DREF, or woollen spinning ? That is the question.

Have you ever considered the possibility of switching from woollen to friction spinning, or supplementing the former with the latter ? If not, the following facts and figures may change your mind !

At present, over 60 million blankets are manufactured annually around the world using DREF 2 friction spinning. This corresponds to 446 DREF 2 and DREF 2000 machines with an annual blanket yarn production of 127,020 metric tons. These yarns are used for the hometex, hotel, hospital, camping, car and military sectors, as well as for covers made entirely from waste material, sub-standard or virgin fibres.

A large percentage of the waste fibres from carded and combed yarn spinning, as well as some from cotton spinning mills, can be utilised for respinning, particularly for the blanket sector. The following practical comparison between DREF 2 and the woollen spinning system was completed with the assistance of a Tunisian customer, who purchased three DREF 2 24/E24 machines during an initial investment phase 13 years ago.

Perhaps the most notable difference between DREF 2 and woollen spinning lies in the comparative machine speeds. For Nm 2.2 (450 tex) yarn production, DREF 2 can offer 190 m/min ( woollen spinning:12 m/min) in three-shift production (22.5 h/d) with just 1 or 2 operators. Using the woollen process, the 7.9 metric tons of yarn derived from a single DREF 2 in one day, would require eleven 130-spindle machines and 24 workers. This adds up to a 90-95% spinning efficiency level, which is backed by adapted woollen cards with 1-2 tambours, a can coiler system and only 0.5-1.5 % lubricant for far lower raw material costs.

When spinning yarns with filament cores, DREF 2 can use 100% secondary, or opened waste fibres, which again cuts costs. By contrast, the woollen spinning system has a carrier fibre requirement. This costs much more than the 167dtex substandard filament, which represents 3.7% of the total yarn count offered by FEHRER.

Faster weft insertion (up to 30%) using DREF 2 yarns, which have superior regularity and tenacity, raises weaving efficiency from 60-65% in the case of woollen spinning to 90%. It should be added that with 4-6 raising passages, DREF 2 yarns possess unsurpassed characteristics, derived from their greater volume and softer surface.

When the low spare part requirement of 1-2% during the spinning of 100% regenerated fibres in 3-shift operation is added to the aforementioned minimum preparation and personnel expenditure, higher per capita shift production and rewinding machine elimination, then DREF 2 can be said to provide an overall reduction in production costs of up to 60%. Something that can only be music to the ears of any mill owner !

DREF 2 blanket yarn production data