In the complicated process of making clothes, every detail is significant. We pay close attention to things like fabrics, cuts, and decorations on clothes, but it’s the thread that is always keeping everything together. In fact, the thread is a specialized workhorse that greatly affects the safety, strength, and reliable performance of the garment. With the world market so closely connected, these seemingly innocuous strands need to meet strong international safety requirements, not just as a rule, but must be followed under all circumstances.
Think of a pretty garment for a child, both comfortable and cheerful in shade. Think about the problem of harmful chemicals, the risk of a fire, and weak threads that lead to small pieces that little children could swallow. That is the main reason that strong global compliance is necessary for threads. The purpose is to defend users, increase the reputation of the brand, and go through the challenging regulations of every continent.
This article examines why it is crucial for thread makers in the apparel industry to be globally compliant and follows this by looking at important safety rules, the major concerns they cover and how manufacturers should approach ensuring their threads are strong, attractive, safe and agree with worldwide laws.
Table of Contents
The Silent Guardians: Why Ensuring Thread Compliance is So Important
What may seem like a tiny detail, threads are what support any garment. Skin is in direct contact with these materials such as in bras or kids’ sneakers and socks. The clothes have to deal with normal wear and tear, stretching and the washer. Any damage to the threads may make the whole garment unsafe.
Here’s why thread compliance is a cornerstone of global apparel safety:
- Chemical Safety: Many of the conventional processes to dye and finish threads use numerous chemicals, some of which have been recognized as toxic, allergenic, or carcinogenic. The awareness of chemical safety is heightened among consumers, especially parents of young children who explicitly request materials and products, including threads, that are free from chemical risk. Threads are subjected to specific Restricted Substances Lists (RSLs) to avoid skin irritation, allergic reactions, and avoidable and long-term health risks.
- Physical Safety (Small Parts & Choking Hazards): Threads that can break and come apart can lead to small parts in unsuitable children’s apparel which leads to choking hazards in infants and toddlers. U.S. regulators are aware of this risk, and that is why they introduced regulations such as the CPSIA. Therefore, it is important when choosing a thread that it is robust and stitched appropriately to mitigate this risk.
- Flammability: Generally, flammability regulations are focused on fabric flammability; however, threads can have an impact on the ignition of a garment as well as the burn rate. This is especially significant for sleepwear, protective clothing, and children’s garments. For some uses, it may require the use of fire-resistant threads, low-flammability threads, or threads that will not contribute to the flammability of the fabric.
- Durability and Longevity: Threads that are compliant are not only about safety – they are also about durability. A thread that breaks down over a short period of time reduces the potential longevity of that garment and its possible life cycle, leads to consumer undermining of the products, and contributes to increased textile waste. Durable threads ensure the garment holds up to its intended use and care instructions.
- Reputation and Legal Liability: Brands that fail to meet safety standards face severe consequences, including product recalls, hefty fines, legal action, and irreparable damage to their brand reputation. Proactive compliance is an investment in long-term success and consumer trust.
Making Your Way Through the Global Maze: International Standards
The universe of apparel safety standards is large and confusing, and varies greatly between regions and countries. Thread manufacturers and brands that are truly global in nature have the burdensome job of negotiating all of the different standards and assessing compliance. Fortunately, there are some key certifications and regulations that can help make sense of it all.
Let’s discuss a few of the biggest ones:
OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100:
The OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100 is probably one of the most recognized and trusted individual certifications for textile products, including threads. It is an independent testing and certification system for raw, semi-finished, and finished textile products at all processing stages.
- What it Covers: It tests for a huge number of harmful substances including azo dyes, formaldehyde, heavy metals, pesticides, phthalates, and others. The limit values are adjusted based on the product class (i.e., stricter limit values for baby products).
- Why it’s Important for Threads: For a garment to be certified by OEKO-TEX®, all elements and components of the garment must meet the standard. This includes the threads, labels, buttons, and zippers. Therefore, thread suppliers must ensure that their products are certified to allow the apparel manufacturer to achieve complete certification.
REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals):
REACH is a European Union regulation that is considered to be one of the toughest chemical regulatory regimes in the world. REACH applies to all chemical substances that are manufactured or imported into the European Union in quantities of one tonne or more per year. REACH also pertains to articles containing Substances of Very High Concern (SVHCs) at concentrations of 0.1% or more by weight.
- What it Covers: The intention of REACH is to guarantee that human health and the environment are protected at a high level from the risks that can be posed by chemicals. This regulatory scheme involves a range of substances, including:
- Azo Dyes: Many aromatic amines that originate from azo dyes are restricted from being used because they can break down into carcinogenic substances.
- Phthalates: Certain phthalates, which are endocrine disruptors or carcinogens, are currently on the SVHC candidate list.
- PFASs (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances): Sometimes referred to as “forever chemicals,” the chemical industry has seen an increase in regulations in recent years surrounding PFASs primarily due to their persistence and risks to human health.
- Heavy Metals: REACH does include restrictions on lead, cadmium, and other heavy metals.
2. Why it’s Important for Threads: Threads, as chemical products in the manufacturing/dyeing process, need to comply with REACH regulations. This means that thread manufacturers will need to be able to adequately test and manage chemical inventories, looking for “substance above a limited threshold”, which could be considered REACH non-compliance issues if there are excessive amounts of regulated restricted substances used in a thread. This could mean losing access to a market in the EU, financial penalties, and product recalls.
CPSIA (Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act) – USA:
This landmark U.S. federal law, passed in 2008, specifically addresses safety in children’s products. In fact, it moves toward a very new “culture of compliance” paradigm, providing new regulatory accountability enforcement mechanisms for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
1. What it Covers: Important specifications for areas that affect threads in children’s products include:
- Lead Content Limits: There are limits for lead content in paint and in accessible substrates, and while threads are normally considered an exempt product to meet lead content and therefore do not require lead testing due to them being undyed non-metallic. However, any pigments or dyes used in the thread manufacturing need to comply with to lead contamination.
- Phthalate Limits: Restrictions on some specific phthalates in children’s toys and childcare articles.
- Small Parts Rule (pertaining to toys and children’s products): While threads are not normally a “small part” themselves, if a seam is compromised over time due to inferior or unsuitable threads, a decorative item or button can come undone and create a choking hazard. As such, the thread’s overall strength and proper seam allowances exist by extension of the Small Parts Rule.
- Tracking Labels: All products for children must include permanent tracking information that must be sewn into the garment with compliant threads.
2. Why it’s Important for Threads: For threads specified for children’s apparel for the US market, it is important that they are lead and phthalate-free, and demonstrate sufficient seam integrity to deter the breaking off of small parts.
Flammability Standards (e.g., 16 CFR Part 1610 (USA) (EN ISO 11612 (EU), GB/T 14644 (China))
These standards tell us how the fabrics (and in extension the threads) react to ignition sources, particularly referring to children’s sleepwear, adult sleepwear, and some protective clothing.
1. What it Covers: Flammability tests generally classify textiles based upon burn time, flame spread, and afterglow.
2. Why it’s Important for Threads: Even though fabrics are the focus of consideration, the type of thread will significantly influence the flammability of a seam. Even if the fabric had low flammability, a thread that is very flammable may still introduce faster flame spread into the fabric item than could be established by the fabric alone. Threads made from aramid fibres or some extremely specially treated flame-retardant polyester are often required for flame-resistant applications. These threads are designed to either self-extinguish or not ignite at all.
Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS):
This internationally recognized standard for organic textiles is focused on organic fiber content and environmentally sustainable manufacture; it also has specific chemical and social criteria.
1. What it Covers: GOTS limits the use of certain harmful substances throughout the entire textile sequence, including dyes, and other various auxiliary chemicals used to create finished threads. It is also concerned with social compliance and fair labour practices.
2. Why it’s Important for Threads: If a brand is interested in producing a GOTS-certified garment, the threads (if any) in any GOTS-certified garment must also comply with GOTS’s chemical limitations which means a thread of organic cotton must be processed with no chemicals of designed harm, and any synthetic components that are proposed as a thread in any GOTS-approved blend must also meet GOTS’s chemical limits and criteria for environmental and toxicological limits.
The Practicalities: How Thread Manufacturers Achieve Compliance
Maintaining and achieving global compliance is an ongoing path for thread manufacturers. It requires rigorous processes and a significant commitment of resources:
Sourcing Raw Materials:
- Finding and sourcing suppliers of raw fibers (cotton, polyester (trilobal polyester thread), nylon, etc.) that practice responsible chemical management.
- Utilizing recycled (to create recycled sewing thread) or bio-based materials that minimize the use of chemicals.
Reliability in Chemical Management Systems:
- With a complete Restricted Substances List (RSL) of all chemicals used in their processes.
- Keeping it current with new regulations and scientific developments.
- Having Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for all chemicals and training staff to safely handle, and store them.
- Eliminating or substituting hazardous substances with the least hazardous substances whenever possible.
Testing In-house and In Third-party:
- Conducting ongoing testing of threads internally to test for restricted substances, and physical properties (strength, colorfastness), and flammability when applicable.
- Using an accredited third-party laboratory for independent verification and certification to international standards (OEKO-TEX®, REACH, etc.) in providing an independent proof of compliance.
Certifications and Documentations:
- Obtaining and maintaining certifications (OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100, GOTS, etc.) for their thread products.
- Providing documentation (Certificates of Conformity, test reports) that is clear, and comprehensive to their apparel manufacturing clients to allow for traceability and provide evidence to assist their compliance.
Supply Chain Transparency:
- Develop relationships with their own suppliers sustainably and understand the sources of their raw materials and the chemical composition of the raw materials.
- Work with apparel brands to develop strong compliance from fiber to garment, maintaining verifiability of materials throughout the supply chain for the entire apparel product.
Continuous Monitoring and Adaptation:
- Stay up to date with ever-changing international regulations and standards.
- You cannot do this without dedicated regulatory affairs teams or consultants to externalise the regulatory affairs activities.
- You must also adapt the manufacturing process and product formulation to correctly use new aspects as they arise.
The Human Element: Building Trust and Enhancing Wellbeing
Global compliance is not just about checking boxes on an inordinately long checklist; it’s about people: the people who manufacture the threads, garments and wear them. A brand committed to the safety of the threads is committing to the safety of their whole ecosystem by saying, “we care”.
For consumers, no other experience is more comforting than seeing a garment labelled with a trusty certification like OEKO-TEX® STANDARD 100. This provides such peace of mind around their purchase, knowing that as least as safely scrutinised as the threads, they can be assured they are safe. This level of trust becomes increasingly relevant in a competitive and more and more transparent marketplace.
Conclusion: Weaving a Safer Future, One Thread at a Time
In the fast and ever-changing global clothing industry, the sourcing of thread that meets international safety regulations is no longer a choice; it is a basic obligation. The Clothing and Apparel industry has come a long way in their dedication to their consumers, the environment and their ethical responsibility to provide a safe and sustainable workplace.
By navigating complex global regulations, utilizing enhanced testing, and employing thorough certification regulations for their threads and clothing, thread manufacturers and clothing brands can assure that every stitch, seam, and finished garment will aid in building a safer, healthier and more trustworthy globe. In its own way, the threads that hold our clothing together, are helping to weave a safer future for all of us.