In total, Picanol will have 12 machines on display at ITMA 2023. In addition to 6 rapier weaving machines, Picanol will also present 4 airjet weaving machines featuring new developments. Furthermore, a rapier machine in Jacquard execution will be on display at the Bonas booth and an airjet machine in Jacquard execution will be presented at the Stäubli booth.

“Picanol has sold more than 130,000 rapier machines worldwide since the launch of our first rapier weaving machine, and we have challenged ourselves to further improve our current and highly successful OptiMax-i Connect rapier platform. The result is the brand-new Ultimax rapier weaving machine that focuses on three main benefits: ultimate performance and high-quality output, readiness for the sustainability requirements of tomorrow, and the greatest ease of use thanks to a maximum level of digitization. In addition, the classic Picanol exterior design of the machine has been radically disrupted, to make it clear from the outside how revolutionary Ultimax is on the inside,” explains Johan Verstraete, Vice President Weaving Machines.

“Creating a worthy successor to the OptiMax rapier generation, of which over 60,000 units are running worldwide, was a real challenge. But combining 85 years of experience with new ideas and technologies has resulted in the all-new and revolutionary Ultimax rapier machine. It excels in the fields of performance and quality, it is designed with sustainability as the baseline, and the high degree of digitization results in a previously unseen ease of use.”