The Evolution of Stain Protection Technologies Enhancing the Uniform Market

Stain-protection technologies arent new. They have been around for over 30 years, making their original mark in the apparel, uniform, retail work wear and carpet industries by promising stain- busting capabilities. However, recently it seems as though the biggest strides in stain protection are just now coming to fruition through innovative new offerings from fabric manufacturers that deliver greater value, performance and opportunity to the uniform market.

With a wealth of stain-protection technologies available today, its hard to know which fabric technology will do the most for you and your customer. As we all know, uniform customers are tough customers to please they require functionality, durability and comfort, says David Kirkpatrick, director of sales for Milliken Uniform Fabrics.

Can you blame them? They spend a majority of their waking hours in their uniform whether on the battlefield, scrubbing down for the OR, patrolling the beat or trying to make it through a tough day of classes. The uniforms are constantly being put to the test and asked to outperform expectations.

Stain-protection technologies have come into their own over the last two years, and the possibilities for advancement in performance uniforms are endless, adds Kirkpatrick.

History of stain protection:
How it all began

First to market, and introduced over 30 years ago, were stain-release fabric technologies including well-known brand names such as VISA by Milliken & Company and Scotchguard by 3M. Both of these technologies were originally utilized in apparel and industrial and institutional uniforms. However, these technologies worked only to release stains, and that was only after they were laundered. Spills and soils soaked into the fabric, staining the uniforms, which employees then had to wear the rest of their shift. Manufacturers and consumers alike continued to accept the fact that stain-release technologies were the best the market could offer but eventually wanted more from their uniforms.

The next advancement in stain-protection fabrics was the advent of stain repellent technologies, which debuted roughly 18 months ago in the mens and womens apparel markets. Some of the well-publicized branded stain-repel products include Teflon, Scotchguard, and Stain Defender.

While this technology repels most water-based stains, oily stains can soak into the fabric and are very difficult to remove in the wash, leaving consumers disappointed. As stain-repel technologies have proliferated in the apparel market, especially in menswear due in part to unique, consumer-driven advertising and the ease of care element wanted by the women who buy and care for their clothes, more people are discovering the drawbacks of the repel-only fabric technologies.

The most recent stain-resistant technologies were introduced in the last six months and continue to redefine the stain -protection battlefield. Dual-action stain repel-and-release technologies are the newest advancement in stain protection and several leading companies have recently launched next generation products including Scotchguard by 3M, Advanced Teflon by DuPont and StainSmart by Milliken

The latest stain protectors and
how they work

How does a dual-action stain repel-and-release technology work better than other products currently on the market? The answer to this question is fairly simple: Dual-action stain repel-and-release technologies work by repelling water-based stains while at the same time allowing oily or ground-in stains to release in the wash, two former trade-offs in textile finishing treatments.

The term stain release is used when the fabric finish facilitates the removal of the stain during washing. It works by drawing water, surfactants and detergents to and through the fabric to help eliminate the stain. Repellent typically means that the fabric has been treated to be either oil or water repellent. Repellency raises the surface tension of the fabric so that stains will not penetrate into the fiber, therefore keeping the stain on the surface. Problems have arisen in the past when a stain penetrated this barrier because the repellent chemistry worked to prevent the water and detergent from removing the stain. This drawback has been overcome with the new dual-action technologies.

Innovation in todays
uniform market

Milliken, one of the worlds largest privately-held textile and chemical manufacturers, says that StainSmart outperforms other products available on the market today. According to company officials, StainSmart is also the first stain repel-and-release technology to be adopted in the marketplace. It is currently being sold in several different uniform products including nurses scrubs and school uniforms, and for other applications such as hotel bedspreads, airwall fabrics, and automotive seating and carpet fabrics.

Milliken has an entire research division working to create new capabilities within fabrics. Our motto is Leadership through Research, and we practice it every day, says Jack Spoon of Milliken & Company.

Our company covers a wide range of uniform and apparel products, and we are constantly integrating knowledge from each other to push the edge of science in fabric performance, Spoon adds. Our ability to combine multiple technologies in the fabric formation process allows Milliken the flexibility to develop hi-tech fabrics that exhibit superior performance. StainSmart, which is a combination of two technologies, answers the demand for a stain-protection technology that really works.

Milliken was founded in 1865 and employs more than 12,500 associates worldwide. The company has been a leader in the uniform and career apparel industries for over 30 years and developed StainSmart to fulfill a distinct void in stain protection for fabrics. Milliken found that consumers were dissatisfied with repel-only solutions and wanted to create a solution that not only repelled stains but also released them.

According to Milliken, StainSmart provides the best of both worlds in stain protection. The repel function allows most liquid-based spills, such as coffee, cola, Betadine or blood, to bead up and be wiped off, thereby preventing soils from initially staining the fabric. The release function works on oily or ground-in stains that penetrate fabric like salad dressing, grass and mustard etc by allowing these stains to wash out during normal laundering.

In a head-to-head comparison of stain-repellent products in the apparel market, Clothes Care Research Center (CCRC), an alliance of leading manufacturers and research laboratories dedicated to improving home clothing care, found that StainSmart outperformed leading repellent technologies for water and oil repellency, says Dr. Elizabeth P. Easter, board member for CCRC and director of the University of Kentuckys Textile Testing Laboratory. StainSmart delivered unsurpassed soil-release performance on tough stains such as oil, and its color retention performance was significantly better than fabrics of comparable fiber types.

CCRC is a cooperative effort among two universities and five apparel and consumer product companies in the United States to help identify the best in-home cleaning and maintenance practices for apparel fabrics. CCRC conducts research on emerging technologies to help create solutions for consumers that extend the life of their garments and save time and money on cleaning and maintenance. The University of Kentuckys Textile Testing Laboratory and Northwestern Universitys McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science provide unbiased oversight to design and conduct CCRCs rigorous scientific testing. The organizations goal is to improve fabrics, garments, detergents and clothing care equipment currently reaching the market. CCRC research is widely available, enabling manufacturers to put the best care labeling information on garments.

StainSmart in action

Peaches Uniforms Inc., a leading provider of healthcare uniforms, introduced a new line of scrubs featuring StainSmart this past spring. Peaches wanted to add value to its scrubs by offering a durable stain-protection solution for the medical industry.

In an independent consumer survey by Markitecture, stains and soils are identified as one of a nurses main worries when it comes to scrubs. Peaches needed to find a solution that would provide greater value and meet its customers needs.

Nurses are in the medical trenches everyday constantly battling stains from patient care, including blood and Betadine, says Linda Shorter, vice president of merchandising and design at Peaches Uniforms. They want stain protection that will help their scrubs stay cleaner longer and significantly increase the performance and longevity of the product.

Milliken developed StainSmart to do this, and nurses can now have uniforms that help guard against the toughest stains on the job. Some of the repel-only technologies make fabrics feel very stiff and boardy, but with StainSmart. we didnt have to sacrifice the soft feel of the fabric. We have been extremely pleased with the sales of this new collection and are continuing with it for the fall, adds Shorter.

StainSmarts broad appeal, versatility (custom fabric development is also available) and innovative stain protection capabilities make it an ideal technology for high performance applications such as activewear, workwear, hospitality and the military.

StainSmart is currently being used in several markets where fighting stains is an ongoing battle. School uniforms featuring StainSmart are available now at Wal-Mart under the Simply Basic brand name and will be available through other school uniform retailers in early 2005. The hospitality industry has also recently adopted the fabric technology in bedspreads and interior airwalls. Several branches of the military are testing it for use in battle dress uniforms, and the automotive industry is evaluating it for car interiors.

Add Value to Your Program

Performance fabrics are essential, and as more and more consumers come to expect the benefits of stain-resistant fabrics in their everyday clothes, the more they are going to demand it from their uniforms and workwear as well. The ability to offer your customer the latest advancement in fabric technology will ultimately help drive sales and increase market share and can make the difference between staying ahead of the market or having to play catch up.