A future rooted in tradition

“The name Gebr. Otto has stood for fine cotton products since 1901,” says Andreas Merkel, Managing Director of Gebr. Otto. The company will celebrate its 125th anniversary in July this year.

Alongside cotton yarns and threads, the company has continuously expanded its product portfolio. Today, a key focus lies on technical yarns, particularly those made from aramids and other flame-retardant fibers.

Processing these fibers is highly demanding. Their extremely high tensile strength combined with low elasticity requires very precise spinning processes, as even minor irregularities in the drafting system can lead to fiber breakage. In addition, aramid fibers are stiff and exhibit lower fiber-to-fiber friction, making specific process adjustments necessary to achieve the desired yarn strength.

“We operate within a very narrow process window when working with aramids,” explains Oliver Kächler, long-standing plant manager and authorized signatory at Gebr. Otto. These yarns are used, for example, in flame-retardant underwear for firefighters.

Room to spin ideas into innovation

Gebr. Otto has been operating its technical spinning mill in Balzheim for almost ten years. Its development illustrates the company’s ability to adapt and evolve: in the mid-1990s, Spinning Mill I (built in 1958) was shut down, and cotton yarn production was relocated to the newly built, modern Spinning Mill II.

The freed-up space continued to serve as a place for innovation: products such as absorbent kapok pads, tampons with kapok cores and cotton swabs were developed there, although without lasting market success. Nevertheless, the experience gained proved valuable. In 2004, Gebr. Otto became the first spinning mill to successfully process kapok fibers in combination with cotton into a yarn.

Another forward-looking development is recot2, a cotton yarn consisting of 25% recycled process waste and 75% virgin cotton. The company developed its own spinning process for this yarn, which was launched in 2008. “We were perhaps a bit ahead of our time,” says Andreas Merkel with a smile. “Circular economy has only become truly relevant in recent years.”

Initial trials with aramid fibers began in the 2000s. The company’s broad material expertise enabled the “Otto Engineering Team” to achieve strong results early on – and gave Spinning Mill I its current purpose.

“We are never satisfied with the status quo, but continuously search for new products, more sustainable solutions and new market segments,” Merkel adds.

Hygiene segment: potential for medical and food applications

In line with its corporate philosophy, Gebr. Otto has operated its own hygiene area since early 2025. Under strictly controlled conditions, yarns for medical and hygiene applications are produced here. This includes dedicated pest monitoring, protective equipment for personnel and changing facilities with black/white separation. Access to the hygiene area is only possible via airlock systems.

“We are confident that this setup will allow us to address additional customers from the food and medical sectors in the future,” says Merkel.

Ongoing developments

One recently completed project is “Eco Yarn”, a collaboration with the Recycling Atelier Augsburg of the Institute of Textile Technology Augsburg (ITA), Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, and industry partners Schwob and Weseta.

The project team succeeded in breaking down used rental textiles into fibers, reprocessing them and spinning them into a new yarn blended with 70% virgin cotton.

Currently under development is the “Innocell” project in cooperation with the German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research (DITF).

Cotton remains the core

Alongside technical innovations, cotton remains central to Gebr. Otto’s business. Since spring 2025, the company has offered cotton yarns certified with the EUCOTTON label. The fibers originate from Greece and Spain and stand for short, transparent supply chains within Europe.

Another example of regional value creation is the “Lokalstoffmacher” project. “It is often assumed that regional products are automatically more expensive,” says Merkel. “However, when considering transport, duties, taxes and improved planning reliability, the price difference is often significantly reduced.” Project partners Edelweiss Jersey, Textilveredlung Keller and Gebr. Otto are considering expanding their cooperation beyond cotton yarns.

The company is also working on a yarn made from organic cotton and native hemp grown in Germany. The regionally cultivated winter hemp is processed by a project partner and then spun together with cotton or TENCEL. Hemp requires significantly less water than cotton and is therefore considered particularly resource-efficient. A special processing method enables the fibers to be prepared for spinning with cotton.

“We are looking forward to this year’s Techtextil – and to demonstrating our versatility to visitors,” concludes Merkel.