• technical textiles account for 23% of the European textile market;
• the world consumption of this sector is 19.6 million tons and will rise to 33.8 million tons in 2010, with an average growth rate of 3.8%;
• the companies which operate in Italy in the production of technical textiles have a turnover of 1,200 million euro with a labour force of 6,000 units.

The Italian textile machine industry is well known in the whole world for its versatility and for the flexibility of its supply. These features, combined with the friendly and reliable links which Italian machine manufacturers could establish with their customers, permitted the successful introduction of the Italian textile machinery manufacturers into the emerging market of technical textiles and nonwovens.

A recent survey carried out by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, shows that about 100 of their member companies produce machines addressed to technical textiles and nonwovens sectors. The turnover resulting from this kind of machines accounts on average for 5-10% of the total turnover of each company.

The Italian machines for the production of technical textiles have as their main market the European one (above all European Union, but also Turkey), followed by Asia and North America.

The application sectors, i.e. the end-uses of these textiles, are not always known to their textile machinery manufacturers. We can however consider as prevailing end-uses clothing, furnishing, sportswear and leisure wear. Other application sectors of textiles made with Italian machines are items for medical, industrial and transport uses.

Textile technologies show many points in common with the technologies used in the production of traditional textiles. Spinning, weaving, knitting and finishing related to the production of textiles for technical uses are processes which are quite similar to those used in the processing of textile fibers for traditional textile end-uses.

There are however some differences between traditional machines and machines used in the production of technical textiles. First of all, fibres for technical uses have characteristics, owing to which the machines are submitted to heavier stress and higher wear and tear compared with the processing of fibres for traditional textiles. As a consequence, the processing of fibres for technical uses requires even stronger machines, and is characterized in general by different running speeds and performances, as well as by different machine size. All these features which earmark the machines for the production of technical textiles were developed according to a specific project or by bringing some modifications to the machines which were already in use for the production of traditional textiles.

The advance which was attained recently in the spinning sector concerned in particular the handling of the new materials: in some cases their characteristics are different in terms of weight, surface nature and structure from traditional materials. For this reason, the machines were equipped so as to guarantee the optimal mixing also of fibres which were considerably different from each other. In some cases, the machinery has been modified in order to offer higher resistance to the heavy stresses resulting from processing high tenacity fibres. A sector which is strictly associated to the spinning sector is the nonwoven sector, where in last years a large number of solutions were developed to obtain higher working widths, improve the doffing and the handling of the webs, consolidate the web layers and rationalize the suction and treatment of dust and wastes.

The weaving sector had to face the running needs of new materials, such as glass fibres, metal fibres, aramid fibres and others which present particular features and can be used in the production of fabrics with larger widths than traditional fabrics, moreover ensuring high covering factors. The machines for the production of technical and advanced fabrics must have at the same time a high level of flexibility and versatility, while maintaining steadily controls on line as well as unchanged structural resistance.

Actual developments and processes which can provide additional features for converting e.g. a common polyester fabric into a really “hi-tech” composite material, can be found to a more significant extent in the special machines studies for the fabric finishing stages. In this regard, the considerable progress potential which can be offered by the joint action (always key for success) of textile machine producer and of machine user, can be  emphasized by a countless number of cases existing in industrial practice.

The finishing sector experienced a number of innovations in favour both of the dyehouse and of the finishing plant. The handling of materials, the control during treatments, the on-line monitoring, are the main aspects which saw the keen involvement of the machine producers. As to this sector, we wish also to point out two innovative processes: the laser treatment and the plasma treatment. The laser treatment is used today on a large scale to create particular pattern effects on fabrics or directly on ready-made garments. The plasma treatment, which is already used in other industrial sectors, is quickly expanding. Major innovations in the finishing sector are to be  ascribed to Italian manufacturers, who are at the moment examining the potential use of this treatment for the application of nano-technologies on the fabrics. 

The results achieved until know by the Italian machine producers in developing solutions specifically suited to the sector of technical textiles and of nonwovens are undisputably important. The close contact with the textile producers for the setting up and implementation of technologies in line with the needs of the single end-user, has proved to be the essential condition for the creation of competitive and cost-effective, best-selling products. This fact is the more true in the sector of technical textiles, where the innovation level required is extremely high and asks for a joint effort from users, textile producers and textile technologies providers. Italian manufacturers rely considerably on their own research and development activities: the above mentioned ACIMIT survey reveals in fact that 50% of the machine manufacturers foresees in next five years an increase in their investments to develop new machines for this sector.

ACIMIT activated in 2006 a project for technical textiles, targeted at: i) making their member companies better acquainted with the various issues related to the world of technical textiles, through a special newsletter and ii) promoting and strengthening links among member companies and textile industries operating in the production of technical textiles and nonwovens.

ACIMIT’s site (www.acimit.it) includes on-line a section addressed to technical textiles and to nonwovens, in which visitors can find the list of member companies operating in this sector.

In 2006, the promotional initiatives planned in co-operation with the Italian Trade Commission (ICE) are focused on two markets of primary importance: USA and China. In the United States, a technological workshop at the North Carolina State University took place in May, while in China ACIMIT will coordinate through a so-called “Punto Italia” (Italy’s Meeting Point) the participation of some textile machinery companies in the CINTE Shanghai fair, an event especially dedicated to technical textiles.

ACIMIT and their member companies are therefore in the forefront, to permit to the Italian textile machine companies to excel also in this particular sector. The production of technical textiles shows an evident increase and is no doubt open to further developments both in terms of application range and of production volume. This challenge requires new solutions for the use of textile technologies which can meet the requirements of the operators of this sector. Under these circumstances, Italian textile machine manufacturers propose themselves, with products appreciated worldwide for their versatility and flexibility, as ideal partners for the textile operators who intend to continue playing a leading role in the steady development of the sector of technical textiles.