Invista to showcase Xtra Life Lycra fibre at Interfilière

04 Jul '14

2 min read

INVISTA, owner of the LYCRA brand and one of the world’s largest integrated producers of fibres and polymers, will showcase its pioneering XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre at Interfilière show in Paris on 5th-7th July, 2014.

LYCRA brand has a long-standing reputation in the lingerie and swimwear sector and is continually pushing the boundaries of technological innovation.

For the first time, INVISTA has gone beyond traditional laboratory testing, and conducted a series of rigorous live pool tests, comparing swimsuits produced with XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre against equivalent fabric made with competitors’ chlorine resistant elastane – demonstrating INVISTA’s commitment to excellence and innovation.

The live pool test challenge

This new test was designed to closely mirror real life wear and tear scenarios, measuring against sunscreen, chlorinated pool water and heat aggression, repeated stretching, wear and removal of the swimsuit.

This comparative blind test featured 40 young sprinters and synchronised swimmers to measure the degeneration of swimwear fabric that is continually exercised in a real swimming pool environment. Overall, the XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre underwent 8,800 hours of real-time garment testing. A clear difference in performance emerged during test execution between garments with XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre and the competitive elastane.

The tests found:

-NO breakage occurred on fabric with XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre

-SIGNIFICANT fibre breakage occurred on fabric with the competitive elastane

-A dramatic loss of performance in the fabric with the competitive yarn, while fabric with XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre maintained good properties

Fabric with XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre show 50% superior chlorine resistance performance after the live pool test compared to the equivalent fabric with next best competitive alternative elastane.

The results show that XTRA LIFE LYCRA fibre is best in class and offers extraordinary all-round performance for swimwear.

INVISTA

More INVISTA News... More Textiles News - France...