Textiles and Design
Home > Textiles and Design > Properties and Performance of Textiles > Fabric innovation and environmental impact: Echo Screen
Properties and performance of textiles
Fabric innovation and environmental impact: Echo Screen answers
Activity 1
Echo screen is a screen cloth featuring recycled polyethylene-terephthalate (PET). Click here to read information about the product and complete the following questions.
-
Why is there a need to develop fabrics like Echo
screen or screen fabric made from 100% recycled PET?
- Recycling PET bottles keeps valuable raw materials out of landfill.
- Consumers need to become environmentally considerate. The Echo screen concept creates an environmentally preferred fabric.
- Durable fabric is created from a post consumer product for the work environment and leisure industry keeping in line with Government policy.
- What do the initials PET and PCR PET stand for and list
the properties and uses for PCR PET fibres?
PET is known as Polyethylene-Terephthalate, a high quality food grade polyester most often found in soft drink and detergent bottles. It is the most commonly recycled plastic worldwide often recycled for re-manufacture into bottles, containers and extruded fibre products.
PCR PET is known as Post Consumer Recycled Polyethylene-Terephthalate and has the following properties:
fire retardant, easy to clean, abrasion resistant, relatively inexpensive, excellent strength and durability, low moisture absorption, good resistance to sun and ozone fading.
The most common uses for this fabric are: camping, outdoor clothing, apparel industries because of its light weight, warmth and water resistance. Clothing examples are: jackets, socks, gloves, blankets, as well as hats. Other innovative uses for echo screen fabric are office partitions and panels for interior design and decorating.
- In flowchart format list the steps in the production of
Echo screen.
- Explain how Echo screen is dyed. Why is this
process environmentally friendly?
The dyehouse is quality accredited. The scouring method uses about one third less water and chemicals than conventional scouring. The detergent and dye auxiliaries are biodegradable and dyes are assessed for health, safety and ecology issues.
Activity 2
The Commercial Textile Association of Australia and New
Zealand has developed a system of grading commercial
upholstery and screen fabrics. To ensure Echo screen
is suitable for commercial use it has undergone a series of
tests. Log in to the Woven Image 
web site.
Select products, then
screencloth, then Echo
screen. Below the photo select
specifications. Now complete the following
questions.
- Name the tests from the specifications chart used to
grade Echo screen.
Fire test, seam slippage and lightfastness.
- Briefly explain the following terms:
Abrasion resistance is the ability of a fabric to withstand surface wear due to rubbing.
Seam slippage refers to the condition when fabrics pull apart at the seam.
Colourfastness to light refers to a fabrics ability to resist or colour change when exposed to light.
Pilling is the formation of fibre ball on the surface of the fabric. Pilling occurs when loose fibres in the fabric are worked to the fabric surface after it has been subjected to abrasion.
Activity 3
From the knowledge you have gained from Activity 1 and 2 briefly list the advantages of Echo screen to the:
-
Consumer
Consumers can buy a product that:- is cost effective
- can be specified for commercial applications
- comes in a range of colours
- is environmentally friendly.
- Manufacturer
The development of Echo screen has allowed Woven Image to maintain their market leadership.
- Employee
Extra jobs are created from the design stage through to manufacturing.
- Environment
The manufacture of Echo screen has had a positive effect on the environment by recycling PET bottles and improving methods of dyeing.
|