Page 61 - February-March-2017

Sustainability potential with the goal of creating a better quality of life in the jersey fabric. This worldwide average is unlikely to 61

interest of people and the environment.
have decreased rapidly. As early as 2004 the energy
of German technology A Cotton T-shirt for All efficiency of German machinery clearly exceeded –
as expected – the values stated in the eco study. In
Cotton T-shirts are basic garment, worn under shirts
the balance sheet machinery of VDMA member
in the office or as casual clothing. If every-one of the
companies consumed that time only 6.0 kWh/kg per
A cotton T-shirt for everyone seven billion people on the globe bought one single kilogram of T-shirt fabric from spinning to finishing.
This value further moved down to 4.3 kWh/kg in 2014.
cotton T-shirt per year, 1.24 million tons of jersey
fabric would have to be knitted worldwide. If all T-shirt
manufacturers of the world made use of today’s In order to assure that such a comparison of
progress in German technology, huge saving sustainability is comparable, all parameters,
potentials could be obtained: Under the theme processes and machinery technology for the
“World population multiplied by one T-shirt per year” manufacture of the jersey fabric had to be defined
and “German technology, in recent years, compared exactly. Starting point was a medium staple cotton. enable economic handling of the most different fibre
to machinery standard 20 years ago” engineers from Yarn manufacture begins at the spinning preparation raw materials from virgin cotton over blends and
Germany have calculated the possible energy saving with fully automatic bale pluckers. The fibre material regenerates up to 100 per cent chemical fibres.
of 19,354,000 million watts per hour and the water is opened fully-automatically, blended and cleaned. Production reaches a rotor speed of more than
consumption reduced by 127 Mio. m3 and searched Carding machines, pre-drawing machines and 180,000 rpm and delivery speeds of 300 m/min. On
for comparisons: In total 14 coal power plants with an drawing machines follow downstream. The such machines knitting yarns, as they are normally
average output of 600 MW each could be completely calculation example is based on a softly twisted yarn used for T-shirts, can be produced with very high
turned off. And they underline an additional with a yarn count of Ne 30, which is produced on process efficiency. Even raw fibre qualities which
advantage: Using German machinery technology for open-end rotor spinning machine with a rotor speed could cause a minor spinning stability can be
jersey production of the global demand for cotton T-shirts, of 150,000 rpm. The yarn produced this way is transformed into high quality yarns in a most
the annual quantity of water that 2 million inhabitants of wound on a package of up to 350 mm diameter economical way using the suitable spinning media
Shanghai consume can be saved every year. within the same process step. The yarn is knitted on and spinning parameters. In addition, latest machine
single-jersey circular knitting machines with a generations have a further optimised package to reduce this consumption significantly for both
diameter of 34 inches and a machine gauge of E 28. built-up, so that perfect dye packages – like those dyeing and drying. One index to describe the water
With the following finishing process the knitted fabric only known from ring spun yarn up to date – can be consumption of a discontinuous dyeing machine is
VDMA (Verband Deutscher Maschinen- und engineering industry, are as follows: is dyed as desired (in this example black dyeing with produced in one single process step. Throughout the the liquor ratio of this machine. The figure describes
Anlagenbau, Mechanical Engineering Industry reactive dye stuffs); at the same time its processing last years the rotor spinning machines have been the ratio of water and the fabric weight by which
Association) represents more than 3,200 mostly 1. The mechanical and plant engineering industry properties and its functional characteristics are optimised consequently regarding quality, operator operation of the machine is possible in theory. A ratio
medium-sized companies in the capital goods uses sustainable engineering to ensure that its improved. Finishing is made on the rope, which is slit ergonomics, energy consumption and efficiency so of 1 : 5 means that for filling of the machine with 1 kg
industry, making it the largest industry association in responsibility for a livable world can be fulfilled by before drying. The dyeing itself comprises the that they offer today more and more an alternative to of fabric, 5 litres of water are required. The less water
Europe. Blue Competence is a sustainability initiative focus on ecological, social and economic objectives. process steps pre-bleaching, dyeing and washing of the conventional ring spinning machines. This is is necessary (i.e. the smaller is the liquor ratio) the
of VDMA. The initiative connects professional 2. To us, social responsibility means improving our the T-shirt material. All over the world in most cases mainly due to decrease in process steps compared higher is saving in water and energy since smaller
associations, institutions, and companies to create quality of life on the basis of human rights and so-called rope dyeing machines (jet dyeing to the ring spinning procedure, the high degree of water volumes have to be heated. In their company
an efficient network for sustainable productions and compliance with laws and standards. In particular, we machines) are used. Making-up and drying are automation, the use of spinning agents brochures some dyeing machinery manufacturers
products - about 400 organizations are presently are responsible for providing the best possible working further process steps, which the fabric has to pass corresponding to the fabric and the integrated engage a real competition regarding the liquor ratios.
part of Blue Competence. conditions for our employees, supporting their further Trützschler card TC 15 for becoming a T-shirt. At the end of the finishing quality monitoring. It is questionable as to whether process safety and
training and lifelong learning, and creating jobs in order Beside the consumption of electrical energy, the process mechanical pre-water extraction, tentering care of material are sufficiently taken into consideration.
Blue Competence Sustainability Code to improve people’s career opportunities. energy required for compressed air and suction air, and stentering machines are used to dry the fabric. The single jersey circular knitting machine uses The German manufacturers of rope dyeing machines
Blue Competence makes an important contribution 3. Blue Competence makes an important thermal energy and water consumption have been relative movement technology: Latch needle and use realistic figures: optimum process safety and
to improving the global climate, for instance through contribution to improving the global climate, for taken into consideration for the calculation of German technology claims to be global leader with knock-over sinker make a relative movement to each careful material transport are ensured.
the efficient, conservative use of renewable as well instance through the efficient, conservative use of sustainability. Has not been taken into consideration regard to highly efficient productivity and outstanding other to form the loop. In this way the relative
as non-renewable resources, by preventing waste renewable as well as non-renewable resources, by the cultivation of cotton, which represents 38 per cent quality. As the automated machines run with long movement technique has the advantage that smaller Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, one of the
and by reusing products and manufacturing preventing waste and by reusing products and of the energy consumption and the making-up service intervals, energy is saved in reasonable angles for needle clearance can be used. The results world’s leading consultancies had awarded best
technologies. For the German mechanical manufacturing technologies. (covering 2 per cent of the overall energy balance). amounts. For the spinning preparation and spinning, are less wrapping points of the yarn and a reduced ratings to the German textile technology for increase
engineering industry, responsibility toward society 4. We realize that a focus on sustainability increases The eco study mentioned at the beginning had German technology guarantees optimum energy friction of the needle. of energy efficiency. According to Roland Berger,
and the environment has always been a core a company’s economic success. Our products and defined the energy consumption necessary for the efficiency, e.g. with the production of more than 1200 further development of German textile technology
principle of its commercial actions. With the services are not optimized for the short term, but are production of a T-shirt on the basis of the machinery kg/h (up to 2000 kg/h in some cases) in the Textile finishing processes need much water and should result in an about 15 per cent higher efficiency
sustainability code, the companies belonging to the designed for the entire lifecycle of the value chain. standard in the 1980s and 1990s in most cases. For blowroom, more than 175 kg/h in the card and 1000 heating energy. With latest state-of-the-art until 2020. This product-specific comparison along
Blue Competence initiative uphold these high social Thus they represent the most efficient overall the process steps spinning preparation, yarn m/ min delivery speed in the drafting process. ˚technology and process management, the finishing the overall process chain even proves that German
and ethical standards, and see them as a economic solution. manufacturing, fabric production and washing, process of a cotton T-shirt offers several possibilities technology already today reaches more.
requirement for long-term business success. The 5. We acknowledge our social responsibility and bleaching, dyeing and finishing the investigation lists Modern rotor spinning plants are mainly
key aspects of the code for German mechanical emphasize trustworthy actions on a voluntary basis, an energy requirement of 19.9 kWh per kilogram of characterised by highly-automated machines which