Page 42 - TEXtalks. October- November 2023

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Rethinking Energy with
Monforts in Shanghai
China continues to lead the world in the production
of textiles and investments in textile machinery,
making ITMA Asia + CITME, which takes place in
Shanghai from November 19-23, a must-attend event
for Monforts.
Hans Wroblowski. Head of Denim. Monforts
“While remaining the world’s largest
producer of clothing and footwear, China
has also been the largest consumer of these
products since 2021,” says Monforts Head
of Denim Hans Wroblowski. “The country
now accounts for 25% of the global clothing
and footwear market, with the USA in
second place with a 21% share and Europe
with a 20% share. This suggests a
significant change, since the biggest market
for China’s products is now its own.
European machine builders like Monforts,
however, have much to contribute to
ensuring all markets continue to grow
sustainably, and we are looking forward to
many fruitful discussions in Shanghai.”
Efficiency
At stand C07 in Hall 5 at the Shanghai exhibition,
Wroblowski and other Monforts experts will be on
hand to explain the advantages of Montex stenters
for essential drying processes in terms of production
throughput – and especially in energy efficiency and
resource savings.
October/November 2023
“Because finishing is a particularly energy-intensive
part of the textile production chain, it is exactly where
convincing results can be achieved and we have
developed a wide range of energy-saving measures,”
says Wroblowski. “This not only includes
state-of-the-art machine chamber insulation but also
heat recovery systems.”
The Monforts Universal Energy Tower, for example, is
a free-standing air/air heat exchanger that achieves
energy savings of up to 25%.
The ECO Booster heat recovery system with
integrated automatic cleaning is meanwhile directly
integrated into the chamber design of the Montex
stenter and enables energy savings of up to 35%
depending on the application. One ECO Booster
module is sufficient for stenter ranges with up to
eight chambers.
Both the ECO Booster and the Energy Tower can also
be retrofitted to existing ranges, in order to make
production more resource-efficient and economical,
yet without having to invest in a new machine.
“If anything, today’s high energy prices are only
encouraging investment, because for our customers,
energy costs can account for up to 70% of
production costs, so there is great demand for ways
of saving money,” Wroblowski says. “This also helps
in terms of global warming and reducing carbon
footprint, of course. We see the energy crisis of the
past two years as an opportunity because it is
leading to an energy consumption rethink in the
textile industry.”
Denim
Two major areas of specialism for Monforts
technologies are in denim production and the
finishing of a wide range of technical textiles.
Over 900 Monforts Thermex hotflue dyeing systems
are now operational in the main textile producing
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Monforts Montex stenters are already the industry standard for the fabric finishing industry
The Monforts Energy Tower can be retrofitted to existing ranges to achieve significant savings The Montex®Coat coater serves a diverse number of technical textile markets
countries, with around 150 of them already reaping says Wroblowski. “These latest Monforts lines allow
the benefits of the Econtrol® and Econtrol®T-CA users to be extremely versatile and respond quickly
processes. to market demand, while also allowing very short
production runs.”
Econtrol® is a continuous process for the dyeing of
woven cotton and cellulosic fabrics in which reactive Technical textiles
dyestuffs are fixed into the fabric in a one-step dyeing The Montex®Coat coater meanwhile serves a very
and drying process with a controlled combination of diverse number of markets and enables full PVC
steam and air. The entire pad-dry process takes just coatings, pigment dyeing or minimal application
two-to-three minutes at a temperature of between surface and low penetration treatments, as well as
120-130°C and a relative humidity volume of 25-30%. solvent coatings to be carried out. Key applications
include tents, tarpaulins and awnings, black-out roller
The latest innovation for denim manufacturers is the blinds and sail cloth, automotive interior fabrics and
CYD yarn dyeing system which integrates new medical disposables.
functions and processes into the weaving
preparatory processes – spinning, direct beaming, “Technical textiles are a key pillar of the Monforts
warping and assembly beaming, followed by sizing production programme and we are always exploring
and dyeing – in order to increase quality, flexibility, potential new applications with our customers,” says
economic viability and productivity. Wroblowski. “There remains huge potential for the
“Differentiation is the key in the highly-competitive expansion of this market in Asia and we will be happy
denim fabrics industry, whether that is through the to discuss the possibilities of this very flexible
successful incorporation of new fibres, technology with you in Shanghai.”
accommodating new fabric constructions or
exploring the many options for how to treat them at *Econtrol® is a registered mark of DyStar Colours
the finishing stage, to gain a market advantage,” Distribution GmbH, Germany.
October/November 2023