Welcome to IN-LINE with FI-TECH Welcome to our Fall 2000 issue of "In-Line with Fi-Tech". This fall will be an exciting time for the textile industry in North America. The ATME-I 2000 will be held at the Palmetto Expo Center in Greensville, SC from October 23-27. Our industry has been faced with a number of challenges since we were last together in Greenville in 1997. The industry has experienced a number of consolidations and manufacturing joint ventures, as well as stiff competition from imports. The effects of NAFTA also continue to reshape our industry. The world's premier suppliers will converge on Greenville to demonstrate to the textile industry how producers can remain competitive with investments in modern, state-of-the-art equipment. We invite you to join us. Twelve of Fi-Tech's principals will be on hand to meet with you to discuss the latest improvements in technology. Also, the entire Fi-Tech staff will be on hand to meet with you for any requirements you may have. Please see our detailed presentation contained within this issue. We look forward to seeing you in Greenville. Jeff Bassett ATME-I 2000 Greenville, SC October 23-27, 2000 Once again, the American Textile Machinery Exhibition - International (ATME-I), comes to Greenville, SC, October 23rd through October 27th. this year the show id shaping up to be the best show yet. this is also a very special show because six of our principles wll be exhibiting for the first time since their association with Fi-Tech. Companies that will be exhibiting include: Autefa Automation : D-2617 Cason Spa : D-2508 Christoph Burkchardt AG : D-2506 Enka technica GmbH : D-2603 Fi -Tech : D-2609 Lurgi Zimmer AG : D-2601 MAB SA : D-2610 MOVEngineering : D-2512 Nowo Textile Machinery : D-2235 Reifenhauser GmbH & Co. : D-2607 Sikoplast Maschinenbau GmbH : D-2504 Zentes Unitex GmbH : D-2502 All of the above companies will be grouped together in the same general vicinity in Hall D,between Aisles 2500 and 2600. the booths will share a common theme, so you shouldn't have problem finding us. Please see the enclosed map for reference. Whether you are planning to spend the entire week at the show or just one day, we encourage you to visit our family of exhibitors. All of the sales engineers from Fi - Tech, as well as representaives from each of the above companies, will be on hand to answer your questions. Some of the products and services that we will be exhibiting this year include the following: Auteta will be on hand to demonstrate completely automated doffing/donning, transportation, storage and packing of yarn packages (POY, DTY, and BCF). They will also be showing the latest in fully automatic staple fiber bale presses and automated bale warehouse systems. Representatives from the Nonwovens Division will be on hand as well to answer your questions about crosslappers. Burekhardt will present their patented fibrillating system, utilizing replaceable pin bars. They will also show the latest developments in the perforating of nonwoven materials such as spunbond and meltblown fabrics, and laminates. Cason will feature their full line of bobbin and pirn strippers, ranging from manual to fully-automatic systems. They will also present their new turnkey Fine Denier Polypropylene Spinning Plant that was featured in the last Fi-Tech newsletter. Enka tecnica's state of the art spinneret manufacturing capabilities, as well as their extensive line of fiber quality control devices, and manufacturing components will be highlighted at the exhibition. Various testing devices and components will be demonstrated throughout the week, including "Yarnscan" on-line yarn monitoring technology. Lurgi Zimmer experts in PET and PA polymer and fiber production will be on hand to discuss the latest developments in Zimmer's world renown technology. Zimmer's proven high speed spinning process for PET POY yarns (5000 m/min) will also be highlighted. MAB sales engineers will be available to show their line of high volume, dense-phase resin conveying systems, examples of which will be on hand. MAB's extensive line of rotary and slide valves will also be displayed. MOVEngineering will exhibit their patented HYPOX(~ Cleaning Oven for the removal of polymer from filters and ~in pack parts, including spinnerets. A HYPOX~ unit will be on sight for your closer examination. Nowo will present the latest in automated fiber filling equipment for pillows and cushions. A fully operational "Noworoll" unit as well as a "Nowovact' unit will be running throughout the show. Bring your pillow shell for a personalized demonstration. Reifenhäuser, the world's leading maker of complete turnkey Spunbond, Meltblown, and Composite Nonwovens lines (including microdenier and bicomponent technologies) will be on hand to provide you with expert assistance for all your nonwovens needs. Representatives from the Monofilament Division will also be on hand to answer questions regarding Reifenhauser turnkey monofilament systems. Sikoplast is planning to present their new "Hybrid" reclaim system. They will also offer components for their line of turnkey systems used in the recycling of fibers, yarns, films, and nonwovens; including spunbond and meltblown fabric waste. Zentes Unitex will feature an extensive line of spinneret inspection devices, ranging from hand-held to fully automated inspection systems. An example of their Finish Pump Testing Unit will be on sight as well. On behalf of Fi-Tech, and our principals, we look forward to welcoming you to our booths at the ATME-I 2000. We hope that you will join us throughout the show to discover new machinery and developments which will take us through the beginning of the 21 st century. As the show approaches, feel free to contact us to ask any questions you may have regarding the show, or to set up meetings with companies that serve your particular industry. We look forward to seeing you! Autefa Automation - Filament Handling Solutions Autefa Automation, Augsburg, Germany, has proven technology to enhance the productivity of filament fiber and DTY production. From improvements in plant efficiency to improvements in product quality,Autefa filament handling systems have helped many major fiber producers maintain a competitive advantage in today's global market. From dofffing to packing and to warehousing, Autefa offers a fully integrated solution for all types of filament yarn and DTY production. Autefa Multi-Doffer for POY Autefa Automation begins with either railmounted doffers orAGV multi doffers depending on the customers needs and plant layout. In both cases, donning of empty paper tubes can be integrated to either style doffer. Bobbins can then be transported by overhead monorail system, ground carts or by the AGV multi-doffer. In all cases, doffs are completely managed by the supervisory control system guaranteeing maximum production efficiency with minimal labor. Based upon the specific application and customer requirements, yarn packages are subject to quality checks, stored for future packing (aging) or transported directly to downstream processing. In all cases,Autefa solutions simplify bobbin grading, aging, quality control and eliminate quality problems caused by manual handling.The system allows for quick detection of trouble sources to prevent further disruptions in production.As with automatic doffing and handling, all bobbins are tracked completely by the supervisory control system. Autefa Rail Mounted Doffer In cases where intermediate storage and packing is required,Autefa Automation has developed the multi-tray storage system that is both highly flexible and reliable. With key features such as high throughputs, just in time packing, multiple packing rules, automatic handling of downgraded bobbins, the multi-tray storage system is one of the most important components of a complete automation solution.To conform to many different pack configurations, Autefa customizes solutions using multi-function gripper systems, multiple robots, automatic box/layer feeding and box array palletizing. Once packaging is complete, Autefa can also supply automatic storage and retrieval in high capacity warehouses. Let us evaluate your current systems and layouts in order to make recommendations to improve your current operations. Please call us or see us at ATME-I 2000.

Mozart Staple Cutting Blades MozartAG of Solingen,Germany manufactures the MOZART® series of chopper knives for the cutting of synthetic staple fiber and glass fiber. Fi-Tech inventories MOZART® blades for the standard Mark IV and Mark V Lummus Cutters together with other custom designed blades. MOZART® Blades are made of the highest quality stainless steel or chrome alloyed tool steel. The manufacturing process uses state-ofthe-art techniques for the stamping, grinding, and heat-treating of the blades. This ensures that all MOZART® technical blades are burr free and meet the tightest tolerances, which means a longer edge life and better cutting performance. Special coatings are optional in many applications, whereby dramatically increasing the service life of the blade at a moderate increase of cost. Most common are two different coating techniques: a high-temperature CVD-Process for TiC-Coating and a low-temperature PVDProcess for coatings such asALTiN,TiCN, CrN, WCC,TiAI N 70/25,Tin. The choice of coating depends upon the specific application and often a series of testing which is necessary to optimize the lifetime of the blade in that application. MozartAG is the blade manufacturer willing to work in cooperation with the end user to solve cutting problems and reduce overall cutting costs. Visit our website at www.fi-tech.com Enka technica Components Enka tecnica manufactures many components and testing devices that improve the quality and increase the value of synthetic fibers. As part of our continuing reports on these components, we are pleased to introduce the Air Splicer for Filament Yarns and the Fraytec with camera system. Air Splicers Enka technica Splicer for Filmanet Yarns. Enka tecnica Air Splicers produce knot-free splices in filament yarns. The yarn ends are secured in the yarn body and there are no projecting ends or thick, bundled areas that will cause poor quality in downstream processing. The working principle is as follows: The yarn ends are introduced into the device. The push button is depressed. The splice chamber through which the two ends are passed is closed. The projecting ends are cut off and air is introduced into the chamber. The process is controlled through small,carefully adjusted pneumatic elements. The blowing time can be set for the yarn type.This ensures uniform splices. The small cutters incorporated into the device enable the filaments to be cut directly at the splice chamber so that the filament ends can be properly interlocked at the splice. The result is a splice of uniform and reproducible quality. Enka tecnica splicers come in various models with exchangeable blowing chambers. This allows the splicers to be adapted to different yarn counts. The splicerscan be used with synthetic filament yarns, cellulosic filament, glass fiber, carbon fiber and aramids. Fraytec with Camera Enka technica Fraytec with Camera System. The Fraytec with Camera was developed to prove to our customers how safely the Fraytec Broken Filament Detector system works. The high-speed camera takes a picture of each broken filament as it passes the Fraytec sensor. The general principle is that the Fraytec sensor detects a broken filament and sends an impulse to the camera and strobe. The camera will be set to take the picture at the precise moment the broken filament can be photographed. This image can be saved on a PC for subsequent access and evaluation. The Fraytec with Camera is an excellent device for troubleshooting and process development. The ability to study the image of a broken filament often leads the customer to draw correct conclusions about why the filament has broken. For additional information, please contact us at Fi-Tech. Recycle Waste into Your Extrusion Line without Repelletizing The new HYBRID System from Sikoplast Maschinenbau GmbH allows you to recycle thermoplastic waste material directly into your extrusion process without first having to repelletize it. An advantage of the HYBRID System is that high melt flow rate polymers, which are diffficult to pelletize,can be easily recycled. Waste material, whether in the form of filament, yarn, edge trim, reject rolls or slaboff waste, is first fed into a granulator where it is chopped and reduced in size. Feeding into the granulator can be done with a variety of automatic feeding devices depending upon the type of waste. More than one type of feed-in device can be supplied for automatically feeding waste in several different forms.The granulator can be located either near the extrusion line or near the waste source. The granulated waste is then conveyed pneumatically to a buffer, or storage, silo. The buffer silo allows for enough granulated material to accumulated in order to provide a constant feed rate to the extrusion process. Another important advantage of the HYBRID system is that the feed rate to the extrusion process is constant, regardless of the irregularity of the feeding of waste into the granulator.The buffer silo is sized so as to allow the recycling process to continue even while the granulator is stopped, such as for replacing knives. The knife gap is pre-set outside of the granulator, thereby making a knife change very quick. From the buffer silo,the granulate is conveyed to a"conical screw" refeed extruder where the waste is melted before being injected into the production extruder. The"conical screw" design provides for a large diameter feed section to facilitate the feeding of fluffy, granulated material with low bulk density. The refeed extruder can be equipped with a degassing port for venting vapors from chemical treatments on the waste. Not only does the HYBRD system eliminate the repelletizing step, thereby also eliminating another heat history, but it also eliminates additional handling of the pellets. In summary,the key benefits of the Sikoplast HYBRID System are: Automatic processing and feeding from any waste source. Waste can be fed into the system at varying feed rates. Waste can be blown directly into the granulator with no handling. System can handle various wastes from different sources at the same time. Automatic and controlled feeding of the waste. No pelletizing, which means no additional handling. Can process all MFR's, including 100% melt blown waste with the highest MFR. Sikoplast offers a complete range of reclaim lines for repelletizing and recycling all types of thermoplastic materials. Sikoplast's new PHOENIX System for repelletizing PET is able to achieve a pre-determined viscosity and narrow molecular weight distribution independent of the viscosity of the feed material. Please contact us for more information on the PHOENIX System.