The textile and mills manufacturing industry includes all of the processes that transform a basic natural or synthetic fiber into a product such as yarn or fabric. Not only does this industry have a variety of fibers and processes, but it also relies on a variety of machinery to get the work done. It’s not really surprising that document management software (DMS) is necessary to increase efficiency in all of these areas.
The Many Types of Fibers
Many different types of fibers can be used to create finished textile products. Depending on what the end use product is, your company may work with cotton, jute, wool, polyester, viscose, or hemp. Cotton is still the most popular fiber due to its versatility. In fact, you’ll find cotton in many usable items, including apparel, sheets, towels, curtains, and canvas and textile bags.
The Ordering Process
Textile manufacturing is complicated. The sheer volume of available fabrics, materials, and designs can turn the ordering process into a small nightmare. But before your manufacturing company transforms fibers into fabric, you have to receive an order for a finished product. In order to give the customer what they want, your company has to order the appropriate raw materials.
Fortunately, using document management software can simplify the ordering process for you. By eliminating the need to fax or email orders and approvals back and forth, your company can serve its customers and suppliers better.
The Manufacturing Processes
Taking cotton from a plant to a finished material that can be sewn into a garment consists of several different processes. These manufacturing processes include spinning, weaving, knitting, dyeing, printing, and finishing. Of course, each of these processes is very involved and detailed.
Spinning
When people think about spinning, they may picture a spinning wheel as they remember it from the fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty.” In truth, the process of spinning is a lot more complicated. To illustrate, below is a flowchart of spinning in the modern world.
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Carding
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Drawing
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Combing
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Drawing
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Roving Manufacturing
Weaving
The next step in the process is weaving. The yarn from the spinning section is woven into fabric by interlacing the thread. Knitting, felting, braiding, or plaiting are similar processes as weaving that also use two distinct sets of yarns or threads to create fabric or cloth.
Dyeing and Printing
Dyeing and printing are the next steps in the manufacturing process. Both involve washing, brushing, and cropping the fabric to begin with. The fabric may also be bleached during this process. It’s also necessary to allow for drying time in between some of the steps.
The dyeing and printing processes rely increasingly on machineries for increased efficiency and accuracy. In fact, most of the manufacturing processes of the textile and mills industry rely increasingly on machinery.
Finishing
The finishing processes include testing the material for thickness and overall quality. Most manufacturing plants have testing machineries in place that control the quality of the material after each of the different parts of the process. For example, it’s a good idea to test the quality of the yarn after the spinning process before using it in the weaving process.
The Manufacturing Equipment
The textile and mills industry is growing in the United States. Part of the reason that this industry is becoming more profitable is the ability to use machinery throughout the production process. Machines are used for spinning, weaving, dyeing, printing, and testing throughout.
Of course it’s still important to create and implement standard operating procedures (or SOPs) to keep the workflow efficient. This includes scheduling maintenance on the machines as well as regularly testing and calibrating of the equipment.
Increasing Efficiency with Document Management Software
For the textile and mills industry, it’s important to stay efficient in order to remain profitable. It’s not enough to buy the newest and most expensive machinery without having the appropriate processes in place to utilize it correctly. Whether you’re managing the ordering process, supervising the manufacturing process, or handling the accounting side of the business, a document management system can help.
Here are a few examples of what your company might need to keep track of:
- Orders for raw materials
- Orders from customers for finished products
- Availability of machinery for production
- Procedures for testing equipment
- Quality control processes for each step
- Workflow from fiber to fabric
Our document management software offers traceability for each of the processes your company is involved in. By organizing the workflow of necessary documentation, your company never has to worry about lost documents or unauthorized access of specific files. With our help, you always have everything you need at your fingertips.
But don’t just take our word for it. Why don’t you give eFileCabinet a try today and see how we can help your company? Simply fill out the information on this page to start your 15-minute demo.
References
http://www.ibisworld.com/industry/default.aspx?indid=300
http://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag313.htm
http://textilelearner.blogspot.com/2012/02/textile-manufacturing-process-process.html