A team of researchers based at the Polytechnic School of Montreal in Canada have designed a flexible battery that can be woven into fabric. Led by Maksim Skorobogatiy, the team managed to create smart textiles by sandwiching themoplastic materials together. This consisted of merging lithium iron phosphate cathodes (LiFePO4) and lithium titanium anodes (Li4Ti5O12) with solid polyethylene oxide (PEO) electrodes in between each layer.

NIKE, Inc. announced it has entered into a strategic partnership with DyeCoo Textile Systems B.V., a Netherlands-based company that has developed and built the first commercially available waterless textile dyeing machines.

By using recycled carbon dioxide, DyeCoo’s technology eliminates the use of water in the textile dyeing process. The name “DyeCoo” was inspired by the process of “dyeing” with “CO₂.” The partnership is illustrative of NIKE, Inc.’s long-term commitment to designing and developing the most superior athletic performance products for athletes and its overall sustainable business and innovation strategy.

“Waterless dyeing is a significant step in our journey to serve both the athlete and the planet, and this partnership reinforces Nike’s long-term strategy and deep commitment to innovation and sustainability,” says Eric Sprunk, Nike’s vice president of merchandising and product. “We believe this technology has the potential to revolutionize textile manufacturing, and we want to collaborate with progressive dye houses, textile manufacturers and consumer apparel brands to scale this technology and push it throughout the industry.”

When Kelly Slater stormed to his history-making 11th world surfing title late last year, a team of scientists at Deakin University in Geelong were watching intently and taking notes.  And not just because of the 39-year-old’s unrivalled mastery of the surf.

Slater had paddled out for his heat in the 2011 ASP World Tour off the San Francisco coast wearing a prototype, anatomically designed wetsuit that surfing giant Quiksilver is hoping will make big waves in the surfing industry.

WASTE NOT: Celebrities, fashion designers and executives joined together to launch the second annual EcoChic Design Award in Hong Kong.  The contest aims to raise awareness about Hong Kong’s high textile waste rates. According to Hong Kong’s environment protection department, the garment industry and public discarded an average of 234 tons of textiles into Hong Kong landfills in 2010.

“We decided to focus on waste reduction because it’s a very apparent and obvious way to improve the environment or to lessen the negative impact on the environment,” said Christina Dean, chief executive of Redress. Redress is a Hong Kong-based NGO that started the contest last year.

Joseph E. Brooks, a retail executive who doubled the size of the Lord & Taylor chain and made its flagship New York store a showplace of spectacle, including elaborate retail stagecraft and a daily morning rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” died on Thursday in Manhattan. He was 84. [...]Mr. Brooks became chairman and chief executive of Lord & Taylor in 1975 during a recession brought on by the 1973 oil embargo, convinced that expansion was the cure for the company’s lagging sales. He added 26 stores to the chain, which had 19 when he began, and by the time he resigned in 1987 had more than quadrupled annual sales, to $825 million from about $200 million.