FABRIC PROBLEMS

FABRIC PROBLEMS
There are two general types of fabric
problems: patent and latent defects.

Most spreading operators are concerned with

patent defects that are visible variations in
fabric such as shading and fabric flaws
including holes, streaks, stains and slubs.

Other patent defects include bow and skew,

barre and streaks, inconsistent width and
wavy selvages.
FABRIC PROBLEMS
Almost every fabric has patent defects that
occur as the fabric is made.

Patent defects can be readily seen or

detected.
Latent defects
Latent defects cannot be detected by simply
viewing the fabric.

They appear after the fabric has been

subjected to processes such as steaming, wet
processing and pressing
FABRIC PROBLEMS
Common latent defects include shrinkage or
stretching, lack of colour fastness and poor
sewability.

Latent defects like colour loss or shrinkage

may appear during the apparel production
process.

Wearing, laundry or dry cleaning by the

consumer may also reveal latent defects.
PATENT DEFECTS
Shading:
Shading is variation in hue, value or intensity
as measured against a standard.
Shading may occur side to side, side to middle
or end to end in the same roll, between rolls,
between lots for the same style number and
colour.
Fabric must conform to the specified colour
standard and the amount of shade variation
has to be within tolerances.
PATENT DEFECTS

Fabric flaws:
Fabric flaws include knots, stains, broken warp
and filling yarns, holes and so on that occur by
accident during fabric production.
These flaws can be dealt with four methods:

(a) Cutting and sewing all the fabric, and selling

garments with fabric defects as other than
first quality( less flaws, low labour cost).
PATENT DEFECTS
(b) Premarking defects or marking the defects
during spreading and recutting the defective
garment pieces(costly fabrics, high labour
cost).

(c) Removing the fabric defects and producing

garments only from first quality goods(high
standards, more labour cost).

(d) Using some combination of the preceding

three options(removal of only major defects).
PATENT DEFECTS
Barre and streaks:
A bar or striped effect, usually in the filling
direction.
It creates a difference in colour and shade.
It may be caused by irregularities in fibre or
yarn processing.
PATENT DEFECTS
Width variation:
It is the variation in the crosswise dimensions
of fabric because of relaxation, tension or
application of water, heat, steam, laundry and
dry cleaning processes.

Cutting utilization may be better on wider

fabrics, but there is an optimal width for each
type of product.
PATENT DEFECTS
Manufacturers use fabric widths that are
compatible with their equipment and facilities.

If fabric is wider than specified, the fabric may

be less dense.

If fabrics are narrower, different markers must

be developed.

Wider fabrics result in waste unless markers

are developed to use the full length.
PATENT DEFECTS
Bow & skew:
It is the distortion in warp and weft alignment
caused by improper tensioning of fabric in
weaving or finishing.
In bowed fabric, weft yarns do not remain at
right angles to the warp yarns.
In skewed fabric, the weft yarns interlace at
an angle other than 90 degrees.
They affect the drapability and dimensional
stability of the fabrics, cause garment
twisting, distorting the balance.
Grain

13 Fabric Quality Assurance-TD 4/10/17

LATENT DEFECTS
Shrinkage:
It is the reduction in the physical dimensions
of fabric caused by relaxation of yarns.
It is caused by numerous factors, some of
which are inherent in the structure, finishing
or handling.
Application of water, heat or steam during
finishing processes, pressing, laundry or dry
cleaning may cause the yarns to contract and
the dimensions of the garment piece to
shrink.
LATENT DEFECTS
Warp yarns that have been highly stressed
during the weaving process or high-twist
yarns that have been elongated tend to relax
after cutting or upon application of some from
of moisture.
Fabrics made of spandex and nylon fibres are
particularly susceptible to elongation followed
by contraction during cutting and processing.
LATENT DEFECTS
Even high humidity in the environment can
cause shrinkage to occur.
Application of high temperatures during fusing
and curing may also cause the garment piece
to contract.
Differential shrinkage of materials may result
as thread, interlining, tapes and the fabric
may have different fibre contents and
structures and they may contract in different
ways.
LATENT DEFECTS

Snap back:
It occurs in cutting.
When rolled fabric is spread and cut, it may
snap back to a relaxed state and thus become
smaller than the pattern piece used for
cutting.
It is due to the fabric being under too much
tension when it is placed on the roll or spread
for cutting and results in undersized garment.
LATENT DEFECTS

Colour fastness:
Colours may bleed, crock or fade because of
environmental conditions.
Bleeding occurs when colour comes out of
fabric during wet processing.
Crocking occurs when colour applications rub
off.
Fabrics can be tested to determine the
possibilities of these defects to occur.
FABRIC GRADING
A number of fabric grading systems have
been used to assess or grade the quality of
fabric.
Each system emphasis on different aspects of
fabric defects, so it is possible that a fabric
could be graded first quality by one system
and second quality by another.
All of the systems are concerned with the size
or length of defects and the number of defects
in the lot.
FABRIC GRADING
The three systems commonly used are:
(a) Ten Point System(1955):
(( This system is designed to consider every
imperfection according to size, regardless of
type.
(( The cause of the defect is not a
consideration.
FABRIC GRADING
(b) Four Point System(1959):
It differs from the Ten point system in
assigning penalty points.
The Four Point System tends to classify more
fabrics as first quality.
(c) Graniteville Grading System(1978):
Frequently used by jeans manufacturers and
their denim suppliers.
4- POINT SYSTEM
S.N SIZE OF DEFECT PENALTY
o. POINTS
1 Up to 3 inches 1

2 3 6 inches 2

3 6 9 inches 3

4 Over 9 inches 4
.

The formula for calculating the points /100 sq

yards

Total defect points assigned X 100 X 36
Yardage inspected of piece X cut-table
width in inch of piece