Invista Cordura® Nyco Fabrics for Workwear: toughness without sacrificing comfort Cordura® fabrics are synonymous with high durability and are the fabrics of choice for tough and rugged work conditions.The fabrics are manufactured by authorised fabric producers and the principal fabric collections use high tenacity nylon 6,6 fibre from Invista. Cordura® fabrics based on Invista high tenacity nylon 6,6 fibre are demonstrably more durable when compared to other fabrics typically found in the European workwear mar- ket, namely cotton, polyester, and nylon 6 fabrics. Invista nylon 6,6 fibre used in Cordura® fabric for the work- wear segment has a melt temperature of 254oC as opposed to commodity nylon 6 fibre which has a melt temperature of 219oC. Wile the melt temperature of polyester is less to that of nylon 6,6 fiber, it requires significantly less frictional energy to arrive at the melt point. In line with the Cordura® brand team's commitment to deve- loping innovative and protective fabrics for the workwear in- dustry, a new range of Cordura® Nyco fabrics from Malaysian based Penfabric,part of the JapaneseToray Group of compa- nies, were introduced to the European workwear market at the 2011 A+A show in Dusseldorf, Germany.The innovative range includes four fabrics, each in an intimate blend of 75 percent cotton, 25 percent high strength Invista T420 nylon 6,6.The fi- bers are intimately blended in both the warp and weft direction and available in twill and canvas constructions in weights of 325gr/m2 and 380gr/m2. Comfortably durable Cordura® Nyco fabrics are suitable for a wide range of garment types including trousers, jackets, coveralls and bib and braces.The fabrics are particularly valuable for harsh working conditions especially in areas where high stress is imparted on the garment. Such conditions are commonly found in industries such as construction and supporting trades, plant and vehicle maintenance, heavy engineering, butchery and trans- por tation. The Cordura® Nyco fabric workwear range has high levels of abrasion resistance. Independent laboratory testing demonstra- tes that 325 gr/m2 and 380 gr/m2 Cordura® Nyco fabrics based on 25 perent/75 percent cotton Invista T420 nylon 6,6 blends can reach levels of 250,000 rubs under the Martindale woolen abrasion test method with 12 kPa (ISO – 12947-2). The Cordura® Nyco fabric range has a higher percentage of cotton fiber than the established polyester/cotton fabrics with similar weights and constructions, and thus a high degree of ab- sorption. The fabrics are more cotton-like and less synthetic in touch, which helps to add to the comfor t requirement, which is so important in today’s working environments. The canvas fa- brics offer a modern and popular appearance in line with casual apparel garments. The Cordura® brand team has collaborated with its key autho- rized mills to develop Cordura® Nyco fabrics that meet the stringent workwear fabric standards as devised by the European Textile Service Association (ETSA).These standards demand high levels of performance when considering characteristics such as shrinkage, pilling and colourfastness in addition to fabric durability when garments are washed at high temperature.