Apparel Manufacturing Technology A Le é A P. Ganesan D. GopalakrishnanGarment Merchandising 425 Make contact with buyer Obtain order eo costing for that particular style "Negotiation with buyer (Order fabric and trims Receiving bulk fibres and trims Send samples to production Supervising the order til shipment FIGURE 19.3 Merchandising workflow, ‘The general merchandising workflow is shown in Figure 19.3 (Davis and Nancy 2002) 19.5 Merchandising Process Flow The merchandising process flow is shown in Figure 19.4. 19.6 General Merchandising Process 19.6.1 Order Enquiry This is the first step where the buyers have an enquiry with the merchan- diser about a new order.426 Apparel Manufacturing Technology Analyze fabric consumption from CAD Analyze cost oftrims and fabric ‘Obtain general sewing data fom TED Develop sample asperthetech Prepare cost sheet from Develop p ‘sample [Cost sheet and sample set to bayer for approv Conformation of Cox sheet reworking (Obtain PCD and details from production unit Obisin GSD from IED Book washing and embroidery eapacity freq fabric orn ‘concerned dept. Execution of order by entering details in ERP Prepare samples a per buyer requirements Forward the samples to buyer for approval Hold preproduction ‘Comments rcsived fom ‘meeting with the buyer should be Production unit Incorporaed and it senple reworking Submit Breet, { Follow up with Offer ~) (Follow up lik onder} Production iJ required Ll garments for on she éspariments and] documentsto[)] "ea {| psmens update the buyer) \locumentation | inspection || Reoeds éepartment FIGURE 19.4 Merchandising process owGarment Merchandising 427 19.6.2 Forwarding Tech Pack After the order enquiry has been completed, the buyer will send a ‘specifi- cation sheet or tech pack’ to the merchant. It covers all the details of a par- ticular product style such as product style design, measurement details of garment, type of fabric and construction, style code of a product, surface ornamentation details if any ete. 19.6.3 Product Development After the receipt of specification sheet (tech pack), the merchandisers have to organise the information provided in the specification sheet in a single format by categorising different product styles and their details. Consequently, the merchandiser should provide proper instructions to the junior merchandiser about the product style and hence he or she could assist the sample coordi- nators to prepare the development samples from the sampling department. 19.6.4 Approval of Development Samples When the development samples are prepared, two or three samples have to be sent to the buyer for its approval. The main objective of a development sample is to realise how the particular style of garment looks with the specific details. These samples are prepared with the available fabric in the industry similar to the exact requirement. In the development sample, surface embel- lishments and fit analysis are followed as per the specification shect. 19.6.5 Costing ‘Once the development sample is approved by the buyer, then the costing has to be done taking into account various costs incurred to produce a garment. It contains various factors such as * Fabric cost * Trims and accessories cost * CMT (cut-make-trim) + Finishing or washing cost + Bank charges * Buffer value * Miscellaneous costs such as rejection cost, wastage ete. 19.6.6 Order Placement After the determination of a garment cost which is also approved by the buyer, then the buyer will place the order with the necessary quantity of order and other main details to the merchant.428 Apparel Manufacturing Technology 19.6.7 Order of Fabric and Trims ‘After the conformation of the order by the buyer, the merchandiser can place the order for requisite fabric by considering various parameters such as colour, GSM, weave structure ete, which is necessary for the specific gar- ment style. The requirements are forwarded by the merchandiser to the pur- chase department and they will place the orders. 19.6.8 Lab Dip The lab dips for a particular garment style, containing many shades of the fabric colour which the buyer is asked have to be sent to the buyer for the approval before going for further production. 19.6.9 Fit Sample The fit garment sample is made after the development sample is approved by the buyer. The fit sample is generally produced in a medium size and with original fabric to check the fit. All the measurements should be veri- fied as per the specification sheet. After checking the fit sample, the buyer returns the fit approvals sheet which comprises all the actual measure- ments and deviation in the garment has occurred for the purpose of cor- rection. The order is confirmed only after the approval of the fit sample by the buyer. 19.6.10 Preproduction Samples After the approval of fit samples, the preproduction (PP) samples (otherwise known as red seal samples) have to be produced. The red seal sample, which has to be produced as per the buyer's requirement, should have all the speci- fications of the particular style with the original or exact fabric, trims, colour, surface ornamentation etc. Two or three garment samples in each size (S, M, L, XL) have to be sent to the buyer for approval and the buyer can advise on any corrections if required. 19.6.11 Size Set Samples These size set samples are prepared for the intension of inspection of various sizes of the same style with respect to measurements, fit, styling etc. Further, the size set samples are produced to verify whether the assigned unit is capable of producing the specific garment style as per the requirements and specifications in all the sizes (Fairhurst 2008). The work flow of sampling during the merchandising process is shown in Figure 19.5,Garment Merchandising 429 ‘Buyer's samplelinformation [_ Bes ened y mere Sampling department Development sample Fiesample Buyer Preproduction samples Sie sot samples FIGURE 19.5, Workllow of sampling. 19.6.12 Preproduction Meeting (PPM) After all the size set samples are approved by the buyers and all raw mate- rials are organised in the stores, then the bulk production of the garment style can be started. A preproduction meeting should be organised by the merchandiser prior to bulk production with the production manager and other department heads to plan the production process to evade any delays in target time. 19.6.13 Hand-Over the Production File to Production Planning and Control ‘The production file comprising all the information of a particular garment style has to be prepared by the merchandiser. It is then forwarded to CPC along with the approved preproduction samples which are further for- warded to PPC after examination of the file by the CPC. Some of the details in the production file include the following items: + Measurements for the specific garment style + Export order sheet * Colour details of the fabric and trims430 Apparel Manufacturing Technology * Brief description of style + Type of packing required + Instructions related to print/embroidery + Material requirement sheet + Job details for CAD and fabric order * Marker plan + TNA order sheet + 2D style diagram and trims + Packing information 19.6.14 Ensuring the Availability of Fabrics and Trims After the receipt of the production file, the PPC have to study and check every detail in the file related to the particular garment style and simultane- ously have to check the availability of the particular fabric and trims in the store. 19.6.15 Inspecting the Surface Ornamentation of the Particular Style Surface embellishment may consist of embroidery, printing or appliqué and these are made as per the requirements of the buyer; hence, the PPC depart- ment should check the ornamentation details and plans accordingly to com- plete the same. 19.6.16 Checking the Status of Stitching Materials In-House Sewing accessories are materials that are used for sewing such as sewing threads and accessories that assist production. Hence, simultaneously the merchandiser has to make arrangements for the stitching materials in-house. 19.6.17 Checking the Patterns with Master ‘The production file includes all the information about the patterns and the merchandiser has to forward the original patterns alongside with the pro- duction file to the production planning and control department. Once they receive the patterns, they will forward the patterns to the pattern master in the department and he or she will check the pattern and confirm the same. 19.6.18 Grading and Final Cross Check of Patterns After inspection of all the patterns of different product styles by the pattern master, itis forwarded to the automatic grading section or manual grad- ing section in the industry. Grading is a process of proportionately increas- ing or decreasing the sizes from the basic one. Finally, the graded patternGarment Merchandising 431 should be inspected and confirmed by the pattern master before going for further process. 19.6.19 Spreading and Cutting Itis the process of arranging fabrics on the spreading table as per length and Width of the marker in stack form which has to be carried out carefully with- out any wrinkles or tension in the fabric. After spreading is completed, the patterns are placed over the top layer of the spread as per the marker plan and the plies are cut using a straight knife and band knife cutting machines. After cutting is completed, the cut components of the garment are sorted and, bundled. 19.6.20 Garment Wash In some specific cases, the cut components will go for washing as per the specification sheet or buyer requirement. 19, "1 Fabric Printing/Embroidery After the completion of garment washing, the bundles could be sent for printing/embroidery if required for the specific style. Surface ornamenta- tions should be carried out on cut garment panels as it minimises the risk of destroying the entire garment if some defects occur during printing 19.6.2 Loading the Order in the Production Line After the surface embellishment is completed on cut components, the bun dles are moved on to the sewing department as per the production plan. In the sewing section, the bundles are allotted to each worker as per his or her ‘work and the sewing process moves from one end to the other end where the complete garment is assembled in a line. 19.6.23 Finishing After the complete garment is assembled and inspected at the end of the cach line, itis forwarded to the finishing section where the following opera tions will be carried out: * Inspection: For any defects and stains * Trimming: Protruding threads are removed to provide a neat appearance to the garment * Ironing: To remove or introduce crease marks in the garment * Packing: The finished garments are folded and packed in the poly- thene covers432 Apparel Manufacturing Technology 19.6.24 ispatch Dispatch is the final process in which the garments aze generally packed in wooden cartons with the dimensions specified by the buyer and shipped to the buyer. 19.7 Documents to be Maintained by the Merchandiser 19.7.1 Production Order (PO) A production order comprises all the information needed by the PPC depart- ment to generate a line loading plan and it should be available for each style of every buyer. The production order consists of the description of style and style number, sizes, order quantity, quantity for each size, fabric consump- tion, specifications of interlining and trims, packing instructions, label speci fications, ete 19.7.2 Bill of Materials (BOM) From the PO, the requisite quantity of fabric and trims could be determined for a single product which is then multiplied by the number of shirts being produced. The required quantities are given as a bill of materials for various trims such as sewing threads, buttons, zippers and cuff links. The BOM is issued to the store to get the required amount of trims. 19.7.3 Specification Sheet/Tech Pack This form is vital for the execution of any order. It consists of all the tech- nical information regarding the specific garment style such as fabric, toler- ances, interlining details etc. for the style processing (Jarnow and Dickerson 1996). It provides necessary information required for various departments. For example, for the cutting department documents such as marker plan- ning, marker consumption etc. and for the sewing department, details such as construction details, measurements etc. are provided by the tech pack. ‘The specification sheet along with the PO form is issued to all the sections in the industry while the style is moving from one department to another. 19.7.4 Order Status Report In this order status report, all the styles and their diverse activities are updated in an Excel work sheet and is retained by the senior merchandisers. Therefore, he or she could easily track the current progress of a particular style,