Calculating Warp Crimp and Reed Width in Linen Weaving
Calculating reed width requires multiplying target greige width by weft crimp and finish shrinkage allowances tailored to flax yarn modulus.
Greige Width
Loom Dimension
Raw woven textile dimension is measured directly after the fabric leaves the loom and before any wet processing. The greige width of linen cloth determines the starting point for all subsequent bleaching and dyeing steps. This baseline value is entered into the weaving roll ticket.
Process Allowance
Weft yarn density and warp tension during the weaving process dictate how much the cloth will shrink during finishing. When planning the production run, the greige width must be specified with enough excess to accommodate the expected shrinkage of the flax yarns. Fabric designers use mathematical formulas to calculate this required loom-state dimension.
The specification sheet links this raw dimension to the final target width.
Quality Inspection
Moisture variations in the weave room can cause minor fluctuations in the cloth width during a shift. Quality controllers measure the greige width at several points along each sixty-meter roll to ensure consistency. These measurements are noted in the loom-stage inspection sheet before the fabric is sent to the dye house.
If the roll is too narrow at this stage, it cannot be stretched to the required finished width without damaging the selvages or compromising the tensile strength of the linen fabric.