The KARL MAYER GROUP is proud of its long-standing partnerships. Some of them have been in existence since the very beginning, and one recently celebrated a round anniversary: the first warp-knitting machine produced by the innovative textile machinery manufacturer, which is based in Obertshausen, was sent on 10 September 1948 to Georg+Otto Friedrich, a leading producer of knitted digital printing fabrics and technical textiles in the neighboring town of Groß-Zimmern. As a token of its solidarity, the knitted fabric specialist has donated an old treasure - the seventh machine built - to KARL MAYER's Academy.



Setting trends in warp knitting

After the first investment 75 years ago, the two companies have continued to grow together and have advanced warp knitting. Georg+Otto Friedrich has tested many new KARL MAYER models in live operation in its workshops, thus helping them to be successful. In addition, valuable impulses for further developments came from the resourceful textile producer.

"A few years ago, we lobbied for the working width of the HKS 3-M to be extended. for a long time, 280″ was considered technically unfeasible. Today, KARL MAYER builds even wider machines," recalls Managing Director Kai Trippel of an example of this.

Today, Georg+Otto Friedrich is the largest customer of the model of KARL MAYER's most modern generation of jersey machines, the HKS 3-M ON. The last machines of an extensive investment project were not commissioned until December 2022. The company produces around 650 t of knitted fabric per month at its sites in Groß-Zimmern in Hesse and Limbach-Oberfrohna in Saxony. In Neresheim in Baden-Württemberg, there is a separate company for textile finishing. Thanks to the high technical level of the machines and the know-how of the employees, the textile products made by Georg+Otto Friedrich are of the highest quality.



Leadership position obligates

In addition to high quality, the company focuses on sustainability. "As the leading manufacturer of textile solutions in Europe and as the world market leader in the field of digitally printable knitted polyester fabrics, we have a special responsibility for environmental and social issues," explains Philipp Seubert, Managing Director of GOF Industrial.

Georg+Otto Friedrich, for example, was a pioneer in the processing of recycled materials, starting with the first processing tests around ten years ago. It then took a good five years to develop the market for this new material.

"We first had to do a lot of explaining as to why a PET recycled in Europe has a significantly smaller carbon footprint and what effort is involved in collecting, sorting, cleaning, etc.," says Philipp Seubert.

Today, complete product lines and a wide variety of articles made from recycled post-consumer PET are offered. Of particular note here is DecoTex Blue, a sustainable textile developed by Georg+Otto Friedrich together with the SEAQUAL® initiative. The fabric consists of over 60% SEAQUAL® polyester fibers, made from recycled marine plastic. By participating in the PLANT-MY-TREE® reforestation program, the manufacturer also aims to completely offset the CO₂ footprint of its recycled textiles within a few years. By August 2023, around 6,000 trees had already been planted.

In addition to recycling, Georg+Otto Friedrich is also focusing on the topic of energy. "The solutions to many of today's problems require energy. It is important to us to save electricity and use regenerative energy," emphasizes Jonas Menzel from Purchasing.

Looking over the roofs of the halls in Groß-Zimmern, it becomes clear that the company is serious about this: solar cells on the buildings as far as the eye can see. Around 30 % of the energy required comes from the company's own generation. The installed capacity can supply 800 households.

Georg+Otto Friedrich is therefore well positioned for the future. Sales Manager Julian Schubert from KARL MAYER is looking forward to continuing the successful bilateral cooperation. He particularly appreciates the exchange at eye level.