Stepping up to Total Contamination Control

A case study shows how an Indian spinner achieved staged improvements in yarn quality and efficiency.

Spinners are increasingly seeking to take control of the level of contamination in yarn. They need to meet customers’ quality demands exactly, using foolproof but flexible methods which also take account of mill efficiency, minimising waste and optimising productivity. This case study focuses on an Indian yarn manufacturer which originally invested in early-stage fibre cleaning in 2009, and has since upgraded to Total Contamination Control, combining the USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD and USTER® QUANTUM 3.

An experienced member of the USTER sales team in India, JC Kumaar has a strong relationship with his customers in the south of the country. His knowledge gained over 20 years has enabled him to assist an important client to implement step-by-step improvements in contamination control, in line with the company’s goal of continual enhancement of yarn quality.

This customer made its initial move into fibre cleaning in the blowroom, with its purchase seven years ago of the VISION SHIELD MPIX by Jossi. Since then, the customer has stepped up its requirements, especially with regard to polypropylene contaminant removal, opting for the USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE in 2015.

The company spins yarn for the high-quality segment, typically mixing Guntur and Giza cottons to produce yarn counts of Nec 50s, 40s and 26s.

A medium-sized mill, its priorities were better contamination control without increasing waste or causing more yarn clearer cuts at the winding stage.

The first stage in the upgrading of the mill’s contamination control came in 2015, explains JC Kumaar: “The decision was made to tackle the challenge at fibre cleaning stage. For better fibre cleaning results, the existing Jossi fibre cleaner was upgraded with the USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE.”

“Settings and parameters were tailored to the customer’s needs – colored and foreign fibres were main issues – and the results achieved with the USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE upgrade were far better than expected.”

Second stage improvements

Earlier this year, the customer again contacted USTER to investigate the capabilities of latest technologies for the move towards contamination-free yarn. At this stage, it was appropriate to introduce the unique USTER concept of Total Contamination Control, featuring USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD and USTER® QUANTUM 3. These systems represent the most sophisticated technologies available for detecting contamination at the beginning and end of the yarn production process: in fibre preparation and yarn clearing. All types of foreign matter – natural and synthetic – can be identified and removed, even white polypropylene.

The combination of USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD and USTER® QUANTUM guarantees the maximum contamination detection rate. With Total Contamination Control two-points-approach eliminating unwanted material in yarn the spinner can adjust the machine settings perfectly to meet precise yarn quality specifications, while also managing their own productivity goals.

Based on the good experience from the existing solution, Kumaar’s customer again chose USTER equipment for its second blowroom installation. The USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD T and USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE were installed. On the winders USTER® QUANTUM 3 was used for years. The delighted customer called to share the performance results. The feedback showed that contamination control at fibre cleaning was now performing so well that the number of clearer cuts at winding decreased by 50 per cent for polypropylene (PP) as well as for foreign matter defects (FD).

A detailed report showed that PP-related cuts decreased from 24 to 11 per 100 kms FD cuts reduced from 22 to 10 per 100 kms.

Analysis of the waste levels in the mill produced further strong evidence. Comparing the results from the upgraded first blowroom with the new installation of USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD T with USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE, waste was reduced by a factor of three to four. The figures showed a drop from 100-120 kg per day in Blowroom 1 to 30-40 kg per day in Blowroom 2.

“This customer is again satisfied with the USTER® fibre cleaner combined with the USTER® JOSSI MAGIC EYE. The loss of good fibre has been reduced significantly,” says JC Kumaar. “He also reports that overall process performance has improved through all stages of preparation and spinning.

Double security and balanced production

Total Contamination Control is a doubly-secure method for controlling unwanted material at both start and finish of yarn production. Only the unique combination of the USTER® JOSSI VISION SHIELD and USTER® QUANTUM offers this security. It also allows spinners to balance waste at fibre cleaning and cuts at winding, to optimise production efficiency while achieving the right quality for their customers downstream.

“My customer in this case uses USTER® QUANTUM 3 for fine-tuning of contamination removal to meet their own customers’ exact quality requirements,” Kumaar says. “This flexibility means that Total Contamination Control is ideal not only for spinners serving markets which are highly-sensitive to contamination issues, but also for those producing yarns for less critical applications. Each mill can precisely target their control settings, opting for, or against, less waste or higher cut levels. Since all this technology comes from the same source, customers can be confident of the best support to control contamination in the most cost-effective way.”

The Uster Group is the high-technology instrument manufacturer of products for quality measurement and certification for the textile industry. The Group provides testing and monitoring instruments, systems and services that allow optimisation of quality through each individual stage of textile production. This includes raw textile fibres, such as cotton or wool, all staple fibre and filament yarns, as well as downstream services to the final finished fabric. The Uster Group provides benchmarks that are a basis for the trading of textile products at assured levels of quality across global markets. The Group’s aim is to forward know-how on quality, productivity and cost to the textile industry.