At ITMA 2019, Tatham, a British manufacturer of advanced technologies for medical textiles, nonwovens and wool processing, is discussing three product areas – hemp fibre processing, recycling carbon fibre waste, and TS Drive Technology.
Tatham processes hemp fibres for various textile applications
Hemp fibre processing
According to Tatham, recent legislative changes in many countries now allows the growing of the virtually zero tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) Cannabis Sativa plant for the production of hemp fibre, shiv, seeds and the bi-products of cannabidiol (CBD). Governments and farmers are attracted to hemp cultivation for the reduced water consumption, sustainability and because the hemp plant can be used for commercial products.
Tatham manufactures hemp decorticating and cleaning machinery to provide clean hemp fibre suitable for onward processing for the home textile, apparel and nonwoven automotive market.
Bi-products of decortication are construction products, briquettes and animal bedding. The hemp plant after growing, harvesting and retting is baled and transported to the hemp fibre decorticating and cleaning unit, according to Tatham.
Input weights up to 4,000 kilos per hour can be processed on one line. Cleaning of the fibre can be prepared both for nonwoven and apparel fibre products, continues the company.
Recycling carbon fibre waste
Tatham says it is meeting this challenge with innovative carbon fibre recycling and web formation machinery for reclaimed carbon fibres that have been obtained through pyrolysis of scrap prepreg materials or cured laminates, or recovery of dry manufacturing waste.
In the UK, Tatham has delivered commercial carbon fibre opening, blending, carding, cross lapping and needling technology for both recycled carbon waste and virgin staple fibres.
It is also manufacturing small-scale machines for R&D research facilities to enable them to develop the technologies for the future.
TS Drive Technology
TS Drives can be retrofit to all other manufacturers’ old machinery to save energy and improve production control, says Tatham.
The company manufactures TS Drive and weight control systems for nonwoven blending, webforming, cross lapping and needling machinery.
Replacing old and unreliable motors and drives with new generation AC motors and drives is proven to reduce energy consumption, improve machine efficiency, and reduce downtime of repairs and sourcing of obsolete components and reduce waste materials, the company says.
TS weight control systems reduce waste. To manufacture nonwoven materials to specific gsm requires the ability to control precisely the input weights. The TS Microfeed and TS Microweigh control the delivery of fibre. This starts with the chute control of the spiked lattice relatively to the chute level, which improves the accuracy of the target weight by adjusting the input web forming machine roller speed according to any variations in fibre density from the chute feed or weigh pans.
The Finished Product Predictor simply inputs the required finished product and lets the intelligent system automatically adjust the settings to achieve the target weight.
Tatham is exhibiting in Hall 5, Stand B139.
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