Autocoro 8: Unleashed productivity changes the market

Schlafhorst's Autocoro machine has dominated the market for rotor spinning machines for 35 years. However, the success of the Autocoro 8 outstrips that of its predecessors. Although the latest machine generation has only been on the market for three years, Autocoro 8 spinning positions now account for 30% of all spinning positions delivered by Schlafhorst in the last ten years. "Our customers have recognised that the Autocoro 8 has shaken up the rotor spinning market," says Jan Röttgering, CEO of Schlafhorst. "Double-digit cost reductions are being achieved in many areas with the Autocoro. These are on a scale that hasn't been witnessed in the industry for decades. The Autocoro 8 is a real game-changer."
35 years ago, Schlafhorst's Autocoro machine revolutionised rotor spinning thanks to the complete automation of the spinning and winding process. In particular, spinning mills that produced large quantities of so-called commodity yarns took advantage of the substantially lower total cost of ownership (TCO) of the Autocoro to increase their efficiency.
Now the single spinning position technology marks a paradigm shift that will change the industry, for it is this innovative technology that enables the big standard yarn spinning mills above all to cut their production costs per kilogram of yarn considerably. The huge boost in productivity that the Autocoro 8 facilitates with its high rotor speeds is especially striking.

18% more weaving yarn at 160,000 rpm
The Moldavian textile company Tirotex, based in Tiraspol, spins its weaving yarns on Autocoro 8 machines at a rotor speed of 160,000 rpm. This has smashed the barrier of 150,000 rpm, which was regarded as insurmountable in practice for over 20 years. Tirotex has thus achieved a productivity increase of 18% compared with the previous Autocoro 480 machine. The yarn strength and elongation are above the minimum requirements of the company's own weaving mill and below the 25% characteristic curve of Uster Statistics. High-speed yarn of premium quality is the strategy with which Tirotex aims to expand further on the global market in the future. With the Autocoro 8 it is a realistic goal, because this machine is designed technically for even higher speeds than 160,000 rpm. Tirotex is developing its competitiveness in a targeted manner. The vertically integrated company is already one of the major players in Europe, with an annual production capacity of over 200 million square metres of finished materials and wovens.

40% more knitting yarn with take-up speeds of 240 m/min Elif is one of the leading textile companies in the Turkish textile stronghold of Kahramanmaras, producing 13,000 tonnes of viscose yarn each year. Top quality without compromise is the recipe for the success of the Belcoro-certified company, which produces primarily knitting yarns in counts of 28-30 Nm. In the last four years the company has boosted its sales from 12 to 60 million US dollars. With take-up speeds of 240 m/min, Elif has increased its productivity per spinning position by 40% with the same high quality and using 30% less energy.
This is a staggering result, yet Elif still hasn't fully exploited the potential of the Autocoro 8; thanks to its singledrive technology, take-up speeds of 300 m/min and higher are easily possible on any length of machine. Further productivity increases are thus preprogrammed for the company, which aspires to the market leadership in viscose yarns on the Turkish market.

Fruit of the Loom: 50% more yarn
Fruit of the Loom is also reporting spectacular productivity increases. In its fully integrated factory not far from the Moroccan capital Rabat, the company processes raw cotton from the USA to produce ready-cut fabrics that are then sewn into T-shirts and sweatshirts for the European market in the nearby sewing plants. 64 Autocoro rotor spinning machines work round the clock in the spinning mill. 18 of these are Autocoro 8 machines. "The new Autocoro 8 rotor spinning machines produce 50% more yarn with 20% less energy consumption," says Rob Fry, process engineering manager for Fruit of the Loom in Morocco. Up to 50% more yarn is a quantum leap, especially for the manufacturers of standard yarns, who have been battling for years to squeeze out every extra ounce of productivity. Lower energy costs
What is particularly fascinating is the fact that these staggering productivity increases have been accomplished with falling energy consumption: 20% lower at Fruit of the Loom and 30% lower at Elif. These are entirely new basic conditions to which the industry will adapt in years to come.
With conventional belt drives, higher rotor speeds came at the cost of exponentially rising power consumption. The Autocoro 8 with its revolutionary single-drive technology is different. It uses at least 20% less energy for the same rotor speed. The higher the speed, the greater the saving.

Lean maintenance equals lower personnel costs
Many spinning mills take advantage of single-drive technology to switch to lean maintenance. The machines no longer have to be shut down for regular cleaning and servicing jobs. While an entire cleaning brigade leaps into action following the shutdown on conventional machines so that the machines can quickly be started up again, one employee can service the spinning positions section by section on the Autocoro 8 while production otherwise remains ongoing. Peaks in staffing requirements no longer occur, saving several thousand euros per year and per machine.

10% more machinery per square metre
For investors building new spinning mills or modifying existing ones, the compact design of the Autocoro 8 yields a quicker return on investment. The footprint of the Autocoro 8 is approx. 10-13% smaller compared with rival machines. Thus either the volume of investment can be reduced or the effect of investment increased.

10% greater net from gross
Logistical costs in the textile industry are a significant cost factor that has significant effects on competitiveness and profitability as well as influencing decisions regarding location. DigiWinding optimises the package design so that every package can take up 10% more yarn without any change in package diameter or any loss of quality. Ten percent more net from gross has a direct impact on logistical costs: 10% less packaging expenditure, 10% lower shipping costs, 10% fewer logistics personnel.

Efficiency ratings of over 97%
For the first time the Autocoro 8 offers the possibility of such intelligent handling of raw material and spinning component changes, even on single-lot machines, that machine downtimes are avoided almost completely. In practical terms, this yields two to three percent higher efficiency ratings. With single spinning position technology, a smooth change of raw material is now even possible on single-lot machines with reliable lot separation without all spinning positions having to run out first for quality assurance purposes. Every spinning position can be attended to individually in the event of a change of raw material, a lot change or a change of spinning components while the remaining spinning positions carry on operating uninterrupted.

Efficiency redefined
The technical innovations on the Autocoro 8 fundamentally change the cost structure of the manufacturing process. Hefty increases in productivity on the one hand and massive cost savings in virtually all areas on the other give the manufacturers of standard yarns in particular new room for manoeuvre. Efficiency is redefined. Companies that exploit this additional scope skilfully can cut their costs, augment their productivity and thereby operate with much greater flexibility on the whole and add new market share. Major changes lie ahead of us.
The future of rotor spinning has only just begun.