Today’s method
of carpet production was invented at the beginning of the 20th century and is known as tufting. Machines automate the entire process, and manufacturers use it to make most carpets.
Tufting uses many needles. These needles weave carpet fibers into closed loops. They insert the fibers into the carpet backing. The backing forms a woven base. Needles push the fibers from the top of the backing through to the bottom. A looper, or hook, holds the fibers down while the needle goes up and back around, forming a fiber loop. In some cases, manufacturers pass the carpet through a cutting tool that severs some of the loops to create a cut-pile carpet.
Tufting machines come in various gauges that indicate how many needles they use per inch. For example, a 1/10 tufting machine would have 10 needles per inch. Some machines would have more, and some would have less. Most tufting machines will have between 800 and 1,300 needles in action during the manufacturing process.
Knowing details about how carpeting is made, especially the tufting process, can help installers, contractors, and clients know how to choose the right floor covering for the space.
[…] technology, and anyone working with carpeting needs to know how the process works. There are also pieces of manufacturing equipment they need to know about and understand in order to gain the experience they need to really work […]