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How do you control shrinkage in fabric?
2023/07/31
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Controlling fabric shrinkage is a critical quality control issue in textile manufacturing. Shrinkage is the percentage reduction in size of a fabric after washing or wetting treatment. Excessive shrinkage can lead to instability in garment size, affecting the fit and appearance of the garment, so it is very important to take a series of control measures during the manufacturing process. This article will introduce some methods to control fabric shrinkage.
1. Selection of suitable fibers and yarns
- Select fibers and yarns with low shrinkage for specific product requirements. For example, chemical fibers (e.g. polyester fibers) usually have low moisture absorption, so their shrinkage rate is low.
- Reasonable combination of blending or interweaving of different fibers to balance the various properties can help reduce the overall shrinkage rate of the fabric.
2. Control fabric structure
- The use of tighter fabric structures, such as higher yarn densities or tighter weaves, helps to reduce the longitudinal and transverse elongation of the fabric, thus reducing shrinkage.
3. Reasonable finishing process
- Appropriate finishing processes, such as pre-shrinking and sizing, are used during the weaving process to control fabric shrinkage. Through heat setting or chemical finishing, temporary or permanent deformation can be introduced in the fabric to reduce its subsequent shrinkage in the washing process.
4. Reasonable finishing process
- Post-finishing treatment of the woven fabric, such as washing, heat-setting, heat treatment, etc., helps to control the final shrinkage rate of the fabric. In the process of finishing, reasonable operation should be carried out according to the characteristics of the fabric and the target shrinkage rate.
5. Use of anti-shrinkage additives
- The use of some special finishing agents or anti-shrinkage additives can improve the moisture absorption and shrinkage of fabrics, thus reducing the size change of fabrics in the washing process.
6. Reasonable washing method
- For the characteristics of different fabrics, adopt reasonable washing methods, such as water temperature, washing time, choice of detergent, etc., which can help to reduce the shrinkage rate of fabrics in water washing.
7. Quality control and testing
- Establish an effective quality control system in the production process to strictly control the quality and shrinkage rate of fabrics. Regularly test the shrinkage rate of the fabric to ensure that the product meets the expected requirements.
8. Reasonable storage and transportation
- Avoid excessive compression or stretching of fabrics during storage and transportation to prevent unnecessary shrinkage.
9. Educate employees and factory cooperation
- Educate workers and factory managers on the importance of controlling shrinkage and train them to use proper processes and equipment.
10. Reasonable product design
- When designing products, give full consideration to the shrinkage rate of fabrics and work with manufacturers to determine the appropriate textiles and processes to meet the dimensional stability requirements of the products.
To sum up, through reasonable selection of fibers and yarns, optimization of fabric structure, reasonable control of finishing process and post-finishing process, strengthening quality control, developing a reasonable washing method and other multifaceted measures, we can effectively control the shrinkage rate of fabrics, improve product quality to meet the market demand, and provide consumers with better quality textiles.
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