S number (wool)
Encyclopedia
An S number on the label of a wool
suit
, or other tailor
ed wool apparel, indicates the fineness of the wool fiber used in the making of the apparel. The numbers may also be found on wool fabric and yarn
. The S numbers for fine wool products are intended to state, with precision, the fineness of the wool fiber used in the product, as measured in micrometre
s. Fiber fineness is one of the factors determining the quality and performance of a wool product. In recent years it has also become an important marketing device used by many mills, garment makers, and retailers. The S numbers may be used on products of 100 percent wool as well as on blends of at least 45 percent wool. The S number appears as a plural with an " s " or " 's " following the number, such as 100s or 100's.
) As now used Super means pure new wool and can also be used for fabrics made from wool blended with rare fiber (such as mohair
, cashmere wool
and alpaca
), and also with silk
. The inclusion of Elastane to give the fabric a stretch effect is permitted, as also is the inclusion of up to 5% non-wool yarn for decorative effects. For wool blend fabric descriptions, the word Super is not permitted. Subject to the wool content being at least 45%, the S number may be used.
, where the worsted
spinning
process was invented and arose from the worsted yarn count system for stating the fineness of yarn. The worsted count was the number of 560-yard (1 yard = 0.9144 meters) lengths (hanks) of worsted yarn that a pound (0.45359237 kilograms) of wool yields . The finer the wool, the more yarn and the higher the count.
yarn count. However for fine wool, the memory of the older system survives in the S numbers which have a very rough correspondence to worsted count. In other words, fiber that yielded about 80 worsted hanks is roughly comparable to fiber designated as 80s using the S numbers. The critical difference is that while the worsted number was an indirect measure (and a rough one at that) of yarn thickness, the S number is a direct (and precise) measurement of the thickness of the fiber). The S number of fiber, and hence of yarn, fabric, or garments made of that fiber, is determined using the international standard promulgated by the International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO
).
) is the promulgator of the Fabric Labelling Code of Practice which governs the use the "S" and "Super S" designations for fine wool and wool blend fabrics. The Code defines the S number by correlation to maximum fiber diameter. For example, 80s must have maximum fiber diameter of 19.75 micrometres or finer and 90s, 19.25 micrometres or finer. This scale continues to the 210s at 13.25 micrometre or finer. Thus each step of ten (as from 80s to 90s or 90s to 100s) corresponds to 0.5 micrometre less in allowed maximum fiber diameter. It has been proposed to extend the scale to 250s at 11.25 micrometre or finer.
IWTO is the international body representing the interests of the world's wool textile trade and industry. IWTO membership covers wool growers, traders, primary processors, spinners
, weavers
, garment makers
and retailers of wool and allied fibers in its member-countries, as well as all kinds of organizations related to wool products and the wool business in general.
Code. The U.S. defines the S numbers for 80s to 250s. Violation of the WPLA may carry a substantial penalty.
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
suit
Suit (clothing)
In clothing, a suit is a set of garments made from the same cloth, consisting of at least a jacket and trousers. Lounge suits are the most common style of Western suit, originating in the United Kingdom as country wear...
, or other tailor
Tailor
A tailor is a person who makes, repairs, or alters clothing professionally, especially suits and men's clothing.Although the term dates to the thirteenth century, tailor took on its modern sense in the late eighteenth century, and now refers to makers of men's and women's suits, coats, trousers,...
ed wool apparel, indicates the fineness of the wool fiber used in the making of the apparel. The numbers may also be found on wool fabric and yarn
Yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, suitable for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery and ropemaking. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufactured sewing threads may be finished with wax or...
. The S numbers for fine wool products are intended to state, with precision, the fineness of the wool fiber used in the product, as measured in micrometre
Micrometre
A micrometer , is by definition 1×10-6 of a meter .In plain English, it means one-millionth of a meter . Its unit symbol in the International System of Units is μm...
s. Fiber fineness is one of the factors determining the quality and performance of a wool product. In recent years it has also become an important marketing device used by many mills, garment makers, and retailers. The S numbers may be used on products of 100 percent wool as well as on blends of at least 45 percent wool. The S number appears as a plural with an " s " or " 's " following the number, such as 100s or 100's.
Super S
The S number often is used in conjunction with the word "super" which originally meant the best wool, (called choice wool in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) As now used Super means pure new wool and can also be used for fabrics made from wool blended with rare fiber (such as mohair
Mohair
Mohair usually refers to a silk-like fabric or yarn made from the hair of the Angora goat. The word "mohair" was adopted into English before 1570 from the Arabic: mukhayyar, a type of haircloth, literally 'choice', from khayyara, 'he chose'. Mohair fiber is approximately 25-45 microns in...
, cashmere wool
Cashmere wool
Cashmere wool, usually simply known as cashmere, is a fiber obtained from Cashmere and other types of goats. The word cashmere derives from an old spelling of Kashmir. Cashmere is fine in texture, and strong, light, and soft. Garments made from it provide excellent...
and alpaca
Alpaca
An alpaca is a domesticated species of South American camelid. It resembles a small llama in appearance.Alpacas are kept in herds that graze on the level heights of the Andes of southern Peru, northern Bolivia, Ecuador, and northern Chile at an altitude of to above sea level, throughout the year...
), and also with silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
. The inclusion of Elastane to give the fabric a stretch effect is permitted, as also is the inclusion of up to 5% non-wool yarn for decorative effects. For wool blend fabric descriptions, the word Super is not permitted. Subject to the wool content being at least 45%, the S number may be used.
History
The S numbers originated in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where the worsted
Worsted
Worsted , is the name of a yarn, the cloth made from this yarn, and a yarn weight category. The name derives from the village of Worstead in the English county of Norfolk...
spinning
Spinning (textiles)
Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
process was invented and arose from the worsted yarn count system for stating the fineness of yarn. The worsted count was the number of 560-yard (1 yard = 0.9144 meters) lengths (hanks) of worsted yarn that a pound (0.45359237 kilograms) of wool yields . The finer the wool, the more yarn and the higher the count.
Metric yarn count
The worsted count was only a rough measurement and has been replaced by more exact methods such as the metricMetric system
The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt a metric system, in 1799, and a metric system is now the official system of measurement, used in almost every country in the world...
yarn count. However for fine wool, the memory of the older system survives in the S numbers which have a very rough correspondence to worsted count. In other words, fiber that yielded about 80 worsted hanks is roughly comparable to fiber designated as 80s using the S numbers. The critical difference is that while the worsted number was an indirect measure (and a rough one at that) of yarn thickness, the S number is a direct (and precise) measurement of the thickness of the fiber). The S number of fiber, and hence of yarn, fabric, or garments made of that fiber, is determined using the international standard promulgated by the International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTO
IWTO
The International Wool Textile Organisation is the international body representing the interests of the world's wool-textile trade and industry...
).
International standard
The International Wool Textile Organisation (IWTOIWTO
The International Wool Textile Organisation is the international body representing the interests of the world's wool-textile trade and industry...
) is the promulgator of the Fabric Labelling Code of Practice which governs the use the "S" and "Super S" designations for fine wool and wool blend fabrics. The Code defines the S number by correlation to maximum fiber diameter. For example, 80s must have maximum fiber diameter of 19.75 micrometres or finer and 90s, 19.25 micrometres or finer. This scale continues to the 210s at 13.25 micrometre or finer. Thus each step of ten (as from 80s to 90s or 90s to 100s) corresponds to 0.5 micrometre less in allowed maximum fiber diameter. It has been proposed to extend the scale to 250s at 11.25 micrometre or finer.
IWTO is the international body representing the interests of the world's wool textile trade and industry. IWTO membership covers wool growers, traders, primary processors, spinners
Spinning (textiles)
Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
, weavers
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
, garment makers
Textile industry
The textile industry is primarily concerned with the production of yarn, and cloth and the subsequent design or manufacture of clothing and their distribution. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry....
and retailers of wool and allied fibers in its member-countries, as well as all kinds of organizations related to wool products and the wool business in general.
United States
In the United States labeling of wool products is regulated by the Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939 (15 U.S.C. § 68). The Act was modified, for wool products manufactured on or after January 1, 2007, by the Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International Standards Conforming Act which defined the use of the Super S and S designations in a manner conforming to the IWTOIWTO
The International Wool Textile Organisation is the international body representing the interests of the world's wool-textile trade and industry...
Code. The U.S. defines the S numbers for 80s to 250s. Violation of the WPLA may carry a substantial penalty.
See also
- List of ISO standards
- Spinning countSpinning countSpinning count is a measure of fibre fineness and distribution developed by the English. It is defined as the number of hanks of yarn that can be spun from a pound of wool. A hank of wool is 560 yards long...
- Units of textile measurementUnits of textile measurementTextile is measured in various units, such as: the denier and tex , super S , worst count, and yield ....
- Wool measurement