Technical Specifications Guide

Technical specifications form the common language of textile quality, enabling buyers and manufacturers to communicate requirements precisely and evaluate fabrics objectively. Understanding these measurements is essential for specifying orders, comparing suppliers, and ensuring products meet end-use requirements.

Weight and Density Measurements

GSM (Grams per Square Meter) serves as the standard measurement for fabric weight, directly indicating density and substance. A 150 GSM bedding fabric feels noticeably more substantial than a 90 GSM version of the same weave. For woven fabrics, thread count provides additional insight by measuring the number of threads per square inch—though fiber quality often matters more than raw count, particularly in bedding where marketing has inflated expectations around this metric.

At the fiber level, denier measures fineness by expressing the weight of 9,000 meters of fiber. Lower denier indicates finer fibers; microfiber, defined as sub-1 denier, achieves its characteristic softness through this extreme fineness.

Dimensional Specifications

Fabric width determines cutting efficiency and product possibilities. Wide-width fabrics (280-330 cm) enable seamless construction of king-size bedding, while narrower widths require piecing that adds cost and creates seams. When specifying width, account for shrinkage rate—the percentage of dimensional change after washing. Quality fabrics should shrink less than 3%, with premium products held below 1%.

Performance and Durability Metrics

Color fastness ratings indicate how well fabrics resist fading from washing, light exposure, and friction. The 1-5 scale applies across multiple test types; a fabric might achieve Grade 5 for wash fastness but only Grade 3 for light fastness, making it suitable for frequently laundered items but not sun-exposed applications.

Strength testing encompasses both tensile strength (resistance to breaking under pulling force) and tear strength (resistance to propagating an existing cut). These complementary measurements predict durability under different stress conditions. Pilling resistance rounds out the durability picture by indicating how well fabric surfaces resist forming fiber balls from friction.

Quick Reference: Bedding Standards

Pre-Production Approval Samples

Before committing to bulk production, approval samples ensure the final product will meet specifications.

Lab dip is a small piece of fabric dyed in a controlled laboratory environment to achieve a specific target color. It serves as the color approval sample before bulk dyeing, ensuring buyer and supplier agree on the exact shade. Color evaluation combines instrumental measurement (spectrophotometer readings with Delta E calculations) with visual assessment under standard lighting. A Delta E of 1.0 or less indicates an excellent match; values up to 1.5 are generally acceptable for commercial applications.

Strike-off serves the same purpose for printed fabrics—a sample piece produced to verify design accuracy, color fidelity, and print quality. Strike-offs are produced on the actual production fabric using production-grade inks or dyes, followed by standard finishing treatments. Quality evaluation examines color matching against the target, registration accuracy between colors, print definition and clarity, and hand feel after printing. Catching problems at the strike-off stage costs far less than discovering them in thousands of meters of bulk production.