(openPR) - Textiles intended for use in sporting or working clothes are often water-repellent and breathable. A carbon infrared system from Heraeus Noblelight is being used to speed up the drying of a water-repellent coating on such textiles. As a result, the production speed of outdoor clothing is being increased. Moreover, the excellent controllability of the infrared system ensures that the fabric is not damaged by overheating. Heraeus Noblelight is showing carbon infrared emitters at the ITMA exhibition, which takes place in Munich from the 13th to 20th September.
The best outdoor clothing provides double protection against rain. A water-repellent coating allows the water to run off the surface, while the fabric itself is water-proof but breathable. Textile fabrics with these properties consist of a combination of textile, membrane and a coating.
The application of the water-repellent coating is an important stage in the manufacturing process but it is also important that the coating applied is thoroughly dried before the next manufacturing stage. Conventionally, this is carried out with a Stenter, a very versatile, gas-fired oven used extensively in the textile industry.
To meet a significant increase in demand for its products and to handle a very wide product range, a manufacturer of top quality outdoor clothing established that it would have to speed up the drying process if production speed were to be increased.
The solution lay in a carbon infrared system, fitted in front of the Stenter to achieve the required degree of pre-drying. The 124 kW infrared system was first proven on site and then installed without problems. The installation was possible in the little space available, without the need to re-organise the production line or to shut the line down for a prolonged period, as would have been necessary with a hot air oven.
Since installation, the new system has allowed an increase in line speed averaging 6%, depending on the type of textile and on how much of the coating is taken up by the fabric. In addition, the carbon emitters react so quickly that, unlike other heating systems, overheating of the fabric can be eliminated.
Heraeus Noblelight GmbH with its headquarters in Hanau and with subsidiaries in the USA, Great Britain, France, China, Australia and Puerto Rico, is one of the technology- and market-leaders in the production of specialist light sources. In 2006, Heraeus Noblelight had an annual turnover of 88 Million € and employed 651 people worldwide. The organisation develops, manufactures and markets infrared and ultraviolet emitters for applications in industrial manufacture, environmental protection, medicine and cosmetics, research, development and analytical laboratories.
Heraeus, the precious metals and technology group headquartered in Hanau, Germany, is a global, private company in the business segments of precious metals, sensors, dental and medical products, quartz glass and specialty lighting sources. With revenues of more than EUR 12 billion and more than 11,000 employees in over 100 companies, Heraeus has stood out for more than 155 years as one of the world’s leading companies involved in precious metals and materials technology.
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