Compaction (textiles)

Okay kiddo, do you know what happens to your clothes when you wear them and then throw them in the laundry? They become all crinkly and wrinkly, right?

Well, sometimes we want our clothes to be nice and smooth again, and that's where something called compaction comes in. Compaction is when we use a special machine to press down on fabric, flattening it out and making it nice and smooth again.

Think about when you use a rolling pin to flatten out dough for cookies or a pie. The compaction machine does something similar, but with fabric instead of dough.

But why do we do this? It's not just for looks - compacting fabric can also make it more stable and durable, so it will last longer. And it can also make the fabric softer and more comfortable to wear.

So there you have it, compaction is just a fancy word for using a machine to press fabric down and make it smoother and stronger.