I have been asked to present an overview of ginning research that pertains to fiber quality. Most of the work that I will report on is going on at the research locations represented by the authors listed. The authors themselves are not responsible for all the work being reported on. Other scientists at each location are making their own important contributions to the overall research effort, and their names are listed in the acknowledgment section.

Fiber quality improvement is a broad area that takes in everything from plant genetics to textile processing and finishing. However, for the ginner, cotton quality is determined to a large degree by the final cotton plant development and environmental conditions at the time of field harvest. So for the purposes of this presentation, discussion will begin with harvesting work and end with baled lint. Also, the discussion will include both hardware and related items that have been recently developed, or have possibilities for development in the near future.