Impressions - May 2021 - 40

Inline thread colorization allows
embroiderers to create samples
using virtually any thread color
without worrying whether
you have it in stock.
Photo courtesy of Coloreel.

With inline thread colorization, you can achieve
a variety of different effects that otherwise would
be extremely difficult or impossible to reproduce.
Photo courtesy of Coloreel.

tension preference.As a result, the machine
doesn't have any consistent tension.
One important factor that people fail to
realize is that tension can vary according
to the type of stitch, which further creates
irregular tension. Enter automated tension
management, an innovation that enables
the machine to analyze a stitch file and
adjust to the proper tension instead of
operators having to do it manually.The
machine knows when a stitch type is a
run, satin or fill. It also learns based on
the material being stitched, as different
material thicknesses can affect thread
usage.This results in consistent tensions
for all stitch types.
Inline Thread Colorization: With
this process, the thread is colorized as it is
being fed to the embroidery machine.This
is a tremendous innovation that serves a
variety of needs.
One of the most creative needs it
handles is true color blending.Thread is
blended to perfection and you can achieve
a variety of different effects that otherwise
would be extremely difficult or impossible to reproduce. Another benefit is the
ability to create samples using virtually
P.40

any thread color without worrying about
whether you have it in stock.
With inline thread colorization, a single,
specially coated white thread is used. It
progresses through the colorizing, drying
and lubrication processes. Since the thread
is colorized inline, the embroidery machine doesn't have to trim to do a color
change, which results in a very smooth
backside on an embroidered garment.With
this process, variations among multiple
designs are normal.
Speed: How fast can an embroidery
machine operate? That's like asking how
fast a car can be driven. Different automobiles have different top-end speeds,
but most drivers never experience them.
People operate their vehicles at safe cruising speeds based on road conditions.
Embroidery machines are the same.
Innovation is driving machine speeds
higher, but the important factor is the
machine's proper cruising speed based
on the product and design being embroidered. Speed causes friction, which is a
culprit of thread breaks.Always evaluate
machine speed based on a realistic cruising
speed.With greater speed comes greater

risk.The challenge is to find the perfect
cruising speed for the conditions.
Visual Hooping Alignment: These
systems help ensure a design is properly
positioned within the hoop and on the
garment.This could relate to positioning
a design above or on a pocket; properly
aligning a design in relation to the placket;
getting precise placement on a striped
garment; or aligning left- and right-chest
embroidery. These hooping-alignment
systems can be as simple as a laser crosshair, a projected grid or the actual design
being projected - at scale - onto the
garment that is being hooped.
Machine Networking: Finally, innovations in machine networking have reached
new and impressive levels.Two-way communication - where the embroidery
machine reports important statistics -
help shop owners or managers get a true
gauge on the production environment.
Reports that provide details about design, production, thread breaks and more
help increase productivity. Seeing issues
in real time can help an organization take
the necessary steps to solve them as they
happen, rather than after the fact.
An example of this would be repeated
thread breaks. An operator may simply
keep fixing the thread break and restarting the machine. However, doing this
doesn't solve the problem.With two-way
communication, the embroidery machine
can report excessive thread breaks to a
manager or technician so that the problem
can be corrected.
Other components of two-way
communication include the ability to
automatically set thread colors when a
design is loaded; automatically adjust machine speed based on the garment type;
or send messages to the machine's control
panel to alert an operator of a specific
design instruction.
As necessity continues to dictate everything and technology continues to be
the driver, embroiderers can rest assured
there's innovation that's in development
and eagerly awaiting its debut. 
Ed Levy has more than 25 years of apparel-decorating
experience. Levy, who's director of software technologies for Hirsch Solutions, is an in-demand speaker
at trade shows and regular contributor to industry
magazines. For more information or to comment
on this article, email Ed at ed@hsi.us.

I M P R E S S I O N S M A G . C O M MAY 2021

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Impressions - May 2021

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