1. Safety & Pre-Installation Preparation

• Safety Checks: Ensure main drives are locked out/tagged out (LOTO). Verify that crawl speed controls, emergency stops, and interlocks are fully functional. Ensure all personnel wear cut-resistant gloves, hard hats, safety glasses, and harness gear if working at elevated heights.
• Cleaning & Machine Inspection:
  • Clean all suction boxes, foils, doctor blades, save-all trays, and roll surfaces with high-pressure water to eliminate pitch, scale, and grit.
  • Inspect framing, roll covers, and doctor blades for burrs, sharp edges, or mechanical wear that could snag or cut the new fabric.
  • Check roll alignment and parallel positioning of key rolls (breast roll, couch roll, wire turning roll, guide roll, and stretch roll).

2. Fabric Preparation & Rigging

• Package Unpacking: Unpack the forming fabric in a clean area away from grit and debris. Check the label to verify machine position, loop orientation, Machine Direction (MD), and wear-side orientation (bottom layer against rolls vs. top paper-contact layer).
• Cantilever / Loading Preparation:
  • If installing via a cantilevered forming section: Retract framing spacers, swing out/support cantilever beams, and attach lead poles or lifting poles according to OEM frame instructions.
  • If using a fabric loader/shuttle rig: Position the loading poles and ensure smooth travel along the machine frame.
• Fabric Handling: Never pull, snag, or kink the monofilaments. Avoid sharp bends, as permanent kinks weaken the structure and cause early mark/wear failures.

3. Pulling & Positioning the Fabric

4. Tensioning & Wet-In Procedure

1. Initial Dry Tensioning:
   • Apply low initial tension using the stretch roll mechanism (approx. 2–3 kN/m or 10–15 pli).
   • Measure CD tension profile across the front, center, and back using a calibrated mechanical or digital tension meter to ensure even tensioning.
2. Wetting In the Fabric:
   • Turn on all lubrication and shower systems (low-pressure flooding showers, high-pressure needle showers, knock-off showers).
   • Wet the entire fabric thoroughly for 10–15 minutes while static or under slow crawl speed. Polyester and polyamide monofilaments swell slightly and stabilize when wet.
3. Final Tensioning to Target Operating Value:
   • Gradually increase stretch roll pressure until reaching target operating tension (typically 6–8 kN/m / 35–45 pli for standard triple-layer/SSB forming fabrics, or according to OEM fabric specifications).
   • Re-verify CD tension profile across front, center, and back to confirm variations do not exceed ±0.5 kN/m.

5. Crawl Run, Alignment & Guiding Check

• Crawl Speed Verification:
  • Run the machine on crawl speed (10–30 m/min) while inspecting fabric tracking and edge clearance.
  • Confirm the automatic guiding system (pneumatic or electric guide palm/sensor) tracks the fabric smoothly without over-correcting or driving edges into frame structures.
• Shower & Vacuum Inspection:
  • Inspect high-pressure needle showers to ensure nozzles are unblocked, aligned at correct angles (10–15° off perpendicular), and oscillating correctly.
  • Verify vacuum box seal strips are flush and properly lubricated with water.

6. Pre-Startup Checklist