Shade Variation in Garments

The Shade Variation in Garments 

Noor Ahmed Raaz
Specialized in Apparel Manufacturing
Owner and Editor in chief Textile Merchandising
Asst. Prof., Department of Textile Engineering
Atish Dipankar University of Science & Technology
Email: mnnabi@adust.edu.bd

Garments Shade Variation:

To minimize shade variation within a garment and from garment to garment when compared to the approved buyer or manufacturer color standard. It is the garment maker’s responsibility to ensure that color continuity is maintained both within a garment and from garment to garment. Continuity records may be requested and checked by the buyer during factory visits. In order to check the consistency of bulk dyeing across fabric mills and garment makers, the following best practice is recommended.

First Production Batch:

1. The Dye lot must be produced with a right first time process in order to ensure respectability.
2. The dyed fabric must be labeled with lot number and roll number and the date it was dyed.
3. Continuity cuttings should be taken from each roll and mounted face up and compared to each other & the approve lab dye.
4. Dye house to ensure uniform dye uptake is achieved from edge to middle to opposite edge, across the fabric width throughout dye lot, with cuttings taken for record keeping.
5. If there is no variation in the shade then only one cutting should be kept, if there is variation then a record should be kept.
6. First bulk must be submitted for approval to the fabric buying team.
7. A dye house continuity record (working standard) should be set up and stored by buyer or factory color reference and fabric type with the date dyed.
8. Finished fabric continuity card must be stored in an office environment
9. Continuity records should be an A4 size grey card folder (A3 folded in half).
10. Continuity records must be stored in the dark.

An example of a continuity record in an approved buyer format is shown below:

A continuity record in an approved buyer

Subsequent Batches:

1. Once first production batch has been approved, dye lots must be produced with minimum variation to the approved bulk shade.
2. Dye lots must be labeled with lot number and roll number and the date they were dyed.
3. Cuttings should be taken from each dye lot.
4. The cutting should be measured with a spectrophotometer (where possible) or checked visually to the working standard in the dye house.
5. The dye lot cuttings should be mounted in the specific color card. They should be two thicknesses running down one page and then back to the top of the second page (face side showing) so they are adjacent to each other.
   

   Color Card

6. Dye lot cuttings from each roll from the finished batch will show fabric shade continuity. A record should now be available for each batch before and after finishing.
7. Cuttings which are outside of tolerance must be flagged up and re-submitted to either the Garment supplier/Agent or buyer for approval depending upon the process used.
8. If there is a shade drift from the originally approved bulk the process must be addressed to ensure it returns to the approved shade.
9. Dye house to ensure uniform dye uptake is achieved from edge to middle to opposite edge, across the fabric width throughout subsequent dye lots, with fabric cuttings being maintained, for inspection by either the Garment supplier/Agent or buyer personnel.

Garment Supplier:

1. Continuity records should be kept from each delivery and should be made of the roll to roll cuttings from each dye lot.
2. Continuity records should be stored in a dark environment.
3. Prior to cutting the shade should be checked against the approved buyer shade in a light cabinet in BOTH TL84 AND D65 light sources (the light cabinet must be located in a dark room).
   

   Light Cabinet

4. If any rolls are off shade to the buyer approved shade, these should not be used for the production of buyer garments.
5. If there is a large quantity off-shade then you must contact the fabric supplier to inform them.

Noor Ahmed Raaz

Founder & Editor of Textile Merchandising. He is an Assistant Professor and Chairman of the Textile Engineering Department of a Reputed University in Bangladesh. He has performed numerous Research Regarding Textile Engineering. He has also received two times “Research & Development Fellowship” from the Ministry of Science & Technology in Bangladesh. For any further queries, please contact email at raju.uttara105@gmail.com or WhatsApp at +8801673758271.