Cutting Room

costs

The cutting room has a greater effect on excessive manufacturing costs than any other department concerned with the actual production of garments.

Internal costs – those incurred in the cutting room itself.

External costs – those incurred by other departments as a result of the malfunctions of the cutting room.

Internal costs

Labour : Effective utilisation

Material : 40% to 50% of the cost price of most of the mass produced clothing and largest cost component of a garment

Efficiency

Pattern accuracy Marker waste Spreading waste

The factors influencing materials untilisation

External costs

Coordination Defects Matching Accuracy Sewing Shading Quality

Production Process in the Cutting room

Planning Spreading Cutting Preparation for sewing

Planning

Spreading

Cutting

Preparation for sewing

Spreads

Markers

Production

Manual

Machine

Machine

Die Press

Computer

Shade marking

Ticketing

Bundles

Production process in the Cutting Room

Cut order planning It translates customer orders into cutting

orders. It is the process that coordinates customer

orders with all the variables of marker making, spreading, and cutting to minimize total production costs and meet customer demand for timely products.

It seeks most effective use of labor, equipment, fabric and space.

Responsibilities of Cut Order Planning Examining incoming orders and piece goods

width and availability Determining volume, size ratios, and sectioning

procedures for marker making Determining whether file markers are available

or new ones are needed Developing specifications for optimum marker

making and fabric utilization Determine most effective use of spreading and

cutting equipment and personnel Issuing orders for marker making, spreading and

cutting

Most common considerations Number of sizes in order Number of colors in order Max/min number of sizes allowed in marker Maximum spread length Maximum ply height Percentage of overcut or undercut units Fabric cost per yard Usable cloth width Width variation Common lines among pattern pieces Costs of marking markers, spreading, cutting, bundling Fabric roll change time

Cutting Orders Leads to

Marker planning Lay planning

Results of Cut Order Planning

Marker planning is to determine the most efficient combination of sizes and shades for each order and to produce the best fabric yield and equipment utilization

Lay is a stack of fabric plies that have been prepared for cutting

Lay planning is the basis of managing cutting room labor and table space

Marker Making

Marker is a diagram of a precise arrangement of pattern pieces for a specific style and the sizes to be cut from a single spread.

Marker Making is the process of determining the most efficient layout of pattern pieces for a specified style, fabric, and distribution of sizes (requires time, skill and concentration)

Marker Making

Manually produced Computerized marker making

Dimensions of marker Markers are made to fit the cuttable widths of fabrics. Blocked or sectioned markers contain all of the pattern

pieces for one style in one or two sizes. Continuous markers contain all the pattern pieces for

all sizes included in a single cutting. Splice marks are points in marker where fabric can be cut and the next piece overlapped to maintain a continuous spread. They are planned in continuous marker.

Types of Markers

Open marker – Marker made with full pattern pieces

Closed Marker – marker made with half garment parts pieces for laying along the folds of the tube (tubular knit)

Marker Modes

Is determined by the symmetry and directionality of fabric.

Nap either way (N/E/W) Nap one way (N/O/W) Nap up and down (N/U/D)

The term Nap is used to indicate the fabric is directional.

N/E/W –with symmetric, non directional fabrics, pattern pieces can be placed on a marker with only consideration for grainline

N/O/W – all the pattern pieces be placed on a marker in only one direction

N/U/D – all patterns pieces of one size to be placed in one direction and another size placed in opposite direction. eg. corduroy

Requirements of marker planning

1.Nature of the fabric and the desired result in the finished garment

Pattern alignment in relation to the grain of the fabric

Symmetry and asymmetry The design characteristic of the finished garment2. The requirements of quality cutting3. The requirements of production planning

Marker Efficiency

Area of patterns in the marker plan X 100% Total area of the marker plan

It is determined by fabric utilization

Minimum waste

Factors effecting marker efficiency

Fabric characteristics Characteristics of Pattern pieces splitting pattern pieces and creating a seam ,

reducing seam allowances, hemwidth, adjusting and modifying grainline, etc

Grain Orientation Fabric utilization standards – 90 to 97% which

lead to 80 -85% achievement

Plotting

The process of drawing or printing pattern pieces or markers on paper so they can be reviewed or cut.

Duplications of marker Carbon duplicating – small no. of copies only

are made (6–8) Spirit duplicating or hectograph carbon

system – uses alcohol and it is a messy process many copies can be produced

Diazo photographic method – the master marker and light sensitive paper passes under high intensity ultra violet light and the light sensitive paper is developed using amonia

Spreading

Spreading is the processes of superimposing lengths of fabric on a spreading table cutting table or specially designed surface in preparation for the cutting process

A spread or lay-up is the total amount of fabric prepared for a single marker.

Spreading mode

Spreading mode is the manner in which fabric plies are laid out for cutting

Direction of the fabric: it may be positioned in two ways face-to-face (F/F) or with all plies facing-one-way (F/O/W)

Direction of the Fabric Nap: it may be positioned nap-one-way (N/O/W) or nap-up-down

Spreading modes

F/O/WN/O/W

F/FN/O/W

F/FN/U/D

F/O/WN/U/D

Requirements of Spreading process Shade sorting of cloth pieces Correct ply direction and adequate lay stability Allignment of plies Correct ply tension Elimination of fabric faults Elimination of static electricity Avoidance of distortion in the spread Avoidance of fusion of plies during cutting

Setup for spreading Verifying cutting orders Positioning materials Preparing cutting tables Preparing machines Loading machine Reloading and delay time may use upto 70% of

the time required for the entire spreading operation.

Methods of spreading

Spreading by hand Spreading using a travelling machine

(100 to 150 yards per minute)

Fabric control devices Tensioning involves synchronizing the rate of spreading

with the rate fabric is unrolled Positioning devices and sensors monitor position and

control fabric placement during spreading. (to improve quality in spreading)

Width indicators may sound an alarm to alert the operator when fabric becomes narrower wthan the established width

End treatment device are used with spreaders but are separate and placed at the end of the spread (end catcher and folding blade)

The nature of fabric packages

Open fabric – rolled Tubular knitted fabric – rolled Folded fabric – rolled Folded fabric – cuttled Velvet - hanging

Spreading costs Labour cost Fabric Waste

Splicing loss occurs with excessive overlap at splice marks

End loss occurs when the spreader reaches the end of the marker and fabric must be cut from the roll or folded back for the return lap

Width loss occurs when the fabric is wider than the marker and the extra fabric is not used

Equipment purchase

Cut order plan

Cutting room manager issues lays to satisfy two requirements:

The targets given in the cutting scheduleThe most economic batch size (economic cut

quantity)

Overview of economic cut quantity factors.

MARKER UTILISATION

ECONOMIC CUT QUANTITIES

CUSTOMER REQUIREMENTS

Number of sizes

Fabric Properties

Equipment constraints

Width of fabric Marker Type

Contract details

Quality constraints

Sewing room needs

Labour costs

Essential laying losses

Production rates Delivery deadlines

Material availability

Disruptions

Cutting plan example 1

The contract details are as followsSize 10 12 14 16 18Quantity 40 90 80 25 25The constraints on lay dimensions are:Maximum lay height = 50 pliesMaximum lay length = 4 garments markedThe limit of four garments marked may seem rather

contrived but it allows the concepts to be explained more easily

It is useful to determine the theoretical minimum number of lays required to cut the contract:

Max no of gmts per lay is 4X50=200gmts The no. of gmts required = 40+90+80+25+25

=260 gmtsThere fore the theoretical minimum no. of lays

= 260/200 = 1.3This gives a practical minimum of two lays to

cut the contract – the best that is possible

Lay 1

Lay 2

The worked solution is:

12141410

12121816

Lay 2 – 40 plies

Lay 1 – 25 plies

Size 10 12 14 16 18Quantity 40 90 80 25 25

The contract details

Cutting plan example 2

The contract details are followsSize 12 14 16 18Quantity 100 160 120 60the constraints on lay dimensions are:Maximum lay height = 60 pliesMaximum lay length = 4 garments marked

Theoretical minimum no. of lays required are:

Max no of garments per lay is 4X60=240 gmtsThe no. of garments required = 100+160+120+60

= 440 garmentsThere fore the theoretical minimum no. of lays = 440/240

= 1.83

This gives a practical minimum of two lays to cut the contract.

Lay 1

Lay 2

16 181416

14141212

Lay 1- 60 plies

Lay 2 – 50 plies

Cutting plan example 3

The contract details are follows

Size S M LQuantity 300 600 400

the constraints on lay dimensions are:

Maximum lay height = 75 pliesMaximum lay length = 5 garments marked

Theoretical minimum no. of lays required are:

Max no of garments per lay is 5X75 = 375 gmtsThe no. of garments required = 300+600+400

= 1300 garmentsThere fore the theoretical minimum no. of lays = 1300/375

= 3.47

This gives a practical minimum of four lays to cut the contract.

S S S S S

LM M M

LM

L

MM

M M M L L

L

Lay 1- 60 plies

Lay 2 - 75 plies

Lay 3 - 75 plies

Lay 4 - 50 plies

COSTING OF CUT ORDER PLAN – MATERIAL COSTS ( Example 4) You have received the following contract:

Quantity 1200Size A B C D EQuantity 1 2 4 2 1Single gmt marker lengths (m) : 2.0 2.2 2.4 2.5 2.6

Other relevent informationEnd allowance 3 cm per plyMaximum number of plies 100Maximum lay length 10 metersCost of the fabric is 3$Cloth saving on multi-size or multi-garment marker is 5%

1. Determine targets:Theoretical minimum no. Of lays is a little more

complicated as the maximum no. of garments must be inferred. Since the average length is about 2.3 m per garment, the maximum number marked will be 4

Theoretical minimum no. of lays = 1200/4X100 = 3

Since quantities are not in multiples of 100 three lays is an impossibility consequently, the target must be four lays

2. Consider options 3. Make decision

CCB

EEAA

DCCB

DCCB

D

Lay 4 - 80 plies

Lay 3 - 80 plies

Lay 2- 80 plies

Lay 1- 60 plies

4. Calculation of material

Marker for lay 1 (2.0+2.0+2.6+2.6) X 95/100 = 8.740 m

Marker for lays 2-4 (2.2+2.4+2.4+2.5) X 95/100 = 9.025 m

Ply lengthsPly length for lay 1 8.770 + 0.030 = 8.770 mPly length for lays 2-4 9.025 + 0.030 = 9.055 m

Lay lengthsLay length for lay 1 8.770 X 60 = 526.20 mLay length for lays 2-4 9.055 X 80= 724.40 m

Material costsTotal length 526.20 = (724.40 X3) = 2699.40 mTotal cost 2699.40 X 3.00 = 8098.20 $