logo
logo
Sign in

From Yarn to Thread: Exploring the Process of Thread Manufacturing

avatar
Coats Group
From Yarn to Thread: Exploring the Process of Thread Manufacturing

The art of thread manufacturing is continuously evolving to meet the changing quality standards and trends in the clothing and apparel industry. Modern manufacturing practices have introduced new techniques like air jet texturising, intermingling, and texturising, which have allowed for the creation of continuous filament constructions in a single-ply format. 

 

Materials

 

Most sewing threads nowadays are predominantly made from synthetic materials such as polyester or nylon, largely superseding the traditional use of natural fibres like cotton and linen. That said, cotton remains the preferred choice when it comes to handicraft threads. But in instances where machinery is used to achieve the handicraft effect—such as in logo embroidery— synthetic threads are quickly becoming the go-to replacement for cotton and rayon.

 

Filaments and fibres for sewing threads are chosen based on these characteristics: 

 

·    Recovery and elasticity

·    Elongation at break

·    Abrasion resistance

·    Flammability and heat resistance

·    Tenacity or the strength relevant to thread size  

 

Spinning cotton and polyester fibres involves several steps:

 

1.   Opening - The bales of staple fibre are opened and blended in this initial step.

 

2.   Cleaning - This step, applicable only to cotton, aims to remove dirt, leaf, and seed fragments mixed with the fibres.

 

3.   Carding - In this stage, fibres in lap form pass through Cards, which separates and purifies them further. They are then formed into a sliver or a tow, akin to a rope of fibre.

 

4.   1st Stage Drawing - Generally, six or eight slivers are merged and stretched out into a single sliver using a drafting roller system. This machine operates by spinning the front rollers faster than the back ones.

 

5.   Sliver Lap Forming - Only for cotton, multiple slivers are fed into the Sliver Lap machine, which aligns them, draws them out, and rolls them up into a lap.

 

6.   Ribbon Lap Forming - In this step, again specific to cotton, several laps are stacked and fed into a Ribbon/lap machine. The resulting product is another lap, serving as the input for the combing machine.

 

7.   Combing - The laps are presented to the Comber, which combs out short fibres and aligns the remaining long ones, returning them to a sliver form.

 

8.   Draw Frame - 2nd Stage Drawing - After combing (only for cotton), several slivers are combined and fed through the post-comb draw frame to reduce irregularities and to parallelize fibres.

 

9.   Slivering 2 - For polyester fibres, the second drawing stage replaces the sliver lap, ribbon lap, and post-combed drawing steps, leading to a shorter process route.

 

10. Roving - The sliver from the previous step is then drawn down to a weight appropriate for ring spinning, producing a thinner sliver known as a Roving. A light twist is added to provide the Roving some strength.

 

11. Ring Spinning - In this final stage, the Roving is thinned to the required weight or thickness, and a twist is added for strength. The resultant yarn is then wound onto a ring tube.

 

12. Core Spinning - If the thread is to be a Corespun thread, then a pre-stabilised yarn of Continuous Filament Polyester is introduced into the spinning process.

 

13. Tow Spun Polyester Threads - These threads, also known as Schappe, Craq, or Tow Spun yarns, are produced by stretching a tow of continuous filaments to the breaking point, resulting in variable but longer staple fibres.

 

14. Clearing, Splicing, and Winding - Post-spinning, yarn is taken from the ring tubes, checked for faults, spliced together to produce longer lengths, and then wound.

 

15. Assembly Winding - In this stage, "cleared" yarns are assembled into a suitable package for the twisting machines.

 

These processes are designed to blend the staple fibres, align them in parallel, and enhance regularity, thereby preparing them to be converted into "grey" or "greige" thread.

 

Got questions?

 

Coats is a leading manufacturer of threads with extensive experience in producing many different types using proven and advanced construction methods and technologies.

 

The team at Coats is ready to address questions or concerns about thread manufacturing, so feel free to contact them. With their help, you can be assured that you are using high-quality sewing threads that can increase your sewing line’s productivity.

 

About the Author:

 

Coats is the world’s leading industrial thread company. They are headquartered in the UK, with a workforce of 17,000 in 50 countries across six continents around the world. Coats provide complementary and value-adding products, services and software solutions to the Apparel & Footwear industries. Coats apply innovative techniques to develop high technology Performance Materials threads, yarns and fabrics in areas such as Transportation, Telecoms and Energy, and Personal Protection.

Our vision is to be the world’s leading industrial textiles company delivering innovation, digital solutions and sustainable value to all stakeholders.

collect
0
avatar
Coats Group
guide
Zupyak is the world’s largest content marketing community, with over 400 000 members and 3 million articles. Explore and get your content discovered.
Read more