Suessen’s unique EliTe®CompactSet

Already during ITMA Asia 2014 in Shanghai and ITMA 2015 in Milan, SUESSEN presented the EliTe®Advanced Compact Spinning System to the public.

The EliTop Advanced with EliSpring®

In the new EliTop Advanced the technique to apply the pressure to the delivery roller and the EliTe®Roller is completely different:

With the EliTop Classic for HP-GX, HP-A and P3-1 top weighting arms the pressure is applied by the leaf spring of the top roller weighting unit in the top weighting arm alone in accordance with the so-called ?stable cradle principle?. This means the applied force is divided by the structure of the EliTop body to the two top roller pairs ?delivery roller? and ?EliTe®Roller? in a given relation; 4/5 of the force is applied to the delivery roller, 1/5 of the force to the EliTe®Roller. This serves excellently as long as the EliTe®Compact Spinning System is combined with the solid structures of our HP-A and HP-GX top weighting arms.

Lately, more and more customers try to keep the original top arms on their ring spinning machines mainly when investment in the new machinery has not yet paid back. The inferior quality of top arms is not so striking in conventional ring spinning. In most cases, customers are not even aware of the critical quality of their top arms in use, because a competitive product has never been tested in their spinning mills. The pressure exerted on the EliTop is not sufficient to retrieve the complete potential and benefit from our compacting system.

To compensate shortcomings for EliTe®Compact Spinning System when customers intend to reuse their current top arm equipment in modernisation projects, we now use an additional leaf spring installed at the front end of the top arm. We named this additional spring ?EliSpring®?.

Using EliSpring® it is not possible to apply the ?stable cradle principle? anymore. In the new EliTop Advanced housing the pressure of the regular leaf spring of the top roller weighting unit serves to a 100 per cent the delivery rollers only. The EliTe®Roller receives its pressure from new EliSpring® applying the pressure directly on top of the EliTop Advanced housing in the position of the EliTe®Roller.

As explained, this new system?the EliTop Advanced with EliSpring®?is especially productive when inferior top arms are used in the compacting process. Our customers benefit from up to 25 per cent reduction in endbreaks (depending on the condition of the basic top arm), a perfect traction in driving the lattice apron on the EliTube and excellent yarn parameters with a further minimised deviation between individual spinning positions. In future, EliTop Advanced with EliSpring® will be used for all top weighting arm applications (P3-1, PK, HP-GX, HP-A, etc.).

The new EliTop Advanced with EliTube Advanced

Another new feature of the EliTop Advanced is in the symmetry of its complete body housing. Top and bottom parts of the housing are technologically identical and only differ by their red and yellow colours to indicate ?upper? and ?lower? part. With this design and geometry of the housing, the EliTop Advanced can be used ?upside-down?. This comes into effect when the new EliTube Advanced and the EliTube Concepts are combined with the ?flip-over technology?, which are going to describe in the following.

EliTube Advanced and EliTube Concepts

The EliTube Advanced and the EliTube Concepts are the natural step ahead in the development for all new EliTe®Advanced projects. The basic technological feature of EliTubes Advanced is the off-centred suction slot compared to the conventional spinning path; the complete fibre path in the 3-roller-drafting system therefore is not anymore in the middle of the spinning position centred to the spindle tip.

Thus it is possible to use all spinning components twice. As only an ?off-centred? part of the component is ?used? (worn out) in the spinning process, it can be ?turned over? and used a second time before buffing or substitution are necessary.

It has been company policy from the beginning with this new compact spinning technology not to outpace those who are brave and forward looking from future developments. This principle is still valid and even more today ? all new components and parts of our EliTe®Compact Spinning systems are interchangeable without much effort or additional costs for amendments to the system.

Depending on the individual requirements, customers may adapt their given systems with all or only some of the new advanced components:

EliSpring® for EliTop Classic and using inferior top arms: installing EliSpring® plus the necessary new top roller weighting unit customers benefit from increased yarn quality and reduced ends-down.

EliTube Concept: Customers can get new EliTubes Advanced with off-centred suction slots ? right-slanted slots for one, left-slanted suction slots for the other side of their ring spinning machine. Before buffing they interchange the EliTop Classic from one side of the machine to the other and profit from many of the benefits of EliTe®CompactSet Advanced.

Retrofit EliTop Advanced

With the new housing it is not necessary to bring the EliTop to the other machine side ? you just flip it over within its position in the top arm. For updating, customers only need the two housing parts plus EliSpring ? all other parts from the EliTop Classic as top rollers, EliGears and pins may be reused. Together with EliTube Advanced the status is already state-of-the-art. The drafting arrangement in EliTe®CompactSet Advanced is completed by two indispensable new spinning components:

Micramics ? the new insert for EliTube Advanced

The new Micramics insert is made of highly resistant ceramic material. The specially designed microstructure of the surface supports the general spinning stability and reduces the wear of the inside surface of lattice aprons by up to 15 per cent. Expected lifetime of Micramics inserts is over 10 years.

New S lattice apron

The new surface structure of the S lattice apron offers an improved wear resistance up to 20 per cent at the outside. The better mechanical resistance makes it even fitter for everyday life in rough spinning mill conditions.

Benefits in using EliTop Advanced with the EliTube Advanced:

As the EliTop Advanced can be turned over (flipped over) in the top weighting arm and remains in the same spinning position the logistical effort is minimized. The basic setting of the components of a spinning position such as alignment of top arm, roving guide etc. is much easier.

With EliTube Concept only one type of EliTube Advanced is necessary on most machines. This all sums up in less handling and maintenance costs, as well as less expenses for consumables.

Another new feature of EliTop Advanced are the increased top roller cot diameters, i.e. Ø 41.35 mm for the EliTe®Roller cot and Ø 30 mm for the delivery roller cot. The customer benefits from the increased lifetime of top roller cots with an increase in utility of 165 per cent.

Using EliTube Advanced together with EliTop

Advanced the customer will enjoy the following advantages and benefits:

Double use of EliTop cots: When the first path on the cots is used and the worn surface should be buffed, just flip over the EliTop Advanced within its top weighting arm position and continue with the unused second path. This doubles lifetime of cots.

Double use of top aprons: When the first path on the top aprons is used and they should be replaced under standard spinning conditions, just turn the aprons in their position of the cradle, or exchange the left with the right apron on the cradle or vice versa. This doubles lifetime of top aprons.

Double use of back top roller cots: When the first path on the cots is used and they should be buffed, just flip over the back top roller in its top weighting arm position and continue with the unused second path. This doubles lifetime of cots.

Extended use of lattice aprons: Lattice aprons should be cleaned at regular intervals, every 3 weeks on average. Their lifetime is up to one year depending on the fibre material spun and the yarn count. So for maintenance purposes, customers remove lattice aprons from EliTubes and refit them about 17 times within their lifetime period.

Statistical equations show that within these 17 cycles over 85 % of the lattice aprons will have changed their working direction, thus using the two different fibre paths on their surface due to the off-centred suction slots, by the ratio of at least 10 : 7 one side over the other. An overall extension of the lattice apron service life of 60 % is more than certain to be expected.

SUMMARY

EliSpring® provides better spinning stability, improved yarn parameters and minimized deviation between individual spinning positions, particularly with inferior top arms. EliTop Advanced together with EliTube Advanced provide numerous benefits with double use of EliTop roller cots, double use of top roller aprons, double use of back top roller cots and extended use of lattice aprons.

Micramics insert together with S lattice apron reduce torque on the complete drafting system and provide extended lifetime of the components. The increased customer benefits are undoubted and can be verified in terms of money.

The article is authored by Wolfgang Lehner, VP ? Technical, Suessen