Introduction: The dual advantages of energy conservation and flexibility are reshaping the global loom market landscape
In the current era of accelerated transformation in the global textile industry, the key choices facing weaving enterprises have never been so clear: Which weaving technology to choose will directly affect their competitiveness in the next five to ten years. The era when speed was king is fading away, and a technological revolution about efficiency, flexibility and sustainability is quietly unfolding in global weaving workshops.
The debate over technical routes: Speed vs. Flexibility
Amid the roar of the weaving workshop, two mainstream weaving machine technologies - the lancet loom and the jet loom - are engaged in a war without gunfire.
The jet loom, with an astonishing speed of over 1,000 weaves per minute, has always been the preferred choice for mass production. When processing lightweight to medium-weight fabrics (such as shirt fabrics, bed sheets), its high-speed production capacity is unparalleled. This speed advantage is accompanied by high energy costs: compressed air consumption accounts for more than 30% of its total energy consumption. In today's era of rising energy prices, this has become an undeniable weakness.
The loom with a shuttle mechanism exhibits a different technological philosophy. Although the speed is usually between 600 and 750 weaves per minute, its strong adaptability to yarns makes it an ideal choice for high-value-added products. Whether it is elastic fibers, fancy yarns or high-twist yarns, the shuttle loom can handle them with ease, opening the door to the production of denim, decorative fabrics and jacquard fabrics.
The experience of a medium-sized weaving factory in Bangladesh is quite representative: three years ago, they fully adopted jet looms, but now they have added 40% more warping looms. "The market demands that we produce more diverse products," said the manager Rahman. "Without warping looms, we simply can't get orders from high-end customers."
Decision Factors in 2025: Beyond Speed Considerations
As the global textile industry enters 2025, the criteria for equipment selection have fundamentally changed:
Energy efficiency becomes a core competitiveness
Under the trend of carbon neutrality, the low energy consumption feature of the warping loom is evolving from an "add-on" to a "must-have". Compared with the jet loom, the warping loom can reduce energy consumption by 25-30%, which is particularly important for manufacturing enterprises in Asia where energy costs account for a significant proportion.
2. The demand for product diversification has sharply increased.
The decline of fast fashion and the rise of personalized consumption have led to the adoption of small-batch, multi-variety production as the mainstream. The ability of shuttle looms to switch product types without the need to replace a large number of components significantly reduces the time and cost for variety changes.
3. Re-definition of Return on Investment
Behind the seemingly higher output per machine of jet looms lies hidden costs such as maintenance of the compressed air system, requirements for high-quality yarn, and higher waste rates. Warped looms, with their lower overall operating costs and longer equipment lifespan, are gaining the favor of more and more investors with long-term vision.
Mixed Strategy: The Third Option for Forward-looking Enterprises
In the face of these two technological paths, some innovative enterprises have begun to adopt the "mixed configuration strategy" - they have set up both types of looms in the workshop simultaneously.
The brilliance of this strategy lies in:
Allocate production tasks based on the characteristics of the orders: Large quantities of standard products are processed using jet looms, while small quantities of high-value-added products are processed using shuttle looms.
Adjust production proportions according to energy price fluctuations: Reduce the operation of jet looms during peak electricity hours.
Optimize equipment utilization: Adjust the investment ratio of the two looms flexibly according to market trends 1
A textile enterprise in Yuncheng, Shandong Province successfully increased the overall equipment utilization rate to 92% by implementing a mixed strategy.