The introduction of light products

The next market development was the soaring demand for narrow weaving machines that were capable of producing lighter fabrics, hence starkly in contrast to the weaving machine offered by Picañol that was made for the production of heavier fabrics. After an in-depth study of the weaving machines available on the market, in 1946, the seven staff members of the company’s development department started working on a lighter weaving loom, which resulted in the creation of a machine with an available weaving width of 112 cm. The company managed to produce four of these 200 rpm machines per week. Germany was one of the first countries to purchase Omnium weaving machines after WWII. Customers there included Anton Cramer from Greven, a company specializing in ‘inlett’ (cover) weaving, a technique often used today in the production of eiderdown duvets. The then ‘Betriebsleiter’ or Managing Director, Herr Bause, shared the family Steverlynck’s passion for hunting, but the post-war circumstances prevented him from obtaining a new rifle. In return for purchasing Picañol machines he was therefore gifted a Browning rifle, its loose parts hidden in the crates between the weaving loom components. Picañol was to become the dominant seller in the German Westfalia area for some years later. Southern Germany would remain the domain of the Swiss constructors Saurer and Ruti for some time, until Picañol finally also managed to obtain a share of their market. (Picture: the Omnium in 1949)