Monforts ATC opens testing lab for fabric technologies

Monforts is helping textile manufacturers develop and test new ideas at its Advanced Technology Centre (ATC) in Mönchengladbach. The facility allows customers to test fabrics, finishing technologies and new production processes under conditions similar to full-scale industrial manufacturing.

The centre also features a Thermex range for the continuous dyeing of denim and other woven fabrics, a complete colour kitchen and several laboratory-scale systems for smaller production trials.

One of the Montex lines at the centre is designed specifically for technical textiles. This flexibility is important because manufacturers may need to process different materials with varying properties and performance requirements one after another.

The applications include materials for digitally printed soft signage, carbon fabrics used in high-performance composites, filter media designed to work at extreme temperatures and flame-retardant barrier fabrics. The equipment can process materials at temperatures of up to 320°C. It can also treat the top and bottom surfaces of certain materials at different temperatures during the same production pass.

This capability is useful for products such as floorcoverings, where textile face fabrics and rubber backings may need different treatment temperatures. It can also be used for PVC flooring made with chemical foams and blackout roller blinds with heavy backing materials.