Apparel industry-case-study-I-part-iii

Fabric Store

Dr.K.N. Chatterjee 

Prof.,& Head of FAE department

Head, Research and Consulting

TIT Bhiwani

Haryana, India.

In-house centralized fabric store, which caters to the needs of eight-knitwear units spread in Gurgaon and surrounding areas.

Fabric repository is that the actual space wherever the material for production is received or sent for process.

Besides storage, the material store department is additionally chargeable for the examination of the products received by it.

The activities going on in the fabric storehouse are briefly explained ahead.

ORDER PROCESSING AND FABRIC IN-HOUSE

The businessperson receives the acquisition Order from the customer.

On the basis of this purchase order, the fabric source prepares a 'requisition' for the fabric as per the demands of the buyer and raises it to the fabric vendors in the market.

The best deal and therefore the merchant is finalized and therefore the order is placed.

The factory may send the yarn from the store to the fabricators for fabric production, buy greige goods for dyeing or directly order the processed fabric to the vendors. Once the fabrics department receives the approval for the fabric, the vendor sends it in the form of lots within the specified time period and the fabric is made in house in the fabric store.

About five-hitter additional product equipped by the seller.
The fabric via transport trucks comes in numerous packages like rolls, book fold, open width etc.

The packages are unloaded on conveyor belts (500 kg capacity), which takes them to the weighing machine.

Each consignment comes in with associate degree invoice having details like amount, colour, GSM, and weight.

The goods are weighed and other details are reconfirmed before they are stored.

'Bar code system'

Generally, Apparel Industry uses a unique method for tracking its orders by Barcoding. This automated system reduces stress on order processing and invoicing which otherwise is highly paperwork-intensive. It also eases the management of back orders. The factory prepares its own barcode stickers according to the P.O. and puts it on the goods once they are in the house.

The bar code may be a series of vertical bars that helps to spot the merchandise class.

• Using a hand-held laser scanner the bar codes are read and an 'Order Tracking System' software interprets all the information contained in them like

In-house centralized fabric store, which caters to the needs of eight-knitwear units spread in Gurgaon and surrounding areas.

• Fabric repository is that the actual space wherever the material for production is received or sent for process.

• Besides storage, the material store department is additionally chargeable for the examination of the products received by it.

• The activities going on in the fabric storehouse are briefly explained ahead.

• ORDER PROCESSING AND FABRIC IN-HOUSE

• The businessperson receives the acquisition Order from the customer.

• On the basis of this purchase order, the fabric source prepares a 'requisition' for the fabric as per the demands of the buyer and raises it to the fabric vendors in the market.

• The best deal and therefore the merchant are finalized and therefore the order is placed.

• The factory may send the yarn from the store to the fabricators for fabric production, buy greige goods for dyeing or directly order the processed fabric to the vendors. Once the fabrics department receives the approval for the fabric, the vendor sends it in the form of lots within the specified time period and the fabric is made in house in the fabric store.

• About five-hitter additional product ar equipped by the seller.

• The fabric via transport trucks comes in numerous packages like rolls, book fold, open width etc.

• The packages are unloaded on conveyor belts (500 kg capacity), which takes them to the weighing machine.

• Each consignment comes in with associate degree invoice having details like amount, colour, GSM, and weight.

• The goods are weighed and other details are reconfirmed before they are stored.

• 'Bar code system'

• Generally, Apparel Industry uses a unique method for tracking its orders by Barcoding. This automated system reduces stress on order processing and invoicing which otherwise is highly paperwork-intensive. It also eases the management of back orders. The factory prepares its own barcode stickers according to the P.O. and puts it on the goods once they are in the house.

• The bar code may be a series of vertical bars that helps to spot the merchandise class.

• Using a hand-held laser scanner the bar codes are read and an 'Order Tracking System' software interprets all the information contained in them like

• PO no.

• Supplier no.

• Roll No.

• Component

• Colour

• Size

• Lot no.

• Unit no.

• Estimated lot qty.

• Rolls

• Individual weight etc.

• This information is uploaded automatically in all the computer systems of the departments like fabric store, fabric sourcing, production and PPC, merchandising (via networking), thus eliminating the burden of re-entering data. Barcoding allows automatic updating of records, rapid identification of the products and quick sorting whenever they are dispatched from the fabric store to the vendors for processing or to the cutting room.

• Fabric stores maintain records on a daily, monthly and yearly basis for all the goods received both quality-wise and quantity-wise. The goods are in-housed in the store at least one month prior to production.

• Besides material, the repository is additionally chargeable for the receiving ordered trims and different materials.

•

• FABRIC INSPECTION

• The fabric being the main contributor to the development of our final product i.e. the garment, it is very important to control its quality (indicated by the number of faults and variations present in it. Identification of these objectionable variations and faults right at the initial stage helps to reduce the production time. So once the fabric is in-house it is immediately sent on a pilot and trolley assembly to the inspection area.

• Greige fabric inspection

• The greige fabric is normally in tubular form and it is checked on the inspection machine inclined at an angle of 45°. The machine has two rollers. One is Let off the roller and the other is Take up roller. Let - off roller releases the fabric for checking and take up roller winds the fabric back.

• Special lights mounted at the highest of the machine and below {the material|the material} offer illumination (standard five hundred lux) for checking each the surfaces of the hollow fabric at the same time.

• The speed of the rollers can be adjusted as required.

• The checker loads the machine with the fabric roll and analyses the running fabric for faults. Defects in greige fabric broadly occur due to two reasons- yarn defects or knitting defects.

• Yarn defects show up in the fabric in the form of horizontal lines. Uneven yarn, uneven yarn tension, mixed yarn, uneven twist, weak yarn, misaligned and poor wound cones etc.

• are common yarn defects that make to material faults.

• Some of these faults are not seen in dyed fabrics but others remain objectionable even after processing.

• PO no.
• Supplier no.
• Roll No.
• Component
• Colour
• Size
• Lot no.
• Unit no.
• Estimated lot qty.
• Rolls
• Individual weight etc.

This information is uploaded automatically in all the computer systems of the departments like fabric store, fabric sourcing, production and PPC, merchandising (via networking), thus eliminating the burden of re-entering data. Barcoding allows automatic updating of records, rapid identification of the products and quick sorting whenever they are dispatched from the fabric store to the vendors for processing or to the cutting room.

Fabric stores maintain records on a daily, monthly and yearly basis for all the goods received both quality-wise and quantity-wise. The goods are in-housed in the store at least one month prior to production.

Besides material, the repository is additionally chargeable for the receiving ordered trims and different materials.

FABRIC INSPECTION

The fabric being the main contributor to the development of our final product i.e. the garment, it is very important to control its quality (indicated by the number of faults and variations present in it. Identification of these objectionable variations and faults right at the initial stage helps to reduce the production time. So once the fabric is in-house it is immediately sent on a pilot and trolley assembly to the inspection area.

Greige fabric inspection

The greige fabric is normally in tubular form and it is checked on the inspection machine inclined at an angle of 45°. The machine has two rollers. One is Let off the roller and the other is Take up roller. Let - off roller releases the fabric for checking and take up roller winds the fabric back.

Special lights mounted at the highest of the machine and below {the material|the material} offer illumination (standard five hundred lux) for checking each the surfaces of the hollow fabric at the same time.

The speed of the rollers can be adjusted as required.

The checker loads the machine with the fabric roll and analyses the running fabric for faults. Defects in greige fabric broadly occur due to two reasons- yarn defects or knitting defects.

Yarn defects show up in the fabric in the form of horizontal lines. Uneven yarn, uneven yarn tension, mixed yarn, uneven twist, weak yarn, misaligned and poor wound cones etc.

are common yarn defects that make to material faults.

Some of these faults are not seen in dyed fabrics but others remain objectionable even after processing.

Contamination is caused due to contaminated yarn or yarn mixed with dirt. Its colour appears different from the base colour. This is a common problem in knitting when yarns of two different colours are used simultaneously. They remain even after dying.
* Kitties occur due to the impurities present in the cotton fibre. These are spread all over the fabric as tiny specs and get removed during the processing of the fabric.
* Slubs are formed due to knot and other yarn imperfections.

Knitting defects usually show up as vertical lines in the fabric. Bent or wrong needles, worn out machine parts, dirt accumulation in the machinery parts, poor machine settings are reasons for knitting defects occurring in the fabric. Most knitting defects are not removed during processing.

* Holes and cuttings are the portion of the fabric, which has been cut or where no knitting has taken place. They may vary from a very minute in size to very large.
* Needle break occurs when the machine fails to knit due to a broken needle. This appears as long vertical lines of missing yarn; sometimes extending up to 2 meters.
* Stain of machine oil and dirt are acquired in the fabric during handling of the fabric. They are removed during washing.
* Sinker Line is a calendar line that appears in the whole roll of fabric, as small streaks due to stiff sinkers.
* Knit-in faults are missing or overlapped loops and they occur due to wrong machine timings, or when the needle fails to make a loop or knock off.
        Needle marks occur in the fabric due to dirt and oil accumulated in the needle or due to improper needle size.
* Fly is loose fluff trapped in the yarn during knitting. It is removed during processing.
* Edge knitting occurs in collars and ribs when the flatbed-knitting machine fails to knit at the edge turning.
* Knitting tension variations due to improper cam settings, or machine stoppages manifest in the knit fabric in form of uneven elastic behaviour.

There are norms for every fault that appears in the bolt pertaining to its frequency of occurrence and dimensions, which would lead to its rejection. For e.g. a roll having more than 10 holes will be rejected. The checker keeps the number of defects he has come across in his mind and based on his experience and the minimum rejection criterion (4 point AQL system) he approves or rejects a roll. The role if rejected is pasted with a red sticker and sent back to the vendor for a replacement. If accepted, it is pasted with a green sticker and kept in store until sent for dyeing. An inspection register is maintained to keep track of every roll inspected.

Processed fabric inspection

Dyed and other processed goods are best inspected manually due to the problems in recognition of minute variations. Two checkers do this job on large tables (measuring 96.5 inches Î 48.5 inches) arranged in a row. Both sides of the tubular fabric are checked one after another. Alteration stickers are placed wherever the fault is found.

Besides the faults mentioned before, some dyeing defects also creep in the fabric during uneven processing and poor handling of the fabric.

Streaks of different shade occur due to uneven dyeing. They appear as horizontal bars in the fabric.
Yarn barriness or often-called yarn patta is characterized by a ridge or mark running in the crosswise or lengthwise directions of the fabric. Barrie can be caused by tension variations in the knitting process, poor quality yarns or problems during the finishing process.
Shading (Side Selvedge or end to end) is a condition when shade variation is seen from the selvedges towards the centre or from one end of the fabric to another. It is caused due to improper windup during dyeing.
Bowing and Skewness are very common faults in knits, occurring due to bad material handling during processing. They throw the fabric out of grain i.e. the courses and the wales no longer remain perpendicular to each other.


Every defect encountered is marked with an arrow sticker. A fabric checking report is filled which gives the details about the defects found. After the checking is done the fabric is repacked in large poly-bags and graded according to the standards set by the company. The grades are as follows:

Ist Class – No defects
IInds/Mended Class – Defects are present but under acceptance level. These defects can be amended to first class by subsequent processing.
Rejected – Defects are present beyond acceptance level

The fabric under Ist and  IInd category are pasted with Green sticker and kept in the store while the rejected one is pasted with a red sticker and sent back to the vendor. These stickers provide information like Style, Color, Lot no, Tube Size, GSM, remarks and checked by.

Yardages from accepted goods are sent for lab testing, which is done on a few meters of cloth by the testing department. The report is sent to the merchant for buyer's approval. Accordingly, the fabric is sent for mending (washing, re-dyeing etc.). Unless the buyer is satisfied with the fabric quality, the fabric will not be issued from the store.

STORAGE

Racking system of storage is followed i.e. fabric packages are stored in the racks in two areas: (a) Checked Fabric and (b) Unchecked Fabric. They are further segregated on the basis of Style no and Lot wise. The fabric is put in the racks with the help of Fork Lift and pallets. Such systematic maintenance of the store makes it is easy to locate the fabric whenever needed in future.

FABRIC ISSUE

The fabric store issues the fabric for cutting on reproduction of the job card. All fabric is not issued at one go; instead, it is issued as required. The job card contains information regarding style no, colour, buyer's name, and quantity to be issued and issued for which production unit. The fabric department then issues the fabric according to the details as furnished in the job card.
Fabric store also keeps the fabric library of the company updated with the new fabrics coming in the store.

DOCUMENTATION

Fabric store has a huge documentation work as well. Barcoding has lent a helping hand in it and eased the task of record keeping. Nevertheless, the following records are also manually maintained:

• Stock Register for information about the stock present in the store at a given date
• Receiving Register for information like fabric received from where, when and in how much quantity.
• Issuing Register for information regarding the fabric issued to the dyeing mills.
• Checking Register for information about the rolls inspected, GSM, Tube width, faults and number of rolls approved and passed.
• GSM Record Register for GSM of all the fabric rolls is stored in the house, along with their swatches.
• Pending Checking Status Report maintained on a daily basis for information regarding the rolls that are pending for checking.
• Fabric Checking Report, which states the type and number of defects and whether the roll is rejected or passed.

WORKFLOW IN FABRIC STORE

A


Processed fabric In-house


Requirement raised to the vendors


Purchase Order Received


Fabric Requirement prepared


Greige fabric
In-house with fabric receiving report


Vendor finalized if sample fabric is OK and order is placed



Dyed goods received


Goods packed and sent for dyeing with dyeing program


Physical
fabric
inspection


Sent to the vendor for a replacement


Lot accepted or rejected


Rejected


Accepted


A


In store and ready for issue


Processed fabric inspection



Physical checking



Lab testing


Send report to the merchant for buyer's  approval


Yes



Approved?


Send for redyeing, washing etc.


No

Apparel industry-case-study-I-part-ii