uAFIS PRO 2 - Uster Technologies

Controlling costs through material monitoringTest modules and options for a real competitive edgeSome of the costliest mistakes in yarn manufacturingarise from poor control of the raw material – both beforeand during the spinning preparation stages. The financialimpact of excess waste, unnecessary cuts, reworking,and paying claims can drive the yarn - manufacturing costway beyond the original cost of the raw material.This is where the USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 shines. Fiber qualityis the most critical factor in yarn manufacturing. Itdirectly impacts on whether a yarn meets the mill’s costrequirements and the quality/performance specificationsof the customer.With raw - material accounting for more than 50 % of thetotal yarn - making cost, the key is to preserve the quality ofthe purchased fiber throughout the manufacturing process.And the USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 achieves this by testing thematerial at each stage of preparation, from blowroomto roving.Several different fiber quality characteristics affectquality and performance through the various prespinningoperations – opening, cleaning, carding, combing,roving – so testing needs to take account of the impact ofeach. The USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 handles this by measuring,in as little as 2.5 minutes, up to 11 different fibercharacteristics de scrib ing the length, fineness, maturity,neps, trash, and dust in a particular test specimen.Only by this intensive monitoring it is possible to detectfiber quality issues before they get into the yarn and leadto a quality claim from the customer. The result is betteroverall control of cost, by reducing waste raw material andoff - quality yarn. And to maximize laboratory efficiencystill further, the optional AUTOJET Module can be used toautomate the sample - testing operation of the instrument.Only USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 can deliver these advantages withthe industry - leading level of accuracy USTER customersexpect.USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 provides the essential data necessaryfor modern process optimization techniques in the spinningmill. The Neps Length and Maturity Module (NLM) is thebasic configuration which measures the amount of cottonfiber and seed coat neps as well as fiber length, short - fibercontent, plus cotton maturity and immature - fiber content.The optional Trash Module (T) measures the trash and dustcontent in cotton. Any material in the form of bale, matt,sliver or roving can be tested – repeatedly and reliably –on the USTER ® AFIS PRO 2. Even fiber blends can be tested,up to a ratio of 50 % cotton, 50 % synthetic.For improved laboratory testing efficiency, the optionalAUTOJET device is designed to run up to 30 samplesautomatically. After loading the AUTOJET cassette, theoperator can attend to other duties, making the best useof lab time and avoiding the need for extra staff.A special feature of the USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 is the criticalnep size report. This allows a mill to assess the visualimpact of larger - size neps in the raw fiber, in finisher sliver(for rotor spinning) or in roving (for ring spinning). Nepsize is important, since larger neps are more likely to havea visual impact on yarn appearance – especially infiner - count yarns, where nep size is even more critical.And yarn appearance is, of course, a good indicator offabric appearance – which in turn is often a determiningfactor in winning or losing business.Only with USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 and its wide range of testoptions and application reports can this degree of processoptimization be realized as a genuine competitiveadvantage.With rising raw - material costs spinning mills with op ti mizedprocesses are often forced to buy or utilize cheaper rawmaterial because it is the only way to keep the profitmargin on the same level. This requires, however, that theyarn quality does not deteriorate. For such a difficultbalancing challenge between profit and quality themeasurement of the fiber characteristics from the blowroomto the roving frame is a must.LengthTrashNepsSeed coat nepsShort fiberBlowroom • • • • • •MaturityMonitor every process to getgood cost control– Poor control of fiber qualitybefore and during processingleads to the most costly qualityclaims– USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 measures allthe critical parameters neededto control all the spinningpreparation processes andthereby allowing for consistentcost control– Eleven characteristics aremeasured in as little as2.5 minutes– Testing efficiency in thelaboratory can be improvedwith the optional AUTOJETTesting the widest range ofparameters gives a competitiveedge– USTER ® AFIS PRO 2 providesthe essential data necessary formodern process optimizationtechniques in the spinning mill– The Neps Length and MaturityModule (NLM) is the basicconfiguration which measuresfiber and seed coat neps, all thelength components, and fibermaturity, the optional TrashModule (T) measures the trashand dust content in cotton– For improved laboratory testingefficiency, the optional AUTOJETdevice is designed to run up to30 samples automatically– Widest range of testing optionsand application reports to getthe most out of the test dataCarding • • • • • •Lap winding • • • •Combing • • • • • •Drawing • • • • • •Roving • • •Significance of fiber propertiesin yarn preparation processesAUTOJET device runs up to30 samples automatically