The bi-annual signature event of the
textile industry, the 18th International Exhibition on Textile Industry
(ShanghaiTex 2017) was grandly held on 27-30 November. Exhibitors
showcased their latest technologies and products to visitors, demonstrating how
the technology trends are shaping the industry.
Biancalani

The Italian company introduced the Airo24, which
is a dryer for continuous and open-width tumbling treatments of woven, nonwoven
and knitted fabrics.
Airo24 was introduced to the market in 2005
and users have been able to reduce the use of softener to achieve a good
hand-feel with the machine, hence protecting the environment. The latest model
on display is one equipped with a new system especially suitable for treating
terry towel.
The machine features, among others,
modulate mechanical action, with the patented Smart-Switch technology – a
device which intelligently controls and optimizes the change of direction of
air and fabric. From lightweight materials to heavier ones made of delicate
yarn, every type of fabric will benefit from the technology, with a
considerable increase in drying capacity and productivity.
Mr. Rossano Biancalani, President of Biancalani
explained: “We add new feature to the Airo24 each year to stay ahead of
competitors. We make sure that our machine is always the newest you can find in
the market.”
Mr. Giuseppe Capaccioli, Area Manager,
added that the system added in the machine enables the terry towel treated to
be soft to feel and at the same time there will be no pilling of the fabric.
Bianco
Bianco, also based in Italy, introduced its
new open-width compacting unit – Bianco B-Kompact 600 Felt Compactor, which
features good shrinkage, improving the dimensional stability of knitted fabrics
and ensures good handle.
“The market has been growing continuously
for our company since 2010, and the fast growth of the digital printing sector
has contributed to our development,” Mr. Stefano Borromeo, CEO of Bianco, said.
As introduced, the latest compactor is for
digital printing. It is new to the China market but a number of units have
already been sold.
“On future trend, the industry is moving
toward zero-water production. It is a trend all over the world, including China,”
Mr. Stefano Borromeo commented. He also unveiled that the Bianco is working
with a company from Europe to set up a plant in Vietnam that will not use water
in the textile finishing process.
Since over 40 years, Bianco has designed
and manufactured machinery with advanced technology for textile finishing for
the technical textile industry and, more recently, for the fast-growing
non-woven fabric industry.

Datacolor
Datacolor, the renowned color measurement
solutions provider, is going to announce its new breakthrough in auto color
separation solutions for printing around April in next year. According to Mr.
David Dai, Director Sales & Support Greater China, more details about the new
technology will be unveiled later.
“The textile
industry has slowed since 2010. Even though it’s cyclical change, it would be
difficult to see a boom like we had before the downturn,” he commented. “It is
due to a number of factors, including tougher environmental regulations, rising
labor cost and material prices.”
Mr. David Dai believes the way out for the
industry is to compete on product quality.
“The industry is
now doing better than before in terms of color stability, color fastness, value
addition and functionality. We provide color management solutions to the
industry and help to establish a unified color standard. With higher efficiency
using our software and products, the customers also save labor cost,” he said.
Savio

The exhibit highlight of Savio at
ShanghaiTex 2017 was Polar Evolution, the fully automatic machine for bobbin
feeding.
The machine features greater productivity,
power and compressed air savings, minimum yarn waste and flexible production
planning, among others.
Mr. Fulvio Galetto, Regional Sales Vice
President of Savio said: “The model may one day be produced in the company’s
factory in China as demands for automation and connectivity for close
monitoring of machines are on the rise.”
“Three years ago, the demand for automation
in China was about 50%, but it’s risen to 70% to 80%,” he added.
The trend of moving to cheaper production
bases outside China is still going on due to rising labour cost in China. With
automation technology, customers can have much fewer workers to look after the
machines.
“We have got a customer who has one worker
to ride on a bicycle around the factory to monitor 20 machines. So this is very
good,” said Mr. Fulvio Galetto.
He also mentioned that the textile market
is still in its low season, but there are signs showing things are picking up
again.
SDL
Atlas

SDL Atlas displayed its stat-of -the art
equipment at the company booth, including the Bean Bag Snag Tester and
Universal Wear Tester (UWT), DryRate Tester – Heated Plate Method, Vortex M6:
AATCC Monograph Instrument, etc.
The DryRate Tester - Heated Plate Method is
one of the latest test instruments provided by SDL Atlas. It can fully
automatically determine the drying rate of a fabric, exposed to a prescribed
volume of water, while in contact with a heated plate set at 37°C (99° C), the
skin temperature at which the human body starts to perspire.
Accurate water volume is dispensed by a
built-in precision water dispensing pump. Testing conditions are monitored by
the built-in anemometer (wind speed sensor), and infrared thermocouple probes.
In addition, the instrument comes equipped with 7-inch capacitive touch screen
controller for setting parameters and monitoring test status.
The Vortex M6: AATCC Monograph Instrument is
a commercial-grade washing machine that satisfies the AATCC Monograph M6
requirements as specified in the AATCC Technical Manual. It was also designed
to be able to achieve programmable precision (bath temperature, water fill,
agitation, spin) and save custom programs.
The machine has robust commercial-grade
design. It is capable of tuning and maintaining ISO 9000 and I7025
calibration.

Setex
At ShanghaiTex 2017, Setex launched for the
first time the SECOM 727CE – a Windows embedded CE controller for discontinuous
dyeing processes with integrated program logic system.
The controller is maintenance-free due to
its fanless technology and suitable for a long term industrial operation.
According to Mr. Oliver Schermuly, Managing
Director of Setex, the controller has improved connectivity to facilitate
customers to operate their smart factories. The data collected by the
controller can be consolidated in a central system (a separate product).
“We are testing the market now in China. A
lot of local machine manufacturers have shown interest in the device,” he
remarked.