during the summer of 1973, durable press, cotton/polyester utility uniforms were field tested (tecom) at fort benning, georgia. tests showed that the prescribed laundry procedures did not remove oil and grease stains from these garments. stain removal was accomplished by treating the stains with several liquid commercial detergents prior to laundering. us army natick development center initiated an investigation of this problem. the results of this investigation, which included an evaluation of both specification and commercial laundry detergents and spotting agents, show that a conventional laundry procedure utilizing combinations of laundry detergents and alkalies and a moderate washing temperature 71 deg c. (160 deg f.) is not 100 effective in removing oil and grease stains from cotton/polyester garments. a procedure for removing heavy oil and grease stains without affecting either the color or finish of durable press garments has been developed. this procedure utilizes a spotting agent which is applied to the stained areas prior to laundering technical requirements for this spotting agent have been prepared for use in the preparation of a specification. (author)