spectrum TEXTILE Innovative Solutions for the Textile Industry s October 2003 Turn-Key in Mezzogiorno Simple and Reliable – Sitex knits perfectly Innovative Machines for Innovative Products 2 CONTENT TRENDS 3 Investing in a secure future Thinking Ahead Partnership with Siemens for a secure future 25 Dying and Finishing Quality Felt Guaranteed Textile refinement plant renewed with WinAC MP 27 Gentle Wash Cycle Post-treatment of textiles optimized with universal automation CASE STUDIES 5 Spinning Universally Wound 28 Modulare machine automation in textile finishing 29 Success in the Far East 30 Polymers Spun into Fine Fibres Siemosyn synchronous motors for manufacturing plastic fibres 8 10 SYSTEM SOLUTIONS Record Breaking Closely Spun 4 12 Simple and Reliable Labels on End Masterdrives provide perfect labels 18 16 19 20 21 24 31 Optimum Solution with a Great Effect Productive Platform Strong in Weak Mains 14 Geared up for All Drive Tasks One Platform for All Efficiently Wound Up SOLUTION COMPETENCE Innovative Machines for Innovative Products 13 The Dilo System Group has relied on Siemens technology and support for years 14 Service & Support A Close Network Service and support worldwide Total Equipment from A to Z WKC accompanies customers through the whole life cycle of switch cabinet building Producing Nonwovens under Pressure AquaJet production line from Fleissner Time to Say Good-bye PRODUCTS Flexible solution for progressive winding technologies with the winding calculator 22 Success made by Sitex Biaxial machines exploit the flexibility of Simotion Short staple spinning machines Nonwoven Fabric The weaving machine goes modular with Simotion From Loom to High-tech Machine Succcessful Stitch-bonding with Simotion Best Spinning Results Guaranteed Technology for tomorrow’s trends New drives for high performance in the carpet factory 20 Wound up in no Time at All Uniform drawing of slivers with integrated automation Fabric Duo perfetto Spinning Filament winders place high demands on automation Sitex knits perfectly 18 Future-proof and Flexible Integrated automation solution in the manufacture of polyester fibres Circular knitting machines with Sitex 17 Weaving Preparation High-performance warping machine Sucker Comwarp with MP 270B Touch Marzoli-Vouk and Siemens cooperate in the area of short staple spinning machines 15 26 Turn-Key in Mezzogiorno Aksa Acrilic relies on Siemens technology for spinning acrylics 11 Marvelous Printing Results Revolutionary textile printing technology twinned with state-of-the-art automation Neumag is conquering the Asian market for staple fibre machines 7 High-quality for Strong Brands Profibus enables the production of high-quality materials Totally Integrated Automation in the winder production 6 Smart and Innovative 14 Made-to-measure Solutions Chemnitz application center on the road to success spectrum textile 2003 TRENDS 3 Investing in a secure future Partnership with Siemens for a secure future Thinking Ahead Manufacturers of textile machines and systems have to bring their innovations to market more and more quickly and cost-effectively, while also supplying their machines with precision, speed and flexibility. At the same time, end users are pushing for a low total cost of ownership, increased productivity, secure investment and quality. For all those involved – including the automation supplier – this means: Only those who have the courage to invest in new technologies will have the best chance of success in the future. Norbert Brenner, Head of Business Development for Textile Machine Automation T oday, the innovation capability of the automation supplier is more important than ever, as is his ability to respond directly to his customers’ requests. No matter how innovative they are, products – on their own – are no longer enough. The motto now reads “Identify trends and respond accordingly”, be it with innovative systems, intelligent solutions or unique services. One of the most important trends in the textiles industry is the apparent move towards modular machines and systems. The dedicated systems still prevalent today are gradually being superseded by a modular system with standard units and distributed automation concepts. This offers considerable benefits, particularly in terms of project duration. In addition, the use of tried and tested modules in hardware and software results in improved quality. Modular machine manufacture What is more, modular machine concepts are increasingly replacing mechanical components with electronic components (e.g. electronic gears). That means that single drives substitute the vertical shaft. The various mechanical machine components can be designed, built and modified separately and assembled individually, thus increasing flexibility and reducing spectrum textile 2003 “ We are a competent and reliable partner for the textiles industry. Together, we want to work with you to develop the solutions of the future”. prototypes. This not only saves time but is also considerably less risky: the resulting prototype instantly meets all requirements. Time to market, as well as design costs, are dramatically reduced as a result. Ratio potential can also be achieved by offering complete solutions, e.g. a fully assembled, tested and customized control cabinet that can virtually be delivered with Plug and Play functionality to the end customer’s production line. Together into new markets commissioning time. With its distributed automation structures, in conjunction with the Simovert Masterdrives and Sinamics drive systems (see also page 31), Siemens is able to offer integrated solutions for textile machine building. However, optimum modularity can only be achieved in conjunction with the Simotion motion control automation system (see also page 32). The central lead controller, e.g. a Simatic controller, controls the interaction of the entire system. To save space, the modules are integrated in Simotion D (drive-based) and automated in the Sinamics drive. Innovative service concepts for more profit “Mechatronic Support” is an innovative service concept that Siemens is already using with great success. It enables prototype design – generally a very costly process – to be carried out using virtual Another discernible trend in the textiles industry is the move towards the fullscope supplier, whereby the end customer wants everything for his new production line to come from the one source, with vertical and horizontal integration throughout the entire process. To be able to meet these and future challenges, while at the same time developing new markets (e.g. Asia, in particular, China), textile machine manufacturers need a strong partner at their side. In Siemens they have just such a partner, experienced and focused on the textiles sector. As a “global player” with an extensive, global service network, Siemens can support them with individual solutions, efficient systems and inno■ vative service concepts. 4 SYSTEM SOLUTION Spinning Filament winders place high demands on automation Simotion combines motion control as well as technological and drive functions in one hardware and software solution. It masters technological functions such as calculations for the traversing processes and the diameters of the bobbins just as easily as motion control functions – such as positioning the rotary table and run-off control. High flexibility is in demand particularly in the textile industry: in addition to fast change-over times, Simotion is distinguished by the free selection of reeling modes. To ensure high quality, all batches can be reproduced at any time using an integrated recipe memory. With its graphic programming, the system also proves itself to be extremely user-friendly. Simotion has another advantage in store for the user: The Scout engineering Wound up in no Time at All In synthetic fiber spinning plants, winders complete the spinning process. The extremely fine threads are wound from the spinning nozzle onto the oversized bobbins at a high speed. The bobbins are changed without interrupting the spinning process. In this area of application, the intelligent motion control system Simotion shows its advantages: The combination of motion control, technological functions and logics ensures high flexibility, short change-over times and user friendliness. S pinning speeds of up to 8000 meters per minute are not unusual in modern synthetic fiber plants. They are a great challenge for the winder that follows after the Spinning process. After all, it has to remove two to twelve filament tows at this speed an wind them. To keep the spinning process from being interrupted, the full bobbins are changed on the fly. Not only are the speeds impressive, though, but also the dimensions. Weighing up to 35 kilograms, a bobbin can take up several million meters of thread. The bobbin build-up determines the draw-off scuttle of the yarn and the possibilities for further processing it. Depending on the application, synthetic yarns have very different technological properties. This already has to be taken into account in the package build-up. High-capacity winding technology Today, most filament winders are core winders – that means that the tensioning spindles are directly driven. A powerful servo motor produces the superimposed traversing movement. Individual drives are used with the winding spindles and the traversing (yarn placement) to attain maximum possible flexibility in the interaction of the units and thus for the package build-up. A gauging roller measures the circumferential speed of the bobbins and reports it to the diameter calculator. The movement of a rotary table compensates for the increasing package diameter. The bobbins are changed on the fly: empty Principle of a filament winder Bobbin drive 1 Servo-traversing Traversing beam Threads Gaugin roller Rotary table Switch cabinet Bobbin drive 2 Servo-rotary table tubes are accelerated to the spinning speed, the full bobbins swing away from the gauging roller, and the threads are cut and caught by the new tubes. A good change(-over) with Simotion D The breakneck speeds in the production process place very high demands on the drive and automation system. It must be possible to replace defective winders very quickly during operation. This requires automatic addressing of the new winder. With its 4-axis control, the drive-based motion control system Simotion D fulfills all the requirements of an automation solution for demanding winder systems. Ejector Tube Chuck Bobbin system is a tool that contains everything that users need to configure the hardware, parameterize the drives, plan and program the functionality, as well as perform commissioning and testing. Extensive diagnostic tools and simple dialog guidance make the system transparent and ■ simple to use. spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 5 Spinning Total Integrated Automation scores points in winder production pe and fiber material. The winder naturally changes bobbins completely automatically. Universally Wound A challenge for drives From the controller to the operator panel, Barmag has automated the Baby ASW with Siemens components. The winder is controlled by a Simatic S7-300 controller. Winding yarns with a particular tensile force is especially challenging for the drives: at the beginning of the package buildup, the drive starts running at a high speed, and as the bobbin diameter increases, the speed is reduced correspondingly. The 4 drive axes of the machine are controlled by Masterdrives VC Kompakt Plus and MC Kompact Plus. With their high initial frequency, they are almost ideally suited for this application area. The high resolution of the speed and actual-value measurement ensures that the speed setpoint is exactly maintained. The high-performance hardware perfectly implements the software specifications. For an exact and trouble-free winding, the program must carry out continuous diameter calculations and compute the depositing angle of the yarn for the traversing disturbance method. For the drives, this means implementing accuracy in the speed ratio up to the third decimal place. The most important characteristics for filament winders are an optimum package build-up and flexibility. Barmag Spinnzwirn is a company rich in tradition that develops and produces high-performance winders for synthetic filaments. Since all winders are part of a spinning plant, integrated automation approaches has proven very successful. This was a reason for the company to use control and drive technology from Siemens. A round 140 years of experience in textile machine manufacturing predestine Barmag Spinnzwirn GmbH for winder manufacturing. In addition, this medium-sized company from Chemnitz, Germany produces slit film yarn production lines as well as twisting and air texturing machines. The high export share of 80 percent to all five continents also demonstrates the quality and level of recognition of the company. Barmag carries the compact automatic winder Baby ASW in its range specifically for winding technical yarns. The well-engineered mechanics with reliable, inverted-thread traversing has proven itself very well in this machine. The spun yarn is wound onto cardboard tubes at speeds of up to 4500 meters per minute – depending on the winder ty- Open for expansions Barmag Filament winder Baby ASW spectrum textile 2003 All components are integrated in Totally Integrated Automation (TIA). End customers appreciate TIA’s high degree of integration since winders are always part of a spinning plant. In this way, the machines can also be easily coupled with third-party products. In addition, TIA offers an openness in technology that is equally useful to the OEM and end customers. This allows Barmag to integrate their own engineering know-how at any time. The plant operator has the possibility of optimizing the bobbin build-up and thereby obtaining market advantages as a result. However, choosing standard products from Siemens was a good decision for Barmag in another respect as well: their remote service capability makes it possible to solve problems quickly via remote diagnostics. Furthermore, Siemens is represented by service points worldwide. As a result, customers from all over the world have no ■ problem with the service. CASE STUDY Spinning With Siemens as a partner Neumag is conquering the Asian market for staple fiber lines Success in the Far East Neumag, a member of the world’s largest textile machine manufacturer Saurer, and world market leader in the fields of staple fiber lines and BCF machines (Bulked-ContinuousFilament) is well positioned in the Asian market. The company is currently handling the world’s largest polyester staple fiber project. Neumag is supplying not only the spinning mill and fiber line equipment but also the entire engineering and process know-how. The uniform automation with Siemens components guarantees the customer an integrated solution from a single provider. N eumag has been producing machines and plants for the synthetic fiber industry for more than 50 years. The synthetic fibers are cut in the staple fiber process into fiber “staples” after spinning and stretching, i.e. fiber sections of an exactly defined length. These can then be processed further – for example for the clothing industry. The proven Neumag production process is a synonym for best fiber quality and maximum production efficiency. Large-scale plants secure market advantages The trend in staple fiber machines is moving towards large-scale plants with a capacity of 200 tons a day – a trend that Neumag has influenced decisively. 200-tons-aday lines are an important contribution to reducing production costs and are therefore what customers prefer. A big order in Asia for the production of “cotton-type” polyester-HTHM-staple fibers will further expand the world leadership of the company in this field. Eleven of these jumbo plants are presently in production, assembly or commissioning to produce polyester fibers on the Asian market. All inter-adapted This success is no coincidence. Neumag employs the finest in automation and drive solutions for implementing their process know-how in their plants. The powerful, easy to operate controller Simatic S7-400 is used as a PLC in the staple fiber plants. The modular Simovert Masterdrives VC enable an ideal and low- Neumag 6 The Neumag Jumbo staple fiber machines spin, stretch and cut the fibers cost solution over the whole performance range of the spinning and fiber line – even with different motors such as the permanent magnet-excited synchronous motors Siemosyn 1FU8 and the standard asynchronous motors 1LA / 1PQ. The robust Simatic Rack PC 840 puts a high-end device at the customer’s disposal which offers a wide range of extension and expansion possibilities as well as integrated monitoring functions. A comfortable HMI concept for the plant is also important to the user of course. And the process visualization system Simatic WinCC provides him with the ideal software. This single-source solution offers the end user a number of advantages: Apart from having a single contact for all questions and application tasks, he gets compatible interfaces and is able to save stock capacity. The customer also benefits from the three-fold uniformity of Totally Integrated Automation in terms of communication, configuration and data storage. ■ spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 7 Spinning After being pressed through the spinning nozzles and being cooled with conditioned air and several other processing steps, the filaments are placed in spinning cans Siemosyn synchronous servomotor for manufacturing plastic fibers Polymers Spun into Fine Fibers A s a technology leader, the Zimmer AG owns and employs a multitude of sophisticated processes, covering the entire lifecycle of polymers, synthetic fibers and thermoplasts from production to recycling. Just to mention a few applications, Zimmer is building plants and machines for the production of textile filaments, staple fibers, tire cord, carpet yarns and products for further processing into packaging foils, PET-bottles and technical films Melted, pressed and cut Zimmer uses the melt spinning method to produce polyester and polyamides. A PET polycondensation line continuously supplies liquid polymer to the direct spinning line. The melted mass is distributed to the individual spinning points by the spinning bar and is pressed through the spinning nozzles by the spinning pumps with an even conveyance speed by the spinning pump drives. This produces fine filaments that are cooled with conditioned air, oiled and collected to form filament bundles. After the bundles have been placed in spinning cans over discharge units and by reel plaiters, they are ready for further processing. For further processing in the textile area, the filament is cut into staples. The staple fiber production lines of Zimmer that are connected to the direct spinning spectrum textile 2003 mill offer a complete package of technology for this. One plant in India with a capacity of 120 tons per day and two plants in China with a capacity of 150 tons per day each have been successfully commissioned. Efficient automation – economical production State-of-the-art textiles with consistent quality and low prices – that means that production line constructors have to continuously design manufacturing processes that are more and more efficient. The manufacture of high-quality fibers, in particular, demands high-capacity and fast automation technologies with precise, speedvariable drives. The Siemosyn IFU8 permanent-field synchronous motor has optimally proven itself for the drive system of the spinning pump. It is especially suitable for single drives in which load-independent, synchronous and frequency-proportional speeds are required, and for group drive systems where several motors are controlled synchronously by one frequency converter. The motor convinced Zimmer with its especially economical operation: it has a magnetically active rotor and requires significantly less reactive power than other drives. The bearing lifetime and oilservice intervals for Siemosyn 1FU8 are at least 40,000 hours. As a result, the company was able to extend the maintenance intervals for the spinning pump drives considerably. Another Siemosyn motor is used in the reel plaiter drive of the discharge unit. As a frequency converter for the distributed drives, Zimmer decided on Micromaster MM 440 with Profibus connection to the Simatic S7-400 controller. This ensures continuity on all levels. The tried-and-tested 1LA asynchronous motors provide reliable service in all main drives of the staple fiber production line. Simatic S7-400 and Masterdrives for drive control, servo-control and setpoint cascad■ ing provide continuity here as well. Zimmer AG When synthetic fibers are processed, one process variant is spinning the polymers into filaments in continuous fiber spinning mills. The high standard of quality and the simultaneous cost pressure in the textile field require a fully developed automation technology: the Zimmer AG of Frankfurt ensures its competitive edge by using the Siemosyn motor 1FU8 for the spinning pump drives. 8 CASE STUDY Spinning Integrated automation solution in the manufacture of polyester fibers Turn-Key in Mezzogiorno One of the leading manufacturers of acrylic and polyester fibers in Europe – Montefibre SpA – has expanded its production in Acerra near Naples for a capacity of 50,000 tons per year. The newly installed polymerization, spinning mill, stores logistics and staple fiber plant all meet the latest requirements. Montefibre got a license for the process technology from Ems Inventa Fischer. An Italian company did the assembly and installation. Siemens was responsible for the electrical engineering in the spinning mill and the fiber line as well as for the overall coordination. T he Montefibre company became well-known in 1957 with their brand name Terital. The products are used in all areas of application of textiles: technical, medical and household textile applications. A plant for manufacturing the fibers is located in Acerra. However, the production capacity in the Southern Italian town was no longer sufficient, prompting Montefibre to launch an expansion project at the beginning of 2001. In the new spinning mill, the polymer is spun into fibers in 30 positions and stored in cans. A logistics system supplies the cans at the right time and in the desired quality to the staple fiber plant. Up to 150 tons of fibers per day can then be further processed and pressed into bales. In May 2001 Siemens received an order for providing the plant’s electrical equipment. The technical details then had to be discussed with Montefibre and Ems Inventa Fischer. Siemens also took over the scheduling of deadlines and was the general point of contact for everything concerned with their own scope of delivery. The experienced electrical supplier planned deadline agreements, electro- technical installations, acceptance tests and deliveries so that the building site operations went by without any hitches. Installation began after the complete delivery of all components in June 2002. The spinning mill was commissioned operation first in November, followed by the fiber line. Efficient and failsafe automation For automation of the plants, Montefibre required a central operation and control system. Simatic S7-400H and WinCC are the ideal duo for this. Redundant operat- Automation concept of spinning and fibre plant Spinning line Fibre line Client station WinCC Redundancy of server 2 Redundancy of server 1 1 Main op-stations WinCC/ Server Industrial Ethernet Industrial Ethernet 2 PLC: SIMATIC S7-400H PLC: SIMATIC S7-400 Plant Ethernet network TCP/IP 1 1 2 2 PROFIBUS Machine controls, drives, auxiliaries, ET 200 PROFIBUS Machine controls, drives, auxiliaries, ET 200 spectrum textile 2003 9 tric brakes mounted directly on the motors ensure safe stopping. Modern MCC slide-in drawer technology of the Sivacon type controls and monitors the auxiliary drives. Trigger signals and messages are transmitted via Profibus to the Simatic where they are processed. The highly compact modular design allows a spacesaving layout without impairing flexibility in the scope of functions. Accessory modules such as soft starter, right-left hand rotation and temperature monitoring modules extend the performance. ing stations guarantee uninterrupted operation if a station should fail. The redundant Profibus communication with the Simatic S7 controller and the WinCC operating level ensures high availability. In addition it supplies information for efficient management. The main drives in the spinning mill such as spinning pumps and take-off assemblies consist of Siemosyn permanentfield motors with Masterdrives converters. Their highly accurate, digital speed control provides optimum operating results. All drives are linked by an intermediate circuit and backed up by Masterguard as an independent power supply so that a brief power failure or interruption does not necessarily close down operation. Distributed systems and operating safety Simatic S7-400 with redundant WinCC operating stations is also used in the fiber plant. All drives and the process control are controlled via Profibus. Distributed ET200 S reduce the amount of wiring in the plant and also supply all the information for control and visualization to the Simatic via Profibus. The WinCC stations enable direct management, supervision and logging of production. The operator has the advantage of being able to output error messages, reports, diagrams or curves on printers. The speed-controlled drives allow a highly accurate setpoint control. Masterdrives converters supply the asynchronous motors up to 700 kW of power. Elec- spectrum textile 2003 Market requirements also demand consistent quality documentation throughout all production stages from Montefibre. A central control computer therefore saves all the data for production control and quality monitoring. All production units are connected via Ethernet, each unit acquiring data according to a method developed by Montefibre and passing it on to the control computer. The spinning mill receives the data for the next batch and reports back information on completed production runs. This provides quality-relevant information which can be put together in a quality report at the end of production as required. The new plant went into operation in May 2003 and increases production capacity in Acerra by The fiber line receives all the 50,000 tons per year data from the production logistics and also passes on data to the bale presses. For example, the energy requirements or the producpleased in retrospect, and, confirms that tion process can be analyzed or archived Siemens supplied the electrical equipas a log. The WinCC system provides the ment like the customer requires it and ofdata and allows preconfigured evaluafers service and support for cost-effective ■ tions or custom trend curves of important operation.“ process variables. The integrated linking of the devices under the TIA concept with Profibus serves as a basis. This allows later expansions and adaptations without any problems. The TIA concept also supports the tight integration of the automation levels and allows access to all information of the PLC, WinCC and the drives via the Profibus. Montefibre Geißelbrecht Information integration ensures high quality sioning of the electrical equipment. Technical clarification and engineering coordination with the customer and subsequent acceptance took place according to schedule. Coordination with Montefibre, Snamprogetti and Inventa Fischer worked perfectly. A firm basis for providing the hardware and software engineering was created for Siemens by joint technical discussions, clarification of requirements and definition of interfaces to other production processes. Planning commissioning was not easy on account of the problems on site. A great challenge for the project management was the flexibility in personnel deployment and the close cooperation of the partners. Montefibre is therefore very Siemens a competent partner Siemens was responsible for coordinating and handling the delivery and commis- 10 CASE STUDY Spinning Aksa Acrilic relies on Siemens technology for spinning acrylics Record Breaking The use of Simovert Masterdrives VC in two spinning lines of a Turkish synthetic fiber manufacturer guarantees high user-friendliness and precise diagnostic capability in addition to high accuracy, stability and maximum speed. T he Aksa Akrilic A.S. company founded in 1968 in Istanbul with its plant in Yalova specializes in the manufacture of acrylic fibers. With an initial production of 5,000 tons, Aksa now produces 250,000 tons a year, 8.5 percent of the total world production, and is one of the most important economic forces in Turkey. The raw material of the acrylic fibers is a synthetic polymer which is pressed through the narrow holes in a spinning plate. Aksa uses the wet spinning technique in which the polymer solution is pumped through the spinning nozzles directly into the coagulation bath where the individual threads solidify. Convincing Siemens technology The fast-growing company decided to modernize build two new spinning lines mechanically and electronically. Drive sys- tem modernization were made with Siemens technology. In addition to the technical implementation Siemens also supplied the concept: two 710 Kilowatt Siemens AFE (Active Front End) feed-return units feed 34 Masterdrives VC with a common DC bus. The drive consists of motors of the 1LA type and the controller is a Simatic S7-400. The second AFE serves as a standby unit in case the active unit should fail whereby the speed of the motor remains unchanged. “One of the main reasons why we chose the AFE is the suppression of the harmonics at simultaneous high immunity to voltage interruptions,” Mustafa Yilmaz, Managing Director of Aksa A.S. explains. Simple modifications The very specific demands of the textile firm on the system control were met on the basis of Totally Integrated Automation (TIA). S7-400 communicates with the drive via Profibus DP 12 Megaband. The display is provided by the new S7 software and the HMI system Simatic WinCC. A variable-speed setpoint cascade management was particularly important to the company because it means that the maintenance staff can modify the setpoint cascades and switch the drive on and off without having to change the control software. Former solutions more complicated The system used to have to be shut down during the changeover to the standby unit in the event of a fault. In addition, the rectifiers generated harmonics, and modifications of the HMI entailed complex programming. In a later variation the communication between the implemented control and drive technology was omitted: the setpoints were transmitted to the drive via analog outputs which meant that the resolution and stability were unsatisfactory. Beneficial development The project had to be completed within just 15 weeks – including the engineering. The short delivery times, high technical standard and expertise of the Siemens personnel made it possible to reduce the production time to eight and the commissioning to seven weeks. The Managing Director Mustafa Yilmaz lists the advantages of the Siemens system: The user-friendly structure of the setpoint cascades, the digital communication of the drive with the control and the HMI thanks to TIA, the high safety standards and the effective diagnostic possibilities with WinCC. He wrote a letter to Siemens where he expressed his gratitude and promised further cooperation in the future. ■ spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 11 Spinning ble to achieve considerable energy savings with the flyer while increasing productivity at the same time. Batch change and machine settings now only require a fraction of the previously required time. The user can set all speeds conveniently on the display. Marzoli Universally advantageous Marzoli-Vouk and Siemens cooperate in the area of short staple spinning machines Closely Spun One for all The Italian company Marzoli has been shaped by over 100 years of experience in the area of short staple spinning. In order to ensure a continuous development of their machine range, the firm has joined together with Siemens to automate their machines. The coordinated automation components cover virtually all requirements of Marzoli’s spinning machines. M arzoli S.p.A. is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of spinning machines in the short staple area. Marzoli produces complete, turnkey plants together with the Vouk Company they had acquired in 1999. The delivery program of the company includes machines for processing cottons, synthetic fibers and blends of these – from bales to yarn. can be installed right where they are needed on the machine. The integrated Profibus ensures a trouble-free data transmission with only one communication cable. All interferences that can occur with direct cabling between the CPU and drives or distributed I/O’s are therefore prevented from the beginning. The literally “driving force” in Marzoli’s machines is an extensive and reliable family of motors, starting with the asynchronous motors 1LA7 and extending to 1FK7 and 1FT6 servo motors. These motors are already pre-configured in the Simodrive 611U and Masterdrives drive families, which guarantees a fast system start-up. The multi-motor drive concept allows an optimum arrangement of the drives. The elimination of mechanics and the new dimensioning of the drives make it possi- In order to maintain their position on the market, Marzoli is equipping their machines such as the card, flyer, draw frame and combing machine with the latest automation technology. In this case, the comprehensive Siemens solution offers the advantage of an integrated and completely compatible automation architecture. Innovations in hardware and software can quickly flow into the latest generation of machines owing to the modularity of the implemented components and the transparent programming. With the Simatic S7 controller, inputs and outputs spectrum textile 2003 Marzoli More innovative with modules The backbone of this integrated automation architecture is the Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) concept. Many innovations only became possible with TIA. Just one example: As a result of the bus connection, flyer sensors and cables for detecting the spindle rail could be eliminated. Prototypes can already be supplemented and adapted to changes during machine development. Siemens as the one-stop supplier for the entire machine and plant automation – this solution was deliberately chosen by Marzoli-Vouk. Today, the company greatly appreciates the advantage of working with a single partner who is responsible for quality, mutual integration, application support, and assistance after sale around the globe. A constant dialogue between Marzoli and Siemens ensures that Marzoli’s machine range is continuously improved and innovated. The results of this cooperation are presented at this year’s ITMA, proving how using innovative automation technology can enhance technology expertise in ■ machine building. SYSTEM SOLUTION Spinning Uniform drawing of slivers with integrated automation Best Spinning Results Guaranteed Staple fibers first have to pass through a complex process on the way to high quality yarn. The draw frame plays an important role in quality production here because all failures in the drawing frame sliver turn up again in the yarn. In order to meet the related high automation requirements, Siemens offers a high quality solution. A mature automation concept with Simotion and Sinamics has many benefits for the machine. S ix to eight slivers from the card are fed to the draw frame through an infeed gate. There they pass a measuring device which measures the sliver thickness. The measured values are buffered, evaluated and sent to the drawing machine as a speed setpoint at the right moment. There the slivers are drawn into a single sliver of constant thickness. The faster this regulating process is performed, the better the sliver quality. At delivery speeds of 1,000 meters per minute, great demands are placed on the automation solution. Efficient drive concept Up till now, all drive tasks have been accomplished by a central asynchronous One step ahead with Simotion and Sinamics motor. Gears and the appropriate change gear wheel which allowed individual adaption to the technological requirements were used to set the different speeds. On regulating draw frames there was also a regulating drive which regulated the sliver thickness to the desired setpoint. The modern automation solution consists of four single drives which interact according to the required functions. The resolution of the rigid drive assembly opens up possibilities as yet unknown. For example delay values can be set which were not previously possible because the teeth on the change gear wheels only allowed integer values. All speed settings can be made quickly without using tools, even from the foreman’s office if necessary. The task of the automation is to guarantee exact speed synchronicity of the four drives – especially at machine start and stop and in the event of a power failure. The Motion Control system Simotion D and the Sinamics S drive system offer a fully integrated automation solution from one provider which is tailor-made to ideally meet these requirements. Logic processing, movement and drives are integrated on one platform; the user only needs one simple engineering tool for control and drive. Simotion also offers the advantage of multi-axial drive control. The double axis modules used on the regulated draw frame save costs. The proven DC-bus means that kinetic buffering is not a problem either. Mechanics can also be reduced. The space required for the switch cabinet is a decisive factor for all textile machines. The small dimensions of Sinamics are therefore an advantage. With the Drive Cliq interface, Simotion/Sinamics offers even greater benefits: The highly efficient interface is responsible for data exchange between the Sinamics modules and can also be used for remote diagnostics. That is important because the spinning mills are to be found above all in India, Asia or China. In these countries, safety in the event of power fluctuations and a good shortcircuit-ground short-overload protection is very important. These requirements have naturally been considered in the de■ velopment of the Sinamics series. Prior to spinning, the fibres are parallelized in the draw frame Marzoli 12 spectrum textile 2003 SOLUTION COMPETENCE 13 Service & Support Service and support worldwide A Close Network Hardly any market is more global than the textile market. Textile machine manufacturers and end customers in the textile industry therefore need globally active partners who are able to offer comprehensive service and support at decisive moments and, when necessary, on site. Instead of replacing a mal functioning device, in some cases it may be quicker to repair it. For this purpose, Siemens A&D maintains a worldwide network of repair centers. Standard repairs are usually carried out within ten working days, quick repairs within two working days. To repair larger equipment and installations, there is a mobile repair service that performs repairs on site and is also active worldwide. First aid on the Web A &D customer support is based on four pillars: These are online support, technical support, service on site (field service) and the worldwide spare parts and repair service. They ensure that the customer receives the necessary support as required. Customers of the Motion Control division of Siemens A&D can consult approximately 200 technicians in the technical support centers, eight of which are located in Germany, four in America and one in China. At these centers, the experienced technicians process around 3000 inquiries a month reaching then via telephone, e-mail or fax, for example concerning the functions and handling of products and systems, interfaces of system solutions, or the layout of drive systems. Service on site Over 600 service employees in over 60 service points worldwide support customers just as requested in commissioning and maintenance. They also work on site to correct faults. The job assignments are coordinated by specialist control centers that can be reached around the clock. An additional Siemens service is the Repair Service Contract (RSC). With the RSC Siemens will fix machine failures on site. OEM and en- duser do not have to pay extra fees in case servicing becomes necessary. Spare parts and repair service Machine downtimes due to mal functioning equipment or components certainly cannot always be prevented. However, when something happens, a quick replacement must be ensured, in order to keep the duration and cost of the failure as low as possible. A sophisticated logistics system ensures that spare parts can be delivered quickly, even if they are not available on site. In an emergency, orders can also be placed outside of the usual working hours in almost all countries. While spare parts can usually be shipped within 24 hours in Western Europe, there are time-consuming and costly hurdles for imports in many countries. Lengthy customs procedures, for example, can delay the delivery of an urgently needed component. For this reason, Siemens A&D maintains regional spare parts warehouses with locally needed components in numerous countries – including manufacturing countries that are particularly important for the textile and clothing industry, such as China, India and Pakistan. In this way, spare parts deliveries are ensured at short notice if needed. In addition to “hands-on” services, Siemens A&D also provides comprehensive, fast information around the clock, 365 days a year with their online support on the Internet. At one address for all products and systems, the range of services includes product and system descriptions, and the possibility of directly downloading manuals and software updates. In the case of smaller problems, the user can directly search the FAQ’s, where the most important and frequent customer inquiries from Technical Support are presented in an easily understandable, product-specific way and accompanied by advice from specialists. Since good support always begins with a name, customers will find all the regional and worldwide contacts that are responsible for their con■ cerns in the online support. Detailed information on the services of A&D customer support can be found on the Internet at www.siemens.de/ automation/service&support Technical Support Field Service Spares and Repairs Online Support Direct support from a Siemens expert on the phone Fast on-site support all over the world Reliable and fast Comprehensive support on the Internet 24–7 1234 14 SOLUTION COMPETENCE Service & Support WKC accompanies customers through the whole life cycle of switch cabinet building Total Equipment from A to Z The Chemnitz Werk für Kombinationstechnik (WKC) offers its customers custom-made solutions all to do with automation engineering. The electrical cabinet builder offers one-stop service – from consulting through hardware and software configuration right up to commissioning. A view into the Chemnitz switch cabinet production T he WKC company founded in 1992 is one of the youngest and most modern locations of the Siemens group. Today about 420 employees produce more than 9,000 electrical cabinets every year under the motto “We offer every machine manufacturer complete solutions within the productivity chain”.The secret of the Chemnitz company’s success lies in their wide range of products and services with which they meet various customers’ needs. One-stop service However, the customer benefits, even more than from the wide range, from hav- ing just one partner or the whole cabinet construction life cycle. After customerspecific consulting, the configuration begins with the necessary Sinumerik, Simatic, Simotion or Simodrive and Masterdrives products. Customized auxiliary electronic modules can also be developed and produced on the same site if necessary. The sophisticated material logistics and procurement concepts specially adapted to meet his requirements and a suitable supply chain management save costs or the customer. Every order is accompanied and executed throughout by special customer teams. Preferential suppliers provide con- siderable price and logistics advantages. The machine manufacturer can choose different service packs or electrical testing which optimize process costs. This means he gets pre-tested complete equipment on demand. The supply logistics is also adapted to customers’ needs. One example are ship-to-line concepts or various customers. WKC fitters provide support or installation and commissioning on request. The high quality of a electrical cabinet stands and falls with the production team. The customer gets a competent contact partner for all relevant matters. Checklists in the production and test process guarantee the customer-specific requirements. ■ Chemnitz application center on the road to success Made-to-measure Solutions Creative employees are the basis for every success. Siemens has therefore set up their application center for textile applications in Chemnitz, the cradle of German textile machine construction. Numerous projects have already been completed worldwide to the satisfaction of customers. T he innovative power and the textile know-how in the Chemnitz region are still renowned. Many well-known companies have their roots here. It is a nearly perfect location for an application center that develops customer-specific textile technology solutions. Every employee of the center is specialized in a particular area of textile machine construction. Examples of expertise include appli- cations from spinning through knitting and weaving up to finishing machines. Function objects as a basis An important task of the engineers in the application center is to develop the basis for textile function objects. In the future, these textile-oriented objects will be made available in the form of a function library or serve as the basis for a customer-specif- ic solution. Together they form a textile function pool that can be used for specific ■ project planning. The director of the application center, Jörg Kroschinski, will be happy to provide you with more information. Tel.: +49 (371) 475-3629, [email protected] CASE STUDY 15 Fabric Circular knitting machines with Sitex have proven effective Duo perfetto Orizio S.p.A., one of the world’s most renowned manufacturers of circular knitting machines is always on the lookout for new solutions to meet their customers’ requirements. With the piezo-ceramic single needle selection system Sitex, the Italian company has found a system that enables production of new kinds of materials and patterns. dous success is Orizio’s high innovation power. Tried-and-tested electronics for circular knitting The Sitex automation solution which Siemens developed specially for circular knitting machines is just the right thing for Orizio. The company cooperated closely with Siemens in the phase of development of Sitex – and was therefore able to include the demands and needs of customers in the solution. The circular knitting specialist particularly appreciates that the control system can be adapted quickly and flexibly to the individual machine types. In addition, pattern files of virtually any size and in numerous formats can be processed, naturally including the ORIDES format from Orizio. The first prototype has been in trouble-free 9 00 employees produce a wide range of large and medium-sized Jacquard circular knitting machines for Orizio. The machines from Brescia sell excellently not only in Europe but also on the Asian and South American markets. One of the main reasons for this tremen- production in three shifts since the beginning of 1998 which is proof of the reliability of the system solution. The Head of Electrical Design at Orizio, Filippo Oneda, confirms this: “The electronic single needle selection Sitex runs without problems and has proven itself in the field. Siemens has turned out to be absolutely the right choice for us.” Many new possibilities Sitex can be used in many different types of machines. The latest example is the CMOE, a double-head knitting machine with electronic cylinder needle selection which produces double Jersey structures in Jacquard, Rib and Interlock. Since it has recently become available in greater diameters up to 48 inches (=121,92 cm), it will be possible to manufacture new, innovative materials from the home textiles and automobile industries on it in future. Mattress covers can now be knitted in one piece for example. It also opens up totally new opportunities in the field of distance knitting with up to ten millimeters distance between the two sides of the goods connected by standing threads. They have succeeded in platting the standing threads on the inside of the clothes with totally new lock designs. This avoids unpleasant irritation of the skin from underwear. Orizio A proven partnership spectrum textile 2003 The results prove that the close and trustworthy cooperation between Orizio and Siemens has paid off. In the end, the knitters benefit from the pooling of key competencies because practical experience is included in the electronic development. Orizio uses the Sitex system in two ways. On the one hand the machine manufacturer is working permanently on the optimization of existing machines. On the other hand they are developing totally new models, for example in the area of transfer or body. The knitter can then adapt the range of producible material types and patterns ideally to market demands. ■ SYSTEM SOLUTION Fabric Technology for tomorrow’s trends Success Made by Sitex F ashion trends change almost as quickly as the weather in April – new patterns are in constant demand, a rapid and flexible change in patterns is, therefore, required. This is precisely where the advantages of Jacquard circular knitting with an electronic needle selection system compared to conventional mechanical Jacquard heads are. The piezoceramic needle selection system is outstanding due to its especially high selection speed, which enhances the productivity of the individual machines. With Sitex, Siemens offers the ideal solution for electronic individual needle selection – a solution that has already proven itself in harsh production. The total package includes the piezoceramic needle selection system Sitex M, the control Sitex CK to prepare the pattern and select needles, the uninterruptible power supply Sitex S and the drive system with Micromaster frequency converter and asynchronous motor for the knitting cylinder. In this total solution, all of the components are optimally accommodated to one another. Aside from savings in logistics, service personnel training and spare parts management, the advantage of the concept for textile machine manufacturers is that they only have one contact person for the entire system. Siemens The optimal, total solution for the electronic equipment of large circular knitting machines is called Sitex. The machines, with their piezoceramic individual needle selection unit, are faster and more flexible. The connection via internet dramatically increases the efficiency of the machines: a systematic solution “Made in Germany”, “Made by Siemens”. Piezoceramic needle selection systems Sitex M Control Sitex CK for preparation of pattern and selection of needles More efficient networking The internet connectivity is regarded as a special highlight of Sitex. Machines can be networked with little expenditure for hardware. They are just a mouse click away from partner businesses, design studios, the machine manufacturer or other machines in the knitting mill. It is possible to transmit pattern files from any computer directly to the desired target ma- Siemens 16 chine. Even if the control software needs an update, this can be handled online in a matter of minutes. Effective production planning and control are the essence of any knitting mill operation. With internet connectivity, this is no problem because ■ all data are acquired and filed online. USV SITEX S SITEX CK PC Pattern output Bending transducer modules for SITEX M 3,5“ Micromaster Pattern preparation Encoder Rotating needle cylinder Webholder Cylinder drive CASE STUDY 17 Fabric Sitex knits perfectly Simple and Reliable The Feinjersey company in Götzis knits very high-quality jerseys for equally demanding customers in Central Europe. In order to cleanly produce the approximately 500 new cloth products per year, Feinjersey increasingly relies on knitting machines from Terrot with Siemens Sitex CK controllers. The main requirements that the Austrian knitters have for their machines are “fast set-up and changeover, simple operation, and consistent quality over a long time”, according to Mathias Schnetzer, the person responsible for gray cloth at Feinjersey. This is very obviously provided by the knitting machines from the Stuttgart manufacturer Terrot: around two thirds of the 60 knitting machines in Götzis were supplied by Terrot. Schnetzer: “The Terrot knitted fabrics are more even, smoother and shinier than those from other machines. Our customers also notice this.” In order to construct such machines, “a close cooperation is required between the spectrum textile 2003 Partners for increasingly perfect materials: Mathias Schnetzer from Feinjersey, Klaus Kunde from Terrot and Dr. Nikolaus Herdegen from Siemens (from left to right) machine manufacturer and the user,” says Terrot marketing director Klaus Kunde. In the case of Feinjersey, this cooperation is well established since the 1980’s. Equally important is the cooperation with the automation suppliers. Increasingly Sitex On the controller side, Terrot increasingly relies on the Siemens solution Sitex CK and Sitex M: a special controller for jacquard circular knitting machines and a piezoceramic bending actuator system for electronic individual needle selection. This system can also score points with the enduser: “On the one hand, Sitex CK is very reliable and controlled. On the other hand, the controller is very easy to operate. Even knitters without lengthy training can work with it,” says Mathias Schnetzer. The latest trends, which Feinjersey also follows closely, concern the network ca- Feinjersey Terrific knitting requires solid technology K. Obermann F einjersey, located in the Austrian city of Götzis, not far from Bregenz, was established around 20 years ago. The company now has 50 employees and produces jersey materials in the upper quality segment. Only through a combination of innovative design, high quality and flexibility towards customer wishes can textiles still be successfully produced in Central Europe. One of Feinjersey’s own developments ensures that they can offer their customers 500 new products a year, many of them directly made to measure. The team uses innovative yarns, the latest knitting technologies and creative finishing methods to make sure that their customers are satisfied. These customers include such well-known names as Triumph, Schiesser, Calida, Bruno Banani and Arcte. The current trends mean using more and more high-tech yarns, knitting even more finely, and continuously raising the level of difficulty. This is the only way for Europeans to keep far enough ahead of the competition from low-wage countries. In order to do this, a company has to keep their processes under control and use state-of-the-art production equipment. Around 90 percent of the Feinjersey gray cloth is knitted in raw white and is only given its color during finishing. A Terrot machine with a Sitex CK controller is shown in the picture pability of controllers. “Today, our controllers are already network-capable. Together with Terrot, we will be showing what you can do now with them at the ITMA 2003 in Birmingham,” says Dr. Nikolaus Herdegen, the responsible Sitex product manager in the Automation of Textile Machines division at Siemens. Production machines in a network – this will be the future for knitting companies as ■ well. 18 CASE STUDY Fabric Masterdrives provide perfect labels Labels on end The Italian company GEL will be presenting machines for manufacturing textile strips at this year’s ITMA. Decoratively patterned strips will be produced in Jacquard technique. GEL has the ideal automation solution with Simatic S7-200 and the Masterdrives MC Compact Plus. E veryone knows the colorful little labels with the manufacturer logo or brand name. You find them in almost every shirt or blouse collar or on the pockets of jeans but hardly anyone knows how they are made – that they are woven and parts of endless strips. The GEL s.r.l founded in 1997 has ample experience in the manufacture of these woven strips. Managing Director Gianluca Prina is and old hand in the business with his 50 years experience. Quality and service provide the basis for the company’s success in Europe and East Asia. The relatively compact Italian machines simultaneously weave ten label strips of 20 mm in width. Up to six weft colors are possible to create all conceivable patterns. The warp selection is implemented by a Jacquard machine from Stäubli with which patterns can be changed quickly and easily. Flexible and precise A decisive factor manufacturing of the strips is the perfect synchronization between the main drive, warp let-off and material pick-off. The necessary control is provided by Masterdrives MC Compact Plus which are optimally adapted to the synchronous servo motors 1FK6. The compact, low-cost Simatic S7-200 takes care of the entire I/O management. Simatic OP7 also provides the user with a New drives for high performance in the carpet factory From Loom to High-tech Machine The machines made by Schönherr from Chemnitz, Germany, manufacture a wide variety of carpets at high speed. The changeover to an innovative Siemens drive concept in the double carpet weaving machine Alpha 360 brought considerable improvements in terms of higher speed and greater accuracy. Schönherr’s double carpet weaving machine T he Schönherr Textilmaschinenbau GmbH, a company with a long tradition that is a subsidiary of the world leader Stäubli Group manufactures the double carpet gripper weaving machine, the most modern and flexible double carpet weaving machine in the world. It allows high-quality carpets to be made to customer demands. The prerequisite for optimum quality is a highly precise interaction between all components. The dou- Multicoloured woven strips are the result of a perfect machine and automation solution well-organized HMI system which allows intuitive and comfortable operation of the machine. Siemens therefore provides GEL with a low-cost solution for this complex motion control task. Gel on the other hand appreciates having found a strong, globally represented partner for their international ■ business activities. ble-tier warp beam assembly can take up to eight warp beams. The warp beam rack and thread guide then ensure an exact running of the thread without crossing of the pile and warp threads. The warp tension is pneumatically regulated and therefore remains constant the whole time. The weft insertion takes place by linear guided rod grippers on both sides driven by a special cam gear. This guarantees a quiet, low wear machine operation. Highly dynamic and accurate With a new drive concept, Schönherr achieved high performances and a low degree of irregularity. The asynchronous main drive was replaced by a water-cooled motor which exploits the machine performance much more efficiently. This means the drive can be built smaller. The new motor also makes the machine more dynamic, angles can be traveled more accurately. This ensures exact filling and shaft movements and keeps the warp ■ threads taut at all times. spectrum textile 2003 SYSTEM SOLUTION 19 Fabric The weaving machine goes modular with Simotion Time to Say Good-bye The most sophisticated discipline in textile machine manufacturing – the building of weaving machines – is freeing itself of the vertical shaft: the age of the modular weaving machine has come. With a system of function modules, a wide range of combinations becomes possible. Siemens offers comprehensive solutions – like for this weaving machine N ew weaving machine concepts are intended to meet the growing demand for high quality woven ware – cost and time effectively. Based on a comprehensive automation solution portfolio, Siemens has the right answer for each individual customer. The prerequisite for this is finding the most economical mechatronic equipment while taking into account the diverse techniques: weft insertion technique (projectile, gripper, air nozzle), shedding (shaft movement), patterning with Jacquard machines of various kinds and handling properties of such different threads as cotton, silk, monothreads, hard fibers and wire. Modules as a basis From now on, it is possible to adapt the product range through specific project work with the OEM and common market research so that the weaving process is improved on the one hand and at the same time new technological solutions and markets emerge. Based on a controller for textile machines, the weaving-technological movement tasks have been defined user-specifically both on the hardware and software level and implemented in the platform portal of the Simotion control. This first module which determines a basic weaving function serves as a foundation for further automation solutions. Modules such as the so-called winding computer function module (FM) could also be integrated in the technological object by splitting the process chain, i.e. eliminating the mechanical functions spectrum textile 2003 linked to the main drive. The winding computer FM ensures high-precision axis coordination in the repositioning after a thread break. The warp and weft density, thread tension, binding etc. are converted into optimized equivalent axis drive parameters which simplifies changing of the fabric quality. The new module concept has already proven itself in machines with difThe fabric is wound with a pre-defined ferent weaving technolotension after weaving gies such as in plastic die weaving machines with gripper rod weft shot or in Rejuvenation projectile weaving machines for flat fabrics. Servo and asynchronous axes have also Versatile been implemented in mixed mode deRegardless of the machine manufacturer’s pending on the requirement profile. In philosophy, the Simotion basic project one case only a regulated drive (asynruns on different hardware platforms. No chronous warp let-off) is used while all new application has to be created in Simoother functions are still derived from the tion either for different machine-technical main axis or from direct drives. Here too requirements. With standard interfaces the basic technological object was adapted which can be freely combined and exto the existing machine periphery. This changed, projects which have already relatively “painless operation” is also recbeen created can be adapted with little efommended for “retrofitting” older ma■ fort to the new object qualities. All supchines. plementary units such as color selector, shaft machine, Jaquard machine, forward winding machine etc. can be accepted or deselected. Actuators and sensors are also standardized – by bus technology and use of only one standard voltage. 20 RUBRIK SOLUTION/CASE STUDY SYSTEM Fabric Biaxial machines exploit the flexibility of Simotion Optimum Solution with a Great Effect With the increasing demand for knitware, development in the knitting machine industry has picked up an astonishing momentum. In mechatronic stitch-bonding machines like biaxial machines, the technological flexibility depends on the efficiency of their control and drive technology. Simotion offers just the right basis for the desired scalable solution with its variety of integrated technological components. The right system for every job Simotion provides the ideal solution for the wide range of functional requirements in the knitting machine sector. The openness of the system – in conjunction with a modern engineering system – allows for managing, visualizing and transferring all machine data in a project. The Motion-PC is the ideal control especially for biaxial machines. It combines the advantages of PC and controller: openness, flexibility and performance as well as HMI, PLC functionality, regulating functions and knitting-technological user functions. This has the advantage that functions such as weft insert or standing thread/nonwoven threading or the wet knitting process in all its complexity from now on can be activated simply by setting parameters in the display and synchronized in relation to the main drive of the machine. The machine is operated by an HMI system with touch control. The uniformity of Totally Integrated Automation also guarantees the modular automation of the machine. This includes the linking to remote data transmission systems for the purpose of teleservice via Webserver or mo■ dem. Malimo I ndustries such as geo, automobile, safety or industrial textiles require special knitting properties with an extreme load capacity. The warp beam regulation and the take-up beam for example ensure a uniformly high fabric quality. Other technological functions can be integrated modularly in the automation system as required. Biaxial machine Successful Stitch-bonding with Simotion weft can be produced. With the changeover to the PC-based solution Simotion P350, the Karl Mayer Malimo GmbH was able to eliminate the old chain or belt drives. The control now optimally synchronizes all the individual drives – from the warp to the weft insert. From the needle movement to the rolling of the goods, the entire main drive is also controlled exactly by Simotion. Eleven Masterdrives MC drive axes are also in action. Fast product changes are in demand especially for highly specialized technical textiles. Simotion meets the requirements of the textile machine manufacturers’ customers. And finally the high stability and low susceptibility to faults also speak out in favor of the system. Malimo The Chemnitz company Karl Mayer Malimo is famous for its leading-edge machines in the field of warp knitting technology. One example of the company’s capabilities is the high-performance stitch-bonding machine Malimo Biaxial NM 130. The versatile machine can be used to make textile glass knitware as a basis for fiber reinforced plastics in the large container and body manufacture as well as for ship hulls and wind power stations. In the stitch-bonding process the loosely arranged weft and standing threads are bonded together by a third threat system and form the ideal basis for biaxially reinforced composite materials due to the stretched position of the individual threads. Both an exact 90 degrees parallel lay and a slightly crossed lay in the Weft carrier Biaxial spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 21 Nonwoven Flexible solution for progressive winding technologies with the winding calculator Efficiently Wound Up an optimum build-up of the bale edge, the bale is force-guided throughout the entire process, and the winding is done in one position from the core diameter to the maximum winding diameter.” One component – many functions Efficiently winding web-shaped materials onto rolls – the Bastian company has been doing this for almost 30 years. The automatic carry-drum winder BWT 206 sets standards for inline winding and cutting of non-wovens. The machine owes its high capacity and flexibility to the automation from Siemens, which is based on standard project planning. B astian Wickeltechnik GmbH develops, manufactures and markets high-technology plant concepts in 70 countries throughout the world. Nowadays, the requirements for winding technology are high: manufacturers demand compact rolls that combine as many running meters as possible on a small diameter (1200 millimeters have proven successful). Bastian produces such ultradensely wound rolls with a combination of core drive and perimeter drive. Only with this technology is it possible to achieve a highly material-specific winding characteristic – tight at the core with an individual decrease in the tensile force over the diameter. This prevents the material from rubbing while being wound and damag. Winders of the future The company has put a new generation of carry-drum winders for the non-wovens industry on the market: with production speeds of 600 meters per minute, a maximum fabric width of 5500 millimeters, a winding diameter of 1500 millimeters and up to 60 single webs (minimal webs width 50 millimeters). The winder BWT 206 has made a decisive contribution to improving winding technology, as Holger Meyer, marketing manager of the company, explains: “Individual drives now make it possible to set the tensile force variably. The winding shaft has a flexure compensation, loading and unloading, as well as a core drive. For Bastian The Bastian carry-drum winder stand for a new generation of winders The automation from Siemens has allowed Bastian to realize a high level of quality. Masterdrive Kompakt Plus drives, for example, ensure an uniform and tension-free winding. At the same time, the company only requires one basic functional component such as the winding calculator to produce the most important winder applications with a single project plan. Once the component structure has been created as a menu, universal function algorithms can be adapted very easily to the individual plant configuration by parameterization. The highlight of the winding calculator is above all its extensive function menu for controlling the winding functions. Since wear-free winding requires a precise tension control, there is direct and indirect tension control, tension control that affects the motor torque and speed setpoint as well as a diameter-dependent controller adaptation. The winding density can be controlled and speed-dependent friction compensation can be performed using frequency polygons. Acceleration precontrol, tension precontrol, diameter calculation and stretch compensation round off the range of functions. For user-specific requirements, free functional components are additionally available that can be integrated into the basic menu. The flexible solution satisfies mechanical engineers as well as users: once an application has been created, it can run on different hardware platforms, on the Masterdrive MC and VC systems as well as on special technological modules for a complex winder ap■ plication. spectrum textile 2003 22 CASE STUDY Nonwoven Needle loom DI-Loom PMF The Dilo System Group has relied on Siemens technology and support for years Innovative Concepts for Innovative Machines Whether for geotextiles, synthetic leathers, filter media, in automobile lining materials, home furnishings or floor and wall coverings, non-wovens have established themselves among high-tech textiles. Their constantly expanding application areas require a continuous further development of the production and processing methods and the corresponding machines. Dilo System Group, a world-renown manufacturer of machines for the non-woven industry, has relied on a partnership with Siemens for years, with great success in automation and drive technology. I mportant components of modern nonwoven processing technologies are carding machines and needle looms. Along with the companies Dilo and Spinnbau, the Dilo System Group from Ebersbach, Germany is one of the most wellknown manufacturers of such systems in the world. Their innovative solutions – e.g. DI-LOOP for structuring needlepunched non-wovens or DI-LOUR for fine needle-punched velour goods – are milestones in the application area of flat and structured needled felts. In the case of paper-machine felts, the hyper-punch technology developed by Dilo has become established as a worldwide standard. The special feature of this technology is the vertical movement of the needle bar in the direction of movement of the processed material. This prevents incorrect drafts in the felt and considerably reduces the stress on the material. At the same time, an increase in the needling speed opens up new possibilities for configuring the system for disposables. Spinnbau, another company in the Dilo Group, has done pioneering work in the area of random card on the card and is considered the inventor of random cardtechnology. The web formation on the spectrum textile 2003 23 Excellent partnership We spoke to Johann Philipp Dilo about his preference for Siemens. You are a global company. What does Siemens offer you in this respect? Dilo: First, it is not only important for us to be globally oriented, but for our customers as well. Naturally, we observe this first of all in the area of support with Siemens. The support is globally oriented: for example, Siemens ensures us that personnel and spare parts are continously available throughout the world in the framework of repair and service agreements. In Mannheim, Mr. Arnold and his group are a one-stop service contact for Dilo throughout the world, right on our doorstep. His strong and valuable support helps us in all phases, from implementation to the day-to-day exchange of information. This is an advantage that we do appreciate greatly. What do you plan for the future? Dilo: The cooperation with Siemens has completely convinced us. For this reason, we will continue to rely on the innovative technology and the strong support from Siemens. And we have nothing further to add to that. Mr. Dilo, thank you for the interview. Automation and drive technology from one supplier Dilo Dilo Mr. Dilo, you have been relying on Siemens technology for years. Why? Dilo: I am convinced that I have found an extremely experienced and innovative partner in Siemens. The possibility to obtain visualization, motion control and drive technology from one supplier brings us enormous benefit. The remote servicing capability of the Siemens equipment is also very important to us. It enables us to perform failure diagnosis and software updates from Ebersbach throughout the world. This not only saves us a considerable amount of money for service work but can also significantly reduce our customer's downtimes. Spinnbau’s Hyper-Speed-Card for high-speed card application card is one of the most important process steps on the way to a complete non-woven product. The card thereby lays the foundation for the quality of the final product. With the development of hyper-speed cards and the construction of super-wide cards (with up to five meters working width), Spinnbau leads the worldwide trend towards increasingly wider and more productive installations. spectrum textile 2003 At Dilo and Spinnbau, they also know that higher speeds and throughputs also require a greater operating safety and availability of the individual machines and the entire production line. The machines from Dilo and Spinnbau achieve the necessary reliability and safety in particular through the use of automation and drive technology from Siemens, which is very important for the hyper-speed card of Spinnbau. Here, the proven Simatic S7400 controller, supplemented by the application module FM 458-1 DP, provides high dynamics, extensive functionality, high clock rates, fast processing of large amounts of data as well as the mastering of complicated control sequences in multi-axis drive systems. The system can furthermore be freely planned and offers integrated engineering (Step 7), data management and communication as a result of Totally Integrated Automation. The Simovert Masterdrives drive sys- tem (Vector Control and Motion Control), which has also proven its worth especially in the area of plant engineering, helps to achieve system characteristics that guarantee high equipment availability and reliable production numbers for the end user. The motors of the series 1LA, 1FT and 1FK, which have very good operating characteristics, long service lives and high voltage- and current-carrying capacities, also make an important contribution. For operation and monitoring, the machines are equipped with a Simatic PC that transfers and manages technological and equipment-specific data on a Windowsbased operating system. The simple and transparent project planning tool Simatic WinCC provides the user with a complete tool for designing the process visualization. The tailored solutions from Siemens were not the only thing that convinced Johann Philipp Dilo, the managing director of Dilo and Spinnbau, and his people. The cooperation with Siemens also played a decisive role. ■ CASE STUDY Nonwoven Siemens automates AquaJet production line of Fleissner Producing Nonwovens Under Pressure Bonding methods such as water jet technology help to make innovative nonwoven fabrics with wide applications. The AquaJet method of the Fleissner company has set standards in this field. With automation technology from Siemens, Fleissner fulfills the high demands for a large product range, reliability and accuracy of the production lines: starting with the Profibus bus system, to the drive and control system, right up to the software. Water pours onto the nonwoven from thousands of nozzles. This entangles the fibers and bonds the nonwoven high-grade nonwovens qualities is the motto of the company. For this reason, newly developed filter systems and high-capacity pumps extend the maintenance intervals and thereby lower the operating costs. Fleissner has also developed an optimized nozzle head: because the water jets are distributed over the entire width of the fabric with an even pressure, the nonwoven is uniformly bonded. Last but not least, individual products can be manufactured on Fleissner 24 F leissner GmbH, with headquarters in Egelsbach, Hessen (Germany), is one of the leading manufacturers of high-performance production lines for the nonwovens industry. The mediumsized company has consistently expanded the nonwoven area since the 1960’s. State-of-the-art methods such as the water-jet bonding Aqua-Jet from Fleissner make it possible to produce composites with different weights and characteristics. The new spunlace processes AquaJet, AquaPulp, AquaSpun and AquaSplit are even capable of producing compound and sandwich fabrics with cellulose fibers and microsegment split fibers. Spunlace fleece fabrics are both soft and tough and therefore frequently applied for domestic, medical and industrial purposes. Economical production with the Aqua-Jet production lines with a multitude of different patterns and surface finishes. By constantly implementing the demands of their customers into ideas, Fleissner has made the AquaJet method into a success story for six years now. Efficient communication, high-capacity drives This would not be possible without a highgrade automation from the controller to the drive, and up to the sensor. The production line’s physical extension of up to 100 meter (= 328.1 feet) long alone requires a high-capacity bus system. Simatic Net Profibus forms the communication basis for the entire automation system. A Simatic S7-400 controller controls the production line. With the PLC and Profibus, booster sets of other manufacturers as well as water treatment plants, sliver, sand, coarse and fine filters can be integrated. Simatic WinCC allows everything to be displayed in a clearly arranged way on the screen and comfortably operated. High-dynamical drives like Masterdrives VC provide the required power of several 100 kW for the high-pressure water pumps without any problem. Masterdrives VC Kompakt Plus in particular prove their strength as especially precise transport drives – even with very different nonwoven materials. The compact and economical Micromasters also demonstrate their versatility: as accessory drives for auxiliary pumps, fans and filters. Easy to service and economical The leading textile machine manufacturer Fleissner with its large market share in China appreciates the reliable and fast maintenance service of this continuous and modular automation. For service and maintenance, they have the choice of remote maintenance or the local service and support offices of Siemens. As a result of the uniform solution, they also avoid different supplier systems, thereby saving considerable time and costs while increasing the quality at the same time. Project planning and commissioning are also simplified. And last but not least, the end customer profits because less training effort and less stockkeeping of spare parts is nec■ essary. spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 25 Dying and Finishing Textile refinement plant renewed by innovative Soft-PLC Win AC MP Quality Felt Guaranteed Textile refinement plays an important role in the manufacture of fabrics. The Italian company Cimi makes great demands on the efficiency and quality of its refining machines. The company is therefore eager to snap up innovative technological solutions: In the Flexifola fulling machine the system control was implemented with WinAC Soft-PLC and the Simatic Multi Panel MP 370. T he Cimi company founded in 1963 is located in the heart of the Biella textile industry. Ideal conditions for a company with a wide range of products to become a textile refiner renowned all over the world. Textile refinement serves for final treatment of the raw fabric and can be considered one of the most crucial phases in the production process: It not only makes the fabric more resistant, it also lends it a softness and glean. Making woolen felt under extreme pressure A special method of making a woolen fabric more resistant is fulling whereby mechanical pressure is applied to a woolen nonwoven fabric which fulls and compacts it. At the same time the area is compressed and the felt shrinks. Cimi was looking for an innovative technological solution for the fulling and fast washing machine. Four carrier rollers, the fulling drum with carriage, an airing unit, the spray device for moistening and an offset carriage in the fast washing had to be fitted with a new control system. The Soft-PLC Simatic WinAC MP for embedded systems proved to be the ideal solution for these data-intensive control tasks. It is based on the Windows CE operating system and unites the function properties of PLC and PC in one unit. Control and monitoring in one unit The technological heart of the plant automation is formed by the multifunctional platform Simatic MP370: spectrum textile 2003 It takes care of visualization and control on a single hardware platform. To do this, the Simatic Multi Panels (MP) have been extended with the Soft-PLC Simatic WinAC in comparison with conventional operator panels. This principle is ideal for the fulling machines. The machine runs through various phases during the refinement process, every one of which requires a suitable regulation and control. The optimum quality of the end product can only be guaranteed by compliance with critical control parameters such as drum pressure, roller speed, temperature control and liquid dosing. The refiner must set special algorithms in WinAC in order for the machine to adapt the parameters automatically to the type of fabric and degree of fulling desired by the end user. The Italians can rely on long years of experience and know-how for this. The Soft-PLC has high response speeds in order to fulfill the demanding control tasks. For example the measured values must be recorded at regular intervals in the temperature regulating system of the Flexifola to guarantee the control accuracy. Space and cost saving solution But other properties of the functional solution also convinced the textile machine manufacturer. The compact design reduces space requirements and fast commissioning is possible thanks to a single hardware component. The company makes further savings by less wiring, low ■ spare parts stocks and optimized service. CASE STUDY Weaving Preparation High-perfomance warping machine Sucker Comwarp with Muli Panel MP 270 Touch Future-proof and Flexible Moenus Moenus Textilmaschinen GmbH, Gera, unites the well known brand names Artos, Krantz, Stentex and Sucker with more than 150 years of experience in the field of textile machine manufacture under one roof. The range of products fully covers the process of weaving preparation and the wet and dry equipping of textiles. More than 150 patents are evidence of the company’s joy of innovation. The merger of these proven services makes Moenus a strong partner for the worldwide textile industry. T he new high-performance warping machine Comwarp, developed under consideration of numerous customer wishes, is highly suitable for both staple fiber yarns and filament yarns. It can be optimally adapted to any area of application with V and parallel gates. The modular concept of the Comwarp allows customer-specific equipping for warp beam diameters of 800/1000 and 1250/ 1400 millimeters at working widths of 1400 to 2800 millimeters. An extensive range of options such as gluing device, ionization, beam lifting device, operating platform, allows optimum adaptation to customer requirements. Processing times can be reduced and availability increased as a result. A high-performance machine obviously also needs innovative automation concepts. The proven and highly efficient controllers of the Simatic S7 series together with Profibus-DP form the backbone of automation. Together with the patented duo-length measuring system they enable residual lengths below 0.1percent of the warp set regardless of the number of yarn breaks. In order to meet the suddenly growing demand for Asian characters, the modern, The high-performance warping machine Sucker Comwarp Moenus 26 fully graphic-capable Multi Panel Simatic MP 270B Touch was chosen for visualization and operation. The multi-functional platform combines the robustness of an adapted hardware with PC-typical flexibility. The industrial compatibility of this multitalented panel is underlined by its extreme robustness and shockproof, dustproof and splashproof housing. Additional functions can be added to the system without a hard disk for example for remote maintenance and service via the Internet/Intranet. The Comwarp takes care of the entire data acquisition, recipe management and shift management in the MP 270. The language can also be switched over online to guarantee it can be operat- Graphical visualization on the Multi Panel MP 270B Touch ed by service personnel in the manufacturing country. Because of the high quality demands and the company principle of always developing the best solution for the customer, the innovative products of all four Moenus brands are already being manufactured and assembled with a view to the strict regulations of the European standard 8214 (ISO 9000 ff). Long-term quality assurance and the continuous improvement of all services are the ambitious goal. In future the Moenus Textilmaschinen GmbH will work more closely with suppliers who also meet these requirements than in the past. After a tricky phase which the company group survived with Siemens as a strong partner by its side, they can now look forward to meeting the challenges of the constantly ■ changing textile market together. spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 27 Dying and Finishing After production the fabrics are reused to remove harmful substances with knitted goods. The machines prevent running creases and give the fabric a smooth surface. Production costs and time can also be significantly improved in comparison to rope-form processing in long liquor. Benninger Universally successful Post-treatment of textiles optimized with universal automation Gentle Wash Cycle T he finishing sector is booming in the textile industry. After all, the clothing industry continually demands new methods for treating fabric – to give it color, improve the feel, or to remove spinning oils from sensitive elasthane (spandex) materials. Optimum washing results After the production process, fabrics have to be washed in order to remove harmful elements. Especially mono- and bi-elastic fabrics and knitted goods need gentle processing – i.e. the sensitive textile web must not be pulled. The international Ben- spectrum textile 2003 ninger Group from Uzwil has enjoyed ground-breaking successes in this area. The Trikoflex drum washing center makes it possible to shrink perfectly synthetic fibers (filaments) in particular. To wash elastic fabrics and knitted goods, the goods are transported with low tension over a grooved drum with a mesh covering. In this way, they cannot avoid the hydrodynamic water pressure when they pass through the spray section. A center-driven unwinding arrangement at the entry prevents rolling edges. The liquor film that forms on both sides of the fabric quickly carries away impurities, and the washing liquor circulates in two separate liquor cycles. The washing effect is increased considerably compared to the standard mesh and screen drums. The Benninger machines fulfil the most up-to-date requirements for open-width processing, which scores points especially Benninger Modern fabrics repeatedly lead to new machine developments in textile finishing. The Swiss company Benninger, already very successful in the field of weaving preparation, has put a washing machine on the market that gently processes knitted goods as well as elastic fabric: Trikoflex. Benninger has realized innovative and customer-friendly automation solutions for this in close cooperation with Siemens. The market success of the finishing specialists is based on optimum process control and intelligent networking of the machines. A universal automation is therefore the core competence of the company. A competent partner for this was found in Siemens. Totally Integrated Automation ensures seamless integration from the PLC up to the I/O's. In addition to the AC drives, the most important elements of the process automation in the washing plant are the PLC, the HMI system and the distributed I/O’s. The washing plant is controlled by a Simatic S7 414-2; a Simatic OP27 and a PC 670 are for operation and monitoring. The ET200 distributed I/O’s are connected with the PLC and the drives via Profibus, and interfaces to higher-level systems make the equipment flexible for extensions. The Trikoflex washing center from Benninger treats elastic knitware with the greatest care Benninger customers especially appreciate the possibility of remote maintenance. The have direct online access to a Benninger service technician via the PLC and a telephone line. The technician can then make a qualified diagnosis without travel expenses or system downtimes. ■ 28 CASE STUDY Dying and Finishing Modular machine automation in textile finishing Smart and Innovative Whether with knitted goods or fabrics: economic efficiency is the top priority for all finishing processes in wet textile finishing. Nowadays, users demand maximum flexibility, optimum profitability and an excellent result along with the best reproducibility from their machinery. The manufacturers of continuous production lines therefore offer modular machine concepts with increasingly intelligent drive and automation solutions. As a result, finishers can optimally select their machines and react quickly and flexibly to market changes. T he requirements for textile finishing machines are high. Since increasingly frequent article changes are the rule in the production process due to shorter yardages, the machines are required to be highly flexible. Short changeover times help the finishers to react quickly to changed requirements. In addition, the replacement of mechanical systems by mechatronic solutions has proven successful particularly in finishing. This is achieved, for example, with drives with intelligent motion control, such as virtual masters for “split warp” on stretchers in a technology package. Here, the drives replace mechanical solutions; the gear is eliminated. Clever modularization saves costs A flexible plant design is indispensable in continuous textile finishing. Modular machine concepts with a central or distributed intelligence are therefore gaining ground. The modularity of Simotion and Sinamics supports intelligent drive control especially in finishing processes HMI Simatic S7 Simotion ES Process computer A distributed automation structure is just the right thing, in particular for machines with very many drive locations. In this case, the machine is split into different axis groups, which are controlled separately. The great advantage to the customer is the modularization, however. The formation of modules increases the flexibility for individual customer requirements and the number of variants of a machine type. Different versions of a machine can therefore be created with only a few modules. In addition, the commissioning of the machines is considerably simplified: individual machine parts are completely tested before shipping, so that they only have to be linked up on site. Intelligence in the drives Ethernet Sinamics S + Simotion D PROCESS FIELD BUS Plant LAN Sinamics S + Simotion D Power modules Distributed I/O Distributed I/O Textile finishers want a compact, flexible and easy-to-scale drive solution that is simple to implement with a small amount of engineering. In the textile finishing industry, the call for really intelligent drives has also become louder and louder – in other words, for drives that can control the axis group of a machine module independently and automatically. In addition to drive control, the drive should also be able to increasingly take over motion control, logical and technological functions. With the drivebased motion control system Simotion D, the drive family Sinamics S and the drive interface Drive-Cliq, Siemens spectrum textile 2003 CASE STUDY 29 Dying and Finishing meanwhile offers a universal, modular drive and automation solution for demanding multi-motor applications for “continuous webs”. The decisive components in this decentralized control concept are self-sufficient, coordinated functional units such as control electronics, power electronics, intelligent motors and motor sensors that are flexibly connected to each other via digitized interfaces. The highlight is the use of “electronic nameplates”. Each functional unit is electronically identified and is automatically recognized by the system. This makes it possible for the after sales service to clearly identify and allocate components as well. The fast and simple engineering is another benefit of the Siemens solution. Convenient and menu-guided software tools facilitate project planning, commissioning and diagnostics. Above all the scalability of the components is an important quality criterion for drive products. “Universally” successful The market success of the finishing specialists is based on the optimum process control and intelligent system networking of the machines. Universal automation is a characteristic of future-oriented textile finishing companies. The connection of the drive components to the fieldbus level, the coupling of further control systems as well as the connection of distributed I/O’s takes place via the clock-synchrinized Profibus. The plant is integrated into the existing operating network via Ethernet, using TCP/IP communication. This consistent networking reduces the cabling as well as the hardware costs for the automation equipment and peripheral circuits. The universality of Totally Integrated Automation has even more to offer, though: coordinated system components considerably reduce number of intefaces. The uniform engineering tool ensures continuous engineering. It enables a fast data exchange among components and simplifies the planning of multi-axis functions. Innovative solutions require competent partners. Siemens has many years of experience in implementing development projects together with machine manufacturers. Siemens will have further detailed information on their state-of-the-art, flexible automation concepts at the ITMA in ■ Birmingham. Profibus enables the production of high-quality materials High-quality for Strong Brands Polo shirts from Lacoste stay in shape even after being washed many times. The US company Tube-Tex produces textile finishing machines that ensure a high quality for shirts branded with the famous crocodile. In these machines networking with Profibus creates the basis for extremely high flexibility and reliability. I n the production of tubular knitted fabrics, the “preshrinkage” of the fabric is an important intermediate step. Before material is cut to length and sewed, it first has to be shrunk to the right width so that it will not change any more later. Well-known companies such as Hanes, Fruit of the Loom and Jockey appreciate the more than 70 years of experience of Tube-Tex in this field. Since more than 65 percent of the machines are destined for export, the company was looking for an automation solution that would be easy to service throughout the world and also extremely adaptable. spectrum textile 2003 Flexible and customer-friendly The right solution was soon found with Simatic and Profibus. Components from different manufacturers can also be decentrally connected to the bus system. PLC programming, engineering and the TeleService adapter are combined in the Step 7 software package and can be connected with third-party products via Profibus. As the fabric moves through the machine, a Simatic S7 PLC controls seven synchronized drives that rotate at different speeds. In order to obtain an optimum preshrink quality, a constant speed ratio has to be maintained. Once the machine operator has optimized the fabric, the machine settings can be saved as a recipe. The width monitoring and controlled shrinkage of different materials are also managed via the recipe input. Thanks to Profibus and TeleService, Tube-Tex can now also quickly help faraway customers who work with components from different manufacturers. In a simple telephone conversation, Tube-Tex technicians were even able to get the machines of a finisher in Pakistan running ■ again within a few minutes. 30 CASE STUDY Dying and Finishing Revolutionary textile printing technology twinned with state-of-the-art automation Marvelous Printing Results The world’s very first digital inkjet textile printer employs the entire know-how of the Reggiani company in Bergamo. The aptly named machine DReAM convinces with high speed and optimum resolution. In addition to the newly developed inkjet print heads, the considerable performance of the machine is due to the drive-based automation solution with Simovert Masterdrives MC. holds the fabric exactly in position. Synchronized with the new inkjet print heads from Aprion, the DReAM reaches a speed that was not previously considered possible: 492 feet (= 150 meters) per hour, at a resolution of 600 dpi and a printing width of 63 inches (= 1600 millimeters). The six-color inkjet print heads have 512 spray nozzles each. Inks developed T he Reggiani Macchine S.p.A. can boast 50 years experience in the preparation and printing of fabrics. The products range from the flat printing machine PRIMA and the rotation printing machine UNICA through the pattern table UNISTAR to the clamping frame TERMA for the pre-treatment and refinement of fabrics. Machine of the future Innovative ideas are the basis for Reggiani’s success. With the development of the digital fabric printing machine DReAM the company planned to anticipate market requirements with the latest technology. The cooperation with efficient partners such as Aprion Digital and Ciba Speciality Chemicals Inc. resulted in a machine with sensational printing properties. Its sophisticated technology is based on a proven Reggiani transport system which specially for the machine such as reactive, acid, pigment and dispersion inks allow a wide variety of patterns. The loading device for the ink allows cartridges to be changed without interrupting production. The equipment of the machine makes it particularly suitable for making designer fashion articles – even leather can be processed without any trouble. In addition, the cost-efficient production of medium-sized quantities is possible. Precise control for perfect printing To ensure the high quality standard also in the automation, Reggiani looked for a competent partner who also guaranteed worldwide technical support. The export percentage of the company is after all 70 percent of the total production. Owing to past good experience, Siemens was contracted to supply the electronic components for the switch cabinet and machine. In printing machines, a perfect print result depends on exact control of the individual axes of the printing roller. Simovert Masterdrives MC has proven first choice in this field due to their efficient control and reliability. The frequency converters with brushless servo motors control the rotation axes which are responsible for controlling the movements. A linear motor is responsible for driving the print head. The asynchronous motors which regulate the temperature of the drier up to 100 degrees Celsius as auxiliary drives for example are also controlled by converters. Two Simatic S7-315 2-DP CPUs connected with the periphery via Profibus and AS-Interface are used for controlling the machine logic. Communication between the two central units takes place via Multipoint Interface (MPI). A PC is responsible for verifying the data and checking the functionality of the DReAM. The future equipping with teleservice will enable quick intervention over long distances allowing Reggiani much greater flexibility of action. The PC can also improve the form and color of the printing results. Thanks to various graphic formats such as .tif for example. all the important data for the desired appearance of the print can be transferred by an exter■ nal PC. spectrum textile 2003 PRODUCTS 31 Sinamics is the new drive series with a common hardware and software base Productive Platform With Sinamics, Siemens places its drive solutions with integrated engineering on a common hardware and software basis. For Sinamics S120, Sinamics G150 and Sinamics G110, uniform configuration and commissioning tools create synergies and efficiency above and beyond the various family members. The modular drive system Sinamics S120 is suitable both for single axis and for multiple axis applications and solves all drive tasks universally in one machine: With powers of 1.6 to 107 Kilowatt, Sinamics S120 covers the power range for dynamic to highly dynamic applications. Sinamics G150 regulates the speed of low voltage asynchronous motors with powers between 75 and 800 Kilowatt. Up to 50 percent less energy and footprint are required, distinguishing the Sinamics G150 from comparable drives. Its extremely simple handling simplifies not only assembly and operation but also service. The smallest frequency converter for variable speed drives in the Sinamics series is Sinamics G110. It is suitable as a drive in the food, textile and packing industries for single-phase mains of 200 to 240 Volts with a power range of 0.12 to 3 ■ Kilowatt. Simovert Masterdrives with intelligent feed-return unit Strong in Weak Mains There is an ideal drive solution for plant operators with weak mains (or high mains requirements): Simovert Masterdrives with AFE. The high proportion of harmonics usually generated in electrical systems is effectively eliminated by the AFE. Current and voltage are fed back into the mains in almost ideal sinusoidal form. The power factor cos ϕ can be specified individually between 1.0 and 0.8. An additional equip- spectrum textile 2003 ment for the mains compensation is therefore unnecessary. The AFE ensures optimum return feeding capability especially in weak mains: If the mains fail completely in return feed mode, active switching off ensures that no inverters are tripped. And there is another property of the AFE which helps to maintain operation of your system on weak mains: The current converter operates as an amplifier with a higher intermediate circuit voltage in relation to the peak value of the mains voltage. In this way even strong mains fluctuations can be compensated and plant standstills avoided. AFE – An investment which often pays in view of the costs of production failure ■ and mains compensation! PRODUCTS Siemens offers a wide range of gear motors Geared up for All Drive Tasks Siemens offers a full range of gear motors for a wide variety of drive tasks: from helical through offset shaft and bevel up to worm gearboxes. Thanks to the modular assembly concept the motors can be adapted to requirements by adding on encoder, brake or external fan. Helical gearboxes have a coaxial structure and offer various assembly possibilities with their housing design as a flange or mount version. Offset shaft gearboxes recommend themselves with their compact and good geometry as the optimum solution for space-saving drive tasks. Bevel gearboxes are angular gears and are therefore suitable for the most difficult installation conditions. The low-cost worm gearboxes are also angular gears but with a lower efficiency. You will find further information and technical data at: www.siemens.com/gearedmotors Publisher Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, Automation and Drives Group (A&D), Frauenauracher Str. 80, D-91056 Erlangen, Germany Group Executive Management Helmut Gierse, Anton S. Huber, Alfred Ötsch Editorial Responsibility in Accordance with the German Press Law Peter Miodek Responsible for Technical Contents Werner Schmolke Telephone +49 (0) 9131 98-2959 Telefax +49 (0) 9131 98-11465 E-Mail: [email protected] http://www.siemens.de/textil Simotion – The Motion Control System for Multiple Axes One Platform for All Simotion integrates motion control, logic and technology functions into a single system. This eliminates the time-critical interfaces between individual components and leads to a more efficient engineering. The range of solutions offered by Simotion extends from simple speed control units right up to complex multi-axis machines, where a large number of individual axes must be designed and put into operation. Simotion comprises three separate components: engineering system, runtime software and various hardware platforms as the target system. The Scout engineering system handles motion control, logic and technology tasks in a single, integrated system. It also provides all necessary tools – from programming and parameterization, through test and commissioning, right up to diagnostics. Applications that are created using Scout can be run on any Simotion hardware. The user can select the most suitable platform for his particular machine. In full accordance with the concept of Totally Integrated Automation, the Scout engineering system relates to a common database. With its downloadable technology functions, the runtime software is both flexible and scalable, allowing several motion control, logic and technology functions to run in parallel on one control unit. This modular structure enables the overall functionality to be tailored exactly to the requirement profile of the machine in question. Simotion runs on three hardware platforms: Publishing House Publicis KommunikationsAgentur GmbH, GWA Corporate Publishing P.O. Box 3240, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany Telephone +49 (0) 91 31/91 92-501 Telefax +49 (0) 91 31/91 92-594 [email protected] Editorial staff: Dr. Beate Bellinghausen (editor in chief), Robert Engelhardt, Gabriele Stadlbaur Layout: Jürgen Streitenberger, Rainer Degenkolbe Copy editors: Regina Severing, Olaf Wolff (copy chief), Sabine Zingelmann DTP: Doess, Nuremberg Printed by: Wuensch Offset-Druck GmbH, Neumarkt/Opf. Siemens 32 Simotion offers three different hardware platforms to suit many different applications Controller-based Simotion C in the S7300 design is modular and flexible to use. The PC-based version Simotion P combines motion control and visualization and monitoring features on one platform, and is thus available for more advanced tasks. The compact, drive-based variety Simotion D is already integrated into the drive, making it ideal for distributed automation structures. ■ © 2003 by Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Munich and Berlin All rights reserved by the publisher. This edition was printed on environmentallyfriendly chlorine-free paper. The following products are registered trademarks of Siemens AG: AS-INTERFACE, ET 200, MASTERGUARD, MICROMASTER, MP370, SCOUT, SIEMOSYN, SIMATIC, SIMATIC S7-200, SIMATIC S7-300, SIMATIC S7-400, SIMOTION, SIMOVERT, SINAMICS, SINUMERIK, SITEX, SIVACON, TOTALLY INTEGRATED AUTOMATION (TIA), WinCC If trademaks, technical solutions or similar are not included in the list, ist does not imply that they are not protected. The information provided in this magazine contains merely general descriptions or characteristics of performance which in case of actual use do not always apply as described or which may change as a result of further development of the products. An obligation to provide the respective characteristics shall only exist if expressly agreed in the terms of contract. Order No. E20001-A250-P620-X-7600
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