#Weaving

2019-02-15

Automated fabric inspection with the USTER brand

In many areas of primary textiles, USTER is a watchword for quality. From fiber to yarn, producers worldwide trust the USTER brand to help them deliver the quality their customers demand and optimize their operations. Now, USTER has expanded its technology to cover fabric production, with world-class systems for automated fabric inspection which guarantee consistent and measurable quality.

Taking the successful EVS fabric inspection systems into its portfolio, USTER will seek to expand the scope for automated fabric quality assurance. Its filament yarn tester has already made an impact in technical textiles markets, and this sector will also see USTER explore further applications for its fabric inspection systems, starting with the forthcoming Techtextil North America exhibition.

In filament yarn production, the USTER® evenness tester is now almost as well-established as in cotton spinning. The distinctive grey and red livery of the instrument today is a familiar sight in the laboratories of technical textile yarn manufacturers, acknowledged as essential equipment over the past six decades. In its latest version, the USTER® TESTER 6 C-800 drives global standards – and its new capacitive sensor gives filament yarn producers the power to guarantee right-first-time quality.

Automated fabric inspection

USTER’s product portfolio in laboratory testing is well known, not so the competences in other areas of technical textile processing. At Techtextil North America 2019 USTER introduces its newly-integrated systems for automated fabric inspection. Although the USTER name may not yet have the impact in fabric manufacturing as in other sectors, its range of inspection technology now being presented is class-leading, backed by 28 years’ experience.

USTER® EVS Q-BAR, USTER® EVS FABRIQ VISION and USTER® EVS FABRIQ SHADE (c) 2019 USTER

This new offer is based on USTER’s acquisition last year of Elbit Vision Systems (EVS), the Israel-based pioneer in automated optical inspection equipment. Now incorporated within USTER, the EVS products are part of a comprehensive textile quality monitoring and control offering, from fiber to fabric.

Multiple technical textiles applications

EVS technology is applicable to wide-ranging fabric types and end-uses, including numerous specific and diverse segments of technical textiles. Visitors to previous Techtextil North America shows have already been able to view EVS monitoring and fabric quality assurance systems since 2006. The latest developments to be featured at the upcoming show (Booth 1429) in Raleigh, North Carolina display the classic USTER design and carry the new product designations: USTER® EVS Q-BAR, USTER® EVS FABRIQ VISION and USTER® EVS FABRIQ SHADE.

USTER® EVS FABRIQ VISION – The fabric quality assurance system (c) 2019 USTER

In North America, it is common for leading brands to employ fabric inspection processes to increase yields and – primarily – to ensure the quality their customers require. This is especially important in critical product areas such as vehicle seating, airbags, seat belts, tire cord, and vinyl in the automotive industry; as well in high-tech apparel, technical, medical, and composite markets.

In these demanding and often sensitive applications, materials must generally be lightweight, durable and sustainable, with secured and consistent quality as the absolute prerequisite. Says John Belew, Vice-President Sales at Uster Technologies Inc., USA: “Among international experts from architecture, the automotive industry, medicine, the fashion industry or personal protection we want to continue to spread the word about on-loom inspection. Together with the suppliers to these industries, we aim to find new applications for our finishing systems.”

Developing unique customer experiences

Some EVS customers have been enjoying the advantages of automated fabric inspection for more than 20 years. Over that period, ongoing development of the systems has kept pace with their needs. The commitment to strict quality control – eradicating fabric defects and even the slightest deviations in color shade – has created and developed unique customer experiences. Mills installed fabric inspection systems on equipment such as tenter frames, coating lines and sanforizers. Customer satisfaction with EVS was enhanced by measurable benefits across KPIs: production efficiency, increasing yield, and lower labor costs – adding up to higher profitability.

“Long-term customer relationships show that the systems we offer continuously develop in parallel with the need of the users. We want them to produce a better product for their market – and no less,” says Belew. “At Techtextil, we will show that trusting USTER means no compromises in quality with automated fabric inspection installed.”

Measure and control the fiber – optimize yarn quality

Producing consistent yarn quality is an everyday challenge – and a very difficult one. Detailed knowledge and understanding of the fiber raw material is absolutely critical to achieving the best possible quality in the yarn. To help spinners, Uster experts have put together guidelines for avoiding yarn irregularity claims, in a special edition of the Uster News Bulletin.

Uster presents novelties at ITMA Asia + CITME 2025

There’s news from Uster Technologies to be announced for the industry’s upcoming event in Singapore. The Uster 360Q universe is growing with new products, solutions and services. Innovation developments can also be recorded in the fields of man-made fiber testing and fabric inspection. Uster innovations address the industry’s trending topics as mill management and process control, optimization of delivered fabric quality and yield.

Challenges of making yarn from recycled fibers

What does it take to spin quality yarn from recycled fibers? Uster Technologies brought textile industry leaders together to discuss the role of technology, data and automation – as well as the current challenges in using recycled raw material. Experts from Rieter, Säntis Textiles, Otto Yarns, and TVU commented on the current situation and looked into the future of spinning in a panel discussion organized at Uster headquarters.

From carbon to canvas: DORNIER presents flexible and reliable weaving technologies for 3D weaving and dynamic markets at Techtextil

At Techtextil from 21 to 24 April 2026 in Frankfurt am Main (Hall 12.0, Stand D95), Lindauer DORNIER will be showcasing reliable and flexible weaving technologies for ever-changing market requirements. The machine and plant manufacturer will present retrofits for existing machines, the new TRITOS® FLEX 3D weaving technology, intuitive automation concepts and software solutions for data-sovereign networking of the weaving machine fleet.

From preparation to 3D weaving: Stäubli’s solutions at Techtextil 2026

Stäubli, a global leader in high performance weaving technologies, is pleased to announce its participation at Techtextil 2026 in Frankfurt, Germany, the leading international trade fair for technical textiles and nonwovens. As technical textiles continue their rapid expansion across demanding markets such as defense, mobility, aerospace, construction, energy… Stäubli will showcase innovative solutions designed to empower mills to produce the next generation of advanced fabrics. Stäubli will exhibit its trend-setting technologies at the Swiss Pavilion Booth B01.6 in Hall 12.0.

Innovation as the answer: Techtextil and Texprocess honour solutions to global challenges with the 2026 Innovation Awards

The winners of the Techtextil and Texprocess Innovation Awards 2026 have been announced. Across ten categories, 17 international winners are being recognised for pioneering research, innovative products and materials, as well as new processes and technologies. These innovations provide solutions far beyond the textile industry – including sectors such as automotive, aerospace, medical, architecture, construction and robotics. The awards ceremony takes place on 21 April at Techtextil and Texprocess in Frankfurt. From 21 to 24 April, there is a winners’ exhibition as well as guided tours.

SAHM Winding Solutions and Vandewiele Automation present integrated automation solution for winding processes

For the first time at the Techtextil trade fair in Frankfurt am Main, Germany (21 - 26 April), SAHM Winding Solutions (Hallo 12.0. / Booth 95) and Vandewiele Automation will be showcasing their combined automation expertise for industrial winding processes. Under the motto “Combining Automation. Maximizing Flow”, the two companies will demonstrate how automated package handling and robot-assisted yarn knotting can be integrated into a continuous production flow.

UNIFI celebrates recycled and circular Innovation with ninth annual REPREVE® Champions of Sustainability Awards

Unifi, Inc. (NYSE: UFI), the makers of REPREVE® and one of the world’s leading innovators in recycled and synthetic yarns, today announced the winners of its ninth annual REPREVE Champions of Sustainability Awards, recognizing brands and mills that are advancing circularity and responsible manufacturing across the global textile industry.

Teijin Frontier announces new Stretch Polyester yarn offering exceptional compatibility with high-performance Polyester materials

Teijin Frontier Co., Ltd. announced today that it has developed a new stretch polyester yarn that offers new opportunities to create comfortable, all- polyester fabrics for sports and outdoor wear. The new polyester yarn demonstrates exceptional compatibility with high-performance polyester materials. Further, Teijin Frontier’s proprietary polymer design and spinning technology impart excellent elasticity to the new yarn. In turn, this yarn adds stretchability and recovery to the advanced functionality and excellent texture of high-performance polyester materials.