DePoly and Celanese Showcase NEOLAST™ Collaboration at PERFORMANCE DAYS Advancing the Future of Recyclable Performance Stretch Fabrics

DePoly and Celanese showcased their collaboration around NEOLAST™ at the Functional Fabric Fair by PERFORMANCE DAYS in Munich on 18–19 March 2026, highlighting a shared vision for making high-performance stretch textiles compatible with circular recycling systems.

The collaboration addresses one of the textile industry's most persistent circularity challenges: elastane-containing fabrics. While elastane is widely used to provide stretch, comfort and performance, it remains a significant barrier to textile-to-textile recycling. NEOLAST™, developed by Celanese, was presented as an innovative alternative designed to support both performance and future recyclability.

Throughout the event, visitors had the opportunity to learn how Celanese’s advanced fiber technology and DePoly’s chemical recycling process can work together to support the development of circular polyester-based stretch textiles. The collaboration demonstrated how material innovation and advanced recycling technologies can help bridge the gap between performance requirements and circularity goals.

“Creating truly circular textiles requires collaboration across the entire value chain,” said Tijana Ivanovic, Senior Business Development Manager at DePoly. “Stretch fabrics remain one of the industry's biggest recycling challenges. Through partnerships like this, we are working to ensure that performance and circularity can go hand in hand.”

At the Celanese booth (IN11), industry professionals, brand representatives and material innovators engaged with the NEOLAST™ team and DePoly experts to discuss the future of stretch textiles and the importance of designing products with end-of-life recycling in mind.

The strong interest shown during PERFORMANCE DAYS reflected the growing momentum behind circular textile solutions and reinforced the need for cross-industry collaboration to tackle some of the sector’s most complex recycling challenges.

By combining expertise in advanced materials and chemical recycling, Celanese and DePoly continue to explore pathways toward scalable circular solutions for performance textiles. The collaboration represents another step toward a future where stretch fabrics can deliver both the functionality consumers expect and the circularity the industry increasingly demands.

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About DePoly

DePoly is a Swiss cleantech company specialising in advanced recycling of polyester and PET. Recognised as a 2024 Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum, and winner of the Top 100 Swiss Startup Award in 2024, DePoly challenges the status quo on textile and plastic waste management. Through its patented technology, DePoly has pioneered a solution to tackle all forms of PET and break it down to its building blocks (monomers of PET) called purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and mono ethylene glycol (MEG). The process yields products identical to oil-based counterparts that can be used to produce recycled PET and polyester, reducing the need for fossil fuels, reducing waste, and contributing to circularity in the textile and plastic industries.

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Press Contact

Zoë Pfiffer
PR Coordinator
media@depoly.co

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About Celanese

THERE’S MORE TO INNOVATION

Inspired by the power of chemistry and the possibilities it creates, Celanese exists to help customers solve challenges and unlock new opportunities. We develop specialty materials and innovative solutions that enable products people rely on every day.

We believe progress starts with collaboration, curiosity and a commitment to continuous improvement. From advanced materials to breakthrough applications, we help turn ideas into impact. Around the world, we partner with those who know that behind every great innovation, there's always more to discover.
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Press contacts

william.jacobsen@celanese.com