#Dyeing, Drying, Finishing

2014-02-20

Acrylic fibre dyeing with Thies upgrade for Ahlesa Blankets in South Africa

Thies eco bloc X dyeing unit (c) 2014 Thies Textilmaschinen

South Africa – based Ahlesa Blankets (Pty) Ltd has recently taken delivery of a new Thies eco bloc X dyeing unit in an acrylic fibre dyeing application. The new dyeing unit offers additional 25% production, for acrylic fibre dyeing plus significant energy savings, improved flows and colour fastness.

Originally based in Turkey, Mekent Tekstil decided to move its entire operations in 1996 to Atlantis, close to Cape Town, to begin production of acrylic blankets; relying on two used Thies eco bloc units bought locally in South Africa.

Buying the acrylic fibres on the world market, Ahlesa Blankets dyes the fibres in house for the fully integrated operation. Ahlesa dyes and blends the fibre, thereafter spinning the yarn, weaving and finishing the blankets to final make up and packaging ready for despatch. Working three shifts daily, six days a week the company is thought to be the country’s largest blanket producer. The company produces a variety of blanket sizes from baby blankets (50 x 125cm) to king size (240 x 270cm) and weights from 460 – 650gm/m².

The new Thies unit was installed late last year and replaces one of the original two eco bloc’s following almost 17 years trouble-free operation with Ahlesa. “And,” said Operations Manager, Saban Kus, “don’t forget that before we took delivery they were already almost 20 years old.

“We have been very satisfied with their trouble-free operation,” he added.

The new machine is able to dye four fibre ‘cakes’, each measuring 1900mm dia and weighing 300kg instead of three cakes in the older unit.

Additionally according to Ahlesa’s General Manager, Baris Kuyucu, “the new high temperature machine is greatly improved technically offering better colour fastness, improved flows and significant energy savings.”

Producing up to 5000 blankets a day Ahlesa’s main market is the domestic chain stores although some export markets are also opening in neighbouring countries such as Namibia and Botswana.

Pic: Blanket made by Ahlesa Blankets

AATCC announces 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition winners

The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) recognized the winners of the 2025 Herman & Myrtle Goldstein Graduate Student Paper Competition. Founded in 1982 to give student members the chance to conduct and present original research, the competition was renamed in 1994 in honor of Herman and Myrtle Goldstein, following their US$60,000 endowment. Their gift is a lasting remembrance of their dedication to young people in the textile industry.

Stefan Moll becomes new CEO of the machinery manufacturer

Starting January 1, 2026, Stefan Moll will take over the management of Mahlo GmbH + Co. KG, the world’s leading provider of measurement and control technology for web-shaped materials. With this move, Mahlo is focusing on the long-term safeguarding of its market position and technological leadership. The current CEO, Rainer Mestermann, will leave the company after 14 years as part of a planned succession arrangement.

MUNICH FABRIC START: Between Attitude and Sensuality

The future begins where we reimagine it. After seasons of restraint, Spring.Summer 27 marks a conscious counter-trend: optimism, sensuality, and creative freedom are replacing pragmatism and neutrality. Physical presence and individuality are regaining importance – as a response to uncertainty, exhaustion, and algorithmic predictability. The overarching theme of PLEASURE stands for fashion as an emotional space, as an expression of attitude and cultural reflection. Colours, surfaces, and materials become vehicles for self-confidence and joie de vivre.

organIQ seek: smart alternative to potassium permanganate

CHT Group announces new technical findings within its organIQ seek platform that significantly advance the transition toward permanganate-free denim bleaching. Through extensive industrial testing and application research, CHT confirms that organIQ seek can now be used with remarkable effectiveness as a substitute for potassium permanganate in spray bleach, while remaining aligned with sustainability expectations and cost realities in the European market. At the COLOMBIATEX in Medellín as well as at the Exintex in Puebla and the Kingpins Show in Amsterdam the CHT Group will present organIQ seek as an alternative to potassium permanganate.

PERFORMANCE DAYS: Focus topic shifts to the beginning of the value chain

Following the last Focus Topic in October 2025, which placed Textile-to-Textile Recycling at its core, PERFORMANCE DAYS continues to drive the conversation around circularity – this time with an expanded and more upstream perspective. The upcoming Focus Topic, “Textile to Textile: The Role of Collectors and Sorters,” presented during the spring edition on March 18–19, will spotlight one of the most essential yet often overlooked components of a functioning circular textile system: the efficient collection and sorting of post-consumer textiles.

Proven performance, optimised costs – the new RE 6 EL

Nowadays textile companies increasingly need to produce small production runs and respond to market changes with instantaneous pattern changes in order to operate profitably – meaning they require machines that offer maximum flexibility, reliability and cost efficiency. KARL MAYER understands the challenges of the market and is launching its new RE 6 EL. The Raschel machine offers the core strengths of the classic RSE 6 EL and essentially the same performance parameters, but has been further cost-optimised largely due to local production advantages. This makes the newcomer an efficiency champion in production, especially when it comes to frequent pattern changes.