The role of fabric usage for minimization of cut-and-sew waste within the apparel production line: Case of a summer dress

Abstract

Today, due to wasteful usage of the fabric within conventional pattern cutting, clothing manufacturing processes have created a cut-and-sew waste problem. As approximately half of the whole garment cost consists of fabric, this leads to both an unsustainable and uneconomical development of fashion. Therefore, in the fashion production process, fabric is the most valuable material. Besides unintended economic consequences of the waste problem, pre-consumption waste has serious environmental impacts. This study aims to minimize the cut-and-sew waste problem, focusing on the problem's environmental perspective. Hence, the cut-and-sew waste problem, which occurs at the marker planning stage, is investigated to supply more ecological and economical production by increasing the fabric efficiency and decreasing the cost of fabric. In accordance with the aim of the research, the case study aims to minimize the cut-and-sew waste, focusing on the fabric factor, by comparing various marker plans of a dress. Thus, the variances of the marker plan were designed and compared at the marker planning stage through a case study of a summer dress. The various factors regarding fabric are designs, such as asymmetric fabric, symmetric fabric, non-woven fabric and the fabric width 90 cm, 120 cm, and 140 cm. In these marker plans, the cut-and-sew waste rate is compared to find which width and fabric factor will provide the minimum cut-and-sew waste. Regarding this, the fashion industry requires a new perspective that eliminates fabric waste to solve uncontrollable fabric waste problems. Therefore, it is believed that this study will bridge the gap between academic studies and the fashion industry trying to reduce cut and sew waste. (c) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.