The company supplies the leading jeans manufacturers, worldwide, plans on tripling production and has therefore made massive investments in production plants over the last years – mainly in 144 DORNIER rapier weaving machines. GAP Tekstil, the leading Turkish denim weaver, is specialized in both classic and trendy jeans fabrics.

Jeans are always in. The fabric that started out as American working trousers adapts to every fashion trend. At the moment, trendy denims combined with various materials such as stretch are in demand to meet designers ideas. Fashionable denim is used for both men’s and women’s clothing.

Jeans fabric manufacturing has moved from the USA and Europe to Turkey, India and Brazil. This is the opinion of Erdinc Taskoparan, the young GAP Tekstil director, who leaves no doubt that a team of professional managers run the modern company. The classic manufacturing countries have lost ground and new companies have increased their market shares. GAP is the youngest denim weaving mill in Turkey and determined to exploit their market chance. This necessitated a range of investments to provide the capacities demanded by the world market.

The number of weaving machines rose from 28 to 284 within two years, including 144 DORNIER rapier weaving machines. GAP is one of the few weavers in the world using rapier technology for denim production. This is exceptional and not without risk. But, here as well, the GAP professionals did not go “shopping” without previous exact detailed analysis. They found DORNIER with the same quality awareness. The success is impressive: The new technology catapulted GAP into a new quality dimension.


Enormous capacity increase

The immense production capacity is surprising at first but immediately put into perspective by Director Taskoparan. The annual worldwide denim production is an amazing 4 billion meters. There are other denim manufacturers apart from GAP in Turkey. No other weaver has however specialized in “fancy denims” as GAP has or attained such a high market share. And this for a good reason: Weavers not just providing classic jeans fabric are independent of fashion trends. GAP aims at establishing itself on the worldwide market primarily as manufacturer of high quality, innovative fashionable denim fabrics. These fabrics include denim and Lycra mixes which are very much in demand. These fabrics, as well as denim combined with nylon and polyester, can be manufactured in perfect quality on DORNIER rapier weaving machines.

60% Fancy Denims

Trendy mixed denims are around 60% of GAP’s production. An impressive figure when one considers that it is usually only around 6 - 7% for traditional manufacturers. This is not surprising because manufacturing denim mix fabrics is especially complicated. For example, no seconds can be tolerated for denim-lycra mixes. Special attention must be paid to weaving machine performance to be successful here. It must be higher than for classic denim fabrics.

This was the reason for GAP's clear decision for DORNIER after evaluating the new weaving machines. Erdinc Taskoparan "We want to, and must, deliver the world market with best quality and highest consistency. This is only attainable when we can rely on weaving machines with equivalent high quality and consistency." Another statistic emphasizes the high production standard: GAP has an even lower share of rejects for denim-lycra mixes than for classic denim fabrics.

DORNIER's filling insertion system technology plays a role here. Positive control of all phases of the central transfer ensures reliable thread transfer that is important for Lycra core yarn to avoid thread loss and buttons. Open shed filling insertion is another decisive technical detail. The RHS rapier inserts each filling thread at open shed and they become released, just 8 mm from the right reed edge, only when the catch selvedge has clamped the filling thread safely. Therefore the Elastan threads can relax equally from left to right fabric side before the shed closes. This guarantees even coloring and elasticity.

What brand jeans are made of

GAP was founded in 1989. Normal cotton fabrics were manufactured in the early years. In 1992, yarn production using an own OE spinning mill started, followed by denim fabrics in 1995. GAP imported Lycra yarn from Switzerland to meet the first demands for stretch denim. Then in 1998, an own core yarn spinning mill was established to allow independent production, even more precise quality control and adaption as required.

The company also has a flat management structure supporting very fast, efficient decisions.

GAP’s marketing concept is clear and simple: Three main turnover markets exist, Belgium as location for well-known ready-to-wear manufacturers, Italy as fashion trendsetter and the USA as mass consumer. Marketing outlets are sales organizations that can only sell GAP products in the denim sector.

Worldwide trade name designers Levi’s, Lee, Wrangler, Gap, Diesel, Guess, Benetton, Tommy Hilfiger, Marks & Spencer and Mavi Jeans use GAP denim fabrics, especially stretch denim from GAP.