German Machine Manufacturers’ Association – VDMA -, the umbrella organisation of the German machinery manufacturers, discussed the viewpoint of the firms and consumers concerning sustainability as well as energy efficiency issues in a meeting on sustainability. In the meeting, Dr. Dirk Burger, CEO of Trützschler, Dr. Janpeter Horn, Manager of August Herzog Maschinenfabrik, and André Wissenberg, Vice-President of Oerlikon Synthetic Fibre Department, delivered speeches.
Concepts Should Be Distinguished
Dr. Dirk Burger, CEO of Trützschler, recommended a distinction between resource optimisation and environmental protection in this speech and added that they, as Trützschler, oriented towards the production of machines that consume less energy and use optimized raw materials instead of resource optimisation. Expressing that they realised investment protection in this way, Burger said that: “When combined, all these points optimize property cost for the clients and make firms important sales points.” Stating that measurement devices showing energy consumption and sensors used to minimise waste are the examples in this field, Burger added that: “We are dealing with each and every fibre in order to maximise sustainability.”
Expressing that they, as Trützschler, dedicate themselves actively to the environmental protection for a long time, Burger said that their machines achieved a level above the world standards in terms of noise absorption.”
Improved Fibre
Dr. Janpeter Horn, Executive of August Herzog Maschinenfabrik, one of the most rooted firms of Germany, made a speech on the contributions of knitting technology on energy improvement and mentioned about the system they developed in order to reduce environmental impacts resulting from the accidents of the tankers carrying petroleum. He said that: “In the works carried out in the open seas, steel cables are replaced by yarns produced out of light synthetic fibres flowing above the water. Thanks to these special fibres that we manufacture, cleaning works can be conducted at deeper levels when compared to the steel cables. In this manner, fibres can be used when lifting loads, unloading the parts and dropping anchor. Fibres manufactured via special production techniques are able to display high performances despite pressure and salty water. Thus, they made a breakthrough in the field of knitting.”
Also stating that they could manufacture lighter textile materials with this special production technology, Horn added that especially the automotive sector showed a great interest. Saying that these textile materials are highly resistant despite being light, Horn stated that they realised the first installation of the automatic knitting technology in BMW. Expressing that companies manufacturing planes, bicycles and structure materials have established contacts with them, Horn said that this technology will come into use in numerous sectors in the near future.
E-Save
André Wissenberg, Corporate Communications Supervisor of Oerlikon, said in the speech that sustainability has always been very important for Oerlikon and group companies and they put E-save program concerning the energy use into use in 2004 and added that: “With E-Save that we developed for sustainability and low-energy use, our highly integrated winding technology reduced the use of POY per ton and the use of FDY by 55 % when compared to the machines manufactured in 1990s. This is also the best example of Oerlikon’s success in this field in terms of textile machinery production.”
Stating that the single piece flow system they have recently developed in their plants in Remscheid has increased the production capacity in the newly mounted line by 15 %, Wissenberg added that an energy saving of 15 % is ensured as well in the annual energy consumptions of the lines. Also touching upon their works for removing metals from waste oils through centrifuge, Wissenberg added that they managed to ensure renewal of used oils and recycling of wastes via heat exchangers.
BLUecoMPETENCE
Thomas Waldman from VDMA Textile Machinery Association stated that environmental sensitiveness and sustainability which are concepts gaining continuous importance play key roles in the German textile machinery production. Stating that VDMA which has a crucial role in the future of the textile technology is conducting works and projects for sustainable production with its initiative titled BLUecoMPETENCE, Waldmann added that this initiative offers environmental solutions in terms energy saving, materials and resources in addition to attempting to make the manufacturers more conscious in order to protect resources and use them more efficiently via smart technological solutions. Saying that BLUecoMPETENCE offers permanent solutions beyond all industrial practices in the machinery and plant production, Waldmann added that they target to increase energy efficiency by 20 % with their new project.
