 The hygiene tissue industry has a growing global market with consumers highly desiring softness in certain products, which can affect prices. Softness is subjective and challenging to measure, but human-hand-feel panel testing is the most reliable method. Recent equipment development combines mechanical, surface, and acoustic properties to characterize softness, giving equivalent metrics to panel tests. Material selection, manufacturing operations, and additives are used to create softer tissue sheets. This article was authored by Joel J. Povlock, Ryan Frazier, Ramon Ivera, and others.