#Spinning

2012-08-08

Tatham save big money on yarn spinning costs

TS drive system with ABB ACSM1 drives (c) 2012 Tatham

Tatham Ltd, specialists in the field of drive and control technology are set to save a woollen yarn spinner nearly £27,000 a year in energy costs.

ABB low voltage AC drives were used by Tatham Ltd to achieve the huge savings for their customer who produces cloth used in tennis balls and billiard tables. The woollen spinners were using eddy current drives to power and control its four carding engines. These operate on the principle of a slipping clutch for speed variation. This has the disadvantage that the motors are turning continuously, even when the machine is not in production, making them extremely inefficient - although the motors were turning for over 7,000 hours, only around 1,620 hours of this time were spent in actual production.

The original set up used a 15 kW motor, a 25 kW motor and two 7.5 kW “Tandem Motors” to drive various sections of the machine. These motors where also driving the machine sections directly, shaft to shaft, meaning that the motors where continually running at full load current and sometimes overheating.

The new system uses 11 kW AC drives and motors, reducing the on time, when the motors are switched on, to just over 3,500 hours. Together with the reduced power usage, the solution achieved yearly energy savings of 540,000 kWh. This has reduced the energy bill for the machines by £27,000, while cutting CO₂ emissions by 292,000 kg/year. Payback for the system was just over 10 months.

Tatham’s engineers conducted an energy survey and designed a new drive system based on four ABB machinery drives using ABB Direct Torque Control (DTC). DTC allows complete synchronisation of the machine sections, giving highly accurate control and improved product quality.

In the new control arrangement, 11 kW geared motors and associated gearboxes were fitted on the scribbler, carder and eccentrics sections, along with an additional 4 kW motor and gearbox on the doffer. The gearboxes ensure that the correct power is delivered to the rollers while allowing the use of a smaller motor. The AC drives are also run at 40 Hz, allowing further energy savings.

The low voltage AC drives display data that inform users of the “On Time”, when the motors are switched on, “Run Time”, when the motors are driving the rollers, and “Kilowatt Hours Used”, making it easy to compare the operation with the previous situation.

The new motors also run cooler than the previous set-up, resulting in reduced maintenance and improved reliability.

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 130,000 people.

Temco launches a new DTY all-in-one solution

Temco introduces the DTY All-in-One Solution – a fully harmonized set of components engineered to give customers a highly stable, low maintenance and reproducible process environment. The solution reduces interruptions, extends component lifetimes and supports consistent yarn quality across all machine positions. All-in-One Solution – a fully harmonized set of components engineered to provide maintenance and reproducible process environment.

DIENES at Techtextil 2026: Flexible pilot lines for bio-based fiber development

The growing relevance of bio-based materials in technical textiles is accompanied by increasing demands for reproducibility, high-quality data, and scalable process routes. Especially when working with cellulose and its derivatives, chitosan, lignin-based approaches, or bio-based PAN as a carbon-fiber precursor, R&D teams face variable feedstock quality, tighter process windows, and the need for reliable comparability across trials. This calls for flexible, data-driven experimental setups that can be reconfigured efficiently when recipes, solvents, and raw-material batches change.

RETECH showcases high-precision godets for high-performance fiber processing at Techtextil 2026

RETECH designs and manufactures godets and draw frames for heated, ambient and cooled processes, enabling precise heat treatment and consistently high yarn quality for a wide range of polymers and applications, with process temperatures of up to 400 °C for high-performance fibers. The company’s key competence lies in exact and stable temperature and speed control, individually adapted to the specific material and process requirements.

LineONE – Smart performance, smart investment at Techtextil 2026

At Techtextil 2026 in Frankfurt (April 21–24, Hall 12, Booth C79), AUTEFA Solutions will present its LineONE concepts for cost-efficient nonwoven production. As a full-line supplier for nonwoven production lines, AUTEFA Solutions covers the entire process chain – from fibre opening through to web bonding. With its LineONE line concepts, the company combines proven technologies into well-balanced, cost-efficient turnkey solutions. These concepts are designed for capacity expansions, modernisation projects and new production lines, offering robust design and high flexibility for applications such as filtration, geotextiles and automotive.

EU and Australia strengthen relations with Security and Defence Partnership and Trade Agreement

The EU and Australia have today announced the adoption of a groundbreaking Security and Defence Partnership. They have also concluded negotiations for an ambitious and balanced free trade agreement (FTA) and agreed to launch formal negotiations for the association of Australia to Horizon Europe, the world's largest funding programme for research and innovation. With these steps, the EU and Australia are delivering mutually beneficial outcomes and further reinforcing their already close relations in a time of geopolitical uncertainty.

DuPont introduces Tyvek® APX™ 400 protective coverall, setting a new benchmark for extreme breathability

DuPont (NYSE:DD) announced the launch of the Tyvek® APX™ 400 protective coverall, the first in a new generation of extremely breathable disposable chemical protection garments. Manufactured using DuPont™ Tyvek® APX™ groundbreaking fabric, the new garment combines 360° protection and durability with extreme breathability, taking worker comfort and safety to a whole new level.

Freudenberg Performance Materials presents Mehlerheytex and Filc at Techtextil 2026

Freudenberg Performance Materials will showcase textile innovations that increase efficiency, performance and sustainability in industry and mobility at Techtextil 2026. For the first time since the merger of Mehler Texnologies and Heytex, the MehlerHeytex brand will make its debut as a leading expert in coated technical textiles. Moreover, Freudenberg Performance Materials Filc (Filc), specialist for advanced needlepunch nonwovens and laminated materials, will present its groundbreaking solutions for automotive applications. Filc customers can benefit from the perfect combination of functionality, comfort and sustainability. The Freudenberg Performance Materials experts are looking forward to welcoming visitors to the trade fair at Stand A11 in Hall 11.0 from April 21 – 24, 2026.