ADVANTAGES of NYLON vs. WOOL CARPETS
Continuous filament nylon (CFN) carpets offer the airline
customer a wide range of advantages over 100% wool carpets -
the previous industry standard. Mohawk Industries’ nylon
aircraft carpet has become the choice of the United States airline
industry. Some of the reasons are listed below for your review:
|
Wear
|
Based on Taber Test run in the lab, CFN outwears wool 5 to
1. |
| Fiber Loss |
“0” with CFN. Because wool is spun together from
short fibers, fiber loss will occur until the yarn is worn down
to the backing. |
| Yarn Weight |
It will take approximately 70% more wool than CFN to attain
comparable service. |
| Yarn Consistency |
Spun wool yarn will vary plus or minus 10% from Standard.
CFN yarn has a constant denier and will not vary from run to
run. |
| Total Weight |
Depending on the type of weave, the total weight on CFN
carpets can be from 10% to 20% lighter than wool. |
| Allergies |
Wool can trigger an allergic reaction. CFN being synthetic
is non-allergenic. |
| Mildew Resistance |
Wool has to be chemically treated to resist mildew. CFN is
100% synthetic and will not mildew. |
| Static Resistance |
Anti-stat fibers have to be added to wool during the spinning
process. This process is not uniform, and it will have skips
in the amount of application. Most quality nylon fibers have
permanent built-in static protection. |
| Cleanability |
CFN will clean easier than wool for most spills and stains.
CFN also dries faster, so it can be reused on the aircraft sooner.
|
| Color Fastness |
CFN will hold its color longer than wool. On solution dyed
CFN, the color fastness results will out-perform wool by at
least 3 to 1. |
| Cost |
The cost per pound of wool yarn is approximately 70% higher
than CFN yarn. |
| Yarn Deliveries |
Wool yarn from our suppliers can take from 10 to 12 weeks
before weaving can begin. Standard nylon yarn delivery dates
are 3-4 weeks. |
