Revised Test Method For Antibacterial Finishes On Textile Materials Available

AATCC TM100 is one of the most commonly used test methods to measure antimicrobial activity on treated textiles. This method, developed in the 60’s and updated periodically, has now been updated to more accurately capture the performance of today’s antimicrobials that have a smaller environmental impact. This revised method provides the industry with more consistent and uniform test results.

A diligent and collaborative effort of the members of AATCC RA31 Committee, Antimicrobial Activity, resulted in a revision of AATCC TM100. The Committee looked at the history of method, the common practice at many test laboratories, and spent an extensive amount of time to understand the issues of the test method and how these issues affected the variability of the test results from multiple laboratories around the world. The knowledge gained was used to craft a revised method that now provides the industry with more consistent and uniform test results. Committee member Robert (Bob) Monticello of the International Antimicrobial Council says the changes “will result in a better understanding of the antimicrobial properties of treated articles when directly compared to untreated controls.”

This revised AATCC TM100-2019 eliminates the variability on many of the critical steps that previously led to variability in test results, even on identical substrate. Monticello says, “This revised method, coupled with other standard protocols, will allow for a much clearer prediction of real-world antimicrobial activity on a treated article. We feel that this updated test method will provide better repeatability within laboratories and more importantly, reproducibility between laboratories.”

AATCC TM100-2019 Is now available for purchase through the AATCC website at: https://members.aatcc.org/store/tm100/513/

It will also be included in the AATCC 2020 Technical Manual released January 2020. Labs can evaluate their performance on antibacterial test methods by participating in the AATCC Proficiency Testing Program. Registration for 2020 rounds will open by October 2019. The Antibacterial Module is distributed in April. Labs must be registered and paid in full by March 1, 2020 to participate.

For more information, visit www.aatcc.org/test/proficiency/.