The Thermax Group of Bangladesh is installing a second Monforts stenter at its woven dyeing plant on the outskirts of Dhaka less than one year after the first stenter was installed, allowing the company to increase the flexibility and diversity of its output.
The first Monforts stenter, an eight-chamber Montex 6500, together with a Monfortex sanforising range, was ordered in late 2010 and commissioned early in 2011.
Md Nurul Islam, Senior General Manager of Thermax Yarn Dyed Fabrics Ltd. and Thermax Woven Dyeing Ltd., says that the company, founded in 1996, is pursuing a policy of rapid expansion and diversification of its product range. “We have become a vertically integrated company, handling every aspect from cotton to weaving and dyeing through to garments production. In this way, we can control quality, output and costs, and build in our own flexibility to meet the market demands”.
All this has happened during a relatively brief period. The company had not operated a stenter before it invested in the first Monforts machine, which was commissioned slightly less than a year ago. The first stenter allowed the company to develop very much according to plan. It has all been very satisfactory. Now it will be adding the second stenter to the production line.
Mr. Nurul says that the stenter is now handling 1.8 million metres of material per month, with fabric weight ranging from 120 to 320 g/m2.
The Monfortex sanforiser is part of the new generation of redesigned compressive shrinking machines. Improved residual shrinkage at lower contact pressures between the rubber belt and the heated shrinking cylinder are achieving shrinkage rates of 8 to 12 per cent, while the low water consumption is an important consideration in a city in which water supplies to textile mills, not always consistent, is a critical factor in cost and reliability.
The second stenter, also an eight-chamber Montex 6500, will be equipped with an infrared predryer for pigment-dyed fabrics and is expected to be commissioned this month itself. “This will enable us to add options, build in flexibility, and greatly extend our product range,” says Mr. Nurul.
Both stenters are manufactured by Monfongs, the joint venture between Monforts, Mönchengladbach, Germany, and Fong’s Industries of China.
The machines are being supplied and serviced by the exclusive agent for Monforts in Bangladesh, Bengal Technological Corporation Ltd.
“We naturally undertook extensive research before investing in our first stenter, and we had confidence in the combination of German technology and Chinese manufacture. This has been confirmed in terms of both performance and servicing”, adds Mr. Nurul.
The Thermax Group is supplying 90 per cent of its output to the European Union, and the balance to the US. With a workforce of 15,000, the factory works 24 hours a day, seven days a week.