In our continuing efforts to ensure the superior quality of our fabrics, we asked our corporate headquarters to conduct a side-by-side comparison of our RECacril® fabric against one of the popular competitor’s brands. Conducted in a state-of-the-art, quality assurance lab at our manufacturing facility in Barcelona, Spain, we performed a Hardness UR test on standard size samples of both RECacril and a comparable competitor fabric.
A fairly simple test, a metal pendulum is set in motion over the swatch. The number of passes it takes to stop the pendulum equates to the stiffness level of the fabric — the fewer passes, the stiffer the fabric. This test gives us the fabric’s Hardness UR rating.
RECacril outperformed the competitor’s samples time and again with Hardness UR ratings that were both higher and more consistent from lot to lot. Because our competitors manufacture products in so many different facilities, it is difficult to maintain consistent quality from lot to lot. In particular, consistency of hand tends to suffer. During our testing, RECacril not only came out on top with higher stiffness ratings — it was also more consistent in its Hardness UR rating from sample to sample. In fact, when testing samples of the competitor’s 60” marine acrylic fabric against our 60” RECacril marine fabric, our test showed an astounding 38% more variation in Hardness UR in the competition’s samples than our maximum/minimum hardness quality standard limits for 60” RECacril!
What does that mean for fabricators? All that variation from lot to lot can make it difficult to know the quality of fabric they will receive with each shipment, and inconsistent hand can make a fabric difficult to work with, especially on larger projects. RECacril is manufactured, from the spinning of its yarn to its final finishing and quality control, all in one location for consistent quality every time and with every roll. This, combined with intense quality review at every phase of manufacturing, ensures a level of consistency not seen in other fabrics.
Now you have proof in black and white — RECacril is consistently stiffer and maintains that stiffness better than the competition. For more information about how RECacril can help bring quality and consistency to your projects, please contact your Recasens distributor today to learn about our entire line of technical performance fabrics.