H.A.H Corporation
Background and Overview
Garment sector the largest sector in the Bangladesh. Government earns 78% of their export income from this sector… And this sector generates more employment for Bangladeshi women and makes them more confident. For this sector garments buying house is a very important part with out any doubt. Now this sector is facing more difficulty for its quality and continues price increasing. So price and quality is an important to the RMG products. For maintaining the quality of RMG products, we have to adopt the world latest technology and system which can maximize the quality the products that compatibles to the others country’s products. In manufacturing, quality is the concept of making products fit for a purpose and with the fewest defects. Many different techniques and concepts have been tried to minimize defects in products.
Before go with the quality, garments manufacturers or the buying house provider must get the order which is depend on the merchandisers as well as the marketing people. The term “merchandising” is well known to the persons specially involved in garments trade. The term merchandising has been derived from the term merchandise. Merchandise means good that are bought & sold. The term “merchandiser” may be defined as the person who merchandises the goods, Garments merchandising means buying raw materials & accessories, producing required garments, maintaining required quality level and exporting the garments within time frame. From the above definition we can assume that a person involved in garments merchandising need a wide range of knowledge & skill to perform his job successfully.
With the marketing, merchandising, quality controlling in this sector there is another term which is relationship building and maintaining as buying house is a service oriented organization.
H.A.H Corporation
H.A.H Corporation first established in the year 1990 under the H.A.H group. Under the H.A.H group there is also three companies those are,
· H.A.H Trousers ltd
· H.A.H accessories ltd.
· H.A.H enterprise ltd.
The owner of those businesses is Mr. Harun -or- Rashid. He has walked a long journey to reach this position. The head office of H.A.H Corporation is at Baridhara DOHS house-516, road-10.and their garments section is in Savar and accessories in Gazipur. At the starting time of H.A.H Corporation they have worked with several foreign buyers agent from Europe and America. But at that time they have their own buyers from all over the world. Their several buyers are Wal-Mart, sears, k mart, JC penny, Banana republic etc.
Buying House Business in Bangladesh
Garments trade is an influencing sector to world economy. The heritage of Bangladesh in this sector is very important. Ready made garments (R.M.G) sector is playing the most important role in earning of the highest foreign currencies and creating employment opportunities of large number of unemployed men and women. Its contribution to the total foreign earnings is 76% and its contribution to G.D.P is 5%. Around 2 million people are directly engaged in this sector, 90% of this large number of employees is women who are contributing in national economy. For that reason, growth in the
Garment’s exports have been possible if the buying house sector in Bangladesh gets more opportunity from the government of Bangladesh.
After the liberation this business got start in Bangladesh. It got momentous with the introducing of quota system. The pioneer name of exporting garments in abroad is Late Nurul Quader Khan, a civil servant, the ex Principal Secretary of Mujibnagar Government. He opened the door of export through establishing Desh Garments. Many big entrepreneurs of this sector are created of Mr. Nurul Quader Khan.
Since 1969 at first Desh Garments Ltd. run their activities in the East Pakistan. After that, day by day there are many garments factory established in our country during the various periods. But very sad news that, our maximum owner of garments factory are unable to deal with the overseas market. They are not enough educated and professional to collect the order of the foreign buyers. As a result, our local garments factory loosed a lot of foreign orders. For efficient and effective liaison maintaining with our foreign buyers, the buying house concept has developed in Bangladesh.
Services of H.A.H Corporation
Vendor Evaluation and factory selection: Select the right factories and fabric sources to match Customer requirements in terms of ethical trading, environmental standards, and quality and price levels. We mainly deal with vertically integrated factories, with sound financial back up, with strong quota holding for USA market.
Pricing/Quotation: Provide a very quick quotation service to our clients with all fabric and garment elements coasted in and detailed on a pricing matrix.
Product and fabric development: Mustang International Ltd. will handle all your fabric and product sampling needs as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Merchandising and Order follow up: Experienced team of merchandisers follows up on our orders by regularly communicating in between the customers, factories and our offices.
SWOT Analysis of H.A.H Corporation
Now-a-days all business people have sufficient ideas about the market environment but efficient business people think that the most important factor of the market environment is SWOT Analysis
Strength (Internal):
1. H.A.H Corporation has a remarkable reputation in the market
2. H.A.H has a wide distribution channel all over the country
3. H.A.H has a loyal customer base
4. Customer retention rate is high
5. Management is efficient, experienced and highly qualified
6. Competitive price
Weakness (Internal):
1. There is no separate marketing department In H.A.H.
2. Human resources are efficient but inadequate.
3. Management style and approach is traditional.
4. Team work practice is often seen absence.
Opportunities (External):
1. As Bangladesh is a developing country, there is a huge scope for industrial development which result a lucrative market for global business.
2. Current political situation is favorable for business.
3. To increase global network all over the country
4. To diversified the business in various sector
Threats (External):
1. Other competitors are very much aggressive in terms of marketing approach.
2. Competitors are offering more smooth services to their clients
3. For the RMG Sector India and China are threats for us.
Organizational Part of H.A.H Corporation
Including titles of management and technical team:
Managing Director (MD)
Director
General Manager (GM)
Manager (Accounts) Manager (Merchandising) Manager (Commercial) Administrative
Officer
Accounts Officer Merchandiser Commercial Officer
Assistant Merchandiser
Factory Manager
Production Manager
Profile of H.A.H Trousers Ltd
Name of Company : H.A.H Trousers ltd
Factory:
Knitting & Garments : Hemaettpur, Savar
Dyeing & Finishing : Shibrampur, Kashimpur, Gazipur.
Business activity : Exporter of all type of Knit garments
Production Capacity:
Existing : Knit garments : 300,000 doz. /year
Establishment year : 2007
Status : Private Limited Company
Paid-up Capital : USD 1.50 million
Total project cost (estimated) : USD 5.00 million
Number of Employees:
Office & Factory Management : 40
Skilled Worker : 700
Semi/Un-skilled : 300
Factory area:
Existing : The project has set up in a total land area of 93,500 SFT. There are one 4 Storied Building and 4 sheds measuring total covered area of 50,000 SFT comprising garments unit, Knitting unit, offices for Compliance, Store, Administration, Security, Accounts, Doctor’s room, Canteen, Worker’s shed, etc. Rest open area of 43,500 SFT land used for internal road, drainage system, Children Park, gardening, tree plantation, etc.
Under Construction : The project has also purchased another piece of land measuring 115,000 SFT for construction of new building shed covering 50,000 SFT for its Dyeing & Finishing unit and setting up of another 5 lines for garments production and installation of additional 8 Nos. Circular Knitting Machine.
Machineries of H.A.H Trousers Ltd:
Already Imported & Installed:
| Sl. | Particulars | Brand | Quantity |
| 01. | Circular Knitting Machine | MASA | 5 Set |
01 Set
01 Set
01 Set
01 Set
01 SetMASA brand, Model: MS-D, T-Series High-speed high production RIB/Interlock machine along with all standard parts and accessories. Machine is ready to produce all design fabrics of RIB including design of Interlock.
a) Dia 34 ” X 24 GG X 68 Feeder
b) Dia 38″ X 24 GG X 76 Feeder
d) Dia 40″ X 24 GG X 80 Feeder
e) Dia 42″ X 24 GG X 84 Feeder
f) Dia 44″ X 24 GG X 88 FeederMASA brand, Model: MS-S3, T-Series High-speed high production Single Jersey machine along with all standard parts and accessories. Machine is ready to produce all design fabrics of Single Jersey.
a) Dia 21″ X 24 GG X 63 Feeder
b) Dia 23″ X 24 GG X 69 Feeder
c) Dia 25″ X 24 GG X 75 Feeder01 Set
01 Set
01 Set02.1 Needle Lockstitch Sewing MachineJUKI80 Sets03.Computer controlled High Speed Button Sewing MachineJUKI2 Sets04.2 Needle Double Chain StitchJUKI2 Sets05.4 Needle 8 Thread Elastic InsertingJUKI2 Sets06.2 Needle Double Chain Stitch Ficot & Fagoting Zigzag M/cKANSAI1 Set07.2 Needle, 4 Thread, 2 Looper, Double Chain Stitch MachineKANSAI2 Sets08.Computer Controlled High Speed Lockstitch Button Holing M/cJUKI2 Sets09.2 Needle 4 Thread High Speed Over Lock MachinePAGASUS46 Sets10.3 Needle 6 Thread High Speed Over Lock MachinePAGASUS5 Sets11.3 Needle 5 Thread Flat Bed Interlock Stitch MachinePAGASUS8 Sets12.3 Needle 5 Thread Flat Bad Interlock Machine with BinderPAGASUS6 Sets13.3 Needle 5 Thread Cylinder Bed Interlock MachinePAGAUS17 Sets14.Rib Cutting MachineLU2 Sets15.Cloth Cutting Machine (8 Inch)K.M. KS.1 Set16.Cloth Cutting Machine (10 Inch)K.M. KS.2 Sets17.Vacuum TableCOOLSET14 Sets18.Steam IronVEIT16 Sets19.Thread Cleaning MachineNGAI SHING1 Set20Tread Winding MachineHASHIMA1 Set
| 21. | Needle Detector | HASHIMA | 1 Set |
| 22. | Strapping Machine | TOYO | 1 Set |
| 23. | Air Compressor | RENNER | 1 Set |
| 24. | Diesel Generator 150 KVA | F.G. WILSON | 1 Set |
| 25. | Electric Sub-station Equipment | CHINA | 1 Set |
| 26. | Gas Fired Boiler | LOCAL | 1 Sets |
Machinery to be imported:
(a) Dyeing & Finishing Machinery having capacity of 10.00 MT/day
(b) 8 Nos. Circular Knitting Machine from Taiwan
(c) 5 Line Garments Machinery from Juki and Pegasus
| SL. | PARTICULARS | BRAND | ORIGIN | QTY. |
| 01. | Dyeing Machine | AK | Taiwan | 10 |
| 02. | De-watering | CORINO | Italy | 1 |
| 03. | Dryer | LK & LH | Taiwan | 1 |
| 04. | Compactor | TUBETAX | U.S.A. | 1 |
| 05. | W.T.P | METCON | India | 1 |
| 06. | E.T.P | SIMEM | Italy | 1 |
| 07. | Boiler | LOOSE | Germany | 1 |
| 08. | Laboratory Equip, | – | Europe | 1 Lot |
| 09. | Gas Generator | GUESCOR | Spain | 1 |
| 10. | Compressor | KAISER | Germany | 1 |
| 11. | Garments M/C | JUKI/PAGASUS | Japan/China | 5 Lines |
| 12. | Knitting Machine | MASA | Taiwan | 8 |
Name of the Bank of H.A.H:
| Name of Bank : | Account No. | Branch |
| HSBC Limited | Dhaka Main Branch | |
| Mercantile Bank Limited | Dhanmondi Branch, Dhaka. | |
| Social Investment Bank Limited | Panthapath Branch, Dhaka. | |
| Prime Bank Limited | SBC Tower Branch, Dhaka. |
Study Part
When an export order is placed to a merchandiser he has to schedule the following main function to execute the export order perfectly in time.
1. Fabric requirement calculations,
2. Accessories requirement calculations (e.g. thread, button, interlining, Label, Poly bag, Cartoon etc).
3. Source of Fabrics
4. Sources of accessories.
5. Possible date of arrival of fabrics & accessories in the garments facto
6. Costing.
7. Garments production planning.
8. Pre shipment inspection schedule.
9. Shipment documents.
10. Have to make proper & Action plane.
Garments Accessories
Garments accessories means all items used in the garment except the basic is called garments accessories. There are hundreds of items used to manufacture the garments which are used as accessories. Lists of few important accessories are mentioned here.
a. Sewing thread k. Hanger
b. Interlining I. Gum Tape
c. Label m Scotch Paper
d. Button n Tissue Paper
e. Zipper o. Plastic: clip
f. Lining n. Tag pin
g. Shoulder Tape q. Collar insert
h. Elastic r: Collar bone
i. River s. Back Board
j. Poly-bag t. Neck Board .
u. Cartoon.
Quality of accessories as well as proper selection of accessories is very important, other wish the garments may be rejected returned by the customers. For better understanding about the garments accessories a brief explanation is given on some most important & common accessories
Slewing Thread: There are various types sewing threads which are used in the garments manufacturing industries e.g. 100% Cotton. 100% Polyester, Nylon, Viscose, Mono Filament, Multi Filament, Textured, and Core spun thread especially finished thread etc.
Amount all of them spun polyester thread is used in most cases. It is vary strong and have good color fast. It can stand all kinds of rough washing such as stone wash, acid wash with its color unaffected. 100% Cotton threads should not be used unless you are making the garments for garment-day, because the cotton threads are expensive and easy to break down. Sewing threads are available in various types of package forms e.g. Spool, Cap, Cone, Container, Cocoon, Per-wound bobbin etc. Among the mentioned packages in most cases sewing threads are used in cone form. Within a cone length of sewing thread varies from 1000 to 500 meters.
Inter Lining: The fabric which is used between two plies of garments basic fabric with an intention to make certain parts attractive, strong & retain those shapes for long times called interlining. Interlinings are of two types including non-fusible and fusible interlining.
At present days non-fusible interlinings are not used commonly. Types of fusible interlinings are available & price varies considerably.
Polyethylene coated interlining — Water wash
Polyethylene coated interlining — Water wash
Polyethylene coated interlining — Dry wash
PVC coated interlining — all types of wash, costly.
PVA coated interlining – Mild water wash
Label: Label is a common accessory, which is to use in each garments. Within each garment no of label to be used more than one because there are various types of label to be used for various information. In the garment label you will get some information e.g.
Main label — name of company
Size label — Garments size
Price label Tag — Cost of garments
Composition label-fiber composition (Sometimes size in included)
Labels are available with various types, Qualities, & prices. Printer labels arc cheaper while labels manufactured in jacquard type label loom is expensive.
Buttons: it is also common accessories used in the garments. It ‘may work as functional part as well as decorative item, Buttons are made from Nylon Polyester, Wood Bone, Purl, Metal etc. it may have two or four holes i.e. with shank.
Attaching of button in the garments is very important, usually it is attached by the button attach machine. If lock stitch type button attaching machines. It looks stitch type button a size also varies. To express the button size the term line” is used. 1 line ¸ O.638mm.
Zippers: In the trouser, jacket & shirts is a common component Metal or plastic-Teethes are used on narrow tapes of polyester or Nylons & those two series of teethes locked by a slider.
Elastic: Elastics are available in many sizes, shapes, stretched. The force required to stretch the elastic also various depending on types of Elastic used. The elastic used in the bottom waistband of a jacket, vest or pull over shirt etc.
Elastic are supplied in roll form in production if you want to cut it into 20” length you should do it after relaxation of the elastic at east far a few hours otherwise the size may be reduced when assembled in the garment, making the garment of wider size.
Activities of Merchandising Department in Knit Garment Industry
Activities of Merchandising Department are as follows
· Communication with Buyer
· Procure Order & Order confirmation
· Costing
· Consumption
· Price Quoting
· Sample Control & Approval
· Potential Sourcing of Materials & Approval Fabric, Trims & Accessories
· Lab dipping & Approval
· Purchasing of Materials
· Testing
· Factory Scheduling / Planning
· Order Follow up: all steps of production & Quality
· Ensure On Time Delivery
· Liaison with the customer during Design, Sourcing, Production & Shipping
· Conduct coordination Meeting with other departments / Pre production meeting
· Attend Buyers meeting
· Ensure Customer Satisfaction
· Product Development etc
There are three types of garment industry in RMG sector:
Woven Garment Industry: The industry manufacturing garments which using woven fabric. Ex: Shirt, Trouser, Blouse, sleeping gown etc.
Knit Garment Industry: The Industry producing garments by using knitted fabric. Ex: T-shirt, Polo shirt, Tank top etc.
Fully Fashion Garment Industry: The Industry producing knitted garments and using yarn as main materials instead of fabric Ex: Sweater, Pullover, Cardigan etc.
Various Departments / Sections of the Industry are as follows:
(Sections of a ‘Woven and Cut & Sew knit Garment Industry)
· store
· sample
· pattern
· cad/cam/design
· cutting
· sewing
· finishing & packing
· merchandising / marketing
· quality control / assurance
· work study
· commercial
· hrd
· accounts
· personnel
· purchase / procurement
· maintenance
Sewing Thread:
Aesthetics: Sewing thread should from strong smooth, uniform scams or stitching patterns.
Color, shine and excellence are common factor for selecting thread:
§ In addition to the above factor the performance of the thread on the stitch of the garment is also considered.
- The factors relating to performance are seam strength, abrasion resistance, elasticity, chemical resistance, electricity, chemical resistance, flammability, and color fastness.
Types of Fiber for Yarn Making:
Silk: silk is available both as continuous filament that is extent by the silkworm and as broken filaments spun into a yarn.
Silk has good appearance but it is high cost Silk that is used in garments only It is used sometime for hand-sewn buttonholes and pick stitching on tailored jackets
Cotton: is natural fiber in commonest use is cotton, spun into yarns from fiber
Staple is timbre cotton, wool or ramie etc. of no more than a few inches tong.
We generally use “spun yarn” or “Filament yarn’. Spun yarn is a kind of yarn you make by gathering together a bundle of staple by means of an action called spinning with a tool called spindle.
By quality, Cotton is basically divided into the following 4 major groups
1) Sea Island cotton.
2) Prima cotton.
3) U.S.A Cotton.
4) Asian Cotton,
1) Sea Island cotton is the best quality cotton in the world. It has the longest and highest staple reaching 2 it generally grows at south California Georgia and Florida of the United States and the islands off the coast of these states.
2) Prima cotton it is t-3/4” staple and is the second best and grows generally at Peru and Egypt.
3) U.S.A cotton in the U.S.A ether than the coastal area, generally the staple length is 1.
4) Asian Cotton grows in Asia, mainly in Japan China, Pakistan and India.
Order Enquiry from Buyer to Factory
1) Product Manager Enquiry on price, some times the target price is also given for shipment planning.
2) Approval of order from buyer, as per the costing given by the merchandiser.
Merchandiser makes (Time and action Plan contain the details of the action be taken as per fixed Time & action plan. date, in order to execute the shipment on the due date as committed to buyer).
3) Buyer’s Bank given Master L/C to the Factory.
(Master L/C is the contract given to bank, which covers the total value of the export order.)
Commercial department deals with the follow-up of L/C matter.
4) Back to Back L/C is given to the suppliers of accessories and fabric etc. Commercial department deals with the open up of B/B L/C.
Merchandiser deals with the follow-up of the materials and time.
5) Fit sample sent to buyer for the fit approval.
Merchandiser co-ordinates with all sections for the fit sample,
And get it approved from the buyer (or fit and measurement.)
6) Pro-production sample submitted to buyer with original accessories and fabric.
(P.P sample to be made from the production line)
PP. sample approval from buyer means Merchandiser takes approval on style, original fabric & Accessories.
7) Fabric and trims to be in-house on due time as per time and action plan.
Inventory to be monitored by merchandiser so that there is no problem in quality or shortage of quantity in fabric and accessories.
(If there is any thing wrong prompt action to be taken by merchandiser).
8) Pilot production to be started as per time and action plan.
Production manager and quality team should check very carefully about the style and quality of the garment.
The pattern and marker man need to follow the buyer’s spec. sheet.
9) On line in by buyers Q.C certifies the quality of the garment.
Buyer gives suggestion where and how to improve quality.
10) Bulk production to be started as per the time and action plan.
(Buyers Q.C monitor on the production and quality of garments.)
(Production manager and supervisor need to be very careful to meet the production deadline or production target, to meet the shipment date on time.)
Ii) In the mean time commercial section prepares the shipping documents. Contact with shipping line for the booking of vessels. (For sea shipment).
12) Final inspection as per time and action plan.
Buyers do random inspection during final inspection)
(Only if buyer’s Q.C certifies the quality is satisfactory then only we can ship out the goods.)
13) Goods are made on-factory.
Goods send to seaport (sea shipment)
Goods send to airport (air shipment)
14) Goods handed over to the shipping line.
Now in any case we fail to ship the goods on as per the date given
On master L/C buyer will cancel the goods
Or will ask for air freight i.e. if the order was in sea shipment.
Air freight may come nearly 4 to 5 times of a sea freight cost.
Job Responsibility for a Garments Merchandiser
Young men and youth apparel our core customers. The ideal candidate plays nicely with others and has a proven track record of success leading a team of graphic artists, an understanding of screen-print and the clothing/apparel industry plus experience with merchandising. Specific responsibilities include managing daily operations of the art team, including providing supervision and mentorship to employees as well as managing vendors, departmental communications, stylistic direction and managing associated budget.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
•Develops and maintains a clearly defined strategy in support of mission, vision and objectives.
•Works closely with key individuals and teams to integrate strategic opportunities into the prioritized workflow. Ensure cross-organizational support and extraordinary results for customers and partners.
•Responsible for day-to-day operations of the art team, including managing employees, vendors, communications, and stylistic direction and associated budgets. This position will also provide support to customer service, marketing, and product development.
•Carries out supervisory responsibilities in accordance with the organization’s policies and applicable laws.
•Manages and directs all pre-launch sampling and distribution of samples to sales reps and customers.
•Responsible for creative input on apparel line and direction and other rejects as requested.
•Work with sales teams and design staff to provide cost estimates.
•Coordinates all aspects of tradeshow (MAGIC).
•Builds key relationships with regular client contact.
•Develops business internally by participating in Merchandising Team.
Sampling Facilities of H.A.H
Besides nearly 1,000 sorts of fabric samples, we have in house sampling department with modern machines and equipped with state of the art technologies for the development of samples for our customers. Our sample makers have over 10 years experience in sample development. Our sample makers have developed the expertise of producing excellent quality of sample as per the need and requirements of the customer.
We encourage our potential buyers to ask us for samples so that they can have an idea of the product and its workmanship. We can provide our potential customers with samples of our own designs from our collection. In addition, we are very much willing to do the development of our clients’ own designs and fabrics.
Our philosophy is to provide superior customer services to our valued clients in order to satisfy their needs a step further than the market.
Quality Assurance
At H.A.H, we are committed to quality requirements of the highest standard. We do not sacrifice on quality. We make sure quality is adhered to throughout our operation from sampling to final shipment. We take extra efforts in ensuring the suppliers comply with Strict quality control. Quality Assurance is an inherent part of our services and we ensure that our customers do not face any problem at any stage.
Quality Control and Inspection Procedures:
They normally follow AQL Level 4.0 inspection method, but on special case we follow any inspection method our customers require. Our quality control and inspection procedure includes the following functions:
. Their Quality Assurance department checks all the fabric/Accessories to ensure that quality/color etc conforms to the order / style.
. Their Quality Assurance and merchandising team goes to factory location to evaluate pre-production (size set) sample, patterns, etc to approve for trial production.
. Quality Assurance team evaluates trial production and then finally approves for bulk production.
. When bulk production starts, their Quality Assurance team goes for inline inspection. This inline inspection during production is performed on daily basis.
. At the middle stage of production if (standard of quality) result is acceptable / good then we go for pre-final inspection. Here we check the case pack, carton quality, shipping mark, assortment, presentation etc.
. If the pre-final result is acceptable then we go for final inspection & if it passes, we approve for the final shipment.
To ensure quality of the highest standard, we inspect at every stage of the production process. The following Quality & Inspection steps are being currently employed in sourcing and manufacturing:
· Accessories Inspection
· Knitted & Flannel Inspection
· Measurement Spec checking
· Accessories Inspection testing
· Accessories Color Matching checking
· Daily Cutting checking
· Fabric Inspection
Quality control
According to my objective quality is a fact to survive in a situation for competitive market. The H.A.H Ltd. is also concern about it, and they show interest about better techniques of quality and its controlling system. I have just going to introduce it and presenting some core activities those will be very much helpful to increase the product quality and its assurance system.
Definition of Quality:
Quality has been with us since the dawn of civilization; however science, after second world war it has been used more as a competitive weapon or competitive advantage. In order to understand this we can have a looked at Japan. In the first few years after the second world war Japan was rebuilding from the war , many business executives through training in quality , which conducted by dr. deeming at Japan. These executives took the quality messes to heart and we can seethe resold today, which are taken obvious to mention.
Some other countries such as South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore in Asia /pacific followed this model and became very successful in the world arena.
Quality is a complex concept. No single definition addressee all the dimension, areas of impact and concerns related to quality. The term itself is used in many ways fro many reasons, each use reflect a different perspective based on philosophy, economics consumers behavior, production each. Definition may focus a holistic perspective, the impact of quality on the organization income, the changing market place, the nature of a product or service, the way a product or service conform to specifications or the ability of a product or service to meet customers needs. And satisfy their demands. Companies and their employees need to understand how quality affects organizations.
Eight dimensions of quality
For controlling the Quality there are eight dimensions of quality. Those are
1. Performance
2. Features
3. Reliability
4. Conformance
5. Durability
6. Serviceability
7. Aesthetics
8. Perceived quality
The great value of Quality
Many talk about the importance of quality in soft goods but not everybody recognize how important it really is. In most cases one employee that produces bad quality can greatly affect sales for a company. A study in the U.S. showed that an average individual will probably spend about$70,000 through his life buying from one brand that he is comfortable with. Most sales are repeat sales so you can potentially loose about $70,000
and suddenly becomes unsatisfied. In the production floor it is sometimes hard to imagine that one skipped stitch can cause customer dissatisfaction.
Please recognize that, if something is not as specified, it is defective & Defects are a waste!
Let’s see what happens to defective garments in the factory: If a defective unit is found you have two possibilities: That it can be repaired, that it can’t. ‘Seconds’ are sold at a loss by the factory. Units to be repaired are also an extra cost because extra costs are incurred in 1) handling the unit before repair, 2) extra labor and materials in repairing and 3) extra handling to get it back with the first goods. The time consumed on repairing
Defective goods can always be used to produce first class goods. In all cases defective units are costs for the factory. “Do it right the first time” is the key to success.
To ensure quality we need to do a number of things
1. Recognize, who the customer is,
2. Build processes that anticipate and prevent defects,
3. Make a plan to achieve the desired quality level,
4. Set up ways to measure our progress,
5. Work as a team to achieve the goal.
Let’s understand the concept of customer better:
A customer is the entity receiving a service or product from our work. This entity can be the
next process in line, it can be the boss, and it can be a fellow worker. Let’s illustrate this with an example of a production line.
Receive Sewing Finishing
If there is a quality problem in cutting this will translate into problems in Sewing, Inspect, and finishing. A very true American slogan is that most systems behave the following way.” Garbage in Garbage out”. In other words you need to have good quality Materials coming in to have good quality goods at the end. If you apply this to every process in the system you get the foundation of TQC: Every process is a system in itself where incoming quality will determine outgoing quality. Good quality needs to come out of every process in order for every process to produce good quality. Quality needs to be built into even/ process of the system to ensure results at the end.
We could waste our resources in trying to guarantee quality by inspecting finished goods and eliminating those that seem to de defective. In the factory we are not going to do this we will spend our energy preventing the defects and guaranteeing quality at every step of the process through effective planning and controls. How do we define prevention? Well Webster’s dictionary defines it appropriately by stating that to prevent is “…to act in anticipation of an event… to keep from happening; make impossible by prior action. We will succeed with well-planned action.
A good plan requires:
1. A clearly defined objective
2. Goals or expected results
3. The activities needed to achieve the desired results
4. Defined roles and responsibilities for the activities
5. Dates for the begin and completion of each activity
6. An analysis of potential problems
Measurements are a vital part of any quality improvement program. Anything that is not measure does not improve. We need to establish these standard measures and measure the progress periodically
Teamwork is also an essential element for the success of the program. Remember, “Not ONE of us is better than ALL of us”. The whole effort needs to have a direction that a team leader will provide.
The Executive’s Job Related to Quality
There are two separate areas of dealing with quality that an Executive becomes involved in:
1. Handling repairs: Getting repairs corrected and work back into the production flow
2. Preventing repairs: Working with operators to prevent repairs (correct at the source).
In-Line inspection
During the production of garments the operator’s finished work is audited in an in-line inspection. A quality inspector move’s from one operator to another at random inspecting a predetermined number of parts from a finished bundle.
In-process inspector
If the in-line inspector finds a defect n a part he is inspecting he should:
1. Take defective part/parts out of the bundle
2. Take part to the operator’s immediate supervisor
3. Give the part to the supervisor to examine while inspector explains the defect found.
4. Decide with the supervisor whether it is actually a defective part send if defective the supervisor should return the part to the operator.
5. Go back to the operator and mark the bundle as rejected with a red card or cloth and fill in the appropriate paperwork for the inspection and mark the workstation with the quality banner to signal that follow/-up bundles have not been cleared.
6. Continue to the next operator selected randomly from the list of operators and perform the inspection based on the approved sampling plan.
7. If an operator has a bundle rejected then all bundles coming from that operator are going to be checked by the quality inspector until three consecutive bundles are free of defects. At this point
The red quality banner will be removed. Follow-up bundles are inspected in the same fashion (audit not 100% inspection)
8. The quality banner helps the inspector remember to inspect the follow-up bundles from that operator and also helps the supervisor identify what operators are having quality problems.
9. Make sure that the element of surprise exists when doing an inspection. Inspections should always be performed at random and should never follow patterns. Following a predetermined path in the line can hint operators you are going to inspect their work next. Inspect operators at random
10. Make sure that only the defined number of units is inspected. No more, no less.
11. The units inspected should always be taken randomly from the bundle to ensure that the sample taken is representative from the bundle. Taking samples only from the top of the bundle is not correct and can give skewed results.
12. The frequency at which the inspections are taken is vital. Spend only the necessary time inspecting a bundle so you can have a larger number of inspections daily.
Section supervisor:
The supervisor is responsible that the operators in his/her section perform adequately in
their jobs.
If a quality inspector approaches the supervisor with a defective unit he or she should:
1. Greet the inspector do not ignore him/her. Inspect the part according to the quality specifications
2. If it is defective let the inspector know you understand it is a defective part and you are going to address the part with the operator.
3. As soon as possible take the part to the operator and approach the situation appropriately:
§ Approach operator with defective garment
§ Ask operator kindly to stop her work and pay you attention
§ Explain defect found and ask if she understands why garment is defective
§ Make sure operator understands why it is defective
§ Try to find out why the defect was created or why it was not detected at the workstation
§ Restate the company’s commitment to quality
§ Ask operator to inspect the current bundle for more defective parts and then repair all parts that are out of tolerance including the one found by the inspector. This should be done immediately,
§ Stay and observe sewing method
§ Make sure method is being followed
If necessary, review the operator’s card with the operator to see if this was an isolated occasion or if it is a recurring problem. Try to motivate the operator to continue working with good quality.
The supervisor leaves the operator repairing the defects the supervisor should return after
some time to make sure all work has been inspected and the defects repaired. Before the bundles continue to the next operation the supervisor should be sure that there are no defects in them. All bundles coming from that operator are going to be checked by the quality inspector until three consecutive bundles are free of defects. If there are defects in the bundles following a rejection, you could say the supervisor is no; doing a good job of ensuring quality in that operation.
100% inspection:
At the end of a section there will be an inspection made to all parts exiting the section. The inspections should be effective in identifying all defects in a garment. To ensure all seams and quality characteristics are inspected in a short period of time a defined inspection method should be followed.
The inspection operators should have their forms filled out correctly. A good source of information to determine the quality performance of the section is the point of 100% inspection. The section supervisor should check the quality level at the point of 100% inspection periodically.
From the 100% inspection forms the supervisor should analyze what are the operators /operations with the highest defect frequency. For these operators/operations the
Supervisor should identify the type of defects found most often, the cause (machine/method), and the frequency at which the type of defects happen. With this information the supervisor should address the problems, correct the possible causes and make plans to prevent them. The inspection form is totaled 4 times a day so a supervisor can actually see the results of what he or she has done to stop defect
Final Audit:
A final audit should be performed on packed items. When the boxes are ready to be shipped a certain number of units should be inspected.
Using the MIL-STD-105D determine how many garments need to be inspected.
Randomly select a number of boxes from the lot that contain the determined amount of units to be inspected. For example, if there are 75 boxes of 10 garments each and I need to inspect 80 units I would open one box and inspect 5 garments, another box and inspect 7 garments, another and inspect all 10 garments, and so on until I have inspected a total of 80 garments.
After entering all the information in-o the Final Audit form, the final inspector should determine if the lot was accepted or not. Any rejected lots should be addressed promptly to minimize the chance of having a late order.
Garment defect
Product variation is a normal result of the manufacturing process. It is impossible in make each garment exactly the same. In order 10 establish acceptable levels of variation; Tolerances should lie slated as a pan of product specifications.
Defect:
Variations that exceed tolerances or do not meet specifications arc called detect. Garment
Defect can be defined as below: Any irregularities or deficiencies in the fabric Materials used , in (cutting , Construction Assembling Knitting, linking , pressing or in the Finishing of a garment that adversely affects its appearance, serviceability or sale ability or do not meet the specifications and exceed the tolerances is garment defect.
Classification of Defects:
Generally, three main categories of defects are classified for the garment standards as per defects guide. ‘1 lie categories of defects are as follows:
· Critical Defect
· Major Defect
· Minor Defect
Critical Defect: A defect that is likely to result in hazardous or unsafe conditions for an individual in consuming or using the product, or that is contravenes any mandatory regulations. Major Defect: A defect that is likely to result in failure, reducing the usability or serviceability of the product. Any obvious appearance of defect will affect the sale ability of the product. Most of the cases garments are rejected. Minor Defect: A defect that dose not reduces the consumption or sale of the product is nevertheless a workmanship error beyond the quality standards.
It is recommended, at the manufacturer level that defects may be at the borderline between Major and Minor should classified as Major, for the sake of emphasis in activating corrective action.
Factors to be considered for classification of defects:
§ Location of defect
§ Size of the defect
§ How visible the defects from 18″ distance.
§ End use of the product
POSSIBLE GARMENT DEFECTS
Materials/fabric
1. Hole or surface Haw that could develop into hole.
2. Slues that is easily distinguishable
3. Distinctive shading
4. Dye spots misprints, or out-of-register prints.
5. Cut, tears or visible surface repairs
6. Bow or skew exceeding 1.5 percent.
7. Plaids, checks, or horizontal stripes dial are conspicuously out of match at
center front or back of a product.
Cleanliness
1. Soil, Spots, stains or Dust
2. Attached thread clusters
Pressing
1. Burn or scorch marks
2. Glaring shine marks
3. Press marks from camps
4. Absence of pressing when specified
5. Products packaged moist after steam pressing
6. Improper pressing
7. Seams not lined up when specified for center leg crease
8. Loops twisted after pressing
9. Pressed-in creases uneven
Seams and Stitching
1. Twisted, roped, or puckered scams
2. Open or broken stitches
3. Raw edges when covered edges are specified
4. Scams not back stitched or bar tacked when specified
5. Irregular or uneven top stitching
6. Scam grin-through
7. Any part of product caught in scam or stitches
8. Any exposed drill holes
9. Length of legs off by more than 3/8 in.
10. Stitch count not conforming to specs
11. Stitch or scam type not conforming to slices
12. Label is not correctly attached
13. Sewn on design attached at incorrect place and sewn not according to specs
14. Double needle stitch on crotch seam; t not specified
15. Use of monofilament thread, other than where specified
Button hole
1. Size within specs
2. Ragged edges
3. Uncut buttonhole
4. Out of ‘alignment or improper spacing
5. Thread shade not to specs
6. Broken stitches in buttonhole
7. Density is too high or low.
8. Stitch depth too narrow or wide
Button/Button Sewing
1. Button not securely attached
2. Butler-missing
3. Broken or damaged button
4. Out of alignment or improper spacing
5. Button not to specs
6. Lack of support materials on fragile fabric
7. Buttons that crack, chip, discolor, rust, bleed, melt or otherwise cause consumer dissatisfaction when care label is followed
Waistband
1. Uneven in width
2. Excessive fullness, puckering or twisting
3. Closure misaligned
4. Belt loops are crooked.
Belt Loops
1. Not fully secure
2. Extend above waistband
3. Missing tacks
4. Color shade not to specs
5. Thread shade not to specs
6. Raw edges showing
Collars and lapels
1. Excessive fullness, puckers or twisting of top collar
2. Collar points not well shaped and not symmetrical
3. Uneven or irregular top stitching
4. Length of collar points uneven
5. Cording, piping or trim on collar uneven
6. Under collar shows above lop collar
7. Collar off center when attached to garment
8. Loose thread inside collar and shows through to surface
9. Buttons or buttonholes not aligned.
Front and back
1. Uneven at bottom hem
2. under facing showing
3. Pockets conspicuously uneven
4. Darts uneven in length
5. Darts poorly shaped
6. Spot shirring not even right and left sides
Sleeves and Armholes
1. Pleats at sleeve head unless specified
2. Sleeves set in improperly, backward or twisted
3. Sleeve head slay stitching showing on outside
4. Excessive puckering in sleeve scam
5. Underarm seam out of alignment specs
6. Cuffs attached