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We’re happy to share the program for ITS Symposium 2025. Check out the information below to see what’s planned so far. Feel free to reach out with any questions!​

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Copper Sponsors:  

FilSpec Inc.,

PRIMED Medical Products​​

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Program

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Tuesday, March 18, 2025

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7:45 - 08:00 am MT        09:45 - 10:00 am EST

Greetings & Land Acknowledgements

Patricia Dolez, Chair, Symposium Committee

 

Textiles and Protection

 

08:00 - 08:30 am MT     10:00 - 10:30 am EST

From Leather to Advanced Engineering: Material Innovations in Helmets for Better Protecting American Football Players. Dr. Eric Wagnac, Professor, École de technologie supérieure

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08:30 - 09:00 am MT     10:30 - 11:00 am EST

Navigating the Challenge of Textile Selection in Exoskeleton Design and User Experience. Victoria Budico, Lead Human Factors and Ergonomics, Mawashi

 

Student Research Corner

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09:00 - 09:15 am MT     11:00 - 11:15 am EST

Muhammad Ali, Nguyen Thanh Mai, Ji-Huan He, Soochow University. Janus-Structured Amphiphilic Nanofibers by Conjugated Bubble Electrospinning for Effective Would Healing.

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09:15 - 09:30 am MT     11:15 - 11:30 am EST

Jennifer Beaudette & Rachel McQueen, University of Alberta. Exploring the effects of Odour Management Textile Treatments on Consumer Laundry Habits.

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3- min Poster Presentations

 

09:30 - 10:00 am MT    11:30 - 12:00 pm EST

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Lunch break in Montréal and Raleigh / Poster Session in Edmonton

 

10:00 - 11:00 am MT    12:00 - 01:00 pm EST

 

Medical Textiles

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11:00 - 11:30 am MT     01:00 - 01:30 pm EST

From Concept to Scale: Innovations and Integration in Computing Textiles. Dr. Andrea Ferrone, Director of Integration, Innovation and Industrialization, MyAnt.

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11:30 - 12:00 pm MT     01:30 - 02:00 pm EST

Application of Textile-based technologies to assess cardio-respiratory conditions. Dr. Azadeh Yadollahi, Associate Professor, University of Toronto

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Lunch break in Edmonton / Poster Session in Montréal and Raleigh

 

12:00 - 01:00 pm MT    02:00 - 03:00 pm EST

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Panel Discussion: Fast/Slow Fashion

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01:00 - 02:00 pm MT     03:00 - 04:00 pm EST

• Kelly Drennan, Executive Director, FashionTakesAction.

• Sam Colby, EVP & Chief of Staff, Sheertex.

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68th Annual General Meeting

 

02:00 - 03:30 pm MT     04:00 - 05:30 pm EST

Annual General Meeting of the Institute of Textile Science (ITS)

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Reception

 

06:00 pm MT     06:00 pm EST

 

Edmonton Location: TBD

Montréal, Location: TBD

Raleigh Location: TBD

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Wednesday, March 19, 2025

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Alternatives to Substances of Very High Concern in Textile Processes

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08:00 - 08:30 am MT    10:00 - 10:30 am EST

Textiles in Clothing and Outdoor Gear: Effective Barrier of Protection or Source of Exposure to Contaminants? Dr. Nolwenn Noisel, Assistant Professor, Université de Montréal

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08:30 - 09:00 am MT    10:30 - 11:00 am EST

PFAS in the Textile Industry: The Case of Firefighter Protective Gear Amid Regulatory Shifts. Dr. Ahmad Ibrahim, Researcher, CTT Group

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Advances in Textile Manufacturing

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09:00 - 09:30 am MT    11:00 - 11:30 am EST

Can I do that with a Nonwoven? Dr. Raoul Farer, Director, Nonwovens Institute, North Carolina State University.

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09:30 - 10:00 am MT    11:30 - 12:00 pm EST

Next-Gen Textile Manufacturing: Data, AI, and Automation. Dan King, VP, Production, Research & Development, Davey Textile Solutions.

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Lunch Break in Montréal and Raleigh / Poster Session in Edmonton

 

10:00 - 11:00 am MT    12:00 - 01:00 pm EST

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Student Research Corner

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11:00 - 11:15 am MT     01:00 - 01:15 pm EST

Mostafa Alakhadar, Ludwig Vinches, Stéphane Hallé, École de Technologie Supérieure. Wind’s Impact on Thermal Resistance: Challenging Existing Standards.

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11:15 - 11:30 am MT     01:15 - 01:30 pm EST

Md. Abu Sayed, Lelia Lawson, K M Abdun Noor, Dagem Zekaryas Haddis, Bernardo A. Souto, Jane Batcheller, David C. Bressler, Patricia I. Dolez, University of Alberta. Optimizing the Pulping Conditions of Hemp Bast Fibre for Lyocell Fibre Production.

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11:30 - 11:45 am MT     01:30 - 01:45 pm EST 

Faisal Ahmed, Faisal Abedin, Amanda C. Mills, Cassandra H. Kwon, North Carolina State University. Localized Integration of Complex Electronic Systems in Woven Fabrics.

 

11:45 - 12:00 pm MT     01:45 - 02:00 pm EST

Rishabh Dagur, Yu Chen, Ngo TriDung, Garrett Melenka, Cagri Ayranci, University of Alberta. Textile Structural Composites: Hemp-based Braided Rebars for Sustainable Infrastructures

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Lunch Break in Edmonton / Poster Session in Montréal and Raleigh

 

12:00 - 01:00 pm MT    02:00 - 03:00 pm EST

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Advanced Textiles for Safety

 

01:00 - 01:30 pm MT    03:00 - 03:30 pm EST

Myoelectric Control of a Soft Upper-limb Exoskeleton. Dr. Mahdi Tavakoli, Professor, University of Alberta.

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01:30 - 02:00 pm MT    03:30 - 04:00 pm EST

Textiles That Protect: Innovations Shaping Safety in Healthcare. Sogol Asghari, Senior Textile Research and Development Specialist, PRIMED Medical Products.

 

Student Research Corner

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02:00 - 02:15 pm MT     04:00 - 04:15 pm EST

Carmen Vung, Rachel H. McQueen, Anika Kozlowski, University of Alberta. Reuse and Repair Skill-Building – Canadian Clothing Repair Events and the Factors Affecting Event Attendance.

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02:15 - 02:30 pm MT     04:15 - 04:30 pm EST 

Maria Sawiak, Bernardo A. Souto, Lelia Lawson, Joy Lo, Patricia I. Dolez, University of Alberta. Quantifying Recovered N-Methylmorpholine N-Oxide from Lyocell Manmade Cellulosic Fibres Manufacturing Wastewater.

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02:30 - 02:45 pm MT     04:30 - 04:45 pm EST

Luka Morita, Saiful Hoque, Matt Spence, Joshua Cunningham, Dan Sameoto, University of Alberta. Thermal Drawing of Additively Manufactured Preforms for Smart Fiber Fabrication

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02:45 - 03:00 pm MT     04:45 - 05:00 pm EST

Jemma Forgie & Patricia Dolez, University of Alberta. “Making Do”: How Alberta Female Firefighters Are Overcoming the Challenges of Poorly Fitted Fire Protective Clothing.

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Closing Remarks

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03:00 pm MT    05:00 pm EST

Sogol Asghari, President, Institute of Textile Science.​​

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Lab Tour

 

03:30 - 04:30 pm MT

Tour of the PCERF lab (https://pcerf.ualberta.ca/) for attendees in Edmonton

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Poster Presentations

 

In Montreal

 

Parian Mohamadi, Dimitri Theurot, Stéphane Hallé, Ludwig Vinches, Université de Montréal. Sex-Based Variations in Body Pressure Mapping for Sleeping Bag Applications.

 

In Raleigh

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Mushfika Tasnim Mica, Emiel DenHartog, Roger Barker, Anthoney Deaton, Marc Matthews, North Carolina State University. Evaluating Thermal Insulation of Ballistic Vest and Turnout Gear on Firefighter Heat Strain.

 

In Edmonton

 

K M Abdun Noor, Bernardo Araujo Souto, Dagem Zekaryas Haddis, Frehiwot Hailu, Lelia Lawson, Md Abu Sayed, Jane Batcheller, David C. Bressler, Patricia I. Dolez, University of Alberta. Optimization of Dissolving Pulp Preparation from Waste Cotton for Lyocell Fibre Production.

 

Teagan Sterling, Utkarsh Sharma, Rachel McQueen, Anika Kozlowski, University of Alberta. Opportunities for Circularity: Sorting Canada`s Textile Donations.

 

Rajitha Botheju, Md. Saiful Hoque; Patricia I. Dolez, University of Alberta. Water Ageing of PBO Fabric – Effect of Water Phase and Temperature.

 

Janna Ehrenholz, University of Alberta. Nettle Fibres for Textile Production.

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