Antai Textiles: AI Empowers Intelligent Production, 32 Years of Deep Cultivation Forges Hidden Champion in Acrylic Yarn
In Zhangjiagang in July, as the summer heat intensifies, the intelligent production workshop of Antai Textiles exudes an orderly and efficient rhythm. Production Manager Huang Chang is staring at the jumping data flow on the central control screen, tapping lightly on the keyboard, and an optimization instruction regarding acrylic sliver production parameters is instantly sent to each workstation. 'Just received news from Li Xiong of the Marketing Department that the European customer has added a 500-ton order for colored acrylic sliver, which we need to rush out by the end of the month,' Huang Chang turned to the technician beside him and said, 'Thanks to the AI production scheduling system launched last year; otherwise, we would have needed to schedule at least a week in advance for such an urgent order.'
This efficiency improvement stemmed from the inspiration Li Xiong brought back from Guangzhou at the beginning of the month. On July 15, the 2025 First China Textile and Apparel Artificial Intelligence Conference opened in Haizhu District, Guangzhou. As the 'helmsman' of Antai Textiles' Marketing Department, Li Xiong fully participated in the theme forum 'AI Empowers the Entire Textile Industry Chain.' 'Experts at the conference mentioned that the key to the transformation of the traditional textile industry lies in 'data-driven' – from raw material proportioning to finished product quality inspection, every link can be optimized through algorithms,' Li Xiong recalled. After returning to the company, he immediately held a three-day meeting with Huang Chang in the workshop, combining the intelligent cases from the conference with Antai Textiles' actual production, and finally finalized the secondary intelligent transformation of the acrylic sliver production line: introducing a machine vision quality inspection system that uses high-definition cameras and AI models to real-time identify yarn defects, reducing the qualification rate error of traditional manual sampling inspection from 3% to 0.5%; at the same time, building a production big data platform to integrate data such as raw material procurement, equipment operation, and order delivery, increasing scheduling efficiency by 20%. 'Just like this European customer's order, the system automatically matched the inventory raw materials and idle workstations, so Huang Chang could respond so quickly,' Li Xiong said with a smile.
Such a 'keen sense of smell' has long been engraved in Antai Textiles' genes. Since rooting in the fertile textile land of Zhangjiagang in 1993, this enterprise starting with acrylic yarn and acrylic sliver has been keeping pace with industry trends for 32 years. From the initial single acrylic product to now covering over 200 sub-categories such as colored acrylic sliver and fancy yarn, behind this is in-depth insight into market demand. 'Last month, Jilin Chemical Fiber Group participated in the 3rd Chain Expo and proposed 'Weaving a New Silk Road for the Fiber Industry,' which actually coincides with our long-adhered 'industrial chain collaboration,' Li Xiong said, taking out a thick stack of cooperation lists that include both domestic leading chemical fiber raw material suppliers, well-known European home furnishing brands, and Southeast Asian outdoor clothing enterprises. 'The light resistance and warmth retention of acrylic are natural advantages. Our colored acrylic sliver adopts dope dyeing technology, reducing sewage discharge by 60% compared with traditional dyeing, which has been particularly favored by European environmental protection brands in recent years; while fancy yarn can create three-dimensional textures such as feathers and slubs through special twisting and weaving processes, and the order volume from domestic designer brands increases by 30% annually.'
Industrial chain collaboration is not only reflected in upstream raw materials and downstream customers but also extends to technological breakthroughs in production. Huang Chang led the reporter to the new equipment area at the end of the workshop, where a machine labeled 'Intelligent Color Matching System' was operating. 'In the past, to adjust a new color shade, old masters had to repeatedly test dyeing based on experience; now, by inputting color card data, the system automatically calculates the dye ratio, increasing the one-time success rate from 60% to 95%,' he pointed to the chromatogram on the screen, 'This was jointly developed with the College of Textiles, Jiangnan University, and won the Jiangsu Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award last year.' Over 32 years, Antai Textiles has developed from the initial 2 manual production lines to now 3 intelligent production lines with an annual capacity of over 12,000 tons. The imported German spinning machines, Italian winding machines in the workshop seamlessly connect with independently developed AI systems, making it a hidden champion in the acrylic yarn sector in the Yangtze River Delta.
When talking about the future, Li Xiong and Huang Chang simultaneously mentioned 'deepening technical expertise.' 'The Guangzhou Artificial Intelligence Conference showed us that the next decade of the textile industry will definitely be a decade of 'Intelligence + Green,'' Li Xiong said, pulling out a research and development plan that listed new projects such as 'bio-based acrylic materials' and 'degradable fancy yarn.' 'We are cooperating with the Chinese Academy of Sciences to try replacing some petrochemical raw materials with plant starch to make acrylic products more sustainable.' Meanwhile, Huang Chang stared at the energy consumption monitoring screen in the workshop: 'We will launch a photovoltaic energy storage system next month, striving to have 30% of production electricity come from clean energy within three years.'
From a small workshop in 1993 to an industry benchmark today, Antai Textiles has proven over 32 years that the traditional textile industry is never a 'sunset industry.' As long as it keeps up with the rhythm of technological innovation and understands the code of market demand, it can weave its own 'New Silk Road' in every strand of yarn. At this moment, the machines in the workshop are still roaring. Those acrylic yarns dyed in macaron colors with three-dimensional patterns are starting from here, heading to clothing workshops and home furnishing factories around the world, becoming a warm link connecting tradition and the future.