Projectile Loom Applications in Wide-Width Weaving
topic
Projectile looms achieve the widest commercial fabric widths of any weaving technology up to 540 centimetres, making them the established technology for wide-width drapery fabrics, technical geotextiles, wide upholstery fabrics, and industrial fabrics where a single seamless width reduces or eliminates the need for fabric joining, with the projectile's positive mechanical weft gripping maintaining reliable insertion reliability across the full traversal width that pneumatic insertion cannot consistently achieve at widths beyond 360 centimetres.
Role
Establishes the specific application niche where projectile technology maintains a competitive advantage from its superior wide-width capability, with the seamless advantage of single-width drapery and furnishing fabrics produced on 360 to 540 centimetre projectile looms commanding premium pricing over the same designs produced on narrower looms requiring seaming, justifying the continued operation of wide-width projectile fleets despite the technology's declining share in new installations.