China Updates National Standards for Physical and Chemical Performance of Garments

SG 126/24

China has released two new national standards for physical and chemical performance of garments – GB/T 21294-2024 and GB/T 21295-2024 – that will become effective on October 1, 2024.

The Standardization Administration of China has issued two new national product standards:

• GB/T 21294-2024 Testing methods of physical and chemical performance of garments
• GB/T 21295-2024 Requirements of physical and chemical performance of garments

These were included in China’s No. 1 announcement of approved national standards in 2024. They replace the previous versions, GB/T 21294-2014 and GB/T 21295-2014, and will become effective on October 1, 2024.

Scope

The standards contain requirements and testing methods for garments that are mainly made of woven fabrics.

Main technical changes

There are multiple changes compared with the previous versions, including:

Revisions:

• GB/T 21294-2024 has revised the testing methods for the following physical and chemical performance items:
• Fiber component and content, colorfastness to washing with soap or soap and soda, colorfastness to dry cleaning, colorfastness to artificial light, colorfastness to hot pressing, colorfastness to transfer in joints, colorfastness to light of textiles wetted with artificial perspiration, colorfastness of phenolic yellowing, seam slippage, seam strength, seam strength of back seam of trousers, pilling property, tear force, breaking force, peel off strength of adhesive interlining, abrasion resistance, dimensional change after laundering, spirality after washing, appearance after laundering, water-vapor transmission, absorption and quick drying property, waterproof performance, solar ultraviolet radiation protective property, oil repellency property, soil release property, decomposable carcinogenic aromatic amine dyes, phthalates, total lead, burning behavior, extractable heavy metals, banned/limited flame retardant substance, nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol polyoxyethylene ether (NPEO)


• GB/T 21295-2024 has revised the requirements or lists for the following physical and chemical performance items:
• Colorfastness to wet rubbing, colorfastness to artificial light, colorfastness to hot pressing, seam slippage, seam strength, pilling property, tear force, breaking force, peel off strength of adhesive interlining, abrasion resistance, spirality after washing, appearance after laundering, phthalates, burning behavior, extractable heavy metals, banned/limited flame retardant substance, nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol polyoxyethylene ether (NPEO), absorption and quick drying property, waterproof performance, soil release property, amended footnote requirement for dimensional change after laundering, list of flame retardant substances, list of nonylphenol (NP) and nonylphenol polyoxyethylene ether (NPEO) substances

Additions:

• GB/T 21295-2024 has added requirements to the following physical and chemical performance items and GB/T 21294-2024 has added the corresponding testing methods
• Bursting strength, resistance to damp heat aging performance, thermal performance, flame resistant, no-iron performance, wrinkle resistance, antistatic performance, propensity to evoked prickle, anti-mosquitoes properties, anti-mold activity, anti-mites activity, antibacterial activity, deodorant property, cool feeling in contact instant, anti-electromagnetic radiation, total cadmium, removal force of attached components on textile products, sharpness of attached components on textile products, drawstring and cords safety, remains of broken sewing needle, release of nickel, allergenic disperse dyestuffs, carcinogenic dyestuffs, short chain chlorinated paraffins, permethrin content, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanesulfonyl fluoride(PFOSF), perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and its salt, chlorinated toluenes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, solvent residues content, vinyl chloride monomer content, colorfastness to dye transfer in storage, colorfastness to washing solution, colorfastness to light yellowing, colorfastness to ozone


• GB/T 21295-2024 has also added lists for the following substances in corresponding Annexes:
• Allergenic dyestuffs substances, carcinogenic dyestuffs substances, short chain chlorinated paraffins substances, permethrin substances, perfluorooctane sulfonates (PFOS) substances and perfluorooctanesulfonyl fluoride (PFOSF) substances, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) substances, chlorinated toluene substances, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons substances, solvent residues substances, vinyl chloride monomer substances

Deletions:

• GB/T 21295-2024 has deleted the following physical and chemical performance items and GB/T 21294-2024 has deleted the corresponding testing methods:
• Smoothness appearance after washing and drying, smoothness appearance of seams after washing and drying, colorfastness of dye transfer


• GB/T 21294-2024 has deleted various testing methods, including colorfastness to transfer in joints, phthalates, alkylphenol, and pretreatment method of textile accessories and decorative parts
• GB/T 21295-2024 has deleted requirements for colorfastness to washing with soap or soap and soda of sewing threads/decorative threads/embroidery threads, and deleted the following terms and definitions:
• Durable press performance, durable press textiles, water vapor transmission rate, flammability, water repellency, hydrostatic pressure, solar ultraviolet radiation protective property, snagging, water absorption rate, drip diffusion time, evaporation rate, evaporation time, wicking height, oil repellency, soil release, products for infants

Details of the Technical Content

For more information, please refer to China National Standard GB/T 21294-2024 and GB/T 21295-2024, or contact SGS directly.

China’s GB national standards set requirements for product quality, safety and performance. SGS Global Softlines’ global network, including 10 laboratories in China, offers a wide range of CNAS and CMA accredited services for textiles, apparel, footwear and accessories to help your company demonstrate compliance with Chinese requirements. In the end, it’s only trusted because it’s tested. Contact us for more information or visit our website.