Cushioning

-:CUSHIONING:-
• A cushion is a soft bag of some ornamental material, stuffed with wool, hair, feathers, polyester staple
fiber, non-woven material, or even paper torn into fragments.
• It may be used for sitting or kneeling upon, or to soften the hardness or angularity of a chair or
couch.
• Cushions and rugs can be used temporarily outside, to soften a hard ground.
DIFFERENT MATERIALS FOR CUSHIONING:-

• Coir
• Foam
• Rubber
COIR:-
• The wide range of Coir foam are used in back cushioning sofa and arm rest sofa and for mattresses.
• Easy to cut, these foams can be given various shapes and can be customized in different sizes as
per customer's requirement.
• These foams are available in varying density and size as per client requirement.
• There are many fillings available for upholstery of all qualities.
• Foam fillings are durable, however the thicker the density the firmer the seat.
• Fiber filled upholstery provides a soft seat initially but can settle and flatten after a while.
• Feather and down filled upholstery can provide a firmer seat, but again will settle in time.
• A mixture of these two is a good combination generally used in better quality sofas
FOAM:-
• We should learn some basic characteristics about foam materials to assure our satisfaction and help
us to select the foam material that meets our needs for comfort and durability.
• There are many different grades of foam that are available to the Upholsterer or furniture
manufacturer for use in furniture foam cushions.
• Foams of varying DENSITIES (Quality) and ILD (firmness) ratings are now produced which offer the
furniture manufacturer or Upholsterer an opportunity to select a specific type of foam based upon its
intended use.
•
DENSITY OF FOAM:-
◼ Density is a measurement of the mass per unit volume, expressed in lb/cubic ft. (kg/cubic meter)
◼ The DENSITY rating of furniture foam is expressed as a two digit number which may range from 18-32.
◼ There also exists a family of foam materials with density ratings of 17 or less that are primarily used as
packing materials.
◼ The density rating of the foam material is the best indicator of the quality of the foam.
◼ The higher the density rating... the higher the quality of the foam and the longer you can expect it to
maintain its shape, loft and support.
HIGH RESILIENT (HR) FOAM:-
◼ It is a foam material that is produced to offer a longer, useful life than non-HR foam. HR foam is often also
rated as fire resistant (FR) that is fire safety and long life.
◼ If you are purchasing new furniture or reupholstering furniture which will be used in a public setting, foam
of HR & FR quality should be used.
◼ In the production of foam, there are two basic ingredients which are the urethane chemical that is the foam, and air.
The more urethane that exists in the foam material, the higher its density rating.
◼ In the above example, the 1.8 rating means that there is 1.8 kg of Urethane in each cubic meter of foam material. A
cubic meter is equal to an area that is 1M x 1M x 1M
◼ This particular foam would be rather low in density and would not be a good material to use in seat cushions that
are used on a daily basis.
◼ It may, however, be suitable for back cushions as back cushions do not need to support your body weight as seat
cushions do.
◼ Foam materials of a 1.8 density rating may also be used for furniture that is occasionally used, sleepover
mattresses or for short term use applications.
◼ The high density foam will perform better and last longer.
INDENTATION LOAD DEFLECTION (ILD):-

◼ The INDENTATION LOAD DEFLECTION (ILD) rating is a measure of how much pressure it takes to
compress the foam 25% of its thickness.
◼ For example if your seat cushion is 4" thick and has an ILD rating of 33, it would take 33 pounds of
pressure to compress the foam to a thickness of 3". Thus ILD rating of a foam material will tell us the
FIRMNESS of the foam.
◼ Some people like their cushions to be very firm while others prefer a very soft cushion that feels like a
down and feather pillow. There are foam materials to match each persons preferences.
◼ For sofa and chair seat cushions of a 4-6" thickness a foam material with an ILD rating of at least 30 lbs
but not greater than 41 lbs should be used.
◼ In this range your seat cushion will provide the support needed for proper seating posture and you will
not experience the problem of "bottoming-out" when you sit on the cushion if they are also a high density
foam material.
◼ To determine the best ILD rating for seat cushions we must also consider the thickness of the cushion.
◼ We generally use HR 3.1 density/ 33 lb (medium-firm) ILD foam material because this is the highest
density seating foam available with an ILD rating that is appropriate for chair cushions.
◼ Back Cushions : Use a back cushion foam which is a 2.4 density with an ILD rating of 18. This foam
material produces a medium-firm back cushion that is the ideal mate to our medium-firm and firm seating
foam materials.
◼ Shredded Foam (with no skin):Use for sofa cushion backs, throw pillows, dog beds, wicker chair padding
and miscellaneous cushions. Shredded foam comes with no skin. size of one bag is 20" x 20" x 42
◼ Foam Scraps :Foam scraps are used for anything that needs foam (open cell) such as packaging,
shipping delicate things, padding, cushioning, gymnastic pits and are also very inexpensive.By using this
foam scrap bonded foam is manufactured.
◼ Soft Cluster Fill Dacron : Used for sofa cushion backs, throw pillows, dog beds, wicker chair padding,
and miscellaneous cushions.
◼ Dacron : Dacron wrap is also available for cushions. Dacron gives the cushion a rounder and fuller look,
rather than a flat square look. Dacron also protects the foam from rubbing against the fabric covers.
◼ Foam can be used for:
◼ Arts and crafts
◼ School projects
◼ Can be used in the pool or tub
◼ Seat Padding
◼ Indoor kitchen chair padding
◼ Protecting and Packaging
◼ Upholstery use
◼ Out door furniture padding
NEED OF REPLACE OF OLD FOAM:-

◼ If foam cushion material is older than about 10 years
◼ If it is beginning to have a "rounded" front edge
◼ If the seat foam doesn't offer you the support you need to feel comfortable
Polyurethane foam:-
◼ Polyurethane is also used in furniture manufacture for casting soft edges around table tops and panel that
are stylish, very durable and prevent injury. These are used in school tables, hospital and bank furniture
as well as shop counters and displays.
SOME OTHER MATERIALS FOR CUSHIONING:-

◼ Feather and down offers the maximum comfort and softness in cushions and pillows that most people
desire and designers prefer.
◼ Feather and down back pillows and wrapped seat cushions can always be "fluffed-up" to maintain an
attractive look.
◼ Feather and down fills and wraps require a little more maintenance than polyester and high density-foam
but they have greater comfort, durability and resilience.
◼ Horse hair and hay have also been used in upholstery as cushioning/padding, however this practice is not
as common today as using foam.

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-:CUSHIONING:-

DIFFERENT MATERIALS FOR CUSHIONING:-

INDENTATION LOAD DEFLECTION (ILD):-

NEED OF REPLACE OF OLD FOAM:-

SOME OTHER MATERIALS FOR CUSHIONING:-

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