The most crucial area of every clothing manufacturing enterprise is the cutting floor. The cutting master oversees all cutting operations on this cutting floor. The first stage in making clothes is cutting. On the cutting floor, all cutting tasks are carried out manually or with the aid of computerized cutting equipment. The cutting floor is where all cutting-related processes are completed, including spreading, marking, cutting, bundling, and packing of fabrics and clothing. The cutting master spreads the fabric on the cutting floor, the marker is manufactured in accordance with the pattern, and the cutting master then cuts the marker. I am presenting 6 Good Practices in Fabric Cutting Floor of Clothing.
The fabric is then cut in accordance with the marker, and the cut pieces are packed and sent on to the next step. The cutting floor is also in charge of preserving the caliber of the final products. The cutting master should make sure that the finished garments’ quality is maintained. All cutting activities are carried out in accordance with quality standards.
As improving productivity is the ultimate goal that every manufacturer strives to reach, we talk about actions or procedures that may eventually contribute to this goal. But we ignore the very fundamental fact that achieving this goal necessitates integrating certain acts into the established procedures.
One such area in the clothing industry that must adhere to these essential behaviors is the cutting room. We want errors to be avoided at all costs. Despite this, we encounter circumstances every day where finding a roll or a little piece of fabric becomes difficult, where plans fall through the cracks as a result of floor differences, and where a loss of even a tiny 1m piece of fabric can occasionally cost a considerable sum.
So what basic practices can be followed, which may ease our work and trim the jumble on the cutting floor? Let us look at 6 Good Practices in Fabric Cutting Floor:
What are 6 Good Practices in Fabric Cutting Floor?
- Measuring roll lengths and width
- Sorting rolls by color, shrinkage, and width.
- Conform to standard end loss.
- Record all on-floor data.
- Keep roll ends safely.
- Use end bits for smaller markers.
Measuring roll lengths and width
It’s possible that fabric rolls won’t always come in the same breadth and meter age as requested. There would be variations. Every time a roll enters the mill, measuring its length and width becomes a crucial requirement. This is due to the fact that knowing the precise yardage of fabric available before laying lowers the possibility of fabric or garment components running short in the future. Also, knowing the roll width makes producing markers much easier and prevents any unexpected in-roll width fluctuations from occurring on the production floor. Knowing the performance of the provider is also helpful.
How: Ensure that each roll is checked for yardage and width during roll inspection before going into production (100% roll inspection). Make a roll list report which shows the excess/shortage in each roll.
Benefits: Understanding the real cloth quantity at the hand of the Fabric cutting floor. Improved marker use and redundancy in marker production when width variation is present. Fewer odds of cutting incomplete components.Gives a better picture of the performance of the supplier because the roll length is actually known.
Sorting rolls by color, shrinkage, and width
I emphasized the advantages of arranging fabrics on the floor in my most recent blog. The fabric rolls can be separated or grouped together based on the next region of deviation, i.e., by shade/shrinkage/width, once the roll lengths and widths have been established. These variations, which occur from roll to roll, are extremely important to the final product’s quality.
How: Look for color differences both within and between rolls. Make sure visual observations are conducted under controlled circumstances. Quality tests for shade using reference materials. An effective application of the notion of shrinkage templates is cutting a sample area from the main fabric, marking it for dimensions, washing it, and then checking it again for dimensional changes.
- A = Distance between gauge marks before washing
- B = Distance between gauge marks after washing
- S = % shrinkage.
- Practicing width segregation through 100% fabric inspection before sending it out for production.
Benefits: Increased utilization of fabric. Adhere to the highest quality standards. Reduce rejection percentage.
Conform to standard end loss
End loss is an essential allowance made at the end of every ply to make cutting easier. For a certain type of cloth, the producer establishes the standard end loss. However, if this standard margin is not kept throughout the laying, it either results in a greater end loss, increasing the end loss wastage, or a shorter end loss than what was stated on the lay slip, endangering the ease of cutting. So, it becomes crucial to maintain margins carefully during the spreading of fabric rolls by adhering to the specified end loss.
How: whenever possible, by using an automatic spreader to lay cloth rather than manually. through educating the layer individually to follow the accepted end loss.
Benefits: Avoid unnecessary wastage of fabric.
Record all on-floor data
In a previous blog post, I emphasized the critical importance of feedback for successfully managing the use of materials in the cutting room. It becomes crucial to maintain a record of the data collected on the floor with the vigilance of a supervisor. This would comprise cutting instructions, lay details, marker details, allowances (edge and splice allowances), processing of remnant lengths, defect alteration (both before and after cutting), and marker details.
How: By creating appropriate formats for capturing data from the ground. With the use of worksheets. Using data recording apps for smartphones. View one example of a tool here.
Benefits: The manager will always be more informed on the status of the work. keeps track of the tasks that are due and require attention. Real-time performance and reports are easily accessible.
Keep roll ends safely
Short lengths of material are frequently left over when a layer is finished. This typically occurs because the length of the roll is not an exact multiple of the length of the cutting ply. Now, these rolls can be used further if there is a significant difference between the two. As a result, we may properly store these roll ends for later use, thereby reducing waste.
How: Keeping correct end bit racks in place. Using the end pieces as a gauge. By correctly identifying end pieces with length, roll number, shade, and shrinkage.
Benefits: Track every inch of fabric. Cleaner cutting room due to proper management of end bits.
Use end bits for smaller markers
It’s crucial to use the fabric you have on hand wisely in order to reduce fabric loss. What can be done now to reuse the leftover fabric, which usually ends up being lost after being cut? These end bits can be used to extract smaller identifiers if they are stored properly. We may therefore make the most of this residual fabric rather than adding it to stop bit loss.
How: By selecting usable bits keeping in mind the smallest marker.
Benefits: Maximum utilization of end bit. Minimum wastage due to usage of small bits. The remaining fabric can be rolled up and stored for later use in various orders.
Conclusion
Well, here are some basic cutting-room procedures that we can call best practices or good practices if followed, can optimize fabric utilization while reducing time and costs and boosting productivity in cutting floor.
You may love to read: Best Practices in Apparel Industry
Reference: https://medium.com/@stitchdiary/6-good-practices-of-the-cutting-floor-3179bd9f7921