SWICOFIL - Yarn and fiber expert.

SWICOSILVER

Silver coated yarn with an ongoing metal adhesion and high conductivity - this is SwicoSilver, the exclusive opportunity of coating yarns longlastingly with silver.
It is now possible to coat continuous filament yarn with 100% Silver (meaning without any adhesive layer underneath) by a new process called plasma metal coating.

Invented by EMPA Sitzerland, this wordwide unique and patented technology has the potential to open new markets as it combines the characteristics of silver (such as high conductivity) with those of a filament yarn (such as touch, workability, ...) while providing an excellent adhesion of the silver.
SwicoSilver yarn - Silver coated yarn with an ongoing metal adhesion and high conductivity

Why Plasma Silver Coated Yarns?

SwicoSilver yarns are a part of the Plasma Metal Coated Yarns programme. Coating a filament yarn by the plasma coating method gives much better wear, a perfect level coating and little to no conductivity fluctuation compared to usual techniques of coating yarn with metal. SwicoSilver yarns are easy to process in the textile chain and products on the fashion side have a wonderful noble appearance. Furthermore, they are easy to adapt to customer's requirements such as count, conducivity or base yarn material.


SwicoSilver yarns are the only ones in the world that provide flexiblity, very high conductivity and longevity thanks to its new production process, the Plasma Metal Coating, where no chemo-galvanical methods are used. 
This is a huge advantage for demanding applications. The final product is easy care. The big problems that all other silver coated yarns have - brittleness and low adhesion - is inexistent for SwicoSilver yarns. 
  
Advantages
Why choose SwicoSilver
Applications
The sky is the limit 
Programme
What has been done so far?
References
Implementations of SwicoSilver
Possibilties
Tailored upon your requirements
Inquiry
What to do when interested


... or check out the product website for SwicoSilver.

ADVANTAGES

Compared to any other metalized yarn, SwicoSilver yarns convince with the following characteristics:
  • highly conductive
    SwicoSilver yarn meet high conductivty levels of up to 1 ohm/cm. Even lower conductivity values can be reached by SwicoSilver type HiCon (abt. 0.06 ohm/cm).
     
  • textile touch
    Despite being coated with silver, SwicoSilver yarns feel like a normal textile yarn and are just as versatile.
     
  • exceptional adhesion
    The silver coating holds perfectly onto the yarn. Due to the plasma coating production process, the silver is not brittle and will not crumble off the yarn.
     
  • very regular coating along the yarn
    Ideal for automation applications, where uniform conducitvity is important to keep performance at a steady level and reaction margins extremely narrow.
     
  • coated with silver only
    There is no layer of any other metal or adhesive substance underneath like it is with other metalization processes. Yet, SwicoSilver provides excellent adhesion of the metal on the yarn - much better than traditional methods.  
     
  • tailored upon your requirements
    Additional to the standard programme, SwicoSilver yarn can also be made with the properties you need. This includes conducitivity values, base yarn material counts or twist. We do everything so that the yarns are easy to process for you.
 

Furthermore, thanks to the coating with pure silver, SwicoSilver yarns also comprise the characteristics of silver, which are:

 

  • antimicrobial
  • antifungal
  • static dissipation
  • shielding from radiation
  • shielding from electromagnetic force

STANDARD PROGRAMME

Despite the yarn being easily adjusted to customers special needs, there are also the following standards for SwicoSilver yarns in Polyester PET FDY available in stock:
Below list only refers to SwicoSilver normal type. For a product overview for SwicoSilver HiCon, please click here.
Product line: plasma Silver coated yarns

twist /

 count (dtex)

0 tpm

60 tpm

200 tpm

embroidery
x 2 high twist

78 f 24

-

*

125 f 36

-

150 f 48

-

-

168 f 24

-

-

-


*: yarn is 80 tpm instead of 60 tpm

■: available in stock
○: production on order only

Base yarn of all SwicoSilver stocks is PET FDY. Other base materials - such as Nylon, PP, etc. - exclusively upon order.
SwicoSilver FDY yarns are available from stock on bobbins of 100m or 500m.
SwicoSilver embroidery yarns are available on king spools of 1000m.

Need higher counts? Try SwicoSilver HiCon.

 

PLASMA SILVER COATED POLYESTER DTY YARN

Plasma Silver coated Polyester FDY yarn in various counts available from stock service

PLASMA SILVER COATED POLYESTER EMBROIDERY YARN

Plasma Silver coated Polyester embroidery yarn available from stock service

POSSIBILITIES

Additional to the stock service, SwicoSilver yarn can also be tailored upon your requirements.
Not only concerning the count (from a fine dtex 8 mono- or multifilament up to a coarse dtex 550 high tenacity multifilament) but also in reference to what materials can be coated.

So far, the following materials have been used for this process:
  • Polyester (PET)
  • Polyamide 6.6
  • Polyamide 6
  • UHMWPE
  • Viscose (CV)
  • Silk
  • Meta-/ Paraaramide
  • Vectran

Also, friction textured HE or Set yarn can be coated which provides a "geometric" elasticity to the product.
Everything is possible as long as the yarn is a continuous filament yarn with a count of between dtex 8 - dtex 550.
 
Base material: continuous filament yarn (mono and multifilament)
Count range: dtex 8 - dtex 550
Twist: no restriction
Lowest possible conductivity: abt. 0.5 ohm/cm*

*: for even lower conductivity values, please refer to "SwicoSilver HiCon".

APPLICATIONS

For what kind of applications is SwicoSilver yarn suitable?
  • fabrics for decoration
  • high end fashion
  • luxury menswear in pin stripes
  • sewing / embroidery threads
  • fabrics for clerical applications
  • home furnishing
  • carpets
  • medical end uses
  • engineering as ESD applications
  • jewellery / watches
  • computing
  • electronic components
  • defense application
  • body sensor systems
  • decoration elements in folklore dresses

REFERENCES

Where can you find SwicoSilver yarn so far incorporated?
SwicoSilver has been successfully implemented in various projects concerning transmission, engineering or luxury accessoires. Please contact us for more detailed information.

INQUIRY

What to do when you are interested in SwicoSilver yarns.
Please use the below plasma coated yarn checklist (.docx file - attention, not the same checklist as for other Swicofil products) and send it completely filled in to us by email.

 

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