Human resource development 4.0 (HRD 4.0) in the apparel industry of Bangladesh: a theoretical framework and future research directions

PurposeThe transition from Industry 3.0 to the fourth industrial revolution was a big jump that created a vacuum in many developing countries. Drawing upon institutional theory and resource-based view theory, the current study proposes a theoretical model linking the institutional pressures and resources (workforce skills) in context to the apparel industry of Bangladesh.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopts a qualitative approach involving 20 semi-structured interviews, followed by thematic analysis using NVivo 12 software. The researchers impose both deductive and inductive thematic analysis to generate themes. The data analysis involves various stages applying the phenomenological approaches.FindingsInstitutional pressures (coercive) positively influences the workforce skills (technical and managerial) in the fourth industrial revolution in Bangladesh apparel manufacturing industry; institutional pressures (normative) is positively related to the workforce skills (technical and managerial) in 4IR in Bangladesh apparel manufacturing industry; institutional pressures (mimetic) has shown a positive association with the workforce skills (technical and managerial) in 4IR in Bangladesh apparel manufacturing industry; workforce skills (technical and managerial) are positively influencing the development of human resource capabilities in fourth industrial revolution in Bangladesh apparel manufacturing industry.Originality/valueThis paper is the first of its kind to offer a thematic analysis on human resource development 4.0 in the apparel industry of Bangladesh. The study provides an understanding of the role of institutional pressure on workforce skill development and the adoption of 4IR technology.

Mathematical Analysis of Supply Chain Optimization focusing on Artificial Neural Network: A case study in Apparel Manufacturing Organization

In this study, implemented artificial nueral network (Ann) in apparel manufacturing organizations to optimize the supply chain converging on right supplier selection by analyzing their performance criteria.Moreover, data collected from three diffrents factory to analyze the efficiney and profit -loss status of that units. Furthermore, analyze the supplier selection criteria of three suppliers in order to select the right supplier at the real time in apparel manufacturing industry . This study shows that it can be saved 20 % of the total cost.

Experimental Study and Improving the Productivity of Assembly line Balancing in Teleja Garment Manufacturing in Ethiopia

This study is designed to assess and improve apparel sewing section efficiency and productivity throughout line balancing. Apparel industry is one of the oldest and among the most global industry, being primarily concerned with the design and production of cloth and their supply. The central process in apparel manufacturing is the joining together of components which is known as the sewing process , which is the most labour intensive type of manufacturing process .Proper utilization of resources in garment sewing section is more critical to enhance the performance of the apparel industry by reducing production cost and minimizing wastage. For effective utilization of resources in the sewing section, good line balancing is important to increase productivity and production efficiency. This research was a design to analyse and improve the assembling line in the case of Telaje garment manufacturing and sales plc. The study was first conduct observations in the production floor and start work with the selection of sewing line in the garment production process. Among the nine lines of the factory select one on the production floor and one garment ordered product known as five pocket men’s jeans trousers are selected. For this study, both qualitative and quantitative research approaches were employed. Both primary and secondary data sources are used to detail the collected relevant data to understand the current efficiency scenario of the factory. The main challenges to minimizing line efficiency and productivity with the expected performance measurement are improper utilization of resources and improper implementation of line balancing in sewing section, therefore this thesis work shows that the bottleneck process and consequence solution will be searched, and finally significantly improving the productivity by 418 unit products/ day and, hence the efficiency will increase from 28.83% to 50.04% of the line

Evaluation of Manual Skill Degradation Due to Automation in Apparel Manufacturing

Manual skill degradation is a common problem that production managers face in assembly lines due to frequent changes in batch styles. Since the advancement in automated machinery, reliance on manual machines has been reduced. However, due to the high cost of fully automated machinery, it is still not available on a large scale in apparel manufacturing setups as most of the setups are in developing countries. Few related studies regarding the effects of automation on manual skills have been conducted in aviation and other emerging technological advanced fields; little focus was given on the effects of automation in apparel manufacturing. This exploratory study examines automation-induced performance degradation in the apparel production line. Sixty-seven sewing machine operators were initially trained on manual sewing machines to learn a complex production operation. Then, participants were divided randomly into three groups to experience varied amount of automation exposure. The manual machine group (MMG)kept working on the manual machines after the initial training and skill development. In contrast, the automation group (AG) shifted to automated pocket setting machines after skill development. Finally, the refresher training group (RTG) rotated between manual and automated machines after the skill development. The skill retrieval assessment was carried out after six weeks in the production line. The result of an independent t-test showed no significant differences among performances of the three groups after the initial training stage. A significant increase in the average single cycle time (ASCT) and decrease in the right-first-time percent (RFT %) was found in the AG while the ASCT decreased and the RFT% increased among the MMG after the retention interval. The RTG almost maintained its production output and the ASCT due to refresher training drills. Relevance to industry: Production managers usually maintain a skill set among the operators to run the production line smoothly. Therefore, capacity development drills of sewing operators are essential to maintain an efficient required skill set.

A Scheduling and Rescheduling Decision Support System for Apparel Manufacturing

The manufacturing environment for apparel is subject to a variety of constraints, stochasticity, and unforeseen events. In order to create an accurate scheduling-system for this environment, these complexities must be considered. This article presents the development and the application of a scheduling and rescheduling decision support system for an apparel manufacturer. Furthermore, the results of applying the proposed system are presented and discussed. The scheduling and rescheduling decision support system presented in this article takes advantage of a variable neighborhood search and Monte Carlo simulation in order to minimize tardiness in the presence of different release times, sequence-based setup times, blocking, and resource constraints. The results show that the quality of the schedules generated by the proposed scheduling and rescheduling decision support system is superior to the current firm’s scheduling practice, which is based on an earliest due date heuristic. Moreover, the percentage of the realized schedule and overall equipment effectiveness were improved.

Technology and Education Inputs for Productivity Enhancement in Garment Manufacturing in the Developing World

Efficient production management in the garment manufacturing industry is estimated by using work measurement techniques. These techniques are based on standard processing timings. Several studies have been undertaken using the time study technique to enhance productivity of the garment production lines in an apparel manufacturing factory. Efficiency is translated into the time spent on carrying out a particular function, this time consumption is dependent upon the worker’s level of fatigue and quality of output. The entire onus of responsibility of the worker’s output becomes anchored on his or her ability to carry out repetitive actions over long durations of time.Objectives: This paper examines the work of various scholars as well as scrutinizes the performance of certain repetitive actions in the garment manufacturing process in apparel industries employing large numbers of workers. The objective is to project a rationale for the development of work aids to significantly enhance productivity.Methods: A secondary data review is being conducted to find out the work of other researchers in the field of garment manufacturing. The author has developed his own contribution in the form of work aid interventions to help in the process. A Review of literature on the subject was attempted to obtain the required information and insights on the subject.Finding: There is a widely felt need for the creation of active work aids in the garment manufacturing industry to promote the worker efficiency as also the overall productivity of the industry.Scope: The research based study has large and far-reaching scope for the garment manufacturing industry. All manufacturing units are constantly on the lookout for promoting efficiency and productivity. They are willing to appreciate all forms of interventions to improve time management and enhanced output of products. The findings of this review paper have broad based applicability for the garment manufacturing industry not only in India but also in most of the developing world.

Ichalkaranji: India’s Manchester needs to weave magic

Supplementary materials The case includes links to video clips on textile and apparel manufacture to familiarize students with the textile manufacturing process. The case also provides links to audio and video clips of the case protagonist discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the cluster at IK. Learning outcomes The case offers opportunities for the learner to analyze the situation from three cases as follows: industry, cluster (broadly location) and firm. Specific teaching objectives are as follows: How to identify and analyze the drivers of competitiveness of a cluster. Assess the strength of clusters using Porter’s Diamond framework. Map the linkages between players of a cluster as follows: across firms, industries and public organizations. Benchmark and compare clusters to identify opportunities for upgrading competitiveness. Case overview/synopsis The case describes the challenge facing Mr Nikunj Bagdia, the owner and chief executive of Ken Enterprises Private Limited (Ken), a textile manufacturing unit located in the town of Ichalkaranji (IK), in October of 2019. IK boasts the largest number of cutting-edge air-jet looms in India and Ken is IK’s largest exporter of woven textile fabrics. However, IK lags the textile and apparel manufacturing cluster of Tiruppur, in another region of the country. The case enables a microeconomic analysis of the business environment of industrial clusters and a cluster mapping exercise, which helps identify opportunities for enhancing IK’s textile cluster. As the case closes, Nikunj is trying to prioritize opportunities that could emerge from the analyzes. Complexity academic level Masters/MBA level courses on competitiveness, strategy for economic development and microeconomics of competitiveness. Subject Code CSS 11: Strategy.