Reading a Fabric Inspection Report

A fabric inspection report typically covers a handful of core measurements: weight (usually in GSM), width, shrinkage after washing, colorfastness, and a visual defect count per roll.

GSM (grams per square meter) tells you how heavy or light the fabric is relative to spec — a garment that runs noticeably lighter than the approved sample often points to a fabric substitution somewhere in the supply chain.

Shrinkage and colorfastness results matter more for how the product performs after the customer washes it than for how it looks on day one — this is often where the real quality gap between manufacturers shows up.

A useful habit: compare the inspection report against your original approved sample's measurements, not just against a generic industry standard. The report is most valuable as a comparison, not a standalone number.