The renovation is complete and the space looks beautiful. Within months, however, the story has changed. Those benches that welcomed new guests are now riddled with rippling material and punctures.

Is it guests being malicious? Is it housekeeping staff cleaning improperly? Is the product deficient in some way? The questions go on and on…

Field Failure and Analytics

Utilizing A2LA-accredited testing (certificate 3193.01) and extensive analytics, the answers can be found. Textile Testing compared the failing material to warehoused material from a different production lot, subjecting both materials to tests for puncture, scratch resistance, and stretch & recovery. The warehoused material met the typical performance standards while the failing material performed significantly worse on all three tests.

Failing Material	Warehouse Material
Face of Failing Material Under Magnification	Face of Warehoused Material Under Magnification
Side View of Failing Material Under Magnification	Side View of Warehoused Material Under Magnification

The Answer

Evaluating the product on a microscopic level, important differences were found. The chemical composition of the materials was different. The face of the failing material exhibited a level of gloss not present in the warehoused goods. More importantly, a foam layer, present in the warehoused material, was missing entirely from the material upholstered in the field. These two key differences indicated manufacturing-error leading to product that was unable to perform in its end environment.

What Happened?

Identifying the cause of the failure allowed our client to quickly assume responsibility for the material and replace the yardage. This kept their customer happy and allowed them to go back to their manufacturer with the costs of replacement, saving them over $23,000.

Our comprehensive analytical abilities, A2LA-accredited testing, and textile knowledge are here to help. If this experience feels familiar, please contact Applied Lab today.