire career I found the industry to be filled with opportunities to help people solve problems and to mutually share with them the technical understanding of our engineered products. I had fun many more days than not and, along the way, got to meet so many fine people and develop lasting, rewarding relationships.”

“Receiving this is especially gratifying,” he continues. “It means that what you have spent a career doing and enjoying has made a difference that others appreciate.”

With a long and full career comes many highlights. Choosing one that stands out is difficult, says Robinson. “When you reflect on over 35 years of technical work, it is hard to select one thing. Further, no accomplishment is achieved alone, and I have been fortunate enough to be able to collaborate with many talented people. I think what I am most proud of in general is having the opportunity and good fortune to help a lot of really great people solve problems.”

Jim Robinson has 33 years in the absorbent hygiene industry, including 28 years as a Technical Service Manager at BASF. He led technical teams that focused on the application of superabsorbent polymers (SAP) in hygiene products. Robinson has extensive knowledge of SAP applications, absorbent core formation, and hygiene article design, performance and testing. While with BASF, Robinson led efforts with multiple external companies to provide co-supplier solutions to hygiene converters. Robinson has a BS in Chemistry from HampdenSydney College and an MS in Chemistry from Duke University.

“My work was always lab based, customer interactive support for a wide group of diaper producers,” he says. “Since I started in the 90’s, the industry underwent heavy consolidation which has continued to this day. However, we are also witnessing a new growth in boutique or specialty producers that is beginning to stratify the market again.

The one change that I feel has stifled the pace and opportunity for innovation is that diaper producers used to let you on the production floor and to be part of trial work. It was very collaborative and helped suppliers quickly solve issues. Now, floors are off limits and collaboration is not as strong.”

Robinson’s extensive understanding of test methods and test method development led to his coordinating the establishment of fitness for use standards of adult incontinent products with the National Association for Continence and involvement in development and review of absorbent product test methods with INDA/EDANA.

He is also an active contributor to INDA’s Technical Advisory Board and Hygienix organizing committee and was a contributing developer in establishing the INDA Absorbent Hygiene Training Course. Robinson has provided numerous presentations at INSIGHT, Hygienix, and RISE on performance and interactions of absorbent system components.

Recently, Robinson has been consulting and contributing to the success of multiple start-ups including those having been nominated for INDA product awards.

As an instructor in hygiene training, potential comes to mind. “The folks that participate in my class always impress me with having a thirst to learn. There is an element of surprise at times when the complexity of a diaper or other hygiene product is revealed. Then, as we peel back the layers and explore the topics that drive product performance, you can see the understanding that happens in a visible way. That’s fun. Some of the participants will surely drive the future of the industry, while others may just be passing through. They all have the common interest of gaining and applying knowledge.”

His advice for a fullfilling career is simple. “Hang out with people who a smarter than you. Hang out with people who are very different than you. Give credit to others. Don’t talk a lot; rather, listen and listen with empathy.”

By Seshadri Ramkumar, Ph.D.

Nonwovens and Advanced Materials Laboratory, Texas Tech University

Seshadri Ramkumar, Ph.D., is professor of nonwovens and advanced materials at Texas Tech University. He is a member of Technical Advisory Board at INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry. He was the immediate past chair of the Nonwovens Engineers & Technologists (NET) Division of TAPPI, and he publishes a column called TexSnips. He can be reached at s.ramkumar@ttu.edu.