Passion for needlework and, in particular, knitting is becoming increasingly popular in Russia. Accordingly, the demand for high-quality and diverse yarn for both hand and machine knitting is increasing. In our country, there are a large number of factories that produce products of various quality and price range.
The leaders are those enterprises that put quality control, the creation of new types of yarn, the expansion of colors and the improvement of traditional types of products, taking into account fashion trends, in the first place in their work.
Semenov Yarn Factory is considered to be the largest domestic yarn manufacturer, which supplies its products not only to local, but also to foreign markets (mainly Ukraine and the Baltic States). The factory is one of the main branches of the Moscow Wool Spinning Factory. This enterprise, which has existed since Soviet times, is one of the few that has been able not only to survive in the competition with Western brands, but also to gain a good reputation among consumers. The assortment of the Semenovskaya factory includes various types of yarn (the main specialization is in summer yarn).
In second place in terms of production is the Troitskaya Worsted Factory, another one of the oldest Russian enterprises for the production of yarn. It produces several types of combed tape and yarn for hand and machine knitting. The Pekhorsky Textile factory currently produces over a hundred different types of yarn.
In addition to the classic, the assortment of the factory includes the so-called fancy yarn - "grass", "boucle", etc. This factory supplies part of its products abroad - to the UK, Canada, the USA and the Czech Republic. Another major manufacturer is LLC Kamteks, whose assortment includes less than a hundred items of yarn that differ in composition and structure.
In total, about 200 medium and large enterprises. The yarn market in our country is extensive. In addition, this is one of the few segments where domestic products in the low and medium price category are competitive and are in almost the same demand as imported ones, due to the optimal combination of price and quality. At the same time, Russian factories are actively cooperating with colleagues from other countries, updating equipment and introducing new technologies.
The main competitors of domestic manufacturers are Chinese (for example, Shaoxing Xinhong Textile, Shenzhen Star Textiles, Zhejiang Tiansheng Holding Group, etc.), Italian (ALPES, E.Miroglio, Gruppo Lineapiu, etc.), as well as German companies ( Vita, Gedifra and a number of others).
Necessary equipment for medium-sized production includes: draw frames, inclined cleaners, storage, scutching machine, filters, winding, spinning, carding machines, circular knitting machines, carding machine, etc. The production capacity of such an enterprise is about 30 tons of products per month.
To accommodate the equipment, production bases, warehouses, as well as an administrative building will be required (the total estimated area is about 2500 sq. m.). Sheep and camel wool, goat down, mohair, cotton, alpaca, linen, lavsan, acrylic, nylon, viscose are used as raw materials for production.
The finished yarn goes through a dyeing process, for which dyes are used. High Quality. Knitting threads are not divided into grades, but their appearance must meet the requirements of scientific technical documentation(NTD). Inadmissible defects in assessing the quality of yarn are undyed areas, knots of the second twist, corkscrew, different shades, as well as oily and contaminated threads.
The starting capital for opening such an enterprise is about 25-30 million rubles. When preparing a business plan, also consider the cost of payments wages factory workers (staff 20-25 people, not counting managers).
The selling price of finished products ranges from 45,000-50,000 rubles per ton and more, depending on the type of yarn produced.
The monthly profit of the yarn factory at the very beginning of its work will be about 750,000 rubles (based on the initial production capacity 50%) subject to high quality products and competitive prices. At the same time, in the first months of work, monthly costs can exceed profit by 2-2.5 times, which should also be taken into account when predicting the development of the company.
Think carefully about your product range. Yarn is a seasonal product that is in greatest demand during the autumn-winter period. Most manufacturers try to produce two types of yarn - winter (wool, polyester, acrylic) and summer (mainly viscose and cotton threads).
To increase the competitiveness of its products, the new company needs to maintain prices at or below the average market level, monitor and constantly improve the quality of its products by carefully selecting suppliers and contractors, expand the range and take part in Russian and international specialized exhibitions.
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For the organization of any production, you need to carefully analyze several aspects, such as the set of equipment, the number of personnel, financial side etc.
The following information will be especially helpful for those who want to organize production top jersey.
Technology and organization of production
1. Yarn. Traditional for Ukraine is the use of such yarn as:Nitrona (volumes) - usually products made from such yarn are in demand due to their cheapness
Acrylic (domestic or Turkish production) - products are a little more expensive than from nitron
Semi-wool domestic production(30% or 50%) is a traditional raw material for the production of winter knitwear. The most commonly used wool mixture of domestic production.
Other imported types of yarn (Turkish and Italian wool mixture) are still little used by regional manufacturers in the production of outer knitwear, mainly due to the higher price.
At present, domestically produced wool mixture has almost come close in price to similar Turkish and Italian yarn, so in the near future we should expect more use of imported yarn, primarily of Italian production, in knitwear.
2. Equipment. The choice of equipment is related to the technology used for the production of knitwear products.
There are the following types of technology for the production of knitwear:
1) production of outer knitwear from knitted fabric (knitted fabric is used own production or purchased). A knitted fabric is knitted on circular knitting machines (after cutting a tubular blank, a fabric 2-2.5 m wide is obtained), then the resulting fabric is cut into separate parts that are sewn into a product. In this way, linen knitwear is most made, sportswear, as well as outerwear with a simple design (turtlenecks, etc.) from the cheapest yarn. The productivity of circular knitting machines is several times higher than flat knitting machines: for example, on a used circular knitting machine of class 7 (early 90s), it is realistic to produce about 50 sweaters in 8 hours. The main disadvantage of knitted fabric production technology is a certain percentage of waste when cutting (there are some circular knitting machines (Jumberca) that can knit in a coupon method, which reduces waste). Some disadvantage is that inexpensive circular knitting machines have a much smaller limited number of weaves than flat knitting machines.The cost of circular knitting machines varies significantly depending on the manufacturer, year of manufacture and capabilities: machines from the 80s can cost several thousand Euros, modern ones (late 90s) - several tens of thousands of Euros.
2) production of outer jersey by coupon method. On a flat knitting machine (as a rule, these are electronic machines), a rectangular coupon is knitted (according to the width of the future part), from which the product part is cut out. Advantage - high speed manufacturing (on the same machine, using the coupon method, knitting occurs faster than along the contour), the disadvantage is a small percentage of waste when cutting. Coupon method on flat knitting machines can produce products of varying degrees of complexity.
Now used flat knitting machines for knitting only cost by coupon method (price in Ukraine, including delivery and customs clearance):
Stoll (for example, ANVH model) - from 4000 Euro,
Universal (cars of the 600th series) - from 6000 Euro,
Shima-Seiki (models 202, 214) - from 10,000 Euros
The cost of new flat knitting machines for knitting in a coupon way: Italian manufacturers (Technotex) - from 25,000 Euros (machines that allow you to knit in 2 "streams"), Taiwanese manufacturers - from $ 16,000. (producer prices Ex-Work).
In the production of outerwear from knitted fabric and by the coupon method, as a rule, a minimum of auxiliary equipment- in addition to knitting machines, overlockers and other sewing machines are needed, as well as a cutting knife.
3) production of outer knitwear knitted along the contour (flat knitting electronic machines of the next (in relation to coupon machines) generation are used. It differs from the coupon method in that the details of the products are immediately knitted along a given contour, so there is no cutting and loss of yarn. The number of operations is less than in the previous method, the cost is also lower.They also allow (if necessary) to manufacture products using the coupon method (this allows you to achieve maximum productivity).
Now used flat knitting machines for knitting along the contour cost:
Stoll (models CMS 400, 402) - from 23000 Euro,
· Universal (models MC 720, 740) – from 16000 Euro,
Shima-Seiki - from 20,000 Euros (price in Ukraine, including delivery and customs clearance).
The product here meant a sweater, jacket, jacket, etc., when knitting smaller products (hat, scarf), productivity will be significantly higher, for example, one compact 2-system knitting machine of the 3rd class can produce (at around the clock work and knitting along the contour) up to 500 scarves per day.
A typical set of equipment and the number of personnel (based on a mini-factory of 2 compact flat knitting machines) - for the production of outer knitwear knitted along the contour:
A) Equipment:
flat knitting machines - 2 pcs.
spec. computer (for developing knitting programs) - 1 pc.
· Kettelny cars – 2 pieces.
· moisture-heat treatment equipment (WTO) – steam table – 1 pc.
cutting table - 1 pc.
Overlock - 2-3 pcs.
sewing machines (straight stitch, chain stitch) - 2-3 pcs.
B) Staff:
1) Knitting production:
· Operators of knitting machines - 4 people. (4 shifts of 12 hours)
· Programmer-dessinator - 1 person.
· Maintenance mechanic - 1 person.
· Technologist – 1 person.
2) Sewing production
· Kettelshchitsy - 2 people.
· Cutter - 1 person.
· Steamer - 1 person.
Seamstresses - 4-6 people.
Manufacture of outer knitwear using knit&wear technology. On a flat knitting machine, the product is knitted completely ready, there is no need to assemble the products (only stripping). Accordingly, there is no cutting and sewing operations, so the cost of production is minimal (because the costs for personnel are minimal). However, the initial equipment costs for this technology are the highest.
The cost of used flat knitting machines for knit&wear technology - from $ 57,000 - for example, Stoll CMS 340 knit&wear
At present, the most common production of outer knitwear is in the coupon method and with the help of knitting along the contour.
There are several types of flat knitting machines:
Compact - with a working width of 120-130 cm (the most suitable for knitting small batches of products with a frequently changing assortment).
Large - with a working width of 230-244 cm (the most suitable for knitting large batches of products with a less frequent change in assortment).
There are also machines with intermediate working widths, such as 183 cm or 200 cm.
on one machine, new models are being developed, while the other two machines are working around the clock. After the development of new models is completed (usually from 1.5-2 hours to 1.5 days for one model - depending on the qualification and complexity of the model), the first machine is also launched for a round-the-clock operation.
However, for financial reasons, many domestic manufacturers start with 1-2 knitting machines.
For the production of outerwear, machines from grade 3 to 12 are usually used (grade is the number of needles per inch) - typical grades are 3, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 12.
Class 3 machines are used to make products (hats, scarves, sweaters, jackets, etc.) from thick yarn (often these products resemble hand-knitted ones) - thick wool, mohair, fancy yarn.
Machines of the 5th class are traditionally used for the manufacture of winter products.
Machines of the 7th class are used for the manufacture of thinner products of the winter assortment.
Machines of the 8th class are more often used for the manufacture of spring-autumn products.
Machines of the 10th and 12th grade are more often used for the production of the summer assortment.
The given correspondence of classes and seasons is conditional. For example, for the winter season, woolen turtlenecks are often made on class 10 machines, etc.
The productivity of knitting machines is a very conditional value (because it significantly depends on the size of the products, the weaves used and the models of the products):
For example, one compact 2-system knitting machine of the 3rd class can produce (with round-the-clock operation and knitting along the contour) from 1000 to 1200 products of medium complexity per month (it is usually considered that on modern knitting machines 1 row is knitted in 1 second ., but with the introduction of complicating elements, the speed of the machine decreases);
when knitting on compact machines of higher classes, for the manufacture of products of similar size, it will be necessary to knit more rows (the higher the class, the more rows will be required), so the productivity will be less
On large machines, productivity is significantly higher, for example, on a large 3-system machine of the 5th class (for example, Stoll CMS 430) you can produce from 1800 to 2200 products of medium complexity per month (with round-the-clock operation and knitting along the contour), with Coupon knitting on the same machine and with simpler products (for example, turtlenecks) can produce up to 3000 products per month.
Organization of production of socks and tights
Despite some similarity in the production of these two types of products, there are significant differences.1. Production of socks:
A sock blank is knitted (with an open toe)
On special sewing equipment, the toe is sewn
Socks are molded (thermofixed) (this is especially important for men's classic socks)
Sewing labels and packaging
There are 3 types of imported hosiery machines:
1. Issue of the late 80s (a sock blank is knitted without a heel and without closing the toe) - the contract value is 1.5-2.0 thousand Euros (excluding delivery and customs clearance).
2. modern hosiery machines, knitting the sock blank together with the heel (but without closing the toe) - these are the main machines now for modern hosiery production, they make up the bulk of new machines produced and the bulk of the used machine market.
More detailed characteristics of such machines and their prices can be obtained from our office.
Various equipment can be used to sew the toe:
With a minimum number of machines (5 pcs.), a manual kettel can be used (the cost of a new one is about 7000 Euros). The productivity of one cattelist is several hundred pairs per shift.
For greater productivity, for example, equipment ROSSO Smart 025 (10200 Euro) or 025 E Super (12600 Euro) is used. At the same time, 2 such machines (that is, 2 people are needed) are enough to process 100 thousand pairs per month (such a production volume corresponds to about 10 hosiery machines).
Various equipment can also be used for molding:
Manual molding involves the use of manual desktop equipment, which allows you to mold 4-5 socks at the same time. Productivity depends only on the productivity of the moulder. Such equipment costs about 2500 Euros.
For 10 hosiery machines and more, the use of automated equipment(forming takes place in a few seconds per sock, typical output is approximately 400 pairs per hour). The cost of such equipment (for example, brand R/12) is about 7000 Euros. Two R/12s (i.e. 2 people required) are enough to form 100,000 pairs per month. For better molding with the same production volume, you can use the equipment 837/SQ (23000 Euro).
Different equipment can be used for sewing labels and packaging, depending on what type of packaging you want:
Sewing a label on each pair or on a pack of 5-10 pairs
Packing each pair in a separate bag
Sewing on each pair of a separate label or hook
Packing 5 or 10 pairs or tying 10 pairs per pack, etc.
Usually, to calculate the main parameters of sock production, you need to determine:
Volume of production
The range of socks that you want to produce (cotton, p/w, with a color pattern, etc.), men's, women's, children's (as a rule, a separate hosiery machine is required for each type).
2. Production of tights
The technology for the production of thin nylon tights is more complicated and requires more steps than in the production of socks. Technological process includes: Knitting 2 tube-shaped blanks (use hosiery machines 30, 32, 34 classes, diameter 4 inches, 400 needles), 2 pieces are knitted for about 2 minutes. Then sewing operations, dyeing, molding, packaging are carried out.
The minimum number of machines is 12-15 (with a smaller number of equipment, the effective loading of the rest of the equipment is not ensured).
The cost of used machines - from 1000 Euro (contract price excluding delivery and customs clearance costs) -Matec, Lonati, Sangiacomo.
Sewing equipment (overlocks, sewing machines with a flat seam) second-hand costs from 1000 to 4000 Euros.
Used dyeing equipment - from 35,000 Euros (for example, "GRANDIS")
Used molding equipment - from 4000 Euros (for example, "E.R.M.E.S.T." (www.ermest.com) , Cortese,)
Used packaging equipment - 20-25 thousand Euros.
A complete set of used equipment (mini-factory) for the production of about 2 million pairs of tights per year costs from 150 to 200 thousand Euros.
A set of used equipment for the production of about 6-7 million pairs per year - about 1.0-1.25 million Euros (at the same time, a set of new equipment designed for such a capacity costs at least 2 million Euros).
Modern machines allow the production of any range of tights: traditional nylon, elastic with lycra, mesh, colored, with various patterns, etc.
It is also possible to produce tights for medical purposes (compression, slimming, etc.), for this, automatic machines with some additional features(e.g. BUSI IDEA Medical, Santoni Pendolina Medical, H.LUCAS, MERZ).
Auxiliary equipment
In addition to the knitting machines themselves, auxiliary equipment is required to organize a minimum production:
Overlock - usually several pieces. (the quantity depends on the number of knitting machines and production volume)
Sewing equipment (straight stitch machine) - usually several pieces.
Kettle machine
Equipment for moisture-heat treatment (usually an industrial installation for molding products, but novice manufacturers sometimes get by with heating elements). One industrial machine usually replaces several workers (usually 5-6 workers)
Sewing labels and packaging
The packaging equipment used depends significantly on the selected packaging option:
5 pairs per pack with tie-dye
Packed in a separate bag
With sewing on a plastic hook, etc.
Minimum options for organizing hosiery production
1) 2 hosiery machines + overlock + heating elements + manual packaging in packs - used as an initial option to “try” (productivity up to 20,000 pairs per month - with automatic machines working around the clock, the rest of the operations are done on a day shift)
2) 5 hosiery machines + used Rosso 011 (or new or used Smart 025) + new (or used R/12) + packaging equipment - a good starting option (capacity up to 50,000 pairs per month - with round-the-clock operation of machines, other operations are done on a day shift)
3) 10 hosiery machines + 2 pcs. Smart 025 (or 025 E Super) + 2 pcs. R/12 (or 837/SQ or 843/Steam) + packaging equipment is already serious small production(productivity up to 100,000 pairs per month - with round-the-clock operation of machines, the rest of the operations are done on a day shift.
Currently on Russian market plenty of synthetic yarn of all kinds and colors. Despite the fact that in terms of wear and appearance, synthetics are not inferior, but even superior to natural materials, wool and cotton yarn is valued much more, it is invariably in high demand for the manufacture of clothing and other household products. The factory production of cotton yarn can almost completely satisfy the demand of the country's population for wool and cotton yarn, both in terms of volume and assortment, but they will never be able to oust small enterprises from the market. After all, it is in these small divisions of the spinning business that the products are most diverse, here they are made from a variety of types of natural fibers and have their own unique qualities.
Based on these statements, it is quite reasonable for an entrepreneur with experience in the spinning industry to think about how to open a yarn production in Russia. Such use of human forces and means in our northern country will certainly be profitable, highly profitable and quickly paid off. How to organize activities for the production of natural yarn at the stage of establishing production is described in this article.
Raw material for making yarn
Natural yarn can be made from cotton and wool. The ways of obtaining these types of raw materials are completely different. If cotton is harvested from agricultural land in the form of cotton fields, then wool is obtained from animals. The main use of woolen yarn is knitwear production, the manufacture of fabrics from wool. It should have those high qualities that are characteristic of products made from natural fibers. Natural raw materials for the production of yarn can only be high-quality wool, even unprocessed, and cotton.
Making wool yarn starts with shearing animals. This operation is carried out by experts livestock farms away from spinning mills, weaving mills and factories.
Animals whose wool is used for the production of knitted yarn:
- Goats whose coat is especially soft, fluffy and light. In countries with a warm climate, Angora goats are specially bred, covered with the highest quality wool. In Russia, they also breed goats of this breed, mainly in the southern regions. The woolen cover of animals that are bred in the Kashmir region of the Orenburg region is simply unique for spinning enterprises.
- Sheep (Merino). The wool of these animals is also very soft, elastic and warm. Merino wool, bred in Australia, is considered unsurpassed in quality. The woolen raw materials of sheep, which are bred in Russia, also have good qualities.
- Angora rabbits, giving light downy wool to angora.
- Lamas living in South America. The wool of these animals, alpaca, is especially valuable for its unique qualities.
- Camels, whose wool is used in the production of blankets, mittens and other things designed to keep warm.
But by themselves, natural wool and cotton do not always meet the required qualities for making clothes. To increase the durability of natural fabrics, stronger natural or synthetic fibers are often added to their composition.
Natural yarn production technology
The high demand for yarn made from natural fibers is associated with their unique ability to protect the human body from heat loss. In addition, woolen products also have sufficient wear resistance, wearing comfort, and they have an excellent appearance.
The process of making yarn using wool raw materials contains many separate technological operations, which include:
- work on primary sorting and cleaning of raw materials;
- moisturizing with oil;
- repeated cleaning with combing and twisting, resulting in a semi-finished product in the form of strips of wool;
- winding strips of wool fibers on bobbins;
- spinning or twisting threads.
When processing cotton, it is first fed into the workshop from a warehouse. The first stage in the production of cotton yarn is the loosening and cleaning of the raw mass. At the same time, cotton bales are pressed into narrow bundles and cleaned from inclusions of foreign composition and other contaminants. At the same time, it is necessary to avoid damage to the fibrous structure of the raw material and unproductive losses.
Next, the raw material is sent to the carding machine for the production of ribbon yarn, where the fibers are opened and the microscopic impurities present on them are eliminated. Too short fibers are removed by combing, any knots are untangled and ribbons of parallel oriented cotton fibers are formed. Next, the tapes are sent to the draw frame, where the combing is repeated in order to align and parallelize the arrangement of the fibers. Ribbons are washed, bleached, rolled and ironed here.
In order for the tapes not to be rough, they are softened on roving looms before they are fed into the spinning machine. And only then they enter the ring-spinning machine. In this machine, the roving is rotated and twisted using ring frames. The criterion for yarn readiness is thinning to the required number. When the desired result is achieved, it is sent to winding machines. Winders wind the yarn onto bobbins, this is the last stage in the production of cotton yarn. On winding machines, the uniformity of yarn threads is improved, it is wound on cones there without loss of product quality.
High quality dyes for natural fibers are needed to dye the yarn in the required tones. Knitting threads obtained on spinning machines according to all the requirements of the yarn production technology are not divided into grades, their quality is assessed by technologists only visually. Although the technical documentation clearly stipulates all the parameters of the qualitative conformity of the finished product.
If the threads are poorly or unevenly colored, there are corkscrews and knots on them, if there are oil-like contaminations, then such a product is considered defective.
The final operation for the manufacture of natural yarn is its packaging using a winding machine. The final quality check of the finished product is carried out using an ultraviolet emitter.
Types of natural yarn
The production of knitted yarn allows you to obtain materials different kind and qualities, each of which is good in the manufacture of some specific items of clothing. In some cases, a material of high strength and wear is required, in others - fleecy and warm without presenting high requirements for strength.
Cardan-type cotton yarn, which is made only from fibers of medium length, has relatively high strength. It is not as loose and fleecy as varieties made from short fibers.
The combed type is considered the best, since only long fibers of the raw material are taken for its manufacture. When passing through the carding machines, the fiber threads are additionally straightened, get a parallel orientation in the tape and fit tightly to each other. This yarn is not as hairy and porous as other varieties, it has the highest breaking strength, and the threads are very thin, smooth.
To use the yarn in sewing shops that make knitwear, a thread thickness of up to 29 tex is required. For products with fleece, threads with a thickness of up to 80 tex are needed. But for knitting socks and stockings made of cotton, the thickness of the threads is allowed within 6-50 tex.
Cotton products are classified according to the methods of twisting tapes on machines. Threads can be twisted and twisted. The pulled thread is formed by connecting the fibers without twisting. But twisted threads are obtained just by twisting the fiber tape. Sometimes jerseys are made from shaped cotton yarn that is helically twisted and additionally has many specially knitted loops and knots along its length for strength.
A special article is the production of knitting yarn. These threads are mainly made from domestic or imported sheep's wool. Goat down is also good, to which synthetic fibers are added at the factory. Due to this additive, the knitting threads become strong enough, and the products themselves become wearable. Products of the middle and higher price segment have such important qualities, as lightness, the ability to retain heat and at the same time it is very comfortable to wear. To obtain a varied and rich color range of knitting threads, the company uses only dyes of the highest quality.
Spinning mill equipment
Enterprises of medium and large volumes of cotton and wool yarn production are equipped with expensive and sophisticated equipment. Maintenance of machines and auxiliary mechanisms can only be carried out by operators who have passed qualification training.
The main groups of spinning mill equipment include:
- machines for the manufacture of tape semi-finished product;
- raw material cleaners;
- scutching machines;
- accumulators of spinning semi-finished products;
- circular knitting machines;
- carding machines.
In order to dye the yarn in the desired color, you need a special dyeing booth, equipped with dyeing equipment and well ventilated.
To accommodate the entire complex of machine tools and machines, a large-scale production facility will be required, prepared in accordance with all the rules of supervisory services and inspections. All necessary communications must be present, including lighting, heat and sewerage. You will also need a separate building to house the offices of administrative workers, financiers and other services.
If you organize a small-scale workshop, then you can buy equipment for the production of yarn on the Internet sites of the relevant subject. The specialists of the company supplying the equipment provide their customers with effective assistance in the choice of the necessary machines with the required operating parameters, in full accordance with the requirements and characteristics of the yarn business to be opened, directly by communicating on the network. A selection is made of each individual machine for the production of yarn, each machine according to their productivity, quality of work and properties of the product, the production of which is aimed at new enterprise.
Any equipment of a yarn production plant should not be considered as separate elements of the technological chain, little connected with each other, but as a complex line of equipment, each stage of which is clearly interconnected with other divisions of the established production.
It is in great demand among craftswomen and looks as impressive as possible bright textured knitted yarn. Products from it look elegant, and laying the threads at different angles gives things extra chic and volume.
Description
Knitted yarn is a type of large, very stretchy threads. Due to their elasticity, they are very comfortable to work with and become an ideal option for making various types of decor, rugs and even women's handbags. Now manufacturers offer us many different options for its colors and sizes. Balls can be patterned or plain.
Yarn Method
Knitting thread requires the right selection of hook and approach to work. There are a number of aspects that are recommended to be followed.
Density. This one is very good for making openwork rugs, here it is important to pay attention to the number of loops cast on. To prevent the product from going in waves, reduce them according to the pattern, and rounded edges can be avoided if you place air crochets on the pattern in time.
Quantity. Depends on the density of the threads and the intended pattern. Knitted yarn products always look airy and voluminous, so it hallmark can be called good economy.
Technique. It depends on a specific model, but experienced craftswomen recommend knitting with a double thread to seal the walls in knitted bags, baskets and various decor options. This saves costs and makes the product of high quality.
Hook. Knitted yarn can be of different thicknesses, the size of the hook depends on it, most often the work is done by No. 12 and No. 15. The size of the future product depends entirely on the diameter of the selected hook.
Self-manufacturing
Knitted yarn is offered in a large assortment, but for the manufacture of small home rugs it is quite possible to prepare it from improvised material.
- You will need various kinds (children's things, old T-shirts) and scissors.
- Larger sizes are cut perpendicular to the grooves in the jersey. The width of the stripes should be at least two to three centimeters.
- It is better to cut small things without cutting the product to the end. In this way, you can get a long thread that does not need to be additionally connected with knots.
- Due to its properties, knitted yarn is perfectly twisted, and in order to achieve its uniform thickness, it is enough just to stretch the threads well and gently wind them into a ball.
Even if the density of the threads will vary slightly, in the openwork form of weaving, for which it is used this species elastic yarn, this will not be noticeable.
Use cases
From such a multifunctional thread, you can make a lot of unusual and very practical things, most often craftswomen use it for the following purposes:
- knitting openwork rugs;
- as a lining for soft comfortable puffs;
- in various decor options - vases, baskets;
- create original and stylish women's bags, backpacks, clutches;
- unusual jewelry - bracelets, headbands, etc.
Working with such threads does not require special preparation, and products made from it look very impressive.
Designers of Russian brands often form the basic assortment of collections from knitwear. But, as a rule, young brands work with cut knitwear and make print runs at ordinary sewing factories. At the same time, the bridge segment relies on knitwear, using premium quality yarns.
Tatyana Zatravina, director of the Ecolife knitting factory, founded the Free Age Fashion clothing brand a year after the appearance knitting production. Among the customers of the factory today are the companies " Child's world”, Setila, Rich Family, Silver Spoon.
We asked Tatyana to tell us about the specifics of working with knitted and cut knitwear, the minimum runs for ordering a batch of products, the types of yarn, and the specifics of developing designs and cuts for knitwear models.
Tatyana Zatravina,
CEO and the owner of the Ecolife company, the founder of the Free Age Fashion brand
How organized the production cycle in knitwear?
Knitting factories are of two types: those that produce cut knitwear, and those that produce knitted. The production of cut knitwear is also divided into two types - full and partial cycle.
Full-cycle factories produce knitted fabrics from gray thread on high-class machines (from 18 to 24, sometimes higher), they are equipped with circular knitting and warp knitting machines, equipment for weaving, various interlock and footer weaves. After sorting, the resulting canvas is sent to the finishing shop, where it is bleached, dyed, printed, and piled. After resting, the fabric goes to the cutting room, then to tailoring, and then it goes through the final ironing. Partial-cycle production, producing cut knitwear, buys the finished fabric needed for a particular order, and sews the products.
In the production of knitted knitwear, the technological chain is also quite long, but still radically different. Firstly, such factories are equipped with flat knitting machines: the “lowest” machines are usually 3rd class, and the “highest” ones are 18th class. The higher the number, the higher the class of the machine, and the thinner the canvas it produces. But it should be borne in mind that high-end machines require high-quality yarn, and this affects the price of the resulting product. Accordingly, the more expensive the yarn, the more expensive the knitting, since products from high-quality yarn are produced only in a regular way.
Then knitted coupons / semi-finished products are washed - this is a prerequisite, regardless of the composition of the raw material and the quality of the processed thread. After washing, the products go through a preliminary wet-heat treatment (WTO).
After complete drying and resting, semi-finished products are cut or trimmed as necessary. Next, the prepared cut is sewn off, kettle and pre-marked. After that, the final WTO takes place and the finished models are checked by the quality control section. Products with marking are packed and sent to the warehouse of finished products.
What materials are used in the production of knitwear, depending on seasonality?
The capacity of our company is quite large - about 200,000 products per year. We produce more than half of this circulation for third-party customers, so we work with various types yarn. The main demand for knitwear falls on the cold season and, of course, depending on the season, the composition of the yarn changes. In the autumn-winter collections, yarns containing wool, mohair, cashmere predominate; for summer, viscose, linen, and silk are more often chosen. Although now it is not entirely correct to divide the yarn by seasons - especially if we are talking about St. Petersburg or Moscow. Silk is often used for the winter assortment, and cashmere and merino for the summer, but this changes the class of machines, model and knitting density.
We mainly work with natural yarns. For mass production, we buy blended and shrink yarns in China - they are cheaper than Italian counterparts. We prefer to buy cotton in Uzbekistan and there are reasons for this: price, logistics, thread quality. Wool mixture for mass-market collections of our customers, we buy Russian or Belarusian. When it comes to small volumes, we work with Italian yarns and Mongolian cashmere - for our own Free age Fashion brand, we use only these materials.
What features exist in the design and cut of knitwear?
There are features. Let's start with the fact that a designer who works with cut knitwear will not be able to work on a knitted product without special training. When creating a design, it is important to understand and feel the degree of extensibility of the fabric from which the model will be created, and also take into account the structure of the weave. The designer must understand what can happen to the fabric during its processing, and anticipate possible deformations throughout the entire production chain. You need to imagine in advance how to correctly make the gradation, taking into account the pattern and weave of each model, in order to make the work of the dessinator as easy as possible.
The construction of structures for cut knitwear is close to garments. There may be darts, undercuts, reliefs, but everywhere there are seams processed with an overlock, which cuts the structure of knitwear. In regular knitwear, all edges of each piece are knitted clean along the contour of the pattern. Such products are assembled on a cattel, the seams are thin, do not violate the loop structure.
A designer-knitter is also a bit of a technologist-knitter, since when constructing the constructive lines of an armhole, an eyelet, a neck, he uses not smooth, but broken lines, along which it will be easier for a dessinator to create a knitting program. Patterns are obtained adapted to knitting equipment.
What circulations do knitwear productions work with?
The most expensive is the product development process. An enterprise with a fleet of machines and staff, designed for mass production, is not interested in orders for five items. The cost of developing one model can start from 15 thousand rubles and up to infinity - depending on the complexity. We work with circulations of 500-1000 units, from 300 in the bridge segment. It is extremely rare that we take batches of up to 100 pieces into work, but not during the high season for manufacturers.
How does a designer choose the right knitwear production?
It is advisable to choose production with full cycle, which includes washing and high-quality wet-heat treatment. There are knitting factories that operate in a semi-regular way: they do not use or use very little processing of products on knitting machines - this is the most expensive sewing operation on knitwear.
The designer must clearly understand what kind of product he wants to get at the output: how and by what technology the models should be made, what quality the canvas should be. Perhaps it should be cut knitwear, not knitted. If knitted, then in what way obtained - regular or semi-regular. This directly affects the cost and quality of the product. In the case of knitwear, you also need to understand what class of machines to use for production, and look for a factory with the appropriate equipment fleet.
Can ordinary sewing production to work with cut knitwear with high quality?
I can say with complete certainty - no. Any properly planned production is aimed at a certain manufactured assortment, to which all equipment is oriented. Therefore, cut knitwear can be made only by those industries that have sewing machines for knitwear processing: overlocks for thin and medium-sized fabrics, lockstitch universal lockstitch machines with a fine comb that does not leave marks and holes on the fabric, two- and three-needle flat-seam chain stitch machines (the so-called stitching machines), machines for punching loops with laying a corsage thread, high-quality equipment for the implementation of the WTO.
