Requirement of marker planning

Apparel industry has always paid great attention to marker planning because cutting room cuts fabric which worth about 60% of garment cost. Any reduction in the amount of fabric used per garment leads to increased profit. Marker planning is to determine the most efficient combination of sizes and shades for each order and to produce the best fabric yield and equipment utilization.

There is no final solution to a marker-planning problem, In order to plan efficiently, it is necessary to visualize the marker as whole to see it at a glance. Marker planning is subject to a number of constraints relating to:

1. Nature of fabric
2. Quality in cutting
3. Production planning

1. The nature of the fabric:
  • Pattern alignment in relation to the grain line of the fabric: Pattern pieces must carry the grain line when they are laid down on the marker paper & the grain line should be parallel to the warp or wales. When laid across the fabric then the grain line should be parallel to weft or course. If marker planner does not pay proper attention to the grain line, the finished garment will not hang or drape correctly when worn. It restricts the freedom of marker planner.
  • Fabric symmetry or asymmetry: Many fabrics can be turned 1800 and retain the same appearance which is termed symmetrical. They require no special attention during marker making. Asymmetrical fabrics are those which show different appearance when they are turned 1800. Example of this type of fabric is pile fabric. The marker should be planned in such a way that it is in accordance with symmetry of the fabric. All pattern pieces of a garment should be along the same direction when laid on an asymmetric fabric. It is also one kind of restriction for a marker planner.
  • Characteristics of garment design: If a vertical stripe does not show a complete mirror image repeat, the right and left sides of a garment (along the CFL) may not be mirror images to each other. In this case the pattern pieces should be placed on checks or stripes in such a way that the design matches when sewing up.

2. Quality in cutting:
  • For majority of cutting situation when a knife blade is used, the placement of the pattern pieces in the marker must give freedom for knife movement. A blade which has even normal width cannot turn a right angle in the middle of the pattern piece. For this reason space must always be allowed for a knife to turn such curves. The amount of space depends on actual cutting method employed.
  • The number of pattern in a marker must be counted just after finishing the marker making process. If the number of pattern is improper & fabric is cut, then the problem will arise during sewing. That time it will cause huge loss of time & money. For example, if there are six individual sizes pant & each size of pant contains sixteen patterns, so the total number of pattern should be 6X16=96. These 96 patterns must have to be calculated in above the marker after marker making.
  • Correct labeling of cut garment parts is essential to identify correctly the components of whole garment. It is essential for the marker planner to code each pattern pieces with its sizes as the marker is planned. This will help to avoid the mixing of pattern of one size to another size.
3. Production planning:
When an order is placed for a quantity of garments, normally specifies a quantity of each size & color. The quantity of garments is expressed in Dozen. In the work order/ Order sheet the quantity of garments are clearly mentioned according to the size & color. Example, The order sheet of women’s dress is given of 1500 dozen, in which 600 dozen is white, 600 dozen is blue & 300 dozen is of cream color. Sizes will be 15, 16, 17 & 18 and ratio will be 2:4:4:2. If the sewing room requires the cut work urgently, the marker planner makes two markers:
  • Long marker
  • Short marker
For long marker, it can be made according to the size proportion and different size. The process is very much efficient but takes more time & increase shade variation. Example, total 2+4+4+2=12 patterns of 15, 16, 17 & 18 sizes are drawn in a single marker in case of long marker

For short marker and for particular order two markers can be made. This process is less efficient but takes less time thus increase production. Small cutting table is enough to serve this purpose. Each short marker is near about half of long marker. Example, 2+2+2=6 patterns of 15, 16 & 17 sizes are drawn in one marker & 2+2+2=6 of 16, 17 & 18 sizes are drawn in another marker. So 12 patterns are divided into 6+6 of two short markers.

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