Stone Washing versus Abrasive Stainless-Steel drums
Traditionally pumic stones are used for demim washing to create a fade, worn-out look to the garment. Pumic stones are placed with the denim garments in a large washing machine. Pumic stones abrades the surface of the denim garment and makes wear and tear. Workers need to remove the abraded fibres dust, other residue and sludge after washing. Garment pockets must be cleaned from abraded fibre dust after stone washing. On the other hand, Abrasive Stainless-Steel drums can be controlled to get desired fading effect on garment, which also reduced water consumption, production cost in term of water and labour cost , carbon emission and reduced processing time.
Bleach versus OZONE and ENZYMES
Decolorization of Indigo color is achieved by Bleach washing. Bleaching condition like amount of bleach, Temperature and Time determines the level of decolorization of the denim garment. Sodium hypochlorite, calcium hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide, and potassium permanganate are common bleaching agent. Variation in shade is also a problem. The bleaching agents creates corrosion to machine, strength loss of the garment, and high exposure of chemicals leads to harmful affect to worker. Bleach wash required several water rinsings.
Compared to Bleach, Ozone is used as an alternative to bleaching, Ozone is a faster process and less amount of water is required for rinsing. Enzymes destroy fabric surface for fading effect through oxidation. No damage of the fabric is occurred in the ozone process.
Whiskering, Sand Blasting Versus Laser
Potassium Permanganate spray on jeans to create moderate bleaching effect on surface of garment. PP spray is very harmful to workers health that includes skin erosion, discomfort of eye, and scratched Finger-tip. Short- and long-term health risk are there for workers. The duration of the whiskering process varies based on the complexity of the design and worker efficiency and usually requires 20-50 seconds. Workers experiences mild discomfort in the forearm and wrist regions due to the repetitive nature of tasks.
Recently, Laser is the best alternative to PP spray and can create a wide variety of surface effects on garment. Less chemicals and energy are required for Laser treatment. Sand Blasting is a conventional process to create faded area and localized worn effect. This process is also labour intensive and imperfect of the faded area. This process is extremely hazards to workers. Lazer can replace the sand blasting process successfully.