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Finishing – Processing of Textiles

The raw grey cloth, woven cotton fabric in its loom-state contains impurities and requires further treatment in order to develop its full textile potential. Furthermore, the fabric may receive considerable added quality by applying one or more finishing processes.

Desizing

Depending on the refining required, the cloth may be steeped in a dilute acid and then rinsed, or enzymes may be used to break down the size.

Scouring

Scouring, is a chemical washing process carried out on the cotton fabric in order to remove natural wax and non-fibrous impurities from the fibres and any added soiling or dirt. Scouring is usually carried in iron vessels called kiers. The fabric is boiled in an alkali, which forms a soap with free fatty acids. A kier is usually enclos...

Weaving – Fabric manufacture

The weaving process uses a loom. The lengthway threads are known as the warp, and the cross way threads are known as the weft. The warp which must be strong needs to be presented to loom on a warp beam. The weft, passes across the loom in a shuttle, that carries the yarn on a pirn. These pirns are automatically changed by the loom. Thus, the yarn needs to be wrapped onto a beam, and onto pirns before weaving can commence.

After being spun and plied, the cotton thread is taken to a warping room where the winding machine takes the required length of yarn and winds it onto warpers bobbins.

Racks of bobbins are set up to hold the thread while it is rolled onto the warp bar of a loom. Because the thread is fine, often three of these would be combined to get th...

Spinning – Yarn manufacture.

The spinning machines take the roving, thins it and twists it, creating yarn which it winds onto a bobbin. In mule spinning he roving is pulled off a bobbin and fed through some rollers, which are feeding at several different speeds.This thins the roving at a consistent rate. If the roving was not a consistent size, then this step could cause a break in the yarn, or could jam the machine. The yarn is twisted through the spinning of the bobbin as the carriage moves out, and is rolled onto a cop as the carriage returns. Mule spinning produces a finer thread than the less skilled ring spinning.

Plying is then done by pulling yarn from two or more bobbins and twisting it together, in the opposite direction that that in which it was spun. Depending on the weight ...