At its Chiguayante plant, in the VIII Chilean Region, Machasa was producing 700,000 m of finished fabric a month in 1994. Production was increased in 1995 to 1,500,000 m and in 1996 production of the overall denim range (indigo and bull denim) will reach the 2,200,000 m mark.

Machasa S.A., founded in 1907 and boasting a very chequered history, came into being in its present form in 1994 under the stewardship of Mr Jaime Link, who initiated a complete technological revamp. Without waiting for the Chilean government for example to solve problems attributable primarily to the globalization of markers, initiatives were taken to effect a proper modernization of the textile technology. A pioneering step was taken above all in the weaving department with the introduction of new DORNIER airjet weaving machines, opening the way to global competitiveness and consolidating Machasa's leading position in the Chilean cotton industry.

The modernization of Machasa

The following elements of the modernization process are summarized under the description BIODENIM 2000/95:
• spinning
• weaving
• finishing
• auxiliary services and supply
• staff training

Taken altogether, this called for an investment of US$ 18,000,000 in machinery and infrastructure. The project involved the purchase and commissioning in record time of machines in the spinning plant with a new opening and cleaning facility, high-performance cards, stretch-spinning and open-end spinning machines, state of-the-art warping machines and a new indigo-multicolour unit in the weaving preparation department and double-width DORNIER airjet weaving machines in the weaving mill.

While this report was being compiled, the weaving mill was producing around 1,800,000 m per month, comprising approximately 250,000 m of untreated bull denim and around 1,550,000 m of indigo denim. 70% of this is destined for export (to Italy, the USA, Mexico, Columbia and Venezuela) and 30% for domestic consumption.

To achieve a further increase to 2.2 million metres of fabric per month, the following organizational changes were made:
The 250,000 m/month of 13 oz. untreated bull denim is still being produced at present on projectile machines, while the 1,550,000 m or so of indigo denim produced per month is being woven in the new weave room on 48 double-width DORNIER airjet weaving machines.

We were particularly impressed by the operation of these machines, which produced Machasa's 14.5 oz indigo denim in a finished width of 160/156 cm and a weight of 492 g per running metre. These 48 double-width DORNIER airjet weaving machines, installed in a weave room with a modern air-conditioning system and overhead cleaners to keep the air free of fly and dust, operate at an average speed of 480 rpm and an average efficiency rating of more than 90%.

Before the machines were purchased, a conscientious effort was made to ascertain whether these optimum results could be achieved in practice. A trial period was used to advantage to put a demonstration machine through its paces and verify whether the following criteria, on which the purchase depended, could be met:

Observations on site, backed up by discussions with both the management and staff of the weaving mill, revealed that the machines had exceeded all the target criteria, putting the efficient utilization of the facility beyond doubt.

The principal technical characteristics which distinguish this true pioneer among denim weavers can be summarized in the following points:

The investment made also included intensive staff training. At present the company employs a staff of 600 working four shifts, 358 days of the year.

Finally Machasa's Operations Director, Mr Marshall, explains:

"We have each been assigned new and previously unfamiliar functions, which are oriented more strongly towards the operating sequence. This is now organized groupwise and process-oriented more to operating stages than to workplaces. We have thus had success using young people with an average level of industrial training, who have had no problems in getting used to operating the electronic keyboards and displays of the various textile machines. We will continue to work towards weighing the human elements of the operating sequence appropriately, as we recognize that this is the axis on which the success of our company turns.

It is not the Chilean market but the demanding global markets on which we are setting our sights. We must therefore offer a global level of quality, price and service, and plan for the future in this context. To achieve this, we have set ourselves the following subsidiary targets:

This article is an extract from a publication of the Latin American journal Textiles Panamericanos