Professional Documents
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Merchandising Problems in Apparel Industry
Merchandising Problems in Apparel Industry
Description Page No
Acknowledgement i
List of figures ii
Executive Summary iv
1. Introduction 1
2. Research Methodology 13
3. Literature Review 16
6. Conclusion 72
Bibliography 74
LIST OF FIGURES
ii
LIST OF TABLES
iii
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The study was undertaken principally to analyze the merchandising process and to
understand the internal weakness and flaws of the company there by finding out the internal
problems of the organization. Further, focusing into the major reasons for the problems and
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 planning 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 merchandisers 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 for the delays are found out and analyzed during the study. This study is an
effort to reduce the delay in pre-production activity as it is crucial, because the pre-production
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 the whole merchandising process
and goods can be delivered as per the planned date. In order to find a way out from this problem
As an initial step, the study gave more focus on the thorough study on merchandising
process and T&A of various orders. Then the study moves towards analyzing and finding out the
reasons and causes for the problem and comes up with acceptable practical solutions and
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suggestions. The collected data have been classified and tabulated. Simple tables have been
prepared and liberally used to exhibit the classified data to provide easy and better understanding
of the study.
This study will provide significant inputs to the industry peoples as well as academicians
towards unleashing the lead time of the Indian garment industry and enable the industry to realize
its rightful place in the global economic space. The goal of the apparel industry is not delivering
within the original cost and expected time estimates but the impetus is now on shrinking the
existing lead times in order to compete with the international supply chain standards.
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CHAPTER-1
INTRODUCTION
The textile and garment industry is booming in India, especially after elimination
of the global quota system. Presently India is exporting garments to more than 100
countries including US, EU, Latin America, and Middle East. The main competitors 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
speed, 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 output, cut throat
unfavorable regulatory policies, and globalization impact. However, there is a fair list of
the producers, suppliers, and exporters that are fully acknowledged with regulatory
policies and formalities, international marketing policies and procedures. The only
concern is in executing their productivity 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 quality,
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
with latest market trends and meet the market demand. In the merchandising concept,
time management is a gig to manage one's time properly, so he can focus on value adding
actions.
Today's garment merchandisers have to move with frequent changes in demand and
customer requirements, they regularly visit retail outlets, and come up with latest updates
from frontline staff. In order to keep an eye on developments in sourcing, site visits are
made every week to mainland factories to meet suppliers and study production.
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 has to talk with
the in-house veterans on the execution problems of sample orders, as the right
2
• Managing order route card and production timetable
Merchandiser has to manage every single production schedule and order route card
acknowledged of the various descriptions like: design, no. of modules, no. of operators,
how many processes, date of dispatch, quantity, output capacity, and deadlines 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
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
the deadlines.
To get updated on the current status on the order, the route cards should be utilized.
The latest status can be fed into the computers. In case, the buyer ask for the goods prior
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to the deadline, then merchandiser has to reorganize the schedules to accomplish tasks,
Quality of the sample must be verified. If required, revised samples should be made
available to the buyers. Merchandiser should adjust to the required changes demanded by
the buyer. The execution of bulk orders should be made only after samples are approved
by the buyer.
complete orders have to check deviation to the production teams so that any amendments
The merchandiser should know about the dearth of any commodity such as fabric,
yarn, etc. from the beginning. Actions should be taken immediately to arrange required
materials, after discovering the shortage. It is expected that the merchandisers should
verify quality of the goods prior to execution of the order. If the material is found
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• Communicating with associated people and buyer
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 cases,
merchandisers have to provide order status to the buyers. Also, merchandiser has to
communicate with the people that are in-house, venders, contractors and job-workers.
Only through the right communication can one meet deadline for the 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 preferences for
The Merchandiser should find out exact reasons for time consumption. It is
necessary to keep record of time value and keeping it safe, as it is going to be shared with
concerned parties/buyers. It is certain that merchandising jobs need huge time planning.
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1.2 COMPANY PROFILE
joined by his sons Mr. Rajeev Goenka (an engineer by Profession) and Mr. Achal Goenka
(a doctor by profession)
o Starting from a modest turnover, now GOGO has a turnover of $ 40 million with
o Over the years GOGO has won many trophies and awards for outstanding
performance, 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
o The range includes casual wear, sweater, sports wear, active wear, night wear and
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MARKETS AND CLIENTS:
o GOGO enjoys a clientele that spans not only countries but also continents.
o It exports across the globe to countries in Europe, America, Australia and Asia.
o GOGO’s customer base gives immense pride and motivates to standards at sky
level always
• Men: VF corp., lee, wrangler, jack and Jones, quicksilver, replay, Steve
• Apart from above GOGO also work with leading sports wear and active
EMBROIDERY:
7
INFRASTRUCTURE:
o GOGO has made Bangalore its head office which means which is the hub for
accounts.
o It employs over 3000 people all across its factories and office.
o All factories are modern with state of the art machinery and have the relevant
o An integrated modern ERP program links all the factories and office, and also
shipment.
o The 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 to expand its plant at Hassan, where government has started
from 10 million to 35 million garments per annum. The factory and processing
plant will be spread across 1 million sq. ft., the processing capacity will be
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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 dedicated
PROCESS HOUSE:
o In 1995 the need to be vertical made Gogo start its own processing plant in
Bangalore.
o The modern plant has latest machinery from Italy, America, UK and turkey.
o The plant has facilities for knit dying, printing, compacting etc.
o The plant includes a sophisticated lab for all their research, developing and
testing.
o A reverse osmosis plant, one of the first few in textile industry, ensures clean
environment.
DESIGNING:
o To cater the need of its buyers Gogo has a qualified design and development
department.
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1.3 NEED OF THE STUDY
competition in today’s global business cluster. As there are many key players the
business became very tough and competitive as only those who have some competitive
advantage can only survive. On the other side merchandising is the backbone of any
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 understand 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
Execution and delivery of goods as per the merchandising plan always gives an
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
GOGO INTERNATIONAL.
Further, the study gives focus on various internal causes, affects and suggestions
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1.4 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
Identifying various internal issues, weakness, and flaws in the current practices.
where price is order qualifier whereas transparency in system, excellent service, high
quality goods and timely delivery are real winners. The export oriented Garment
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, even 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 variations caused by internal processes at
both ends of the chain as well as the import/export procedures in between, a benefit to the
organization.
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The following are the scope of the study.
Reasons for the problem are found out as per the analysis made on the T&A and
The study will help the organization (Gogo international) to reduce the delay in
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CHAPTER-2
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design: The relevant project brief on the practical understanding of “Apparel
manufacturing and export merchandising and its various processes”. Research defines
activities involved in each process and its responsible departmental functioning. This was
done by activity definition and time estimation. The observations and findings are done
by tracking down recent and past orders (four orders have been taken for analysis, out of
30 observed). The research focuses more on the ‘internal’ reasons for the issues which
• Primary data:
13
• Secondary data:
information flows, time and action calendar, past records and departmental
reports of orders executed 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
samples for the study. Four samples (styles) were randomly taken from the total of 30
samples observed.
Research is being initiated and frame worked after going through various library
The collected data have been classified and tabulated. Simple tables have been
14
been liberally used to exhibit the classified data to provide easy and better
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CHAPTER-3
LITERATURE REVIEW
3.1 MERCHANDISING
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 target customers. Effective
organization. Merchandising forms an effective liaison with the buyers. It identifies and
develops potential new buyers. It builds good relationship with the buying houses and
The term merchandising means simply to buy and sell commodities for a profit.
The merchandiser must combine logical and analytical thinking with initiative and
expressive creativity.
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As per the below figure the merchandiser must have the capability of utilizing the
integrated activity of right brain and left — brain functions to attain both analytical and
creative thought process. The merchandiser must be able to rigorously plan and control
the functions involved in developing. Products, sourcing it and getting it to the customer
on time.
that result in creation, development, execution, and deliver of product line such as
production authorization, interface with sales, sourcing and interface with manufacturing
global textile industry, a merchandiser must possess a rare blend of traits, skills and
experience. A merchandiser must be a part designer, part engineer, part computer expert,
part marketer, 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
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this definition, the primary mission of today’s merchandisers seems unchanged.
INCLUDE:
o Analyze the needs of the Buyer, Interpret and communicate them to the
respective departments and try to present the buyers with the materialist’s
o To ensure the quality in production and timely delivery. The work of the
merchandiser starts even before getting the order and extends even after the
the buyer.
o Creating a TNA (Time and Action) calendar for fixing schedules for various
o The 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 turn
answerable to the Buyer for delivering the goods as specified and with in the
customer satisfaction.
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o Basing upon the existing infrastructure, quality norms and capabilities of the
plant the merchandiser sources orders across the markets and submits a probable
costing sheet to the buyer. If the buyer finds the plant compatible with its
compliance with the costing being appropriate to the merchandise, the order is
confirmed.
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
personnel.
o Coordinates and tracks the sourcing activities and makes sure that all the raw
o Once the order is executed and the merchandise is dispatched, the merchandiser
takes care of the post shipment comments and tries to maintain a long term
processes;
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
requested for.
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o A pre production meeting is held in units one day after the package is sent to the
unit. The internal PPM is held only among factory members to discuss the style,
trims, construction etc. if there are further clarifications, an external PPM is held
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3.3 MERCHANDISING WORKFLOW
Obtain order
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3.4 MERCHANDISING PROCESS FLOW
Development sample
(If no)
Send for approval to buyer
Fit sample
(If no, send for
Send for approval to buyer rectification)
Marker development
Fabric sourcing
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 goods to the
buyer’s destination on time. He interacts and coordinates various activities which are
discussed in detail.
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3.5.1 Order enquiry:
This is the first stage in which the buyer will enquire with the merchant about
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
o measurements
o fabric
o style code
Once the tech pack is received by the merchant. He will arrange the tech
pack details in a format by dividing various styles and its details. Then, he will
advice the junior merchandiser about the style and its details so that the junior
can assist the sample coordinators and gets the development samples ready from
Once the development samples are ready, 2-3 samples are sent to the buyer
for approval. In the development sample the main objective is to understand how
the garment style looks with the specific details. So here samples are made with
the available fabric in store with closely resembles the exact requirement. In
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development sample surface ornamentations and fit is followed as per the tech
pack. if some correction is to be done then the buyer will sent the correction
details and again the samples are made till it get approved.
3.5.5 Costing:
Once the development is made and approval is received from the buyer, then
o fabric cost
o CMT
o Bank charges
o Buffer value
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
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 will forward the
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requirement sheet to the purchase department they place orders with the
suppliers.
By this time merchant will sent the lab dips to buyer. This includes many
shades of the color which the buyer is asked to make the garment. So the same
After approval of development sample from buyer, fit sample is made. The
sample is usually made of the medium size to check the fit. All measurements are
checked correctly as per the specs. The buyer returns Fit approvals sheet which
contains all the actual measurements and required measurements and how much
deviation 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
Once the fit samples 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 fabric, color, trims, surface, ornamentations etc. so this is a main
step where the 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
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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 sizes 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 specs. 3 sets are made for all
SAMPLING DEPARTMENT
DEVELOPMENT SAMPLE
BUYER
FIT SAMPLE
COMMENTS
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3.5.1 Pre-production meeting (PPM):
Once all the samples are approved and all raw materials are ready in the store the
bulk production has to be started. Before that merchants will conduct a pre production
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
Production file is a document which includes all the details of a particular style. This
document is prepared 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
• measurements
• color details
• style description
• packing type
• print/embroidery instructions
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• material requirement sheet (category,item,position,color,size,consumption,unit in
kgs,qty,total qty)
• marker plan
• Packing information
Once the file is received by the PPC, they will check and study each and everything
of the file and parallel 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.
Surface ornamentation may include embroidery, printing or appliqué and these are
done as per the buyer’s requirement so PPC will check the ornamentation details and
plans according to that and parallel arrange all the required things for the same.
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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 production so parallel they will do the arrangement for the stitching
materials in-house.
Production file includes all the details about the patterns and merchants will forward
the original patterns along with the production file to the PPC. Once they receive the
patterns they will forward the patterns to the pattern master and master will cross check
Once everything is checked and confirmed by the master then, the pattern is
different sizes from a basic size. When the file is forwarded to PPC only one centre
pattern will be provided and grading is done for other sizes. Finally the graded pattern
Laying is a process in which huge lot of fabric lots are laid flat in several plies 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 plan and the main concern is to
minimize wastage. The patterns are marked and the plies are cut. Band knife and Straight
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knife cutting machines are used to cut the plies. Once the plies are cut, it is separated and
tied as bundles.
The next process is to wash the cut pieces. The bundled pieces goes for specific
When the garment wash is finished then the bundles will be sent for
pieces rather than in full garment this 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
When surface ornamentation is done on cut pieces then, the whole bundles moves to
the sewing lines as per the plan. Here bundles are loaded to each worker as per his work
and the sewing process moves from one end to other end where the whole garment is
stitched. One worker does the same job always say, if a worker‘s job is to stitch a collar
with collar bone then he does the same always when he receives the materials moves
from his co-worker after he completes his part. Like this sewing happens in a chain
format.
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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, workers will do the finishing
• Trimming: trimming is the process in which all the protruding threads are cut and
• Ironing: in this process steam iron is given on the garment to avoid wrinkles.
• Packing: it is the process in which 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
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3.6 QUALITY CHECKING IN VARIOUS STAGES OF PRODUCTION:
• Production Order:
There is a P.O for ever single style of every buyer. The Production Order is
a form that communicates all the details required by the Production Planning department
in order to generate a loading plan. The merchandising department issues a PO for every
- It contains style number, style description, order quantity, sizes, quantity for each size,
fabric consumption, interlining details, trims description, packing instructions, label specs
etc.
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• 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
Accordingly 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
• 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 machines for the style processing.
- There are information regarding all departments i.e. for cutting, documents like marker
-Even comments from buyers during sourcing and sampling stage are recorded to clarify
-This tech pack along with the PO file is transferred to all the sections while the style is
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• Order status report:
This is a report in which all the styles and its various activities are updated
in an excel sheet. This is maintained by the senior merchants so that he can easily track
the current status of a particular style. The status information is given by the merchants
Central planning and control is a planning cell where the pre production
and production activities related to each and every order is analyzed and planned to make
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 date. Planning is done by
looking into the practicality of executing the process by being aware of the current issues
Time and action (T&A) plan is an inevitable part of CPC. Time and action
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• 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 that
basis the T&A is prepared by the CPC and the same will be sent back to the
merchandiser, which includes on which date the particular activity should be started and
Most of the time there happens many reworking and negotiations done on T&A
between the CPC and merchandisers due to many delays and uncertain things happening
KEY ACTIVITIES
Job #
Merchandiser
Buyer
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Quantity
Allocation
Yarn in-house
Dying
PP sample submission
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Stitching accessories in-house
Final inspection
Ex-factory
Delivery date
The insistence on shorter lead times and pressure on the margins of export and
other units has grown over time, along with the need to stick to delivery schedules strictly
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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 change of
The current method used in the company is T&A (time and action) which
captures the two main concerns of buyers, merchandisers in buying offices and
manufacturers:
“Are all the action steps 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
number of in-between activities (to keep tab on in-house activities in micro details) and
For example, TNA suggested by buyer may have only 4 target dates, i.e. fit sample
approval date, size set approval date, lab dip approval date and planned cut date (PCD).
While a TNA created by a manufacturing organization (for same order) may have target
dates for total 15-20 activities: like pattern approval, grading approval, dispatch dates for
all approvals, loading for bulk dyeing, receipt of fabric and accessories, etc.
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The fashion industry's processes, indeed any multi-step process, can be broken
down like this and re-built into a time-and-action calendar, that tells you how long your
process is expected to take, and when you should be completing each step so that you
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 much as
feasible, the time when the work-steps have actually been completed. Typically, for easy
reference, the steps would have been mentioned in the sequence that they are supposed to
In brief, there are three main problems with this simplistic notion of T&A calendars
Problem # 1 – Delays
Unexpected delays in the existing activities, or addition of new work steps due to
some problem occurring in the chain. Discovering it too 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 available. Or the rib fabric needed urgently for the
Navy Blue T-shirt is available, 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 tolerant. 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 date on 50-80% of their
orders, and many end up with 30-40% late shipments despite extension of delivery dates.
The second problem that adds a layer of complexity is that very often the
"cause-and-effect" relationship between a delay in one activity and the total delay.As
explained in the previous section about critical path, this is the sequence which
determines the total 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
when the delays happen in an activity that is on the critical path.This fact is not 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 delayed activity is on the critical path,
the work-step that one is trying to speed up is not on the critical path. Hence your
started unless an earlier activity is completed. Take for example the instance of a print
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strike-off approval. A factory will not place the confirmed order for the bulk fabric,
unless the strike-off has been approved. Or, looking earlier, the buyer cannot approve the
strike-off, unless it has been sent to him by the factory or the mill. Delegation or working
and mutual responsibility is something that is almost entirely missed out when one is
dealing with a table of task names and dates in an Excel spreadsheet. Ignoring the
A typical apparel order broken down properly has many more work-steps. These
could be 35-40 at the very least, up to 150 in some cases. Most people using Excel
spreadsheets for T&A calendars list 15-25 critical points, including the various major
approvals, fabric receipt, cutting, finishing, packing, etc. However, this obviously
provides only a limited amount of visibility into what is actually going on in the order.
Following is a network diagram, consisting of only 26 tasks. The tasks have been laid out
in the logical connected sequence, based on the dependency between them. Looks
steps if all orders are properly analyzed and the process defined. That means 400-750
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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 direct
responsibility, most other activities are performed by other people within the same
company, or people in other companies. For example, in this 26-step example shown
above what has not been highlighted is the fact that these 26 steps require coordination
between 5 companies and 9-12 individual people across those companies.
This, then, is the paradox of plenty:
o The better you are able to define the process and break-down the order plan, the
o The greater the number of orders, the more the work-steps that need to be
followed-through.
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o The more you actually work as a team, rather than in an individual capacity, the
and the higher the dependency on others to complete their activities on or before
time.
Some people manually calculate the likely timelines and note down the key dates
Keeping track on the phone, through faxes and emails, and tick off things as they
happen or 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
pinpoint planned starting and ending dates of activities. Naturally, these charts
Most of the "computer-savvy" people use Excel spreadsheets in which they note
down the planned dates and actual completion dates of a limited number of work-
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CHAPTER-4
1. Line balancing
Time and action calendar is prepared by the central planning and controlling
department. 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 prepared for
each and every order. When an order is received by merchandiser from the buyer then he
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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 problems 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
TIME AND
ACTION ORDER 1 ORDER 2 ORDER 3 OREDR 4
CALENDER
KEY
ACTIVITIES P* A* P* A* P* A* P* A*
Lab Dip
Approval (sent
to buyer) 2-12 5-12 2-12 3-12 2-12 2-12 2-12 2-12
Lab Dip
Approval
(receive from
buyer) 12-12 16-12 12-12 10-12 12-12 13-12 12-12 14-12
Yarn in-house 2-12 2-12 2-12 2-12
Griege fabric in
house date 12-12 12-12 12-12 12-12
Finish Fabric in-
house 22-12 22-12 22-12 22-12
Bulk fabric
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approval (sent to
buyer)
Bulk fabric
approval
(receive from
buyer)
Further process
fabric
Print/Embroider
y. strike off (sent
to buyer) NA NA 3-12 3-12 3-12 3-12 NA NA
Print/Embroider
y. strike off
(received from
buyer) NA NA 6-12 7-12 6-12 5-12 NA NA
Fit sample
approval (sent to
buyer) 10-12 18-12 10-12 14-12 10-12 13-12 10-12 14-12
Fit sample
approval
(receive from
buyer) 17-12 25-12 17-12 20-12 17-12 22-12 17-12 24-12
PP sample
submission 28-12 7-1 28-12 31-12 28-12 30-12 28-12 5-1
PP sample
approval to
receive 4-1 15-1 4-1 7-1 4-1 8-1 4-1 13-1
Size set sample
approval (sent to
buyer) 7-1 25-1 7-1 11-1 7-1 11-1 7-1 16-1
Size set sample
approval
(receive from
buyer) 10-1 30-1 10-1 15-1 10-1 15-1 10-1 20-1
Stitching
accessories in-
house 12-1 15-1 12-1 12-1 12-1 12-1 12-1 12-1
Packing
accessories in- 8-1 16-1 8-1 8-1 8-1 10-1 8-1 9-1
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house
Cutting start
date 11-1 1-2 11-1 16-1 11-1 16-1 11-1 21-1
Washing start
date 15-1 5-2 15-1 21-1 15-1 22-1 15-1 25-1
Bit print start
date NA NA NA NA 12-1 16-1 NA NA
Bit Embroidery
start date NA NA NA NA 12-1 16-1 NA NA
Stitching start
date 17-1 8-2 17-1 24-1 17-1 22-1 17-1 27-1
Garment wash
start date
Washing end
date 3-2 22-2 3-2 9-2 3-2 7-2 3-2 8-2
Bit print end
date 15-1 20-1 NA NA
Bit Embroidery
end date 15-1 20-1 NA NA
Stitching end
date 7-2 28-2 7-2 14-2 7-2 14-2 7-2 18-2
Garment wash
end date
Final inspection 11-2 1-3 11-2 15-2 11-2 15-2 11-2 20-2
Ex-factory 14-2 3-3 14-2 17-2 14-2 17-2 14-2 22-2
Delivery date 28-2 10-3 28-2 1-3 28-2 1-3 28-2 3-3
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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
happened in planned and actual dates in time and action plan. If we divide the key
activities in the graph into two sections i.e. pre-production activities and production
activities then we can categorize them into two sections, they are:
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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 can be controlled only
when the company focuses more on the reasons of samples getting delayed with suitable
preventive measures.
• Store
• Pattern making
• CAD
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• Ironing
• sampling manager
• pattern masters
• sample coordinators
• line supervisors’
• workers
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4.3 ANALYSIS ON SAMPLING LINE BALANCING:
There are 20 lines having 6 machines each. The productions of samples are done
in such a way that each line is allocated with few buyers and that particular line 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:
BUYERS LINE A,B,C LINE D,E,F LINE G,H,I LINE J,K,L LINE M,N,O LINE P,Q,R
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4.3.2 GRAPHICAL REPRESENTATION OF MONTHLY SAMPLING
PRODUCTION
INTERPRETATION:
The sampling department includes 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
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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 made into another) and it is
distributed to few buyers ( find the table 4.3.1 ). So each line gives more priority to do the
work of their buyers first. Even though they load some other line’s work when they have
less work but this is not happening in an effective way. If so, the graph will show a
• The pressure from the merchants as they are concerned more on their work so
• 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
So there are two main reasons for the ineffective allocation of work to various lines, they
are:
One of the other major reason is the lack of continuous and practical planning
regarding the allocation of work to various lines as per the orders. Effectiveness of
planning is the by product of a graph showing linearity, i.e.; less variation in the graph.
But graph 4.3.2 shows a huge variation happening so it supports the statement.
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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 to day work process by taking unnecessary workloads from other lines. This is
because they are not properly controlled and monitored by the top authority and this can
be rectified only if subordinates are answerable to the top authority for the work done.
• Sampling manager
• Pattern masters
• Sample coordinators
• Line supervisors’
• Workers
Sampling manager leads the sampling team and rest of the people executes the work. The
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4.4.2 CURRENT SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STUCTURE
SAMPLE
COORDINATORS PATTERN MASTERS
LINE SUPERVICORS
WORKERS
INTERPRETATION:
• Sampling manager: He is person who leads the sampling team. All the reports
regarding production and quality and other reports and issues related to sampling
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has to go to him. He is the person who has to address the top management
regarding his department’s efficiency, effectiveness etc and held responsible for
schedules are affected and done in sampling department. They make sure their
samples are getting done on time and whether all the required materials are there
• Pattern masters: Their main work is to get the specification sheets from the
merchandising department and get the pattern work done for various styles and
the merchandiser and the sampling department. They are the assistants to
merchandisers and they get the details of a particular order and guide pattern
masters and other workers in the sampling department and get the work done for
the merchandisers.
• Line supervisors: line supervisors are allocated with few lines and he guides the
workers to work. They get the work details and techniques from the sample
• Workers: They are the tailors who stitch the garment under the guidance of line
supervisors.
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The last figure shows the current structure of sampling department. Here the
sampling manager leads the team but merchandisers can also use their authority on
various 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
communicating with line supervisors, sample coordinators and even with merchandisers.
4. Wastage of time
6. Confusion
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4.5 ANALYSIS ON THE EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITY OF
PATTERN MASTERS
There are 10 pattern masters and the total buyers are divided and allocated among the
10 pattern masters. They get the style details from sample coordinators and through the
guidance of merchandisers and even sample coordinators the patterns are made.
The pattern masters are paid in between 35000-40000 and its comparatively good as
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,
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4.6 ANALYSIS ON THE APPLICATION OF CAD SOFTWARE IN
solutions to the worldwide apparel and sewn goods industry. Tukatech quickly achieved
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
They are the first and leading company in the world to offer apparel product development
outsourcing (APDO) as a service to the industry. They leverage their expertise and
leading technology to streamline pattern making, sample making, and associated apparel
4.6.2 Productivity:
• Number of patterns made per day by the manual pattern masters: 5-7 patterns
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4.6.3 Cad Implementation Cost table
INTERPRETATION:
As per the productivity analysis of manual pattern making we can conclude that
only 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 if we compare with the cost
aspect.
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CHAPTER-5
The findings are made on the basis of analysis done on T&A, structure of sampling 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 delay in the planned T&A. from the T&A it is found out that the
SAMPLING DELAY is the main reason for the further delay in production and late delivery of goods.
Due 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.
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 of 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. The following are the findings to support the analysis and the main problem.
Sampling is a crucial process in which more focus must be given. Buyer may get disappointed when the
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5.1 FINDINGS ON SWOT ANALYSIS OF SAMPLING DEPARTMENT
• Idle machines
• Idle workers
• Lack of monitoring
• Lack of flexibility
• More work is wasted due to errors on patterns and re-working on the same
• Wastage
• Good capacity
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5.1.3 MAJOR KEY PROBLEMS
1. “Sampling delay”
5.1.4 CAUSES:
5. Resistance to change
2. Line allocation must be done by dividing the whole quantity and by distributing
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5.2 SUGGESTIONS
• It must be flexible
• There must unity of command i.e., there should be only one commanding head
But, it is clear from the analysis of structure of sampling department that it lacks the
required qualities, so there is an urgent need for the re-structuring of the sampling
department.
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5.2.1.1 SUGGESTED SAMPLING DEPARTMENT STRUCTURE
MERCHANDISER
STORE
MANAGER
SAMPLING
PLANNING
MANAGER PATTERN
MASTER
COORDINATORS
LINE
SUPERVICORS
WORKERS
Once the merchandiser receives the order he has to book for the fabric, trims etc
which is required for that particular style. Parallel he can forward the spec sheet to the
sampling manager and can brief him the details. Once the fabric and all other required
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things are ready in the store, merchandiser has to get the signature from the store 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 sampling manager and the
sampling manager advices his assistants (coordinator) and pattern master about the style.
Sampling manager parallely plans how the line allocation 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 as 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 sections 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
ADVANTAGES:
1. Less complexity
2. Unity of command
6. Effectiveness in communication
7. Less confusion
8. Merchandiser can give more focus on other crucial activities as the sampling
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5.3 LINE ALLOCATION MUST BE DONE BY DIVIDING THE
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 allocation 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 less work. This is the main reason
for some machines and manpower sitting idle without work. So sampling department
must be made as a separate planning cell and line balancing must be done flexible.
This variation in graph or the problem of some lines getting more work and few
are idle can be sort out by distributing the total work quantity equally to various lines and
planning must be done centrally. If all the lines are allocated with somewhat equal
quantity of work then, the problem of idle machines and workers can be sorted out.
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ADVANTAGES
3. Better planning
5. Less delay
5.4.1 Basic information about manual pattern making as per the analysis:
5.4.2 Productivity:
As per the observation it is found out that a pattern master can make 5-7 pattern
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• Tuka claims : 15 patterns per day
On the other hand TUKA claims that their productivity is around 15 patterns per
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 amount because
only basic requirement like pattern making, grading and marker making is required. The
cash collected back in frequent intervals are based on replacing the man power (pattern
masters) by introducing CAD. The salary of the CAD operator is not taken into
consideration.
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The following are the possibilities to collect back the invested amount.
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5.4.4.1 PAYBACK PERIOD AS PER THE ABOVE POSSIBILITIES
ADVANTAGES:
1. Reduces cost (reduce cardboard sheet, chalk, markers, cello tapes etc)
6. Due to the above ,the saved money can be compensated for the implementation
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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
process. 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 organization, but
some external issues are uncontrollable and to an extend the organization has to bear the
after affects. The study lights up the areas of technological advantage by replacing the
manual work.
sampling and the after affects of samples getting delayed are critical. Major delays are at
pre-production stage and remaining at the production stage. And reduction of such time
can help the company in meeting the delivery dates on time. Hence the companies, which
can foresee the kind of delivery schedules the buyers, are asking 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.
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LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
• The time for the project was restricted to two months as 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 for a company situated in Bangalore, operating in export and
domestic market. The study may not show the complete picture of apparel industry;
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 controllable 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 and process. Some of the external factors like,
Logistic delay
So, the above issues can also cause delay in work process. The study can be extended to find
out whether there are any external causes for the delay in work process or not, If yes how far it
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:
o Jermy A. Rosenau, Devid A. Wilson, “Apparel Merchandising: The line starts here”,
Fairchild, 2001.
Articles:
Websites:
o www.tukatech.com
o www.Gogoindia.com
o www.fibre2fashion.com
o www.ezinearticles.com
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