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If the world before seemed difficult, the latest economic downturn hasn't helped, with buyers placing even greater demands on their suppliers, both in terms of price and lead times. Various significant retailers have recently faced criticism in the press for placing unreasonable demands on their vendors. The response is not surprisingly 'Our customers expect us to seek best value from the supply chain on their behalf'. ertainly with the fierce competition on the high street the situation is unlikely to improve dramatically. !ith sales volumes down, not only are suppliers facing price reductions, but also a fear of unfilled order books. "uyers themselves are only too aware of the risks of placing too much pressure on the supply chain. #ome suppliers will simply not survive. Others will place the buyer at significant risk by regularly breaking compliance rules. If identified by the media, such compliance violations can cause real and significant damage to a retailers reputation and trading volumes. QUESTION: So when the ressure comes on! who are the "uyers most likely to lace "usiness with## $NS%E&: Su liers who can demonstrate a high degree of fle'i"ility and control and who! through efficiency gains! are a"le to "e com etitive on "oth rice and lead times( In a difficult business environment, many fashion companies hold back, uncertain of investment decisions and some of this caution is $ustified. %et, it is important also to be able to identify those specific investments that enable you to leap forward and stand out against the competition. &or most businesses, achieving improvements in VI#I"I'IT%, OO()I*+TIO* +*) O*T(O' is essential to competing in the current climate. )et the right tools for the *o"(((( &ast (eact is the O*'% fully proven planning solution for the fashion industry. %,#... %our people can use &ast (eact, easily%,#... It can be interfaced to your existing systems.,(/. %,#... It is affordable, including structured payment options. %,#... +chievable benefits are proven with a return on investment in typically 0 months or less. *o... %ou don't have a good reason to delay... #tanding still is not a recipe for survival-
The fashion industry is under tremendous price pressure from both the highly competitive retail marketplace and from 1lobal currency fluctuations. The effects of these are2 a dramatic negative impact on margins in many cases, a significant shift in 1lobal supply base to achieve better prices e.g. "angladesh huge price and lead time pressure on vendors as a result, potentially weak suppliers 3financially4, where those suppliers are not efficient and 'geared up' to cope a higher risk of failed orders as vendors try to achieve more than they are capable of poor 5uality product, as higher risks are taken social compliance issues, again as risks are taken to meet price points and delivery an increase in air6freight, missed shipments and delivery penalties
!hilst some significant 'promiscuity' in the supply base will exist as companies search for best prices, ma$or buying offices also have to consider stability in the supply chain. They will look to work with proactive suppliers who can consistently respond and perform, in all areas of lead time, 5uality and price. The good news is that huge opportunities exist to improve supply chain efficiency, for those companies prepared to change the excessively manual, typically spreadsheet based systems that are still used by 789 of all companies, both vendors and buying offices alike. ,xisting working practices are a key factor in the creation of excess costs 3excessive style change, overtime, air freight, delivery penalties etc4, many of which could be avoided through better coordination and visibility of priorities. ,xcessively manual systems severely hinder visibility and the ability to respond and manage priorities. To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential. The real risk for many companies is carrying on with the inefficient methods they have now but some how expecting a different result. 1et the right tools for the :ob... TOT+' VI#I"I'IT%, OO()I*+TIO*, O*T(O'... with &ast (eact.
clearly where they are and remain in control so that all rocesses u until delivery may "e erformed accurately and on time(/ $ndrew +ever! 4hief E'ecutive Officer
ly
In the current economic climate, many vendors are worried about the risk of a drop in their order book, even if they have not yet felt much direct impact from the downturn. To strengthen your position as a vendor, consider the facts2 6 ,ven in the very worst case, C89 of industry order volume will remain 6 people still need clothes. D2 !ho will "uyers place their orders withE +2 Vendors they can rely on, who are2
(esponsive and flexible 6 in full control of their capabilities '',+*' enough to hit price points &inancially stable by being efficient
6 ,xcessive risks are being taken as many vendors accept orders without all the necessary information to do so and then fail to perform. 6 ?any vendors are currently struggling to hit prices, but at the same time haemorrhaging expense due to excess costs. To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential, not $ust 'nice to have' options. ,xcessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage priorities e5ualling increased risk of non performance and errors, resulting in even more fire6fighting and excess costs. Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods. There has to be a better way. 1et the right tools for the :ob... TOT+' VI#I"I'IT%, OO()I*+TIO*, O*T(O'... with &ast (eact.
%in 7anverky >Bowker $sia +td? selects ,ast &eact-s Evolve solution
The !in @anverky 1roup has a long history as an industry leader in manufacturing sportswear for leading global brands. The @ong Aong head5uartered group has manufacturing facilities in mainland hina and Vietnam with sales in ;8<< reaching @AF;,7GH million. In this latest initiative, "owker has partnered with &ast (eact #ystems to implement the ,volve solution for improved capacity management, visibility and control. /,ast &eact will ena"le us to res ond :uickly to the ever8changing market demand "y allocating resources effectively((( $fter research we can see ,ast &eact offer the "est su ort for our industry to give total visi"ility of the whole rocess from initial sales forecast through roduction to finished goods delivery(6 Ian +ee! 4hief O erating Officer
have to rely on spreadsheets, manual based systems and emails. This can only get worse as your lead times reduce and your product range.business grows. &ast (eact provides a solution that can harness this process from new style development through to the delivery of your finished goods. I!e welcome the new &ast (eact system, with its user friendly set up which is uni5uely tailored to meet the needs of the /anache business model. Jsed by other well established businesses akin to our trade, we welcome what it can do for us. To have a system which both supports the existing processes that work and brings new ideas along with a more focused way of working is a refreshing approach. The true barometer for us is the high user buy in and positive feedback we have already received.I +udrey @arris, @ead of Technical 6 /anache 'ingerie 3JA4
help apparel manufacturers to =rise to the lead time challenge> and to respond much more effectively. +s specialist providers only to the garment industry and related sectors, our ongoing, industry specific investment in &ast (eact ensures that our solutions evolve continuously to meet the ever changing needs of the industry. !e are delighted to work with rystal 1roup and look forward to identifying real business benefits through this exciting pro$ect.L
The above conditions combine with huge pressure to hit 'price points'. This typically leads to2 huge work pressures on merchandising and sourcing teams, working with excessively manual systems 3an estimated 789 of companies still use spreadsheets4 excessive fire6fighting to cope with the failings of disparate manual systems a total lack of any coordinated, business level visibility and 'early warning' system increased risk of failure, additional expense e.g. poor coordination O delayed production start and ultimately cancelled orders, excessive air freight costs, lack of product on shelf.
To maintain an effective supply chain in this environment, excellent visibility and coordination are essential, not $ust 'nice to have' options. ,xcessively manual systems severely hinder the ability to respond and manage priorities e5ualling an increased risk of non performance and errors which results in even more fire6fighting and excess costs. Increasingly, companies are concluding that they cannot continue with their existing methods. There has to be a better way.
+ll businesses must continually improve in order to survive. The improvement process can be described as2 P )efine the ob$ective.goal. P ?easure the current situation 3define the A/I4. P +nalyse the way to improve. P Implement improvement measures 3e.g. a new process or method4. P ontrol by setting a #tandard Operating /rocedure 3#O/4 and measuring 3using A/Is4. P (epeat. !hy are A/Is so importantE !ell put into simple terms2 P %ou can>t manage what you don>t measure. P Jnless you measure something you don>t know if it is getting better or worse. P If you know accurately what you are achieving now, it will help you make a more accurate forward plan. !hilst it is important to see and understand a single A/I, it>s also important to understand the whole picture. &or example, is one of your suppliers constantly delivering lateE Is this because your approval process took longer than expectedE @ow easy is it for you to analyse all this informationE 'ate delivery is $ust one issue that could affect your business as there are many potential root causes. !ith lead times across the industry reducing, the risk of performance issues and the cost that follows in terms of manpower, time and money to fix these is high. +voidance is key. ?onitoring all stages from design adoption rate through to on time delivery could benefit your business by a reduction in excess costs and overtime hours. There are many ways to measure these different stages but it>s essential you get the basic principles right. *"2 A/I should be =free> information as a by6product of your normal business process. &ast (eact can provide you with the tool and additional support re5uired to establish good processes. &ast (eact>s Vision provides the re5uired data easily, with a firm focus on regular A/I analysis along with the understanding of where opportunities exist to improve.
)lo"al a arel manufacturer! Es:uel )rou ! ado ts U@ system to su ort growth lan
,s5uel produces nearly <88 million cotton shirts every year and turned to &ast (eact in order to centralise its capacity management and production planning capabilities across its manufacturing facilities in hina, ?alaysia, ?auritius, #ri 'anka and Vietnam. !ork has already begun on rolling out the software across the group>s @ong Aong head office and worldwide facilities that cover its production lines, multi6stage manufacturing processes as well as pre6 production activities. /%e are very e'cited as we recognise ,ast &eact0s otential as much more than *ust lanningA it is a owerful management tool that hel s Es:uel to o erate more effectively at all levels(((,ast &eact can streamline our "usiness communication and coordination! allowing us to easily centralise information from our worldwide o erations(/ Bridget 4han! )rou <irector Information Technology
IThis is immediately apparent when first visiting the manufacturing facility. !orking practices are impressive, including fantastic control of materials inventory, with a stock accuracy level close to 77.79. This says a lot about how focused Textured :ersey is as a business. +s expected, the pro$ect was not straightforward, but that>s where specialist expertise is important. +s specialists in areas of planning, sourcing and critical path management, our clients can rest assured that with our experience and commitment to success they will always get a solution that works for themI.
/%e chose ,ast &eact after numerous conversations with their com etitors( %e "elieve ,ast &eact is the most knowledgea"le in understanding our industry! "usiness model and our ro"lems(((/ 4hris 4antasano! 4OO 8 9adisonBB +td >US$?
Meeting The Dyeing Demand *aliaferro kne& some 'endors &ere se&ing in 0 mil #ome+ fabric tags, printed &ith a dot(matri+ printer. *he tags resisted the dye, but the data &as often erased from the tags in the dyeing process. *aliaferro disco'ered media that could be used in thermal transfer technology, but &ouldn/t hold up &ell in the dye 'at ( an e+tremely harsh en'ironment. ,Our first try &orked &ell in the &ashing cycles, but &ouldn/t &ithstand dyeing for 11 hours and high temperatures,, he e+plains. ,So, our engineering team changed the substrates 2properties3 of the media. During nine months of testing and retesting, &e changed the types of glue and primers that hold the glue. 4ailures &ere associated &ith the different sulfur dyes. *he p. balance can be so high that it eats a&ay at the face coat on the tag, and the data is lost. Dominion Solutions &orked during the last three years to de'elop its turnkey solution. *he final product is based on durable bar code tags, &hich use a heat(sealed glue. *he tags are printed using $ntermec 2%'erett, !A3 5566 and 5516 thermal transfer printers. Bar code label design soft&are from 7oft&are 28ork, 9%3 ties the solution together. ,*his media is fairly thick,, *aliaferro e+plains, ,and it/s held on by friction. Once the label is peeled from its backing, it must be used, or it/s &asted. )rint speeds reach up to : inches per second 2ips3. Our solution results in scannable bar codes ( e'en after dyeing and napping 2&hen the hairy or do&ny surface is raised3. )rint is not smudged, distorted, or bleached out in the process., *aliaferro also points out that e'ery dye solution should be thoroughly tested before any solution is implemented. The End Results !hen the identifiers &ere &ritten &ith indelible resin pens, the ink often bled through t&o or more layers of fabric. Depending on &here the number &as &ritten, 11 inches to 01 inches of fabric per roll &as sometimes &asted. *he ne& tags eliminate this &aste, since the glue can/t soak through the fabric. %rrors are also eliminated through limiting the need for manual data entry. ,;ost <ustification 'aries by te+tile type and customer,, says *aliaferro. ,$n general, the return on in'estment is =uick ( sometimes it/s as little as si+ months. .o&e'er, some companies could see an RO$ in as long as t&o years., ;ompanies also sa'e in labor costs by eliminating the time employees spend looking for the lot number. ,An a'erage te+tile company can thro& a&ay close to >1 million in fabric,, he continues. ,System prices 'ary, but &e/re seeing cost <ustification of about 16 times the cost of the installation.,
Automating the point of sale &as not a casual decision for .ouse of 4abrics. *he retail chain of craft and fabric stores &as hit hard &hen its 1 :6/s gro&th(by(ac=uisition strategy encountered the slo& economy of the 1 6/s. !ith o'er 066 outlets across the country ten years ago, tough times ha'e forced it to trim back to 1@A stores. )oint of sale 2)OS3 automation &as a necessary part of the company/s /lean and mean/ reco'ery. 4or guidance and support, it turned to long(time )OS system integrator, D94 Data 9anagement 4acility ;ompany $nc. Re-Stoc"ing Process #s #ne$$icient $n'entory management and price control are key elements of the ne& .ouse of 4abrics. !ith thousands of craft items and fabric spools in each store, fast response to changing seasons and fashions is crucial to financial success. Store managers &ere used to tabulating their monthly purchase re=uirements based on a ,gut(feel, of &hat products &ere mo'ing. ;entrali?ed purchase decisions &ere made based on managers/ re=uests and market trends. Regional differences in consumer tastes or preferences &ere difficult to accommodate. *he electronic cash register simply recorded purchases at the till. All transactions &ere performed manuallyB product bar codes &ere not used. *he tracking of its core product ( custom cuts of fabric ( &as done on paper. $nformation about the fabric type and length &as &ritten at the cutting station and reinterpreted at the check(out counter. *he customer &as gi'en a simple receipt &hich did not pro'ide any information about the item purchased. %e& P S System Trac"s Bar-Coded #tems D94 designed an automation solution using bar(code and computer technology. All items sold re=uired bar codes. 4or many craft items, C); bar codes &ere already in place. *he cutting stations &ere set up &ith bar(code printers, bar code scanners, programmable keyboards and )entium );s. 4abric cutting &as done as it al&ays had been, but paper tracking &as replaced by bar(code scanning and programmable keyboard data entry. %ach spool of fabric &as assigned a uni=ue bar code &hich &as scanned before cutting. Deyboard layouts &ere customi?ed to match the re=uirements of the cutting process, making data entry easy for .ouse of 4abrics sales personnel. After the custom cutting of the fabric, ne& bar code tags &ere printed on(the(spot and each fabric cut &as tagged for =uick processing at the check(out counter. Com'onents #n The %e& System *he )OS check(out stations &ere outfitted &ith )entium );s, 9etrologic scanners, Earltech programmable keyboards, Star 9icronics receipt printers and cash dra&ers from 9(S ;ash Dra&er. Bar code scanning and simplified keyboard entry impro'ed the speed and accuracy of each transaction. D94 put systems in place so that the sales information from each )OS station &ithin each store &ould automatically be polled by corporate head=uarters at the end of each &orking day. $n addition, systems &ere installed so that each station in each store &ould be updated o'ernight &ith ne& item pricing as re=uired. *o pre'ent information loss during breakdo&n or po&er failure, D94/s system offered the redundancy of a fully po&ered ); at each station. Bene$its $ The %e& System *he automatic polling of sales information from each store has pro'ided corporate office &ith the capability to restock or redistribute craft and fabric items as re=uired. *his has pro'ided a ne& ability for fast response to regional differences and changes in consumer preference.
needs3. ,*he consumables for small desktop printers are more e+pensi'e because the cost to manufacture the media is higher,, he e+plains. ,%'en if a customer can sa'e money by purchasing a cheaper printer, o'er time it might be spending more money., $n general, %d&ards says if a customer is printing fe&er than 16,666 labels a month, he/ll recommend a lo&(tier printer. At 1,666 labels or more a day, he recommends mid( to high(range printers. !ith mobile computers, the VAR is sure to factor in the cost of replacement batteries o'er time. By looking at a fi'e(year life span, the consumables sa'ings might pay for an upgrade to the ne+t piece of hard&are. ,se The Economy To Sell Bar Coding Ser(ices !hile e+ternal re=uirements are dictating ne& technology adoption, internal re=uirements are also creating a need *e+as Barcode looks to fulfill. $ndeed, &hile *e+as Barcode/s hard&are sales slipped a bit in 166 due to the economy, %d&ards says re'enue from his professional ser'ices has risen 1AG during the same time. Specifically, %d&ards says that due to the economy, many companies do&nsi?ed I especially in the $* department I putting additional burden on the e+isting $* staff. *herefore, during the VAR/s more recent installs, customers &ere &illing to pay for *e+as Barcode/s professional ser'ices to lighten the burden on internal resources. ,!e ha'e customers &ith multiple locations, but $* staff only at head=uarters,, e+plains %d&ards. ,*herefore, &e act as the remote $* staff, performing site sur'eys, doing configuration &ork, and training the end users. Some customers gi'e us a list of settings for printersB then &e set them up and ship them out., $n the past, many of the VAR/s customers &ould shoulder this burden. As another &ay to lighten the $* burden on customers, *e+as Barcode also pro'ides free technical support. Rather than pass customer problems on to the de'ice manufacturer, the VAR handles problems &ith its o&n support team. %d&ards says this accomplishes a couple of things. 4irst, it ensures his customers recei'e prompt ser'ice. Second, it keeps his employees educated and in tune &ith customer issues. *he VAR also says the manufacturers of the products he resells appreciate the VAR/s efforts to sol'e problems. ,!hen &e e'entually call a manufacturer, they kno& it/s a real problem,, he says. As you might kno&, so many support calls are for tri'ial problems, &hich is &hy %d&ards feels he/s doing the right thing by gi'ing a&ay tech support for free. ,!e can sol'e about 6G of printer trouble calls &ithout sending someone on(site. $t/s usually a calibration issue or a media error., Regardless, the free tech support sa'es his customers money, &hich, in turn, leads to happier customers. 4inally, %d&ards helps educate his customers. *his goes beyond the training in'ol'ed in an initial rollout. *he VAR says another problem its customers face is uneducated users. ,A lot of manufacturers ha'e high turno'er in the positions that use the technology &e install,, he says. ,4or our larger customers, &e/ll pro'ide a =uarterly training session to acclimate ne& users to the printers. $t/s sort of a course on bar( coding basics., *he benefits are that this helps customers be more producti'e because users kno& &hat they/re doing, and the printers &ork more reliably because users aren/t mishandling them. 7ike technical support, this is a free ser'ice *e+as Barcode pro'ides. As the economy continues to impro'e, %d&ards belie'es the needs of his core market &ill remain unchanged, creating great opportunity for the VAR in 1616. .e concludes, ,$ think &e/'e seen the economy bottom out. All indications from our customers are that e'eryone is running really lean. *he only direction is up.,
%##lication kno/le ge - %ccor ing to 3leist, resellers s!oul un erstan t!e label re9uire"ents of ifferent vertical "arkets an a##lications, :or e6a"#le, 3leist says su##liers to auto"otive "anufacturers !ave to ensure bar co e labels on t!eir s!i#"ents on8t fall off or s"u ge /!ile in transit, &ntegrate syste" sales - +esellers also s!oul be selling co"#le"entary #ro ucts like !an !el ata collection evices $!an !el co"#uters), bar co e scanners, label "e ia an label esign soft/are, 3alla!er says, 0e says resellers also s!oul be able to integrate t!ose #ro ucts to #rovi e users /it! 7syste"7 solutions, 7&ntegration service is a "a;or /eakness of "ost catalog istributors,7 !e a s, +es#onsive service - 0su says *%+s s!oul give t!eir custo"ers a call-back /it!in <= !ours /!en t!ey !ave #rinter #roble"s,
Bar Code Printing Trends 0su, 3leist an 3alla!er say *%+s s!oul be ca#itali.ing on several recent tren s in bar-co e #rinting to increase t!eir sales:
0ig!er-resolution #rinting - %ccor ing to 3alla!er, "any users only re9uire a "ini"u" resolution of <>? ots #er inc! $ #i), 0o/ever, users /!o #rint co"#any logos an gra#!ics on bar co es "ay #refer ?>>-=>> #i #rinters, Several #rinter ven ors !ave res#on e by releasing !ig!er-resolution #rinters, 7@ogos an gra#!ics generally on8t look #rofessional if t!eir resolution is belo/ ?>> ots #er inc!,7 3alla!er a s, -ulti-tec!nology #rinting - -any users #rint s!i##ing "anifests an #ick lists in a ition to labels, 1!erefore, *%+s s!oul n8t li"it t!eir focus to ;ust 7 e icate 7 bar-co e #rinters, 7*%+s s!oul consi er offering laser #rinters for users t!at nee "ore t!an a label #rinter,7 3leist a s, % e"an for #ortable #rinters - 0su says #ortable #rinters !ave beco"e increasingly #o#ular in a##lications like ve!icle rental, So"e rental agencies allo/ custo"ers to #ark t!e ve!icle an re#ort to a /orker in t!e lot, Asing a #ortable #rinter, t!e /orker #rints t!e custo"er a recei#t on t!e s#ot, saving t!e custo"er ti"e,