Unifi Reaches Key Sustainability Milestone Ahead Of Schedule

GREENSBORO, N.C.  — November 22, 2021 — Unifi Inc. is celebrating a major sustainability milestone. The company has now transformed more than 30 billion post-consumer plastic bottles into its REPREVE recycled performance fibers that are used by hundreds of the world’s leading brands.

“Our brand and mill partners helped us achieve this ambitious goal,” said Unifi CEO Eddie Ingle. “By making the switch to sustainable by choosing to use Repreve, we’ve been able to keep more than 30 billion plastic bottles out of landfills. We want to thank consumers for choosing to buy products — ranging from apparel to home furnishings to shoes — made with Repreve. Together, we are working today for the good of tomorrow.”

Unifi began setting recycling goals in 2017 after hitting the 10 billion bottle milestone. The company pledged to transform 20 billion bottles by 2020 and 30 billion bottles by 2022. Company leaders are proud to have hit the 30 billion bottle milestone in November 2021.

To put this achievement into perspective:

  • When Unifi launched Repreve, it was initially adopted by only two brands; now, more than 1,000 brands worldwide use the recycled performance fibers.
  • Repreve Fiber sales are approaching 40 percent of Unifi’s total sales, with that number expected to continue to grow in the coming year.
  • 30 billion bottles used to create Repreve fiber, instead of the virgin equivalent, can save enough energy to power nearly 284,000 homes in the United States for one year.

“We’re committed to being an impactful change leader,” said James Cooper, Unifi sustainability manager. “We anticipate companies will continue to make the switch to Repreve, enabling us to increase recycling rates and giving plastic bottles a second life. As we look to the future, we will expand to additional brands and applications in addition to developing circular programs that allow existing textiles to be transformed into new textiles.”

Posted November 22, 2021

Source: Unifi Inc.

Cosmo Specialty Chemicals Launches Hydrophilic Block Silicone Emulsions For The Textile Industry

NEW DELHI — November 19, 2021 — Cosmo Speciality Chemicals, a 100-percent subsidiary of Cosmo Films Ltd., has developed a hydrophilic block silicone emulsions that exhibits better softening properties because of their lower rotational free energy than C-O bonds as compared with any other traditional non-silicone softeners.

Non-toxic and eco-friendly, the agent is suitable for a wide range of applications while providing an outstanding effect in the textile industry. With remarkable lubricity and hydrophilicity, the innovative softener improves water absorbency and smoothness of the fabric along with improving the efficiency of cutting and sewing in. LYOSIL BHL can be used on cotton like knits, woven, terry towels, etc.

Talking about the new product, Anil Gaikwad, business head, Cosmo Speciality Chemicals said: “We are on a mission to keep bringing innovation to the world with our products to deliver new solutions. We do believe in being specialised and niche in our offerings. We have developed low-cost two sets of products (Lyosil BHL 1E, Lyosil BHL 3I) of Block Silicone Softener.Very few doses of application are required which imparts good absorbency, durable soft feel and non-yellowing etc. These are different than other products available in the market.”

Posted November 19, 2021

Source: Cosmo Speciality Chemicals

November 2021: Textile Activity At A Glance

November 2021

The Textile Industry Relies On C6 Fluorotelomers For Durable, Long-Lasting Products That Consumers Demand

By Shawn Swearingen

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, continue to attract much attention from policymakers, the media, activists, the public as well as many companies that are making individual decisions about their supply chains. Unfortunately, misrepresentations have made it difficult to have serious, science-based policy discussions, as everything from the total number of PFAS chemistries in commerce to how heavily studied they are has become distorted.

PFAS are a diverse universe of chemistries. All PFAS are not the same. Individual chemistries have their own unique properties and uses, as well as environmental and health profiles. In fact, PFAS includes solid, liquid and gaseous chemistries. Commercial PFAS‐based products have been used in a wide variety of industrial and consumer applications because they have unique performance properties of significant socioeconomic value.

As the director of the Alliance for Telomer Chemistry Stewardship (ATCS), I work every day with member companies that produce a wide range of important C6 Fluorotelomer based products, including for many critical applications in the textile industry. Side chain fluorinated polymers are a polymeric subset of C6 Based Fluorotelomers and are used to treat textiles and nonwovens to impart water, soil, oil and stain resistance, and to provide a protective barrier against infiltration by contaminants. These side chain fluorinated polymer coatings are designed to be bound to the fibers when applied, providing unique performance benefits such as:

  • Exceptional durability, leading to long lifetime of products with reduced resource intensity. For example, less frequent laundering, lower water/energy use to clean clothes, extended longevity of clothes so replaced less frequently and less sent to landfills.
  • Protective barriers to safeguard against spread of infections and transmission of diseases in hospitals, health care and emergency response settings, including protection against microbial contaminants, such as viruses and bacteria, as well as other chemical and biological threats.
  • Unique water- and oil-repellency (DWOR), including properties that help prevent hypothermia and resistance to extreme temperatures.
  • Stain-resistance and soil release (repel-release).
  • High heat and chemical resistance.
  • Protection against contamination in clean room environments.
  • UV resistance.
  • Abrasion resistant finishes.
  • Preserving the integrity of protective equipment, including life-saving bullet-proof ballistic fabrics.
  • Ability to meet and comply with key performance and safety standards.

To be sure, side chain fluorinated polymers are a member of the broad class of PFAS chemistries. As such, these polymeric products have undergone rigorous testing for potential effects on both human health and the environment, including regulatory reviews by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In addition, regulatory bodies in Europe, Canada and Asia have determined side chain fluorinated polymers meet relevant standards for the protection of human health and the environment.

Side chain fluorinated polymers have been thoroughly reviewed by regulators prior to introduction into commerce, are subject to ongoing oversight, and are supported by a robust body of rigorous scientific health and safety data. Side chain fluorinated polymers are not PFOS or PFOA, are not made with either chemical, and cannot be degraded to either of these chemicals. In fact, members of ATCS voluntarily worked with U.S. EPA to stop manufacturing and using those long-chain chemistries in the United States and globally through their PFOA Stewardship Program over a decade ago.

ATCS and our members support strong, science-based regulations that are protective of human health and the environment. We believe decisions by regulators as well as businesses about what products to use should be science based and data driven. Broad brush, one-size-fits-all regulatory approaches to PFAS could jeopardize many important products consumers and businesses rely on without having a meaningful impact on public health or our environment.

In fact, for many applications of side chain fluorinated polymers, no suitable alternatives exist or have been identified that can match their performance benefits. This performance is critical for textile applications such as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers, where C6 side chain fluorinated polymers provide the chemical barrier properties necessary to protect healthcare personnel against contact with microbiological contaminants, including blood-borne pathogens.

C6 side chain fluorinated polymers are also used in woven and nonwoven medical textiles/apparel, PPE for fire fighters and first aid responders, other rescue equipment such as safety vests, military, police and civil security equipment, outdoor apparel for extreme conditions and environments and many more.

As producers and users of C6 side chain fluorinated polymer-based products, we understand the performance demands the textile industry must meet. Our industries can work together to help each other thrive and create products that enhance the quality of life for people around the world. We need your help to educate policymakers and the public about the benefits and safety of C6 fluorotelomers, and invite you to reach out so we can work together.

Editor’s Note: Shawn Swearingen is director of the Alliance for Telomer Chemistry Stewardship (ATCS)

November 2021

Cotton Prices Soar, Supply Chain Muddled

By Jim Phillips, Yarn Market Editor

Cotton prices have soared in recent months to the highest levels in a decade.

For the week ended November 11, spot market cotton quotations for the base quality of cotton (color 41, leaf 4, staple 34, mike 35-36 and 43-49, strength 27.0-28.9, and uniformity 81.0-81.9) in the seven designated markets measured by the USDA averaged 114.19 cents per pound. This compares to 65.10 cents per pound for the corresponding period a year ago. The ICE December settlement price ended the week at 118.54 cents

The last time cotton prices were over a dollar per pound was in late September 2011. The highest yarn prices of the millennium were recorded during the first week of April 2011, when the price per pound reached $2.03 per pound. Those high prices were fueled by fears that a smaller-than-usual global cotton yield would prohibit spinners from fulfilling all orders. Before the 2010-2011 surge, the last time cotton prices topped $1.00 per pound was in mid-June 1995. The lowest price of the century was in early December 2001, when cotton fell to 37 cents per pound.

The recent surge in prices is a result of multiple issues. Droughts and heat have seriously impacted cotton yields in the United States. Consumer demand is high, with U.S. yarn spinners operating at or near capacity. Demand for U.S. cotton has dramatically increased in China. Trade restrictions put in place by the Trump administration because of forced labor in certain Chinese provinces prevent U.S. companies from importing goods made with cotton these areas. This has required many Chinese companies to buy U.S.-grown cotton to make goods that can then be sold back to consumers in the United States.

The increases in cotton prices, combined with global supply-chain issues, high energy prices, and labor shortages, have created the perfect storm of sorts, according to multiple experts. Customers want product and are willing to pay a premium, and spinners and fabricators are producing everything they can get their hands on. The problem is securing the materials to make their goods and then finding a way to navigate them through the global supply-chain maelstrom to get those products to customers.

“I have never seen anything like this,” said one industry executive. “It is normal to have to put out fires here and there, but right now there seems to be something burning in every facet of the business. It is frustrating when you have a hungry market and can’t quite find a way to feed it. We are running full schedules and producing everything we can. But regardless of how fast we work, we are still having issues getting product into the hands of our customers.”

Although few will address the issue head-on, there is some concern that a follow-up to high prices will be a precipitous drop should crop yields increase and demand decrease. “There is the lingering worry — what if the bottom falls out of the market again, like what happened in the early 2010s,” said an industry analyst. “At this point, December 2022 futures are running higher than December futures this time last year. So, for now, the anticipation is a continuation in strong demand, an increase in cotton yields, and relative stability in pricing. But there are not any guarantees. When cotton prices dropped so quickly in 2011 and 2012,  a number of spinners were stuck with an inventory of $2.00 cotton that had a market value of maybe half of that. Is that likely to happen again? I would think it would be unlikely, but, just like the onset of COVID, which brought the global economy to a temporary halt,  you never know what is on the horizon.”

Strong Growth Projected For Synthetic Fibers

Outside of cotton, the market for other fibers is expected to show robust growth over the next few years. According to a new study by Polaris Market Research, the global synthetic fibers market size is expected to reach $88.31 billion by 2028. CAGR is anticipated to be 6.5 percent per year from 2021 to 2028. “A rise in demand for lightweight, safe, and high-strength materials in the automobile, aerospace, and textile industries is driving the significant market growth,” the report states. “A growing preference for low carbon-emitting and low fuel consuming vehicles is anticipated to make a positive influence on the market. Breakthroughs in the research and development of green synthetic fibers and green bio fibers are further propelling the global market growth.”

November 2021

Smart Textiles: High-Performance, Breathable Fabric To Power Small Electronics

Made of electrospun polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and nylon, silver nanowires (AgNWs) and polystyrene (PS), the new all-fibrous composite nanogenerator (AF-TENG) can be easily incorporated into clothing, allowing it to power small electronics through everyday movements. Image is from the original article published in Nano Energy Vol. 90 Part A, reused with permission from Elsevier

Scientists have created a new triboelectric fabric that generates electricity from the movement of the body while remaining flexible and breathable.

TW Special Report

Using the movement of a body to charge electronic devices such as phones may soon become a reality, thanks to the work done on triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). But most current TENGs are not breathable, making them uncomfortable to wear. Now, researchers have developed a multilayered TENG made from electrospun fibers, silver nanowires, and a polystyrene charge storage layer that not only has a high electrical performance, but also has superior wearability.

The triboelectric effect is a phenomenon where a charge is generated on two dissimilar materials when the materials are moved apart after being in contact with each other. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) use this effect to convert mechanical motion into electrical energy. The compactness of TENGs allows them to be used as wearable devices that can harness the motion of the body to power electronics. Being wearables, the emphasis is placed on the fabric properties (such as the comfort of the material) and the charge-carrying capacity of the nanogenerators. Generally, the triboelectric materials chosen for the nanogenerator should be safe, compatible with the human body (biocompatible), flexible and breathable while being able to maintain a high electrical output performance.

Among the many materials considered for TENGs, electrospun fibers are a promising candidate as they are lightweight, strong, and have desirable electrical properties. Electrospinning is a technique by which solutions of polymers are drawn into fibers using electrical charge. There are ongoing efforts to add metals to electrospun fibers to improve the electrostatic potential and charge-trapping capabilities. But this has led to compromises being made between the comfort and the output performance of the material.

In a recent study published in Nano Energy, researchers from the University of Fukui, Japan, and Nanjing University, China, have developed an all-fibrous composite layer TENG (AF-TENG) that can easily be integrated with normal cloth. “With our work, we are aiming to provide a new point of view towards wearable energy harvesters and smart textiles,” said Dr. Hiroaki Sakamoto, the corresponding author for the study.

The AF-TENG contains a triboelectric membrane made of two layers of electrospun fibers — one of a material called polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and the other of a type of nylon. Silver nanowires cover these layers. The researchers further added a layer of electrospun polystyrene fibers between the silver nanowires and the triboelectric membrane.

The mechanical motion of the body while walking or running causes the triboelectric layers to gain a charge. This way, the mechanical energy is converted into electrical energy, which can be used to power electronic devices.

Normally, the charge buildup on the triboelectric surface is gradually lost or dissipated, reducing the surface charge density and the output performance of the nanogenerator. However, in this case, the added polystyrene membrane collects and traps the charge, retaining the surface charge density of the AF-TENG. The researchers used the AF-TENG to light up 126 commercial LEDs each rated at 0.06 Watt, demonstrating the feasibility of the nanogenerator. Moreover, according to Dr. Sakamoto, “The power generation device has flexibility and breathability since all components are composed of fiber materials. This device shows great potential in harvesting the static electricity from our clothes.”

While TENGs are currently limited to power low-powered devices such as LEDs and calculators, improvements to the wearability and output performance are integral steps towards future wearable technology.

Reference:

Title of original paper: An all-fibrous triboelectric nanogenerator with enhanced outputs depended on the polystyrene charge storage layer

Journal: Nano Energy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nanoen.2021.106515

November 2021

 

 

 

A Breakthrough Method For Evaluating Odor Control Capabilities

TW Special Report

Odor control claims for antimicrobial textile solutions have always been based on the assumption that reducing bacterial populations will subsequently eliminate odor, however, until recently it has been near impossible to quantify the efficacy of odor elimination and the benefit to end-users. The Research Triangle Park, N.C.-based American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) has now developed an objective method that can articulate the efficacy of odor control technologies in as little as 48 hours. Kate Hawley, senior microbiologist, and Dr. Glenner Richards, director of Microbiology and Analytical Chemistry, both from Microban International — an early adopter of this test method — explain how this industry-wide test can prove that odor abatement strategies offer valuable and quantifiable functional benefits for the user.

The demand for odor control and capture technologies in textiles is growing steadily with more key players engineering these strategies into performance finishes. For many consumers, unpleasant odors are almost synonymous with perceived uncleanliness, and increasing public concern for hygiene is driving the market demand for specialized textiles, particularly in medical materials and activewear. Odor control or capture can help to keep unwanted smells at bay, improving consumer satisfaction and increasing the usable lifetime of garments that would otherwise be hampered by excessive washing or persistent smells.

The Economic And Environmental Consequences Of Odor

The malodor that stubbornly remains in textiles even after washing is referred to as “permastink: and is caused by the metabolism of sweat by bacteria on the skin. The problem is most apparent in performance textiles that are made from synthetics, polyester, nylon and elastane blends, and used for dynamic and sweat-inducing activities, where the odorant chemically bonds to the material fibers. To make matters worse, these fabrics often come with recommendations to wash at lower temperatures, which is not sufficient to kill most odor-causing bacteria. As a result, consumers often wash their garments multiple times using harsh cleaning chemicals in an attempt to remove the persistent permastink, increasing both water and electricity usage.

Frequent laundering is not only ineffective at removing ingrained smells, but often reduces the quality of clothing, resulting in premature ripping, fraying or color fading. This causes consumers to render articles unusable earlier than their intended lifetime, adding to the escalating amount of waste that the textile industry produces. In the US alone, 3.2 million tons of textiles were incinerated and 11.3 million tons sent to landfill in 2018,* a large proportion of which is considered ‘nondurable goods’ such as footwear, sheets and towels. Consumers, market leaders and governing bodies are understandably pushing for solutions that can increase the usable lifetime of a garment to reduce this considerable environmental burden.

A Powerful Solution

Leading textile manufacturers have adopted a broad spectrum of organic, inorganic and organometallic odor control and capture technologies to help overcome the social, economic and environmental consequences of unwelcome smells on fabric. These odor abatement strategies include antimicrobial formulations that are proven to help fight the growth of microbes — such as bacteria, mold and mildew — on materials, preventing extrinsic discoloration, odors and early product deterioration. Antimicrobial technologies work on the premise  that keeping bacterial populations low will diminish the odor generated by bacterial metabolic activity. Alternatively, odor capture technologies form a protective barrier to trap and neutralize body odorants, without interfering with microbial metabolic pathways or growth.

How Do We Measure The Value Of These Technologies?

The textile industry has been missing a concrete and objective method for directly measuring odor reduction and communicating these benefits to users. Previous testing has focused on the impact that antimicrobials can have on bacterial populations, with the inference that these broad-spectrum technologies will reach the problematic, odor-causing bacteria. Therefore, when a technology is shown to reduce the microbial population — some of which will be odor-generating types — it is simply reasoned that the production of odorous compounds will be lessened.

However, this testing does not determine the extent of these capabilities or show the tangible benefits of inhibiting bacterial numbers. Colony counting is also an arduous task that can take researchers many days to complete, and can only give dead/live accounts of microbial viability, without investigating modes or mechanisms of attack. Without fully understanding the power of these technologies for reducing odor, manufacturers may overuse or underestimate the quantity of antimicrobial additives that are required to meet their guidelines, potentially adding to the economic and environmental cost of performance textiles. In addition, enumeration of bacterial populations is only appropriate for antimicrobial technologies, and cannot be applied to odor capture strategies that do not inhibit microbial activity but use an alternative approach such as  neutralizing odors that are a consequence of bacterial metabolism. The problem of odor is also multi-faceted and testing methods need to consider not only the growth of microorganisms, but also fabric retention and the types of odorous volatile compounds that cause concerns, to give a definitive description of odor control capabilities. Implementing an industry-wide method that uses a biological system to replicate real-world odor production gives more conclusive answers to the efficacy of all of these technologies.

A Novel Test Method

The AATCC has developed a novel, objective test method (AATCC TM211-2021) to articulate the value of odor control strategies and provide definitive, scientific evidence for odor reduction claims, helping to support regulatory and product registration, as well as communicate benefits to consumers. This highly sensitive test gives real-time and visual depictions of ammonia levels — a pungent and volatile odorous compound that is created when urease catalyzes the hydrolysis of urea in bacterial metabolic pathways — on a colorimetric scale and as a percentage reduction compared to untreated fabric, in under 48 hours. The straightforward method of inoculating the test material in a sealed flask, allowing the bacteria to grow for 18-22 hours, and then collecting the ammonium gas in a Drager gas detector tube for a following eight hours, has been approved by the AATCC and can be adopted by labs worldwide.

Unlike other analytical methods that introduce a synthetically produced odorant, this biological system measures the reduction of an odorant that is microbially generated to represent real-world benefits to the user. Two known ammonium-producing bacteria were used to evaluate this method, gram-positive Staphylococcus saprophyticus and gram-negative Proteus vulgaris, both of which are excellent surrogates for assessing odor development. This technique can be used across the textile industry for quantifying the odor control propensity of both antimicrobial-based technologies and other odor capture techniques.

Development of the method began in 2009, specifically in relation to assessing incontinence products where odor is a major factor of consideration. However, it soon became evident that the technique would be effective for a broad range of products — from clothing to outdoor materials — and an industry-wide spectrum of fabric treatments. The methodology behind the test has also led to some interesting insights, for example, it has shown that antimicrobial technologies significantly reduce odor before bacterial numbers drop, suggesting that the chemistries involved may begin inhibiting metabolic processes before the microbe itself is killed.

An Industry-Wide Advancement

The new method is a significant step that can be applied to manufacturing quality control procedures, as well as textile development programs, to evaluate the concentration of additives needed for sufficient odor reduction help to prevent overuse, and keep costs low. This development could not have come at a better time for the industry, offering an exciting and remote alternative to the traditional in-person odor assessments and wear trials that the COVID-19 pandemic made impossible. The Drager style method also partners well with existing textile test procedures, such as the AATCC TM100 which assesses bactericidal effects, to show the correlation between bacterial reduction and odor control. Manufacturers have a corporate responsibility to be able to quantify the benefits of their technologies with sound scientific research; this sensitive test method demonstrates that odor control adds real value to the end product.

Conclusion

Odor control and capture technologies have long been used to help overcome the environmental and economic cost of premature fabric disposal, as well as improving customer satisfaction. However, measuring these capabilities has proved challenging, without clear answers on how to communicate the benefit of reducing microbial growth on clothing to the everyday consumer. The newly approved AATCC TM211-2021 test can for the first time truly quantify the actual value of odor control technologies, showing that they are meaningful applications and ones that the textiles industry should continue to adopt as consumers seek more sustainable solutions.

To find out more information about AATCC TM211-2021 or any other test method, please visit https://aatcc.org/testing/.

AATCC Committee participation is open to all. For those with comments, suggestions, or want to be part of the innovation AATCC creates, you are welcome to join and make an impact on present and future AATCC test methods!

* Textiles: Material-Specific Data | US EPA. (2021). Retrieved 19 October 2021, from https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/textiles-material-specific-data

November 2021

Warp Knitting 4.0

The history of industrial production, transitioning from Industry 3.0 to Industry 4.0 and KARL MAYER’s solutions for supporting warp knitting customers

Christof Naier, president of the Business Unit Warp Knitting at the KARL MAYER Group, explains the digital future of warp knitting

TW Special Report

The history of industrial production has been shaped by on-going evolutionary changes. Following the discovery of steam engines in the 1800s, mass production began 100 years later, and the invention of the computer in the 1970s ushered in the Industry 3.0 era. In the intervening years, computers have become established in all areas of daily life. With the subsequent development of the Internet and cloud technology, the current Industry 4.0 era has come into being. What changes does the latest stage of human development bring for warp knitting? Ulrike Schlenker frome KARL MAYER’s Corporate Communication department asked Christof Naier, president of the KARL MAYER Group’s Warp Knitting Business Unit, about this.

Schlenker: What is the main difference between Industry 3.0 and 4.0?

Naier: Essentially, the two eras differ in their focus. While the most important themes for Industry 3.0 were hardware performance and networking, Industry 4.0 is primarily about data. The collection and collation of big data allows for complete transparency. In turn, transparency allows us to predict events in areas such as maintenance. For example, continuous monitoring can detect a rise in a motor’s operating temperature, and appropriately obtained data can then be used to localise the reason for the temperature increase and remedy it before the motor fails.

Event predictions also give us the opportunity to automate certain actions. Staying with the example of the overheating issue, for instance, the speed of the machine could be reduced automatically until the motor problem has been resolved.

Schlenker: How important are cloud solutions in unlocking opportunities such as these?

Christof Naier, president of the Business Unit Warp Knitting at the KARL MAYER Group

Naier: Thanks to WeChat, WhatsApp, PayPal & Alipay, Amazon and similar offerings, we already use a variety of cloud computing solutions in our everyday lives without even thinking about it. This technology is now finding its way into industrial use opening up new possibilities for us in areas such as after-sales support and maintenance for our customers’ machines. In this instance, we are building on three different cornerstones.
One key area is Care Solutions: Until now, customers have communicated with our team via smartphone, app or email when they needed support services. As a consequence, communication was often quite unstructured. We now have a newly developed platform that allows us to guide communication in the simplest and most targeted way. Thanks to networking solutions, we then already have all the necessary information about the machine, have access to the current log file, and can provide support in the form of initial measures.

As the second cornerstone, we provide customers with access to all the warp knitting-related knowledge that is available to KARL MAYER. In principle, this is about helping our customers with special functions that ensure maximum productivity and reproducible quality. We have grouped these topics together under the umbrella term “Smart Machine”.

Finally, the third cornerstone comprises our digital solutions, including collecting machine performance and efficiency data, matching evaluation tools, and helpful functions such as an alarm system for the machine. For example, the machine can automatically send a warning signal to the operator’s mobile phone informing them when a warp beam will soon need to be changed.

We also offer solutions for innovative design software. The new technology has made it very easy for our customers to develop patterns collaboratively with their global partners across international borders. This works in a similar way to how we work on Microsoft Teams or Zoom.

Thanks to our innovative k.ey Box, we guarantee the highest level of data and IT security for customers – including all subsidiaries and partners – when using any of these services.

Schlenker: This support concept minimises operational risks and maximises benefits for the customer. How far have you got with the implementation so far?

Naier: Our customers are already benefitting from numerous solutions. In the Smart Machine field, for example, they can load highly optimised lapping data from the cloud onto their machine using our Pattern Data System. These optimised movement sequences ensure that the machine will operate at the highest working speeds possible without affecting the quality of the product.

Our Care Solutions team is available 24/7 to provide support where needed. For first products, we already offer Care Solutions packages, which allow customers to benefit from fixed and – above all – plannable service costs. The aforementioned alarm system and evaluation tools are also already available. Using these tools, our customers can significantly increase their production efficiency.

KM.ON has developed a new planning tool for simple and transparent organisation of service measures. We are currently working at full speed on additional solutions.

November 2021

How Spinning And Recycling Go Together At BB Engineering

Matthias Schmitz (left), head of Engineering Recycling Technology and Dr. Klaus Schäfer, managing director of BB Engineering GmbH.

TW Special Report

As a medium-sized German machine construction business, BB Engineering has been manufacturing components and systems for synthetic fiber and film production for more than 20 years. For several years now, the company has been concentrating on recycling system development work. We discussed just how the seemingly different business units interact and how the recycling business profits from the existing extrusion and spinning systems know-how with Dr. Klaus Schäfer, managing director, and Matthias Schmitz, head of Engineering Recycling Technology.

TW: Dr. Schäfer, BB Engineering has its origins in the manufacture of extrusion and filtration systems for synthetic fiber spinning equipment. How did you come to open a new business unit dedicated to PET recycling?

Dr Klaus Schäfer: You are fundamentally right. Our original business was, and remains, focused on components such as extruders and filters for processing the most diverse polymers into synthetic fibers, but also into films and on developing and distributing other products. Soon, our portfolio was complemented by our own compact spinning system – in the form of the VarioFil. Our extruder and filters have also been used for rPET for many years now. We first supplied components for rPET back in 2005. For these reasons, PET recycling was not something completely new to us. In 2012, we unveiled the VarioFil type ‘R’, which also spins rPET granulate into high-end yarn. And, in 2016, we went a step further with the type ‘R+’: the direct processing of bottle flakes using our compact spinning system – in other words, recycling and spinning in a single step. The background to this was to dispense with the intermediate step of producing the granulate, hence saving lots of energy and cutting conversion costs, and to create high-quality POY from bottle flakes.

TW: What potential benefits do you see in the recycling of synthetic fibers?

Dr. Schäfer: Apart from the social responsibility of acting in a resource- and environmentally-friendly manner, we believe that recycling fibers presents our customers with considerable commercial opportunities. Firstly, there is production waste. Despite spinning technology becoming ever better, there is always waste in the form of B-quality goods, caused by over-production and during start-up and retooling. Instead of simply disposing of this — in view of constantly rising prices for raw materials and decreasing availability — nevertheless valuable material, it is far more economical to process it and return it to the production process. Yarn manufacturers can not only cut costs, they also become more autonomous. Furthermore, general developments, such as increasing population densities and fast fashion, are creating ever greater demand for polyester and polyester fibers. Here, many major textiles manufacturers have set themselves ambitious targets with regards to the utilization of recycled fibers. So, you can now see that the potential benefits of fiber recycling are tremendous.

TW: So, VarioFil R/R+ was a huge milestone for BB Engineering. You are now expanding your portfolio with the VacuFil. What exactly is the VacuFil and how does this system differ from the VarioFil R/R+?

Matthias Schmitz: The starting point for the VacuFil was the aim of offering our clientèle a zero-waste spinning system with which they can reutilize their own production waste. Very much in line with the circular economy. The VacuFil recycles this waste. The VarioFil then spins the processed material. Whereby the VacuFil stands on its own, of course, and can also be combined with a granulation process and other further processing procedures. Equally, starting materials other than spinning waste can be processed as well – such as bottle waste, trays, films, etc. On the one hand, these of course have completely different properties and, on the other hand, the requirements of the subsequent recycled material also vary depending on the end use. To ensure the VacuFil is able to fulfill such changing recycling tasks in a reliable and reproducible manner, the flexible controlling of the intrinsic viscosity was the top priority during development.

TW: Where do you acquire your know-how? Processing virgin material into films and filaments and recycling polyester are actually two completely different processes.

Dr. Schäfer: Of course, these are two completely different processes, but we view the necessary conversion into recycled material from perspective of the end product. The desired properties of the end product determine the requisite quality of the starting material and hence also the requirements for the recycled materials and their production. We come full circle. Hence, we know precisely what is important when recycling PET to ensure that further processors are able to use it to create high-quality products.

TW: In theory, that sounds very promising. What does the performance look like in practice?

Schmitz: Our trials have shown that — in the right configuration — our high-end extrusion and, above all, our filtration technologies are able to produce high-end rPET granulate for high-quality POY or FDY. Our system creates an intrinsic-viscosity build-up of up to 0.15 dl/g and homogeneity fluctuations of just ± 0.01 dl/g. We have achieved outstanding results in our tests. In part, the recycled materials from our VacuFil systems even offer superior spinning properties compared to the virgin material used in the tests – particularly with regards to spinning breaks and lint formation. We offer our test system to customers and other interested parties for specific material and process tests.

TW: These are surprisingly positive results, considering you normally have to accept compromises when using recycled materials. How have you achieved this? What is so special about the VacuFil process?

Schmitz: Fundamentally, we use liquid-state polycondensation, which cleans more effectively than solid-state polycondensation processes. But the truly special feature with the VacuFil is, above all, our Visco+ component. With this, we have developed a unique vacuum filter system for viscosity build-up and viscosity homogenization. We currently have a patent pending here. Add to this the interaction with high-end extrusion, large-area filtration and the excellent degasification technology.

Dr. Schäfer: The right configuration of these units is absolutely decisive. We are proud that we have succeeded here, drawing on our many years of extrusion and filtration expertise.

TW: It was mentioned that the VacuFil is compatible with various further processing procedures. What possibilities do manufacturers actually have?

Schmitz: You can combine the VacuFil with various pelleting units. However, you can also feed the recycled melt from the VacuFil directly into the further processing systems, regardless of whether these are spinning systems, film production units or other manufacturing processes. There are many possible options. BB Engineering also offers several optional add-ons for the VacuFil. For example, our 3DD mixing system, which enables the recycled material to be returned to the virgin polymer flow in a polycondensation system. This mixing system can also be used to add additives, masterbatches and similar to the rPET melt. Overall, the VacuFil is extremely modular and flexible.

November 2021

 

 

 

 

 

The Doyen Of Silk Testing: Pioneer Of A Little-Known Aspect Of Uster Technologies

Silk yarn

TW Special Report

Silk would not normally spring to mind in relation to a company known worldwide for quality management in traditional yarn spinning. But there is a chapter on silk in the Uster story which certainly deserves to be highlighted. It’s about a man who was dedicated to silk and its use as a delicate fiber for the finest yarns and amazing fabrics. This look into an interesting history is presented to honor the life and work of a true silk expert.

The year 1948 was a major milestone for Uster Technologies, as the first yarn evenness tester was introduced to the market. Peter Haettenschwiler was an assistant involved in the development of the tester and then in showing the diagrams and test results to spinners. Actually, he brought quality management to the mills, where the diagrams were seen as aids to accurate pricing, improved quality and forecasting how the yarns would suit processing stages. In this role, he became Uster’s first textile technologist.

Haettenschwiler also had a very special hobby. He collected bagworm moths and butterflies. His knowledge and dedication allowed him to assemble the world’s largest collection of moths of the family known as bagworm moths, today housed in the Entomological Collection of ETH Zurich, Switzerland. He became a recognized expert on this species, and first identified and named more than 30 new varieties not previously recorded. He also edited numerous specialist literature, enhancing his name and reputation among international experts in the field of Lepidoptera.

Bolts of silk fabric

Silk Testing Progress

Silk is often praised as “the queen of all textile fibers” and a natural wonder. It’s no surprise therefore, that the quality parameters of spun silk fibers were of interest. Haettenschwiler tested silk spun yarn, but it must be said that it was some years along in the manufacturing of raw and spun silk until the first trials were made with commercially available testing systems. In the course of this work, cooperation with experts from silk institutes in Switzerland, Italy and later China were started.

The European silk trade was first to hear about the new test technologies. Early studies quickly showed that even very fine silk could be tested after certain adaptations of the devices. The test results were more neutral, more meaningful and more precise than the data obtained with traditional testing methods.

Based on the test results, certificates were issued, and these were used to set the commercial values of the products. It was especially important for both trade and the subsequent treatment processes that the test results were accurate, so attention was closely focused on optimizing the testing methods.

The Height Of The Silk Business

At the beginning of the 18th century, the silk courts in Zurich were world famous and by 1900 the silk industry was one of the most important industries in Switzerland. Silk processing reached its peak at the beginning of the 20th century. What remains today are a handful of silk producers focusing on niche markets, as well as Testex, founded as Zuerich Seidentrocknungsanstalt (institution for silk drying) 175 years ago and the financial institutes which arose to provide capital to support the industry’s profits.

Silk has never been a big business for Uster — only a niche for which Haettenschwiler showed his passion. There were Uster Statistics editions for both spun silk and raw silk, however, not surprisingly, as Haettenschwiler also played an outstanding role in developing Uster Statistics in its early years and through the decades. This story opens another page of Uster history.

Haettenschwiler died this year on August 17, 2021. “He was a formative personality for the company and a highly engaged colleague who dedicated his working life to the textile industry with respect to an advanced quality management in staple and filament spinning. Silk was one of his great passions and the development of possible objective quality testing possibilities with Uster products was always his intention and he was always pushing for investigations and publications,” said Wolfram Soell, senior textile technologist at Uster Technologies AG. “We would like to honor his working life and we should inspire future generations of textile professionals with his story.”

November 2021

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