Our membranes for technical, waterproof and breathable jackets!

Here at Quechua, we make our own membranes with our partners, which allows us to fine-tune our materials and precisely adapt them to the specific needs of our products, including our technical hiking jackets. We'll tell you more about this technique!

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We design our products ourselves to make sure that you get nothing but the best

Here at Decathlon, we have a team of experts in textile materials who work alongside the teams dedicated to various sports, making sure that our materials optimally adapt to each sport's specific needs. The holy grail that we're constantly looking for when developing textiles with membranes is to achieve the highest level of both breathability and waterproofing, but the reality is that we often have to find a good compromise between the two. In some sports, abrasion resistance is also an important factor to take into account (like in snowboarding or hiking). Just think about it: the straps of your backpack will rub against the shoulders and back of your jacket, then there's surrounding vegetation and the weather… This goes for men's and women's jackets, as well as those for kids, who are particularly good at exploring the great outdoors without giving a second thought to their clothes (as they should !).

We're always on the look out for new technologies because, although we don't produce the membranes directly, we like to work very closely with our partners. We're all about team spirit.

The holy grail when it comes to membranes is to achieve the highest level of both breathability and waterproofing but often we look for a balance."
Charlotte, Material Engineer specialising in membranes

The membrane is one of the components of a hiking jacket that makes it waterproof, creating layer #3 (in the hiking lingo). The membrane provides protection against external elements such as wind, rain and snow.

How to dress for hiking: Discover the 3-layer technique!

Waterproofing depends on several criteria: its components and construction.

The component of a jacket may have a coating or a membrane, which will provide more or less breathability and protection against rain.

The coating is similar to a layer of paint applied to the inside of the fabric. It prevents water from penetrating from the outside.
As for the membrane, it's a very thin polyurethane film (a watertight material) that makes the material waterproof whilst remaining breathable. It offers the advantage of being more flexible, lighter, and often more breathable than a coating.

In addition, the construction of the component is evaluated according to its layers.

2-layer materials: The membrane is glued only to the outer fabric; the inner protective lining is free.
The 2.5-layer component: The membrane is glued under the outer fabric and protected inside by a fine film.
3-layer materials: The membrane is glued between the outer and inner fabric.

So, what is water repellency? How is it different from waterproofing?

The difference between water-repellent clothes and waterproof clothes is a pretty big detail! Water-repellent clothes form water droplets on the material's surface thanks to a treatment applied to the outside of the fabric. Although it can be a nice bonus, water-repellency isn't enough to keep you dry during a raining hike in the mountains, or anywhere else for that matter. So, forget your down jacket if it's raining a lot: you risk going home cold due to padding that's just soaked up water. Effectively, more often than not, the fabric used for down jackets is just water-repellent and not waterproof. The same goes for windproof jackets, which are often water-repellent, unless a waterproofing index is included in the details on the product information sheet.

As for waterproofing, this is the addition of extra protection to the fabric, making sure that water doesn't penetrate through the clothing. Just what you need to keep you nice and dry on your hike. This is made possible thanks to two techniques, which we'll explain below: coating or membrane. Plus, waterproofing can be measured! Some waterproof technical jackets will keep your dry in drizzle or misty rain, but they'll not be able to protect you during a storm. To find out more and to make sure you choose the right jacket for you once you get into the store, we've put together an article for you:

Breathability: to give you comfort even when you're giving it your all

Defining and measuring breathability

The breathability of a material is its capacity to evacuate the humidity generated by the sweat produced by your body. Your clothes "breathe", as they let water vapour pass through. Not all breathable materials are created equal. There's a breathability coefficient, which is a breathability index used for clothing, including technical jackets. It indicates the fabric's capacity to evacuate the humidity from your sweat. The lower it is, the more "breathable" the fabric, letting the condensation/water vapour generated by your body pass through. On the contrary, the higher it is, the less breathable the material is, meaning that it'll have less capacity to evacuate sweat. The breathability test is carried out according to the ISO 11092 standard, guaranteeing a standardised evaluation of this property. It's important to consider that effort that your hike will require (the more elevation, the more you risk sweating before reaching the summit). Read <link href="/contents/950971c0-524f-4d62-9b81-7a360fbd63df" target="_blank">this article to find out more about how a material's breathability is measured</link>.

A breathable membrane for technical jackets that really will keep you dry

The advantage of a well-designed membrane is that you get a jacket which combines breathability and waterproofing Yes, you. really can have them both. And thank goodness for that! Otherwise, you'll of course be protected against rain, but you'll be soaked in your own sweat, or vice versa. A good technical jacket therefore features the best membrane that will meet your needs in terms of waterproofing and breathability. Its design should also make your jacket as comfortable, lightweight and durable as possible. This means that even if a jacket seems to be really waterproof, without an indication of its breathability index, you risk overheating while walking. To avoid you ending up with a jacket that doubles as a sauna-on-the-go, always look for a breathability index, and look out for mentions of the ISO 11092 standard. You can then invest in the best technical jacket possible and set off with peace of mind to take on the mountains, even when it's raining cats and dogs.

Breathability and warmth: is it really important in cold weather?

You may be wondering whether wearing breathable clothes is a good strategy for keeping warm when it's cold and wet outside. Well, that's exactly the case! Often, taking on the peaks is a multi-step process and the terrain won't just stay at the same, regular elevation for the whole way along your route. You'll sometimes need to put in high-intensity effort that gets you sweating, then you'll slow down. We recommend choosing a breathable membrane to avoid "sitting" in your own sweat for too long and getting cold after exercising. This is all the more true when you're on longer mountain hikes in the wetter seasons. What may seem like a trivial detail to you will become a comfort essential to make sure that you're not ending your day feeling ropey, with a runny nose and feeling awful the next morning. So, opt for high-quality membranes that really are breathable, and your body will thank you.

Experts at each step of the design process for our technical jackets and membranes

The technology of our waterproof jackets is hidden in the details

For membranes, we produce our own products with the help of around 10 different suppliers, which means that we can control costs and quality across the entire chain. As we have a huge range of products that we produce and retail in equally huge volumes, we can create the materials that we need, or fine-tune existing materials to adapt them to our specifications, whether it's in terms of technical or aesthetic aspects. Basically, we can select the best material, at the best value for money, to then offer you technical products that don't compromise on style.

The outer fabric has a significant effect on breathability, depending on its stretch and resistance level. The process of laminating or bonding the membrane to the outer fabric is performed by a roller system with glue dots, spaced at varying intervals - a process that can be adapted by adjusting different settings (roller pressure, density of glue dots etc.) This expertise is developed in-house by our material engineers who work with our Product Chain Leaders who live and travel in different countries, working in different production units (which, today, are based mainly in Asia). Our employees are involved in all stages of the chain, so they can monitor progress more closely: they're involved with yarn production, dyeing, and logistical aspects, in a number of different countries.

We have Decathlon team members involved at every stage of the process: This ensures a very high level of quality control and ethical standards.
Robin, product manager for men's clothing

Research into new membranes for jackets that are even more technical

Research into membranes is really at the interface between a sport (product engineers), where requirements are described using criteria such as waterproofing, abrasion resistance, stretch or even low weight, and production, which uses specifications defining aspects such as softness ("hand feeling") and other considerations.

Our "method engineers" then have to find the balance between design and manufacturing in order to come to the best compromise between intended use and style, before moving on to large-scale production. For example, you can have a product with a very attractive design, with lots of curves, which will then need to be covered with seam sealing tapes. The methods engineer, who is very familiar with design principles, will find a compromise with the designer to help avoid industrial problems.

Once the membrane is bonded to the product, we carry out tests on product breathability and waterproofing, which also include the integration of zips and the assembly of seams. All our textiles undergo shower tests which allow us to validate, not just the component, but the actual product design. When it comes to colour fastness and abrasion resistance, our lab and field tests allow us to check that the product can withstand the necessary stresses and strains. Most of the standards that we apply to our tests and our quality controls are therefore more restrictive than those commonly used on the market.

Achieving this balance between intended use, style and manufacturing is a constant challenge for our product development process. It can also be a source of innovation.

In addition, we're working on very theoretical research along with matters that may seem much more mundane but which will be directly used to develop over 60 new materials per year, for clearly defined uses. Our most recent innovation research has focused on "hyper-breathability" and "hyper-water repellency", and last year it was dedicated to "electro spun" membranes.

The miracle component doesn't exist, it inevitably has its limit, but what we want is, from constraints, to find what comes closest to our use.” Amandine, women's apparel product manager

To find out more:

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