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What a Garment Manufacturer Actually Does for a Clothing Brand
A garment manufacturer is the company that completes the production of a garment from a clothing design. In the case of a clothing brand, it requires much more than cutting fabric and sewing the pieces together. Materials, patterns, construction, sampling, finishing and quality control all come into play.
Knowing what‘s happening on the garment manufacturing side helps brands in several ways making it easier for them to develop products and communicate more effectively.
A Design Still Needs to Become a Pattern
Shows what the garment should look like drawing of clothing. but may or may not show how the product is made.
Design has to be transferred to a workable pattern. This will have to be done before the production stage.
The pattern determines important details such as:
- Body proportions
- Shoulder width
- Sleeve shape
- Garment length
- Neckline
- Pocket placement
- Seam positions
This is where a “two dimensional” design begins to turn into a real object.
For instance, an oversized hoodie is not just a larger standard style hoodie. In order to achieve the purpose silhouette, proportions such as shoulder, sleeve, body and armhole may be altered.
Fabric Changes the Manufacturing Process
The fabric used to make a garment has a far greater impact than its visual appearance.
Each material reacts differently to cutting, sewing, washing, finishing.
A light weight jersey may be handled different from a heavyweight from a heavyweight cotton. Stretch fabric is different to stiff woven, and jeans can require other washing and finishing techniques.
Manufacturers may need to consider:
- Fiber composition
- Fabric weight
- Stretch
- Shrinkage
- Texture
- Drape
- Surface finish
This is exactly why selecting the right fabric and constructing the garment go hand in hand.
What works with one material may need to be altered when the fabric (or weight of it) is different.
Sampling Is Part of Product Development
The sample one is not the end product that is approved.
Is an approach to determine whether the design functions as a garment
Of course, once a sample has been produced, a brand could find the sleeve to be too long, the width of the body to be too wide, have a change to the neckline or find that the fabric doesn‘t give the intended shape.
Such observations could cause some amendments.
Continuing success is not assured, and the pattern may be altered; details of construction adapted; the material re-considered… before a further sample is made.
This makes sampling plays an important role in the development process, not only in final inspection stage as.
Cutting Turns the Pattern Into Garment Pieces
Until the pattern and fabric are verified, it is essential to make the fabric ready for cutting.
Different parts of the garment may include:
- Front panels
- Back panels
- Sleeves
- Collars
- Cuffs
- Waistbands
- Pockets
- Linings
All of these pieces are important because even the smallest deviation can change the final size and fit.
Fabric preparation and cut therefore need to be as uniform as possible, especially when a large number of garments are to be made from one same pattern which has already been approved.
Sewing Brings the Pieces Together
Then the individual components go in togarment building.
What the order of operations will be is app specific, depending on the product.
A T-shirt may only have a single piece of fabric for the body while a jacket may be made up of many different pieces of fabric for the body, pockets, features, lining, a number of fastenings and various other construction methods.
As the preceding manufacturing process can vary for different fabrics and styles and these can require a range of different machines and sewing techniques.
The is Another justification as to why a manufacturer of garments must be familiar with the product prior to the commencement of manufacturing.
The way a garment is put together can vary from garment to garment if it is designed differently. It is not necessary to put the design together the same way each time.
Different Garments Have Different Manufacturing Priorities
A manufacture process that is suitable for one type of cloth is unlikely to be suitable for all types of clothing.
The T-shirt may have more focus on the shape of the neckline and the seaming.
A denim garment is denim does hardware; a denim garment could involve fabric handling, hardware, wash and finish.
Back to the outlines of a puffer jacket are eight sections for insulation, shell, baffles, and volume.
Sportswear may possibly need stretch fabrics and construction that gives more scope for movement.
Hence, the manufacturing requirements are so varied with the product.
Finishing Gives the Garment Its Final Character
You may finish sewing a garment and not have it on the floor.
Depending on the product, additional processes may include:
- Garment washing
- Dyeing
- Printing
- Embroidery
- Pressing
- Trimming
- Label application
- Thread cleaning
- Folding
- Packaging
The finishing stages can be impacted on to a fairly high degree.
A washed T-shirt, for instance, could have entirely transformed personality from the same piece of clothing prior to it being washed.
For a product with a unique manufacturing process (that originated from the design), finishing is integrated in this process.
Quality Control Happens Throughout Production
The concept of quality control is not something that occurs once the garment production has finished.
Problems arise in the produCtion at various points.
In cutting, a manufacturer would be able to monitor the way the fabric and panels are treated.
Sewing allows you to check construction and seam quality.
Once finished, the completed garments can be checked for measurements and look, quality of work and other agreed specifications.
Allows identifying problems earlier rather than at the end of the production run.
Consistency Matters as Much as the First Sample
The production of a good dress is really only a part of all the other challenges.
Made in a clothing label must be the same also, to call different product.
That means maintaining the approved:
- Measurements
- Fabric
- Color
- Construction
- Branding
- Finishing
This becomes all the more important in case of reordering of a product.
Most customers purchasing the same style at various seasons anticipate the fit to be comparable and the style to look the same.
For brands in expansion it could therefore become an important aspect of the production relationship.
A Garment Manufacturer Can Support More Than Basic Production
Not all manufacturers have the same ethos.
Some companies are ready to go and sell their concrete technical specifications!
Some others that require help are those that need variation on patterns, test and development samples, fabric selection, branding, and readying it for production.
The brand may also require multiple processes within a single project, e.g. label printing, embroidery, washing and packaging.
Hence, its scope of work may vary between fairly simple manufacturing processes to a complex product development process.
From One Garment to an Entire Collection
A relationship with a garment manufacturer can be opened with just one product.
As time passes, more T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, pants, jackets, or any other category can be added to a brand and its distribution list.
With an increase in collection size, the manufacturing process becomes more complex. The mass production of more varied products created can lead to costs and time increases for the requirement of additional fabric, pattern styles, construction and finish.
In addition, the collection must also adhere to the brand identity.
In general, the involvement of a manufacturing team that is familiar with a set of numerous products could facilitate the extension of that collection.
What Happens Before Bulk Production?
The first stage, the product specifications need to be defined from a small batch to full scale production.
This can be the accepted sample, measurements, fabric, colors, artwork, labels, construction detail and finish specifications.
The fewer uncertainties there are in the specifications, the easier it will be for the production crew to reach the same outcome.
This will also prove useful for subsequent batches production.
Understanding the Manufacturing Side of Your Brand
Garment manufacturing is also a key piece of information for the clothing brands.
All these decisions are interconnected and the final product is the consequence of a number of choices. It is the design of the flat pattern that will influence the fit, the fabric that influences the construction, the construction that influences the durability and the finishing that influences the personality of the product.
That‘s why designing is not just the last thing that happens afterward. It is also a stage in the process that turns a creative thought into a tangible product that customers can wear.
From Product Concept to Finished Garment
JiuvelWear is the apparel manufacturing arm of Dongguan Jiuzuo Clothing Co., Ltd., located in Dongguan, Guangdong, China. The company collaborates with clothing brands for customized apparel development, sampling, private label manufacturing, and garment production of various product categories.
For a brand, the manufacturing process has been set in motion long before a ready-measured garment leaves the factory. It starts with the conception of the product, then the conversion of design into reality, creation of sample, question of matter and detail, and finally the reproduction of the scaled garment.
That link between an idea and a finished article is what a good garment manufacturer can ultimately provide.