Search results

The pressure on body scars resulting from pressure garments gradually decreases with time, probably as a consequence of stress relaxation in the fabric material. In order to understand the basic mechanisms contributing to this phenomenon, an understanding of the stress relaxation behaviour of relevant textile structures is vitally important. Makes comparisons of the stress relaxation and shrinkage properties on six selected fabric samples which are all currently used by the hospitals in the UK and/or in Hong Kong. The design of the stress relaxation tests was based on the consideration of the fabric from a performance‐in‐use standpoint. The results of the tests showed differences between the fabrics collected in the UK and Hong Kong. It was also found that the stress relaxation in the wale direction was considerably lower (resulting in better performance) than in the course direction. It may be noted that the shrinkage of the fabrics was closely related to the degree of elasticity loss during washing.

This paper studies the factors that motivate small and medium-sized clothing firms in Hong Kong to shift their production offshore, and identifies the interrelationships between these factors and firm-related characteristics, sourcing strategies, and buyer-supplier relationships. Using a multiple case methodology to study ten firms and a two-phase approach to collecting data involving, in-depth interviews and mail questionnaires, the two most important factors motivating the sourcing of production offshore are identified, as follows: (1) cost advantage of, and (2) availability of labour in, the host country. The results also show that industrial sector and firm size are the only firm-related characteristics that have an effect on the factors motivating offshore production. Furthermore, sourcing strategies and buyer-supplier relationships are sometimes influenced by these motivational factors.

In this study, the use of various clothing descriptors have been used to provide some insights into clothing perception for 88 female students. The use of clothing descriptors to categorize different aspects of clothing is a vital component of clothing selection, given the assumption that explicit use of clothing descriptors may reveal implicit clothing categories. Season, income per month, and total clothing descriptors used were shown to differentially affect the use of various clothing descriptors such as brand, colour, quality, quantity, and size. The results of this study have provided partial evidence for the effect of IT on the use of clothing descriptors, perceived clothing functionality, and effects of financial constraints on brand perception. Moreover, clothing descriptors seem to be useful in illuminating underyling schemas and processes for clothing selection. Implications for future research are discussed in terms of clothing selection and purchase.

Pressure garments are mainly made of elastic Lycra fabrics and tailor‐made to individual patients’ measurements to provide an appropriate amount of skin‐garment interface pressure for burn rehabilitation. However, the fabric tension would be different at various locations from the hem edges of pressure garments, and thus the skin‐garment interface pressure cannot be uniformly maintained over the interface surface. Aims to investigate the pattern of interface pressure changes caused by the different types of edge finish used for making pressure garments. The effect of garment sizes on the change of interface pressure was also examined. Experiments were carried out using two selected elastic Lycra fabrics, four types of hem finish and three different garment sizes. The results of the study provide a guideline for designing the edge finish of pressure garments, and a minimum margin from the hem edges of garments to the scar area is also recommended.

Fabric loss is a major contribution to material utilization. Minimizing fabric loss during spreading can reduce the total production costs for garment manufacturing. A traditional method of predicting the fabric loss during spreading is mainly based on the experience of domain experts or the historical data of production orders. Such method is subjective, not systematic and non‐repeatable. In this paper, assuming the spreading process is handled in a controlled manner and there are no flaws on the fabrics being spread, a mathematical model is constructed for predicting the total fabric loss in the spreading process. The total fabric loss includes the internal wastage (i.e. marker fallout), and the external wastage (including end loss, width loss, and splice loss). Other parameters such as marker length, number of splice lines, remnant, and roll length of fabric are also included in the model.

The problem of assembly line balancing is to assign different tasks to individual workstations for ensuring the sum of task times at any station not exceeding the station time. Standard minute time is generally used in the clothing industry as a predictor of sewing speed and production efficiency. In the clothing industry, the standard minute time derived from the work study methods is generally assumed as a constant for line balancing. However, a lot of factors cause variations on operational time of the same task such as the fabrics and sub‐materials, performance of the machinery, working environment and quality level of the product. With the aid of an illustrating example selected from a men’s shirt manufacturing factory, the effect of time variations for assembly line balancing has been studied in this paper.

This paper aims to design and develop a learning‐based fuzzy colour prediction system for providing more effective apparel design in computer‐aided design system.

In this study, we propose using a fuzzy system integrated with preliminary knowledge of colour prediction for facilitating apparel design. The performance of the proposed system is evaluated in terms of its computational efficiency and robustness. In addition, the proposed system is evaluated by target group of customers.

It was found that the performance of the proposed system is better than the traditional approach.

Although the proposed system has some limitations, the outcome of this study could be used to produce a future breakthrough in providing an intelligent computer‐aided design system for apparel product.

Using such an approach, an apparel designer could predict the favourite colours of garment for a target group of customers. The system uses preliminary knowledge about the customers' profiles and evaluations. Such fuzzy approach for colour prediction is established, which is not used in a traditional way in apparel design.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of chitosan treatments on exerted pressures of nylon 6.6/elastane pressure garments in three different knit structures using wireless pressure sensors for an accurate and a precise scar management for future designs.

Pressure garments designed in different structures consist of 70/30 and 75/25 nylon 6.6/elastane were treated with chitosan and the exerted pressures were analyzed using wireless pressure sensors including ultra-thin and flexible printed circuit sensors in comparison with untreated control samples. Antimicrobial activities and washing tests were also evaluated.

It is found that chitosan treatments have a significant effect on final pressures. Exerted pressures increased significantly for all samples after chitosan treatments. Higher pressures were measured for weft knit structured designs while lower pressures were recorded for powernet structured garments. It is found that the elasticity showed a small significant decrease and it has attributed due to a small significant shrinkage during processes. The mean scores of pressures were found in the acceptable medical range which will continue to help hypertrophic scar management for future designs. The exerted pressures of the fabrics remained constant after five washes and showed a small significant decrease after 10 and 50 washes which will provide a long period of compression. Permanent antimicrobial effectiveness has gained at around 90 percent after five washes and 50 percent after 50 washes. A small significant increase was observed for stiffness (CD, MD) after ten washes.

Chitosan treatments impact exerted pressures of pressure garments significantly. It is a reference to evaluate pressure functions of pressure garments using wireless pressure sensors while imparting antimicrobial activity.