#ITMA Asia + CITME 2024

2024-10-10

Machine premiere and new business potential

The technical textiles sector offers lucrative opportunities for specialized manufacturers, but also for conventional textile companies that want to diversify. The KARL MAYER GROUP will be demonstrating how this promising potential can be exploited with its presence at the upcoming ITMA ASIA + CITME.

Innovative solutions for the composite sector and the production of grids - KARL MAYER's presentation at ITMA ASIA + CITME 2024 for technical textiles

Carbon fabrics for lucrative applications

The innovative global player's exhibition in Shanghai clearly focuses on developments in the carbon market. In hall 4, at stand C27 of the Shanghai National Exhibition and Convention Center, tailor-made reinforcement textiles will be presented, which can be used in a wide range of lightweight construction applications. “The demand for carbon composites has increased significantly in recent years, particularly in Asia. We are looking forward to talking to traditional warp knitting customers who want to expand their offering, as well as new customers who want to gather information on applications with these high-performance composite materials,” says Jan Stahr, Sales Manager for China at KARL MAYER's Technical Textiles business unit.

At KARL MAYER, they will not only find the right multiaxial warp knitting machine to produce high-performance reinforcement fabrics for composite materials but will also receive useful know-how gained from years of experience.

Warp knitting machines with weft insertion and a convincing price-performance ratio

In addition to the textile and application show in Shanghai, there will be a machine presentation during an in-house show accompanying the trade fair at KARL MAYER (CHINA) in Changzhou. The event begins on October 13. Two innovative warp knitting machines with weft insertion aimed at the volume market will be on show: a 2nd generation TM WEFT for the production of lightweight fabrics with weft insertion for outerwear fabrics and interlinings and the newly developed WEFT GRID ECO machine.

The TM WEFT was included in the exhibition program due to the high demand and positive feedback during the last in-house show. On display will be a model with a 247” working width, carbon bar equipment and functional optimization. Thanks to the advanced development of the crank box system, a 20% increase in performance has been achieved with the new release. The TM WEFT will be producing an outerwear article during the in-house show.

The new WEFT GRID ECO is specified for the efficient production of “light” glass grid structures from materials with gauges of up to 400 tex in the weft inlay and warp inlay thread area. These textiles are mainly used in the construction industry, for example as plaster grids or crack tape. When developing the machine, the focus was more than ever on the price-performance ratio.

“The working width is 245“, and the speed is 1,800 rpm, making the WEFT GRID ECO up to 12% faster and 20% cheaper than our all-purpose machine WEFTTRONIC II G,” explains Jan Stahr.

The Sales Manager is looking forward to the first participation in a major international trade fair in Asia since the coronavirus pandemic. In addition to Chinese customers, he is expecting a large international audience.

STOLL: Agreement signed for the divestiture of selected assets

In early 2025, KARL MAYER announced its strategic decision to focus on its core business areas of WARP KNITTING, WARP PREPARATION, and TECHNICAL TEXTILES. As part of this move, the flat knitting machine business under the STOLL brand was discontinued and the production site in Reutlingen was closed in October 2025.

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TM WEFT, 270" – More width, more design freedom for the fashion world

KARL MAYER is expanding its successful TM WEFT series with an innovative model that opens up new possibilities, particularly in the fashion & apparel sectors. With a working width of 270", this new machine with weft-insertion not only offers significantly higher output than its narrower counterparts but is also specifically tailored to the demands of dynamic clothing market – particularly in China and Türkiye. A well-thought-out upgrade also ensures even greater design versatility.

Innovations for warp preparation at the cutting edge

At ITMA ASIA + CITME in October, KARL MAYER presented solutions for lower production costs and environmental impact and greater efficiency in the warp preparation sector. After the trade fair, the company can draw a positive conclusion, both in terms of the number of visitors and the quality of the discussions.

KARL MAYER Technische Textilien at ITMA ASIA + CITME - a presentation that opens up many opportunities

During ITMA ASIA + CITME 2024, KARL MAYER presented “Master the Change” solutions for numerous areas of the textile industry, including the technical textiles segment. At its stand in the Shanghai National Exhibition and Convention Center, the global player showed how the non-crimp fabrics from its highly productive composite machines can be used to exploit promising sales potential with lightweight construction applications.

Successful warp knitting machines and textile show to master the changes of our time

Warp knitting companies in Asia are also facing fundamental changes and challenges considering the tense global economic and geopolitical situation. During ITMA ASIA + CITME in October 2024, KARL MAYER showed how these can be mastered: with innovations that are primarily aimed at greater profitability, flexibility and sustainability.

Successful at ITMA Asia 2024 - Saurer's technology highlights

At ITMA Asia 2024, Saurer's new products were very popular and in the focus of visitor interest. Investment in new equipment seems to be on the rise and Saurer was positively surprised by the number and quality of visitors as well as the deals closed during the exhibition. Overall, visitors showed great interest in all the Saurer innovations designed to contribute to the future of textile technology and yarn production.

GenuTrace client advisory: Is your cotton supply chain UFLPA ready?

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TERNAfil wins first place at PitchMiUp Night 2026 in Minden

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