CONTENTS Description Acknowledgement List of figures List Introduction 1.2 Company profile 1.3 Need of the y 1.5 Scope of the study 2. Research Methodology s and Interpretation 5. Findings and Suggestions e study Further scope of study Bibliography
of tables Executive Summary 1. study 1.4 Objective of the stud 3. Literature Review 4. Analysi 6. Conclusion Limitations of th
Page No i ii iii iv 1 6 10 11 11 13 16 44 61 72 73 73 74
LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE NO. FIGURE TITLE PAGE NO. 3.1.1 3.3 3.4 3.5.13 3.8.1.2 4.1.1.1 4.3.2 MYERS” THEORY ON MERCHANDISING. 17 21 22 26 42 48 52 MERCHANDISING WORK FLOW MERCHANDISING PROCESS FLOW WORK FLOW OF SAMPLING NETWORK DIAGRAM GRAHICAL REPRESENTATION OF T&A GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF MONTHLY SAMP LING PRODUCTION 4.4.2 5.2.11 5.3.1 CURRENT SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STUCTURE SUGGESTED SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STRUCTURE MON THNLY SAMPLING PRODUCTION, JULY’10 55 65 67 ii
LIST OF TABLES SL. NO. TABLE TITLE PAGE NO. 3.8.1.1 4.1.1 4.3.1 4.6.3 5.4.3 5.4.4.1 TIME AND ACTION CALENDER FORMAT T&A CHART MONTHLY SAMPLING PRODUCTION CHART-JULY’1 0 CAD IMPLEMENTATION COST TABLE CAD IMPLEMENTATION COST TABLE PAY BACK PERIOD TA BLE 35 45 51 60 69 71 iii
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The study was undertaken understand the internal the internal problems of ons for the problems and he problem to an extent.
principally to analyze the merchandising process and to weakness and flaws of the company there by finding out the organization. Further, focusing into the major reas coming up with some practical suggestions to overcome t
The study is carried out in GOGO International’s Bangalore unit. They are capable of producing around 12000 pieces of garments per day. They have a central planni ng and control cell which is responsible for planning and making ‘time and action calendars’ for all the orders they receive. Further, it will be forwarded to merch andisers for the order execution as per the planned dates. It was found out that there is a lot of variation happening in the planned and actual T&A’s. Reasons fo r the delays are found out and analyzed during the study. This study is an effor t to reduce the delay in pre-production activity as it is crucial, because the p re-production delays can affect the further production process a. If the company can find out the major reasons for the delays and try to get some practical solution for it, then it will be helpful for the smooth running of th e whole merchandising process and goods can be delivered as per the planned date . In order to find a way out from this problem this study has been done. As an initial step, the study gave more focus on the thorough study on merchandi sing process and T&A of various orders. Then the study moves towards analyzing a nd finding out the reasons and causes for the problem and comes up with acceptab le practical solutions and iv
suggestions. The collected data have been classified and tabulated. Simple table s have been prepared and liberally used to exhibit the classified data to provid e easy and better understanding of the study. This study will provide significant inputs to the industry peoples as well as ac ademicians towards unleashing the lead time of the Indian garment industry and e nable the industry to realize its rightful place in the global economic space. T he goal of the apparel industry is not delivering within the original cost and e xpected time estimates but the impetus is now on shrinking the existing lead tim es in order to compete with the international supply chain standards. v
CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION The textile and garment industry is booming in India, especially after eliminati on of the global quota system. Presently India is exporting garments to more tha n 100 countries including US, EU, Latin America, and Middle East. The main compe titors of India are countries like China, Korea, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Sri-Lanka. The Indian garment industry is gaining ground in the world market at breakneck s peed, but still not flourished at its fullest extent. Although the resources are available plentiful with a powerful foundation of fabric and spinning sector to support. The key factors behind this are low technological development, lower o utput, cut throat competition, high raw material cost, inadequate infrastructure , traditional productivity, unfavorable regulatory policies, and globalization i mpact. However, there is a fair list of the producers, suppliers, and exporters that are fully acknowledged with regulatory policies and formalities, internatio nal marketing policies and procedures. The only concern is in executing their pr oductivity initiatives, and meeting with order deadlines. Now days, major companies are adopting merchandising concepts, which comply with all procedures to execute and dispatch the shipment on time, considering qualit y, cost and time. Merchandisers are serious in the success of any garment retail business. 1
They provide the right products at the right time, enabling a company to match w ith latest market trends and meet the market demand. In the merchandising concep t, time management is a gig to manage one s time properly, so he can focus on va lue adding actions. Today s garment merchandisers have to move with frequent changes in demand and t he developing technologies utilized in manufacturing and production. To find out customer requirements, they regularly visit retail outlets, and come up with la test updates from frontline staff. In order to keep an eye on developments in so urcing, site visits are made every week to mainland factories to meet suppliers and study production. In garment merchandising, there is no specific rule, so it s important to be abl e to think on one s feet. The main procedures of merchandisers are as followed: • Understanding Sample Order Merchandiser has to understand the buyer s requirements after receiving specific ation in the sample order. In many cases, there are modifications pertaining to the specifications in the order to dispatch on time and the right quality. He ha s to talk with the in-house veterans on the execution problems of sample orders, as the right information is required in decision making. 2
• Managing order route card and production timetable Merchandiser has to manage every single production schedule and order route card that helps to follow-up the execution in the planned way. It is expected to be acknowledged of the various descriptions like: design, no. of modules, no. of op erators, how many processes, date of dispatch, quantity, output capacity, and de adlines in the schedules. The sub-ordinates are normally assigned to follow-up with execution of the plan. Merchandiser plans the activities depending on the essentials or non-essentials , and top priority are given to the most essential tasks. This is customary that the essential activities are handled personally or with the support of junior m erchandisers/sub-ordinates. In a "daily schedule", merchandiser has to carry-out and categorize which is the most significant and urgent task. The activity that has to be focused with full attention to sweep-off non-essential activities and have to be to be corrected by prioritizing to meet the deadlines. • Using route card to reschedule activities To get updated on the current status on the order, the route cards should be uti lized. The latest status can be fed into the computers. In case, the buyer ask f or the goods prior 3
to the deadline, then merchandiser has to reorganize the schedules to accomplish tasks, output capacity, no. of pieces to be produced daily, substitute arrangem ents, time availability, supply time, scheduling critical ratio, etc. • Submitting pre-production samples The pre-production samples should be provided on time to the concerned buyers. Q uality of the sample must be verified. If required, revised samples should be ma de available to the buyers. Merchandiser should adjust to the required changes d emanded by the buyer. The execution of bulk orders should be made only after sam ples are approved by the buyer. In-process inspection denote between any tasks in order-execution. In case of no nconformation, it is better to focus on the concerns of quality. Merchandisers t hat work on complete orders have to check deviation to the production teams so t hat any amendments can be done to avoid the non-conformities. • Solving shortage problem The merchandiser should know about the dearth of any commodity such as fabric, y arn, etc. from the beginning. Actions should be taken immediately to arrange req uired materials, after discovering the shortage. It is expected that the merchan disers should verify quality of the goods prior to execution of the order. If th e material is found unavailable, the superior should be informed about the conce rn. 4
• Communicating with associated people and buyer It is essential to communicate with the buyers regarding the order. It is expect ed to give some time to the buyer to read the sent messages. Merchandiser should to go through the messages received from the buyer and reply on time. In many c ases, merchandisers have to provide order status to the buyers. Also, merchandis er has to communicate with the people that are in-house, venders, contractors an d job-workers. Only through the right communication can one meet deadline for th e concerned orders. Apart from the above mention procedures, merchandiser has to assign subordinates to help him in the order execution, and direct the procedures. He has to revise his knowledge from time-to-time to know current market trends. To record prefer ences for all the planned activities, use daily or time log systems. The Merchandiser should find out exact reasons for time consumption. It is neces sary to keep record of time value and keeping it safe, as it is going to be shar ed with concerned parties/buyers. It is certain that merchandising jobs need hug e time planning. 5
1.2 COMPANY PROFILE GOGO INTERNATIONAL, Bangalore is established in 1983 by Mr. S.S Goenka, later jo ined by his sons Mr. Rajeev Goenka (an engineer by Profession) and Mr. Achal Goe nka (a doctor by profession) o Starting from a modest turnover, now GOGO has a t urnover of $ 40 million with garment export of over 10 million units annually. o Over the years GOGO has won many trophies and awards for outstanding performanc e, best export performance etc. with award by the president of India also. RANGE OF GARMENTS: o Knitted garments have been the forte of GOGO, however recently GOGO has ventur ed into the production of woven garments. o o In knit they produce men, ladies a nd children garments. The range includes casual wear, sweater, sports wear, acti ve wear, night wear and high fashioned boutique garments. 6
MARKETS AND CLIENTS: o o o GOGO enjoys a clientele that spans not only countries but also continents. It exports across the globe to countries in Europe, America, Australia and Asia . GOGO’s customer base gives immense pride and motivates to standards at sky level always o Some of their best customers are listed along: • • Kids wear: Gymboree, Di sney, Barbie Women: Marks & Spencer, by design, Mervyns, united colors of Benett on, exit, replay etc. • Men: VF corp., lee, wrangler, jack and Jones, quicksilver, replay, Steve and Barrys etc. • Apart from above GOGO also work with leading spor ts wear and active wear labels such as NFL, Harley Davidson, mountain warehouse etc. EMBROIDERY: o A large part of Gogo’s production is fashion oriented and therefore the embroide ry department is very prominent. It has facilities for both computerized and han d embroidery. o Computerized embroidery machines are capable of producing about 10,000 pieces per day. 7
INFRASTRUCTURE: o o A strong infrastructure is a backbone of a strong production base. GOGO has made Bangalore its head office which means which is the hub for manufacturing fa cilities as well as it centralized departments like shipping, quality control, d esigning, sampling, embroidery, computer systems and accounts. o o o o It also h as office in Delhi, Ludhiana, Mumbai and Tirupur. It employs over 3000 people al l across its factories and office. Total area covered under production is to the tune of 4,00,000 sq.ft All factories are modern with state of the art machinery and have the relevant social, technical and administrative compliance. o An int egrated modern ERP program links all the factories and office, and also links th e function of merchandising, production, designing, inventory and shipment. o Th e management of GOGO has recognized the need for expansion and has explored the various industrial areas open for investment. From among these GOGO has chosen t o expand its plant at Hassan, where government has started an SEZ (special econo mic zone) for the textile industry. o On completion of this project, Gogo’s produc tion capacity is expected to grow from 10 million to 35 million garments per ann um. The factory and processing plant will be spread across 1 million sq. ft., th e processing capacity will be 25,000 lbs per day. 8
o The same campus will have a fully equipped laundry, embroidery and printing. In addition to the integrated production facilities, Hassan will also have a dedica ted training center and knitting plants. PROCESS HOUSE: o In 1995 the need to be vertical made Gogo start its own processing plant in Ba ngalore. o o o o The modern plant has latest machinery from Italy, America, UK a nd turkey. The plant has facilities for knit dying, printing, compacting etc. Th e recent addition is a garment dying and washing plant. The plant includes a sop histicated lab for all their research, developing and testing. o A reverse osmos is plant, one of the first few in textile industry, ensures clean environment. DESIGNING: o o Many of Gogo’s clients are fashion houses that set trends. To cater the need o f its buyers Gogo has a qualified design and development department. o Creativit y is given freedom. 9
1.3 NEED OF THE STUDY The export oriented Garment manufacturing company is facing a cut throat competi tion in today’s global business cluster. As there are many key players the busines s became very tough and competitive as only those who have some competitive adva ntage can only survive. On the other side merchandising is the backbone of any a pparel manufacturing and exporting companies, so the efficiency and effectivenes s of merchandising process is inevitable for the timely delivery of goods so as to impress the buyer and get more future orders, So the researcher tried to unde rstand the merchandising process of apparel manufacturing and exporting company and tried to find out the key internal issues, its causes and suggestions which can help the company to deliver the goods in time to the buyers end. The following are the key need of the study.
Execution and delivery of goods as per the merchandising plan always gives an ed ge for the company in current cut throat competition.
Delay in any of the process can adversely affect the further processes and it is observed that there are delays happening in the merchandising work process in G OGO INTERNATIONAL.
Further, the study gives focus on various internal causes, affects and suggestio ns to avoid delay in work process. 10
1.4 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY To analyze merchandising process in GOGO INTERNATIONAL. Identifying various inte rnal issues, weakness, and flaws in the current practices. Analyzing and finding out the ways of improvement of efficiency and effectiveness of merchandising pr ocess. 1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY The Indian garment industry is facing a fierce competition in global market, whe re price is order qualifier whereas transparency in system, excellent service, h igh quality goods and timely delivery are real winners. The export oriented Garm ent manufacturing company is facing many risks, which make delays in delivering the fashion merchandise from the concept stage to the store. The pre-production process networks are unique for every single enterprise, every single buyer, eve n sometimes for every single order whereas the input of one process will be the output the other process. So a proper analysis will make the delays and variatio ns caused by internal processes at both ends of the chain as well as the import/ export procedures in between, a benefit to the organization. 11
The following are the scope of the study. This study is an effort to reduce the delay in merchandising process in apparel manufacturing and exporting company. R easons for the problem are found out as per the analysis made on the T&A and the suggestions are made related to the findings. The study will help the organizat ion (Gogo international) to reduce the delay in merchandising process by identif ying and rectifying some of the causes of delay. 12
CHAPTER-2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY Research design: The relevant project brief on the practical understanding of “App arel manufacturing and export merchandising and its various processes”. Research d efines activities involved in each process and its responsible departmental func tioning. This was done by activity definition and time estimation. The observati ons and findings are done by tracking down recent and past orders (four orders h ave been taken for analysis, out of 30 observed). The research focuses more on t he ‘internal’ reasons for the issues which acts as a hurdle for the smooth functioni ng of merchandising process. Sources and method of data collection: • Primary data: Data is collected through observation and interview method. Visiting various dep artments and direct interaction with the merchandisers, planning manager, variou s department heads and stakeholders involve in the order execution process helpe d to collect various datas. 13
• Secondary data: Secondary data is collected by understanding the process and information flows, time and action calendar, past records and departmental reports of orders execut ed by the company and vendor profiles in detail of the company. • Sample size: Time and action calendar (T&A) prepared for various styles has been taken as sam ples for the study. Four samples (styles) were randomly taken from the total of 30 samples observed. • Collection of literature phase: Research is being initiated and frame worked after going through various library books, journals, company news and knowledge bases across internet. • Presentation and interpretation of data: The collected data have been classified and tabulated. Simple tables have been prepared. Graphical representations and investment ‘Payback period method’ have 14
been liberally used to exhibit the classified data to provide easy and better un derstanding of the study. 15
CHAPTER-3 LITERATURE REVIEW 3.1 MERCHANDISING In the textile business, merchandisers have a particularly strong role because o f the intensive nature of product range. The process of buying and selling goods and services are termed as merchandising. In other wards, the area of a company that develops strategies to have the right merchandise, at the right places, at the right time and at the right locations to meet the needs and wants of the ta rget customers. Effective merchandising saves time and money. It coordinates var ious departments in the organization. Merchandising forms an effective liaison w ith the buyers. It identifies and develops potential new buyers. It builds good relationship with the buying houses and merchandiser attends to queries, order p rocessing and evaluation of apparel products. So merchandising is of greater imp ortance in apparel industry. The term merchandising means simply to buy and sell commodities for a profit. Th e role of merchandising varies depending upon whether it is performed in retail or manufacturing context, Merchandising involves the conceptualization, developm ent, procurement of raw materials, sourcing of production and delivery of produc t to buyers. The merchandiser must combine logical and analytical thinking with initiative and expressive creativity. 16
As per the below figure the merchandiser must have the capability of utilizing t he integrated activity of right brain and left — brain functions to attain both an alytical and creative thought process. The merchandiser must be able to rigorous ly plan and control the functions involved in developing. Products, sourcing it and getting it to the customer on time. 3.1.1 “Myers” Theory on Merchandising. In other words, merchandiser must be able to involve in all company functions that result in creation, development, execution , and deliver of product line such as materials management, planning and control , market knowledge, product development, production authorization, interface wit h sales, sourcing and interface with manufacturing global textile industry, a me rchandiser must possess a rare blend of traits, skills and experience. A merchan diser must be a part designer, part engineer, part computer expert, part markete r, and part business management guru and part entrepreneurs. According to Theory on Merchandising Myer defines merchandising as ‘Careful planning, , capable styling and production or selecting and buying, and effective selling”. By 17
this definition, the primary mission of today’s merchandisers seems unchanged. The y continue to play an important role in the exchange process by providing produc ts for consumption. 3.2 WORK ACTIVITIES OF A MERCHANDISER WILL TYPICALLY INCLUDE: o Analyze the needs of the Buyer, Interpret and communicate them to the respecti ve departments and try to present the buyers with the materialist’s product which they need as well as deserve. o To ensure the quality in production and timely d elivery. The work of the merchandiser starts even before getting the order and e xtends even after the shipment happens so as to maintain post purchase service a nd relationship with the buyer. o Creating a TNA (Time and Action) calendar for fixing schedules for various activities like cutting, sewing, dispatch etc. o Th e merchandisers constantly have to keep track of the position of the order that is being processed in the factory. He/She is the one who is responsible and in t urn answerable to the Buyer for delivering the goods as specified and with in th e committed period of time. Therefore, he is a link in order to achieve maximum customer satisfaction. 18
o Basing upon the existing infrastructure, quality norms and capabilities of the p lant the merchandiser sources orders across the markets and submits a probable c osting sheet to the buyer. If the buyer finds the plant compatible with its comp liance with the costing being appropriate to the merchandise, the order is confi rmed. o Sometimes orders are confirmed after a few sample pieces are seen by the buyer. The sample pieces are sent and the comments, feed back is collected by the merch andiser and the necessary changes are conveyed to the concerned personnel. o Coordinates and tracks the sourcing activities and makes sure that all the raw m aterials are delivered on time. o Once the order is executed and the merchandise is dispatched, the merchandiser t akes care of the post shipment comments and tries to maintain a long term relati onship with the buyer. o accompanying buyers on visits to manufacturers to appreciate production processe s; o meeting with suppliers and managing the distribution of stock, possibly negotiat ing cost prices with suppliers; o Identifying production and supply difficulties and dealing with them as and when they occur. o Requisition of trims and fabrics from CPC, who approves of the quantity requeste d for. 19
o A pre production meeting is held in units one day after the package is sent to t he unit. The internal PPM is held only among factory members to discuss the styl e, trims, construction etc. if there are further clarifications, an external PPM is held with the Q.C, merchandiser, and buyer. 20
3.3 MERCHANDISING WORKFLOW Make contact with buyer Obtain order Do costing for that particular style Negotiation with buyer Order fabric and trims Receiving bulk fabrics and trims Send samples to production Supervising the order till shipment 21
3.4 MERCHANDISING PROCESS FLOW Development sample Send for approval to buyer Fit sample Send for approval to bu yer Pre production sample Send to buyer (order conformation) Marker development Fabric sourcing Preparation of Job file File forwarded to production merchandise r Order tracking (WIP till shipment) (If no) (If no, send for rectification) 3.5 GENERAL MERCHANDISING PROCESS: Merchandiser is a person who interacts with the buyer and the main job is to get the work done as per the requirement of the buyer and deliver the finished good s to the buyer’s destination on time. He interacts and coordinates various activit ies which are discussed in detail. 22
3.5.1 Order enquiry: This is the first stage in which the buyer will enquire with the merchant about the new order. 3.5.2 forwarding tech pack: When the order enquiry has been done then the buyer will sent a “tech pack” or specification sheet to the merchant. Tech pack includes all the details of a style and which includes the items as follows : o o o o o 3.5.3 product style design measurements fabric style code surface or namentation details etc Product development: Once the tech pack is received by t he merchant. He will arrange the tech pack details in a format by dividing vario us styles and its details. Then, he will advice the junior merchandiser about th e style and its details so that the junior can assist the sample coordinators an d gets the development samples ready from the sampling department. 3.5.4 Approva l of development samples: Once the development samples are ready, 2-3 samples ar e sent to the buyer for approval. In the development sample the main objective i s to understand how the garment style looks with the specific details. So here s amples are made with the available fabric in store with closely resembles the ex act requirement. In 23
development sample surface ornamentations and fit is followed as per the tech pa ck. if some correction is to be done then the buyer will sent the correction det ails and again the samples are made till it get approved. 3.5.5 Costing: Once th e development is made and approval is received from the buyer, then the costing is done. It is done by calculating various costs incurred to make a garment styl e. it consist of various factors like: o o o o o o o 3.5.6 fabric cost trims and accessories cost CMT Washing or finishing cost Bank charges Buffer value Miscel laneous costs like rejection cost, wastage etc. order placement: Once costing is done and the same is accepted by the buyer then the buyer will place the order with the required order quantity and other main details to the merchant 3.5.7 Fa bric and trims ordering: Once the order placement is made by the buyer with the required quantity then the merchandiser will place the order for required fabric as per the color, GSM, weave etc which is required in the style. The merchant w ill forward the 24
requirement sheet to the purchase department they place orders with the supplier s. 3.5.8 Lab dip: By this time merchant will sent the lab dips to buyer. This in cludes many shades of the color which the buyer is asked to make the garment. So the same has to be approved by the buyer to finalize the color. 3.5.9 Fit sampl e: After approval of development sample from buyer, fit sample is made. The samp le is usually made of the medium size to check the fit. All measurements are che cked correctly as per the specs. The buyer returns Fit approvals sheet which con tains all the actual measurements and required measurements and how much deviati on has occurred for the purpose of correction. This sample is made from original or if that’s not available, then in proxy fabric. 3 pieces are made, all of which are sent to the buyer and sent back to merchandiser after approval. Once this i s approved the order is confirmed. 3.5.10 pre-production samples: Once the fit s amples are approved then the pre production samples or the red seal samples are made. PP sample will have all the specific details of the style with the exact f abric, color, trims, surface, ornamentations etc. so this is a main step where t he sample has to look exactly as per the buyer’s requirement. Around 2-3 samples ( in 4 sizes each) are sent to buyer for the approval and buyer can advice the cor rections if required 25
3.5.11 size set samples: From this stage onwards, samples are made in respective units. Size set samples are made for the purpose of checking the different size s of the same style in terms of fit, measurements, styling etc. It is also made to check whether the assigned unit is able to produce that style as per the spec s. 3 sets are made for all sizes. It is done in original fabric. 3.5.13 WORKFLOW OF SAMPLING BUYER’S SAMPLE / INFORMATION REQUISITION PREPARED BY MERCHANDISER SAMPLING DEPARTMENT DEVELOPMENT SAMPLE BUYER COMMENTS FIT SAMPLE SIZE SET SAMPLES PRE PRODUCTION SAMPLES 26
3.5.1 Pre-production meeting (PPM):
Once all the samples are approved and all raw materials are ready in the store t he bulk production has to be started. Before that merchants will conduct a pre p roduction meeting with the production manager and other department heads to plan the process, so that delay can be avoided. Here the merchants will discuss with the production heads on how the production can be scheduled and done within the required time. So this meeting is important and inevitable. 3.5.14 Forwarding o f production file to production planning and control: Production file is a docum ent which includes all the details of a particular style. This document is prepa red by the merchants. Production file is forwarded to CPC once the PP sample is approved, along with the file merchants will forward the approved PP sample also . Finally the same is forwarded to PPC after checking the file by the CPC. Some of the details in the production file include the following items: • • • • • • measurements export order sheet color details style description packing type print/embroidery instructions 27
• material requirement sheet (category,item,position,color,size,consumption,unit i n kgs,qty,total qty) • • • • • job details for lectra and fabric order marker plan TNA order sheet 2D style dia gram and trims Packing information 3.5.15 Checking the availability of fabrics and trims: Once the file is received by the PPC, they will check and study each and everything of the file and paral lel they will check the availability status of the fabric and trims in the store and they will follow up the same if it’s not yet reached in house. 3.5.16 Checkin g the surface ornamentation of the particular style: Surface ornamentation may i nclude embroidery, printing or appliqué and these are done as per the buyer’s requir ement so PPC will check the ornamentation details and plans according to that an d parallel arrange all the required things for the same. 28
3.5.17 Checking the status of stitching materials in-house: Stitching materials are those which is used for sewing like threads and accessories which assist pro duction so parallel they will do the arrangement for the stitching materials inhouse. 3.5.18 Checking the patterns with master: Production file includes all th e details about the patterns and merchants will forward the original patterns al ong with the production file to the PPC. Once they receive the patterns they wil l forward the patterns to the pattern master and master will cross check the pat tern with the actual and confirms. 3.5.19 Grading and final cross check: Once ev erything is checked and confirmed by the master then, the pattern is forwarded t o the CAD department for GRADING. Grading is a process of making different sizes from a basic size. When the file is forwarded to PPC only one centre pattern wi ll be provided and grading is done for other sizes. Finally the graded pattern w ill be cross checked and confirmed with the master. 3.5.20 Laying and cutting: L aying is a process in which huge lot of fabric lots are laid flat in several pli es as per the marker plan’s length. Laying is done carefully without any wrinkles happening. Once laying is done the patterns are laid on it as per the marker pla n and the main concern is to minimize wastage. The patterns are marked and the p lies are cut. Band knife and Straight 29
knife cutting machines are used to cut the plies. Once the plies are cut, it is separated and tied as bundles. 3.5.21 Garment wash: The next process is to wash the cut pieces. The bundled pieces goes for specific washes as per the buyers re quirement. 3.5.22 Bit printing/appliqué/embroidery: When the garment wash is finis hed then the bundles will be sent for printing/appliqué/embroidery if the style de mands. Surface ornamentation is done on cut pieces rather than in full garment t his is because it reduces the risk of spoiling the whole garment if some defects occurred during printing or so, if defect happens in cut pieces that can be rep laced and less fabric wastage happens. 3.5.23 Loading in line: When surface orna mentation is done on cut pieces then, the whole bundles moves to the sewing line s as per the plan. Here bundles are loaded to each worker as per his work and th e sewing process moves from one end to other end where the whole garment is stit ched. One worker does the same job always say, if a worker‘s job is to stitch a co llar with collar bone then he does the same always when he receives the material s moves from his co-worker after he completes his part. Like this sewing happens in a chain format. 30
3.5.24 Finishing: Once the whole garment is stitched and collected in the end of the line then the same will be forwarded to the finishing section where, worker s will do the finishing of the garment like • • Checking: here the whole garment is checked. Trimming: trimming is the process in which all the protruding threads a re cut and gives a good appearance to the garment • • Ironing: in this process steam iron is given on the garment to avoid wrinkles. Packing: it is the process in w hich the garment is folded and packed in the polythene covers. 3.5.25 Dispatch: Dispatch is the end process in which the garments are packed in the cartons and shipped. There are so many procedures and documents which have to be checked and processed when the goods are moved out of the factory. 31
3.6 QUALITY CHECKING IN VARIOUS STAGES OF PRODUCTION: 3.7 SOME IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS WHICH THE MERCHANDISER IS REQUIRED TO DRAFT ARE: • Production Order: There is a P.O for ever single style of every buyer. The Produ ction Order is a form that communicates all the details required by the Production Planning dep artment in order to generate a loading plan. The merchandising department issues a PO for every fabric that is to be processed. - It contains style number, styl e description, order quantity, sizes, quantity for each size, fabric consumption , interlining details, trims description, packing instructions, label specs etc. 32
• Bill of Materials (BOM) From the production order, the quantity of fabric and trims is calculated for a single unit, and this is multiplied into the number of shirts being produced in the style. These quantities are issued as a Bill of Materials for various trims such as buttons, threads, collarbones and cuff links. BOMs are also produced for packing materials and wash care labels. These are issued to the trims store. Ac cordingly the store issues the required amount of trims. Each BOM is identified by its issue number and date. A copy of these above details is maintained by the accounts department for the purpose of costing. • Tech Pack: This is the file which is considered the most important during the execution of an order. It contains all the relevant technical information regarding the style fabric process, tolerances, interlining details, the setting of various machine s for the style processing. - There are information regarding all departments i. e. for cutting, documents like marker planning, consumption etc; for sewing, con struction details, measurements, etc. -Even comments from buyers during sourcing and sampling stage are recorded to clarify any doubts and mistakes. -This tech pack along with the PO file is transferred to all the sections while the style i s passed on from section to section. 33
• Order status report: This is a report in which all the styles and its various ac tivities are updated in an excel sheet. This is maintained by the senior merchants so that he can eas ily track the current status of a particular style. The status information is gi ven by the merchants and it is updated once in a week. 3.8 CENTRAL MERCHANDISING PLANNING AND CONTROL (CPC): Central planning and control is a planning cell where the pre production and pro duction activities related to each and every order is analyzed and planned to ma ke sure that the activities are executed as per the planned date so as to finish the whole work within the lead time and shipments done on the buyer specified d ate. Planning is done by looking into the practicality of executing the process by being aware of the current issues and challenges faced by the company. 3.8.1 TIME AND ACTION PLAN Time and action (T&A) plan is an inevitable part of CPC. Time and action calenda r is a planned calendar which includes: • • Major key activities Planned dates for e xecuting each activities 34
• • Actual date of each activity being executed Remarks There is a usual format maintained for T&A using spreadsheet. Once when an order is placed then the merchandiser will forward the tech pack to the CPC and on th at basis the T&A is prepared by the CPC and the same will be sent back to the me rchandiser, which includes on which date the particular activity should be start ed and ended so as to make the goods ready for shipment on ex-factory date. Most of the time there happens many reworking and negotiations done on T&A betwe en the CPC and merchandisers due to many delays and uncertain things happening o n the way of execution of orders. 3.8.1.1 TIME AND ACTION CALENDER FORMAT KEY ACTIVITIES Job # Merchandiser Buyer 35
Quantity Allocation Lectra and ERP entry Lab Dip Approval (sent to buyer) Lab Di p Approval (receive from buyer) Yarn in-house Griege fabric in house date Finish Fabric in-house Bulk fabric approval (sent to buyer) Bulk fabric approval (rece ive from buyer) Further process fabric Dying Print/Embroidery. strike off (sent to buyer) Print/Embroidery. strike off (received from buyer) Fit sample approval (sent to buyer) Fit sample approval (receive from buyer) PP sample submission P P sample approval to receive Size set sample approval (sent to buyer) Size set s ample approval (receive from buyer) 36
Stitching accessories in-house Packing accessories in-house Cutting start date W ashing start date Bit print start date Bit Embroidery start date Stitching start date Garment wash start date Washing end date Bit print end date Bit Embroidery end date Stitching end date Garment wash end date Final inspection Ex-factory D elivery date The insistence on shorter lead times and pressure on the margins of export and o ther units has grown over time, along with the need to stick to delivery schedul es strictly and to improve quality to grow in an exceedingly competitive market. 37
Despite all the possible roadblocks, the fact remains that timely deliveries and short leads times are on the top of the buyers’ agendas. The competitive scenario is changing extremely rapidly. Companies must be prepared to make the radical c hange of planning and managing their processes on software-aided tools, or be pr epared to be left behind in the race. The current method used in the company is T&A (time and action) which captures t he two main concerns of buyers, merchandisers in buying offices and manufacturer s: “Are we on time? (The frequent answer is, "Mostly not!") “Are all the action step s happening the way they should? (Again, "Mostly not!") It is also a common practice to prepare two TNAs; one with a few main important activities that were suggested by the buyer, while the other one with more numbe r of in-between activities (to keep tab on in-house activities in micro details) and pre-poned target dates (buffer time) For example, TNA suggested by buyer ma y have only 4 target dates, i.e. fit sample approval date, size set approval dat e, lab dip approval date and planned cut date (PCD). While a TNA created by a ma nufacturing organization (for same order) may have target dates for total 15-20 activities: like pattern approval, grading approval, dispatch dates for all appr ovals, loading for bulk dyeing, receipt of fabric and accessories, etc. 38
The fashion industry s processes, indeed any multi-step process, can be broken d own like this and re-built into a time-and-action calendar, that tells you how l ong your process is expected to take, and when you should be completing each ste p so that you complete the entire process in time. In simple terms a "time and action calendar" is something that captures several work-steps, the deadlines for completing those work-steps and also capture, as m uch as feasible, the time when the work-steps have actually been completed. Typi cally, for easy reference, the steps would have been mentioned in the sequence t hat they are supposed to start, or in the sequence in which they are expected to be completed. In brief, there are three main problems with this simplistic notion of T&A calen dars Problem # 1 – Delays Unexpected delays in the existing activities, or additio n of new work steps due to some problem occurring in the chain. Discovering it t oo late that stocks of the lace that was supposed to go into the peasant blouse are not enough and we need to wait a week before the balance quantity becomes av ailable. Or the rib fabric needed urgently for the Navy Blue T-shirt is availabl e, but only in light shades which will need to be re-dyed and we lose two weeks. Delay happens but the customers now have become more impatient and less toleran t. By putting in place a clear time and action calendar, we should be able 39
to know when each activity is supposed to be begun and ended, and delays should be handled easily. FACT: most factories miss the first agreed target shipment da te on 50-80% of their orders, and many end up with 30-40% late shipments despite extension of delivery dates. Problem #2-- Delays and Solutions are not Straightforward The second problem tha t adds a layer of complexity is that very often the "cause-and-effect" relations hip between a delay in one activity and the total delay.As explained in the prev ious section about critical path, this is the sequence which determines the tota l lead time of the process. The same delay in different activities does not have the same impact on the end-result. There is an impact on the end-result only wh en the delays happen in an activity that is on the critical path.This fact is no t accounted for in T&A calanders, this is why, when having lost a week in one of the early activities in an order and the order is running late after trying and speeding up a later activity doesn t seem to work! That is because, while the d elayed activity is on the critical path, the work-step that one is trying to spe ed up is not on the critical path. Hence your corrective action produces no resu lt. Problem # 3 - Many Hands Dependency between the activities already exists - some activities cannot be started unless an earlier activity is completed. Take for example the instance of a print 40
strike-off approval. A factory will not place the confirmed order for the bulk f abric, unless the strike-off has been approved. Or, looking earlier, the buyer c annot approve the strike-off, unless it has been sent to him by the factory or t he mill. Delegation or working in a team / organization also creates dependency on other people. This interdependence and mutual responsibility is something tha t is almost entirely missed out when one is dealing with a table of task names a nd dates in an Excel spreadsheet. Ignoring the interdependence, in turn, creates more problems. Problem # 4 paradox of plenty A typical apparel order broken down properly has m any more work-steps. These could be 35-40 at the very least, up to 150 in some c ases. Most people using Excel spreadsheets for T&A calendars list 15-25 critical points, including the various major approvals, fabric receipt, cutting, finishi ng, packing, etc. However, this obviously provides only a limited amount of visi bility into what is actually going on in the order. Following is a network diagr am, consisting of only 26 tasks. The tasks have been laid out in the logical con nected sequence, based on the dependency between them. Looks complex, doesn t it ? And yet, each merchandiser in a manufacturing organization is expected to hand le 8-15 orders simultaneously. We might have an average of 50 work steps if all orders are properly analyzed and the process defined. That means 400-750 work-st eps need to be monitored by the merchandiser at any point in time. 41
3.8.1.2 NETWORK DIAGRAM FOR A 26 STEP ORDER PLAN Not just that, apart from some of the activities that are the merchandiser s dir ect responsibility, most other activities are performed by other people within t he same company, or people in other companies. For example, in this 26-step exam ple shown above what has not been highlighted is the fact that these 26 steps re quire coordination between 5 companies and 9-12 individual people across those c ompanies. This, then, is the paradox of plenty: o The better you are able to def ine the process and break-down the order plan, the more the number of work-steps that you end up monitoring. o The greater the number of orders, the more the wo rk-steps that need to be followed-through. 42
o The more you actually work as a team, rather than in an individual capacity, the more the number of interactions that need to be managed and followed-through, a nd the higher the dependency on others to complete their activities on or before time. 3.8.1.3 METHODS FOLLOWED FOR MANAGING T&A Some people manually calculate the likely timelines and note down the key dates in their notebooks or diaries. Sometimes, unwittingly resources tend to migrate between several projects and hence to a “multi-tasking” in response to the customer demand in an attempt to keep as many customers satisfied as possible. Keeping tr ack on the phone, through faxes and emails, and tick off things as they happen o r make notes of the new likely dates if there are delays. All the time, they are mentally figuring out what the impact of the delay is going to be. Others use a hand-made chart that they might stick up on the wall. This may have arrow diagr ams similar to what we used above, or other forms of notation to pinpoint planne d starting and ending dates of activities. Naturally, these charts get scribbled over, or redone, when things do not go to plan. Most of the "computer-savvy" pe ople use Excel spreadsheets in which they note down the planned dates and actual completion dates of a limited number of worksteps in the order. 43
CHAPTER-4 ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATIONS In this study the analysis is based on: • • • Time and action calendar (central planni ng and control) Major delays happening in time and action plan (Delay analysis) SWOT analysis on sampling department, which focuses more on: 1. Line balancing 2 . Structure on sampling department 3. Productivity in the area of pattern making 4. Reference with TUKA CAD 4.1 TIME AND ACTION CALENDER AND DELAY ANALYSIS: Time and action calendar is prepared by the central planning and controlling dep artment. The T&A calendar acts or guides the merchandiser to plan his schedules and work as per the date given for each and every activity in the T&A. T&A is pr epared for each and every order. When an order is received by merchandiser from the buyer then he 44
will forward a copy of tech pack to the planning cell. In turn the planning cell will prepare the T&A by practically thinking on all the internal and external p roblems and delays which may occur during the execution of that particular order . Here analysis is done with the help of 4 orders and the focus is given on that a ctivity where more deviation has happened. 4.1.1 T&A CHART P*: planned date, A*: actual date TIME AND ACTION CALENDER KEY A CTIVITIES Lab Dip Approval (sent to buyer) Lab Dip Approval (receive from buyer) Yarn in-house Griege fabric in house date Finish Fabric inhouse Bulk fabric ORDER 1 ORDER 2 ORDER 3 OREDR 4 P* A* P* A* P* A* P* A* 2-12 5-12 2-12 3-12 2-12 2-12 2-12 2-12 12-12 2-12 12-12 22-12 16-12 12-12 2-12 12-12 22-12 10-12
12-12 2-12 12-12 22-12 13-12 12-12 2-12 12-12 22-12 14-12 45
approval (sent to buyer) Bulk fabric approval (receive from buyer) Further proce ss fabric Print/Embroider y. strike off (sent to buyer) NA NA Print/Embroider y. strike off (received from buyer) NA NA Fit sample approval (sent to buyer) 10-1 2 18-12 Fit sample approval (receive from buyer) 17-12 25-12 PP sample submissio n 28-12 7-1 PP sample approval to receive 4-1 15-1 Size set sample approval (sen t to buyer) 7-1 25-1 Size set sample approval (receive from buyer) 10-1 30-1 Sti tching accessories inhouse 12-1 15-1 Packing accessories in8-1 16-1 3-12 3-12 3-12 3-12 NA NA 6-12 7-12 6-12 5-12 NA NA 10-12 14-12 10-12 13-12 10-12 14-12 17-12 28-12 20-12 31-12 17-12 28-12 22-12 30-12 17-12 28-12 24-12 5-1 4-1 7-1 4-1 8-1
4-1 13-1 7-1 11-1 7-1 11-1 7-1 16-1 10-1 15-1 10-1 15-1 10-1 20-1 12-1 8-1 12-1 8-1 12-1 8-1 12-1 10-1 12-1 8-1 12-1 9-1 46
house Cutting start date Washing start date Bit print start date Bit Embroidery start date Stitching start date Garment wash start date Washing end date Bit pri nt end date Bit Embroidery end date Stitching end date Garment wash end date Fin al inspection Ex-factory Delivery date 11-1 15-1 NA NA 17-1 1-2 5-2 NA NA 8-2 11 -1 15-1 NA NA 17-1 16-1 21-1 NA NA 24-1 11-1 15-1 12-1 12-1 17-1 16-1 22-1 11-1 15-1 21-1 25-1 NA NA 27-1 16-1 NA 16-1 NA 22-1 17-1 3-2 22-2 3-2 9-2 3-2 15-1 15-1 7-2 3-2 8-2 NA NA 18-2 20-1 NA 20-1 NA 14-2 7-2 7-2 28-2 7-2 14-2 7-2 11-2 14-2 28-2 1-3 3-3 10-3 11-2 14-2 28-2 15-2 17-2 1-3 11-2 14-2 28-2 15-2 17-2 1-3 11-2 14-2 28-2 20-2 22-2 3-3 47
4.1.1.1 GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF T&A INTERPRETAION: As per the above graph we can understand that there is a lot of deviation happen ed in planned and actual dates in time and action plan. If we divide the key act ivities in the graph into two sections i.e. pre-production activities and produc tion activities then we can categorize them into two sections, they are: Pre- production activities and delays fit sample (23 days) PP sample (27 days) Production activities and delays cutting start date (40 days) stitching start da te (43 days) 48
size set sample (40 days) stitching end date (36 days) final inspection (38 days) ex-factory date (31 days ) If we notice, more delay has happened in production activities but the number of days it has taken is just normal. So the production activities are delayed due to the delay in pre- production activities i.e., sampling delay. So the delays c an be controlled only when the company focuses more on the reasons of samples ge tting delayed with suitable preventive measures. 4.2 ANALYSIS ON SAMPLING DEPARTMENT 4.2.1 Basic details of sampling department: • • • Number of lines: 20 lines Number of machines: 120 machines (6 machines per line) Number of pattern masters : 10 4.2.2 Various sections in sampling department: • • • • Store Pattern making CAD Cutting and sewing 49
• Ironing
4.2.3 Sampling department structure: • • • • • • sampling manager pattern masters sample co rdinators line supervisors’ workers Represent all in line diagram with flow of aut hority.
4.2.4 Various documents maintained: • • • • • • Monthly sample production report Daily samp e production register Sample fabric stock register Daily measurement report Dail y pattern checking report Daily manpower report 50
4.3 ANALYSIS ON SAMPLING LINE BALANCING: There are 20 lines having 6 machines each. The productions of samples are done i n such a way that each line is allocated with few buyers and that particular lin e will produce samples only for its concerned buyers. The line supervisors make sure that the samples are loaded as per the plan and the workers are performing it well. The following are the details of line allocation and its production for the month of July 2010: 4.3.1 MONTHLY SAMPLING PRODUCTION CHART – JULY’10 BUYERS LINE A,B,C LINE D,E,F C&A VETIR COOP MGB LTB TKO GRUPPU COIN 801 LINE G,H,I M.CARE LEVIS LINE J,K,L M&S GAP PEOTTIC GEM CARRIFOUR DESIGOUL EVANS LINE M,N,O MEXX ERICA GUESS G.JONNY DESIGNER MR NOAH LINE P,Q,R OTHER PRODN 1 NAME IT 2 ONLY 3 MAMALICIOUS 4 5 6 7 TOTAL 2154 DEBHAMS R.CLUB 1826 835 448 51
4.3.2 GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF MONTHLY SAMPLING PRODUCTION INTERPRETATION: 4.3.3 The Main Reasons for the Variation in the Graph The sampling department in cludes 20 lines and 120 machines i.e., 6 machines per line. The Graph shows how much pieces a line produced for a month. When we observe 52
there is a huge variation happening from one line to another. It shows that some lines are loaded with more work and some are not. This deep variation in graph shows ineffective planning of allocating work to various lines. Here 3 line are combined and made into one group (like line A,B,C combined into one and D,E,F ma de into another) and it is distributed to few buyers ( find the table 4.3.1 ). S o each line gives more priority to do the work of their buyers first. Even thoug h they load some other line’s work when they have less work but this is not happen ing in an effective way. If so, the graph will show a balanced line. This may be due to various reasons like: • The pressure from the merchants as they are concer ned more on their work so they resist allocating other buyers work load to their line. • There is a usual question comes into every line supervisors’ mind when they take some other line’s work “ we will get loaded fully when we receive new orders f rom our buyers shortly, then everything will become a mess” So there are two main reasons for the ineffective allocation of work to various lines, they are: 4.3.3.1 Improper planning: One of the other major reason is the lack of continuo us and practical planning regarding the allocation of work to various lines as p er the orders. Effectiveness of planning is the by product of a graph showing li nearity, i.e.; less variation in the graph. But graph 4.3.2 shows a huge variati on happening so it supports the statement. 53
4.3.3.2 Improper control and monitoring leading to resistance to change: One of the major reasons for the ineffectiveness in the line allocation is the improper control and lack of monitoring. This leads to “resistance to change”, the employees are not ready to accept change and they don’t want to make changes in their day t o day work process by taking unnecessary workloads from other lines. This is bec ause they are not properly controlled and monitored by the top authority and thi s can be rectified only if subordinates are answerable to the top authority for the work done. 4.4 ANALYSIS ON THE STRUCTURE OF SAMPLING DEPARTMENT 4.4.1 Structure of sampling department includes: • • • • • Sampling manager Pattern master s Sample coordinators Line supervisors’ Workers Sampling manager leads the sampling team and rest of the people executes the wor k. The flow of information or communication is through the following ways: • • Regis ter reports (Daily, weekly and monthly) Telephones and direct conversation 54
4.4.2 CURRENT SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STUCTURE SAMPLE MANAGER MERCHANDISER SAMPLE COORDINATORS PATTERN MASTERS LINE SUPERVICORS WORKERS INTERPRETATION: • Sampling manager: He is person who leads the sampling team. All the reports rega rding production and quality and other reports and issues related to sampling 55
has to go to him. He is the person who has to address the top management regardi ng his department’s efficiency, effectiveness etc and held responsible for very ma ny issues regarding sampling department. • Merchandisers: Merchandisers involves i n the sampling process as their work schedules are affected and done in sampling department. They make sure their samples are getting done on time and whether a ll the required materials are there on time in the store for the work process. • P attern masters: Their main work is to get the specification sheets from the merc handising department and get the pattern work done for various styles and for th e buyer he is allocated for. • Sample coordinators: Sample coordinators acts as th e intermediaries between the merchandiser and the sampling department. They are the assistants to merchandisers and they get the details of a particular order a nd guide pattern masters and other workers in the sampling department and get th e work done for the merchandisers. • Line supervisors: line supervisors are alloca ted with few lines and he guides the workers to work. They get the work details and techniques from the sample coordinators or merchants or even from pattern ma sters. • Workers: They are the tailors who stitch the garment under the guidance o f line supervisors. 56
The last figure shows the current structure of sampling department. Here the sam pling manager leads the team but merchandisers can also use their authority on v arious people in the sampling department to get their work done. They personally come to sampling unit and interact with the workers, pattern masters and so on. On the other side pattern masters also controls and guides the work by communica ting with line supervisors, sample coordinators and even with merchandisers. 4.4.3 DISADVANTAGES OF THE CURRENT STRUCTURE: 1. Very complex structure 2. Lack of unity of command 3. Purposefully moving awa y from responsibility 4. Wastage of time 5. Improper channels of communication 6. Confusion 57
4.5 ANALYSIS ON THE EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITY OF PATTERN MASTERS 4.5.1 Basic details about pattern making: • Number of pattern masters: 10 There are 10 pattern masters and the total buyers are divided and allocated amon g the 10 pattern masters. They get the style details from sample coordinators an d through the guidance of merchandisers and even sample coordinators the pattern s are made. Everything is manual and least application of CAD is done. • Salary range: 35000-40000rs The pattern masters are paid in between 35000-40000 and its comparatively good a s per the work load they are in to. • Number of patterns made per day: 5-7 patterns As per the observation done for 2 months it is analyzed that around 5-7 pattern styles are made by a pattern master per day after excluding all the break time, errors, re-work, communication delay etc. 58
4.6 ANALYSIS ON THE APPLICATION OF CAD SOFTWARE IN PATTERN MAKING: TUKATECH CAD, USA 4.6.1 TUKATECH CAD Tukatech provides affordable fashion design and apparel produ ct development solutions to the worldwide apparel and sewn goods industry. Tukat ech quickly achieved world recognition with an innovative approach to streamlini ng the fashion design, development and manufacturing processes through award win ning fashion software, patternmaking and virtual sample services, consulting, an d customer support. Their product mix begins with an innovative apparel CAD/CAM software technology for pattern making, pattern grading, and marker making, and extends to patented soft body dress forms, 3D virtual apparel prototyping softwa re, product lifecycle management, product data management, and hardware solution s. They are the first and leading elopment outsourcing (APDO) as pertise and leading technology associated apparel development
company in the world to offer apparel product dev a service to the industry. They leverage their ex to streamline pattern making, sample making, and processes for apparel companies worldwide.
4.6.2 Productivity: • • Number of patterns made per day by the manual pattern master s: 5-7 patterns Tuka claims : 15 patterns per day ( almost 3 times than manual) 59
4.6.3 Cad Implementation Cost table SL.NO FEATURES 2 Plotter 3 Digitizer PRICE 258500 ONWARDS 70500 ONWARDS 1 Basic requirements (pattern making, grading & marker making 150000 ONWARDS INTERPRETATION: As per the productivity analysis of manual pattern making we can conclude that o nly about 5-7 patterns can be made per day by a pattern master. On the other end CAD can make around 15 patterns if the operator is efficient enough. As per the analysis it is found out that each pattern master is earning a salary of 40000 rupees. So it’s always a question whether the output is sufficient enough or not i f we compare with the cost aspect. 60
CHAPTER-5 FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS The findings are made on the basis of analysis done on T&A, structure of samplin g department, productivity and cost factor of pattern making. Time and action is the main analysis which helps to find out what is the main reason for total del ay in the planned T&A. from the T&A it is found out that the SAMPLING DELAY is t he main reason for the further delay in production and late delivery of goods. D ue to the reason for sampling delay more analysis and observation has been done on SAMPLING DEPARTMANT and found out many problems and reasons for the delay. Why the sampling delay happens……………..??? From the analysis one can come to a point that there is a lot of reconstruction required in the sampling department and sampling work method. There may be lot o f reasons and hidden causes for the samples getting delayed. But the root cause can be found out only by a detailed study of sampling department work process. T he following are the findings to support the analysis and the main problem. Samp ling is a crucial process in which more focus must be given. Buyer may get disap pointed when the samples are frequently coming up with lot of errors and re work . 61
5.1 FINDINGS ON SWOT ANALYSIS OF SAMPLING DEPARTMENT 5.1.1 NEGATIVE POINTS: • • • • • • • • • • • Idle machines Idle workers Lack of monitoring Negative attitude of workers Lack of flexibility Domination of pattern masters More work is wasted due to errors o n patterns and re-working on the same Misplacement of patterns made for past ord ers More depended on pattern masters and less application of CAD Wastage More co nfusion in the work end 5.1.2 POSSITIVE POINTS: • • • Good capacity Sufficient workers and employees Experienced pattern masters Good plant layout • 62
5.1.3 MAJOR KEY PROBLEMS 1. “Sampling delay” 2. “Less productivity compared to sufficient capacity” 5.1.4 CAUSES: 1. .Lack of good, well defined and flexible structure of sampling department 2. Lack of unity of command 3. Lack of control and monitoring 4. Improper line allo cation planning 5. Resistance to change 5.1.5 SOLUTION FOR LONG TERM POINT OF VIEW 1. Re-structuring the sampling department and making it as a separate planning c ell. 2. Line allocation must be done by dividing the whole quantity and by distr ibuting to various lines as per the plan. 3. Introducing cad by replacing manual work. 63
5.2 SUGGESTIONS 5.2.1 RE-STRUCTURING THE SAMPLING DEPARTMENT AND MAKING IT AS A SEPARATE PLANNIN G CELL. Every organizational or departmental structure should be designed in such a way that it should posses the following qualities: • • It must be flexible There must un ity of command i.e., there should be only one commanding head (boss) for one or more subordinates. • • Proper channels of communication by avoiding intermediaries t o the maximum. Clear defining of authority and responsibility But, it is clear from the analysis of structure of sampling department that it l acks the required qualities, so there is an urgent need for the re-structuring o f the sampling department. 64
5.2.1.1 SUGGESTED SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STRUCTURE (SAPMLING PLANNING CELL) MERCHANDISER STORE MANAGER PLANNING SAMPLING MANAGER COORDINATORS PATTERN MASTER LINE SUPERVICORS WORKERS The process goes like this............ Once the merchandiser receives the order he has to book for the fabric, trims etc which is required for that particular s tyle. Parallel he can forward the spec sheet to the sampling manager and can bri ef him the details. Once the fabric and all other required 65
things are ready in the store, merchandiser has to get the signature from the st ore manager showing that all the required materials and accessories are ready in the store for the particular style. The signed document is forwarded to the sam pling manager and the sampling manager advices his assistants (coordinator) and pattern master about the style. Sampling manager parallely plans how the line al location has to be made, here the lines are not allocated for particular buyers and all the lines are combined and made flexible to load any style at any time a s per the plan. The merchandiser only communicate with the sampling manager and he is not suppose to influence and use his power to change the workings of any s ections in the unit for getting his work done early. He can communicate with the pattern masters if the situation demands or for any contingent situation. Here there is more control than the current structure. ADVANTAGES: 1. Less complexity 2. Unity of command 3. Full control in the hands of sampling manager 4. Better planning and controlling can be done 5. It reduces the idle ma chines and workers due to better planning 6. Effectiveness in communication 7. L ess confusion 8. Merchandiser can give more focus on other crucial activities as the sampling manager can control the whole unit 66
5.3 LINE ALLOCATION MUST BE DONE BY DIVIDING THE WHOLE QUANTITY AND BY DISTRIBUT ING TO VARIOUS LINES AS PER THE PLAN. Currently each line is allocated with few buyers and each line will be loaded as per the requirement of its allocated buyers. The main problem in this line allo cation plan is that some time few buyers will have lot of orders and few will be having less, so this in turn will load some line with more work and few with le ss work. This is the main reason for some machines and manpower sitting idle wit hout work. So sampling department must be made as a separate planning cell and l ine balancing must be done flexible. 5.3.1 MONTHNLY SAMPLING PRODUCTION-JULY’10 This variation in graph or the problem of some lines getting more work and few a re idle can be sort out by distributing the total work quantity equally to vario us lines and planning must be done centrally. If all the lines are allocated wit h somewhat equal quantity of work then, the problem of idle machines and workers can be sorted out. 67
ADVANTAGES 1. Idle machines can be utilized by equal distribution of work. 2. Idle workers will be reduced due to the above reason 3. Better planning 4. More output with l ess errors 5. Less delay 6. Maximum utilization of available recourses 5.4 INTRODUCING CAD BY REPLACING MANUAL WORK. 5.4.1 Basic information about manual pattern making as per the analysis: • • Number of pattern masters:10 Salary range: 35000-40000rs 5.4.2 Productivity: • Number of patterns made per day manually: 5-7 patterns As per the observation it is found out that a pattern master can make 5-7 pattern styles per day. 68
• Tuka claims : 15 patterns per day On the other hand TUKA claims that their produ ctivity is around 15 patterns per day, it’s almost 3 times more than manual patter n making. 5.4.3 CAD IMPLEMENTATION COST TABLE SL.NO FEATURES BASIC REQUIREMENTS (PATTERN 1 MAKING,GRADING & MARKER MAKING 2 PL OTTER 3 DIGITIZER PRICE 150000 ONWARDS 258500 ONWARDS 70500 ONWARDS 5.4.4 PAY BACK PERIOD AS PER THE ABOVE DATAS: Payback period is that period in which the initial investment is collected back by the project. Here we take the initial investment as 1, 50,000 rupees as the a mount because only basic requirement like pattern making, grading and marker mak ing is required. The cash collected back in frequent intervals are based on repl acing the man power (pattern masters) by introducing CAD. The salary of the CAD operator is not taken into consideration. 69
The following are the possibilities to collect back the invested amount. Replacing 1 pattern masters MONTHS 1 2 3 4 CASH SAVINGS 40000 40000 40000 40000 CUMULATIVE CASH SAVINGS 40000 80000 120000 160000 Replacing 2 pattern masters MONTHS 1 2 3 4 CASH SAVINGS 80000 80000 80000 80000 CUMULATIVE CASH SAVINGS 80000 160000 240000 320000 Replacing 3 pattern masters MONTHS 1 2 3 4 CASH SAVINGS 120000 120000 120000 120 000 CUMULATIVE CASH SAVINGS 120000 240000 360000 480000 70
5.4.4.1 PAYBACK PERIOD AS PER THE ABOVE POSSIBILITIES POSSIBILITY 1 2 3 PAYBACK PERIOD 3 MONTHS AND 22 DAYS 1 MONTH 26 DAYS 1 MONTH 7 DAYS ADVANTAGES: 1. Reduces cost (reduce cardboard sheet, chalk, markers, cello tapes etc) 2. Eas y to alter patterns and easy access if further reference required 3. Saves time and reduce errors 4. Number of pattern masters can be reduced 5. By reducing the pattern masters, monthly salary (35000-40000rs) can be saved 6. Due to the abov e ,the saved money can be compensated for the implementation cost of cad, thereb y reducing the payback period 7. It can increase the output per day 71
CHAPTER-6 CONCLUSION The study helped to understand the merchandising process and some of the crucial areas of merchandising which can affect the smooth functioning of the whole pro cess. It gave more focus on the internal causes for the problem. Internal issues and flaws are controllable factors as the solutions are in the hands of the org anization, but some external issues are uncontrollable and to an extend the orga nization has to bear the after affects. The study lights up the areas of technol ogical advantage by replacing the manual work. Sampling is an inevitable process in merchandising and the importance of samplin g and the after affects of samples getting delayed are critical. Major delays ar e at pre-production stage and remaining at the production stage. And reduction o f such time can help the company in meeting the delivery dates on time. Hence th e companies, which can foresee the kind of delivery schedules the buyers, are as king these days can get the insights even on production delays. Controlling this delay would enable the company to reduce the deviation from the scheduled lead time and honor the delivery date. 72
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY • The time for the project was restricted to two months a s the researcher has to deal with the entire process of a garment manufacturing company especially this will take at least 5 months. • The project was conducted f or a company situated in Bangalore, operating in export and domestic market. The study may not show the complete picture of apparel industry; rather it will be confined to a single company only. FURTHUR SCOPE OF STUDY As per the study the researcher has given more focus to the internal weaknesses and issues of the organization which is leading to the problem i.e., the control lable factors. Further, there can be many external issue and problems which can also act as a hurdle for the smooth functioning of the merchandising planning an d process. Some of the external factors like, Delay in fabric in house (Delay in yarn procurement, dying, knitting etc) Delay from the suppliers end Logistic delay Plant location problem etc. So, the above issues can also cause delay in work process. The study can be extended to find o ut whether there are any external causes for the delay in work process or not, I f yes how far it affects the process efficiency. 73
BIBLIOGRAPHY Books: o Jermy A. Rosenau, Devid A. Wilson, “Apparel Merchandising: The line start s here”, Fairchild, 2001. o Grace I. Kuntz, “Merchandising: Theory, principle & prac tices” , Fairchild, 2000 Articles: o o o o Stitch world, 2010, Technology and management in sewn product industry Apparel online, 2010 Apparel views, 2010/ VOL-IX/ ISSUE-09 Knitting vie ws, 2010/VOL-5/ ISSUE NO. 04 Websites: o o o o www.tukatech.com www.Gogoindia.com www.fibre2fashion.com www.ezinearticles.com 74
