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The industry involved in the design and manufacture of carpets and rugs (Hochflor Teppich) is huge all around the world. Carpet is the term used to describe any textile floor covering that has an upper layer attached to a backing layer. While the term carpet is often used in the west to describe a fitted wall-to-wall style, in other countries it is just as likely to refer to free standing rug-type coverings.
There are a number of carpet types in manufacture around the world, including woven, needlefelt, knotted, tufted, flatweave, and hooked. All of these varieties require an extensive process of design and production, which is achieved in multiple ways depending on the tools and technology available. Carpet manufacture has a long history associated with human civilization, and many people around the world still use traditional techniques and tools to manufacture their cultural carpets.
The Manufacture of Carpets

Traditional carpets are often woven and produced on a loom similar to a woven cloth. Plush or Berber pile can both be used, with new styles that incorporate both of these materials. The woven process is used a lot in traditional carpet making, and intricate patterns and pre-determined designs are regularly incorporated into these styles. In comparison, the production of needlefelt carpets is normally much more technologically advanced, using an electrostatic mechanism that works on individual synthetic fibres. Knotted carpet is produced by using a structural weft thread that are alternated with another weft to produce knots at a ninety degree angle. This is also a traditional method of carpet construction, and is seen regularly on Oriental and Kashmir carpets.

However, while these illustrate some of the many methods of carpet manufacture, the most common method used in the production of domestic carpets and sheepskin rugs is where a carpet pile is injected into a backing material to produce tufted carpet. The pile is then bonded to a secondary backing, a woven weave, or a synthetic alternative to provide more strength and stability. When carpets are made in this way, the design process is normally separate to the construction and takes place on computers using digital design applications. Despite the dominance of tufted carpet in western civilization, traditional methods of carpet making and pattern design are still used all over the world today.