KARL MAYER has just unveiled its new RDJ 7/3 Jacquard Double Needle Bar Raschel Machine in the international trade press, and the innovation is already causing a stir in the market: The Long John Group, a leading manufacturer of performance footwear fabrics and a long-standing partner of renowned brands, was the first customer to invest in the new machine and celebrated its official launch at its Indonesian plant on August 20.
Guests at the event included representatives from well-known global brands in the athletic footwear sector and from KARL MAYER’s Management.
On site, guests experienced the RDJ 7/3’s enormous innovation potential firsthand. With its three wireless Jacquard bars and other clever technological features, the machine opens up entirely new possibilities for the development of footwear textiles. Complex patterns, precise functional zones, innovative structures, and expressive design effects can now be created with unprecedented flexibility and efficiency.
A key supplier to the global footwear industry
The Long John Group is one of Taiwan’s leading supplier of footwear fabrics and ranks among the largest and most experienced manufacturers in the industry in Asia.
The company was founded in 1983 by Jeff Wen and has continued to grow ever since. Today, Long John has facilities in Taiwan, China, Vietnam, and Indonesia, as well as a sales office in the United States.
Production is fully integrated and includes spinning, weaving, knitting, warp knitting, dyeing, and finishing. The production capacity is impressive: fabrics for more than 313 million pairs of shoes have already been produced on the Jacquard Double Needle Bar Raschel Machine.
The warp knitting division plays a key role in the company’s innovative strength. Here, open-designed stretch tricot fabrics for uppers and linings are produced, as well as high-performance spacer fabrics with plain or trendy Jacquard-patterned mesh surfaces, which are used in a variety of ways in modern athletic shoes.
Innovation Is Inevitable
Long John Group products are characterized by high quality, innovation, and a keen sense of trends, and are manufactured using high-tech machinery and state-of-the-art processes.
To bring new design concepts to life, the company has now expanded its machinery fleet to include the RDJ 7/3 from KARL MAYER. The new technology enables:
- Hole designs with nearly perfect and significantly larger rounds
- Precisely integrated patterns and functional zones with unprecedented design freedom
- Custom-designed jacquard patterns with striking two-tone effects and creative color combinations
- Three-dimensional surfaces and eye-catching embossing directly in the fabric
A Partnership Driven by a Pioneering Spirit
The collaboration between KARL MAYER and Long John has a long history: As early as 2012, the footwear fabric manufacturer made its first investment in a KARL MAYER Double Needle Bar Raschel Machine with Jacquard in the RDPJ-series. In the years that followed, the company was among the pioneering customers to be the first to use newly developed machines.
The RDJ 7/3 also made its industrial debut at Long John. With the commissioning of this machine, the company underscores its role as one of the most innovative players in the global footwear fabric industry.
Anyone who would like to see the RDJ 7/3 in action is invited to the Product Show at KARL MAYER (CHINA) in Changzhou on November 19, 20, 21, and 23, 2026, held in conjunction with ITMA ASIA.
