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The customer magazine of Rieter Spun Yarn Systems 

Vol. 23 / No . 58 . December 2011 / EN 

link 2 

/2011 

04 EVENTS ITMA has set benchmarks for sixty years 08 ITMA 2011 in Barcelona 

14 OUR CUSTOMERS Sportking – textile value-added, from yarn to store counter 

17 PRODUCT NEWS J 20 Air-Jet Spinning Machine – A new dimension in spinning

2 LINK 58 . 2 /2011 

CONTENTS 

Cover: 

Highly productive and operating with 

up to 4 robots - the new J 20 Air-Jet 

spinning machine. 

Publisher: 

Rieter Spun Yarn Systems 

Editor-in-chief: 

Nadia Qaud 

Copyright: 

© 2011 Rieter Machine Works Ltd., 

Klosterstrasse 20, CH-8406 Winterthur, 

www.rieter.com, rieter-link@rieter.com 

Reprints permitted, subject to prior approval; 

specimen copies requested. 

© Photos from ITMA Barcelona 

Javi Arriaga, Spectrafilms, Bilbao, ES 

spectrafilms@gmail.com 

Design and production: 

Marketing Rieter CZ s.r.o., P. Bielik 

03 EDITORIAL 

EVENTS 

04 ITMA has set benchmarks for sixty years 

It was held for the first time 60 years ago – and has 

established itself as the textile industry's summit 

conference. The ITMA has also been very important for 

Rieter for 60 years. A look at Rieter's pictorial archive. 

08 ITMA 2011 in Barcelona 

The ITMA in Barcelona opened its doors to an 

international trade audience on September 22, 2011. 

You will find impressions from the exhibition in 

Barcelona in this issue of LINK. 

OUR CUSTOMERS 

14 Sportking – textile value-added, from yarn to store 

counter 

Sportking is well on the way to becoming one of the 

biggest brands at all stages of the textile process, from 

yarn and fabric manufacture to apparel production 

and retailing; not only on the Indian market, but 

worldwide. 

PRODUCT NEWS 

17 J 20 Air-Jet Spinning Machine – A new dimension in 

spinning 

The J 20 is a marvel of production in the minimum of 

space. With its 120 spinning units and high output 

of 450 m/min under mill conditions, the J 20 airjet 

spinning machine is at the top of the productivity scale. 

23 SPIDERweb – spinning mill data at a glance 

25 The right draw frame to meet every need 

PARTS 

26 Rieter nippers 

27 Improved package build with anti-patterning 

control

Fig. 1 "The Comfort 

of Competence" 

campaign. At center 

stage Christoph Ziltener 

of Flawa AG in Flawil, 

Switzerland, the winner 

of the competition to 

find "The oldest Rieter 

spinning machine in the 

field". 

Dear LINK readers: 

The first ITMA was held 60 years ago in Lille, Northern 

France. Rieter has attended the ITMA since 1951 

– each time exhibiting pioneering innovations. Rieter 

has been a major influence on the development and 

continuous improvement of yarn manufacturing 

quality – a glance into the photographic archive illustrates 

the story of the innovations that have 

emerged from the Rieter company. You can see in 

this issue of Link how Rieter and Schubert & Salzer, 

today’s Rieter Ingolstadt GmbH, have exhibited their 

products over these 60 years. 

Live at the ITMA 2011 in Barcelona 

The following new products were exhibited here for 

the very first time: the C 70 high-performance card, 

the R 60 rotor spinning machine, the J 20 airjet spinning 

machine and Version 6.0 of the SPIDERweb mill 

monitoring system. The flexibility of the K 45 compact 

spinning machine was demonstrated at the 

show – while processing 6 materials simultaneously. 

High-capacity and tailored to customers’ needs – 

easy to operate and with the necessary flexibility, 

Reto Thom 

Head Markets 

Winterthur 

reto.thom@rieter.com 

LINK 58 . 2 /2011 

EDITORIAL 

economical in energy consumption and with a high 

level of material utilization. 

This is the distinguishing feature of Rieter’s machine 

concepts, which incorporate forward-looking automation 

solutions – adapted to tomorrow’s customer 

needs. 

"The Comfort of Competence" campaign 

The launch of the new advertising campaign entitled 

"The Comfort of Competence" at the ITMA 2011 was 

a complete success. The comfortable red armchair – 

symbolizing the comfort Rieter offers its customers 

– was the focus of interest and the subject of many 

photographs. 

4 spinning technologies – 4 yarns 

When introducing a new spinning process it is important 

to inform spinning mills about the advantages 

of the various spinning technologies. However, 

knitting and weaving mills and the yarn trade also 

need to know the advantages of using a new type of 

yarn. Rieter markets the 4 Rieter yarns intensively, 

in the interests of the spinning mills: ring-spun, compact, 

rotor-spun and now also airjet-spun yarn. 

After the show is before the show 

Innovations contribute to our customers’ success. 

Rieter never stands still, and products are continuously 

being improved for our customers. Priorities 

are higher productivity in conjunction with improved 

quality, energy saving and high raw material utilization. 

11-201 • 

Sincerely 

Reto Thom 

3


EVENTS 

ITMA has set benchmarks 

for sixty years 

It took place for the first time sixty years ago – and has established 

itself as the summit conference of the textile industry. ITMA, the 

international textile machinery show, is also very important for Rieter. 

ITMA 

1955 1955 

Rieter 

1967 1971 

1975 

Schubert & Salzer 

Launched in 1951 as Europe’s key trade show for the 

textile industry, the ITMA has long set benchmarks 

worldwide. The first ITMA Asia was held in 2001. 

This has by no means diminished ITMA’s influence 

as a key global trade show. The very first ITMA was 

held in Lille in Northern France in 1951; in 2011 it 

was the turn of Barcelona. In between came Brussels, 

Milan, Hanover and Paris, some of them several 

times. Rieter failed to exhibit for the first and only 

time in Birmingham in 2003, when attendance was 

canceled due to the SARS outbreak. In 1967 the ex- 


hibition took place in Basel in Switzerland (Table 1). 

Since then the ITMA has grown immensely. 

The trade show as innovation driver 

Numerous manufacturers use the ITMA to show trade 

visitors for the first time what has made its way from 

the development departments onto the market. That 

is also true for Rieter. There hasn’t been an ITMA at 

which Rieter hasn’t presented innovations. Work on 

developments is pursued particularly intensively in 

the run-up to the show. The following pictures from 

our archives show the products with which Rieter – 

and also Schubert & Salzer (now Rieter Ingolstadt 

GmbH) – created a stir in these 60 years. 

1951–1959: Striving for higher productivity 

ITMA 51 Lille, France 

The first time this most important international trade 

fair for the textile industry was held. 


Rieter Rieter 

1959

1963 1963 1963 1967 

1975 1979 1979 


ITMA 55 Brussels, Belgium 

From bale to yarn – Rieter already presents a complete 

range of spinning machines. 

ITMA 59, Milan 

Rieter exhibits its product range from fiber preparation 

to final spinning. 

1963–1971: Boosting quality and productivity, 

shortening processes 

ITMA 63 Hanover, Germany 

World premiere: continuous chute feed instead of 

lap feed on cards. Rieter brings the first autoleveler 

draw frame (D 07) onto the market. Schubert & Salzer 

(now Rieter Ingolstadt GmbH) also attracts attention 

with new draw frames. 

ITMA 67 Basel, Switzerland 

Another world first: automated sliver transport from 

card to draw frame. 

Rieter Rieter Schubert & Salzer 



Rieter Schubert & Salzer 

EVENTS 

Schubert & Salzer was also among the international 

exhibitors in Basel. 

ITMA 71 Paris, France 

Pavena spinning system: Rieter springs a surprise 

with an innovative means of shortening the process 

and a completely new spinning system. 

1972–1981: Focus on process automation 

ITMA 75 Milan, Italy 

On a 1 000 m 2 booth Rieter shows a new card offering 

a three-fold increase in output and presents 

new draw frames, a roving frame featuring improved 

operator convenience, ring spinning machines with 

new spindle bearings and drive system, and three 

rotor spinning machines. The first A 1 bale opener, 

featuring a rotating take-off unit for a large number 

of bales, attracts considerable attention. Schubert & 

Salzer stand out with a pioneering innovation: the 

first Supercard with three licker-in modules and a 

working width of 1.5 meters. 

5


EVENTS 

Table 1 

9 different venues in 

60 years – the ITMA 

trade show . 

ITMA 1951 Lille France 

ITMA 1955 Brussels Belgium 

ITMA 1959 Milan Italy 

ITMA 1963 Hanover Germany 

ITMA 1967 Basel Switzerland 

ITMA 1971 Paris France 








ITMA 2003 Birmingham Great Britain 

ITMA 2007 Munich Germany 

ITMA 2011 Barcelona Spain 

1983 1983 1983 

Rieter Rieter Rieter 


The main public attraction is the F 3/1 roving frame 

– the first roving frame with an automatic doffer. 

On the Schubert & Salzer booth: KU 12 Supercard, 

SB 52 double-head draw frame, FB 11 roving frame 

and the RU 11-Spincomat and RL 10 rotor spinning 

machines. 

1982–1991: Computer-monitored processes 


Rieter shows the legendary C 4 card. The rotor spinning 

machines produce at up to 97 000 rpm. 


Rieter exhibits four rotor spinning machines: two 

new RU 14-Spincomats (featuring automation from 

tube delivery to removal of full packages and rotor 

speeds of 100 000 rpm), the RU 04 for manual piecing 

and the RL 20. 

1991 1995 1999 

Rieter Rieter Rieter

1983 


CIS – computer-integrated ring and rotor spinning, 

from fiber to yarn. Yarn is pieced automatically in 

ring spinning for the first time. The ROBOfil device 

achieved a success rate of 95%. Rieter presents an 

automatic creel device for random and block replacement 

of roving bobbins on the ring spinning 

machine. 

1992–2001: Focus on customer needs 


Rieter’s bicentenary: Rieter celebrates in the fashion 

metropolis of Milan, attracting attention with a new, 

innovative booth design featuring as many as seven 

innovations at once, with the UNIblend A 80, the 

UNIflex B 60, the C 50 card, the E 60 combing line, 

the RSB 951 draw frame, the CUBIcan coiling system, 

the G 30 ring spinning machine with integrated 

cooling system and the R1 rotor spinning machine 

with AERObearing. 

1987 


2007 2011 



EVENTS 


Rieter stands out with a new technology: the K 45 is 

the first spinning machine with a perforated cylinder 

for compact yarn. The world’s first compact spinning 

machine produces yarns of higher strength and lower 

hairiness. This spinning process gives ring spinning 

technology new momentum. 

2002–2011: Complete systems from a single 

source 

ITMA 2003 Birmingham, UK 

The SARS outbreak prevents Rieter from attending 

the ITMA. 

ITMA 2007 Munich, Germany 

Four world-beaters on the Rieter booth: the longest 

rotor spinning machine (the R 40 with 500 spinning 

units), the longest ring and compact spinning machines 

(the G 35 and K 45 with 1 632 spindles), the 

fastest comber (the E 66 with 500 nips/min.) and 

the world’s most productive card (200 kg/h by the 

C 60). 

ITMA 2011 Barcelona, Spain 

Rieter presents all four spinning technologies from 

a single source for the first time: ring spinning, compact 

spinning, rotor spinning and airjet spinning. 

Innovations on show on the booth are the C 70 card, 

the RSB-D 45 draw frame, the R 60 rotor spinning 

machine and the J 20 airjet spinning machine, as 

well as the new Version 6 of SPIDERweb. 

Outlook 

The 17 th ITMA in Europe will be held in Milan, Italy, 

from November 12 to 19, 2015. 11-202 • 

Edda Walraf 

Head Marketing 

Winterthur 

edda.walraf@rieter.com 

7


EVENTS 

ITMA 2011 in Barcelona 

On 22 September 2011, the ITMA in Barcelona opened its doors to the 

international trade. The ITMA is the most important trade exhibition for 

the textile industry. Impressions from the exhibition in Barcelona can 

be seen in this edition of LINK and under www.rieter.com. 

Impressions from the 

exhibition: 

photograph the code 

picture with your 

Smartphone or take 

a look at our website 

http://www.rieter.com/ 

en/spun-yarn-systems 

The textile world met this time in Barcelona, a lively 

city with Mediterranean flair. In line with the rhythm 

of the city’s life, the exhibition only opened its doors 

at 10 a.m. for visitors. Every day, numerous visitors 

swarmed into the exhibition halls to gaze at and 

compare the latest innovations in the world of textiles 

– and so many a business proprietor decided 

right there during the exhibition to invest in new machines. 

ITMA: facts and figures 

Production of the exhibitions ITMA and ITMA Asia 

was carried out by CEMATEX – the European Textile 

Machinery Manufacturers Association – as owner, 

and MP International – with headquarters in Singapore 

– as exhibition organizer. 

More than 1 350 exhibitors from 45 countries 

showed their latest products in Barcelona on the 

modern exhibition site Fira Gran Via which covers an 

area of 90 240 m 2 . 

The European machinery manufacturers, who are 

organized in the CEMATEX Association, occupied 

70% of the exhibition area. The majority of exhibitors 

came from Italy with 322 stands covering 

20 150 m 2 . Second place on the exhibitors’ list was 

taken by German stands with 18 520 m 2 and the 

Swiss stands with an area of 6 690 m 2 . 

The exhibitors were able to welcome to their stands 

more than 100 000 visitors during the 8 days. There 

were visitors from 138 countries. The majority came 

from Italy, Spain, Germany and Turkey as well as 

from Asia and Central and South America. 

Air-jet spinning – the main attraction in Barcelona 

There were many novelties to see at the exhibition – 

a main attraction for spinning plants was located on 

the Rieter stand. The stream of visitors to the J 20 

air-jet spinning machine never stopped, although 

Rieter had been allocated space by the exhibition 

organizers at the end of Hall 1. Many customers marveled 

at the machine and listened to explanations 

of the new spinning process. The J 20 was operating 

with 2 different materials and real production 

speeds at the exhibition: 100% viscose, Ne 30 at 

an impressive speed of 400 m/min and 100% long-

staple cotton, Ne 50 at 380 m/min – both with an 

average efficiency of 98%. These efficiency rates can 

only be achieved when the material is prepared and 

the climatic conditions are right. During the exhibition, 

the air-conditioning was specifically placed 

under the spinning cans by the company Luwa Air 

Engineering AG, who had reserved the neighboring 

stand. The unique machine concept of the J 20 was 

praised. On the stand of the Italian knitting machinery 

manufacturer, Santoni SPA, the same cotton yarn 

was knitted on an Atlas HS circular knitting machine 

at a sensational 45 rpm with minimal fiber fly. 

You will find more details of the new spinning process 

on page 17 in this edition of LINK. 

Many customers wanted to feel the new air-spun 

ComforJet® yarn to compare it with ring, compact or 

rotor yarns. The clothes worn by our attractive hostesses 

were made from the 4 different Rieter yarns 

and marked with the brand name of the yarn. Interested 

customers were given fabric samples to take 

away and feel. Then in the textile world, the touch 

of the end article is a significant factor for sales. The 

ComforJet® yarn is relatively soft to the touch and in 

addition has a high washing stability and a low pilling 

tendency. 

R 60 – a new generation in rotor spinning 

A strong performance and adapted to the needs of 

customers worldwide, easy to operate and with 


EVENTS 

the necessary flexibility – these are the quality features 

of the R 60. A proven machine concept with 

many new details was presented in Barcelona. Rotor 

speeds up to 170 000 rpm have been reached in 

production plants. Different yarns can be spun per 

machine side. In Barcelona, a cotton yarn with Ne 

21 and 145 000 rpm and a polyester yarn with Ne 

12 and 170 m/min production speed were spun. The 

newly constructed S 60 spinning box makes this possible. 

Melting of the polyester is prevented by the 

new "Cool Nozzle". Not only the simple exchange of 

spinning elements – completely without tools – increases 

the flexibility. Also the optional fancy yarn 

device VARIOspin allows reaction to changing market 

requirements. 

Trendsetter with the cards 

Rieter is a trendsetter and already in the year 2000 

introduced the concept of the 1.5 m wide card. The 

latest card model, the C 70, again sets new standards 

and achieves a production performance of 280 kg: 

an enormous jump in productivity. The increase of 

the carding area by additional traveling flats on the 

C 70 permits this rise in productivity and this with 

even higher sliver quality. The modularity of the C 70 

remains unchanged and thereby permits the application 

of 1-fold or 3-fold lickers-in – a brilliant concept 

that allows the customer easy production changes. 

The adjustable separating knives serve to achieve an 

improvement in quality. 

9


EVENTS


EVENTS 

11


EVENTS 

The flexible compact system – the K 45 

The K 45 leads in compact spinning and in flexibility, 

now with the fancy yarn device VARIOspin 3. On 

the exhibition stand, 6 different yarn materials were 

spun. Normal Com4®, Com4®twin, Com4®light and 

Com4®core-yarn were spun as multi-fancy yarns. 

What constitutes a system supplier? 

Rieter’s entire product range from the fiber to the 

yarn includes future-oriented automation solutions 

that are adapted to tomorrow’s customer requirements. 

This is supported by an engineering team 

that can advise which automation solution is opti- 

mal. Rieter-SERVOtrail – for the automatic feeding 

of the roving bobbins on the ring spinning machine – 

was displayed at the exhibition and can be found in 

numerous spinning plants worldwide. 

As system supplier, Rieter offers the data recording 

system SPIDERweb in its product range. The latest 

program version, SPIDERweb 6.0, was presented to 

interested customers. With SPIDERweb, production 

data and quality data (according to the installed sensor 

technology) can be recorded from the blowroom 

up to the end spinning machines.

What does the red armchair mean? 

The establishment of the new advertising campaign 

"The Comfort of Competence" at the ITMA 2011 was 

a complete success. The comfortable red armchair – 

symbol for the comfort that Rieter offers its customers 

– was the center of interest and was frequently 

photographed. The armchair was surrounded by our 

hostesses. This gave our customers an attractive 

memento of the 4 Rieter yarns – ring yarn, Com4®, 

ComfoRo® and ComforJet®. 

The red armchair was visible at the entire exhibition 

as it also decorated the coveted Rieter bags. With 

these bags on wheels, the customers could conveniently 

take home their Rieter brochures. 

The comfort of partnership could be enjoyed by our 

customers during the Happy Hour on the stand. The 

BARcelona was meeting point for textile experts. 

Every evening, delicious tapas were served to give a 

treat to the customers’ palates. 

4 spinning technologies – 4 yarns 

With the introduction of a new spinning process, it 

is important to inform spinning companies of the 

advantages of the new spinning process. But knitters 

and weavers must also know what advantages 

the use of a new type of yarn offers. For this reason, 

Rieter carries out intensive marketing for the 4 

Rieter yarns. 

Nadia Qaud 

Senior Marketing Manager 

Winterthur 

nadia.qaud@rieter.com 


EVENTS 

At every ITMA, the yarn types and their range of applications 

are explained by our technology team on 

the stand. On an additional stand in the section Fibers 

and Yarns, we presented the different characteristics 

of the yarns to weavers, knitters and yarn 

dealers and promoted our reference customers and 

licensees. This service was much appreciated and attracted 

great attention. 

And in 4 years ... 

The ITMA Barcelona was well-worth a visit. The sales 

success of the new products during the exhibition 

speaks for itself. The next ITMA in Europe will be 

held in November 2015 in Milan, Italy, close to Malpensa 

Airport. Rieter is already working on innovations 

so that they are ready by the next ITMA and can 

be launched on the market. 11-203 • 

13


OUR CUSTOMERS 

Sportking – textile value-added, 

from yarn to store counter 

With sales of 3 500 million INR, Sportking is well on the way to becoming 

one of the biggest brands at all stages of the textile process, from yarn 

and fabric manufacture to apparel production and retailing; not only on 

the Indian market, but worldwide. 

Fig. 1 Golden Temple 

in Amritsar, Punjab, 

India. 

Fig. 2 Sportking 

headquarters in 

Ludhiana, India. 

Sportking is a corporate group based in Ludhiana, an 

industrial city in the state of Punjab, in northwest 

India (Fig. 1). The state of Punjab – which means 

“Country of Five Rivers” – is one of the wealthiest 

in India, with the country’s highest agricultural output. 

The region produces some 2 million bales of cotton 

per season and 2.5 million spindles are installed 

there. 

The Sportking Group’s portfolio covers the entire 

textile value chain: from yarns, fabrics and apparel 

to retailing, and also features a training facility for 

textile technologists (Fig. 2). Based on the powerful 

vision of its founder Raj Kumar Awasthi, CEO and 

Chairman, the group regards its mission as investment 

in socio-economic growth: on the one hand 

through outstanding performance, on the other by 

adapting to modern technologies in business and 

training. This is what brings Sportking and Rieter together. 

Group CEO Munish Awasthi is not only continuing 

to pursue the existing business in the spirit 

of his father, but has also implemented a series of 

expansion moves in a wide range of sectors along the 

value chain. 

The complete textile value chain from a single source 

Yarn manufacture is the group’s most important 

business segment – a wide range of yarns are produced, 

from cotton, manmade fibers, raw white and 

dyed blends to various fancy yarns such as crochet 

and chenille yarns. The group’s first spinning mill 

was built in 1989 under the name of "Sportking India 

Ltd". The group now operates five spinning installations 

with 150 000 spindles in and around 

Ludhiana, manufacturing manmade fiber yarns and 

blends. Five more spinning mills with a total of 

120 000 spindles for manufacturing cotton, polyester/cotton 

and blended yarns are being installed in 

Bathinda, a city some 150 km west of Ludhiana.

Fig. 3 Shiv Kumar 

Sharma, President 

of Sportking (center) 

in conversation with 

Rieter technologist 

Jens Weidemann (left). 

The group has a daily knitting capacity of 2 000 kg 

of fabric in various knitting constructions. The Sportking 

Group is vertically integrated and owns two 

dyeing plants for fiber and yarn with a capacity of 10 

tonnes/day each. The making-up facilities in Ludhiana 

produce a wide range of apparel for men, women 

and children. The product range includes thermal 

underwear, T-shirts, pants, tracksuits, sweaters, 

shorts, leisurewear, jackets and other garments. The 

company has its own design team and development 

center for creating new designs and products. 

The company has branches throughout India and its 

full range of apparel is on offer in 60 outlets. The 

group has developed its vision further and through 

the Sportking Textile Engineering Institute provides 

a forum for the exchange of technical know-how in 

the fields of textiles and fashion. 

Bold investment in technology and growth 

The development of the Indian spinning industry, 

which currently meets 25% of the global demand for 

yarn, and growing domestic demand for yarn were 

the basis for the group’s decision to expand its spinning 

capacity by a further 120 000 spindles. Two fa- 


OUR CUSTOMERS 

cilities with 28 800 spindles each have already been 

installed, and a further three are currently being set 

up. Rieter is proud to have the opportunity to install 

a complete spinning mill with Rieter machines for 

the third time. 

The second installation with 28 800 spindles is 

equipped with Rieter’s latest VARIOline blowroom 

line. The C 70 high-performance cards deliver carded 

slivers in the optimal, required quality with an 

output of up to 95 kg/h (Fig. 3). Two Rieter combing 

lines with the new SB-D 11 single-head draw frames, 

the OMEGAlap combing preparation machine and 

the highly productive E 66 combers complete the 

process. Each machine supplies top-quality combed 

slivers with noil extraction rates of up to 17% at an 

output of up to 1 700 kg/h. Four RSB-D 22 doublehead 

autoleveler draw frames featuring Rieter’s millproven 

autoleveling system produce drafter slivers 

with very low CV values. The ring spinning mill is 

equipped with 22 G 32 ring spinning machines, each 

of which produces 206 g of Ne 30 cotton yarn per 

spindle and shift on 1 440 spindles (Fig. 4). 

15


OUR CUSTOMERS 

Fig. 4 Installation 

with G 32 ring 

spinning machines. 

As well as state-of-the-art machinery, the Sportking 

Group has a productive workforce and management 

with a very high standard of technical know-how and 

leadership ability, who are able to structure processes 

and workflows in such a way that the maximum 

yield can be obtained from the available raw material 

with the Rieter machines. 

A partnership – Sportking and Rieter 

“The world has suddenly become smaller, so any 

company wishing to grow has to think globally, since 

the competition is no longer limited to the domestic 

market,” says Raj Kumar Awasthi. The group’s vision 

of boosting socio-economic growth through quality 

and adaptation to the current state of the art offers 

Rieter the opportunity to cooperate closely with the 

Sportking Group in order to achieve high quality in 

yarn manufacture. Sportking is one of those highly 

regarded customers in India which offers Rieter a 

platform for the use of its latest products and innovations. 

11-204 • 

Prasanta Deka-Kumar 

Head Marketing India 

Guragon 

prasanta-kumar.deka@rieter.com

J 20 Air-Jet Spinning Machine – 

A new dimension in spinning 

The J 20 is a production miracle with smallest space requirements. With 

its high operating speed of up to 450 m/min and 120 spinning units, 

the J 20 air-spinning machine heads the productivity scale. Thanks to 

the newly developed duo-spinning unit, the J 20 offers maximum yarn 

quality, productivity and flexibility. 

Fig. 1 The J 20 

new air-jet spinning 

machine with 4 robots, 

service station and 

empty tube loader. 

Why a new spinning technology? High productivity, 

low manufacturing costs per kilogram of yarn and innovative 

yarn properties – the development team 

keeps all these targets constantly in sight with the 

development of the air-spinning process. Achieving 

these by the step-by-step evolution of existing technologies 

is not possible. The development of the J 10 

air-spinning machine began in 2003. The market 

launch of the air-jet spinning technology has been 

carried out progressively since June 2008. The practical 

experience gained with the J 10 air-spinning 

machine has been integrated into the J 20 air-spinning 

machine. The J 20 is the 2nd generation of airjet 

spinning machines produced by Rieter and since 

the ITMA 2011 is now being marketed worldwide. 


PRODUCT NEWS 

The mechanical engineering concept of the air-spinning 

machine 

The main development requirements were: 

• High productivity. 

• Market-conform yarn and bobbin quality. 

• Flexible, simple machine settings. 

• Easy to operate. 

• Low downtimes for maintenance and lot changes. 

• Innovative yarn properties that open new markets 

for spinning plants. 

• Adjustable yarn properties. 

• Low production costs per kilogram of yarn. 

• Space-saving installation/assembly, easy to 

integrate in existing spinning plants 

These requirements have determined the machine 

concept, the individual components, the automation 

as well as the operating philosophy. 

The high-performance concept of the J 20 

In order to achieve delivery speeds of 450 m/min, 

numerous innovations have been incorporated in the 

J 20 air-jet spinning machine. In comparison: usual 

delivery speeds are 15-27 m/min with ring spinning 

and 130-250 m/min with rotor spinning. The 

construction of the Rieter air-jet spinning machine is 

similar to that of a rotor spinning machine. Between 

17


PRODUCT NEWS 

Tab. 1 The basic data of 

the J 20 at a glance. 

the drive frame and the end frame are 6 sections 

each with 20 spinning positions. 4 robots – 2 on 

each side – are in operation for the formation of yarn 

piecings, bobbin change and cleaning (Fig. 1). Construction 

of sections and the machine height are selected 

to allow 500 mm (20”) round cans with 1 070 

or 1 200 mm can height to be placed in 2 rows under 

the machine. The large can size permits a long lifecycle 

and thereby reduces the number of can changes. 

As with the rotor spinning machine, the sliver to 

be spun is fed from the can bottom. This short, direct 

route from the can to the drafting arrangement 

Spinning speed Up to 450 m/min, independent of fiber type, yarn count and 

end use. Yarn count Ne 30 to Ne 50 

Spinning units 120 individually driven spinning units, 60 units per side, 

gauge 260 mm 

Number of robots 4 robots, with piecer technology for invisible piecings 

Drive Individual drive per spinning and bobbin unit, separate 

machine sides for the simultaneous production of 2 different 

yarns 

Drafting arrangement 4-over-4 drafting arrangement with patented traversing 

Yarn clearer USTER Quantum Clearer 2, optical or capacitive, with or 

without foreign fiber detection 

Winding system Individually driven bobbin units for cylindrical bobbins up to 

300 mm diameter 

Fig. 2 Ergonomic bobbin take-off on the J 20. 

practically eliminates the risk of faulty drafts. An 

enormously important aspect, as with Rieter air-jet 

spinning, fine sliver is used to ensure optimal drafts 

at high speeds. 

To keep the operator requirements and the costs as 

low as possible, an empty tube feeder is utilized in 

which 350 bobbins can be creeled. The empty tubes 

are automatically fed to the robot – just in time – as 

soon as a bobbin change takes place. The bobbin diameter 

can be up to 300 mm. The tube feeder has 

2 separate bobbin chains and can therefore supply 

tubes of different colors for the left and right machine 

sides. This eliminates the risk of tubes being 

mixed up when 2 yarn qualities are being simultaneously 

produced. 

The J 20 air-jet spinning machine uses a winding system 

whereby 2 contra-rotating wings precisely guide 

the yarn. With this winding system, ribbon windings 

definitely belong to the past. The cross-angle can be 

freely set between 15° and 46°. It is possible to use 

standard bobbins or colored bobbins on the J 20. The 

winding system with continuously rotating wings offers 

the potential for future increases in production 

rates. 

Due to the increased spinning stability with the new 

duo drafting arrangement, the J 20 air-jet spinning 

machine can – in comparison with the J 10 – be extended 

by one section. With 120 spinning positions, 

the J 20 is therefore the longest air-jet spinning machine 

in the world. 

Machine construction for optimized production 

process 

Construction of the J 20 – as compared to the J 10 

– has been further optimized. The centrally-driven 

ventilators, the entire electrics and electronics as 

well as the supply and disposal connections are integrated 

in the drive frame. The filter chambers for 

the waste from the spinning positions and from the 

robots are separated from each other and are also 

separate for the left and the right machine sides. 

The waste can therefore be individually sorted which 

guarantees purity of material type for further use. 

The bobbin delivery on the drive frame is set at an 

ergonomic height of 1.45 meters. This enables the

Fig. 3 The open duodrafting 

arrangement 

– suitable for all types 

of fiber. 

operator to optimally control the bobbin conveyor 

belt and the bobbins can be conveniently removed 

and placed on pallets (Fig. 2). At the other end of the 

J 20 – between the last section and the tube loader 

– there is a free space as the service area for the robot 

at the rear. 

Market-conform yarn and bobbin quality 

With the J 20, the bobbin tension can be set over the 

whole bobbin. This, together with the image interference 

device, guarantees a perfect bobbin building 

process. The J 20 machines are equipped with the 

latest yarn clearer USTER Quantum Clearer 2; in line 

with the customer’s requirements – with capacitive 

or optical sensor – with or without foreign fiber detection. 

All yarn clearer settings are entered on the 

J 20 touch screen. All disturbing yarn faults, neps, 

thick or thin places and optionally also foreign fibers, 

are detected and cleared – an essential prerequisite 

for the downtime-free further processing of the yarn 

in weaving or knitting plants and a high-quality and 

even fabric appearance. 

New duo-spinning unit 

The new spinning unit of the J 20 achieves a high 

yarn strength and low number of imperfections. The 

drafting arrangement of the duo-spinning unit can 

be precisely and reproducibly set. Controlled fi ber 

guiding leads to good yarn quality as well as to a low 

number of quality cuts and natural thread breakages. 

The operator involvement is significantly reduced. 

With the J 20 duo drafting arrangement the productivity 

– compared with that of the J 10 – can be increased 

by 5% and this with equal or improved yarn 

quality. 

With the duo-spinning unit, the field of application 

for the air-jet spinning machine has been successfully 

extended. The J 20 can process viscose, Modal and 

blends with cotton. Deposits of fiber-fly and dirt are 

prevented by an optimized suction on the duo-spinning 

unit. There are practically no fiber deposits due 

to the open duo-drafting arrangement (Fig. 3). Any 

fiber-fly is removed by the robot in passing. 

The findings of the technological development and 

practical experience with the J 10 have been incorporated 

into the development of the J 20. The 


PRODUCT NEWS 

duo-spinning unit has numerous exchangeable technology 

elements with which it is possible to process 

different fiber materials and fiber counts or to 

achieve different yarn properties. 

Automation with 4 robots 

A J 20 air-spinning machine with 120 spinning positions 

is equipped with 4 robots, 2 on each side of the 

machine. The robot has various tasks: It cleans the 

spinning position and automatically pieces the yarn 

after a thread break or a clearer cut. It changes full 

bobbins and threads up the empty tubes – so-called 

doffing. A fan on the robot cleans the spinning positions 

from fiber-fly in passing. 

The robot of the J 20 is based on the automation 

technology of the rotor spinning machine. The wellproven 

Rieter piecing technology with almost yarnlike 

piecings leads to a high yarn quality. The entire 

J 20 piecing process is electronically controlled, assisted 

by the yarn clearer, and settings can be made 

on the machine display panel. The step-by-step introduction 

of new fibers gives the piecing a yarn-like 

appearance. The spinning technology guarantees 

that all fibers of the yarn end are perfectly bound in 

the piecing process – contrary to conventional splicers 

(Fig. 5). The piecers thereby formed fulfill all requirements 

in downstream processing. 

The robot works with a high degree of dependability. 

If problems occur, a trouble shooting program 

is shown on the robot display so that faults can be 

remedied without an instruction manual. When one 

of the two robots is in the separate maintenance and 

service station, the other robot automatically operates 

over the entire machine side. 

Flexible, simple machine settings 

High production speeds mean that the lots to be 

spun are finished increasingly quickly. The faster a 

machine spins, the quicker it should be able to be 

set for new orders. The machine concept of the J 20 

is therefore arranged so that both machine sides are 

optionally entirely independent of each other. This 

makes possible the production of 2 different articles, 

i.e. yarns at the same time and increases the production 

flexibility of the spinning plants. 2 bobbin transport 

belts and the separate conveyance of empty 

19


PRODUCT NEWS 

Fig. 4 Separate 

tube loaders for 2 

independent machine 

sides. 

Fig. 5 Invisible 

piecing from the J 20 

robot compared to the 

standard splicer. 

COMPARISON OF J 20 PIECER / SPLICER 

tubes with different colors (Fig. 4) prevent mix-ups 

when 2 articles are being produced simultaneously 

on the machine. 

Individual drive of the spinning units 

The heart of the J 20 air-jet spinning machine is the 

spinning unit that is driven by single motors, without 

central gears and without driving shaft, across 

the entire machine length. After an ends-down or a 

quality cut, the individual motors automatically stop 

the spinning position. The spinning unit no longer 

uses energy and compressed air. This also applies 

when the maintenance personnel carry out mainte- 

J 20 piecer – controlled by the yarn clearer 

5–6 cm 

Maximum increase in mass - 85% 

Standard splicer 

2–3 cm 

Increase in mass - 100% 

nance work. Only individual spinning positions are 

switched off and the rest of the machine continues 

production. The settings of the spinning units – such 

as drafts, bobbin speed, winding tension, cross-angle, 

spinning pressure – are carried out centrally via 

the machine operator panel. This enables rapid article 

change and increases the flexibility of the spinning 

plant. In addition, the machine carries out an 

automatic bobbin change and thereby prepares the 

change of article. Also with the evaluation of the machine 

data, top priority is given to flexibility. It goes 

without saying, that for each article, separate production 

and shift reports are available. 

Lifecycle of technological parts 

A great challenge with the high production speeds 

of the J 20 is to keep the maintenance costs as low 

as possible. With such high production speeds, high 

stress loads and abrasion levels occur. Rieter places 

great value on the application of new types of materials 

and solutions to gain long lifecycles of the 

relevant components. With the development of components, 

the physicists and chemists of Rieter’s material 

department always provide advice and support. 

For the J 20, ceramic spinning peaks were developed. 

These show distinctly higher lifecycles than spinning 

peaks made of steel. The ceramic spinning peaks are 

used in the production of viscose, Modal and cotton. 

Leading drafting arrangement technology 

Rieter’s cutting-edge drafting arrangement technology 

was adopted for the air-jet spinning machine 

and adapted to the high speeds. In order to achieve 

the enormously high drafts, the 3-over-3 drafting arrangement 

was further developed to a 4-over-4 drafting 

arrangement. This allows a gentle fiber drafting 

in 3 stages (pre-, middle and main draft). 

The robust J 20 drafting arrangement is equipped 

with a unique, patented traversing system. The feed 

sliver – and consequently the produced yarn – is laterally 

traversed. This lengthens the lifecycle of the 

top rollers cots and aprons on the J 20 three-fold. Accordingly 

the top rollers rarely need to be replaced. 

In the long term, this reduces the maintenance and 

spare parts costs enormously and ensures constant 

yarn quality over a long period of time.

Ring 

Com4® 

ComfoRo® 

ComforJet® 

Fig. 6 Comparison 

between the 4 

different Rieter yarn 

types: ring yarn, 

Com4® compact yarn, 

ComfoRo® rotor yarn 

and ComforJet® air-jet 

yarn. 

During the development process, care was taken that 

as many fiber materials as possible could be processed 

with the same top roller cots. The previous 

status of research and development with the aprons 

is that for viscose, Modal, cotton and blends, the 

same apron can be used. As top and bottom aprons 

in the drafting arrangement are identical, fewer 

aprons must be kept in stock as spares. 

Low production costs per kilogram of yarn 

For the majority of applications, the air-jet spinning 

technology has a lower energy consumption per kilogram 

of produced yarn than other spinning processes. 

Rieter’s calculations take the energy requirement 

for the compressed air preparation into account. The 

intelligent shutdown of the individual spinning units 

thereby pays off. The development process also paid 

attention to the dimensions of the J 20, to ensure 

that an installation in existing spinning rooms is possible. 

A spinning plant with J 20 needs a 25% smaller 

building area than a ring spinning plant for the same 

production capacity. This reduces the cost for buildings. 

A key for a perfect running behavior of the end 

spinning machines is a stable climate. Here the 25% 

lower space requirement of a J 20 compared to that 

of a ring spinning machine is of financial benefit. The 

smaller area that has to be air-conditioned results in 

substantial savings. 


PRODUCT NEWS 

Practical experience has clearly shown that the airconditioning 

in the spinning plant has a great influence 

on the spinning quality and the production 

stability with air-jet spinning. Under difficult conditions, 

air-conditioning can be installed directly under 

the spinning machine. It directs conditioned air 

from below to the cans, i.e. to the sliver – exactly 

where it is needed. Compared with the climatic conditioning 

of a hall, such a system can save additional 

energy. 

ComforJet® yarn – noticeably different 

A new yarn with new yarn characteristics, that opens 

new market opportunities for spinning plants, was 

the focus of development of the new spinning technology. 

The development team has succeeded in 

meeting this challenge. The type of yarn formation 

– turbulence with an airflow in a spinning nozzle – 

leads to a novel, noticeably different yarn structure. 

This yarn from the J 20 machine is marketed under 

the trade name ComforJet®. Air is a significant factor 

in the formation of the ComforJet® yarn and influences 

the yarn structure. For this reason, the ComforJet® 

yarns differ from ring and rotor yarns (Fig. 6) and 

have unique properties which show their advantages 

not only in the processing but also in the end article 

and end use. 

ComforJet® yarn with defined hairiness 

With the J 20 air-jet spinning machine, the hairiness 

and the yarn volume can be changed and reproduced 

via the machine setting. This flexibility is not found 

with any other spinning system to this extent. 

With the ComforJet® spinning process the drafted 

fibers run into a spinning nozzle. The front part of 

the fibers form the yarn core. The loose fiber ends 

are wound around the parallel yarn core by the air 

stream – it can be imagined as the fiber sun – in the 

spinning nozzle (Fig. 7/Fig. 8). The yarn surface is 

very smooth. The fibers that form the hairiness are 

very short or form small loops. This produces the 

typical properties of the ComforJet® yarn – very low 

hairiness combined with a soft and voluminous yarn 

character. 

21


PRODUCT NEWS 

Fig. 7 Diagram of 

ComforJet® spinning 

– with fiber sun in the 

spinning nozzle. 

Fig. 8 Animation of 

the yarn formation with 

ComforJet® spinning: 

photograph the code 

picture with your 

Smartphone or take 

a look at our website 

http://www.rieter.com/ 

air-jet 

Fig. 9 ComforJet® 

knits with a high 

degree of opacity, soft 

to touch and with a low 

pilling tendency. 

Advantages of ComforJet® yarn in downstream 

processing 

Low hairiness and the good fiber bonding in the 

yarn strand reduce the dust and fiber-fly formed 

during downstream processing. The productivity in 

the weaving and knitting plants increases. In addition, 

the product quality profits from the lower contamination 

by fly. With the further processing of the 

yarn, the typical ComforJet® yarn structure results 

in a higher moisture absorption. What is the consequence? 

With the sizing process, the concentration 

of the sizing agent can be reduced. When coloring, 

the same color intensity can be achieved with less 

colorant. Clear printing contours in the printing 

stage of ComforJet® fabrics are a result of the low 

hairiness of the ComforJet® yarn. 

At the ITMA 2011, the ComforJet® yarn was put to 

the test on the stand of the company Santoni SPA. 

Practically no contamination by fly with the Comfor- 

Jet® yarn – although the Atlas HS circular knitting 

machine was operating with 45 rpm at full speed. 

High quality of the ComforJet® end product 

ComforJet® yarns are very soft and voluminous. 

These properties lead to a visibly higher opacity and 

a very even fabric appearance. The fabrics are soft to 

the touch and are kind to the skin (Fig. 9). The excellent 

pilling resistance is apparent in the washing cycles. 

Thanks to the unique Rieter piecing technology 

the ComforJet® piecings in fabrics and knits are not 

visible; an enormous quality improvement. 

Who has not got annoyed when a new T-shirt has become 

warped and full of fiber knots – so-called pilling? 

ComforJet® textiles last longer. A soft touch, low 

pilling tendency, high dimensional stability – these 

are benefits of ComforJet® yarn that consumers and 

garment manufacturers value. 

Technology from the fiber to the yarn 

Rieter is the only company to offer all 4 spinning processes 

from one source. For this reason, Rieter can 

recommend and supply to its customers the spinning 

system that is the most suitable for the required application. 

The market launch of the air-jet spinning 

technology demonstrated what influence the fiber 

and sliver preparation has on the yarn quality and 

productivity. More and more spinning plants are implementing 

the blowroom line, combing section and 

autoleveler draw frames from Rieter for the production 

of high-quality, fine sliver in order to achieve a 

higher efficiency with air-jet spinning. 11-205 • 

Marc Schnell 

Product Management Air-Jet Spinning 

Winterthur 

marc.schnell@rieter.com

SPIDERweb – spinning mill data 

at a glance 

A new release of Rieter’s data collection and information system is now 

available with SPIDERweb software version 6.0. With this version the 

latest machine models from Rieter’s current product range can also be 

connected and their data displayed in SPIDERweb. The new version is 

now compatible with the Windows 7 operating system. 

Fig. 1 SPIDERweb 

is the only data 

monitoring system that 

displays data from all 

Rieter machines from 

blowroom to the final 

spinning machines. 

Following completion of the trial phase in 2010, 

Rieter launched the new SPIDERweb software 6.0 

release for the spinning mill data collection and information 

system at the beginning of 2011. Data 

from the latest Rieter machines can be displayed in 

the new version. For example from the C 70 card, 

the RSB-D 45 autoleveler draw frame, the R 60 rotor 

spinning machine or the J 20 airjet spinning machine. 

With the integration of data from the J 20 airjet 

spinning machine, SPIDERweb is now able to process 

data from all four final spinning processes. 

SPIDERweb as of Version 6.0.x 

compatible with 


PRODUCT NEWS 

Intuitive, standardized tables and graphics also ensure 

that users can quickly find their way around the 

program and work productively with the newly integrated 

machines. All this makes the data monitoring 

system unique worldwide. No other spinning mill 

data collection system covers the entire spinning process 

from blowroom to final spinning machines. 

Standard data in SPIDERweb 

SPIDERweb software offers a multitude of standardized 

data displays per machine. In addition, endusers 

can select their preferred language from 12 

options, draw up shift schedules and save data displays 

individually under Favorites. Data that are analyzed 

in SPIDERweb come directly from the machine 

control system. The advantage of this is that they are 

clearly traceable. Table 1 clearly illustrates the main 

standard displays offered by SPIDERweb. 

23


PRODUCT NEWS 

Production data* Quality data** Running behavior data* 

• Production and machine 

efficiency 

• Shift report 

• Output per shift, day, 

week, month 

• Spectrogram 

• Mean deviation of sliver 

count A% 

• Length variation graph 

CV% 

• Coefficient of length variation 

CVm 

• Classimat data 

• Spinning position data 

from final spinning machines 

• Display of fault signals direct 

from the machine control 

system 

• Production trend diagrams 

* The standard data displays can vary by machine type and age. 

** The ability to display quality data depends on whether the machine in question is equipped 

with quality sensors / ISM. 

SPIDERweb data display: table and graphics: cards – daily output. 

Live at the ITMA – presentation of the new SPIDERweb software. 

SPIDERweb – solution with a future 

A spinning mill investing in a data system needs to 

be certain that support will still be forthcoming from 

the manufacturer in years to come. Rieter guarantees 

this for SPIDERweb. SPIDERweb software has 

been continuously further developed since 1995. 

New machines and machine types are continuously 

being integrated in the software. The advantages of 

this for customers are obvious. A spinning mill operating 

with SPIDERweb has the assurance that the 

data monitoring system can be updated and also 

have modules added in future for new Rieter machines. 

A further advantage are the open databases, 

which enable SPIDERweb data that have been collected 

to be imported into a higher-order enterprise 

resource planning (ERP) system for further processing. 

The fact that SPIDERweb is a future-oriented solution 

is also demonstrated by the compatibility of 

software version 6.0 with the Windows 7 operating 

system, while at the same time it can also still be 

used with Windows XP. Rieter also looks to the future 

in the field of software development. The programming 

language for SPIDERweb has also been 

adapted to current development standards so that 

the product can continue to be developed in line 

with the latest state of the art. 11-206 • 

Markus Baumli 

Marketing Manager 

Winterthur 

markus.baumli@rieter.com 

Marcel Rengel 

Technical Manager Data Systems 

Winterthur 

marcel.rengel@rieter.com

The right draw frame to meet 

every need 

With some 30 000 RSB/SB draw frames sold, Rieter is the world’s 

leading draw frame manufacturer. Our draw frame innovations create 

competitive advantages for our customers. Rieter’s all-round draw 

frame portfolio offers the right draw frame for every need with regard 

to quality, productivity, operator convenience and available space. An 

overview of all draw frame models is given here. 

Fig. 1 The all-round 

draw frame portfolio 

systematically caters to 

all customer needs. 

Single-head draw frames 

Double-head 

draw frames 

All Rieter autoleveler draw frames incorporate highly 

dynamic RSB autoleveling technology. This ensures 

the highest quality standards in the yarn and the end 

product as well as outstanding running properties 

in downstream production stages. All Rieter draw 

frames feature virtually identical technology components, 

such as top rollers or coilers, so that spare 

parts can be utilized flexibly. 

RSB-D 45 and SB-D 45 – the line for maximum 

flexibility 

The SB-D 45 without leveling, together with the RSB 

D 45, provides for highly flexible lines with maxi- 

Autoleveler draw frames 

RSB-D 45(c) 

RSB-D 35 CUBIcan 

RSB-D 22(c) 

Draw frames without leveling 

SB-D 45 

SB-D 11 

SB 20 


PRODUCT NEWS 

mum efficiency up to 1 100 m/min. These two models 

are largely identical in design – which facilitates 

operation and maintenance. A unique feature is the 

CLEANtube device for clean sliver coiling, which is 

especially advantageous when processing soiled cotton. 

RSB-D 22 and SB-D 11 – the line for limited spaces 

Two SB-D 11 and one RSB-D 22 are perfect partners 

where maximum output of up to 1 100 m/min in conjunction 

with minimum available space and low capital 

investment is called for. The RSB-D 22 ensures 

maximum quality, flexibility and productivity with 

independent machine sides and autoleveling systems. 

RSB-D 45c and RSB-D 22c – the alternatives in the 

Rieter combing line 

The RSB-D 45c and RSB-D 22c autoleveler draw 

frames are specifically designed for use after the 

combing process. Maximum delivery speed is 

550 m/min. 

RSB-D 35 CUBIcan – for large capacities and low 

operator effort 

The RSB-D 35 CUBIcan autoleveler draw frame fills 

rectangular cans at up to 1 000 m/min. CUBIcans 

hold up to 65% more sliver material than round 

cans, offering corresponding advantages in operation, 

quality and efficiency on the spinning machine. 

SB 20 – the double-head draw frame for large can 

formats 

With output of up to 1 000 m/min, the SB 20 doublehead 

draw frame without leveling is the ideal preliminary 

stage of combing preparation before the UNllap 

or OMEGAlap. The machine also offers large delivery 

can formats of up to 600 mm with can changer and 

1 000 mm without can changer. 11-207 • 

Jürgen Müller 

Product Management Draw frame 

Ingolstadt 

juergen.mueller@rieter.com 

25


PARTS 

Rieter nippers 

Rieter combers have been developed to operate at high nip rates. 

Original spare parts from Rieter are essential to enable this advantage to 

be exploited throughout the machine’s life cycle. This is also true of the 

nippers. They feature the high precision of a Swiss watch movement and 

are as unique as a fingerprint. 

Fig. 1 The manually adjusted nip line means that 

each original Rieter nipper is a high-precision part 

with its own unique fingerprint. 

Each nipper is unique 

The Rieter nipper incorporates production and technology 

know-how that has been developed over 

decades and has demonstrated its qualities in the 

operation of more than 100 000 nippers worldwide. 

Rieter nippers feature unmatched precision in 

clamping the laps. 

In order to manufacture a nipper with such precision, 

Rieter has for many years used a special process 

for optimizing the nip line of each individual 

nipper – adjustment by hand with the precision of 

a Swiss watch movement. Each nipper therefore has 

its own unique fingerprint. Its manufacturing data 

are logged and archived, and can be traced back over 

20 years. 

Precision for optimum quality 

High-precision clamping of the lap, in conjunction 

with the optimized motion of the circular and top 

combs, results in outstanding combing action over 

the comber’s entire speed range. 

Poor fiber selection has a negative impact on yarn 

quality and thus on profitability. This is usually because 

the lap has not been combed with sufficient 

precision. Rieter nippers always clamp precisely and 

perfectly. 

Faster return on investment 

Using Rieter nippers has a positive influence on profitability 

within the combing process. Original Rieter 

nippers enable output to be increased by up to 15 

percent, while reducing noil extraction by up to 2 

percent at the same time. Rieter nippers are key to 

combing profitability. 11-208 • 

Urs Tschanz 

Head Sales Support Parts SYS 

Winterthur 

urs.tschanz@rieter.com

Improved package build with 

anti-patterning control 

Frequency-controlled, motor-powered pattern breaking – the APC (Anti- 

Patterning Control) upgrade package for rotor spinning machines optimizes 

package build. The conversion kit is available for R 1, R 20 and 

R 40 (Version 1 to 3) rotor spinning machines. 

Fig. 1 Inverter and 

controller for the APC 

upgrade package. 

Fig. 2 Anti-Patterning 

Control upgrade 

package in the 

headstock. 

Higher draw-off speeds in weaving and knitting make 

optimal package build increasingly important. Preventing 

pattern winding results in improved take-off 

behavior in downstream processing. Electronic pattern 

breaking such as that in use since the R 40 rotor 

spinning machine (Version 4), has demonstrated 

its outstanding qualities in the field. Customers with 

R1, R 20 and R 40 (Version 1 to 3) rotor spinning 

machines can now also benefit from this innovation. 

The APC (Anti-Patterning Control) upgrade package 

has been developed for this purpose. The mechanical 

regulating wheel has been replaced here by a frequency-controlled, 

motor-powered pattern breaker. 

Maintenance-friendly design 

In addition to the mechanical regulating wheel, other 

parts susceptible to wear – such as the special 

belt and the mechanical pattern-breaker gear – are 

also dispensed with in the new system. This reduces 

maintenance effort. The new system completely 

eliminates the cost of purchasing or replacing these 

mechanical parts. 

Jörg Feigl 

Project Manager Parts 

Ingolstadt 

joerg.feigl@rieter.com 


PARTS 

Optimal and variable pattern breaking 

Perfect package build is the result of optimal pattern 

breaking. This prevents first-order pattern winding 

(1:1 pattern winding) and uncontrolled package 

winding. A separate motor with an electronic random-check 

generator ensures optimal pattern breaking. 

The rotation speed of the traversing gear can be 

finely controlled. The independent, motor-powered 

drive of the traversing gear also reduces the load on 

the winding cylinder drive. 

The rotation speed of the winding cylinder shaft is 

picked up by a motion sensor (initiator). The necessary 

rotation speed for the motor is calculated by the 

controller and transmitted to the inverter (Fig. 1). 

The motor speed at power take-off is then checked 

and regulated. Thus processed, these measured signals 

permit very accurate regulation and thus faultless 

pattern breaking. Two optional settings on the 

controller enable pattern-breaking intensity to be 

variably adjusted, usefully and very easily. These 

two adjustment options depend on the delivery 

speed and the yarn properties (pronounced snarling 

tendency, high elongation or other unusual properties). 

The angle of intersection is still adjusted by 

means of change gears. 

Higher productivity, longer service life 

Technical and technological developments in rotor 

spinning continue to make progress. The APC 

upgrade package (Fig. 2) also modernizes older 

machines to the latest state of the art. Improved 

package quality without ribbon formation, reduced 

maintenance effort and longer service life of the pattern 

breaker make investment in this upgrade package 

a worthwhile proposition. 11-209 • 

27

www.rieter.com 

Happy visitors on Rieter's booth at the ITMA 2011 in Barcelona. 

Rieter Machine Works Ltd. 

Klosterstrasse 20 

CH-8406 Winterthur 

T +41 52 208 7171 

F +41 52 208 8320 

sales.sys@rieter.com 

parts.sys@rieter.com 

Rieter India Private Limited 

Gat No 134/1, Off Pune Nagar Road 

Koregaon Bhima 

Taluka Shirur, District Pune 

IN-Maharashtra 412207 

T +91 2137 253 071 

F +91 2137 253 075 

Rieter Textile Systems (Shanghai) Ltd. 

12/F, New Town Centre 

No. 83 Loushanguan Road 

CN-Shanghai 200336 

T +86 21 6236 8013 

F +86 21 6236 8012

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