Synthetics

UNIT 3 SYNTHETICS
Structure
3.1 Introduction
Objectives

3.2 Properties of Shoe Making Material

3.3 Textiles Manufacturing and its Types
3.3.1 Woven Fabric
3.3.2 Knitted Fabric
3.3.3 Non-woven Fabric

3.4 Synthetics
3.5 Summary
3.6 Key Words

3.1 INTRODUCTION
In recent years demand for leather has for outstripped supply and there is now a world
shortage of skins and hides by taking into account the increase in world population and
the increasing use of leathers in article other than shoes, it is thought that the supply of
skins and hides will be at least 30% less than the potential demand. Market survey says
that the proportion (in %) of non-leather materials in the footwear in 1995 will be
synthetic 20 – 40%, non-leather other than synthetic 10- 20%. The Murthy committee
estimates that there will be a shortage of 28000 million sq. ft. of leather to achieve the set
target for the year 2000. This has led to the emergence of various forms of artificial
leathers which are being increasingly used in footwear production.
Objectives
After studying this unit, you should be able to
• know how the various types of non-leather materials i.e. synthetics and
textiles for upper making,
• assess the characteristics of various synthetics to be used as upper (outer and
lining) materials, and
• ensure the various types of textiles to be used as shoe upper and lining.

3.2 PROPERTIES OF SHOE MAKING MATERIAL

Synthetic materials are taking over the market rapidly due to several reasons. Some of
them are listed below :
• Cheaper than leather. Coated fabrics cost less than leather, PVC being
cheaper than PU. They are much more inform in thickness and directional
properties so that multiple cutting is possible, and are more readily available.
• Uniformity in thickness, surface and physical properties.
• Available in variety of colours and finish to meet the market demand.
• Since, Hides and skins are available, as by-product of the meat industry
leather will always be used as a footwear material. Nevertheless, the new
materials will have an increasing place in footwear manufacture and we shall
therefore, study them in detail.
• Behaviour of Textile and Synthetics in Shoe making
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Product Knowledge Cutting
The tight direction of Synthetics is usually along the roll. Components should be
cut tight to toe wherever possible and given a little extra pattern allowance to avoid
excessive bais stretch in lasting. However, it will weave backers made from pure
cotton may have such low warp stretch that cutting on the bias is unavoidable.
Woven and knitted backings tend to fray at cut edges and these must be bound but
cannot be skived. When press cutting, uncut yarns should be severed by hand (not
pulled). Proper maintenance of knives and cutting boards or a layer of paper under
the material may help to reduce this problem.
Non-woven backers usually show some directional effect, although this may be
quite small. Materials with such backers cut more cleanly and the cut edges do not
fray as easily as with woven and knitted fabrics. Decorative punching is not
recommended on any type of coated fabric unless adequately backed because of
the undue weakening effect on the fabric structure.
Laminating
When laminating, a minimum of adhesive of moderately high viscosity should be
used, preferably in a discontinuous layer. This is particularly important with
conventional PUCF’s where excessive penetration of latex through the base fabric
into the raised fibre layer can cause the PU film to show pitting or pad marks.
The problem occurs because too much adhesive has been used and/or too much
pressure applied before the adhesive has dried sufficiently. This causes the top skin
to bond internally to the base fabric. The use of pre-coated hot-melt adhesives for
combining should reduce this problem.
Neoprene cement is not recommended for use on cotton fabric because it may
cause degradation.
Closing
Coated fabrics generally show much poorer seam strength that than leather and
reinforcement is necessary. This can be achieved in several ways. For example, by
painting the back of the seam area with latex by using iron-on tape or a full backer,
by using a double line of stitching or a more complex seam construction.
Woven fabric bases cannot take as many stitches/cm as leather without wrinkling
or being excessively weakened (3 – 6 stitches/cm normally). A bigger closing
allowance (5mm) is required and the smallest size of needle and thread giving the
required seam strength should be selected.
Round point needles are preferred because they push the fabric yarns aside rather
than cut them as a wedge point does.

3.3 TEXTILE MANUFACTURING AND ITS TYPES

Textile (or fabric) – The term describes any woven non-woven or knitted materials.
Textile (or fabric) derived from Fibres. Fibres may be of natural or synthetic (man-made)
origin e.g. cotton, wool, silk, jute are the natural fibres whereas, nylon, viscose, Orion
etc. are the synthetic fibres. Fibres are produced either as staples or filaments.
Staple
Staples are fount non-continuous fibres.Whereas Filaments are long continuous
fibres.
The staples or filaments are then converted into yarn to be converted into fabrics.
Yarn
A yarn is a collection of fibres, which has been twisted or bonded together to form
a continuous material suitable for thread or fabric production.
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 Fabrics are manufactured from yarns by weaving, knitting and braiding and from Synthetics
fibres by felting.
Based on these the fabrics are classified as

Fibres

Filament Staple

Yarns

Fabrics Fabrics

Wovens Knitteds Braids Lace and Net Felts Non-Woven

Figure 3.1

3.3.1 Woven Fabric

In woven fabric, thousands of yarns are interlaced at right angles to each other. Ends are
warp threads, which run lengthwise whereas Picks are weft threads, which run across the
fabric width.
The edges of the fabrics need to be reinforced to withstand the strain of weaving.
Some of the common weaves used as shoe making material are :
The Plain Weave
Figure shows the crimp in the warp and weft thread which alternate in the pattern
of one up and one down in a plain or 1/1 weave.

Plain Weave

Twill Weave
One warp thread crosses over two weft threads and then under two. The next warp
thread has similar interlocking but on subsequent weft threads, as shown in Figure
below.
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Twill weave
Drill Weaves
There are two kinds of drill wears. The first, jean has the warp crossing over two
weft threads and under one, the second the Florentine, which has the warp crossing
over three weft threads and under one weft threads.
The weft threads would be under two warp threads (jean) or three warp threads
(Florentine).
Satin Weave
In the simplest satin weave the warp thread interlock over four weft threads and
under one as shown in figure below.

Satin weave
3.3.2 Knitted Fabric
There are mainly of two types – Warp knitting and weft knitting.
The footwear industry uses rather more warp knitted than weft knitted.
The three main warp knit structures are: tricot, lock nit and satin.
Tricot is used for linings laminated to other fabrics. It has a soft handle, good drape and
elasticity.
Term tricot may be applied to many other types of warp knitted fabrics, most of which
are used with foam or other fabrics to give combined upper materials and linings.
Locknit is known for its smooth face and good resistance to laddering. This is laminated
with foam to produce the skin fit linings used in slippers and general footwear.
Properties of Knitted Fabrics
Knitted fabrics can be produced more cheaply and rapidly than woven fabrics, but
fewer structural variations are possible. They stretch further and more easily than
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 woven fabrics, especially, across the roll, but are less stable and tend to ladder from Synthetics
cut edges and stretchiness.
They are normally pre-laminated to an outer fabric and used as a lining in slippers
and boots. This is because they are able to compress edgewise much better than
woven fabrics, thus, avoiding the formation of creases inside the shoe when lasted.
Lamination is done using latex, thermo-active cement or a foam layer. Foam layers
of up to 5 to 6 mm thickness may be used.
Locknit is one of the most commonly used warp knitting variations in shoe
manufacture. It has the advantages of having one face which is smooth, greater
dimensional stability and more resistance to unraveling and laddering. If laddering
occurs, it does so in one direction only (along the fabric from the top of the knitted
loop).
The high weft stretch makes tight lasting easier than with woven fabrics, but there
is a greater risk of over-stretching. Problems in shoe making sometimes arise
because of a big difference between stretch in warp and weft.
Difficulties when using knitted fabrics can be reduced by observing the following
precautions :
• Cut tight to toe whenever possible.
• Use sharp knives and a keep cutting boards in good condition.
• Determine direction and ease of laddering by picking at the cut edges of a
scrap piece of the knitted fabric. Cut component such that the laddering
direction is from the featherline upwards to the topline.
• Handle gently during closing to avoid splitting the upper, or etting baggy
toplines from over-stretching.
• Leave a generous closing allowance (at least 3 mm), especially at the topline.
• Use a round point needle, and a thread of the smallest possible size which
will give the necessary seam strength. It is better to use a thinner thread with
a higher stitch density or a double row of stitching, than a thicker thread with
larger needle. Use slower stitching speeds if the round point generates too
much heat (e.g. when the outer is leather).
• Check the needles frequently (at least daily) and replace at once any which
are blunt or damaged.
3.3.3 Non-woven Fabric
Non-woven fabrics are produced directly from fibers, bypassing the yarn style although
they are often more expensive than woven and knitted fabrics. For the footwear industry
the main disadvantages of uncoated non-woven are their lack of strength and their poor
handle. Non-woven are widely used however; as base fabrics for coating were there
limitations are partly overcome.
The two main types of non-woven are felts and bonding fiber fabrics. Felts are generally
too weak for upper linings. Their main application is as bottom fillers.
SAQ 1
(a) What do you mean by staple and filament? Discuss the process of fabric
manufacturing from fibre.
(b) Give a diagrammatic representation of various types of woven fabrics.
(c) What do you mean by warp knitting and weft knitting?
(d) Discuss the properties non-woven fabric.
(e) What do you mean by felt? Where they are used?

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Product Knowledge
3.4 SYNTHETICS
The term is used to describe a whole range of man-made leather like coated fabrics. The
base for these fabrics is either knitted or woven cotton in the form of sheets, drills or
satin. To these a coating of synthetic resin is applied. Colours, types and finishes and
embossing that can be given to coated fabrics are unlimited and are difficult to
differentiate from leather.
In coated fabrics the coating provides the attractive finish and good wearing properties,
whereas, the fabric provides most of the strength.
The two main types of coated fabrics are PVC coated and PU coated fabrics.
PUCF’s have a more attractive appearance and handle than PVC coated fabrics and are
permeables. They are however, generally weaker, and the PU coating is less robust than
PVC. Coated fabrics like textiles have to be further processed with a backing to give the
weight and thickness required.

PU Tie Coat PU Film

Raised Cotton
Pile

Wrap Threads
Weft Threads
of Fabric

PU Coated fabric
Synthetics available at present for the shoe industry are :
(i) Coated fabrics, and
(ii) Synthetic poromerics.
Coated Fabrics
These materials were first developed by using a coating of linseed oil over a either
woven, knitted or non-woven fabrics. Linseed oil has now been replaced by
thermoplastic coatings such as PVC, or curable coatings such as polyurethane.
Synthetic Poromerics
These materials have absorption and permeability properties similar to leather. The
material consists of a surface of polyurethane film with either a microporous or
microcellular layer beneath.
Next layer is strong cotton woven fabric, which strengthens the last layer. Located
on the flesh side of poromeric material is woven synthetic fibrous structure. For
this layer should be used different types of fibre, e.g. polyester, polypropylene,
polyethylene, polyamide, collagen or other and also should be used mixture (blend)
of this types of fibre figure 89 presents structure of synthetic poromeric corfam.
Activity 1
(a) Study “different types of fabrics and their uses in footwear industry”.
(b) Discuss the role of non-woven and coated fabrics in upper making. List out
three types of woven fabrics and their uses in purchase malling.

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SAQ 2 Synthetics

Give the classification of fabrics. List out the uses of each type in footwear
industry.

3.5 SUMMARY
• Synthetics can replace leather in footwear making for a number of reasons
e.g. availability, cost, uniformity, etc.
• Fabrics are made from fibers, which are either in staple form or filament.
These staples and filaments are converted into yarn to be finally converted
into fabrics.
• Fibers can be natural or synthetics.
• Common natural fibers are cotton, wool, silk, jute.
• Synthetic fibers are nylon, teryline, cotton etc.
• Fabrics are classified as woven, non-woven, knitted.
• Woven fabrics are plain weave, twill weave, drill weave, satin weave and
they have different users in footwear making.
• Non-woven fabrics are felts and bonded fiber fabrics. Felts are not in use as
upper or lining due to its poor strength.
• Coated fabrics are PVC coated or PU coated.
• There are also called artificial leather.
• Poromeric is entirely man made and it is a form of synthetic material.

3.6 KEY WORDS

Poromeric : A breathable synthetic material.
PUCF : Poly urethane coated fabric.
Staple : Non-continuous short fibers.
Filament : Continuous long fibers.

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FURTHER READINGS
A handbook on shoe making by LASRA.
Product knowledge.

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 Synthetics
BASICS OF SHOE UPPER CUTTING
Basics of shoe upper cutting is the initial activity for acquiring knowledge and skill in the
field of cutting. To acquire knowledge and skill in any field, it is important to first
understand the product, its manufacturing process and the effective utilisation of the
materials.
In this course the above mentioned aspects of production and product, which are vital for
manufacturing a quality product at optimum price are covered.
This course comprises three blocks.
Block 1 introduces the basic knowledge about shoe products and its behaviour in
production and wear. Moreover, this block covers shoe manufacturing process, its styles
and materials used for making shoe. Lastly, the block introduces the basic knowledge
about leather and synthetics which are an important part of shoe construction.
Block 2 discusses the selection and storage of leather, techniques of effective utilisation
types of patterns and their quality requirements.
Block 3 deals with leather and process of leather cutting by the use of various types of
equipment, each type being available in various capacities. Lastly, the block covers
health and safety points which are an important part of a process of leather cutting.
Further readings recommend some titles for reference given at the end of the block. The
block for further readings should also help you to fill in the gaps if any.

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Product Knowledge
PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE
In order to make a comfortable shoe you need to understand the product, materials used,
shoe manufacturing process and its finishing. Finishing of leather is very important
operation as far as the final appearances and surface properties are concerned.
This block focuses on synthetics, leather and footwear technology that are important to
be understood for an efficient use of product knowledge.
This block consists of three units.
In Unit 1, attention is drawn to the basic aspects of footwear technology like part and
function of foot, sizing system, shoe making process, shoe materials and basic shoe styles
and its parts.
In Unit 2, structure of H/S, types of tanning and sequence of tanning operations are
introduced. Moreover, light is thrown on methods of preservation and leather finishing
for improving their quality and durability.
In Unit 3, various types of non-leather materials, i.e. synthetics and textiles for upper
making are discussed in detail.
Solved examples and self assessment questions are included in these units wherever
necessary.

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