Spreading of Fabric

Spreading of Fabric

Fabric spreading is a method where piles of fabric are spread a specific length and width wise according to the garment marker measurement. A proper fabric spreading process may have an effect on productivity, quality and cost of the production. Fabric spreading is an important task to maintain proper shape of fabric before cutting of garments. There are two methods applied in garment industry for fabric spreading process. They are manual method and mechanical method. The manual method is totally hand spreading method, therefore this process is quite slow on the other hand. Mechanical method is two types, they are semi-automatic and full automatic.

Types of Fabric Spreading

The spreads can be of two basic types :

Flat Spreads

All piles are of the same length.

Stepped Spreads

As the name suggests, the spread is built up in steps, with all the plies in one step having the same length. A stepped spread is generally used when the quantities to be cut is more. According to the order plan details the cut number, colour and ply length is done for stepped spread method.

Requirement of Spreading Process

·               Alignment of plies in both length and width direction.

·               Elimination of fabric defects/flaws.

·               Correct ply direction (especially for asymmetrical printed fabric) all face up, all face down, face to face etc.

·               Correct ply tension- ply tension must be uniform and as much as possible.

·               Avoidance of distortion in the spread during cutting.

·               Fabric must be flat and free from any wrinkle and crease.

·               Checks and stripes should be matched.