ARAMID Generic title for the family of high modulus fibres that include Kevlar, Twaron and Technora

BIAS A diagonal across a piece of fabric at 45-degrees to the warp and fill.

CREEP The property of fibres to gradually stretch under a constant load.

CRIMP Length or waviness added to a yarn when it is woven over-and-under in a piece of fabric. Crimp can contribute to the elongation of a fabric under load.

DENIER A system for coding filament yarns and fibres, with low numbers representing finer sizes and higher numbers representing heavier yarns. Denier represents the weight in grams of 9000 meters of a fibre.

ELONGATION The difference between the length of a stretched sample and its initial length expressed in 1/100ths of an inch.

FIBER Strand of material used to spin into a yarn.

FILL The yarn or fibre running across the width of the fabric at right angles to the warp.

GSM Weight in grams of a square meter of cloth.

HAND Softness or firmness of a fabric.

LAMINATE A layered fabric made by bonding scrims and/or taffetas to one or two plies of film.

MODULUS The measure of stretch or elasticity of a fabric. The number associated with modulus is the amount of load in grams it takes to initiate stretch in a 1000 denier yarn, a higher number reflects lower stretch.

POLYKOTE Contender's coated Dacron line, this term indicates a hard polyurethane coating for fabrics specifically used in racing. The Polykote finish produces a very firm, low bias stretch fabric.

POLYPREG Contender's impregnated Dacron line, this term indicates an impregnated melamine finish which can be varied to create a different hand and bias of a fabric.

PRIMARY YARN DIRECTION The orientation (warp or fill) in which a fabric is the most stretch resistant.

RIPSTOP Integrally woven pattern of heavier yarns within a fabric to restrict tear and crazing.

SCRIM Non woven, formed sheet of un crimped yarns held together with resin.

TAFFETA A light woven fabric used on laminates to add durability and abrasion resistance

TENACITY The breaking strength of a yarn or fabric stated in force per unit of the cross-sectional area.

TENSILE STRENGTH The ability of a fibre, yarn or fabric to resist breaking under tension.

THREADLINE The direction of the yarns, either in the warp or the fill direction.

WARP The yarn or fibre running the length of a fabric.