Uniform fabric terms: A

A

AATCC

The American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists, whose numbered test methods are widely cited in tender specifications alongside ISO ones. Like any method body, it defines the procedure and the reporting scale, not the pass mark, which the buyer sets.

AATCC 100

A quantitative anti-bacterial test reporting percent or log reduction in a named organism after a stated contact time. The organism and the contact time have to be printed with the result, or the percentage means nothing. Read the guide on AATCC 100

AATCC 124

The American test method for smoothness appearance after home laundering. The washed specimen is graded against six three-dimensional replicas rated 1, 2, 3, 3.5, 4 and 5, where 5 is perfectly smooth and 1 is heavily wrinkled. It is the number behind a durable press or easy-care claim. Read the guide on AATCC 124

AATCC 135

The American method for dimensional change in home laundering, with its own set of wash and dry options. A requirement written against it should state which of those options applies, and the limit should be given as two numbers, warp and weft. Read the guide on AATCC 135

AATCC 20A

The American test method for quantitative fibre analysis, the AATCC counterpart to ISO 1833. Buyers accept either where a blend ratio has to be proved on paper. Read the guide on AATCC 20A

AATCC 76

The American test method for the electrical surface resistivity of a fabric, which is the number behind an anti-static claim. It is measured on conditioned cloth, so the humidity the test ran at matters as much as the result. Read the guide on AATCC 76

Above-scale industrial enterprise

A Chinese statistical category rather than a measure of company health: enterprises above a stated annual revenue threshold, which are the ones counted in the official industrial series. A firm can leave the category by restructuring or by falling below the threshold as well as by closing, so a falling count of above-scale textile firms is not by itself evidence of an industry contracting.

Abrasion resistance

How well a fabric withstands rubbing before its surface breaks down. It is the property that decides whether a uniform still looks presentable after a year of wear rather than only after a wash. Read the guide on Abrasion resistance

Accredited laboratory

A testing laboratory whose competence for named methods has been assessed by an accreditation body, which is what makes its report acceptable to a tender committee or a certification scheme. We weave in-house and run dyeing, finishing and testing through partnered processing houses rather than an accredited laboratory of our own, so where a programme needs a physical-strength number on record it comes from an independent laboratory. Read the guide on Accredited laboratory

Ad valorem

A duty expressed as a percentage of the declared value of the goods rather than as an amount per unit of weight or length. Most textile duty rates are ad valorem, which means the duty payable moves with the invoice value of the consignment.

Advance and balance

A payment structure where part of the order value is paid before production or despatch and the remainder at or before despatch. It is the most common structure on made-to-order fabric because it covers the mill's yarn and dyeing commitment before the cloth exists. Read the guide on Advance and balance

Air permeability

How readily air passes through a fabric under a set pressure difference, measured by a laboratory method rather than judged by hand. It contributes to what a wearer calls breathability but is not the whole of it, since moisture movement matters as much as airflow. Read the guide on Air permeability

Air-jet loom

A shuttleless loom that carries the weft across the shed on a jet of compressed air. It is the fastest of the common types and suits long runs of plain solids, but it handles heavy or delicate yarns less comfortably than a rapier does.

amfori BSCI

An audit methodology against a code of conduct, run by the amfori business association. Like SMETA it produces a dated audit report and rating rather than a certificate, so the questions worth asking are when the audit was done, which site it covered and what findings remain open. Read the guide on amfori BSCI

Anti-microbial finish

A chemical treatment applied at finishing that slows bacterial growth on the fabric surface, mainly to control odour and staining between washes. It is rated for a number of wash cycles rather than being a permanent property, so the specification should state how many. Applied at the processing house, not at the loom. Read the guide on Anti-microbial finish

Anti-static finish

A finish applied at the processing stage that lets static charge dissipate instead of building up on a synthetic fabric. It is specified for electronics, petrochemical and cleanroom workwear, and it is a finish rather than a fibre property, so it fades with laundering unless the fabric carries a conductive grid. Read the guide on Anti-static finish

ASTM

ASTM International, a standards body whose textile test methods are widely cited in specifications, particularly in North American buying. It sits alongside ISO and AATCC methods, and a specification should always name which body's method applies, since results from different methods for the same property are not interchangeable. Read the guide on ASTM

ASTM D4966

The ASTM version of the Martindale abrasion test, the American counterpart to ISO 12947. The apparatus and the figure-of-eight rubbing motion are the same; loads and reporting conventions can differ, so a Martindale figure is only comparable between two fabrics when both were tested to the same standard under the same load. Read the guide on ASTM D4966

ASTM D737

The ASTM test method for air permeability of textile fabrics, measuring the rate of air flow through a specimen under a stated pressure difference. It is the American twin of ISO 9237 and reports in the same physical terms, so a spec sheet quoting one and a buyer's standard quoting the other are usually asking for the same property rather than two different tests. Read the guide on ASTM D737

Authorised Economic Operator (AEO)

A customs status granted to a trader assessed as low risk, which buys fewer documentary checks, fewer physical inspections and faster release. It is worth something at another country's border only where the two customs administrations have agreed mutual recognition, so the benefit is clearance time rather than duty saved.

Azo dyes

A large family of synthetic dyes defined by a nitrogen-to-nitrogen bond. Most are unrestricted, but a specific subset can break down to release certain aromatic amines, and those are restricted in several markets including the European Union. A spec sheet line reading azo-free or naming a released-amine limit refers to that subset, not to azo dyes in general. Read the guide on Azo dyes

Looking for something that isn't here? The full guide library goes deeper on every term, and you can always ask us directly.