TODESCO, come and see how the Purple system works

Drying leather is one of the most energy-intensive steps in the finishing process and heavily influences the calculation of the Carbon Footprint of the manufacturing process. Now technology is coming to the rescue. At the Simac Tanning Tech 2023, last September in Milan, Todesco and GSC Group presented a new technology that is the result of a three-year project in 2020 called Purple. “The idea was born and took shape in the immediate post-pandemic period, at a time when energy and gas costs were soaring,” explains Paolo Todesco. Purple is an innovative technology covered by an international patent, which reduces energy consumption during the drying of the leather after the reassembly and fixing processes.

How does it work?

“The Purple UV unit – the manager explains – is a station located at the end of the drying tunnel that eliminates temperature as a catalyst in chemical reactions: the catalyst is ultraviolet light, and this keeps the temperature of the leather below 40°”

The first industrialised system is located at Todesco’s R&D area in Creazzo (Vicenza) and operates at standard working speeds >12 m/min. According to data collected by the company, the Purple system guarantees energy savings of up to 66% compared to a steam tunnel and 73% compared to an infrared tunnel. Emissions are reduced by 57% compared to steam-powered drying and 75% compared to infrared.

“The resulting leather is less sticky after finishing due to the lower solvent content and the ‘cold’ process eliminates any sintering effect on the surface”.

The development of the Purple system saw the collaboration of the leather chemical company GSC Group, which is based just 10 km from the Todesco factory in the tanning district of Arzignano. The collaboration resulted in a chemical package specifically for the use of UV technology, with very low VOC content, and performance in line with all OEM and regulatory standards.