Short Course - Introduction to the Leather Industry
INTRODUCTION TO THE LEATHER INDUSTRY
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Lecture 1 Overview of the Leather Industry
The relationship between the meat industry and the tanning industry
The different processing options available to tanneries
The factors that impact on the global tanning industry
Lecture 2 Structure of Different Animal Skins
The difference between a hide and a skin
The three main layers in the skin
The terms grain, fibre structure, angle of weave, corium minor and corium major
The cross section of the skin structure
Lecture 3 Hide and Skin Defects
Defects on leather
How defects arise on leather at the different stages of the life cycle of a hide or skin
The damage defects do to hides and skins
How defects can possibly be prevented at the different stages of the life cycle of a hide or skin
Lecture 4 Preservation
The reasons for preservation
The different types of preservation methods
The damage that bacteria can cause on hides and skins
Lecture 5 Beamhouse and Tanyard Operations
What the beamhouse is in a tannery
The different process steps that take place in the beamhouse and the order in which they occur
The changes that take place to the raw material in the beamhouse
What the tanyard is in a tannery
The different process steps that take place in the tanyard and the order in which they occur
The changes that take place to the raw material in the tanyard
The difference between wet blue and wet white
Lecture 6 Dyehouse Operations
The reason why hides are split and shaved
The reason why skins are only shaved and not split
The importance of the wetting back process
The reason why wet blue must be wet back properly
The effect of rechroming on wet blue
The importance of neutralisation prior to the main dyehouse processes
Why leather is retanned
The different types of retanning chemicals
Why leather is dyed
Different types of dyestuffs
Practical methods of dyeing
Why leather is fatliquored
Some of the properties that fatliquors give to leather
What would happen if leather was not fatliquored
The different types of fatliquoring chemicals
How fatliquoring is done practically in the tannery
Why fixation is carried out at the end of the dyehouse processes
What would happen if fixation is not carried out
The importance of the final wash in the dyehouse
Lecture 7 Setting, Drying and Milling
Why leathers are set out
How leathers are dried
Why leathers are conditioned
Why leathers are milled
Why leathers are staked
Lecture 8 Leather Finishing
Why leathers are buffed
Why leathers are finished
The mechanical processes after finishing
The measuring of leather