26 September 2008, Wujin, China - Karl Mayer, one of the world's leading companies in the textile machine building sector, has the future securely in its sights and the present firmly in hand. The specialist in warp knitting machines and warp preparation equipment proved this once again when it opened new premises for its Chinese subsidiary, Karl Mayer (CHINA) Ltd, in Wujin.
The impressive building is located in the Wujin Hi-Tech Industrial Zone and benefits from the excellent infrastructure of the area, which is located in the most economically buoyant region of China. Planning for the new building began in spring 2006, and the company was able to move from its existing premises 15 km away to the new site in March 2008. 26 July marked the official date for the start of production in the new factory, and this was accompanied by lavish celebrations.
Roughly 500 guests attended the celebrations on the modern site, and these included members of the Mayer family, the management board from the company's headquarters in Obertshausen, sales representatives from the Karl Mayer Group and agencies in Asia, suppliers, business partners and, of course, clients. Most of the textile producers came from the nearby Chinese provinces, but manufacturers also travelled from other parts of Asia, including large contingents from Korea and Japan, India, Thailand, Pakistan, Singapore, Indonesia and Taiwan.
The welcoming address and introductory speeches were given by the general manager, Yang Zengxing, Xu Weinan, the Wujin district executive, the deputy mayor, Han Jiuyan and the managing director, Fritz P. Mayer. This was followed by traditional Chinese celebrations, including a lion dance, fireworks and firecrackers. The celebrations included a sumptuous lunch, during which the guests were pleased to be given the opportunity to chat with each other, develop new ideas and exchange news. But no opening ceremony would be complete without the ceremonial cutting of the ribbon. This was done by a group of officials. After this, the guests were divided into eleven groups and given a tour of the new site.
Visit to the new factory
Karl Mayer (CHINA) Ltd covers an area of roughly 55,000 m2 and comprises the departments of production, assembly, service, spare parts and administration. There is more than enough space for the fully integrated building of entire machines, for all the service operations in China, for the management of spare parts for Chinese clients, and for the production of components needed by the various production centres in the Karl Mayer Group. The modern site in Wujin is also home to the Karl Mayer Academy China, which is used for training purposes, as well as a showroom, where the company's machinery and equipment are on permanent display.
According to Karl Mayer the visitors were visibly impressed by the excellent facilities and the impressive design of the halls, offices, staff lounges and social areas. As they were shown around the site, Karl Mayer says that even the European guests were impressed by the state-of-the-art production facilities, which are set up so as to comply with Karl Mayer's strict high standards.
Tour of the showroom
Guests were able to get an idea of what the company had to offer by visiting the company's showroom. Three special machines were on show to the visitors in Karl Mayer (CHINA) Ltd's showroom: an ML 33 CD, an HKS 2-3 E with carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic components, and a TM 2.
The new ML 33 CD multibar raschel machine was designed especially to cater for the Chinese market, and this was immediately evident to the lace manufacturers attending the opening celebrations. The performance-enhanced successor to the MRES 33 EH has an impressive operating speed of 500 min-1 and combines a new working width of 198" with a level of efficiency that has never been reached before. Karl Mayer says that it impressed all the visitors with its increased flexibility and new features, which all contribute to improving the fabric quality.
The TM 2, which has been tailored to suit the Chinese market, was also available for viewing in the showroom. This new basic machine in the TM series was demonstrating production of a velour fabric in a gauge of E 32 at an operating speed of 2,500 rpm to visitors, who showed good interest in the machine. Karl Mayer says that it was showing how its clever special features combine excellent product quality with a high degree of user friendliness. Karl Mayer noted that manufacturers using second-hand machinery as well as newcomers to the warp knitting sector were particularly impressed with the performance features of this machine. The machine was officially released for sale at the ITMA ASIA + CITME trade fair, and the first production run of the TM 2 was completely sold out even before the exhibition opened.
The HKS 2-3 E was presented to guests as the high-tech version of the TM 2. The precision-engineered machine , with its carbon-fibre-reinforced components, can operate at speeds of up to 4,000 rpm and Karl Mayer stressed that most of the manufacturers present had never seen such a fast warp knitting machine. The use of CFRP materials enables the HKS 2-3 E to resist fluctuations in the ambient climatic conditions, a first in warp knitting. Also on view in the showroom were creels, yarn tensioners and a DS 21/30 EC direct warping machine developed by Karl Mayer's Warp Preparation Division.
Karl Mayer believes that the new machines and modern premises of its Chinese subsidiary once again reinforced the belief of visitors that Karl Mayer is a reliable partner, which can combine machine technology tailored to suit the market with visions and strategies that would endure well into the future. In short, Karl Mayer is a partner they can trust. Karl Mayer says that one Chinese client bought a Karl Mayer warp preparation machine straightaway after the ITMA ASIA + CITME exhibition. The decision to buy this machine first took root on the 26 July, when he saw the new state-of-the-art facilities.
