SMIT

What SMIT does

SMIT (legal entity SMIT SRL) is an Italian manufacturer of industrial weaving machines founded on 21 February 1938 by the Board of Directors of Lanerossi in what is now the Italian textile valley. The company designs and produces high-speed rapier weaving machines built around its proprietary Free-Flight carbon composite ribbons system — a hook-guide-free weft-insertion technology that the company claims delivers the fastest weaving-width change, high textile efficiency, and superior fabric quality across yarn types ranging from delicate silk to heavy technical fibers. SMIT is a subsidiary of Santex Rimar Group (since 2015/2016) and is headquartered in Trissino (Vicenza), Italy, with 101–250 employees.

The commercial product portfolio comprises three core platforms: 2FAST, described as the world's fastest free-flight rapier loom exceeding 800 rpm and targeted at general applications including denim, shirting, wool, silk, glass fiber, technical fabrics, filters, home textile and conveyor belts; GS980F, a terry-towel specialist with eight working widths from 220 to 380 cm and the proprietary Dynamic Pile Control (rocking-reed) system; and ONE, a single-rapier machine (140–220 cm reed width, up to 1700 m/min yarn insertion) positioned for demanding technical applications where competing machines fail, including carbon fiber, filter, and airbag production. A complementary 2SAVE accessory reduces weft yarn waste by controlling thread tension outside fabric edges, and an online Weaving Machine Configurator supports custom machine specification by fabric type.

SMIT monetizes through one-time capital-equipment sales to enterprise textile manufacturers, supported by a global network of service and sales agents, spare-parts distribution via Santex Rimar Group logistics, and event-driven marketing at major textile machinery exhibitions (ITMA ASIA & CITME, ITM, ITMA Barcelona). Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. The company serves a horizontally diversified set of customer segments — terry-towel mills, denim producers, wool fabricators, shirting manufacturers, silk weavers, home-textile producers, technical-textile and filter manufacturers, airbag fabric producers, glass-fiber producers, carbon-fiber composite makers and conveyor-belt manufacturers — across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America. SMIT holds the ACIMIT Green Label certification for its 2FAST loom and earned the 1999 Textile World Innovation Award for the G6300.

Name

SMIT

Legal name

SMIT SRL

Website

https://smitweaving.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1938

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

SMIT, founded in 1938 and headquartered in Trissino, Italy, manufactures proprietary free-flight rapier weaving machines (2FAST, GS980F, ONE) for global textile manufacturers serving terry towel, denim, technical, airbag, and carbon-fiber fabric applications, operating as a subsidiary of Santex Rimar Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Trissino

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Weaving Machine Sales: SMIT manufactures and sells high-speed weaving machines (2FAST, GS980F, ONE) for various textile applications. Revenue is generated through direct sales of machinery to textile manufacturers globally.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SMIT manufactures and designs dynamically controlled free-flight tape rapier weaving machines for textile manufacturers worldwide. The product portfolio includes three core high-speed looms—2FAST (fastest free-flight rapier loom exceeding 800 rpm), GS980F (specialized terry towel weaving machine), and ONE (single rapier machine for technical fabrics like carbon fiber and filters)—plus the 2SAVE sustainability accessory. Machines are built in Italy using proprietary Free-Flight carbon composite ribbons technology without hook guides.

Product overview

SMIT is a manufacturer of textile weaving machines established in 1938, now part of Santex Rimar Group since 2016. The company offers three core weaving machine products: 2FAST (the fastest free-flight rapier loom exceeding 800 rpm for general applications including denim, shirting, and technical fabrics), GS980F (specialized terry towel weaving machine with Dynamic Pile Control), and ONE (for demanding technical applications like carbon fiber and filters). The product portfolio is complemented by the 2SAVE eco accessory for waste reduction and an online Weaving Machine Configurator for customization. All machines feature free-flight carbon composite ribbons without hook guides, and the company emphasizes Made in Italy quality, sustainability, and customization capabilities for applications ranging from terry towels to airbags, glass fiber, and industrial filters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 2FAST: The fastest free-flight rapier loom, exceeding 800 rpm, designed and manufactured in Italy, globally premiered at ITMA Barcelona 2019.
• GS980F
• ONE
• 2SAVE

Products and services

• 2FAST Rapier Weaving Machine The fastest free-flight rapier loom in the world, exceeding 800 rpm. Designed and manufactured in Italy, featuring patented weft beating system and free-flight carbon composite ribbons without hook guides for high textile efficiency and top fabric quality. Used for denim, shirting, wool, silk, glass fiber, technical fabrics, filters, home textile, conveyor belt, and airbag production. Holds ACIMIT Green Label certification.
• GS980F Terry Towel Weaving Machine The best terry towel weaving machine with eight different working widths from 220 to 380 cm. Features Dynamic Pile Control for pile formation by rocking reed with loose pick distance up to 24mm. Runs up to 1550 M/Min and over 500 Rpm (260 cm), weaving spun yarns from 4 to 400 Tex, filament yarns from 10 to 3500 Den and fancy yarns up to 2 Nm. Used for terry towel, bathrobe, and beach towel production.
• ONE Single Rapier Weaving Machine Weaving machine for technical and specialized applications where other machines fail. Features single rapier weft insertion with dynamically controlled flexible tape rapier, achieving up to 1700 m/min of yarn insertion. Reed width range from 140 to 220 cm with beam flanges diameter up to 1000 mm. Used for demanding technical applications including carbon fiber, filter, and airbag production.

Quantifiable outcome

• 720 kg/year of cotton saved per machine with 2SAVE
• +5 more outcomes

Segments12 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Santex Rimar GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015SMIT became part of Santex Rimar Group in 2015/2016. Santex Rimar Group is one of the leading players in the world market of textile machinery manufacturers for weaving, textile finishing, technical textiles, and green technologies for water treatment and drying processes.
• ACIMITminorOthersACIMIT (Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers Association) developed the Green Label certification for sustainable textile machinery. SMIT's 2FAST loom is certified with ACIMIT Green Label.
• RINAminorOthersRINA is an international certification body that developed the Green Label certification for ACIMIT, certifying SMIT machines for energy and environmental performance.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Toyota Industries (textile machinery): Toyota Industries produces JAT810 air-jet and water-jet looms, plus offering platforms across weft-insertion technologies serving similar global fabric-mill customers to SMIT. Major incumbent competing for greenfield and replacement capex at large mills.
• RIFA Industrial Group: RIFA is a major Chinese weaving-machine maker producing air-jet, water-jet, and rapier looms at competitive price points. Heads-up competitor to SMIT in cost-sensitive segments and an emerging force in technical and home-textile fabric segments across Asia and Africa.
• Itema Group: Itema is an Italy-based (Bergamo) manufacturer of rapier, air-jet, and projectile weaving machines and is SMIT's most direct head-to-head competitor. Both serve identical customer segments (denim, terry, technical fabrics, home textiles) with similar shuttle-less weft-insertion technology and overlapping global agent networks.
• Lindauer Dornier GmbH: Lindauer Dornier is a German manufacturer of rapier and air-jet weaving machines for technical textiles, carbon-fiber reinforcement, and tire fabrics. Directly comparable to SMIT's ONE platform and overlaps on technical/fabric-mill customers globally.
• Bonas / Stradal Si (VAN DE WIELE): Bonas (now part of VAN DE WIELE) specializes in electronic jacquard machines for weaving, complementing but also competing for the same fabric-mill capex decisions as SMIT's looms. Direct overlap at terry, matelassé, and decorative fabric mill customers.
• Tsudakoma Industrial Loom: Tsudakoma is a Japanese manufacturer of water-jet and air-jet weaving machines with a strong position in Asia. Competes with SMIT for denim, terry, and shirting fabric-mill capex, especially across East and South-East Asian customers.
• Lakshmi Machine Works (LMW): LMW is an Indian textile-machinery conglomerate producing ring-spinning, carding, and rapier/air-jet weaving machines. Competes with SMIT in cost-sensitive segments and increasingly in technical fabrics across South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
• Picanol Group: Picanol is a Belgian weaving-machine manufacturer specializing in rapier and air-jet looms for denim, terry, and technical fabrics. Direct competitor to SMIT's 2FAST and GS980F platforms in rapier technology and customer overlap worldwide.

Broad incumbents

• Karl Mayer Group: Karl Mayer is a German textile-machinery leader focused on warp knitting, warp preparation, and technical textiles. Comparable to SMIT in serving technical-textile customers (e.g., carbon fiber, glass) and competes for the same capex slots at large textile producers.
• Benninger (Jakob Müller Group): Benninger and Jakob Müller are Swiss/German textile-machinery players in finishing, weaving preparation, and narrow fabrics. Adjacent competitor to SMIT in industrial textile machinery, with overlap on technical-textile and airbag customers across Europe.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SMIT