Uster Technologies
Corporate brand
UnclaimedSwiss manufacturer of analytical instruments and online monitoring systems for textile quality control.
Last updated August 31, 2026
Overview
Uster Technologies is a Swiss industrial technology company that develops analytical instruments, laboratory systems, and online monitoring equipment for the textile sector. Its products are used throughout the fiber, yarn, spinning, cotton-processing, and fabric-production value chains to measure physical properties, identify defects, monitor production, and support consistent quality management. The company is based in Uster, Switzerland, and is widely known in the textile industry simply as USTER. The business traces its roots to an aerial telegraphy workshop established in Uster in 1875. Its connection with textile machinery developed in the twentieth century, including the production of weaving-preparatory machines from 1927 and research into textile electronics for Swiss spinning mills from 1944. A major turning point came in 1948, when the company introduced an early yarn-evenness tester under the Zellweger Uster name. The instrument established a foundation for Uster's later role in standardized textile measurement and helped make the Uster name internationally recognized among spinning and textile professionals. Uster's portfolio covers both laboratory and production-line applications. In cotton processing, its High Volume Instrument systems measure characteristics such as fiber length, length uniformity, strength, maturity, short-fiber content, micronaire, color, leaf, and other foreign matter. These measurements support cotton classification, trading, ginning, and process control. In spinning mills, Uster systems can assess incoming fibers, sliver, roving, and finished yarn. Relevant properties include yarn evenness, neps, thick and thin places, hairiness, tensile strength, elongation, fineness, twist, friction, contamination, and other defects. The company's best-known product families include Uster Tester systems for yarn analysis, AFIS instruments for single-fiber investigation, HVI systems for fiber-bundle measurement, Tensorapid yarn-strength equipment, Quantum online yarn clearers, Classimat defect-classification systems, and Vision Shield cotton-cleaning and monitoring solutions. Uster also publishes Uster Statistics, a benchmark system first introduced in 1957 that allows textile producers and buyers to compare yarn-quality results with international reference distributions. Its Usterized certification program provides a framework for recognizing spinning mills that meet defined quality-management practices. Corporate ownership has changed several times. Uster Technologies emerged in 2003 from a management buyout of the textile division of Zellweger Luwa Group. It subsequently received private-equity backing, became publicly traded on the main segment of the SIX Swiss Exchange in 2007, and was taken over by Toyota Industries Corporation in 2012. It has since operated as a Toyota Industries subsidiary. The company expanded its geographic and technological footprint through acquisitions and facilities, including a development and manufacturing site in Suzhou, China, and acquisitions involving Zweigle, Jossi Systems, and Elbit Vision Systems. Uster's current positioning combines specialized measurement science, process automation, global textile benchmarks, and long-term technical support for manufacturers seeking repeatable quality and lower production variation.
History
Uster Technologies' origins date to 1875, when an aerial telegraphy workshop was established in Uster, Switzerland. The company later moved into textile-related machinery and began producing weaving-preparatory machines under the Uster name in 1927. In 1944, it started research and development in textile electronics, initially serving Swiss spinning mills. The introduction of a yarn-evenness tester in 1948 was the company's defining early textile technology milestone. The instrument was marketed under the Zellweger Uster name and helped establish the company's reputation for converting textile characteristics into measurable quality data. Uster's subsequent instruments often required the development of new measurement methods and parameters, allowing manufacturers to assess fiber, yarn, and process performance more consistently. In 1957, the company introduced the first Uster Statistics. These reference data sets enabled spinning mills and yarn buyers to compare measured yarn properties with international quality distributions. The statistics became an important shared language for specifying yarn quality and have been periodically updated to reflect technological, geographic, and market changes. Uster expanded in the United States through the acquisition of Schaffner Technologies in 1989 and Spinlab in 1990, followed by the acquisition of Peyer in Switzerland in 1993. In 2003, the textile division of Zellweger Luwa Group was separated through a management buyout supported by private-equity investors, creating Uster Technologies in its modern corporate form. The company established a development and manufacturing site in Suzhou, China, in 2005. A further secondary buyout took place in 2006. The company entered the main segment of the SIX Swiss Exchange in 2007. During this period it introduced product groups intended to address the mid-market segment, broadening its reach beyond the highest-end textile testing applications. In 2009, Uster acquired the Zweigle product line in Germany, adding further yarn-testing capabilities. Toyota Industries Corporation announced and completed a public takeover in 2012. Uster Technologies subsequently became a privately held subsidiary within the Toyota Industries group. Its later expansion included the acquisition of Jossi Systems in 2013 and Elbit Vision Systems in 2018. These transactions supported a broader portfolio spanning measurement, process monitoring, and machine vision. Today, Uster serves textile manufacturers and related cotton-processing businesses with laboratory instruments, online systems, software, benchmarking data, and quality-management services. Its equipment is used to evaluate raw cotton and other fibers, intermediate materials such as sliver and roving, finished yarn, and selected fabric-production processes. The brand's enduring role is based on standardized measurement, defect detection, production control, and the ability to compare results against industry reference data.
- 2018
Elbit Vision Systems acquisition
[1]The acquisition added machine-vision technology relevant to inspection and defect detection.
- 2013
Jossi Systems acquisition
[1]Uster acquired Jossi Systems to expand its textile quality-control capabilities.
- 2012
Toyota Industries takeover
[1]Toyota Industries Corporation acquired Uster Technologies, which became a group subsidiary.
- 2009
Zweigle acquisition
[1]The company acquired Zweigle products in Germany, broadening its yarn-testing portfolio.
- 2007
SIX Swiss Exchange listing
[1]Uster Technologies was listed on the main segment of the SIX Swiss Exchange.
- 2005
Suzhou development and manufacturing site established
[1]Uster established a development and manufacturing site in Suzhou, China.
- 2003
Independent Uster Technologies established
[1]A management buyout separated the textile division of Zellweger Luwa Group and formed Uster Technologies as an independent business.
- 1993
Acquisition of Peyer
[1]Uster acquired Peyer in Switzerland as part of its expansion in textile measurement and machinery.
- 1990
Acquisition of Spinlab
[1]The acquisition of Spinlab further strengthened Uster's textile-testing activities in the United States.
- 1989
Acquisition of Schaffner Technologies
[1]Uster expanded its North American presence through the acquisition of Schaffner Technologies.
Showing the 10 most recent.
Products and positioning
A specialized, measurement-driven textile technology brand focused on objective quality standards, laboratory analysis, online process monitoring, and global manufacturing consistency.
Yarn laboratory testing
Uster Tester
Uster Tester systems analyze yarn evenness and related characteristics, including thick places, thin places, neps, hairiness, diameter, dust, trash, and fineness. They are used by spinning mills to assess production consistency and diagnose process problems across different yarn types.
Cotton fiber classification
Uster HVI
High Volume Instrument systems measure cotton-fiber properties used in ginning, classing, trading, and process control. Measurements may include length, uniformity, strength, maturity, short-fiber content, micronaire, color, leaf, and extraneous matter.
Single-fiber analysis
Uster AFIS
AFIS, or Advanced Fibre Investigation System, evaluates individual fibers and helps spinning mills examine raw-material quality, fiber distributions, and contaminants before and during yarn production.
Online yarn clearing
Uster Quantum
Quantum yarn clearers are installed on automatic winding machines to detect and remove undesirable yarn faults during production. The system supports online quality assurance rather than relying only on laboratory testing after manufacturing.
Yarn defect classification
Uster Classimat
Classimat instruments classify yarn defects by type and severity. Their results help mills distinguish routine variation from faults that could affect downstream processing, fabric appearance, or customer specifications.
Yarn tensile testing
Uster Tensorapid
Tensorapid systems measure yarn strength and elongation. The information is used to evaluate mechanical performance and to support adjustments in spinning and winding processes.
Textile quality benchmarks · 1957
Uster Statistics
Uster Statistics is a reference system for comparing measured fiber and yarn properties with international data. Introduced in 1957 and periodically revised, it provides a common benchmark for producers, buyers, and other participants in the textile supply chain.
Certification and quality management
Usterized
Usterized is a certification program for spinning mills. It is associated with structured quality management and the use of defined testing and process-control practices.
Brand decisions
2012
Accept Toyota Industries takeoverM&ABackground
Uster Technologies had been publicly listed since 2007 when Toyota Industries pursued a public takeover.
Action taken
Toyota Industries Corporation acquired the company and converted it into a group subsidiary.
Aftermath
Uster became privately held within Toyota Industries and continued operating under its established textile-technology brand.
2007
List the company on the SIX Swiss ExchangeStrategyBackground
Following its independent ownership period, Uster pursued access to public capital and greater visibility as a specialized industrial technology company.
Action taken
Uster Technologies listed on the main segment of the SIX Swiss Exchange.
Aftermath
The company remained publicly traded until Toyota Industries acquired it in 2012.
2003
Separate the textile division from Zellweger LuwaM&ABackground
The textile-testing business operated within the Zellweger Luwa Group before a management-led transaction reorganized it as a standalone company.
Action taken
Management, together with private-equity investors, completed a buyout that created Uster Technologies.
Aftermath
The transaction gave the Uster business independent corporate identity and enabled later acquisitions, international expansion, and a subsequent stock-market listing.
Recent events
- 2018
Uster Technologies acquires Elbit Vision Systems[1]
M&A
Uster acquired Elbit Vision Systems, adding machine-vision capabilities relevant to textile inspection and defect detection.
- 2013
Uster Technologies acquires Jossi Systems[1]
M&A
The acquisition expanded Uster's technology and product portfolio in textile process monitoring and quality control.
- 2012
Toyota Industries takes over Uster Technologies[1]
M&A
Toyota Industries Corporation completed a public takeover, after which Uster Technologies became a subsidiary and ceased to operate as an independently listed company.
- 2007
Uster Technologies lists on the SIX Swiss Exchange[1]
Other
The company became publicly traded on the main segment of the SIX Swiss Exchange after several years of private ownership.
- 2003
Uster Technologies emerges from Zellweger Luwa textile division buyout[1]
M&A · Other
A management buyout separated the textile division known as Zellweger Uster from the Zellweger Luwa Group and established Uster Technologies as an independent company.
Sources2 sources
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