Ensuring that factories perform the necessary fabric inspection will enable them to be aware of the quality condition of the fabric prior to cutting, so that once manufactured the amount of defective garments found due to fabric flaws will be minimal. There is a standard tolerance for shipping to the USA which is +/-2%.
1. Upon receipt of a fabric consignment, vendor must have the following items on hand
A. Mill Packing List
B. Inspection & Test reports
C. Approved production sample
2. A fabric inspection machine must be available to conduct a fabric inspection. Lighting level should be at 150 foot candles or 1500 LUX Cool White Fluorescent only (CWF)
3. A copy of a recommended fabric inspection report to be used to document the result of the inspection is shown in this section. Factories may use their own format at their discretion, but a report that is complete and with full picture of result provides an efficient fabric inspection process.
4. Factory inspector must perform a 4 point system fabric inspection based on ANSI Z1.4 Level II Normal Sampling Plan as shown below:
|
Lot Size |
Inspect Sample Size |
|
0 -50 Rolls |
5 Rolls |
|
51 - 150 Rolls |
20 Rolls |
|
151 - 280 Rolls |
32 Rolls |
|
281 - 500 Rolls |
50 Rolls |
5. During inspection the inspector must check if dye lot and yardage indicated on packing list corresponds to the ticket ot sticker identified on the fabric roll. If there is a check box on the inspection report, put a check mark accordingly.
6. The inspector must also check if the quality of fabric and design of the fabric roll when compared with the approved standards, production sample swatch is matching. If there is a check box on the inspection report, put a check mark accordingly.
7. Must cut a quarter yard of fabric across the full width from each dye lot, and compare the shade at middle and end of roll by dye lot.
8. The inspector must check the width of fabric at beginning, middle and end of roll selected for inspection and compare against width indicated on packing list. Mark actual width on report.
9. The inspector must proceed to check fabric roll and mark defect code &/or points on report
A. Point count for each roll based on 100 linear yards should be calculated.
Example: Yardage of roll #101=120 yards
Point count allocated = 7 points
Point count per 100 linear yards = 7/120*100 = 5.8
B. In addition, at the end of inspection of the consignment, the average point count per 100 linear yards should be calculated.
Example: Total Yardage Inspected = 600 Yards
Total point count allocated = 25 points
Average point count per 100 linear yards = 25/600*100 = 4.16
The below table shows the demerit points to be allocated for fabric defects
| Length of defect | Point count to be allocated |
| 1 - 3 inches | 1 point |
| 3 - 6 inches | 2 points |
| 6 - 9 inches | 3 points |
| > 9 inches and all holes | 4 points |
1. No more than 4 points can be assigned to one linear yard
2. All holes are assigned 4 points regardless of its size
3. No rolls less than 40 yards should be received unless authorized by the division representative
4. Any defects running for over 3 yards are considered as running defect, as such, the roll is rejected regardless of the final point count.
5. Minimum length of either part of a two piece fabric can not be less than 25 yards.
6. All joint seams are to be assigned 4 points
7. For woven fabric, the average point count acceptable per roll is 26 and the average point count acceptable for a shipment is 13
PURPOSE
The purpose of conducting this process is to ensure that there will not be any variation in shade within a garment from one part to another. By performing these tests vendors will also be able to determine if there are shade variations, on how to manage in the best method during cutting in case there was no time to replace fabric and if the mill would absord any losses. This can be done by using a special marker for cutting.
HOW MUCH
It is recommended that a minimum of one roll per dye lot is tested
WHERE
This can be done near the fabric inspection area or an ambient environment
1. Cut a full width of fabric from the beginning and end of the roll selected for fabric inspection. The length of the fabric must be between 10 and 15 inches
2. Divide the width of the fabric into 4 equal sections and mark at top of each section 1,2,3,4
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
Cut across each section
3. Join the sections in the above sequence so that it forms a full width of fabric with the sequence 2,4,1,3
| 2 | 4 | 1 | 3 |
4. Compare the shade variation between each section against the original standard
5. If any shade variation is found between the sections, then we can assume that there is shade variation between side, center and side.
6. Similar comparison can be done on the beginning and end pieces of fabric to determine if there will be shade variation between end to end.
By doing these test, the inspector or technician can determine the variances of shade from side center side and from end to end.
