TFL chemicals for Garment leather

Leather clothing means clothing for highest demands

Leather, made from tanned animal hides, has been used as clothing since the earliest days of human existence. Prehistoric people wrapped animal skins around their bodies for warmth and to absorb the magical powers that they believed the skins imparted to them. Phoenician sailors often brought brightly embroidered leather garments from Babylonia to the countries they visited. Soldiers of the Roman Empire invaded the lands of northern Europe and discovered Teutonic nomads wearing leather garments as protection against the harsh elements. The Romans were soon using leather for shoes and tunics as well as for breastplates and shields. In fact, the first recorded tanning guild was formed in the Roman Empire. In the Middle Ages, the Moors introduced the European world to softer Cordovan leather which they made from goatskin. During the Renaissance tanners' guilds had been organized all over Europe. The Mayan, Incan and Aztec cultures in Central and South America also used leather as did the American Indians who sewed garments from buckskin, doeskin and buffalo hide. Ancient Hebrews are credited with inventing the first tanning process using oak bark. The American Indians used fish oil for the same purpose. American colonists found that plants such as the hemlock and chest-nut trees could also be used for tanning. In the 19th century, machines were developed to perform these processes and an American chemist developed a tanning method using chromium salts that reduced the process time from weeks or months to just a few hours.

Modern Times

Today, the leather sector has been industrialised like many others, however, the background knowledge and philosophy of the ancient cultures remain the same. Hides as a bi-product from the meat industry are turned into a natural, sustainable and durable material that can be worn and used for decades. The industrialised leather sector is nowadays working with high tech machinery, ver possible. Nevertheless, making leather is a sustainable process with minimal impact on the environment when the industry’s best practices are followed. TFL also offers a lot of technologies such as Low Impact Beamhouse & Tanning to help its customers efficiently use resources and minimise water consumption or waste.

High demands in wearing

With high technology tanning it is possible to create high performance materials that fulfil the high standards of the garment industry. Materials for wearing often have to meet a lot of specifications such as breathability, water resistance, lightweight abilities etc. Leather fulfils all these specificaitonsand even exceeds some of them, e.g. tear strength as well as water-and heat resistance – that is why leather is often used when it comes to protective wear: It is hardly flammable. Leather is also an option for summer collections. With TFL COOL TEC leather stays cool even when exposed to direct sunlight. This is highly attractive for motorcycle garments but also for elegant leather shoes.

Protection

Garment does not only have high demands regarding flammability, breathability or water resistance, it is also very exposed to stains. Valuable leather accessories, expensive hand bags or a favourite leather jacket are to keep their beauty for a long time. To support this, TFL developed the TFL Anti-Soiling technology that helps your leather article look good for longer thanks to improved anti-soiling properties and cleanability .

More about TFL's Garment technologies