Operations Management in Textile Industry - Research Paper Example

Operations Management in Textile Industry Table of Content Abstract The report identifies, and analyzes operation management in the textile industry this is an overview of the facts discovered about process, operations and systems of cotton fabric. The report focused on the operation or key process in the textile industry in Saudi Arabia. Apart from identifying all the operations or key process, the report also takes a look at the link between the operations and the processes and concludes by looking at economic, environmental and political consequences of cotton manufacture. Explanation on how textile sector dominate the manufacturing sector and contribute to livelihood. It also looked at problems encountered during operations and ways of improving those challenges. The theme of the report is operations management in the textile industry. Introduction Textile manufacturing is a leading industry in the world. The sector has been the backbone of many countries’ economy, and it contributes to development of these countries in terms of creation of employment and economic growth. According to findings, cotton is the world’s number one natural fiber. It is noted that, in the year 2007, global yield was 25 million tons from 35 million hectares cultivated in more than 50 countries including Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Arabia relies on the same industry for their economic growth and employment. This is achieved in many sectors of the industry from the agricultural sector for raw materials to production processes for finish goods. The process needs proper operations management from conversion of three types of fiber into yarn, then fabric and then textiles as a finished product. These are fabricated to finished cloths or other artifacts to be sold or used in the marketplace. The natural fiber cotton is the most important in this sector because, without the raw material, no manufacturing process can take place (Miller, Vandome, & McBrewster, 2009). Many variable processes available will be discussed in at the spinning and fabric forming stage. This having complexities of the finished and coloration to production of a wide range of finished products. The Saudi Arabia strength in this industry is recognized world over, currently Saudi Arabia is one of the largest producer of cotton as a raw material for this industry. This industry help Saudi Arabia export $1.2 billion in the year 2008, and clothing trade was $ 0.8 billion. This brings a lot of income to the national GDP which have to be followed in terms of operations and process. The study critically looks at the whole operational management of this industry in the manufacturing of the textile. The textile industry mostly characterized by cultivation process of cotton and manufacturing process and procedures with the following general steps; cultivating and harvesting, preparatory processes, spinning, weaving, finishing and marketing. Textile Operations Management and Processes The textile operational and processes start with the cultivation and harvesting of the raw material cotton which helps in the initiation of the whole process. Cotton grows everywhere in the world in any soil but does well in black cotton soil or clay soil with plenty of sunshine and low humidity. Machine production needs American cotton or gossypium arboretum which has longer staples for this production (Miller, et, al, 2009). Many countries depend on rain fed cultivation where they plant from September to mid November the harvesting done between March and May. In Saudi Arabia, the cultivation uses irrigation system on bigger track of land. This help to avoid the drying of the fields during cultivation assuring the industry of the constant supply of the raw material. Therefore, due to large production of cotton bolls stripper harvesters and spindle pickers used for quick harvesting of the raw material.  Platt Bros. Picker Cultivating and Harvesting During cultivation and harvesting stage ginning takes place where cotton gins separated from the seeds process removes the trash from fiber. The ginning process happens here in a saw gin grab the fiber in a circular saw and pulls it through a grating that stops the seeds from passing. Leather roller captures the long staple cotton and knife blades detach the seeds removing brushes cleaning them by drawing them in circular saw. Compression takes place after the ginned cotton fiber turned to lint into bales of about 1.5 tall and 220kg weight. There is a waste of 66% of the crop in the process of turn them into lint. The waste can be used in poultry farming as bedding for brooding. The commercial cotton categorized by quality and average length of staple and variety of the plant when pricing. Category done in this stage sorting Egyptian longer staple cotton of (21/2 in to 11/4), America Upland of medium staple (11/4 in to 3/4) and the less than 3/4in called Indian. Cooking oil pressed from the cotton seeds. The husks and meal processed into animal feeds, and the stem use to male paper. Farming of cotton takes a lot of fertilizer and insecticides (Miller, et, al, 2009). The textile manufacturers can do large scale dairy or beef farming to help get their own fertilizers through processing own their own. Preparatory Processes- Preparation of Yarn This is a process undertaken in Saudi Arabia. It involves two parts ginning which has bale making and transporting and opening and cleaning. Supplier of cotton brings in bales shipped in many pounds. The bales contain vegetable matters removed by large spikes through breaking the bales open. The processes fluff up the cotton and do away with the vegetable matter through this process called opener. The cotton then sent through the picker looking similar like a carding machine and a cotton gin slightly different. To loosen it up the cotton to the machine and get beater with beater bars (Miller, et, al, 2009). It pushed to the rollers which also used to remove the vegetable matters. The cotton pieces collected on a screen aided by a fan. This is getting fed through multiple rollers till it comes out as a continuous, soft fleecy, sheet called a lap. Bending takes place at this stage where there is mixing and scutching. The process of scutching takes off seeds and other impurities through cleaning. The technology of scutching has many years after invention it was not well utilized till 1808 in Manchester. The technology behind the machine is through passing cotton through a pair of roller and then iron striking known as beater. Beaters have an unusually high turning velocity strikes seeds knocked out from cotton hard. Parallel bars used to help the seeds to fall (Miller, et, al, 2009). Cotton carried by the aid of a breeze blown across bars to a cotton chamber. Carding machine used to separate fiber and assemble looses strand in this stage. Before being taking to carding machine cotton comes out off the picking machine in laps. For easier spin carders lines up the fiber nicely. One large roller with small ones surrounding it makes up the carding machine. The cotton progresses on the teeth of rollers covered to the teeth to make them finer. A large rope of fibers in the form of silver leaves the machine. Carding comprises of four processes; willowing, which is loosing, the fiber; lapping which creates laps or flat sheet of cotton and removing dusts; thick rope formed through carding by combining the tangled lap and drawing frame of four silvers combined into one repeated for increased quality. Creating a stronger yarn and remove the shorter done by combing but this is optional. These processes affected by higher breakage of machines during vigorous movement of the teeth wearing of rollers. This can be prevented by oiling the movable parts of the machine during these processes to reduce wear and tear (Miller, et, al, 2009). Working with this machines need larger workforce which when combine with proper skills can produce a grater production. Drawing the fibers straightened using several silvers combined. Consistent size of silver of thin and thick sports can be reached by combining several slivers together. Slivers then separated into rovings by combining slivers producing an exceedingly thick rope of cotton fiber. The rovings also known as slubbings then used in the spinning process. Roving made in the with of a pencil. Helps in drawing fame by drawing the strand out, slubbing frame for adding twist and winds on the bobbins, intermediate frames for repeating the slubing process to produce a finer yarn, roving frame used to reduce a finer thread offering more twist by making more regular and even in thickness winding on a smaller tube (Miller, et, al, 2009). Spinning- Yarn Manufacture This is the cotton spinning machine process the whole procedure comprises of spinning, checking, folding and twisting, and gassing. Spinning nowadays done using break or open ended spinning. This is where staples blown by air into a rotating drum attaching to each other to the tail of formed yarn continuously drawn out of the chamber. Electrostatics forces and needles also used in breaking the spinning. Mule spinning replaced by this method and helps adopted for artificial fiber. The machine takes the roving, thins it, twist and yarns created out of it wounded onto bobbin. Roving pulled off a bobbin a fed through rollers in the mule spinning which is done at several different speeds (Miller, et, al, 2009). Achieving this at a consistent rate. The issue of roving not being consistent causes a break in the yarn jamming the machine. This should be avoided by consistently roving the steps to avoid breaking the yarn. The yarn get twisted on the spinning of the bobbin moving of the carriage realized, and as carriage returns, it rolled onto a cop. Mule spinning has few ringing spinning skill to produce a finer thread. The mule was a discontinuous process used long ago. It was a continuous process; which makes the yarn coarser, having a grater twist and stronger making it warp. Therefore, due to distance thread passes on the ring causes the ring spinning slow. Sewing thread made of several threads twisted together (Miller, et, al, 2009). Check is the process bobbins rewound to give a tighter bobbin. Folding and twisting helps pulling yarn from two bobbins and twist them together into the opposite direction causing spun. Cotton my not be plied depending on the weight desired. There is single textile and grassing process involving passing yarn, rapidly on a Bunsen gas flames contained in a gassing frame to help burn off the protruded fibers and making the threads smooth, brighter and round. Used of voiles, poplins, venetians and many Egyptian qualities acquired through gassing. In the process, of gassing there is a loss of weight which varies about 5 to 8 percent that if a 2/60’s yarn required there must be a 2/60’s used. This should be darker and not scorch. Cotton has to have a count known unit of textile measurement. One bale (lb) made up of 840 yard thread pieces. This means that 10 by 840 yard, which is a 10 count totaling to 1 lb. to measure coarser of 40 counts cotton 40 by 840 yards needed. Hank means a length of 7 leas or 840 yards. Thread is a length of 54 in the circumference of a warp beam. A bundle means 10 bales. Lea means a length of 80 threads or 120 yards. Denier is a number that is equivalent to 9000m of single yarn that is to mean 15denier is finer than 30denier. Tex is 1 km of yarn. Worsted hank is 560 yarns. Weaving-Fabric Manufacture This is the fourth process of operation management in the textile industry that characterized by winding, warping of beaming, sizing, drawing in looming, and pirning. A loom used in the weaving process. Warp is lengthway threads and weft is a cross way threads. The warp being exceptionally strong presented to loom on a warp beam. Pirn carries a yarn which caused by weft passing across the loom in a shuttle. These pirns automatically changed by the loom. The yarn wrapped onto a beam and on to pirns before weaving commences (Miller, et, al, 2009). The cotton thread taken to a warping room after being spun and plied the yarn takes requires lenth by the help of winding machine and winds it to the bobbins. At this stage, beaming or warping takes place when threads rolls onto the warp of the loom set on a rack of bobbins. The desired the end count achieved when three threads combined to purify the thread. The whole process done by the Warper which is as shown below. A Warper 1 To reduce the breakage of the yarns slasher sizing machine used for strengthening the warps. Drawing in, looming take place at this stage by each end of the warp separated through the dents of the reed and the eyes of the healds, indicated by the draft. Power loom is the weaving stage; at this point the thread is woven. They can be managed by one person taking care of approximately 3 to 100 machines making effectiveness and cutting cost of personnel. In the yester years, four persons supposed to manage the machine (Miller, et, al, 2009). A skilled weaver developed running six Lancashire Loom. New innovation came to being that stopped the loom any time something would go wrong. The technology checked things as broken warp thread, broken weft thread, the shuttle going straight across and empty shuffle. One single worker can handle up to forty automatic looms or Northrop looms.  A Draper loom in Saudi Arabia textile There is three primary movement of a loom shedding, picking and beating up. To make the shuttle pass between the lines shedding used to dividing the warp into two lines. Two types of sheds open and closed. Open shed assist warp threads to move the pattern required from one line to the other. Closed shed helps to pace level in one line after each picking using warp threads. The division in the warp threads done by projecting the shuffle from side to side of the loom. The process is overpick or underpick motions. When there are quick running looms overpicking used and the underpick best when heavy or slow looms used (Miller, et, al, 2009). Beating up is another process under the weaving where the when making cloth, action takes place when the reed pick each weft to fall off the cloth. The fist semi automatic loom is the Lancashire Loom. Sophisticated methods of shedding comprise Jacquard loom and Dobby looms. The fully automated and produced in mass was the Northrop Loom this was between the year 1909 and mid 1960s. This lead to modern looms, which run faster and has no shuffles they are air jet loom, water jet looms and rapier looms. The stage has numerous measurements this comprises ends and picks. Picks refers to the weft while ends refers to the warps. Number of picks and ends per quarter inch square, or per inch square is the coarseness of the cloth. An end expressed first before picks. This can show as heavy domestic made from coarse yarns 10’s to 14’s warp and weft, and about 48 ends and 52 picks. Long ago, if this from homes, children helped with the weaving process which nowadays is not the case with new technology and child labor laws protecting children from working (Miller, et, al, 2009). Production has thus double since then with new invention to assist in areas where the children involved to work machines used. The second last stage, in the operation management processes of textile in the manufacturing of cloth, is the Knitting fabric manufacture. Two different methods used to do the knitting by machine are warp and weft. Weft knitting (as shown in the picture below) is similar in method to hand knitting by use of stitches connected horizontally to each other. The stitches used are prone to breakage controlling this problem is by making sure that the needles for stitching made with hard steels to certain the breaking.  Close-up on the Needles Many weft machines used to configure the textile from a single spool of yarn, or multiple spool this depends 'on the size of the machine cylinder' (needles bedded as shown on the picture below). Many pieces of yarn when warp knit and vertical chains, zigzagged together by crossing the yarn in this process (Miller, et, al, 2009).  A Circular Knitting Machine. The difference between the warp knits is that they 'do not stretch as much as a weft knit' and capability of run resistant. A weft knit stretches more but does not run resistant capability. This can be achieved only if spools of spandex producing more flexible finished product and avoiding a baggy appearance. The average T-shirts are a weft knit. Finishing- Processing of Textiles The final stage in the manufacturing of textile products is the finishing process, which produces, a grey cloth woven cotton fabric in loom state having impurities, including warp size, for a full textile potential there must be treatments. One or more of the finishing processes applied to receive a considerable added value. These additions are de-sizing, scouring, bleaching, mercerizing, dyeing, and printing (Miller, et, al, 2009). De-sizing process depends on the size of cloth used and stepped in a dilute acid then rinsed, or enzymes used to break down the size. Scouring carried in kiers is a process which uses chemical washing cotton fabric to remove natural wax, and no fibrous impunities from the fiber and any soil or dirt. The process undertaken through boiling fabric in alkali soap with free fatty acids known as saponification. To degrade the cellulose in the fiber a solution of sodium hydroxide boiled under pressure to exclude the oxygen in a kier enclosure (Miller, et, al, 2009). To remove size from fabric appropriate reagents used although de-sizing always comes fast before scouring and considered to be the separate process for a fabric preparation. The basic finishing processes are the scouring and preparation. At this stage, all the clothes are yellow and bleaching even the natural white ones requiring moving to the next stage of the process. Whiteness improved by bleaching y removing natural coloration and remaining trace impurities from the cotton, whiteness or absorbency determines the degree of bleaching. Cotton bleached in an oxidizing agent like dilute sodium hypochlorite of dilute hydrogen peroxide because it is a vegetable fiber. This is to avoid it to be spoilt by the chemicals. Lower level of bleaching and a deep shade accepted when the fabric is to be dyed (Miller, et, al, 2009). This helps to avoid spoilage by heat and sun raises. Mercerizing cotton is another stage of the finishing process where the fabric treated by caustic soda solution to cause swelling of the fiber. This is to improve luster, strengthen and dye resembles. The process undertaken in a under tension, and all the alkali washed out before the tension released take place. After bleaching on a grey cloth mercerizing can take place. To produce low flammability crease resist, and other significant effects other chemical treatments may be applied. Four non – chemical finishing treatments are: Singeing helps to produce smoothness on the surface of the fiber by burning off. The fabric is lead to pass on brushes to raise fibers, and then passes over a plate heated by gas flames. Raising this is another valuable process leading to imparting hairiness, softness and warmth through treating fabric surface with sharp teeth to lift the surface fiber. Calendering is the third mechanical process in the finishing stage under mercerizing helps to produce smoothness, polished through passing fabric between rollers fished effect depends on roller surface properties and relative speeds. Shrinking (Sanforizing) this is the final stage of mechanical shrinking the fabric here forced to shrink width and lengthwise, achieving fabric of desire. The final stage of textile process is dying readiness for colouration process being that cotton is an absorbent fiber. The procedure is to anionic dye directly by immersing the fabric in an aqueous dye bath. Other dyes such as vats and reactives commonly used to enhance fastness to washing, rubbing and light (Miller, et, al, 2009). Textile printing process done to make determined pattern through the application of color in of a paste or ink to the surface of the fabric. This also known as localized dyeing. Economic, Environmental and Political Consequences of Cotton Manufacture The finest fabric used in the textile industry is cotton it provides livelihood to millions of people production become expensive due to high water consumption, pesticides, insecticides and fertilizer. High water and electricity consumption realized during process such as washing, de-sizing, bleaching, rinsing, dyeing, printing, coating and finishing. Time consumption also realized. During total textile production of fiber production, twisting, spinning, weaving, knitting, and cloth manufacturing consumes approximately 25 percent of energy in dying. This can be controlled by using sustainable energy like geothermal power and solar power (Miller, et, al, 2009). References Miller F. P., Vandome A. F., McBrewster J., (2009). Textile Manufacturing. New York: Alphascript Publishing. Read More