Students will be introduced via laboratory course work to textile testing and product analysis. Testing is extremely important in the textile industry from fibers through to finished garments to ensure that quality and performance is maintained. Because students could possibly be employed in a number of different areas of the retail or textile industries, knowledge of how a particular product eventually becomes available to consumers is highly desirable. Throught the use of a tensile tester, students will be introduced to the myriad of different types of tensile testing that fibers, yarns, fabrics, components, and garments may undergo. In addition, students will be able to evaluate the effects of routine finishes normally applied to textile substrates (i.e. dyeing, scouring, bleaching, shrink proofing, mercerizing, etc.). Also students can be introduced to the phenomena of photo degradation and the deleterious effects it has on certain textile substrates through chemical and physical analysis of the substrates' properties.
