Notts textile firm one of the first to launch facemask with revolutionary anti-viral fabric

“I hope that by manufacturing the masks we will protect local jobs and maybe even generate them.”
A Nottinghamshire textile firm which was recognised for its international trade deals has turned its attention closer to home with a pioneering face mask.
Baltex, a technical textile manufacturer with bases in Basford and Ilkeston, designs, manufactures, and supplies a variety of technical textiles for a range of high-performance markets including aerospace, military, medical and the automotive industry.
Founded in 1831, the firm started life as a silk and lace manufacturer, before adapting to specialist fabrics.
The company of around 50 employees recently received the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise for a record third time, after previous success in 2003 and 2009.
It comes as Baltex returned to its work in pioneering 3D fabrics at the start of the pandemic, to focus its efforts on developing the Airox face mask.