Company History

Noble Biomaterials, Inc. has its history rooted in a turn-of-the-century textile mill named Sauquoit, after the small community in which it was located in the heart of New York state. Originally a cotton spinning mill, the company moved to Scranton, PA and began operation in the new location in 1873.

From then forward, the company functioned as a silk spinner and experienced rapid growth supported by a change in ownership in 1880 and the thriving entrepreneurial spirit of the industrialized Lackawanna Valley. Sauquoit Silk Company, as it was known then, became one of the country's largest silk weavers and employed over 2,000 workers.

The advent of manmade fibers, rayon and acetate, in the early part of the 1900's brought new market direction and another change of ownership. Sauquoit became a leader in processing filament yarns and was an early entrant into the textured yarn business. In 1947, Sauquoit became the first licensee of DuPont® industries to produce a new fiber called "Nylon®".

The company was sold in 1963 to Rohm & Hass, a Philadelphia-based chemical company. Rohm & Hass exited the yarn business in 1977 when the company was sold to local investors and the management team, including Frank McNally. The unique core competencies developed over the history of the company include the processing of extremely fine diameter yarns. A conductive fiber technology utilizing silver was created for use in industrial markets. This process led to the invention of a technology that would eventually be branded X-STATIC®. No longer a silk processor, the company made the transition "from silk to silver".

In 1997, Noble Fiber Technologies was founded to explore the benefits of X-STATIC® technology for antimicrobial applications in the medical market.* As the new millennium approached, consumer applications in technical apparel and socks became widespread. Socks manufactured by Fox River Mills containing X-STATIC® won Backpacker Magazine's prestigious ‘Best New Product' Award. In the 2002 and 2006 Summer Olympics and the 2004 Winter Olympics, over 200 athletes wore uniforms containing X-STATIC® technology. Today, X-STATIC® is used by hundreds of internationally recognizable consumer brands manufacturing apparel, uniforms, intimate, home goods, medical apparel and smart textiles.

In 2003, products using X-STATIC® fibers became standard issue to military troops serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom and are still issued to many military branches today. Also in this year, Johnson & Johnson® launched SilverCel™, an advanced wound care bandage featuring X-STATIC® technology. Noble also manufacturers its own line of wound care bandages and dressing and markets them under the SilverSeal® name. CircuiteX™ and ContaX® developed as branded technologies that provide unique solutions for electronic circuitry and static control respectively.

Today, Noble Biomaterials is a global leader in bacterial management solutions.

*EPA Regulated products containing X-STATIC® solely protect the finished product itself from microbial growth. Any public health claims related to X-STATIC® products are expressly limited to products regulated by the FDA.