“I am Looking Forward to Meeting Our Turkish Customers”
Interview: Dilek Hayırlı
Thomas Oetterli has been appointed by the board of directors as the new CEO of Rieter. Oetterli took over the function of CEO from Norbert Klapper, who has led Rieter’s CEO for nine years on March 13, 2023. As soon as he took office, Oetterli gave his first interview to our Tekstil Teknoloji magazine. Oetterli, whom we interviewed for the special issue of “Swiss Textile Machinery Industry”, evaluated the year 2022, talked about the new trends in the spinning machinery industry and his expectations for 2023.
“Rieter grew by 56% in the 2022 financial year compared to the previous year”
What has been your financial growth in the last two years and what are the targets set for the next two?
Rieter grew by 56% in the 2022 financial year compared to the previous year, based on a very strong order intake and the acquisition on Accotex, Temco and the automatic winding machine business. In 2023, Rieter expects sales at 2022 levels.
What have been the benefits to users of the products Rieter has launched on the market in the last few years? Are you satisfied with the customers’ interest in these products?
Rieter booked a record order intake in 2021, when Covid-19 restrictions were lifted in many parts of the world. This record demonstrated the attractiveness of Rieter’s product portfolio to customers. Lowest cost per kg yarn is what matters, and this is what Rieter’s technology provides.
What popular requests do you receive from customers these days regarding their machines? Which countries have the highest demand for your machines?
At the moment, the market is calm, everybody is waiting for ITMA 2023 in Milan. Rieter will present attractive innovations again, and we are confident that the market will react positively.
Which kinds of innovations and progress are expected in the upcoming years in the spinning machine market?
Automation and digitization of the spinning mill will be high on the agenda, driven by labor costs and the lack of expertise which we can observe in many markets. Rieter’s unique digitization offering which covers the entire spinning process addresses this need. The use of Artificial Intelligence is opening up new prospects and will make a significant contribution to automation and process optimization, and thereby advance sustainability in the textile industry. This is why we have teamed up with the Johann Jacob Rieter Foundation to fund a professorship for AI at the ZHAW School of Engineering in Winterthur (Switzerland). In addition, recycling will get a lot of attention. The Rieter recycling system helps customers to produce high quality yarns from recycled fibers.
“We Will Provide Housing Opportunity to 300 Earthquake Victims”
As Rieter, what kind of road map did you set for your customers in the earthquake zone in Turkey? What will you work for this region?
Rieter is deeply saddened by the earthquake, our thoughts are with the victims and their families.
We are working along three lines to support the local community and our customers:
First, we prepared a donation in Kahramanmaraş which will offer housing to around 300 people. Second, we have reopened our service station in Kahramanmaraş, and we are already processing the first repair jobs.
Third, we are running a survey of the mills affected by the earthquake together with our customers. We are doing everything we can to get the local mills to restart production as fast as possible.
What are your goals for 2023? Will you have new machinery and investment projects for the near future?
ITMA Milan of course tops the list. We will also continue to work on securing supplies of bottleneck materials.
Last November I visited Turkey for private reasons, and I can say that I love the people and the country. Now, I am looking forward to meeting our Turkish customers in the next months.
I am even more excited about meeting all our customers in person at ITMA in June and to present our latest innovations.
Rieter to Introduce Spinning Systems for Recycling at ITMA
Meanwhile, Franziska Häfeli, Head of Rieter’s Marketing and Systems Department, made a presentation at the ITMA Press Conference organized by Swissmem. Häfeli talked about the Texcircle Research Project they carry out in cooperation with the Lucerne School of Art and Design University and the spinning systems developed by Rieter for recycling.
Franziska Häfeli, Head of Rieter’s Marketing and Systems Department,
The subject of the Texcircle Research Project; converting used clothes into raw materials for new textiles. The aim of the project is; closing the life cycle of textiles so that original materials can be efficiently reused as raw materials for new, high-quality products. The project examines and optimises recycling processes and rethinks existing value chains. Working alongside industry partners, Texcircle defines fibre compositions, machine settings and new product cycles.
Sharing figures about the recycling industry today, Häfeli said: “The recycling industry has significant growth potential. Nearly three quarters of all garments end up in landfills. Out of the 89 million tones annual fiber production, only 1% is recycled from pre- or post-consumer textiles. The recycling potential is estimated to be more than 15%.” Explaining that Rieter’s Ring and Rotor Spinning Systems are used for recycling and successful results were obtained, Häfeli continued: “Spinners have been using the rotor spinning process for decades for recycled material. These machines save raw material cost. Rotor spinning is best suited for processing material with a high short-fiber content. Increasing demand also for recycled ring yarns (wider application range). Ring yarns have higher tenacity, different, softer touch and finer counts.”
