Goksun Ozensoy
Marketing Manager Color Service s.r.l.
Our systems aim to save energy, labour, and chemicals
Color Service, established in 1987, is a world leader in developing and manufacturing automatic dispensing systems for various industries including textiles, rubber, tyres, cosmetics, and plastics. The company, renowned for its Made in Italy engineering, revolutionises industries by solving issues with manual weighing of powder products and continually innovating through a dedicated R&D department. In an interview with Fibre2Fashion, Marketing Manager Goksun Ozensoy discusses the company’s new launched Color Dyeing system at the recently concluded ITMA 2023 in Milan.
ITMA has often been referred to as the “Olympics of textile and garment technology industry”. Could you elaborate on the significance of ITMA for industry leaders and innovators? How important is it for companies to make a strong showing at the exhibition?
ITMA is a significant showcase of technology, development, and innovation for textile machine manufacturers, bringing all producers together every four years. However, in my opinion, ITMA is losing its influence. The eastern part of the world is no longer participating, as they now have ITMA-Asia. Furthermore, Middle Eastern countries prefer visiting ITM in Turkey. The main reason is the improvement in communication facilities. With the use of web pages, video conferencing, and virtual reality, there's no longer a necessity to visit exhibitions to see new technologies. The media helps buyers to see all without leaving their place.
I can say that for many producers, ITMA is more a matter of prestige rather than a place to bring together sellers and buyers. This is because face-to-face business is becoming less prevalent in today's world.
How was Color Service’s experience at ITMA 2023 in Milan? Could you describe the reaction from attendees to the launch of the Color Dyeing system?
There has been a considerable interest in Color Dyeing. It is clear that lots are getting smaller, and the variety of products is increasing. Compared to ten years ago, producers have had to create many more samples in recent years. As a result, the demand for lab work is growing. We noticed this trend in the market and decided to invest. In fact, this is the third generation of our lab dyeing machine, and we believe that Color Dyeing has found a good place in the market.
What are the unique features of the Color Dyeing system that sets it apart from other dyeing systems presented at the event?
Firstly, we designed the machine vertically to save lab space. Furthermore, it is expandable and entirely independent from the pipetting machine. It can be installed anywhere in the lab and connected to the pipetting machine via dye/chemical transfer pipes.
Another advantage is its independent control. It is possible to dye completely different recipes. Color Dyeing also includes a function to inject chemicals under pressure, which is necessary for polyester dyeing. Some clients want to add a specific chemical under pressure before cooling down to improve colour fastness.
We view Color Dyeing as an extension of our existing pipetting automation SMP. Our pipetting technology is superior, boasting unique features. Essentially, we wanted to complete our product suite.
The system highlights sustainability and efficient use of raw materials. Can you elaborate on how these principles are applied in the technology?
Color Service’s production range focuses on automation. We aid our customers in utilising resources efficiently. Precise and timely dosing of dyes and chemicals are the primary functions of our systems. Naturally, we assist customers in achieving efficient dyeing. We reduce the redyeing ratio and the idle time for dye machines. When dyeing becomes more efficient, sustainability and environmental conservation naturally follow.
Given the high emphasis on energy efficiency and water conservation in the new Color Dyeing system, how do these features compare to your previous products or those of your competitors?
Our systems aim to save energy, labour, and chemicals. As I mentioned before, these are the primary functions of our systems. In this regard, simply adding our systems to an existing dye house or printing house can make a significant difference in energy and water savings. For instance, our printing automation makes the production of printing pastes very accurate and allows for easy repetition of the same colour without fail. Rather than producing more in the beginning, it is possible to add when required in smaller portions. Preparing large quantities in advance to avoid repeat preparations often leads to operators draining the remaining printing paste. This is not cost-effective and places undue stress on water treatment plants.
With your new system providing a perfect simulation of the production dyeing cycle, can you explain how this is advantageous for potential customers?
Reproducing lab samples in production machines has been a significant problem since the beginning. Each dyehouse has some sort of correction factor between lab and production. Of course, this is not a 100 per cent accurate way to handle the situation. However, with Color Dyeing, we aim to eliminate this difficulty. Customers can transfer recipes directly from the lab to production. Conversely, they can dye using the same production recipe in the lab and achieve the same results. This is a substantial advantage for our customers.
Could you describe the feedback you received from customers at ITMA regarding the space-saving vertical design of the dyeing units?
This is the first time a machine has been positioned vertically in a lab. In addition to all other advantages, installing a machine in this manner was quite surprising for customers. Some customers expressed that they wanted to invest in lab dyeing machines but could not find the space before. They have been truly impressed by our vertical design.
The Color Dyeing system includes automatic chemical transfers during the dyeing cycle and under high temperature and pressure conditions. How have these features improved the overall efficiency of the dyeing process?
Our goal during the design of this machine was to precisely simulate production. We noticed that new dye machines also had this kind of function, so we decided to incorporate it into Color Dyeing. Otherwise, it would not be possible to simulate polyester dyeing in an accurate manner, which is crucial for the machine’s intended purpose. We are now confident that Color Dyeing can simulate polyester dyeing as effectively as it can simulate cotton dyeing.
In terms of performance and high-level technology, what kind of impact do you expect the Color Dyeing system to have in the textile industry?
While there are many lab dyeing machines in the market, most of them still require manual intervention. Additionally, they are all designed as extensions of pipetting machines, which makes the pipetting machines very large, making it impossible to add components later. We aim to give customers the freedom to invest over time and in conjunction with a pipetting system. The high-tech loading/unloading of samples and the ability to operate round the clock are significant advantages in reducing human error.
Finally, what are the future plans of Color Service in terms of product development and innovation, particularly after the positive response at ITMA 2023?
We plan to continue developing Color Dyeing. In the future, two more versions will be released: a yarn dyeing model and a completely independent version with external side tanks. In the latter case, customers may be able to use Color Dyeing even without a pipetting system.
Published on: 22/06/2023
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
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