From the Sector

Devan, one of the leading companies in sustainable and functional textile finishes, has been working together with Jeanologia, a global leader in sustainable and efficient finishing technologies for textiles, to reduce further water consumption during the application of Devan’s awarded BI-OME® antimicrobial and R-Vital® skincare range.

With increased attention to climate change and limiting excess water consumption in textile production (whether denim or other textiles), Devan and Jeanologia worked together to evaluate the application of Devan finishes onto garments via the patented e-Flow technology.

e-Flow technology can accomplish a considerable number of finishing effects with the highest quality, a minimal amount of water and zero discharge. The technology uses micronization and nebulization to substitute traditional abrasion process and deliver performance chemistry using nano-bubbles instead of water. It reduces the cost of application, saves the amount of water used and ensures that the correct amount of chemistry stays in the garment and not in the water. e-Flow is the perfect fit for every industrial washing machine. This allows mills and brands to apply Devan’s technologies in a more sustainable way than using traditional application equipment, even for smaller production runs and direct onto garments.

“With the global textile production using 4% of the global freshwater withdrawal, here at Devan we are continuously working on more sustainable solutions”, says Dr. Vanessa Daelman, CTO at Devan. “Next to this, we of course highly value sustainable application methods from Jeanologia, like e-Flow, in order to reduce the excess water usage during textile application. We are delighted that we could work together with Jeanologia and establish that Devan technologies can be easily applied via these technologies onto garments or fabrics like denim and with full retention of functionality. This application method also allows post garment treatment of our finishes, for example an antimicrobial treatment onto already finished garments, which will be increasingly important in a more circular textile world where re-use plays an important role”, Dr. Daelman concludes.

• Swiss weaving machinery manufacturers are in the forefront of novel application development

Shoes and electronic calculators are probably not the first products people would associate with the textile weaving process. But they certainly signpost the future for woven fabrics, as two examples of the ever-wider possibilities of latest technology in the field. Fashion and function already combine in the increasing popularity of woven fabrics for shoes, and this is a present and future trend. Calculators in fabrics? That’s another story of ingenious development, using so-called ‘meander fields’ on the back and keys printed on the front of the material.

These glimpses of the outlook for modern weavers are among the highlights of developments now being pioneered by Swiss textile machinery companies. All weaving markets require innovation, as well as speed, efficiency, quality and sustainability. Member firms of the Swiss Textile Machinery Association respond to these needs at every point in the process – from tightening the first thread in the warp to winding the last inch for fabric delivery. They also share a common advantage, with a leading position in the traditional weaving industry as well as the expertise to foster new and exciting applications.

Technology and research cooperation
The concept of a ‘textile calculator’ was developed by Jakob Müller Group, in cooperation with the textile research institute Thuringen-Vogtland. Müller’s patented MDW® multi-directional weaving technology is able to create the meander fields which allow calculator functions to be accessed at a touch. A novel and useful facility, which suggests limitless expansion.

Today, the latest woven shoes are appreciated for their precise and comfortable fit. They score through their durability, strength and stability, meeting the requirements of individual athletes across many sports, as well as leisurewear. Stäubli is well known as a leading global specialist in weaving preparation, shedding systems and high-speed textile machinery. Its jacquard machines offer great flexibility across a wide range of formats, weaving all types of technical textiles, lightweight reinforcement fabrics – and shoes.

It’s possible to weave new materials such as ceramics, mix fibers such as aramid, carbon and other, and produce innovative multi-layers with variable thicknesses. Such applications put special demands on weaving machines which are fulfilled by Stäubli high-performance TF weaving systems.

Great weaving results are impossible without perfect warp tension, now available thanks to the world-leading electronic warp feeding systems of Crealet. Some market segments in weaving industry today demand warp let-off systems which meet individual customer requirements. For example, the company has recognized expertise to understand that geotextile products often need special treatment, as provided by its intelligent warp tension control system. Individual and connective solutions are designed to allow external support via remote link. Crealet’s warp let-off systems are widely used in both ribbon and broadloom weaving, for technical textiles applied on single or multiple warp beams and creels.

Functional, sustainable, automated
Trends in the field of woven narrow fabrics are clearly focused on functionality and sustainability. The Jakob Müller Group has already embraced these principles – for example using natural fibers for 100% recyclable labels with a soft-feel selvedge. It also focuses as much as possible on the processing of recycled, synthetic materials. Both PET bottles and polyester waste from production are recycled and processed into elastic and rigid tapes for the apparel industry.

For efficient fabric production environments, it is now recognized that automated quality solutions are essential. Quality standards are increasing everywhere and zero-defect levels are mandatory for sensitive applications such as airbags and protective apparel.

Uster’s latest generation of on-loom monitoring and inspection systems offers real operational improvements for weavers. The fabric quality monitoring prevents waste, while the quality assurance system significantly improves first-quality yield for all applications. Protecting fabric makers from costly claims and damaged reputations, automated fabric inspection also removes the need for slow, costly and unreliable manual inspection, freeing operators to focus on higher-skilled jobs.

Smart and collaborative robotics (cobots) offer many automation possibilities in weaving rooms. Stäubli’s future oriented robotics division is a driver in this segment with first effective installations in warp and creel preparation.

Control and productivity
Willy Grob’s specialized solutions for woven fabric winding focus on reliable control of tension, keeping it constant from the start of the process right through to the full cloth roll. Continuous digital control is especially important for sensitive fabrics, while performance and productivity are also critical advantages. In this regard, the company’s large-scale batching units can provide ten times the winding capacity of a regular winder integrated in the weaving machine.

The customized concept by Grob as well as design and implementation result in great flexibility and functionality of the fabric winding equipment – yet another example of Swiss ingenuity in textile machinery.  
There is even more innovation to come in weaving – and in other segments – from members of the Swiss Textile Machinery Association in future! This confident assertion is founded on an impressive statistic: the 4077 years of experience behind the creative power of the association’s member firms. It’s proof positive that their developments grow out of profound knowledge and continuous research.

International technology Group ANDRITZ has received an order from Pureko Sp. z o.o. to supply a needlepunch line for their plant in Myszków, Poland. The line will process recycling fibers from garment waste for the production of technical felts dedicated to furniture and geotextile applications. The final products will have fabric weights ranging from 300 to 500 gsm, and the production capacity will be up to 750 kg/h. Installation and start-up are scheduled for the third quarter of 2021.

The ANDRITZ scope of supply includes a complete neXline needlepunch eXcelle line – from web forming to needling – as well as engineering and ANDRITZ’s recently launched scanning gauge.

This is the second ANDRITZ line to be supplied to Pureko, thus demonstrating the strong partnership between both companies. Three years ago, Pureko invested in a new, modern plant supplied by ANDRITZ Asselin-Thibeau to produce fluffy nonwovens used in the furniture, textile, and clothing industries. The new line will enable Pureko to continue its ongoing growth.

Founded in 2009, Pureko is one of the most important producers of nonwovens in Poland. The company’s nonwoven products are mainly used for wadding; they are free of chemicals, do not involve any health hazards, and are hypoallergenic. Pureko’s products carry top certificates such as INTERTEK, FIRA, OEKO-TEX, and the National Institute of Hygiene.

Decision SA, part of the leading European composites consortium, Carboman Group, and a specialist in the development, prototyping and production of large composite structures, is proud to announce a new direct mould tooling technology for aerospace.  Decision’s latest tooling solution provides OEMs and manufacturers with short lead times for highly stable direct moulds for series production both in and outside of the autoclave at temperatures of up to 180˚C.

Decision and Carboman recently delivered the first customer moulds using the new technology, providing a tooling glass prepreg, stainless-steel backed direct female mould tool created for the series production of a Class 3 fairing to a leading European aerospace OEM. Decision has immediate availability and capacity for similar tooling projects with lead times currently as short as six to eight weeks.

With no traditional plug or mould pattern required, Decision’s direct mould process starts with the group’s engineers selecting a material combination for the tool surface and support structure that will provide the optimum match between the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the mould and the composite part to be processed.  The CNC machined composite face sheet is supported by a stress-relieved metallic or composite backing structure before final post curing and machining is completed. The principal benefit of this novel approach, aside from removing the need for costly and time-consuming plug production, is the production accuracy delivered by the closely matched CTE of the mould tool and the finished composite part.

The autoclaved composite tool surface is not only extremely dimensionally stable up to processing temperatures of 180˚C, but it can also be configured with additional metallic inserts or fixtures if required.  

Produced in an EN 9100:2018 controlled production environment, and with CMM checks before and after machining, the new direct composite tools have dimensional tolerances of +/-0.2mm.  The available tooling dimensional envelope is currently defined by Decision’s 2200mm x 6000mm autoclave.

“With our new direct tooling technology, we are able to combine the highest technical standards in dimensional accuracy and thermal stability with extremely short lead times.  Decision and Carboman Groups’ combined mission has always been to develop the construction methods for tomorrow’s composite structures, and we believe that this tooling solution will allow our customers to accelerate the implementation of the next generation of high-performance carbon fibre aerostructures and components” Grégoire Metz, Managing Director, Decision SA.

Kornit Digital announced Italy-based Creazioni Digitali, a printing service provider to some of the most prominent names in high-end fashion, is installing the Kornit Presto S with Softener Solution for rapid, pigment-based production on demand involving multiple fabric types in any quantity.

In addition to sublimation and acid and reactive dyes, Creazioni Digitali was one of the first textile providers to bring pigment printing to Italian fashion houses. In addition to providing more eco-friendly production processes, a shift towards pigment-based production is key to their expansion and industrial plans for 2021 to 2025.

Print-on-demand business models and pigment-based production are both effective means of reducing water use, and empowering fashion brands to align with international sustainability imperatives.

“We believe eco-friendly, pigment-based printing offers a wealth of possibilities for high fashion, and selected the Kornit Presto S based on its ability to deliver brilliant, high-quality imagery using the broadest color gamut, without need for pre- and post-treatments,” says Roberto Lucini, Owner and CEO of Creazioni Digitali. “We intend to grow our business as brands see what this technology can do, with the old calculations of quality versus responsible production practices giving way to a new landscape in which you can truly have both. This installation is one of more to come.”

Patients as well as air-condition and ventilator systems spread SARS-CoV-2 virus as aerosols which settle on surfaces and remain there infective for more than 72 hours. That‘s why the pandemic has triggered an intensive search for Personal Protective Equipment PPE whose surfaces have antiviral properties, e.g. are able to bind and inactivate adhering virus.

In this context the chemical stability of the materials being used for PPE, polypropylene PP and/or polyester PET, is a challenge. More precisely, the absence of so-called ‘functional groups‘, like -OH, -COO-, -NH3+ at the material‘s surface. These groups are the fundamental basis for surface chemistry – specifically for attaching antiviral compounds onto the surfaces of man-made fibers.

Antiviral surface modification with the basic amino acid Arginine Arg is a new approach to inactivate SARS-CoV-2. - bionic surfaces‘ - development was tested according to ISO 18184:2019 „Determination of antiviral activity of textile products“ at Institute for Virology and Immunology at University Wuerzburg, Germany. - The finding: „[Six hours] incubation on [Arginine] coated NW reduced viral infectivity by more than five orders of magnitude.“ In other words: An amount of, for example, 10.000.000 virus is reduced to 100 (by five orders of magnitude).

- bionic surfaces – has more than 30 years experience in wet-chemical surface modification of man-made polymers like PDMS, PP, PE, PTFE.

Flexibility, product uniformity and automation are the keys to success for coating businesses in today’s rapidly-changing technical textiles industry, explained Jürgen Hanel, Monforts Head of Technical Textiles, at the recent 1st World Congress on Textile Coating.

Introducing the latest Montex®Coat magnetic roller coating option to virtual delegates from around the world at the conference organised by International Newsletters, Hanel explained why this technology makes perfect sense now

“The magnetic roller system allows a wide range of coatings and finishes to be carried out, while being easy to handle for operators and much easier to clean at the end of the process,” he said. “It provides textile finishers with an expanded range of options due to the fully-adjustable positioning of the magnet within the roller and with four different magnet positions possible, can be set to operate both as a direct coating system and as an indirect coater.”

With traditional dip coating systems, he added, as well as with many standard knife coating technologies, there is always a difference in the tension between the centre and the edges of the wide width fabrics being treated – and hence the amount of pressure with which the coating is applied. With the use of a magnetic roller, equal pressure is applied across the full width of the fabric, with consistent results even at wide widths of over 2.4 metres. In addition, adjusting the roller surface, rather than changing the coating formulation to match the required add-on and viscosity for each coating effect required, leads to much higher output from the line.

Cleaner and less wasteful
The contribution of such flexible and resource-saving new technologies to a cleaner and less wasteful textile industry was a key theme at the congress – held virtually across the four afternoons of February 11th, 12th, 18th and 19th – as was digitalization and the many advantages it is providing.

“A typical integrated Monforts coating line is automated from the inlet feed to the winder,” Hanel told delegates. “Adjustments can also be made simply and easily from the touchscreen and with the new hand-held remote controller which has recently been introduced for the Montex®Coat unit.”

Manual adjustment, he added, is time consuming and needs the attention of an experienced operator or the reproducibility will not be accurate between coating operations. The adjustment by motors allows each coating to be stored and downloaded again for 100% reproducibility.

The motors can be fully controlled from the touchscreen and all necessary adjustments carried out remotely, making switching from one process to another extremely quick and easy.
The accuracy that is now being demanded by today’s most exacting customers is met with an optional carbon fibre roller – especially in dealing with the winding tension required in the processing of materials such as prepregs for composites and other heavyweight fabrics. Typical applications for the Montex®Coat include the finishing of tents and awnings, black-out roller blinds and sail cloth, automotive interior fabrics and medical disposables. Full PVC coatings, pigment dyeing or minimal application surface and low penetration treatments can all be accommodated.

“The World Congress on Textile Coating was characterised by some very stimulating presentations and forums between the speakers and a global audience of textile specialists,” Jürgen Hanel concluded. “It truly reflected the high level of positive changes now taking place in not just textile coating, but the entire textile industry. I look forward to the next edition, which hopefully will be a face-to-face event for even deeper level discussions and debate.”

Dow introduces DOWSIL™ IE-8749 Emulsion, a new generation of durable water repellent finishes for fabrics based on silicone chemistry.

Studies conducted on a variety of textiles substrates based on DOWSIL™ IE-8749 Emulsion treatment demonstrate improved fabric retention compared to standard silicone finishes – thereby providing continued water repellency after multiple washes. Unlike many conventional finishes, DOWSIL™ IE-8749 Emulsion finish does not need to be regularly heat treated to restore the water repellency performance, which is a key advantage for the durability of the final product.

By incorporating a DOWSIL™ IE-8749 Emulsion treatment into their finishing processes, textile finishers receive greater control over the hand feel of the fabric - an important parameter driving consumer choices today. Depending on specific need, this can range, from a very soft hand feel that is characteristic of silicone when used alone, to a firmer hand with the addition of cross linkers.

The technology powering DOWSIL™ IE-8749 Emulsion was developed through a collaboration between Dow and Nicca Chemical.

Kornit Digital is named among 29 winners of the 2020 EDP Awards, presented by the European Digital Press Association (EDP). The company’s NeoPigment™ Robusto Softener solution, which ensures superior hand feel for substrates imprinted using the Kornit Presto system for roll-to-roll, direct-to-fabric digital production, was selected “Best Coating and Varnish” in the Consumables category.

Kornit’s Softener solution is applied seamlessly during the printing process. No additional time, labor, or equipment is needed, and most importantly, it is a sustainable solution carrying Eco Passport certification and GOTS verification.
“Kornit Presto with Softener is changing the game for on-demand production, making pigment-based digital print a serious contender for even the most demanding fashion houses,” says Chris Govier, KDEU Managing Director. “Kornit is proud to be recognized for its innovations, and we strive to continue exceeding the market’s demands for efficient, eco-friendly, profitable solutions regardless of the new trends and challenges facing the textile industry.”

International technology Group ANDRITZ has received an order from Lotus Teknik A.Ş., Turkey, to supply a neXline wetlace CP (carded pulp) line for the production of biodegradable, plastic-free wet wipes. Lotus Teknik A.Ş. is a leading nonwoven roll good producer and a member of the Sapro group. Sapro is based in Istanbul, Turkey, and is one of the top three producers of wet wipes globally.  

The neXline wetlace CP line is equipped with state-of-the-art stock preparation equipment, including approach flow and fan pump, opening and blending, TT card, wetlaid forming unit for pulp application, a hydroentanglement system, filtration unit, dewatering, and through-air drying. All components are perfectly designed to produce a first-class biodegradable wipe. The line is scheduled for start-up by the end of 2021.

ANDRITZ developed the new neXline wetlace CP line in order to serve the new market trend of sustainable wipes. Lotus Teknik supported the development from a roll goods producer and converter perspective. The partnership follows the successful installation of an ANDRITZ high-capacity spunlace line some years ago. The Wetlace CP new generation of production technology for biodegradable wipes has resulted from ANDRITZ’s extensive knowledge and considerable history of providing technologies for wood-based industries, spunlace and wetlaid roll goods, and the strong collaboration with Lotus Teknik.