Alphatex Consulting





Software und Consulting


Company Profile

- We ask the right questions!
- Over 30 years of experience

Company Profile

With the Industry 4.0 initiative many companies are pondering what role IT should take in their production-environment. While there are many companies that offer advice in this area, very few actually have any experience at all when it concerns knowing and understanding the needs on the work-floor. Alphatex Consulting and its founder P. Van Acker are different:
With manufacturing experience followed by over 30 years of developing/installing MES-systems we assist you in realizing concrete steps towards the full digitalization of the work-floor.

Textile expertise

After working for a major producer of weaving-machines and performing technical consultancy at US-based textile-mills we started, in 1983, to develop weaving monitoring systems. We were the first to present completely new ideas such as the first system with a graphical user-interface (1990) and the first touch-screen based solution for fabric-inspection (1994). In the past few years we have been actively involved in industry 4.0 projects for weaving-mills and have been able to build an extensive knowhow in this area. After 30+ years of software-development we decided to also offer consulting and feel that we are uniquely placed to offer practice-driven advice in the field of weaving and finishing. We can offer any combination of the following services:
advice/consultancy, software, fast-prototyping, coaching and, in Industry 4.0 projects, help to select the right combination of machines and IT-solutions.

An overview of software-realizations



Preventive-maintenance / checklists

We have developed touch-screen based solutions that allow unlimited and fast adaptations to specific customer-requirements. All specific adaptations can be done by the customer himself.



Machine-settings

We have developed a touch-screen based solution that allows unlimited and fast adaptations to specific customer-requirements. Any combination of text, input-fields, combo-boxes, images, scans, etc. can be combined into any number of layouts. All specific adaptations can be done by the customer himself. The system also allows tracking of all changes that were made to the machine-settings.




Jacquard-Designs / Dobby-Designs

We have developed solutions for the automated sending of jacquard- and dobby-designs to the weaving-machines. Optionally a touch-screen based module can be used that allows design-transformations right at the machine. The operators can work with an identical user-interface for all machines, regardless whether dobby or jacquard, regardless what type of machine or jacquard.

       
Jacquard         Dobby



Reed-management

With this module it is possible to track all movements of machine-parts that move between machines and storage-area. Obviously this includes reeds but can also be used for ceramic scissors, gripper-heads, etc. This system keeps track of picks and running-hours, informs when certain parts need to be cleaned or displaced, etc.


Production-monitoring

In combination with a weave-room monitoring-system all the above mentioned modules can be integrated into a system that addresses all aspects of a modern weaving-mill:
monitoring, down-time analysis, off-quality registration, flexible log-on / log-off (personnel), designs, maintenance, machine-settings, check-lists, reed-management, process-documentation (e.g. registration of yarn-lots), etc. With modern weaving-machines it is also possible to send electronic machine-settings to the machines as well blocking machines e.g. if an alarm-situation is detected.
The workforce on the floor will communicate with this system with touch-screens that are installed throughout the production-area. On these touch-screens all functions of this fully integrated system can be made available.

Full integration with production-monitoring – example


Main page: monitoring, e.g. current machine-status, declarations, order-changes, etc. and in Menu: extended functions




Menu on a Jacquard-machine and on a Dobby-machine (example)


Weaving-preparation

We have developed touch-screen based solutions that allows the monitoring and planning for all types of machines in the weaving-preparation area such as sectional-warping, creels, direct warping, sizing, etc.




Finishing

We have developed touch-screen based systems for the monitoring of finishing-ranges That can also include the registration of temperatures and pressures measured during the production-process.




Planning-tools

We have developed planning tools also for specific planning-requirements such as terry-weaving, weaving-preparation, knitting-machines, finishing, twisting, etc.


Example: weaving-plan with multiple warps (ground-beam / pile-beam)


Contact



Adress:
Alphatex Consulting GmbH
Florastrasse 39
CH-8620 Wetzikon

Telephone: +41 (0)44 932 10 64
Mobile: +41 (0)79 357 14 35

Email: info@alphatex-consulting.ch