[pageLogInLogOut]

#ITMA 2019

ITA student Mathias Zidda receives the ITMA Research & Innovation Excellence Award 2019

Award presentation: Fritz P. Mayer (CEMATEX), Mathias Zidda, Professor Dr Thomas Gries (ITA), Martin Kolloch (ITA), Dr Johannes Sackmann (ITA) Markus Beckmann (ITA GmbH), from left to right, source: ITA
Mathias Zidda, master graduate of Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University (ITA), won the ITMA Research & Innovation Excellence Award on June 20, 2019 for his 3D braiding machine, which was rebuilt according to the 4.0 industry standard.

During his master thesis "Development of a gear-driven 3D rotational braiding machine and its control concept", Mathias Zidda was supervised by ITA doctorate candidate Martin Kolloch.

Fritz P. Mayer, President of CEMATEX and the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), handed over the prize money of 10,000 € with certificate to the lucky winner at ITMA 2019 in Barcelona, Spain.

The 3D braiding machine consists of an existing conventional mechanical system. It has now been digitised and rebuilt according to industry 4.0 standard. With the help of the digital control, eg. three-dimensionally reinforced ceramic turbine components can be manufactured as prototypes and subsequently produced in series. Together with the company ark industrie AG, Aachen, Germany, and 2C-Composites GmbH & Co. KG, Heinsberg, Germany, the control system was completely redesigned so that the machine can be mon-itored and operated from anywhere.


"Every machine manufacturer is looking for ways to update its existing machinery before replacing it. We provide him with a good solution in the field of digitisation and Industry 4.0," says Professor Dr Thomas Gries, Head of ITA.

At ITMA 2015, ITA doctoral candidate Jan Jordan had already won the R&I Excellence Award for his master thesis "Development & assembly of a test bench for the analysis of magnetic weft insertion".

The ITMA Sustainable Innovation Award was created by CEMATEX to recognize the joint efforts of the global textile industry to promote corporate sustainability through innovative solutions and outstand-ing industry-specific research.

The award comprises two categories: an Industry Excellence Award for textile and apparel manufacturers and a Research & Innovation Excellence Award open to Master's students.


More News from TEXDATA International

#ITM 2026

ITM 2026: The new geography of textile production

New production hubs are emerging across North Africa and Central Asia, while Türkiye is accelerating its transformation toward higher-value, technology-driven and more sustainable textile manufacturing.

#Research & Development

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

#Knitting & Hosiery

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

#Associations

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

More News on ITMA 2019

Latest News

#Industry 4.0 / Digitalization

Coats Digital launches AI-powered GSD RealMotion for motion analysis

Coats Digital has launched GSD RealMotion, an AI-powered solution designed to provide apparel manufacturers with greater visibility into factory-floor operations. By analysing shop-floor video and applying Coats Digital’s GSD methodology, the solution turns video recordings into structured, motion-by-motion method studies.

#Textile chemistry

Archroma and Lameirinho partner in pioneering deployment of InOneGO single-step dyeing

Archroma, a global leader in specialty chemicals, and Lameirinho, a leading home textiles manufacturer based in Portugal, are collaborating to bring InOneGO by Archroma, a new single-step dyeing process, into commercial production. Lameirinho’s first InOneGo bedlinens collection is now available worldwide.

#Knitting & Hosiery

KARL MAYER launches extra-wide HKS 3-M EL for increased productivity

KARL MAYER has launched a new extra-wide version of its HKS 3-M EL tricot machine, designed to increase productivity particularly in the manufacture of textiles for sports, activewear and athleisure applications.

#Research & Development

Reducing development times for technical textiles by accelerated thermo-oxidative aging in a high-pressure autoclave

Synthetic polymers used in technical textiles can be effectively protected against degradation caused by heat, oxygen, and water through the use of stabilizer systems. This enables service lives of several decades, extending to more than 50 years. As the use of durable technical textiles continues to grow, so does the demand for reliable methods to predict their service life within economically feasible testing periods. For the first time the German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF) developed methods for robust service life prediction for textiles in an IGF research project.

TOP