Application guide
How to specify nonwoven for wet wipes
A wet wipe specification is four decisions that interact: fibre blend, weight, web structure and wet strength. Change one and the other three move. This guide sets out the order to fix them in so the sample behaves like the production roll.
At a glance
Specification at a glance
| Parameter | Typical range | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Fibre blend | Viscose rich, PET and viscose, wood pulp blends | Absorbency, wet strength, cost, hand feel |
| Basis weight | 40 to 80 gsm | Lotion hold, opacity, pack thickness |
| Web structure | Parallel laid or cross laid | Strength direction and tear resistance |
| Wet strength | Set by blend and binder | Tearing on the machine or in the pack |
| Lint | Measured on the application | Residue on skin, glass or lens |
| Surface | Plain, dot, mesh, embossed | Texture claim and lotion release |
| Roll | Slit to converter width, splice limit | Machine uptime |
Fix the blend before anything else
Viscose brings absorbency and a soft hand. Polyester brings wet strength and dimensional stability. Wood pulp raises absorbency and lowers cost but changes lint behaviour. Once the blend is set, gsm, pattern and bonding all behave predictably; before it is set, every sample is a guess.
A common starting point for a general purpose wipe is a viscose and polyester blend in the 50 to 70 percent viscose range at 50 to 60 gsm. Baby wipes often move softer and lighter, industrial wipes move stronger and heavier.
Wet strength is the number that stops the line
Dry tensile is easy and almost every grade passes it. Wet tensile is where wipes fail: the web softens in lotion, the pack compresses, and the wipe tears at the perforation or the fold. Ask for wet tensile at the lotion loading you actually use, not at a laboratory loading.
If the wipe has to survive a pull out of a flip top pack, test it in the pack. A flat sheet test overstates performance.
Lint, and why converters underestimate it
Lint shows up downstream as residue on the product, dust on the machine and complaints from the end user. It is controlled by fibre length, bonding and the amount of mechanical action in converting. If your product goes near a lens, a screen or an infant, specify a lint limit and a test method rather than a description.
What we need to quote a wipe grade
The lotion type and loading, the pack format, the converting machine width, the wet tensile target, the lint requirement and the destination market. With those the reply names a blend, a weight, a structure and a tolerance that can be held batch to batch.
A worked example, and what each choice costs
Take a 60 count baby wipe pack with a 300 percent lotion load. A 50 gsm cross laid spunlace in a 60/40 viscose polyester blend gives absorbency, wet strength and a soft hand at a mid price. Dropping to 45 gsm saves roughly a tenth of the fabric cost and loses opacity and lotion hold. Moving to a wood pulp blend saves more on fibre and costs more in the converting line, because pulp grades shed and need different handling.
None of those trade offs is visible in a unit price. They show up in pack feel, in machine stops and in complaints, which is why the specification is written against the test, not the price.
Where wipes fail after the sale
Three failure modes account for most complaints. The wipe tears at the perforation when pulled from the pack, which is a wet strength and perforation geometry problem. The pack dries out, which is a film and seal problem, not a fabric one. The wipe leaves residue on the surface, which is lint. Each has a different owner, and blaming the fabric for the second one wastes a month.
Tell us the application and the acceptance test
The reply names a grade we can run, the tolerance we can hold and a lead time, or says plainly that we cannot make it.
Questions
Common questions
Should wipes use parallel laid or cross laid fabric?
Cross laid when the wipe must resist tearing in both directions, which is most packs. Parallel laid when the machine direction strength matters more than balanced tear, for example on a line that pulls the web lengthwise through a folder.
What gsm is typical for baby wipes?
40 to 60 gsm is the common band, with 50 gsm the most frequent starting point. Lighter grades save cost and lose lotion hold and opacity.
Can you supply fabric for a private label wipe?
Yes, fabric only or the finished article with slitting, folding, packing and printing. The sample is signed off before the run, and the same settings are recorded against the batch.
How do you test lint?
Against the method the buyer names, on the finished wipe where possible. If no method is named, we describe what we measure and agree the limit in writing before production.