KARL MAYER’s warp preparation business unit in India is doing very well. At the end of 2012, this German textile machinery manufacturer received an order from Arvind to deliver a denim processing machine to its factory in Ahmedabad. The Indig-O-Matic slasher/dyeing line went into operation in October of that year at Arvind, which is one of the biggest fabric and apparel producers in India. Since then, the machine has been operating efficiently, much to the delight of the company.
“This new machine enables us to react flexibly and quickly to the changing demands of the market. It is also extremely productive,” explains the Managing Director, Mr. Susheel Kaul, who bought the Indig-O-Matic as a double-sheet version, enabling production to almost double for the same space requirements. The dimensions of the dyeing zone are the same as in the conventional version, and only the number of beam creels and beaming machines has to be doubled.
Another feature of the new Indig-O-Matic operating at the Arvind plant is that the dye baths are equipped for nitrogen dyeing. Mr. Kaul says that he can achieve dyeing results that he has never been able to achieve before. “There is also less environmental pollution with the nitrogen dyeing process. This aspect is becoming increasingly important here”.
With the delivery of the Indig-O-Matic to Arvind, KARL MAYER’s dyeing machine with integrated nitrogen technology celebrated its Indian premiere. The advantages of nitrogen technology can also be exploited in India now.
By using nitrogen, the phase transition of the dye onto the fibre from a reduced to an oxidised state into the ambient air can now be slowed down. Since only liquid substances can be absorbed by the yarn, the reaction time of the dye can be extended. The dye is fixed better onto the cotton fibre and the core of the yarn remains undyed, as with the ring dyeing process typically used for denim. This results in optimum dye and rubfastness for the same high weaving efficiency.
The nitrogen technology also enables the amount of textile auxiliaries used in the machine to be reduced. This makes an important contribution to the increasingly important issues of environmental protection and sustainability.
However, KARL MAYER’s new Indig-O-Matic machine operating at the Arvind facility is not only the first denim machine with nitrogen dyeing technology in India but also the first indigo dyeing machine that can process the fine yarns used to produce cotton shirting. Here too, this innovative warp preparation technology is supporting the move away from using jeans fabric to produce typical, hard-wearing workwear and towards using it to produce more stylish denim fashions.