AUSTRALIA + NEW ZEALAND CTA PERFORMANCE GUIDELINES
| The Commercial Textile Association of Australia and New Zealand (CTA) has developed a simple and appropriate system of grading commercial upholstery and screen fabrics. The system provides end users with concise guidelines to evaluate the performance and suitability of a fabric for use in commercial interiors. The grading system is classified into three categories using these symbols: |
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Classification: General Commercial Upholstery Guidelines: Fabrics that pass 20,000 Martindale or 1500 Stoll cycles and also meet the CTA requirements for pilling, seam slippage and colourfastness. |
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Classification: Heavy Duty Commercial Upholstery Guidelines: Fabrics that pass 40,000 Martindale or 2500 Stoll cycles and also meet the CTA requirements for pilling, seam slippage and colourfastness. |
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Classification: Commercial Screen Fabrics Guidelines: Fabrics that meet CTA requirements for colourfastness to light |
| ABRASION RESISTANCE (Upholstery) Abrasion resistance is the ability of a fabric to withstand surface wear due to rubbing. Heavy Duty Commercial Use Rating: 40,000 cycles (min): Flat Woven / Knitted Upholstery - Test Method: AS 2001.2.25 (12KPa pressure) 2,500 cycles (min): Pile Upholstery Fabrics - Test Method: Stoll AS 2687-1987, Appendix A General Commercial Use: 20,000 cycles (min): Flat Woven / Knitted Upholstery - Test Method: AS 2001.2.25 (12KPa pressure) 1,500 cycles (min): Pile Upholstery Fabrics - Test Method: Stoll AS 2687-1987, Appendix A PLEASE NOTE: • Abrasion testing does not consistently predict the wear and /or extended appearance performance of a textile product but results obtained have been shown to be useful indications of performance. • The use of absolute numbers to compare the durability of different fabrics must be undertaken with care and is not necessarily recommended. Double the number of cycles does not indicate doubling the service life. • Abrasion tests by their very nature can produce variable results. The difference of a few thousand cycles can be expected between specimens of the same test fabric sample. • There is no general correlation between the different test methods. It is not possible to estimate the number of cycles which would be achieved on one test (eg. Martindale), if the result for another test (eg. Wyzenbeek) is known. • The performance of any fabric is also determined by a number of factors outside of the fabric's own durability and appearance retention including, but not limited to, the quality and design of the furniture piece, quality of foam and materials used and standard of upholstering. All these factors play an important role in the performance of any fabric. PILLING RESISTANCE (Upholstery) Pilling is the formation of fibre balls on the surface of the fabric. Pilling occurs when loose fibres in the fabric are entangled and remain attached to the fabric surface after it has been subjected to abrasion. Upholstery Rating: 3-4 (min). Test Method: IWS 196 Please Note: • Pilling is a characteristic of any fabric. Some pilling must be expected and de-pilling is a normal part of the routine maintenance of an upholstery fabric. • De-pilling should be by means of a rotary cutter pill remover - removal by means of cutting blades or `snag and drag' tools is not recommended. SEAM SLIPPAGE (Upholstery) Seam slippage refers to the condition when fabrics pull apart at the seam. Upholstery Rating: 8mm at 125N (max). Test Method: AS 2001.2.22 PLEASE NOTE: • It is the responsibility of the furniture manufacturer/ upholsterer to employ a seam construction, needle type and sewing thread which is appropriate for the fabric and furniture design. • Different fabrics for the same design of furniture may require different seam constructions. • The rupture of a seam due to seam slippage is generally not a fabric fault. IMPORTANT Appropriate seams should be selected to ensure a successful application. For example, not all fabrics can be seamed with a single row of stitches (lockstitch) with a 12mm seam allowance. The raw edges of many woven upholstery fabrics will fray when they rub against foam or other filling materials. This can lead to a steady reduction in the width of the seam allowance and the premature failure of the seam. It is recommended that the seam allowance of any woven fabric which is liable to fraying be overlocked or otherwise secured. COLOURFASTNESS TO LIGHT (Upholstery and Screen / Wall Partitioning) Colourfastness to light refers to a fabric's ability to resist fading or colour change when exposed to light. Rating: > 4 for Light colours and > 5 for Medium - Dark colours. Test Method: AS 2001.4.21 or ISO 105-B02 IMPORTANT All furniture and partitions should be protected from sunlight. If this is not possible, furniture should be rotated regularly, to minimise the effect of fading. UNDERSTANDING COLOUR AND COLOUR VARIATION • Due to the nature of all textiles, colour differences between rolls and batches of fabric are unavoidable. Therefore it is not always possible to obtain an exact colour match to the samples displayed on sample cards or chips. • All fabrics, vinyls and polyurethanes supplied by INSTYLE for customer orders will be within commercial tolerances. COLOUR BATCHING FOR PRODUCT MANUFACTURE • Colour batching or sorting of rolls is essential if workstations/ panels/ furniture are to be colour matched. • The furniture manufacturer must ensure that the fabric used on an individual workstation or cluster of workstations is taken from one batch of fabric and, importantly, fabrics from different batches are not mixed together on an individual workstation, adjoining panels or furniture without appropriate consideration to colour. COLOUR MATCHING FABRIC IN SERVICE • In some cases it is necessary to colour match fabric which has been in service for some period of time. This situation presents a number of difficulties. • In the first case the colour may have changed during the period of service. Colour changes may be induced by light exposure, abrasion, cleaning and soiling. Any attempt to match the colour of the fabric after it has been in service has a high risk of being unsatisfactory. Therefore clients must accept that fabric supplied in these circumstances can vary in colour from the original fabric supplied. PATTERN MATCHING / DIRECTION • Unless directed by the specifier or client, fabric supplied by INSTYLE should be upholstered onto workstations/ panels/ furniture in the same direction as shown in sample presentations. FIRE TESTS As fire standards vary greatly, specifiers and end users must inform themselves via the fire department, building codes or relevant government authorities of the appropriate standards required for a particular project, location or end use situation. INSTYLE's textiles are tested to both AS1530 Part 3 and AS/NZS 3837 Cone Calorimeter. THE CTA - WORKING FOR A BETTER TEXTILE INDUSTRY INSTYLE is a founding member of the Commercial Textile Association of Australia and New Zealand. The CTA was formed in 1998 to establish contract fabric guidelines to assist end users in identifying and selecting fabrics suitable for use in contract interiors. The CTA provides a forum for the commercial textile industry to provide its customers with updated and relevant industry information which will be of benefit in the understanding and use of commercial textiles. CTA members are bound by a code of practice, copies of which are available upon request. Click here to download the Australia & New Zealand CTA Performance Guidelines |
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