Advanced applications 5

Start page Contents

5 Advanced applications........................................................................... 5-1

5.1 The Concept of SCI, and its Application in Bale Management .....................................................5-1
5.1.1 Present Situation ...........................................................................................................................5-1
5.1.2 Warehousing and Categories ........................................................................................................5-2
5.1.3 Bale Management and SCI ...........................................................................................................5-3
5.1.4 How does the SCI Spinning Consistency Index Work [7]? ...........................................................5-4
5.2 Mill applications of the SCI Index ..................................................................................................5-9
5.2.1 The Effect of Selecting Bales by SCI Index on Yarn Quality and Spinning Efficiency ..................5-9
5.2.2 The Effect of Bale Management in the Warehouse.....................................................................5-12
5.2.3 The Effect of Bale Management on Spinning Efficiency .............................................................5-15

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5 Advanced applications
5.1 The Concept of SCI, and its Application in Bale Management

Sections 4.1 to 4.4 explain the importance of HVI testing in the cotton industry today, providing a
competitive advantage to those that utilize its information accurately. The following reasons make HVI
test results essential:
• Yarn quality is determined by cotton fiber quality
• Increased processing speeds put greater physical demand on cotton fibers
• Raw material costs account for about 50% to 70% of all yarn manufacturing costs
• HVI data allows separating bales within a lot in different sub-groups (categories) for better raw
material utilization

All of these reasons provide the basis for any form of bale management practiced by the spinning mill.

Bale Management is the management of cotton bales by a cotton yarn

spinning mill, including the purchase, receipt, testing, storing, selection,
optimization and review of the incoming cotton bales, the pulled mixes or
laydowns, and the resulting yarn quality.

The high speed that is achievable with HVI testing now makes it possible to test every bale of cotton
that is purchased and received. The challenge is for the spinning mill to decide how to use and
manage all the information that is available from the HVI instrument.

Cotton merchants use HVI testing selecting and shipping even-running lots to their customers, the
spinning mills (see example 4.4). Cottonseed breeders use HVI measurements to track the
improvements made in developing new seed varieties. Research institutes and machine
manufacturers use HVI data to monitor their research and development projects.

5.1.1 Present Situation

The most important physical fiber properties can be measured quickly with today’s HVI system. In
most cases, however, cotton yarn spinners do not make effective use of the available data. They do
not achieve optimum results because they do not take into account all the fiber properties and the
interrelationships that exist. The bale management system developed by Uster Technologies in
cooperation with successful users of the program helps the mill manager to achieve this optimum
performance.

Internationally, cotton is not purchased, stored or selected by physical properties but by attributes
such as growth area, cotton classer’s grade and staple. However, each cotton-producing country has
its own historic way of assigning grades, as can be observed in such publications as the Value
Differences Circular by the Liverpool Cotton Association Ltd. [5].

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While different grade systems have existed for a long time and spinning performance has been
acceptable over the years, the present system ignores the advances made in the measurement and
data utilization of physical fiber properties. The challenge is to support, replace or substitute the
traditional attributes such as cotton classer’s grade and staple by accurately measured properties.

Table 5-1 shows the world cotton crop averages as reported in the 1998 edition of Cotton Varieties by
Origin, a publication of the Bremen Cotton Exchange [6]. (Note: These ranges do not include Pima
cottons.)

Quality Attribute Ranges (excluding Pima)

Micronaire 2.7 – 5.9

Length 15/16 – 1 3/8 (32s)
0.94 – 1.37 (inch)
23.8 – 34.9 (mm)
Strength 23.0 – 35.5 HVI g/tex

Table 5-1 World Cotton Crop Averages

5.1.2 Warehousing and Categories

The warehousing of cotton bales is time-consuming and expensive. Large inventories and the space
required to store the bales is very costly. Typical cotton warehousing is done by grouping the bales by
growth areas and by grade. Some mills also may make divisions by length and micronaire. Mill
managers quickly find that the more categories they make, the more space they will need to
warehouse the bales. Experienced mill managers also realize they must control key properties in the
mix to ensure spinning efficiency and acceptable yarn quality. To effectively control these key
properties, bales must be segregated in the warehouse so those bales in the key categories can be
found and retrieved easily. Fig. 5-1 shows a typical warehouse arrangement.

Growth Area 1 Growth Area 2 Growth Area 3

Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 1 Grade 2 Grade 1 Grade 2

L1 L1 L1 L1 L1 L1

L2 L2 L2 L2 L2 L2

L3 L3 L3 L3 L3 L3

18 Categories in Warehouse

Fig. 5-1 Typical Warehouse Arrangement by Growth Area, Grade and Staple

This manual warehouse arrangement uses traditional attributes such as growth area, cotton classer’s
grade and staple to store incoming cotton bales. In this example, cotton is purchased from three
different growth areas, having two different grades and three different staples, or, in other words,
three categories for growth areas, two categories for grade and three categories for staple.

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In total, 18 different categories have to be managed by the mill manager because there are 18
possible combinations of the cotton that is being purchased.

Properties Categories
Growth Area 3
Grade 2
Staple 3

Total 18

Table 5-2 Number of Categories (Storage Locations) in the Warehouse

More combinations are possible, making effective bale management an impossible task. In addition,
this warehousing system does not control any measured HVI fiber properties such as micronaire,
length, uniformity, strength, and color.

Control No Control
Growth Area Micronaire
Grade Length
Staple Uniformity
Strength
Color (Rd and +b)

Table 5-3 Cotton Properties Controlled by Traditional Warehouse Approach

5.1.3 Bale Management and SCI

The bale management program is designed to give the mill manager better control over the
warehouse categories and all measured HVI properties. An important feature of the program is the
use of the Spinning Consistency Index (SCI) as a category. SCI allows the spinning mill to:
• Reduce and simplify the number of warehouse categories
• Control all measured HVI properties
• Control within and between laydown (mix) variations
• Maintain day-to-day consistency of fiber properties

SCI is a calculated value based on a regression equation. This equation takes into account all HVI
properties and calculates one value to be used on each bale tested and received in the warehouse.
The standard equation for SCI used in the bale management program is based on the following
information.

1. Each year, the USDA ARS division used to take approximately 160 samples from the annual
cotton crop; tested the raw cotton and spun individual sample into different yarn counts. (Note:
These trials were discontinued in the early 1990s, but the data is still available and valid)

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2. The cotton samples included in these trials represent a wide range of fiber properties.

Property Range
Length 1 5/16 – 1 3/8 inches
(24 – 35 mm)
Strength 18 – 36 grams/tex
Micronaire 2.8 – 5.8

Table 5-4 Cotton Properties Ranges Included in the SCI Formula

3. The yarn was tested for its quality parameters and a statistical analysis was made of the
corresponding fiber data.
4. The regression equations derived from the spinning trials of five consecutive crop years are the
basis for the current SCI used by USTER®.

The range of fiber properties represents more than 90% of the cottons produced worldwide. This
equation can be used on cottons produced in any growth are in the world. Several international
research institutes also have done studies in this area and have developed similar regression
equations. An option in the HVI software allows changing the SCI regression values according to the
specific needs of a spinning mill.

However, changes should only be made if fundamental studies have been carried out carefully over a
long period of time, ensuring the new coefficients are correct and applicable.

Generally, USTER® does not recommend changing the coefficients in the SCI equation.

5.1.4 How does the SCI Spinning Consistency Index Work [7]?

The SCI is an index based on data from a large number of cotton samples having a wide range in
properties that is related to test data from yarn spun from each sample. By multiple regression
analysis, the contribution of each fiber property to yarn properties is revealed.

SCI = a + b1 x1 + b2 x2 + b3 x3 + b4 x4 + b5 x5
a = coefficient (intercept)
b = coefficient (slope)
x = fiber property measurement

Fig. 5-2 Multiple Regression Analysis in SCI

Consequently, a single SCI value is influenced by inherent relationships of cotton micronaire, length,
uniformity, strength, Rd and +b, as measured by the HVI system.

An appropriate analogy is the effect of rain on the automobile accident rate, as illustrated in Fig. 5-3.

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Y
high

accident rate
Automobile X

Y
Slope = Y/X = 4.12

AAR = -6.98 + 4.12 (Rain)

low

Offset = none Typhoon X

-6.98 Rain

Fig. 5-3 Simple Regression Analysis y = a + bx, or Automobile Accident Rate = a + b * Rain

This graph shows the relationship between the automobile accident rate (y-axis) and rain (x-axis).
Naturally, the automobile accident rate increases when rainfall increases. There is a high correlation
between the automobile accident rate and the amount of rainfall. Fig. 5-4 shows the mathematical
equation of a simple regression that describes this relationship with the offset being at –6.98 and the
slope at +4.12 x the amount of rainfall. This equation is an example of how the automobile accident
rate can be estimated by the amount of rainfall.

However, the automobile accident rate is also influenced by automobile speed as shown in Fig. 5-4.

Y
high
X
accident rate
Automobile

Y
Slope = Y/X =1.02

AAR = 1.96 + 1.02 (Speed)

low

+1.96

low high X
Car speed

Fig. 5-4 Simple Regression Analysis, y = a + bx, or Automobile Accident Rate = a + b * Auto Speed

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This graph shows the relationship between the automobile accident rate (y-axis) and the speed of the
car (x-axis). The automobile accident rate increases when the car speed increases. There is a high
correlation between the automobile accident rate and the automobile’s speed. The simple regression
equation in Fig. 5-5 describes this relationship with the offset at 1.96 and the slope at +1.02 x the
automobile speed.

Many other variables could influence the accident rate (Fig. 5-5).

Fig. 5-5 Multiple Regression Analysis, Y = a+ b1 ⋅ f(x1) + b2 ⋅ f(x2) + b3 ⋅ f(x3) + b4 ⋅ f(x4) + b5 ⋅ f(x5)

x1 = rain, x2 = speed, x3 = no. of cars on highway, x4 = time of the day, x5 = age of driver, x6 = car size

These variables could be:

• Car size
• Age of the driver
• Time of the day
• Number of cars on the highway

This graph shows the various relationships between the automobile accident rate (y-axis) with the
variables stated above (x-axis). There are correlations between all the single variables and the
automobile accident rate that can be expressed in a multiple regression equation shown in Fig. 5-5.
The different coefficients describe the degree of contribution from each variable.

Similarly, cotton fiber properties, individually and collectively, directly affect yarn quality and spinning
performance in each supposedly constant yarn spinning mill. These relationships exist between all
fiber properties, and the SCI equation uses these similarities to make consistent laydowns from day to
day.

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The following are SCI equations for the most important HVI measurements, including color:

Upper Half Mean Length + Uniformity Index (HVI Calibration)

SCI = -414.67 + 2.9 x Strength – 9.32 x Micronaire + 49.17 x Length + 4.74 x Uniformity Index + 0.65
x Rd + 0.36 x +b

Span Length + Uniformity Ration (ICC Calibration)

SCI = -414.67 + 2.9 x Strength – 9.32 x Micronaire + 49.17 x Length + 8.61 x Uniformity Ratio + 0.65
x Rd + 0.36 x +b

If no color module is installed, the SCI equations are the following:

Upper Half Mean Length + Uniformity Index (HVI Calibration)

SCI = -322.98 + 2.89 x Strength – 9.02 x Micronaire + 43.53 x Length + 4.29 x Uniformity Index

Span Length (Uniformity Ratio) (ICC Calibration)

SCI = -322.98 + 2.89 x Strength – 9.02 x Micronaire + 43.53 x Length + 7.79 x Uniformity Ratio

The example in Fig. 5-6 below shows that in using SCI as the first priority for a mix, the mill manager
would need only five categories to control all measured HVI properties. SCI categories enable the
spinning mill to better manage the warehouse and produce a consistent mix every day.

SCI 1 SCI 2 SCI 3 SCI 4 SCI 5

5 Categories in Warehouse

Fig. 5-6 Warehousing by SCI Categories

The bale management mix selection allows for additional controls on properties such as micronaire
(see Fig. 5-7), or growth area, and enables the mill to prioritize the categories. It helps the mill to
adjust the bale management process to their specific needs, which vary from mill to mill depending on
their machine setups and product ranges.

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SCI 1 SCI 2 SCI 3 SCI 4 SCI 5

Micronaire Micronaire Micronaire Micronaire Micronaire

M1 M1 M1 M1 M1

M2 M2 M2 M2 M2

M3 M3 M3 M3 M3

15 Categories in Warehouse

Fig. 5-7 Warehousing by SCI and Micronaire Categories

For example, when SCI and micronaire are selected as categories while using the bale manager
program as in Fig. 5-7, the spinning mill can closely control the most important fiber properties and
still reduce the number of categories in the warehouse. With five categories for SCI and three
categories for micronaire, a total of 15 categories control all measured HVI fiber properties as
compared to 18 “manual” categories that are controlled only by grade and staple in the beginning.

Bale Management and SCI Categories Manual Categories

Growth Area Growth Area
Length Grade
Uniformity Staple

Strength
Micronaire
Color

Table 5-5 Cotton Properties Controlled by Bale Management

Conclusion
The bale management program that is now integrated into the USTER® HVI SPECTRUM has the
ability to effectively manage the cotton warehouse and the fiber property data generated by testing
with the HVI instrument. Features such as SCI can improve mix consistency and simplify warehouse
categories. The bale management program gives the spinning mill manager a valuable tool for
producing the desired yarn quality consistently at the lowest raw material cost.

Consistency, regardless of the cotton available, is the benefit gained from the use of SCI in the bale
management program. Consistent raw material input gives yarn manufacturing a solid basis for
optimizing the spinning process. This consistency, incorporated with proper spinning practices and
investment in equipment and technology, will ultimately lead to improved yarn quality and spinning
efficiency, reducing overall manufacturing costs.

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5.2 Mill applications of the SCI Index

Different end products in spinning and fabric formation require different fiber characteristics in the
laydown entering the spinning plant. This fact is well understood but not always practiced.

For example, a weaver requires a strong and smooth yarn in order to process without many loom
stops. Production efficiencies are recorded in stops per 100,000 m in weaving. Therefore, every weak
place in the yarn that causes a loom stop is a loss value. A knitter, on the other hand, requires a very
even yarn without any long-term variation to produce an even looking fabric appearance that will not
be downgraded to second quality.

Section 5.2 of this handbook describes the basic concept of bale management and what it can do to
help improve the mill’s operation. The following examples show practical results of case studies
carried out in the past few years with experienced customers worldwide.

5.2.1 The Effect of Selecting Bales by SCI Index on Yarn Quality and Spinning Efficiency

A medium-sized ring-spinning mill was selected to participate in a trial using the SCI Index. The
analysis covered 52 weeks and used HVI data and the bale management program as tools for
monitoring the trial. The objective was to change from the mill’s current bale selection system to the
SCI Index. The mill used gin location and micronaire for their bale selection criteria. The mill was of
modern design with equipment less than 10 years old and operated at regular production speeds.

The following guidelines and parameters were followed during the trial period:
• The original laydowns of the first 21 weeks were chosen by micronaire and gin location (this was
the system the mill had used for many years.)
• Samples were taken from each bale in the laydowns of the first 21 weeks of production.
• These samples were tested on the HVI and the SCI index was calculated.
• The yarn produced was ring spun Ne 22, 100% cotton, carded.
• Cotton throughput rates and production speeds remained constant throughout the trial.
• Yarn quality was monitored for single-end yarn strength and strength CV%
• Yarn production was monitored for ends down per 1,000 spindle hours.
• Beginning week 22, laydowns were chosen using SCI and micronaire.
• The same yarn count was spun; machine throughput rates and production speeds remained
constant for the remainder of the trial.

Fig. 5-8 and Fig. 5-10 highlight the results from the trial:

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Fig. 5-8 Average Yarn Strength vs. SCI, Ring Spinning, 100% Cotton, Ne 22

Fig. 5-8 shows the average yarn strength (g) over the 52-week period of the trial. Notice the variation
of yarn strength in the first 21 weeks when the laydowns were chosen based only on gin location and
micronaire. Starting week 22, the average yarn strength remains and almost remains constant until
year-end.

For comparison, the SCI factor also is monitored. For the first 21 weeks, the existing HVI data was
used to calculate the SCI Index, but only micronaire was used for bale selection. Beginning in week
22, SCI and micronaire were used to select the bales for the laydown. A high variability in the raw
material can be observed in the first 21 weeks, when the majority of physical fiber properties were not
controlled. Starting in week 22, raw material shows less variation because of the used of the SCI
Index for bale selection.

Fig. 5-9 Yarn Strength CV% vs. SCI, Ring Spinning, 100% Cotton, Ne 22

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Fig. 5-9 shows the coefficient of variation of yarn strength (CV%) over the 52-week period of the trial.
It is important not only to control the average yarn strength but also the yarn variation. As stated
before, every yarn break results in a loss in production efficiency for subsequent processes such as
weaving and knitting

Just as the average yarn strength consistency improves in Fig. 5-8 the yarn strength variation
improves by selecting the bales for the laydowns with SCI and micronaire in week 22. The coefficient
of variation is not the only reduced but also remains at a constant low for the rest of the trial.

However, the most important improvement is shown in Fig. 5-10:

Fig. 5-10 Ends Down/ 1000 Spih vs. SCI, Ring Spinning, 100% Cotton, Ne 22

Ends down per 1,000 spindle hours (spih) directly translate to efficiency levels or production losses.
Ends down vary highly in the first 22 weeks, when no other physical fiber property except micronaire
is being controlled. This changes dramatically with the use of SCI and micronaire for bale selection in
week 22. Ends down drop to a tolerable average of 17/1000 spih compared to a maximum of 22/1000
spih before.

Conclusion
Traditional methods for selecting bale laydowns do a good job of controlling the overall average of
one or at a maximum two fiber properties. Selecting laydowns in this manner may cause random day-
to-day and week-to-week variations in yarn quality and production efficiencies. The worst-case
scenario is a so-called mill “blow-up,” when the selection of unsuitable raw material causes the
production to stop suddenly.

Using all the HVI data combined in the SCI Index and the bale management program can effectively
control random variations in the incoming raw material. Using the measured physical fiber properties
can greatly improve the consistency of yarn quality and production efficiencies.

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5.2.2 The Effect of Bale Management in the Warehouse

In this case, the questions are: Does it really work? Is the bale management program truly selecting
bales according to a mill’s inventory? What is actually happening in the warehouse?

In the histograms in Fig. 5-11 and Fig. 5-12, the average and distributions of HVI-measured properties
are show, both in a 1636-bale inventory and a 48-bale laydown. The bales in the laydown are
selected proportionally according to the total bale inventory. The program matches the distribution of
the fiber properties in each laydown to the distribution of all fiber properties in the warehouse. The
advantage is that all bales are included in the selection process, not only a certain group avoiding
“leftover” bales in the end.

The spinning mill initially divided all of the fiber properties into different groups or categories: 4 for
micronaire, 5 for strength, 5 for length, 3 for uniformity, 5 for Rd and 6 for +b. This resulted in a total of
9,000 mathematically possible combinations or categories, making true bale management impossible
(see Table 5-6 below).

As a first alternative, length, strength and micronaire were chosen as priorities for bale selection.
However, these three fiber properties with four categories for micronaire, five for strength and five for
length still resulted in a total of 100 categories of cotton, making the consistent daily selection of 48
bale mixes unrealistic.

Instead, the SCI was used and divided into six categories. Four categories were maintained for
micronaire. This made a total of 24 categories in the warehouse (6X4), which is manageable solution.
Thus, SCI and micronaire were used as the only two priorities to select 48 bales from the 1,636
inventory proportionally.

All Properties Length, Strength, Micronaire SCI, Micronaire

SCI 6

Micronaire 4 4 4

Strength 5 5
Length 5 5

Uniformity 3

Rd 5
+b 6

Total Categories 9000 100 24

Table 5-6 Number of Categories in Warehouse

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1636 Bale Inventory 48 Bale Mix

Fig. 5-11 Using SCI and Micronaire for Bale Selection I

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1636 Bale Inventory 48 Bale Mix

Fig. 5-12 Using SCI and Micronaire for Bale Selection II

The first two histograms in Fig. 5-11 show that both SCI and micronaire in the laydown matched the
inventory distributions exactly. However, the control of the distribution of all of the other fiber
properties within the laydown was just as important. As can be observed in the other histograms in
Fig. 5-11 and Fig. 5-12, all other fiber properties such as length, uniformity, strength, Rd and +b have
the same, or very similar, distribution in the 48-bale laydown as in the 1636-bale warehouse.

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This is achieved by using the SCI Index instead of single fiber properties in bale selection. The SCI
Index combines all these fiber properties and represents the interrelationship among them in one
value, making bale management practical and functional.

Conclusion
Achieving consistency in the selection of bales for laydowns is possible when SCI is used as a
component of bale selection. Example 2 shows the bale management program does select
proportionally to the warehouse distribution. This means that the distribution of fiber properties in the
laydown reflect the actual distribution of fiber properties in the warehouse. Every bale is being
considered for bale selection; nothing is “left behind.”

Not only does the use of SCI help control fiber property averages within and between laydowns, but
the distribution of each and every property in each and every laydown is also controlled. This leads to
a reduction of, or even the elimination of, short-term production and quality problems in yarn spinning.

Not shown are the exceptional cases made possible with the bale management program. For
example, if mill managers know they need a specific fiber property to match a certain average value
for a specific end use, they can select the bales according to a “centered” mix instead of
“proportionally.” The centered mix option allows for the targeting of a desired average for a fiber
property or SCI value. The program will ignore a certain part of the inventory exceeding the desire
value to select the bales. However, the use of this feature is only achieved for exceptional cases,
preferably after experience has been gained in operating the warehouse and bale selection process
by the bale management program.

5.2.3 The Effect of Bale Management on Spinning Efficiency

Fig. 5-13 shows the result of an investigation in an open end spinning mill. The plant monitored its
ends down carefully over several weeks. The incoming raw material was tested on an HVI instrument,
but the date was used only to verify the shipment. Bale selection was done the traditional way—by
origin and micronaire only.

The SCI Index was checked, based on existing HVI measurements. As the ends down level
increased, the SCI Index decreased dramatically. This proved that one of the measured fiber
properties had deviated too much, causing the spinning efficiency to drop drastically.

Fig. 5-13 The Effect of Ends Down on SCI

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Conclusion
As a result of this study, the spinning mill’s personnel decided to make the SCI Index one of the
selection requirements for their laydowns. In addition, they were targeting an average SCI Index of
140 for this specific yarn. The lower limit was set to an SCI Index of 125 below which the ends down
level had increased to an intolerable level.

Spinning consistency can be achieved by using the SCI Index for bale selection, as well as an
optimum and lower limit for each yarn. This helps the mill again to optimize its raw material selection
for specific applications.

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