What Are Technical Textiles? Types, Examples and Sourcing in Turkey

What are technical textiles, and how are they defined?

The technical textiles report of the Uludağ Exporters' Associations (UİB, February 2021) says the most widely accepted definition comes from The Textile Institute's “Textile Terms and Definitions”: technical textiles are textile materials and products manufactured primarily for their technical and performance properties rather than their aesthetic or decorative characteristics. According to UİB, the term appeared in the 1980s and replaced “industrial textiles”, which is still common in the United States.

Two criteria make the definition practical. The concept rests on end use, not on fiber or yarn type: according to İTKİB (Istanbul Textile and Apparel Exporters' Associations, June 2008), fiber properties come first in performance, and product geometry and applied treatments second. And the end user often does not use the product directly: it reaches them as part of a car, a structure or another material (UİB, 2021; İTKİB, 2008). The same fiber can become a shirt or a seat belt.

Are technical textiles, technical fabrics, nonwovens and smart textiles the same thing?

The four terms are easily confused. They can overlap, but they are not synonyms.

Types of technical textiles: the 12 application areas

The Techtextil trade fair sorts its products into 12 application areas set by its organizer, Messe Frankfurt, and the UİB and İTKİB reports use the same 12 groups. It is a trade fair classification: not a product group in the customs tariff (UİB, 2021) and not a legal classification. Names vary slightly between sources (the environment area appears as Oekotech, Ecotech and Ekotech).

The table is our own compilation: the scope column rests on Messe Frankfurt's profile page (accessed October 16, 2026), the examples column on UİB's product lists.

Technical textile examples and uses by sector

The six groups below are summarized with their products and, where one applies, their document logic; the home, clothing, sport and agriculture areas stay in the 12-area table.

Medical textiles (Medtech)

The main products in this group are surgical gowns and drapes, face masks, wound dressings and hygiene products. A surgical drape or gown is intended to prevent the transmission of infectious agents between patient and clinical staff during operations and other invasive procedures, so performance is measured against a standard: EN 13795-1 for drapes and gowns and EN 14683 for medical face masks (the current edition of both is 2025). Makers are listed under medical textiles.

Automotive and transport textiles (Mobiltech)

A vehicle contains seat and headliner covering, carpet, seat belts, airbags, hose reinforcement and insulation. UİB calls automotive both the largest market for technical textiles and the one with the most product variety (2021). A customer may check the producer's quality management system as well as product performance. See automotive textiles.

Protective clothing (Protech)

This group covers garments that protect against flame, heat and chemicals, as well as high-visibility clothing. The standard follows the risk: EN ISO 20471 covers high-visibility clothing and EN ISO 11612 clothing against heat and flame. The details are in the protective clothing standards guide; producers are under protective clothing.

Geotextiles and construction (Geotech, Buildtech)

Geotextiles separate, filter, reinforce or drain the ground in roads, railways, drainage systems and earthworks. Performance is documented with application-specific standards: EN 13249 (roads), EN 13250 (railways), EN 13251 (earthworks) and EN 13252 (drainage). Producers: geotextiles.

Filtration and industry (Indutech, Oekotech)

This group includes filter fabrics and bags, filter felt, paper machine felt and wiping cloths. No single document covers this field; first establish which standard, regulation or customer specification applies. Companies: industrial filter fabrics.

Packaging (Packtech)

The core products are PP woven big bags and sacks that carry bulk loads. İTKİB's 2008 report names big bags (HS 6305.32) as Turkey's most-exported technical textile product in 2007. Suppliers: FIBC and PP woven bags.

How are technical textiles made?

The route depends on the product, but most chains have three steps:

1. Fiber and yarn. Alongside standard fibers, high-strength yarns (nylon, polyester, viscose, aramid) and special materials such as glass fiber are used (UİB, Annex 1 product list).
2. Surface. Woven, knitted or nonwoven. A nonwoven forms the web directly from fiber, without spinning it into yarn.
3. Finishing and composite processes. Plastic impregnation, coating and lamination give the surface waterproofing, flame retardancy or barrier properties.

The chain closes with testing and documentation. Nonwoven routes include spunbond, meltblown, needle-punching and spunlace.

Which regulations and documents apply to technical textiles?

No single document applies to every technical textile; the obligation follows where the product will be used. The table gives one example per area as of October 16, 2026. For the legal position of your own product, consult an expert.

In the EU, Regulation (EU) 2024/3110 is replacing the Construction Products Regulation (305/2011): it applies generally from January 8, 2026, with a transition period to January 8, 2040 (European Parliament summary). Check the current text of Turkey's regulation at mevzuat.gov.tr.

A company certificate is not a product certificate. IATF 16949 and other quality management certificates cover the company; medical device or protective equipment certificates cover a specific product. Voluntary certificates follow the same split: OEKO-TEX STANDARD 100 covers the product, STeP the production facility. In exports, some technical textiles may also fall under Turkey's lists of goods that require export permission or registration and under the Communiqué on the Control of Exports of Dual-Use and Sensitive Goods (Export: 2003/12; title translated by Tekstil Rehberi); the current texts are on the Ministry of Trade's export communiqués page.

Technical textile exports from Turkey: why the figures do not match

Turkey has no single official technical textile export figure, because the customs tariff has no product group called technical textiles (UİB, 2021; İTKİB, 2008). Each institution screens the tariff and builds its own list: İTKİB used 36 core product groups in 2008 and UİB the 40 items in its Annex 1 in 2021. A different list gives a different total.

Chapter data is not the whole of technical textiles: in UİB's list, big bags fall in chapter 63, glass-fiber fabric in chapter 70, and seat belts and airbags in chapter 87, outside both chapters. The Turkish press gave differing 2025 totals: Ekonomi Gazetesi's January 9, 2026 report cites data from İTHİB, an exporters' association; its July 29, 2026 report cites İTKİB's world trade report and gives two different figures itself. The primary reports could not be reached and their scope could not be verified, so this guide does not use those figures.

Where is production located in Turkey?

Location varies by sub-sector. Gaziantep (54) and Istanbul (50) lead the 271 nonwoven producers (product code 13.95) that hold a capacity report in TOBB's Industry Database (October 2026); Istanbul (88) and Bursa (46) lead the 202 producers of impregnated, coated or covered fabrics (13.96.14). Firms without a capacity report, such as traders, are not counted. Browse by province in the technical textile manufacturers and suppliers in Turkey directory.

What changes when you order technical textiles?

Technical textiles have a job, so an order hangs on a chain: specification, test, certificate. Our recommendation at Tekstil Rehberi is to compare quotes by the scope of that chain before comparing price.

1. Write the specification in measurable terms. State the use condition and the target value (strength, liquid resistance, flame behavior) together with the standard or customer specification it is measured against. The same GSM does not mean the same performance.
2. Ask for an independent test report that shows the sample, lot number, method and date.
3. Read the scope of the certificate. Which model, fabric and production site does it cover? If the fabric or the site changes, the product may fall outside it.
4. Count the approval loop in your lead time. Production starts only after the customer approves the sample and the test results; lead time is more than production time.
5. Ask what a small lot costs. Raw material, testing and certificate costs are divided by the quantity, so the MOQ (minimum order quantity) usually rises for products with special specifications; have the quote state which tests and certificates it includes.
6. Fix acceptance criteria and traceability. Lot numbers, which defect stops a lot, and a sampling plan such as AQL belong in the contract.

Technical textile trade fairs and further reading

The next Frankfurt edition of Techtextil is April 4–7, 2028 (Messe Frankfurt, accessed October 16, 2026). Turkey's own technical textiles and nonwovens fair, HIGHTEX, is held at Tüyap in Istanbul at the same time as the ITM textile machinery show; its last edition ran June 9–13, 2026, and the 2028 dates were not yet on the fair's website (accessed October 16, 2026). For other shows, see the textile trade fairs calendar. The reports behind the figures are open PDFs, all in Turkish: UİB's Technical Textiles Report (February 2021), İTKİB's 2008 report and the Ministry of Trade's sector report. Check the year and scope before using their figures.