Karl Mayer: Focus on the future to make the textile perfect

Founded in 1937, Karl Mayer Ltd.
stared to make Tricot machine after ten years.
Today, the German family business leads the
wrap knitting industry in the world, and also
sets the standard of wrapping machine of
wrap knitting and weaving.
In the process of Chinese textile development,
especially in some stages, foreign
equipment manufacturing enterprises greatly
promote and lead the development of the
whole industry, and Karl Mayer is undoubtedly
one of the most important representatives.
What changes of strategy and how do they
look at Chinese market, after China entering a
new normal stage? With these questions, the
reporter interviewed Mr. Arno Gärtner, CEO
of KARL MAYER Group.

China Textile: When did the KARL
MAYER Group set up its factory in
China? What are the main business fields of
the KARL MAYER Group in China?
What about the production and
sales situation; is it increasing or decreasing?
Why?

Mr. Arno Gärtner: We have been
operating our own subsidiary in China since
1995. The first factory was set up in Wujin
in Jiangsu Province as a production site and
technical support center. The factory originally
covered an area of 10,000 m², but was
extended to 25,000 m² in 2003. But only three
years later, capacity was still not enough, and
the decision was taken to build a completely
new factory. Therefore, a new, modern factory
was opened 10 km away in the Wujin
Hi-Tech Industrial Zone in 2008. It covers
an area of 90,000m² and includes design
&engineering, production, assembly, sales,
service and customer support. Today, KARL
MAYER (China) builds complete machines.
Our Chinese subsidiary is also responsible for
supplying spare parts and on-site technical
support, and it offers training courses in
its own Academy, and has a test center for
processing trials and a showroom for to give
technical presentations. These resources mean
that we are well placed in and focused on the
Chinese market.

Our company operates in China with its
three Business Units of Warp Knitting, Technical
Textiles and Warp Preparation.
Growth in the warp knitting market in
China has been slowing down for some time
now, but we believe that this market segment
has been much less affected by the slowdown
than other parts of the textile industry.

China Textile: What are the main
advantages of KARL MAYER products?
The demands of domestic textile companies
are changing significantly. How is
KARL MAYER reacting to these changes?

Mr. Arno Gärtner: Our machines deliver
an exceptional cost: benefit ratio. Karl
Mayer products are the symbol of excellent
quality and highest reliability in the industry.
In addition, their performance is excellent
producing short runs and processing individual
jobs at a high level of productivity and
quality. Our product range, which is tailored
to market needs, is backed up by our extensive
technical support program.

Karl Mayer does not only supply machines
to the market, but also offers much
more added-value to the customers after
machines are delivered. Our 360°support
concept comprises the modules of service,
spare parts, textile consulting, the Academy
and sales. These modules are all interconnected
and are managed by highly qualified,
experienced specialists. The advantage of
this new support concept is the targeted use
of online communication. For example, the
KARL MAYER CONNECT app is available
for technical support, and provides extensive,
efficient, error-free communication between
the customer and KARL MAYER’s service
organization. As a B2B platform, the KARL
MAYER SPARES WEBSHOP provides
easy and immediate access to wear & tear
and standard parts. Customers can use the
CHECK PARTS app to check immediately
that genuine spare parts have been delivered.

China Textile: Foreign companies
usually win customers with their high
product quality and innovations. How can
KARL MAYER guarantee an excellent
product quality, stability and innovation?

Mr. Arno Gärtner: Our aim is to provide
our customers with high quality and
the best cost/benefit ratio. For this reason, we
basically produce all the key components of
our machines ourselves. The components that
are important for the quality and performance
of our machines are produced in modern production
facilities within the KARL MAYER
Group. This enables us to guarantee the quality
and service life of our machines.

We are an innovative market leader
and trendsetter in our markets. To justify this
claim, we are continuously improving and
updating our machines and services, as well
as our processes and know-how. Innovation
does not only mean developing new products,
but also means implementing new process
innovations, which we do in our own production
facilities, for example.