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Sole Leather Drying

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FFPs Frequently Faced Problems

Leather shoe soles like other organic material viz. wood, paper etc. are highly hygroscopic and tends to absorb
moisture from the surrounding air during processing or while in storage. The excess moisture absorbed by the
leather sole results in increased microbial activity. Mould, mildew and fungi germinate when relative humidity is
above 40%. The micro-organism growth is injurious to materials like leather because it not only results in
decomposition but also weakens it mechanically.

General Recommendations
Pre-Drying Room
The humidity level in the pre Drying room of Sole leather should be
controlled so that the sole leather has the moisture content between
8-12% thus eliminating chances of fungus growth.
Storage Under Controlled Conditions
Finished leather shoes regain moisture while in storage, prior to
packaging. This results in the high rate of product spoilage due to
mould/fungus/ mildew growth fueled by moisture absorbed by the
leather. In order to prevent this spoilage, it is necessary to store the
leather shoes in humidity controlled warehouses where conditions
are maintained at less than 40% RH at ambient temperature. This
prevents leather shoes from regaining moisture and thus, growth of
mould/fungus/mildew.
Control Moisture While Packaging
The only way to prevent fungus growth is to ensure that the leather shoes does not regain any moisture during
packaging. The best, most simple and economical method to ensure that leather does not absorb moisture from the
surrounding air while being packed, is to control the humidity at less than 40% RH in the packing area.

Solution
Florind Shoes Ltd., Chennai, India is one of the largest exporters of leather shoes to U.S.A.
One of their shipments, containing few thousand pairs of shoes, was found to have fungus growth on the sole when
the container was opened in USA. The fungus growth had totally spoilt the `finish of the leather.
The search for the perfect solution was handed over to our engineers. A few pairs of shoes borrowed from Florind
were put through extensive testing in the Bry-Air environment controlled R&D lab. Experimenting, with various
parameters, it was found that final moisture content of the shoe upper should remain constant at 8% and sole part
at 12% to eliminate all chances of fungus growth.
Further investigation at the Florind plant revealed that the shoes were manufactured in a conditioned atmosphere of
75F at 25% RH but during monsoon, due to excess humidity in surrounding air the moisture content in the upper
part was found to be 12-15% and on the sole 18-23%. Thus, the moisture content was already high prior to
manufacturing.
In order to bring down the moisture content to suitable level, Bry-Air installed dehumidifiers in Florinds pre-drying
room. The humidity level in this area was so maintained that the leather would have moisture content between 812% thus eliminating chances of fungus growth. As the manufacturing area was conditioned, there was no moisture
regain there. Florind has also installed dehumidifier in their storage and packaging area to maintain the required
condition 95F and 40% RH to retain moisture content. Once the shoes were packed in air tight containers in the
conditioned area, there was no chance of fungus growth as Florinds counterparts in USA also maintained same
conditions when the package was unpacked.
Bry-Air has supplied three specially engineered dehumidifiers models MVB 10 B, 20 C and 45 D to Florind.
Florind is amongst the many renowned exporters of leather products, to maintain the quality of their
products, prevent damage from moisture and resultant fungus growth are using Bry-Air Dehumidifiers
extensively. In fact, fungus growth on processed and finished leather goods is the single major cause of products
being rejected.

Modified on: 02nd August 2011