The Difference between a Cut size and a Finished size
When a tarpaulin’s size is mentioned, it can either be a cut-size or a finished size. Both these terms are part of the tarp-industry jargon. Whether the size is a cut-size or a finished-size, we will mention it when you discuss with our sale people. Cut Size Cut Size refers to the size of a tarp before sewing of seams and hems.  As an example, for a 6’ x 8’ Cut Size tarp, the material will start at 6’ x 8’.  After sewing, it will finish approximately 5’6” x 7’6”.  Generally, you will lose 6-9” per dimension depending on the size of the piece and the number of seams needed to fabricate the piece.  3” of fabric is needed to make a hem, plus additional material is needed to sew the panels together. Finish Size Conversely, Finish Size refers to the size of a tarpaulin after sewing (hem) has been completed.  This means that if the Finish Size is specified when ordering, the extra fabric that is necessary to create hems and seams has already been accounted for and the actual end product will be 6’ x 8’. As such, a 6’ x 8’ Finish Size tarp will finish at 6’ x 8’ after sewing is completed.  In other words, the material will start larger, approximately 6’6” x 8’8” and then after the hems and seams are made, the piece will be 6’ x 8’ when completed. In short: Cut size is the gross size before fabrication. The finished size will be smaller (-/- 2 x 5 cm hem , -/- number of seam x 5 cm) Finished size is the nett size after fabrication. The cut size will be bigger (+/+ 2 x 5 cm hem, +/+ number of seam x 5 cm).
Cut size：4,00 m x 6,00 m 24,00 m² Finished size：3,85 m x 5,90 m Surface 22,72 m² (-/- 5,3%)
Finished size：4,00 m x 6,00 m 24,00 m² Cut size：4,15 m x 6,10 m 25,32 m² (-/- 5,3%)
Tolerance on all mentioned sizes is  +/- 2% In the most of the case, the size tolerance of the tarpaulin cut size and finished size is about 3%-5%
Tip:  Our Tarps size are typically listed based on our knowledge on your market.  So keep this in mind when ordering your tarps or covers.