Composition leather
Composition leather is made from recycled leather off-cuts, trimmings and shavings that would normally be sent by the leather industry to landfill. The type of leather specifically used in the manufacture of composition leather is called ‘wet blue’. This raw material, which is duck-egg blue in colour (hence the name), comes straight from tanning. [1]
Characteristics
Composition leather enables a higher cutting yield than leather. This is because the material is man-made from leather fibres, produced in rolls 1.4m wide and is not derived from leather hides, as in traditional leather.
A leather hide at its widest point is 914.4mm (36”) and 2,286mm (90”) long, whereas composition leather is available, cut to length, from a roll width of 1.4m (55”). [2] This in turn results in less wastage and reduced material costs.
Composition leather gives a uniform finish with minimal batch-to-batch variation. It has no natural defects that are associated with real leather made from leather hides (which will always bear the marks of its natural origin).
The characteristics of leather from hides can show up as:
- Healed scars: Resulting from barbed wire damage or by the horns of other cattle.
- Growth marks: Quite pronounced in the neck area.
- Grain variation: Varying from being loose in the belly and flank areas to relatively tight across the backbone.
- Shade variation: Each hide is different with varying grain structure, which means the dyes and finishes used penetrate to differing degrees. This means that uniformity is not always possible. [3]
Composition leather is up to 50 per cent lighter than traditional leather and can be up to 30 per cent lighter than moquette. For commercial transport companies such as those operating bus or coach services, this weight reduction allows them to save on fuel consumption. [4]
Uses
Composition leather is increasingly being adopted as an alternative to traditional leather for footwear, leather goods (including document folders, bags and wallets), airline seating, taxi seating, car upholstery, marine upholstery, commercial upholstery and domestic upholstery.
References
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- Classifying miscellaneous leather or composition leather items: http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?itemId=1080282147&type=RESOURCES
- The 2009 World Forecasts of Composition Leather with a Leather or Leather Fiber Base in the Forms of Slabs, Sheets, or Strip Export Supplies: http://www.researchandmarkets.co.uk/reportinfo.asp?report_id=665665
- The 2009 Import and Export Market for Composition Leather with a Leather or Leather Fiber Base in the Forms of Slabs, Sheets, or Strip in the United Kingdom: http://www.researchandmarkets.co.uk/reportinfo.asp?report_id=1077554
- Imports of Manufacturers of Leather or Composition Leather (Saddlery and Harness): http://www.craftsintheenglishcountryside.org.uk/pdfs/Table%2013.pdf
