Explaining new DIN EN ISO 12945-1:2021 pilling standard in Germany

Pilling has been a key assessment criterion for a garment’s quality in textile physical testing since it was introduced several decades ago. There are currently a few well-known pilling testing methods, including the Martindale method, the pilling box or the RTPT tester. There are also various pilling standards implemented in different consumer markets.

In April 2021, a new edition of the DIN EN ISO 12954 pilling standards was published in Germany, which carries certain significant changes. The revision is the result of prolonged discussion and coordination among stakeholders at the German Standardisation Committee of DIN and other international standardisation institutes, as they strive to close the gap between test simulation and real-life usage.  

To help QA practitioners in the industry understand and adopt the new standard properly, we have summarised the key changes in the revision as below.  

DIN EN ISO 12945-1:2021-04

Textiles - Determination of the propensity of textile fabrics to pill, fluff or felt on the surface - Part 1: Method using the pilling test kit

This document specifies the method for determining the resistance of the fabric to pilling, linting and matting with the rotating pilling test box. 

DIN EN ISO 12945-2:2021-04

Textiles - Determination of the propensity of fabrics to pill, lint or felt on the surface - Part 2: Modified Martindale method

This document specifies the method for determining the resistance of the fabric to pilling, linting and matting with the modified Martindale method. 

DIN EN ISO 12945-3:2021-04

Textiles - Determination of the propensity of fabrics to pill, lint or felt on the surface - Part 3: Random tumble pilling method

This document specifies the method for determining the resistance of the fabric to pilling, linting and matting with the random tumble pilling tester. This method applies to most types of woven and knitted fabrics, including roughened textile fabrics (such as fleece and napped fabrics). This method does not apply to materials that cannot move freely in the drum. 

All three standards have seen multiple smaller revisions. Many of these changes are intended to prevent differing interpretations of the descriptions. There are also updates and supplementary background information on the individual standards.

Significant changes on the determination of results and definition of minimum requirements

There is one identical change for all three standards mentioned above in terms of fabric grading. In all three standards, it is no longer only the pilling that is determined, but explicitly the "assessment of pilling, linting and matting".

Furthermore, for all three standards, the visual assessment of both pilling, linting and felting will be carried out according to the new DIN EN ISO 12945-4 as explained below.

DIN EN ISO 12945-4:2021-04

Textiles - Determination of the propensity of textile fabrics to pill, lint or felt on the surface - Part 4: Assessment of pilling, linting and felting by visual analysis

This document specifies the procedure for the visual assessment of pilling, linting and matting of textile fabrics. This method applies to most types of woven and knitted fabrics, including roughened textile fabrics (such as fleece and napped fabrics).

The significantly extended presentation of results is then recorded in each case in the test reports,  which is often omitted in current practice and needs to be addressed properly under the new standard. 

In future, the presentation of results will be as shown in the following table (or in a similar template):

Table 1: Example of results table (for application please refer to the actual standard)

Testing laboratories will implement and verify these new standard editions in new test procedures over the coming few months. During the transitional period, it is certain that many laboratories will carry out tests in accordance with both the old and the new editions of the standard.

As a result of these changes, the catalogues of requirements (minimum requirements) of the users of the standard (trading companies, clothing manufacturers, fabric manufacturers) have also been revised.

It is therefore essential to ensure which edition is the correct one for the respective purpose when quoting the test method.

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For original text in German, please visit www.beuth.de.