The father of the rayon industry wasHilaire Bernigaud, Comte de Chardonnet. In 1891, the production of the first rayon “Chardonnet silk” began at a factory in Besançon. However, this process is slow, expensive, and dangerous. The fabric with the name we commonly call Viscose rayon was produced in 1891 and 1905 by the British silk company Samuel Courtauld & Company.