Under the motto ‘My Stoll. My Future’, leading flat knitting machine builder, Stoll will present a variety of highly productive flat knitting machines as a representative cross section of its CMS machine program at Shanghaitex, which opens today, along with several software applications and a range of interesting and innovative patterns developed especially for the exhibition.

New CMS HP models

Besides flexibility and reliability, productivity is a key element of modern knitting machines and during Shanghaitex 2009, Stoll will present some new approaches to increase further the productivity and use of its CMS knitting machines. For several models within the CMS machine range, designated HP machines, productivity increases up to 14% depending on certain parameters and gauge. As well as faster carriage reversal and higher carriage speed the HP machines have shorter knitting systems which help improve productivity. Stoll plans to mass produce the HP machines immediately after the Shanghaitex exhibition.

Enhanced Multi-Gauges

As another important success factor the Stoll Multi Gauge segment will also be highlighted during the exhibition. The flexibility of the Stoll Multi Gauge machines have been further enhanced and this will be demonstrated in an exemplary range of fabrics in which various gauges and sophisticated pattern effects will be shown using one and the same machine. The enhanced Multi Gauge machines allow higher stitch density towards the fine gauge, without limiting the coarse range.

New CMS entry level models

Another highlight at Shanghaitex will be the upgrading and re-positioning of Stoll’s entry models into the compact and multi gauge classes. These new machines will be named as CMS 502 and CMS 502 multi gauge offering two knitting systems, 45 inch working width, take-down comb and cutting and clamping on the right hand side.  Additional new features are additional yarn feed on the left hand side, moveable display-slide, more yarn control units and two adjustable plating yarn feeders. The machines also have effectively adjustable main take-down, higher productivity and also new gauges E16, E8.2 and E18.

Complete garment knitting

Complete garments will be another important topic in Shanghai and on display will be a Knit & Wear machine for the production of finer complete garments as well as a Knit & Wear machine being capable of producing in contrast extremely coarse complete garments with the highest output even in ‘extreme’ sizes because of its enormous 84 inch working width. In addition new pattern possibilities will impressively demonstrate the economic efficiency of complete garment production with Stoll-Knit & Wear.

Intarsia and plating accessories

Also on display will be an interesting selection from the customer-oriented Stoll parts and accessories program. Stoll has always offered practical accessories for many operational areas and machine applications. For example in the area of intarsia knitting some of the machines on display are equipped with the company’s intarsia kit enabling intarsia knitting with up to 32 optimized intarsia yarn carriers and even 2x16 clamping and cutting points (optional). The especially compact design of Stoll’s optimized intarsia yarn carriers enables an even closer yarn carrier staggering on a yarn carrier rail, resulting in even more colours within a given fabric width. Another user-oriented solution is Stoll’s range of plating accessories. For the plating effects frequently required today, Stoll has developed new plating yarn feeder and even a complete plating kit with a special holder and breaking system for easier adjustment for the use of a broad range of plating applications. The new plating yarn feeders and new yarn feeder carriages are adjustable in both directions, vertically and horizontally.

New yarn measuring device

Stoll will also exhibit a new yarn measuring device for the first time during the fair. This device, named ASCON (Automatic Stitch Control) offers a completely new hardware unit and innovative improvements such as reduced time for measuring and setting the NPK value, much more sensitive setting of reference values for stitch lengths, master-piece functions whereby values can be stored and loaded into other machine of same type and smaller controllable knitting widths.

Stoll also offers for its machines a vast range of original spare and consumable parts. At the exhibition, the company will show a ‘spare parts cabinet’ to demonstrate some examples of the range and quality of Stoll’s spare parts offerings.

Software upgrading

Several elements of the Stoll Software Solutions offer have been further developed and stand for simpler, more effective and more economical pattern creation and knitting processes.

In addition, the core element, M1plus pattern software, has been further enhanced and upgraded now offering even more automatic functions and operating elements for the programmer. This includes enhancements for fully-fashion programming for the Stoll CMS 822 machine and Intarsia programming, as the upgraded version offers automatic yarn carrier allocation proposing with multi-colour intarsia patterns. There are also more possibilities for size modifications by means of counters and new and advanced drawing tools. In addition all functions for Stoll Knit & Wear are now standard the M1plus pattern software.

Knitwear samples on display

On the new CMS 502 multi gauge in gauge E3,5.2, a Stoll-multi gauges dress will be knitted. It has a 3-D wedge form knitted cup with ripples for getting volume and pointelle net structure on gauge transition. The dress is knitted by using the plating technique for flexible yarn ends. The fabric front and back are knitted in sequence and the dress has coarse and fine fields. The machine can be used totally flexibly due to its compact dimensions and two knitting systems.

With the CMS 530 HP in gauge E18, a fully-fashioned waistcoat for women will be knitted where the left and right front pieces are knitted simultaneously. The waistcoat has a 2 colour double layer with transfer structure. The intarsia fields are affiliated with yarn tension discs and the knitting time is 24 mins for one front. Stoll says that with a gauge range from E 5 to E 18, a working width of 50"/127 cm and three systems, the CMS 530 HP knits even complex patterns quickly and even more productively. One major plus, during bind-off is 4 inch racking as standard, the company says.

A CMS 822 HP multi gauge in E3,5.2 will be exhibited as well. The gauge range for this model is from E2,5.2 to E 8.2, and at Shanghaitex, a Stoll-multi gauges waistcoat with French shoulder will be knitted. The waistcoat has the patented Stoll-applications pocket. The CMS 822 HP multi gauge tandem machine knits two pieces simultaneously with a working width of 2 x 42"/2 x 107 cm, and with coupled carriages up to 84"/213 cm are available.

The gauge range of the CMS 730 S Knit & Wear, which will be exhibited goes from E 3,5.2 to E 9.2. It is equipped with three systems and a working width of 72”/183cm. At the exhibition a Stoll-knit and wear men´s sweater in gauge E7.2 will be knitted. The sweater has a Fair Isle narrowing and has an integrally knitted reverse jersey collar by holding stitches.

Spring-Summer 2010 Trend Collections

In addition to the afore mentioned machine patterns, Stoll’s Fashion & Technology department will exhibit within a dedicated area, the new Stoll China Trend Collection Spring / Summer 2010 ‘live’ and the German Trend Collection Spring/Summer 2010 ‘Stripes’ will be shown. These Trend Collections are a mix of collections designed and developed both in Reutlingen, Germany and in Shanghai, China.

Another topic which will be covered in this area is Stoll’s so called ‘benchmark patterns’. These patterns are knitted especially effective and reliably on Stoll machines demonstrating the high efficiency and capability of Stoll machines compared to many other knitting machines. The company says that the reason for this efficiency and reliability in knitting the patterns is the design of Stoll machines, for example the Stoll-needle or the holding-down technology.

Another highlight of Stoll’s Fashion & Technology services is the recently launched ‘Pattern Library’, which allows customers to order trend books of knitted swatches from the company’s highly regarded Trend Collections, which are normally only available in printed and digital format each season.

The Pattern Library consists of A4 sized knit swatches developed for the company’s Trend Collections and customers can create their own individual physical pattern archive by subscribing to the Pattern Library for multiple seasons. In addition, customers can also navigate and research each of the individual archive books via the online pattern database at www.stollpattern.com  , a worldwide unique service.

Thousands of interesting Stoll patterns are meanwhile stored in the Stoll Pattern-Database and are available via the company’s website worldwide at any time. The patterns can be found easily due to sophisticated search functions such as machine types, gauges, nominal widths, style and much more. Stoll customers also profit from detailed information and the download of the pattern software.