Woven Fabric Defects

• A fabric defect is any abnormality in the fabric that hinders its acceptability by the consumer.
• High quality requirements are greater because customers are more aware of poor quality problems.
• Fabric rejections must be avoided.
• Fabric price is reduced by 45%-65% due to defects.
• Company image decreases due to defects.

List of fabric defects in woven fabrics

• Coloured flecks
• Knots
• Slub
• Broken ends woven in a bunch
• Broken pattern
• Double end
• Float
• Gout
• Hole, cut, or tear
• Lashing-In
• Local distortion
• Missing ends
• Missing Pick
• Oil and other stain
• Oily ends
• Oily picks
• Reed mark
• Slough off
• Shuttle smash
• Snarls
• Stitches
• Untrimmed loose threads
• Weft bar

Coloured Flecks

• Coloured flecks are the presence of coloured foreign matter in the yarn.
• They are caused by cotton fibers getting contaminated during the ginning stage with leaves, immature fibre, and yellow fibre.
• Coloured portions are removed from the yarn with a plucker.
• The bare patch can be corrected by combing with a metallic comb.

Knots

• Knots are fastenings made by tying together the ends of yarn.
• They are caused by thread breaks during the process of winding, warning, sizing or weaving.
• They are not mendable.

Slub

• Slub is a bunch of yarn having less/no twist and has a wider diameter compared to normal spun yarn.
• They are caused by improper carding or combing or a broken tooth in the chain of gear system
• The slub should be cut with clippers from both ends and bare patches corrected by combing with a metallic comb or by insertion of a separate thread (fine needle).

Broken Pattern

• Broken pattern is the non-continuity of a weave, design, or pattern.
• It's caused by wrong drawing in of threads, or incorrect shedding.
• It is not mendable.

Broken Ends

• Broken ends woven in a bunch is caused by a bunch of broken ends woven into the fabric.
• It is caused by the failure of the weaver in attending the warp breaks properly.
• The broken ends can be removed using a plucker.
• The loose ends are cut with clippers and bare patches are filled by combing with a metallic comb.

Double End

• Double end occurs when two or more ends get woven as one.
• It's characterized by a thick bar running parallel to the warp.
• It's caused by wrong drawing or taking more ends in heald eye.
• To mend, pull out the extra end with a needle, and comb the resulting bare patch with a metallic comb.

Float

• Float is the improper interlacement of warp and weft threads over a certain area.
• It is caused by improper sizing when ends stick or if a broken end entangles with the other ends.
• Only minor floats can be rectified by cutting the floating threads with clippers and combing the resultant patch.

Gout

• Gout is a foreign matter accidentally woven into the fabric.
• It is caused by improper loom cleaning, or an unclean environment.
• Mending involves pulling out the extra foreign matter with a plucker and combing the resultant patch.

Hole, Cut, Tear

• Holes, cuts and tears are self explanatory.
• They are caused by sharp edges on looms, hard substances between layers of fabric in the cloth roll, course temples led to tear the fabric, or during removal of hard, particles like iron particles woven in the cloth.
• They are non-mendable.

Missing Ends

• Missing ends are characterized by a gap, parallel to the warp.
• One or more ends may be missing.
• It is caused by the loom not working properly, dirty droppers preventing ends from dropping, or in electric looms, the metallic droppers being dirty or corroded.
• Missing ends can be mended by drawing few ends from the adjacent area in warp-way directions using a metallic comb, filling the bare patch due to missing ends.

Missing Picks

• Missing picks result in a narrow streak running parallel with weft threads.
• It is caused due to absense of weft.
• They are caused by a faulty let-off and take-up motion; a faulty weft-stop motion; or the fell of the cloth not adjusted after loom stoppage for mending.
• When there are only two adjacent picks missing faults are rectified by combing in both directions.

Stitches

• Stitches are a single thread float.
• They are caused by two adjacent ends sticking together during shedding for a brief period of time, or in the case of synthetic yarns, by ends sticking together due to static charge during weaving.
• Stitches are cut with clippers from both the ends, and the resultant bare patch formed is rectified with a metallic comb.

Untrimmed Loose Threads

• Untrimmed loose threads are any hanging threads on the face of the fabrics.
• It is caused by tail ends not trimmed after piecing up.
• These defects can be easily rectified with clippers.

Weft Bar

• A weft bar is an unwanted bar, running across the full width of a piece, differing in appearance from the adjacent normal fabric.
• It is caused by a difference in count, twist, color, or luster, or a faulty let-off and take-up motion
• It is non-mendable.

Shuttle Smash

• Shuttle smash is the ruptured cloth structure characterised by many broken warp ends and floating picks.
• It is caused by improper timing, insufficient picking force, or slack ends in a certain portion in which sagging ends obstruct the shuttle flight.
• It is non-mendable.

Lashing In

• Lashing in is an extra piece of yarn woven into the fabric in the vicinity of the selvedge.
• It is caused by the defective setting of the shuttle box, early or late picking, or in the case of auto looms, weft cutters worn out or not set properly.
• Lashing in can be corrected by pulling out the extra pick from the selvedge end, clipping it, and filling the bare patch formed by combing in both directions.

Oil or Stain

• Oil or other stains are spot defects of oil, rust, or grease found in the fabric.
• They are caused by improper oiling or greasing, or an oil stained take up roller.
• Place the stained portion of the fabric over an absorbent pad, apply the stain remover, wetting the stain and surrounding portion thoroughly, rub gently to quicken the penetration of the stain remover towards the centre of stain to avoid spreading.
• Delicate fabric needs reduced pressure; otherwise, hole formation or displacement of the fabric will occur.

Oily Ends

• Oily Ends are oily warp ends.
• They are caused by improper handling and storage of material in the spinning department; oil-contaminated guides and oily hands during the process of warping; or improper handling of warp beams.
• Place the stained portion of the fabric over an absorbent pad and apply stain remover, wetting the stain and surrounding portion, rub gently to quicken penetration of the stain remover, and rub towards the center of stain to avoid spreading.
• Note: Delicate fabric requires reduced pressure to avoid hole formation/displacement.

Oily Weft

• Oily weft is oily weft picks.
• It is caused by improper handling and storing in spinning department, weft package falling on oily ground, handling the weft with oily hands, weft carring baskets having oil, or the dropping of oil on the weft package during oiling of the winding machine.
• Place the stained portion of the fabric over an absorbent pad and apply stain remover, wetting the stain and surrounding portion, rub gently to quicken penetration of the stain remover, and rub towards the center of stain to avoid spreading.
• Note: Delicate fabric requires reduced pressure to avoid hole formation/displacement.

Local Distortion

• Local distortion occurs when there is displacement of warp or weft threads from their normal position.
• It is caused if the emery roll is worn out, or in filament fabric with low reed picks.
• It can be corrected by combing in both directions using a metallic comb.

Slough Off

• Slough-off is a bunch of weft woven into the fabric.
• It's caused by improper winding of the yarn onto the weft pirn, improper shape and size of pirn, or harsh picking.
• Mend by pulling out the bulk yarn with a plucker.
• Then comb the fabric to fill the resulting bare patch with a metallic comb.

Reed Marks

• Reed marks are warp way streaks, caused by a damaged or defective reed.
• It is caused by defective or damaged reeds.
• It is non-mendable.

Fabric defects in terry and velvet fabrics

• Broken pattern
• Pile less spot
• Uneven or loose piles

Broken Pattern Due to Defective Piles

• A broken pattern due to defective piles is the result of non-continuity of the design/pattern in the pile fabric.
• It is caused by improper working of terry motion on the loom, improper functioning of jacquard, or a missing pick.
• It is non mendable

Pile Less Spot

• Pile less spot is a spot without the pile.
• It is caused by improper working of terry motion on the loom or improper functioning of Jacquard.
• It is non mendable

Uneven or Loose Piles

• Uneven or loose piles are characterized by the variation in pile height over the surface of the fabric.
• It is caused by improper working of terry motion on loom, improper functioning of jacquard, or a missing pick.
• It is non Mendable.

Fabric defects in knitted fabrics

• Bariness
• Bunching up
• Drop stitch
• Holes or Crack
• Crack fall out
• Horizontal stripes
• Vertical stripes

Bariness

• Bariness is a fabric defect characterized by textural/color bands in the course direction of weft knitted fabric.
• It is caused by irregular yarn with higher long term irregularities or using different count threads.
• It is non-mendable.

Bunching Up

• Bunching up is influenced by the take-up mechanism and its proper function.
• It's caused by fabric take-up being too weak, or a thick place in the yarn.
• It is non-mendable.

Drop Stitch

• Drop stitch is a local column of dropped stitches.
• It is caused by the yarn guide not being set properly, defective latch/needle, yarn tension not sufficient, the take-down being to high, or wrong yarn threading. _ Mend by stitches reforming using a simple needle.
• Can be avoided by precise yam-guide setting, needle change, dial position readjustment, or use of fabric fault detector.

Holes or Crack

• Holes or cracks are local holes obtained when yarn breaks during loop formation.
• They are caused by relation between cylinder and dial loop not correct, weak places in yarn that breaks during loop formation, or knots.
• It is also caused by yarn running tension being too high.
• Can be avoided by using flat knots, accurate yam guide setting, use of fabric fault detector, or use of yarn with lower hairiness.

Cloth Fall-Out

• Cloth fall-out is an area of drop stitches lying side by side, where yarn is not stitched by several needles laying near to each other.
• It is caused by yarn breakage or when an empty needle with closed latch runs into a yarn feeder, removing the yarn out of the hooks of following needles.
• It is non' mendable.

Horizontal Stripes

• Horizontal stripes are caused by unevenness in the courses, traversing horizontally and regularly or irregularly.
• Causes include a poorly set yarn feeder, differences in the yarn running-in tension, or jerky impulse from fabric take-up.
• It is non mendable.

Vertical Stripes

• Vertical stripes as longitudinal gaps in the fabric, the space between adjacent wales is or can be irregular.
• They are caused by bent or heavily running needles, or a damaged latch/needle hook, or a damaged dial or cylinder.
• It can be avoided by changing needles and sinkers after long time use, or use of fabric fault detector.

Inspection

• Fabric inspection identifies and mends defects through a visual examination.
• Reasons for inspection include to: remove defects; minimize future reoccurrences; determine quality and hence, price; and to supply quality information to management.

Different Grading Systems

• 4-Point System
• 10-Point System
• Penalty Point System
• Graniteville "78" System
• Dallas System

4-Point System

• The 4-Point System is the most popular point system.
• It was published in 1959 by the National Association of Shirt Pajama Sportswear Manufacturers.
• The system is also called the American Apparel Manufacturers Association (AAMA) point grading system.
• Faults are scored with penalty points of 1, 2, 3 and 4 depending on size and significance of the defect.
• A defect length up to 3 inches is assigned 1 point (minor defect), 3.1 - 6 inches is assigned 2 points (small defect), 6.1 - 9 inches is assigned 3 points (medium defect), over 9 inches is assigned 4 points (major defect)
• No more than four penalty points assigned for a single defect.
• No linear yard or meter can contain more than 4 points.
• Each full width defect assigns 4 points.
• Noticeable and severe defects assign 4 points each yard/meter, regardless of size.
• Advantages include: it's easier understood, and has no width limitation.

10-Point System

• The 10-Point System was developed in the 1950's and is the oldest method.
• The system assigns penalty points based on defect length and if its found in the warp (ends) or weft (fill) direction
• The Ten-Point System is complicated because points-per-length vary for warp and weft defects.
• The method is still used by some manufacturers.
• Up to 1 inch is assigned 1 point, 1.1-5 inches is assigned a maximum of 3 points, 5.1-10 inches is assigned 5 points, 10.1-30 inches is assigned 10 points, over 30 inches is also assigned a maximum of 10 points

Advantages of 10 point system

• It's mostly used in woven finished fabric.
• High accuracy

Disadvantages of 10 point system

• It has width Limitation
• Difficult in practical use.

Classification of Fabric after Grading

• Fresh (or first) quality fabric has no major or objectionable faults.
• Second: cloth with minor defects.
• Fents: cut pieces of cloths measuring 90-150 cm in length
• Rags: cut pieces of cloths larger than 25cm but less than 90cm
• Chindies are cloths having a length of 25 cm or less.
• Due to the presence of defects, fabric has to be sold at lower prices/as seconds, creating a value loss.
• Manufacturers should minimise defects by remedies.