www.parellax.

com
ERP for Garment and
Softgoods Industry
Producton Sute
Use an nformation Web to Prevent a Problem Web
support Material Preparation
MAE Modules that support Machine Management
MAE Modules that support Scheduling of Capacity
Financing and Costing
Critical Path and Scheduling
Quality Assurance and Quality Control Management
Human Resources and Facilities Management
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Use an Information Web to Prevent a ProbIem Web
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''ShouId increased saIes give you warm satisfaction or nagging uIcers?''
Chaos of Production:
What do more production orders mean to you? There are two sides:
- The up side is more revenue
The down side is potential problems as follows:
The potential problems you face in production are linked and tangled together. The only way to
prevent them is to link all of the information in your company about order fulfillment and production
together.
The first principle of equilibrium is a good organization linked by a good information network. Your
staff needs to make many decisions during the order fulfillment process. The key to making correct
decisions is the right information.
Production
Line not
Balance
Sample
Late
Confirm
Got Wrong
Sourcing
Don't Know
the Workload
Confirm
Material
Late
Delivery
Bad Quality
Material
Not Plan
Line
Appropriately
New Supplier
Miss the
Lead Time
Line
Not Enough
Worker
Bad QC
Product Bad
Quality
Production
Line Slow
Down
Put Wrong
Efficiency
Worker
on Line
Late
Delivery
Wrong
Material
Arrived
Material
Arrive
Late
You couId overstock materiaI because
1. Your merchandiser orders material
without checking the warehouse
2. Your warehouse does not know how
much stock it has, how much it will have
when all outstanding POs are received,
and how much of that is already allocated
to other orders
You couId ship Iate because
1. You order the wrong material, or
2. Your customer requests a late change
You couId have quaIity probIems
1. Because your supplier ships poor quality
or incorrect material
2. Because your workers make mistakes
during production
3. Because your internal QA does not find
a problem early enough to correct it quickly
and cheaply
You couId have production capacity probIems
1. Miscalculation of the line's capacity
2. Under- or over-estimated the worker's capacity
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The seven key
components of
equiIibrium are
You need to manage your business to achieve each component of equiIibrium
Preparing materiaIs:
You need to precisely calculate material requirements and prepare material before production starts.
You need to automatically generate a purchase order for on-time delivery, taking into account the
material's lead time and the time required for quality control and any pre-production processing.
PIanning Machines
You need to allocate different machines for each type of garment (for example, embroidery machines).
Other machines are not absolutely necessary but they produce critical productivity improvements
(for example, denim pocketing machines). Each machine has different maximum capacity, downtime
and setup time. You need to take this into account when planning machine allocations and predicting
productivity. You also need to manage an inventory of machine accessories such as needles and
spare parts to reduce downtime.
ScheduIing Capacity
You need to calculate the work minute requirements for each production order so you can schedule
each job on the line and plan when each one will start and end. You
7. Human Resource and
Faci l i ty Management
Garment manufacturing is a
l abor-i ntensi ve i ndustry
and human resource is an
asset of the business. t is
important to manage them
well.
1. Preparing materials You
must prepare the materials
in sufficient quantity and with
acceptable quality by the
time you have scheduled for
production.
2. Planning machines You
need to prepare enough
machines of the right kinds at
the time you have scheduled
for production.
3. Scheduling capacity - You
need to schedule enough
capacity for the right workers
with the necessary skill
sets to use the machines you
have prepared at the time
you have scheduled for
production.
4. Financing You need to
arrange credit lines and cash
to purchase materials and pay
staff. Controlling Costs You
need to track every expense
and take every opportunity to
cut costs.
5. Getting Everything Done
on Time Fulfilling each order
depends on correctly
performing hundreds of tasks.
One late task can result in
delayed delivery, or risking
failing to meet one of your
other objectives. You need to
track every one of these tasks
and make sure your staff
completes each one on time.
6. Quality Control You need
to be able to track the quality of
the material right from the very
beginning of the process, i.e.
the raw material received all the
way to finished goods packing
and dispatching.
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then use the exact skill and resource requirements for each job to plan how many and which workers
to put on each line to meet your production goals and balance your lines.
Financing
Managing cash in/out, credit lines and special payment
terms is critical to maintaining business equilibrium.
Financing a garment enterprise can be complicated
because such enterprises often offer credit
themselves, make use of vendor credit, and use
financial instruments such as L/Cs and packing loans.
You need to understand your projected cash flow
for each sale and for your overall business so you
can maintain sufficient cash on hand.
Garment manufacturing has always been a low-
margin business. This makes managing costs and
correcting problems that increase costs a critical
part of your job. You need to make sure that
appropriate people approve all sale prices and
expenditures. You need analysis tools so you can
predict your costs for each order, compare them
with actual costs, and understand the reasons for
any variances.
Getting Everything Done on Time
The garment industry is time-critical. The goods might not be sold if the customer does not receive
them on time. f you finish production late, you may need to ship by air and lose some or all of your
profit margin. Every garment order requires a number of steps anything from a dozen to hundreds
to be performed by different staff of your company. You need to track every one of these steps to
make sure that they are all completed on time so you can ship on time. You need full visibility at all
times to know which tasks are late so you can make sure they are completed and you meet your
commitments to your customers.
QuaIity ControI
Quality of production is a critical element that can drive the cost of production up. magine if problematic
fabric passed through QC and went into the cutting table - value keeps being added to the defective
product only to be rejected upon final inspection, or even by the client. Products need to pass quality
gateways in every step before value can be further added into them.
Human Resource and FaciIity Management
Human resource is an asset of a garment factory since it is a labor-intensive industry. High skill is
not easy to keep and the facility needs to be managed well to control costs. A device to manage
workers' records, wage, access, and skill level is needed so that the company can secure and make
full use of its assets.
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What are the tools you need to perform these tasks and
maintain your company's equilibrium?
A powerfuI, inteIIigent ERP system that heIps you manage aII of these processes so
you can focus on what shouId be your reaI work, increasing saIes and expanding
your business.
MateriaI Preparation are
MateriaI Requisition:
Right from the creation of the bill of material of each style, order quantity will automatically multiply
the unit material and create a material requisition note. t can also bundle up multiple orders and
sort out all the similar materials that are required.
FuIfiIIment:
Material will automatically search the material inventory and material that is arriving. Then it will allocate
the surplus material to the order to reduce the material to be purchased. The location of the material
in the inventory can be found by using barcode or RFD. Therefore, issuance of the material is quick
and easy.
MateriaI Purchase:
After searching the material inventory and finding out that the surpluses do not fulfill the order requirement,
the system will automatically generate a purchase order. During the purchase order generating process,
the system can go into the supplier database to search for other alternatives based on price, delivery
date, terms of payment and quality.
Critical Path - You must make sure all materials arrive on time. All orders have a lead time. To avoid
production delays you must track changes in supplier delivery dates.
Inventory - Make sure the materials you ordered have arrived and the materials are still available
when you start production.
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MateriaI Inventory:
MAE maintains overall inventory levels and per-warehouse inventory. MAE tracks inventory information
by the SKU level, maintaining separate inventory level information for each size, color, and dye lot.
MAE also tracks allocations and material costs for individual packages so you manage costing
according to GAAP. The stock intake function also records order numbers, order priority status,
quantity allocated, quantity used, quantity remaining and package numbers.
MateriaI Transfer:
The production department sends a material request to the warehouse to issue materials for each
production order. The warehouse officer will know exactly where all the materials are based on their
pre-assigned barcode location.
MateriaI ArrivaI:
Warehouse staffs create goods received notes (GRNs) for each material transfer. They can do this
based on the material delivery note from the transferring warehouse or they can use barcode scanners
to read package bar codes and receive goods automatically.
MAE can specify what orders each material is allocated to. You can enter this information manually
or MAE can generate it automatically based on priorities or production dates.
QuaIity ControI:
Alternatively, if QA rejects the materials, the staff can issue a
goods rejected note and state the reason for rejecting the
shipment. Once the warehouse generates the goods issued
note and related invoices, the materials can be shipped.
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MAE ModuIes that support Machine Management are
Machine Inventory Master:
Parellax ERP stores all the essential information of machine such as type, model, and cost of each
machine. All machines are bar-coded and stored in the inventory, the barcode will log the logistic in
the sewing floor. Machine Accessory also kept in the inventory for replenishment.
Capacity Management:
After the bill of labor is assigned for an individual style, the machine required for the production step
is also assigned to it.
WIP and assignment:
When the machine is placed in line, it will come out of the inventory and barcode of the machine is
read. When the machine is logged into a workstation, the D will be read and a worker of that workstation
will also be assigned to that machine.
MAE ModuIes that support ScheduIing of Capacity are
Work Load:
You need to know the standard work minutes of your garment by being able to calculate by motion
study. The standard minute will be used for costing and work loading to allocate the right number of
workers to each production line.
To avoid production line bottlenecks you must select the right workers and balance your line. t is
also a very useful information to measure your worker's efficiency.
Work Load Management:
Use ndustrial Engineering technic to manage your production. Determine the time required for work
features such as collaring and pocketing by measuring work samples or performing time studies.
Store information about these features in a library with detailed requirement information.
1. Worker skill requirements with skill efficiency levels
2. Machine speed and specification requirements
Calculate the total work time for each garment style based on the sum of the work steps. Document
the sequence of work steps for future reference to achieve optimal efficiency.
Production ControI
MAE generates bundle tickets and then uses real time production line data to help managers immediately
identify production line problems and track work-in-progress (WP) from the cutting room to the
intermediate sewing floor and finally to the packing department. MAE tracks each bundle by its code
as each work step is performed and tracks which worker is responsible so you can give proper credit
to each worker or team.
Calculate each production step based on human motion
measurement using SAM or the standard minute unit system.
Assemble your company*s production performance library based
on this detailed process procedure.
Production Line PIanning:
MAE's work engineering system calculates the work time for
each garment style by combining each production step to determine
the total workload of the order. You then use MAE to plan at the
factory and line levels. The number of available workers limits
the production capacity of a factory. MAE calculates how much
of the order will fit onto the production line at one time. The objective is to load plan so the production
line is never idle.
MAE also has semi-automated line planning capabilities. t can automatically switch an order to another
line if there are work stoppages or delays.
MAE displays line plans graphically in Excel format so you can easily zoom in for detail and zoom
out for a high level overview of the line plan.
Production ControI:
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Bundle ticketing with
Radio Frequency
dentification (RFD)
technology.
You must have:
A cutting plan.
An efficient
control system.
1. Determine the
work minute plan
for each item
2. Plan the loading
of the work to the
line
3. Use real time
production data to
track work status
4. Generate
work-in-progress
and efficiency
reports
5. Study efficiency
and scan for
defects
6. Re-train and
fine-tune
Production Line
Optimization Loop:
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MAE tracks production progress as tickets are scanned. t can generate detailed management reports
including order status and individual worker productivity. This allows management to analyze operations
and evaluate performance to maximize production efficiency.
Module Overview
The bundle ticket system relies on RFD tags or barcode bundle tickets to monitor and control the
production floor in real time. Workers scan tags or tickets as bundles move through production.
Production floor managers can see the status of every order and the work performed by every
employee.
MAE produces barcode tickets in the cutting room or prior to knitting which accompany the bundles
through the manufacturing process. MAE tracks which steps have been completed for each bundle
for WP reports.
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Financing and Costing
t is Needed to control to run a profitable business. Cash flow and financing should be smooth and
costing need to be control.
MAE processes the data captured from the production floor into decision supporting data. The system
generates decision-making reports in real time for manufacturing production control. MAE can also
use generate staff work reports and piece rate payroll reports based on the work performed by each
staff. The reports MAE generates include:
1. Production efficiency report
2. Sewing floor activity report
(which helps identify bottlenecks)
3. Order status information (the
critical path of the order)
4. Piece rate calculation
1. There are cost everywhere and a lot of costs are hidden
- Sampling cost;
- Material overbook cost
- Actual material cost, etc.
But most companies ignore them.
2. MAE Modules cover: All real costing can be captured accurately and real time
- ntegrated finance module
- Trade Finance such as costing management
ntegrated finance module allows all buyers and suppliers invoice to be captured in the system, and
allows real time forecast and actual cost to be captured to reveal real financial situation
1. Function include: AP/AR/GL
2. Report include: aging/P & L
CriticaI Path and ScheduIing
Parellax MAE Enterprise Critical Path schedules all production-related tasks. MAE schedules the tasks
based on each shipment's shipment date, and assigns them to specific people.
MAE generates real time progress reports, to-do lists for each person, and exception reports to help
you find and deal with problems. You can view this information in reports or in graphical displays that
make it easy for you to understand your problems and their possible impact on shipment dates. MAE
also reports on late tasks and omitted tasks and who was responsible for them so you can identify
and understand problems and take corrective action.
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QuaIity Assurance and QuaIity ControI Management
There are four stages of quality control in the manufacturing process:
1. The sampling stage - recording problems during the sample making stage
2. Pre-production - recording problems when materials are delivered or inspected prior to use
3. nline inspection - recording problems in the production stage during cutting, sewing, finishing,
knitting, linking or trimming
Final inspection - recording problems once the garment is in the final production stage: measurement,
shading, stitching.
Quality control personnel set specific quality control standards to meet the requirements of the
client including the number of garments to be inspected, acceptance standards, and the acceptable
failure rate.
Each different type of garment has its own quality standard. MAE generates quality standards,
tracks QA inspections, and generates spec reports.QA inspections, and generates spec reports.
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Human Resources and FaciIities Management
Wage Management
Garment factory wages can be fixed salary, piece rate, and/or bonus based.
Companies calculate compensation based on work time and productivity. Some companies change
their calculation formulas frequently to motivate their workers to be more productive.
The wage management module links the personnel records to the time and attendance clock, efficiency
performance index, piece rate and fault rate. The time and attendance clock links with the holiday
schedule and the price and day wage. This allows input of the formula for calculation of:
1. Wages for audit and non-audit wages
2. Bonus and penalty program for exceeding or not meeting standards
SkiII Inventory:
MAE records the efficiency rate and skill set of every worker in the factory. Line managers use this
information to assign workers to the line according to their efficiency and skills to balance each line
and minimize bottlenecks.
FaciIities Management
MAE logs each worker*s ins and outs for controlled locations such as dormitories and canteens. MAE
can also manage canteen and other purchases with an internal "credit card" that workers use to obtain
food and make other purchases. MAE deducts their expenses from their salary payments.
QuaIity ControI:
n order to do the right thing at the beginning, Parellax QC works right from beginning:
1. Sample QC check; 2. Material QC; 3. nline; 4. Finished goods
1. Check the
barcode and con
record
2. What is the
quality problem
3. Who did it and
reply to payroll/HR
System
Take out of detaiI
workshop during
sampIe, check on:
1. Measurement
2. Sewing detail
3. Color
SampIe QC:
MateriaI: use of 4-
point QC check
1. Material arrives
2. Apply 4-point
QC
1. AQL
2. Before the
scanning pack
3. Needle
detector QC
OnIine QC is to deaI
with the sewing
phase
Finished good QC
Iead with the
acceptance IeveI of
the buyer
Parellax Ltd.
www.parellax.com
Hong Kong Office
Unit 5, 8/F, Kowloon Plaza,
No.485 Castle Peak Rd.
Tel: (852) 9804 6793
Fax: (852) 2391 9440
Shenzhen Office
Unit 1, 12/F, TowerB,
Haisong Building, Terra 9 rd,
Futian District
Tel: (755) 8280 0689
Fax: (755)8280 0616