International ThermoDyne

A cloth like material that harvests energy from the world around us and converts it to electrical power.

International ThermoDyne, headquartered in Charlotte, is currently developing, along with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, (a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy) the only known flexible and lightweight material that has the ability to convert both heat (thermoelectrics) and motion (piezoelectrics) energy into electricity. This material, known as PhelTex, will have the ability to provide portable, inexpensive, renewable electricity and revolutionize the way we create, distribute, and use power. By harvesting the free and unlimited heat or movement energy around us, PhelTex converts this energy into electricity that can then be immediately used in remote sensors, wearable electronics, portable electronics, building materials, military application, or other devices and applications. ITD’s first go-to-market product, which is expected to be launched with customer trials by late third quarter 2016; is a thin, flexible, washable and wearable device that is sewn into the apparel. Using this device, a clothing brand invites its customer to “opt-in” and register their recently purchased clothing items to their personal Opal account so that the customer can be rewarded for wearing the clothing. For the Opal customer, Opal provides: Appealing new technology, rewards for buying and wearing their favorite brands, use of wearable technology that requires no effort on the part of the customer, and an improved customer experience. For the brand, Opal provides: Live data, insight into customer behavior beyond purchase, improved loyalty and retention, increased customer lifetime value, limits on counterfeits, new marketing and branding opportunities, and facilitated targeted “dialogues” with existing customers.