Lean manufacturing in apparel manufacturing

Lean manufacturing, also referred to as lean production, is a systematic approach to achieving highly efficient factory or plant operations by eliminating waste.

Apparel manufacturers try to produce quality products at reliable service. Lean tools help the apparel industry to identify and eliminate waste therefore there will increase profitability and productivity through all the processes, increase the quality level at the lowest cost rate, and these tools implement industry to focus on effective and efficient manufacturing processes for the Market. Productivity is directly proportional to the Time of manufacturing the product for this; the industry should eliminate all the wastes (Muda) and focus on a steady workflow.

Types of waste in apparel industry

The prime objective of lean management is to increase productivity and eliminate waste and non-value-adding operations from the production process. So it is essential to identify and eliminate this waste existing in the apparel industry. After implementing lean in manufacturing techniques industries achieve high quality at low cost and shorter lead time.

Transport: (moving products that are not actually required to perform the processing) when work is transferred from one place to another place, this process does not add any value to the product. So lean management identifies how to reduce transportation, where transportation can be eliminated, and where the transportation time can be reduced. Materials should be delivered to their location at a required time. Lean requires the materials to be transferred directly from the suppliers to the location in the assembly line where they will be used. This is called Point of Use Storage (POUS).

Inventory: (all components, work in process, and finished product not being processed) Inventories of a factory represent those items that are either in the process of manufacturing or ideal resources (material) of a factory or materials in stock. This waste can be minimized by starting a one-piece flow in the sewing department and reducing fabric inventory by proper utilization of fabric.

Motion: (people or equipment moving or walking more than is required to perform the processing) motion at workstations is found due to poor training of workers in working methods and habit of working in traditional ways. In industries where there are engineering departments to design workstation layouts, operators may use motion due to poor workstation layouts. Motion waste is minimized by reducing packing and folding time in the packing/finishing department, analyzing and eliminating high-risk areas, and locates at the fabric in the fabric store department by proper labeling and style.

Waiting: (waiting for the next production step, interruptions of production during shift change) this waste is defined as people or things waiting around for the next action. For example, Merchandisers wait for the buyer’s approval and supervisors wait for final instructions and go ahead for quality approvals. Waiting is a visible waste in the manufacturing department wherein operators and employees create nothing they just wait for work or due to other reasons. It comprises various reasons that are responsible to cause a delay in sourcing materials, cutting delays due to delay in fabric approval, and further consumption approval too. In the apparel industry waiting for waste can be overcome before bulk production is started in the fabric-cutting section.

Overproduction: (production ahead of demand) this waste can be simply defined as doing or making things that are not required now. Overproduction generates excess inventory. This waste generally occurs in cutting departments and sewing operations. Overproduction causes in balance in the work process. By setup up the visual link between the cutting department and production department, overproduction waste can be reduced.

Over Processing: (resulting from poor tool or product design creating activity) This is a waste of doing a task or adding features to the product that are not required from the customer. In the apparel industry, some operations may not be essential to give the final look and construction. Example: multiple checking in the finishing process. Lean techniques eliminate over processes, reduce panel inspection, and eliminate repacking and it can also be reduced by implementing a self-checking process.

Defects: (the effort involved in inspecting for and fixing defects) Producing defects while pattern making or another process there is a waste of money and effort. The lean management industry aims to produce garments for the first time. This is a dangerous waste among all the 7 types of waste because it causes other waste like re-transportation, reworking, and refinishing of that defective product. By proper fabric inspection and trim, inspection will reduce lead time in processing, by creating and analyzing proper fabric reports and using good quality fabrics and other materials.

Using lean tools, it is possible to achieve waste elimination and simultaneously map the current status of an industry. Some popular and important tools of lean are explained as follows:

Lean manufacturing principles

The approaches for implementing lean practices in the apparel, fashion and footwear industries vary, but the main principles of lean manufacturing are based on 5S and Kaizen.

5S is a workplace organization method comprised of five Japanese words: seiri, seiton, seiso, seiketsu, and shitsuke. The 5S methodology describes how workspaces should be organized for efficiency and efficacy. Standardization of manufacturing items used how they should be stored, and how the items and area should be maintained help sustains the new order among workers and management alike.

5S can be translated as:

Sort: Eliminate that which is not needed.
Set: Organize what remains after sorting.
Shine: Clean and inspect the work area.
Standardize: Write standards for 5S.
Sustain: Consistently apply the 5S standards.

Kaizen is the Japanese word for “improvement.” In this case, it refers to the continuous improvement of all business and workforce functions at every level. In garment manufacturing, every level of production can be improved from raw materials handling to inventory.

Benefits of lean manufacturing

The benefits and advantages of lean manufacturing will be clearer to you after reading this below mention list:

Improve productivity and quality
Reducing Work in Process (WIP) inventory.
Eliminate waste and problems
Reducing inventory area
Reduce cycle and lead time
Production flow and controlled automation
Reduce manpower, time and space
Improve visual management
Reducing machine downtime
Optimize resources
Sustainability, employee satisfaction, and increase profit
Improve workplace and organize.
Improve safety conditions and housekeeping.
Increase customer satisfaction and customer service