Precision gear metering specialist Slack & Parr will showcase its range of fluid metering technologies for speciality fibres alongside its updated Spin Finish Pump for the polyester market at ITMA Asia in Shanghai, China.
The company supplies its high-accuracy gear metering pumps to all areas of the manmade fibre market where they are used to deliver uniformity and consistency into the manufacture of high-quality yarns and textiles including acrylic, polyester, nylon, spandex, and aramid.
At ITMA Asia, the company will highlight its precision metering capability for speciality fibres including carbon fibre, recycled polymers, and industrial yarns such as tire cord, and reveal how its pumps are developed to meet the unique requirements of every application.
“Matching our metering technologies to the exact needs of our customers’ businesses is an important part of what we do,” explains Slack & Parr’s Global Sales Director Paul Wykes.
“Thanks to our highly skilled and experienced design and engineering teams, we’re very good at tailoring our solutions for niche markets and speciality fibres. That might mean selecting the most robust build materials and low-wear surface finishes for the metering of high-viscosity and abrasive fluids used in industrial applications, or engineering a pump to the highest tolerances to maintain an extremely accurate flow of resin at variable speeds in order to create high-value carbon fibre composite materials and parts, such as hydrogen fuel cells, batteries, and storage tanks.”
Spin Finish Pump
This will also be the first time the company has brought its newly redesigned SPO Spin Finish Pump to the Asia-Pacific market since the technology was launched at ITMA, Milan, in June. The pump has been re-engineered with fewer components and a modular design that is simple and cost-effective to operate and maintain but capable of very high levels of accuracy. It has been developed for the application of finish emulsions onto filaments typically used in hot-melt manufacture of POY and FDY polyester yarns. Featuring a compact design and robust build, it is used to meter and apply oil-based emulsions onto yarns to improve efficiency in downstream processes and offers capacities down to 0.014cc/rev with very high accuracy including at low speeds.
UK-headquartered Slack & Parr has been selling its technologies into the Asia-Pacific region for over 30 years and operates dedicated service centres in Shanghai, China and Douliu, Taiwan. The region accounts for 60% of the company’s total global revenues.
“It’s great to be back at ITMA Asia sharing our technologies with our customers and colleagues in what is a very important region for us,” says Paul Wykes.
“The show heralds what we hope is the beginning of a new chapter in Asia’s textile manufacturing sector as the market emerges from the impacts of the Covid pandemic.
“While we’re seeing early signs of an upturn in polyester production in the region, we’re also feeling the market shift and evolve to encompass new and innovative methodologies for fast-growing sectors such as carbon fibre composites and recycled polymers. These are exciting developments and we’re very well positioned to support the ongoing growth anticipated in these areas.”
Manufacturing investment
In August, Slack & Parr was acquired by Hayward Tyler Fluid Handling, a subsidiary of international engineering company Avingtrans plc. As part of the deal, in which Slack & Parr retained its entire management team and secured the employment of its 100-strong workforce of skilled employees, the company is now making a series of strategic investments in its manufacturing equipment and processes.
“We’ve built a global reputation for delivering gear metering pumps of the highest quality and precision over many decades,” explains Paul Wykes.
“This year’s ITMA Asia gives us the opportunity to demonstrate to the Asia-Pacific market that our position is strengthened as a result of us becoming part of Avingtrans, including through strategic investments to improve our manufacturing and operating efficiency.
“Our current phase of development focuses on investing in our manufacturing technologies. Our aim is to push levels of accuracy, reliability, and performance of our pumps even further while at the same time manufacturing them in a way that is more energy efficient. Using more technically advanced machinery to manufacture our equipment will lead to faster set-up speeds, less operational downtime, and improved delivery times.
“We believe that in doing so we will strengthen our position at the forefront of the market and our ability to deliver the highest quality gear metering pumps in the world in a way that meets our customers’ specific objectives for decades to come.”
