“In the past, it seemed that the concepts of glamour and comfort were mutually exclusive when it came to briefs, tops and bras. Women felt that they had to hide their practical, comfortable ‘passion killers’, whilst their more seductive, glamorous lingerie was unfortunately only worn on special occasions,” says raschel lace machine builder Karl Mayer.

The German company continues: “As far as modern lingerie is concerned, the boundaries between the functional, usually sporty, everyday collections and the high-end, exquisite ranges are increasingly disappearing. Glamorous lingerie should be, in fact must be, practical and vice versa – and this trend is encouraging textile machinery producers in particular to develop new machines.”

Karl Mayer says it is catering for the demand for lace fabrics with light control by developing the JL 40/1 F. This new Jacquardtronic Lace machine produces fabrics for the lingerie and clothing sectors which, as well as offering a wide range of different patterns, also provides controlled compression. “These beautiful, comfortable, light-control garments shape the body gently. They also fit perfectly and enable the underwear to be harmonised with the outerwear, without showing any lines or slipping,” the company says.

Configuration of the JL 40/1 F

This innovative machine developed by Karl Mayer was designed to cater for the functional lingerie sector with all the characteristic lace elements.  The newly configured bar arrangement on the JL 40/1 F Jacquardtronic machine enables stitch-forming lappings to be worked using the existing jacquard bar. In combination with the split yarn threading-in arrangement, ground structures having functional characteristics can be produced.

Conventional ground structures typical of the narrow fabrics used in lace lingerie can also be produced. Fine lace fabrics with functional, light-control characteristics can be produced by using the possibility of combining the potential offered by stitch formation with the split threading-in arrangement of the jacquard bars. The fine machine gauge of 28 needles per inch is said to give both the functional products and the lace fabrics, an elegant, ethereal, transparent appearance.

Karl Mayer claims that on the JL 40/1 F, the combination of the stitch-forming jacquard bar, 36 pattern bars and two ground bars for processing elastane is opening up completely new patterning possibilities for the designer and new applications for the textile market. Its high production rate, operating reliability and maximum flexibility are also said to guarantee a high level of productivity for the user.

“The technical features of this model are state-of-the-art. It is easy to operate and control all the various elements. Furthermore, the pattern bars, which are driven by servo motors, and the low maintenance requirements, are decisive factors for the drive concept used,” a spokesperson for Karl Mayer said.

Extended patterning possibilities

The functional elasticity of the fabrics that can now be produced are said to provide exceptional comfort and fit, and thus offer a number of advantages over more conventional products. The ground of conventional Jacquardtronic fabrics features a pillar stitch/weft construction, which has an inherently lower elasticity.

“The pattern bars enable different yarns to be processed, and pattern elements can be worked with great attention to detail and in a variety of constructions. The result is an attractive lace look,” says Karl Mayer.

The product developers at Karl Mayer are currently studying the full potential offered by the new JL 40/1 F and the first products to appear are said to be already setting new standards in the lingerie market, since the new machine has been successfully demonstrating its capabilities in practice since the beginning of this year.