Fabric Inspection in the Garment Industry: Processes and Best Practices
Noor Ahmed Raaz
Specialized in Apparel Manufacturing
Owner and Editor in Chief Textile Merchandising
Asst. Prof., Department of Textile Engineering
Atish Dipankar University of Science & Technology
Email: textilemerchandising1@gmail.com
Fabric Inspection:
Fabric is the main raw material for garments manufacturing process. Therefore, fabric inspection is a very important task in the garment industry. Fabric inspection focuses on fault/defect rate, shade, end to end & edge to middle shading, handle and appearance. Now I would like to discuss about the method of fabric inspection and 4 point system.
Method of Fabric Inspection:
- Select the rolls to inspect
- Both fabric manufacturer and garment manufacturers’ inspector to have an approved fabric submission form to compare bulk to bulk.
- Put the rolls on the inspection machine or viewing device.
- In order to assess shade continuity, please refer to Best Practice for Shade Continuities
- Inspect for visual defects with the light on at a speed slow enough to find the defects. (The fabric must be checked at a slow rate in order to effectively find flaws). Sometimes inspector may have to turn the light off to see how a flaw will affect the appearance of a garment.
- Check for skewed, biased, and bowed fabric.
- Woven Fabrics: maximum 3%
- Knitted Fabrics: maximum 5%
Fabric Inspection
- Mark any defects to the side with colored tape or thread so that they can be easily found and noted
- Some garment makers will require faults to be marked with a sticker on the fault. This should be communicated in pre-production meetings
- Check that the roll contains the correct yardage as stated by the piece goods source
- Record any defects. Defects must be recorded for every roll and clearly identified on the roll ticket. Records must be kept.
Four-Point System:
There are two methods available in the garment industry. They are the 4-point system and 10-point system. But the 4-point system is vastly used in the garment industry for fabric inspection. Normally, 4 point system is used for better quality of fabric inspection. In the apparel industry, the 4-point system is calculated on the basis of fabric cut mark and hole or opening. They are as follows-
Four Point System for Fabric Inspection
On the basic of cut mark
| Size of fault | Defect point / Penalty point |
| Up to 3” | 1 |
| 3-6” | 2 |
| 6-9” | 3 |
| Above 9 | 4 |
On the basis of hole and opening
| Size of fault | Defect point / Penalty point |
| Up to 1” | 2 |
| Above 1” | 4 |
Example:
Suppose,
about an intact fabric roll
Fabric length = 110 inches,
Fabric width = 54 inch,
and fabric contains the following defects:-
| Size of Defect | Multiple | Point |
| 5 defects up to 3 inch | 5 X 1 | 5 |
| 4 defects over 3 inch but less 6 inch | 4 X 2 | 8 |
| 2 defects over 6 inch but less 9 inch | 2 X 3 | 6 |
| 1 defect over 9 inch | 1 X 4 | 4 |
| 1 hole up to 1 inch dimensions | 1 X 2 | 2 |
| 1 hole over 1 inch in diameter | 1 X 4 | 4 |
| Total defect point | = | 29 |
Therefore,
Points per 100-yard square
Total points X 36 inch
=……………………………………………………… X 100
Fabric width in inches X Fabric length in inches
29 X 36
………… X 100
110 X 54
= 17.58
So, the defect points per 100 yard square is 17.58
We know that 40 points per 100 yards is the acceptable; that means the roll of fabric is accepted.
Mohammad Noor Nabi, known by his author name Noor Ahmed Raaz, is a PhD Fellow at Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX) and the Founder & Editor of Textile Merchandising. He is also an Assistant Professor and Chairman of the Textile Engineering Department at a renowned university in Dhaka, Bangladesh. His research focuses on textile innovation and sustainability. Awarded the Research & Development Fellowship twice from the Ministry of Science & Technology in Bangladesh, Noor Ahmed Raaz is dedicated to advancing textile engineering through education, research, and industry collaboration. For inquiries or collaborations, contact Noor Ahmed Raaz via email at textilemerchandising1@gmail.com or WhatsApp at +8801673758271.