Oerlikon Neumag’s BCF Systems are Gaining Ground in the Chinese Market
The Chinese carpet yarn manufacturer Zhejiang Sitong New Material Technology Co., Ltd. is expanding its polyester capacities with the commissioning of an Oerlikon Neumag BCF system of the BCF S+ type. This will enable the company to ensure a balanced production of polyester, polyamide and polypropylene yarns.
BCF Yarn Producer Sitong Expands Polyester Capacities
With a total capacity of 50,000 tons per year, Sitong is one of the largest BCF yarn manufacturers in Asia. With the additional four BCF S+ positions for polyester yarn, the company from Hangzhou is responding to the trend towards polyester carpet yarns. In the future, Sitong will use them to produce balanced BCF yarns made of polyester, polyamide 6 and polypropylene. “Our strategy is a broad portfolio; this makes us more robust in the face of trends and market fluctuations,” says Tang Liang, president and owner of Sitong. The decision in favor of Neumag was based on the good experiences. “Since our foundation in 2002, we have relied on technology from Europe; for polyester production, we only consider Oerlikon Neumag plants. We have established ourselves with our quality products in both the local and international markets; this shows that we have made the right investment decisions.”
BCF S+ is Flexible
The new BCF S+ Monocolor plant is designed for polyester yarn production, but it also produced excellent data during the production of polyamide 6 yarn during the commissioning process. The ability to quickly switch to the cost-effective production of high-quality PA6 yarn gives Sitong a significant competitive advantage. “Trends are becoming increasingly short-lived. However, investing in a plant is a long-term decision. So it’s a strong argument if I can spin different polymers with the same system without sacrificing the quality of the end product,” Tang Liang sums up.
Carpet Market in Asia is Gaining in Importance
The Asian carpet market is currently experiencing noticeable growth. While the focus of carpet yarn production has been in the US and Türkiye so far, Chinese BCF yarn production in particular is experiencing a real boom in the post-corona years. This is due, on the one hand, to the strengthening of the Chinese automotive sector and, on the other, to the resurgence in travel. “Many hotels are currently being renovated and new ones are being built. During the pandemic, many hotels were closed, but now there is a significant backlog demand,” says Sun Peng, Sales Director at Oerlikon Neumag in China, assessing the increased demand.
Sinowin Commissions First 8-End PA66 Tire Yarn Plant
On the other hand; Sinowin Chemical Fibers is the first PA66 industrial yarn producer in the Chinese province of Henan to commission 12 positions of an 8-end tire yarn plant from Oerlikon Barmag. The airbag and tire yarn specialist is thus reaffirming its commitment to the growth market of automotive textiles. The 8-end concept, which is unique on the market, scores above all with its energy efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
“We believe in the automotive market and its growth opportunities. We believe that industrial yarn has great potential,” says Chen Haitao, President of Sinowin. “The automotive industry has extremely high-quality standards. We can reliably meet these requirements with our products, not least because we attach great importance to the quality of our production facilities.” The company has been relying on Oerlikon Barmag technology since it was founded in 2015.
Starting with 10 positions, the PA66 specialist has now expanded its capacities to 44 positions. Plans for further capacity expansion and diversification are already in place. “We want to cover the entire tire yarn production chain: Spinning, cabling, weaving and dipping. The entire textile part of the tire from a single source. This will make the tire supply chain much more transparent,” says Chen Haitao about his company’s plans for the future.
