Coloreel makes it comeback
Coloreel, a novel thread-printing system for embroidery, is now under new ownership, after filing for bankruptcy in 2024. SinceTech, a Chinese textile technology company specialising in knitting, acquired the Swedish company that same year. At Texprocess last week, two Coloreel machines were on display. One device was shown on the booth of Japanese embroidery machine maker Tajima. It showed how Coloreel’s digital technology can be combined with traditional ‘analogue’ embroidery devices.
The Coloreel system is designed to print a single yarn in different colours to make multicoloured embroidered motifs using just one yarn. It may look simple enough, but the technology is far from that, a company spokesperson told Sportstextiles. Among the new developments made to improve how it works, the tension of the yarn is now managed by an algorithm to predict yarn usage, and switch colours at exactly the right time. The machine is now programmed to slow down or speed up to adapt to colour changes. The device uses special polyester yarns that are not coated, so they can be sublimation printed by Coloreel. They are supplied by German embroidery yarn specialist Madeira Garnfabrik.
The device can also be used in an embroidery or sewing facility to fill gaps in inventory, said marketing manager Mafalda Barreiros. In this case, the yarn is spooled onto a cone. It can print 700 metres per hour, she added. This version of the device with a thread winding function will be released in the next few months.
