When the weft yarn crosses with the warp yarns a fabric is created, a synthesis of the quality of the raw material , the creativity of the design and the structure and experience of the weaver.
The weaving process consists of several phases, such as: winding, warping, sizing, drawing-in, weaving and finally the control on the greige fabric.
Winding consists in winding the yarn on a tube. The weaving cones are prepared for the warp (vertical threads) in a cylindrical form, all of the exact same length to avoid waste. For the warp to be produced conical bobbins are made so that the yarn can slide on the frame without problems. Sometimes the bobbins are wound before dyeing in the form of a ball to allow that the dye colourant can penetrate evenly throughout the yarn.
This is the operation of the warp preparation. All vertical threads (warp) that will compose the fabric (in some cases up to 16,000) are placed next to one another to create the desired pattern. The warp cones are placed onto a frame called the creel. The threads are then wound onto the reel, a large steel cylinder, to move to the warp beam, a smaller cylinder that will be loaded onto the loom.
Sizing serves to strengthen the fine single yarns for weaving. Yarns are categorised into single and two-fold: the two-fold yarns are those composed of two or more threads twisted together, while single yarns are very delicate and difficult to weave. The warp threads are immersed in a bath containing the sizing agent which stiffens them. The yarns, once released from the drying room, are individually separated by large bars, not to create problems during weaving. Every minute about 40 metres of warp are sized.
In order to create fabrics with different structures (eg. Oxford, poplin) each thread has to move in a precise order, for this reason it is placed in the slats of the warp stop, and drawn in thread by thread through the eyes of the heddle and through the teeth of the reed. If a loom will weave successive fabrics with the same structure, the drawing in stage can be skipped and each thread tied to the corresponding warp thread that is ending directly in the loom. Thanks to modern technology it is possible to draw in up to 200 threads per minute through the heddles, reed, and comb in one pass. Despite the highly automated process it still requires 2.5 hours of work to draw in an entire beam.
When the weft yarn meets the warp a fabric is created, synthesis of the raw material and the creativity of the design and structure. The weaving is made on highly technological weaving looms through a complex process carried out with the utmost care, in a controlled environment, and with great experience of the weaving staff. The looms can produce the simplest fabrics with 640 passes per minute, but proceed much more slowly to weave the finest and most delicate fabrics. The unfinished fabric at this stage is called greige.
Each metre of fabric is controlled under the magnifying glass on two occasions to 100%, following :
– Weaving (greige fabric inspection) at Albino;
– Finishing (final fabric inspection) in Gandino.
During visual inspections any small defects typical of a natural raw material can be removed. Skilled labour is an extremely important factor in achieving the highest quality fabrics. The know-how of the inspectors, together with the technology and the periodic renewal of the frames, allow Albini Group to offer a cutting-edge product to the market. After greige fabric control, the fabrics are sent to the finishing of Brebbia (VA), where it will take on the colour, the hand-feel and the final visual appearance.
