| Newly improved dyeing and finishing machinery – featuring a lower liquor ratio, troubleshooting function and more – are the latest helpers for users to better product quality and enhance bargaining power in a challenging business environmentby Ian Holme |
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| UltraSoft brush sueding machine of Lafer SpA |
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Last year has been a difficult period for textile dyeing and finishing machinery and equipment manufacturers. The uncertainties of the global recession have caused many potential customers to put their expansion or re-equipment plans on hold. Machine makers are seeking to widen their range of services to customers as well as continuing to innovate to create machinery that is highly productive, flexible in terms of the materials that it can process, and versatile in terms of the effects that can be produced.
Retrofitting to upgrade a processing line can breathe new life into an existing machine installation, modernising performance to optimise quality and production costs. Benninger AG have pointed out that enlarging the existing washing zones with Extracta washing compartments can increase washing effectiveness, increase productivity and decrease water consumption. Maximum liquor pick-up application using Benninger’s Impacta dosing unit in single-stage bleaching system can save up to 30% in chemical costs and 50% in terms of steam, water and personnel costs. In addition, the residual liquor amount is decreased by 80% over conventional impregnating systems. State-of-the-art AC drives, controlled and reproducible fabric tension, and use of perforated rollers on machines like the DL steamer offers controlled fabric transport without the slippage or wear associated with rubber roller systems.
Decreasing the consumption of all utilities e.g. water, steam, energy, whilst maintaining high quality in fabric dyeing by right-first-time dyeing, is important in enabling dyehouses to remain competitive. Then, a member company of Fong’s Industries Co Ltd, has pioneered fabric exhaust dyeing developments with their Then-Airflow machines that use liquor only for the actual core process of dyeing, but transport the fabric around the machine using air. In the Then Airflow Synergy A G1, a new machine has been developed for the cotton and polyamide fabric sectors, dyeing at up to 98°C. The ultra-short liquor ratio of between 1:3.5 to 1:4 and the effective rinsing technique result in medium shades on cotton being dyed with as low as 35 litres / kg water consumption.
The Then-Airflow Synergy G2 provides an unrivalled flexibility in terms of the wide range of woven and knitted fabrics of different fibres, fibre blends and weights to be dyed economically without machine modifications or changes. This second-generation round vessel jet dyeing machine has had a number of important changes to the fabric storage chamber design that enables an increase in load to 300kg per chamber. This provides further sizeable reductions in water and energy consumption.
Eco-friendly process to treat elastane
An innovation from Then is the Then-Airflow Lotus machine, the world’s first long-tube dyeing machine operating on the aerodynamic principle.
Fabrics containing elastane are more difficult to process, and many fabrics with elastane contents up to 45% have formerly been beam dyed. The Then Airflow Lotus has been used to dye many such fabrics successfully. The liquor ratio can be decreased in the machine to as low as 1:2 for polyester fabrics.
Compressive shrinking of fabrics is an important process in order to dimensionally stabilise fabrics.
Monforts, in their new Monfortex 8000 compressive shrinking range, have increased the diameter of the shrinking cylinder, allowing the contact length and hence the contact time to be increased by 23%. It has been demonstrated that the new shrinking cylinder provides greater longitudinal fabric shrinkage at all production speeds in the range 20-120m/min. This ensures that much lower levels of residual fabric shrinkage are consistently obtained over the whole speed range.
In addition, their automatic grinding system can save up to 76.5 hours of grinding time and the reduced time for replacement of the rubber blanket (originally from 30-40 hours now reduced down to 10 hours) significantly increase the availability and productivity of the Monfortex 8000 range. Water for cooling the rubber blanket is applied by flat spray nozzles that have decreased water consumption by 40%, down to 1.8 m3/h.
Troubleshooting service adds value
Monforts also offers a Teleservice, a service portal with audio and video transmission, which utilises a safe, TÜV IT-certified internet link for troubleshooting and problem-solving. The user can analyse and remedy faults, or carry out software updates in concert with the range manufacturer by video conferencing with voice communication.
UltraSoft brush sueding machine of Lafer SpA |
Brushing and sueding is carried out on many fabrics and Lafer SpA has upgraded its UltraSoft brush sueding machine using appropriately positioned advanced integration load cells to control lengthwise tension. Productivity has been increased through the use of the patented Suregrip positive belt transmission and their exclusively designed Orangeplus ceramic brushes that last longer than conventional brushes.
Compared with brush sueding at open width, Lafer’s UltraSoft-T machine for sueding tubular fabrics enables sueding after knitting and before dyeing to be carried out. The patented width expander, lengthwise tension, brush position and rotational speed are all controlled through a touch screen controller enabling a uniform sueding effect to be achieved on the entire circumference of the fabric tube. The UltraSoft-Y machine has been developed for sueding of open width knitted and woven fabrics. Novel sueding effects can be obtained through the control of the direct independent drives on each brush.
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