Machinery builders step up to make recycled yarns stronger
At this year’s ITMA ASIA + CITME 2024 textile machinery exhibition in Shanghai from October 14-18, members of TMAS, the Swedish textile machinery association, will introduce technologies to assist regional manufacturers in the production of more sustainable fabrics.
To meet their sustainability goals, many leading brands are now looking for the incorporation of even higher percentages of recycled fibre into the yarns that their products are made from.
TMAS secretary general Therese Premler-Andersson said: “Many Chinese cotton spinning companies have been processing yarn mill waste for decades using rotor spinning technology, which is best suited for recycled yarns that contain a high short-fibre content.
“In the past, the practice of incorporating a percentage of recycled content into yarn blends has not been anything to do with meeting sustainability goals, but simply about achieving an acceptable quality with the cheapest available fibres. Now, however, these mills are in the position of potentially being able to charge a premium for yarns containing higher recycled content.”
According to the Zurich-based International Textile Machinery Association (ITMA), China has installed just under four million new rotor spinning spindles since 2015. The potential is huge and this industry-wide development puts high demands on changing and adopting production with upgraded technologies not only in spinning, but also further up the production chain.
The subsequent weaving of yarns with recycled content requires special consideration. TMAS member Eltex’s ACT-R is a stand-alone device designed to automatically keep weft yarn tension at a constant and required value on rapier weaving machines.
“This is especially important when weaving with recycled yarns because the quality of the yarn packages can be much more irregular,” says Eltex senior sales engineer Daniel Sauret. “Shorter staple fibres result in inconsistencies and are prone to breakages, but the ACT-R system automatically compensates for any differences in weft yarn tension that may originate from such irregularities, regardless of whether the yarn package is full or almost empty.”
The ACT-R is designed to be fitted after the prewinder, and can be used on any type of rapier machine.
“Our ACT-R is a completely plug and play, stand-alone system and self synchronises without any communication with the weaving machine,” explains Eltex CEO Brian Hicks. “This is important, because many older weaving machines are still in operation worldwide, and the ACT-R enables instant improvements to be made without upgrading these machines in any way. We have achieved fantastic results for weavers working with recycled yarns who have been amazed at the difference in consistent quality and uninterrupted production that can be achieved.”
As a pioneer in the adoption of electronic sensors by the weaving machinery industry, Eltex of Sweden is marks its 60th anniversary this year.
Advanced weaving control is also the bedrock of business for Vandewiele Sweden, which benefits from all of the synergies and accumulated know-how in fabric formation of the textile machinery builder Vandewiele Group.
The company supplies its weft yarn feeding and tension control units for weaving looms to weaving machine manufacturers around the world, as well as for retrofitting in working mills, and will present its latest X4 yarn feeders with integrated accessory displays at ITMA ASIA + CITME 2024.
