Matrix Sourcing

Material Quality Manual

This manual is provided to understand Fabric inspection process and requirements to deliver the highest possible quality as well as report all test results as per Customer requirements.

Although this manual describes Matrix Sourcing quality requirements and we also expects its partner suppliers to develop a positive culture of quality. This culture must begin with management commitment to prevention-based and continuous improvement- based quality systems including:

Allocating appropriate resources to ensure quality systems are effective

Encouraging active participation of all workers in improvement efforts

Ensuring that processes are stable, capable, and centered through the application of statistical data analysis techniques

Documenting systems, processes, procedures, etc. as necessary to maintain effective operations

Quality Mission Statement “Create consumer loyalty and lead brand integrity through an integrated Quality Strategy.”

Matrix Sourcing Quality philosophy is based on the following principles:

Establish clear, consumer-focused requirements

Plan for Defect-Free performance

Quality happens within every Process (each supplier, department, & individual owns quality)

Ensure the Process is capable of meeting the Customer requirements

Control the Process

Continually reduce Variation and factory Defective Rate

Prevention System Definitions:

Design Qualification Systems and procedures where Matrix’s product engineering team works with customer design/development groups to help identify and prevent failure modes in product design.

Supplier Qualification Process of evaluating and approving suppliers to ensure they are capable of achieving Matrix Sourcing requirements, and include a review of suppliers’ quality manufacturing and management systems against our requirements and world-class benchmarks.

Materials Qualification

Process of testing, evaluating and approving raw material to ensure that the manufacturing process is capable of producing material that always meets World class customer specifications

Product Qualification Process of evaluating and approving finished goods to ensure that the manufacturing process is capable of producing product that always meet specifications.

Metrics & Strategic Reporting

Process of collecting vendor product quality performance data to track performance and set priorities for corrective action.

Greige Fabric Quality Requirements

Introduction:

We will provide a guideline to the factory for evaluating, grading and separating the

incoming quality of fabric to be used for Matrix Sourcing Clients. This is important

for the vendors to note on what are the expectations for incoming fabric quality.

This process also assists factories in detecting defects and preventing

substandard fabric. We have described widely recognized inspection procedure

as a training framework for inspectors. Our ultimate goal is to promote

communication and align procedures between the factory and the vendor to

resolve quality problems.

Inspection Requirements

Area

The inspection area should be:

Open, clean and dry

Well lit

Equipment Inspection Frame: The frame should be equipped with a variable speed drive, a yard (or

meter) counter, and an undercarriage light to see through the construction and an overhead light to inspect the face of the fabric.

Inspection Speed: The frame should be capable of running up to 30 yards per minute (27 meters per minute) and should have both forward and reverse controls.

Viewing Distance: The inspection should be performed from an observation distance of 2 to 4 feet (60 to 120 centimeters) so as to get full vision of the fabric width.

Lighting: Overhead Customer required lighting is recommended for the inspection. The surface illumination level should be a minimum of 1075 lux (100 foot candles).

Variable speed Undercarriage lighting with adjustable

Yard / Meter

Calibration and Maintenance Inspection frame should be included in vendor’s periodic maintenance plan.

All components of equipment which can output a quantifiably value needs to be calibrated annually e.g. Speed drive/ Counter/ Weight (if scales available on frame)

Light Box and Color Room

Each Vendor should have an International light box equipped with:

Light Source Light Type

Primary Light Source

D 65 (6500K) Average North Sky Daylight

Secondary Light Source

CWF (4150K)

Tertiary Light Source

A (2856 K) Tungsten

The Light box must be in a closed conditioned room with no interference from outside light and it must be calibrated from time to time as recommended by its manufacturer. The walls of the room should be painted neutral gray.

Light box in a conditioned room, or protected area with black curtains.

Note: Suggested Light Box brands are:

Verivide CAC

MacBeth Judge II

MacBeth Spectra light III

Datacolor TruVue

Tools

Measuring Tape

Pick Glass

Scissors

Defect Stickers / Tags

Selvedge Defect Flags

Inspection Report Forms

Approved Item Swatch

The vendor is required to use the Matrix Sourcing approved Fabric swatch in development stage as a quality reference sample for hand-feel/ Color and aesthetics verifications in bulk production.

This approved item swatch must be properly stored for use in quality comparison. Keep a clean sample folder with appropriate information such as vendor name, item number, color name, date approved, Approved test report, Production SPEC, and any other relevant information.

Inspection Procedure / Execution Matrix Sourcing expects the vendor to inspect 100% of all outgoing shipments, identify, label and records defects and ship only first quality materials.

The vendor should be familiar with Matrix Sourcing inspection procedures and standards to ensure that vendor’s internal inspection is capable of at least meeting or better exceeding Matrix Sourcing expectations.

Color and Aesthetics

Cut a head-middle-end sample across the width of the fabric, preferably about 2 yards inside of each dye-lot. This sample will be used for color and aesthetic verification to ensure lot to lot, head to end fabric consistency.

Steel or reinforced fiberglass 1/4” tape measure (cloth not recommended)

Scissors Defect stickers

Color Evaluation 1. Color Standard: Check the head-middle-end sample in the light box against the

Customer color standard and/or Matrix Sourcing approved lab-dip under primary & secondary light source. This process should be done once for each color inspected.

2. Shading within the roll: Check for shading at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of each roll inspected, using the head-middle-end sample for comparison.

Side to center

Side to side

End to end

3. Color Continuity Card: Check for color consistency between the dye-lots. Cut a small sample (about 2 x 2 inches or 5 x 5 centimeters) from the left side, the center and the right side of the head-middle-end sample of each inspected dye-lot and attach to the color continuity card. Ensure that cards are labeled. Check the samples against the Customer color standard &/or Matrix Sourcing approved lab-dip. Note any significant variation of shade from roll to roll.

Aesthetics Evaluation Inspect overall hand-feel and appearance against customer approved item swatch in development stage for cleanliness, texture, recovery, drape, resilience, wrinkling, etc.

If the aesthetics does not match the sample, Vendor will reprocess that yards or will submit to Matrix/ Customer for approval.

It is the vendor’s responsibility to ensure that the reference sample provided to the factory is the original. This sample will be used by the factory for, hand-feel and aesthetics verification..

The reference Sample size is 12 x 12 inches (30 x 30 centimeters) cut out from the approved batch. This reference sample must be properly stored for use in quality comparison. Keep a clean sample folder with appropriate information such as vendor

name, item number, color name/code, date, batch number, and any other relevant information.

Fabric Reference Sample

Visual Inspection

Once the color and aesthetics have been checked and approved, begin the visual inspection for defects. Defects which are not desirable and are clearly detectable on the inspection frame will be assigned points as shown in the Four Point Table. The Four Point system will be applied to all fabrics, i.e. woven, circular knit and warp knit.

Always inspect the side which will be used as the face in the finished garment. Mount the roll on the inspection frame with the face side up.

Fabric Width

Measure the fabric width at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of every roll. If a variation in fabric width is found, the vendor will contact Matrix Sourcing to determine if the fabric is usable and if a replacement is necessary. At this point, the inspector should also check the condition of the selvedges. The selvedges should as per customer requirement, lay flat, be free of tension, and should not have a tendency to curl.

Roll Length

Measure and record the length of each roll inspected.

Inspection for Defects

The Vendor should train and/or conduct internal certification for the inspectors according to this Manual and Matrix Sourcing requirements. The Vendor inspectors should inspect each material type based on Four Point System before shipped.

~ Four Point System ~

A widely recognized inspection method frequently used in the textile industry. It is a technique issued by the American Society for Testing & Materials with reference to the designation ASTM D5 430-93

Start the frame and inspect for defects. Run the frame at 20 ± 5 yards per minute (18 ± 5 meters per minute). If a defect is observed:

1. Faults are classified and scored with penalty points of 1, 2, 3 and 4, according to their size and significance. Each defect should be counted as a separate defect even if the nature is the same and then based on the points allocated to each defect, total points should be calculated.

~ Four Point Table ~

Vertical Defects Horizontal Defects

(along the length) (along the width)

Length Points Length Points

0.1 to 3.0 in (0.1 to 8.0 cm)

1 0.1 to 3.0 in (0.1 to 8.0 cm)

1

3.1 to 6.0 in (8.1 to 15.0 cm)

2 3.1 to 6.0 in (8.1 to 15.0 cm)

2

6.1 to 9.0 in (15.1 to 23.0 cm)

3 6.1 to 9.0 in (15.1 to 23.0 cm)

3

9.1 to 36.0 in (23.1 to 92.0 cm) 4

9.1 to full width (above 23.1 cm) 4

Note:

A maximum of 4 points may be assigned to any one linear yard), regardless of the number or size of the individual defects.

For a continuous lengthwise running defect, 4 points and 1 defect will be assigned to each linear yard where the defect exceeds 9 inches (23 centimeters).

Example: Short End/ barre effect on the full roll in 100linear yards: 400 points should be assigned with 100 defects

2. Mark the defect at the selvedge and/or at the defect.

3. Record the defect and the assigned points on the inspection worksheet.

Inspection Results

Complete the worksheet and calculate the total points of each inspected roll and the total

of the inspected linear yards/meters. With this information use the appropriate formula

below to calculate the Average Points (per 100 linear yards or linear meters).

Points/100 yd2 = Total Points of inspected roll x 36 X 100 Total Inspected Yards x Fabric Width in inches

Evaluation Guideline

Factory will evaluate a vendor’s quality performance based on the point count system,

using the following guideline:

Fabric Type Allowable Points per 100 linear yards

Woven Fabric 20

Warp Knit Fabric 20

Knit Fabrics (Open width Or Tubular) 20

Note: This criterion is subject to change at Matrix Sourcing/Customer discretion.

D.2 Accept / Reject Procedure

Vendor should not ship any roll or shipment with defect points exceed the above evaluation guideline. The factory will determine how the shipment can best meet Matrix Sourcing/ Customer standards.

However, vendor might communicate with Matrix Sourcing prior to the shipment if the average points per 100 linear yards (90 linear meters) of any roll shows a higher number than allowed on the Matrix Sourcing evaluation guideline above. In this case, the Matrix Sourcing & Customer may decide to use a shipment or the roll even if the average points per 100 linear yards (90 linear meters) shows a higher number than allowed. .

D.3 Reporting

The inspection is intended to determine the shipment quality and to capture information for quality performance evaluation of the vendor. One inspection report should be completed for each Item / color inspected and send a copy of the Inspection Report to garment factory prior to or with shipment.

Inspection Report information containing inspection date / shipped date / season year / buy month / garment factory / order number / item number / batch number / dye lot number / color code and color name / inspection points / inspection results / yardages / weight / width … etc. should be clearly visible on documentation with English language at least. Records should be kept at least 2 years and available to Matrix/ customer upon request.

We expects all material suppliers to follow the same guidelines to ensure quality product delivered to the factories, In next section, we will continue the classification and description on fabric defects.

C. Fabric Defect Classifications

Defect Classifications for Fabric Defect Description Slub , Uneven Yarn (thick & thin)

Thick uneven spot(s) in the fabric caused by lint or small lengths of yarn adhering to it

Barré Flaw in fabric consisting of textured or color bars in the direction of warp or filing which can be caused by imperfection in the yarn or in the construction or finishing of the fabric.

Yarn contamination / Fly Foreign fibers or soil, woven or knitted in the fabric.

Dead cotton Damaged cotton by the weather conditions, over or under mature cotton, which is difficult to process, leaving behind white or black spots.

Missing Line Filling yarn broken when weaving / the harness misdraw results in two ends weaving as one, caused by one end of yarn missing from feed and machine continue to run.

Holes Missing yarn, leaving behind a space, caused by broken needle

Reed mark Running lines in the warp direction, caused by bent reed wire causing warp ends to be held apart.

Streaks Dark of light uneven lines, caused by faulty processing

Stop marks Lines in the weft direction, caused when machine stopped , the yarn elongates the tension results in making across the width

Knots Uneven raised knot, two yarn ends are tied together

Miss weave/miss-knit pattern Pattern that different to the other area/ stitches failed to form due to a malfunctioning needle or jack

Puckered Selvage Uneven surface, caused by bent needle forming distorted stitches , usually a vertical line

Selvage Torn A break in the yarn of a knit fabric that causes the stitch to "run" along the needle line or a void caused by a missing warp yarn

Pilling Fiber gathering in the form of a bead on the surface as a result of friction caused by abrasion with other surface caused by yarn quality

Shading (selvage to selvage) A change in shade either abrupt or gradual, caused by poor processing

Dye Streaks Uneven steaks occurred during dyeing or finishing

Color smear Uneven color application as the result of color being smeared during printing

Crease Streak Uneven marks showing light or dark lines as a results from creased fabric passing through squeeze rollers in dyeing process

Slippage Uneven blotch marks caused due to improper dyeing process

Bowing Woven filling yarns lie in an arc across fabric width; in knits the course lines lie in an arch across width of goods.

Skewing/Bias Condition where filling yarns are not square with warp yarns on woven fabrics or where courses are not square with walse lines on knits

Defect Description Crease marks/Wrinkles/Fold Marks

appears where creases are caused by fabric folds under pressure in the finishing process

Pin holes Holes along selvage caused by pins holding fabric while it processes through tender frame. – Major, if pin holes extend into body of fabric far enough to be visible in the finished product

Snagging A break, tear or pull in the fabric, caused by a pulled thread in the fabric/yarn pulled out from the fabric

Abrasion Mark Improper scratch during finishing

Dirt/Soil/stain Fabric got dirty spots when finishing

Oil Spots / grease spots An oil spot on the fabric

Water Spots / Water marks Light marks, usually caused by wet fabric being allowed to remain too long before drying; color migrates leaving blotchy spots.

Yellowing of fabric This is a phenomenon which causes light colored fabric to yellow over time

Printer Machine stop Dye smudged along width of fabric as a result of stop the printing machine stopping

Print Out of register Print is out of fit, caused by print rollers not being synchronized properly; results in various colors of the design not printed in proper position

Miss print Missing color in the pattern caused by color feeding stoppage or faulty printing

D: Summary of Production Fabric Testing & Inspection

Material Quality Process is the process developed to measure vendor performance. In

this process, both vendors and factories are required to take steps to ensure first quality

fabric reaches the cutting table to manufacture ultimate garment products. However to

emphasize the importance and responsibilities, we have developed a summary page as

described below:

II. Inspection Procedures a. Inspection Sample

must sample a minimum of 10% or 1 Roll, whichever is greater, of every incoming shipment by color

b. Check color

make Color continuity card between rolls inspected

check against color standard

check against vendor’s reference cutting and Spectrophotometer reading

c. Aesthetics

check hand feel

check fabric appearance of face side

d. Visual Inspection

measure fabric width & length

inspection for Defects by using Four Point System

e. Fill out Inspection worksheet

III. Inspection Results a. Evaluation guideline:

Allowable Points per 100 yards (90 meters): 10 points for all fabric types

b. Result & Reporting

Input Accept, Reject or Standard Exception result into MIS (Material Inspection System)

IV. Record keeping (at least two years) a. Documents provided by Vendor:

Seasonal Reference Sample

Vendor Internal Inspection Report

Vendor Internal Physical Test Report

Reference cutting of each dye lot & Spectrophotometer Reading

Vendor Letter for “Limited Approved” status and “Spectrophotometer non-readable values

b. Documents prepared by factory:

Color continuality card between rolls inspected

Inspection Worksheet