Field Lab
Testing, published as it happens
Every claim about a fabric is a claim about behaviour under load, abrasion, water, heat or repeated washing. This section documents what we test, how the test is structured and what the test cannot tell you. Pages are published before results exist, and results are added only when a test has actually been run on real material.
Test programme
19 tests in the programme
A test page that has not yet been run is shown with its status. We do not publish fabricated results to fill a page.
Awaiting test data
Abrasion Comparison
Whether the ripstop wovens and stretch wovens we supply wear differently when the same abrasion method is applied to each, and whether the ranking is stable enough to guide fabric selection for high-contact areas such as knee, seat, elbow and pocket edge.
Awaiting test data
Cold Chamber Test
Whether a layer composition behaves as intended as a stack, and whether the layers interact as designed: does moisture leave the base layer and pass through the mid and insulation layers, does the shell hold wind out without trapping moisture in, and does the composition behave differently when the wearer is moving compared with when the wearer is static.
Awaiting test data
Cold Weather Abrasion Test
Whether the outer fabrics and reinforcement materials we quote differ in abrasion resistance, and whether cold changes that ranking rather than simply making every specimen fail sooner.
Awaiting test data
Cold Weather Drying Test
Whether the layers we quote differ in how long they take to lose the moisture they have taken on, and whether a cold ambient condition changes that ranking rather than only slowing every specimen down.
Awaiting test data
Cold Weather Mobility Test
Whether garments built to our patterns preserve the movement range a wearer in a full layer stack needs, and where restriction appears first.
Awaiting test data
Color Retention Test
Whether the dyed and camouflage-printed fabrics we supply hold their shade differently when laundered and exposed under identical conditions, and whether any gap is large enough to matter for a uniform programme where panels from different lots or different suppliers must match.
Awaiting test data
Insulation Comparison
Whether insulation types and constructions differ under one set of measurements, and how much of the difference between two garments is caused by the insulation rather than by the shell, the lining or the pattern above it.
Awaiting test data
Layer System Field Trial
Whether a composition works as a system in real conditions: whether the layers can be managed as the wearer's activity changes, whether moisture leaves the system, whether the openings, hood and cuffs work with the equipment in use, and where wearers report restriction, chafing or cold.
Awaiting test data
Moisture Management Test
Whether the moisture moving fabrics we quote differ in how fast liquid is transported away from the inner surface, how widely it spreads, and how fast the specimen loses that moisture afterwards.
Awaiting test data
Pocket Load Test
Whether the pocket constructions we build into tactical trousers and field shirts behave differently when a pocket is repeatedly loaded and unloaded, and whether the fabric, the pocket bag or the attachment seams are the first part to show change.
Awaiting test data
Quick Dry Test
Whether the engineered quick-dry and wicking fabrics we offer for hot-weather garments release water faster than a comparable lightweight woven when evaluated side by side under the same conditions, and whether any difference is large enough to justify a change in specification.
Awaiting test data
Ripstop Tear Comparison
Whether a tear that starts inside a ripstop grid square propagates less than the same tear in a plain woven fabric of comparable weight.
Awaiting test data
Seam Leakage Test
Whether water passes through the seam assemblies we build, and how the answer changes between a plain seam, a seam with a sealed or taped construction, and a seam reinforced or overlapped for a load bearing position such as a shoulder.
Awaiting test data
Seam Strength Test
Whether seams built with our standard constructions behave differently across the ripstop and lightweight fabrics we supply, and which part of the seam assembly gives way first under load.
Awaiting test data
Stretch Test
Whether the mechanical stretch and stretch-ripstop fabrics we supply deliver useful extension and recovery compared with the rigid wovens normally specified for the same garment, and whether the difference is enough to justify the added cost and the slightly different care behaviour.
Awaiting test data
Wash Test
Whether the ripstop wovens and quick-dry fabrics we use for field and temperate garments behave differently when laundered repeatedly under identical conditions, and whether any difference is large enough to change the care instructions we recommend or the specification a buyer should write.
Awaiting test data
Water Repellency Test
How water repellency differs between the water-resistant wovens, softshell laminates and wind-resistant fabrics we offer for outer layers, and whether that difference is large enough to change the outer fabric a buyer should specify for exposed, wet-weather use.
Awaiting test data
Waterproof Test
Whether water passes through the construction we supply: the fabric itself, the seam assembly, the closure area and the openings, tested as separate questions under one method rather than merged into a single claim.
Awaiting test data
Wind Resistance Test
Whether the shell fabrics we quote differ in how much air passes through them under one measurement, and how large that difference is between a softshell, a wind resistant woven and a waterproof laminate.
Method
How these pages are written
- What are we testing — the specific question the test answers.
- Why it matters — the commercial consequence for a buyer, not a technical curiosity.
- Materials — the exact materials and lots included in the comparison.
- Testing method — the method used, so the result can be interpreted and repeated.
- Observations — what was seen, including results that did not support the hypothesis.
- Result — the recorded outcome for the specific lots tested.
- Limitations — what the test cannot tell you, stated before the result is read.
Results apply only to the specific fabric lots tested, at the specific weight and construction of those lots. A comparison test is not a certification and is not a substitute for writing a performance requirement into your own specification.
Want a material tested against your requirement?
Tell us the fabric, the failure mode you are trying to prevent and the conditions in use. We will state whether the test can be run, what it will show and what it will not show.