CTE4443 Quality Assurance for Textiles and Apparel Final Exam Review Standard Environment Temperature 70 2 degrees F Relative humidity 65 2 Lights on Doors and blinds closed We do this because textile materials respond differently to different amounts of moisture in the air different testing environments Characterization Fabric characteristics aspects Thickness o Characteristic refers to how various components are combined to create a fabric Ex Fabric structure yarn structure fabric count weight o Characteristics contribute to cost quality appearance performance and production o Thickness the distance through the fabric from one surface to another o Affects Thermal comfort Flexibility Drape Bulk Warp black o Reported as 1 1000 of an inch Thin 0 008 Medium 0 009 0 180 Fabric weight Thick 0 019 o Weight mass per unit area ounces square yd o Affects Cover Durability Comfort Cost o Light weight 4oz yd Filling white o Medium weight 4 7 oz yd o Heavy weight 7 oz yd Woven fabrics direction filling or weft Terminology o Most woven fabrics have yarns in the vertical warp direction and in the horizontal o Fabric count total number of warp plus filling yarns in a square inch of fabric o Grain intersection of warp and filling yarns in a woven fabric should be a 90 degree right angle Twill Weave o Bias the 45 degree direction across a woven fabric o The warp and filling yarns are interlaced so that a diagonal pattern is formed by the yarns on the surface o Right handed twills have the diagonal running from the lower left to the upper right o Left handed twills have the diagonal running from the lower right to the upper left o Angle The angle of the diagonal can be a good indication of quality The steeper the twill angle the more durable the fabric Types of yarns o Staple spun made from staple length fibers Must be held together by some means to form yarns usually twisting o Filament long continuous strands of fibers Made from manufactured fibers or silk filament Yarn classifications o Single group of filament or staple fibers twisted together o Ply twisting one or more single yarns o Cord yarns twisting two or more ply yarns together Used in making rope sewing thread cordage Yarn twist o Twist the number of turns about the axis of a length of a yarn o Fibers are twisted to the left S or right Z o Twist affects characteristics and properties of a yarn including Appearance behavior or durability o High twist yarns are Stronger More firm Smaller in diameter Smoother Resilient Resistant to snagging and abrasion o Crepe yarns have an extremely high twist They usually start to kink thus creating a yarn that does not have a smooth surface Total Quality Management Total quality management o Integrated effort to improve performance at every level by every employee o Goal maintain organizations competitiveness in global market o Includes Customer focus quality emphasis teamwork individual empowerment training and education employee involvement commitment by management and continuous process improvement o Quality is built into product not inspected in Introduction to Quality Assurance Textile industry complex o Raw materials o Processed materials o Sewn product manufacturers o Retailers o Consumers and customers Textile quality assurance o Process of designing producing evaluating and assessing products to see that they meet the desired quality level for a company s target market o Quality incorporated in all stages It is NOT o Quality control inspecting goods after production to separate acceptable from unacceptable products This is a post production approach testing after the product is made Holistic perspective o Quality is not the same for all things but inherent in all objects and actions o that which belongs to something and makes or helps to make it what it is o Must address contemporary business issues o In the case of textile products includes the components that contribute to quality o Engineering quality into a product o Measuring a products quality o Improving quality of a product or process Product perspective o Product quality is represented by a total of a set of precise and measurable characteristics or components of a finished product o Consistent conformance to specifications and standards o Quality is achieved when products consistently fall within a range of acceptable o Quality is achieved when products consistently fall within a range of acceptable measures for all dimensions of quality measures for all dimensions of quality o Products that meet this level of quality are assumed to produce the greatest income and profit for the company Customer perspective the customer in the market contact with their customers Textile testing o Customer could be the next level of manufacturer or the final customer o Quality reflects an ever changing marketplace and satisfies the ever changing needs of o Companies must respond to changes in the expectations and needs by maintaining o One way to be sure quality is the best is through textile testing o Testing is the analysis and evaluation of a material or product to assess its characteristics quality or performance o The product may be tested in its original condition or may be subjected to procedures such as laundry abrasion etc Purposes for testing o Assessment of product performance o Research and development o Quality control o Comparative testing o Analyze product failure o Meet government regulations Who does the testing o Suppliers the company that supplies the product to the retailer o In house the company that produces the product o Independent or contract a separate business organization that specifically tests materials and products for other companies Testing organizations o AATCC o ASTM Chemical properties of textiles Physical mechanical properties o International Standards Organization ISO Based in Switzerland Serves member organizations throughout the world Has a member from each country ANSI is the member from the US Coordinates efforts among different countries to develop standard test methods that can be applied internationally o American Society for Quality ASQ Organization of professionals who work to improve the quality of manufactured goods services and related factors Developed code of ethics publishes a newsletter on quality that includes articles related to quality o American Apparel and Footwear Association AAFA National organization that deals with issues of interest to the sewn products industry As the national trade