Bangladesh RMG industry boasts of many top-level factories having state-of-the-art infrastructure and expert professionals to help it achieve excellence.
However, there is still significant room for improvement, particularly when it comes to building an efficient production system. Despite focusing on low-cost production, streamlining processes to enhance efficiency remains crucial. Efficient production systems encompass not just advanced machinery but also workforce training, lean manufacturing practices and robust quality control, which are essential for competitiveness and sustainability.
Areas for development
Industry experts highlight several opportunities for improvement in RMG factories, including standardising methods; improving workflows and processes; employee engagement and training; efficiency building; technology integration; real-time tracking from fabric to packing; and overall automation.
Md. Mahbubur Rahman, CIO of R&G 3rd Eye Consultancy in Dhaka, notes that factory owners have been investing in infrastructure primarily due to pressure from buyers. Despite these investments, much of the infrastructure is underutilised regarding quality, technology or human resources. He emphasises that planning and supply chain management are critical areas requiring immediate attention. Working with over 100 factories, he observed that nearly all have a supply chain and planning department, yet these areas require immediate attention.
Rajesh Bheda, Founder of Rajesh Bheda Consultancy (RBC), observes that most factories operate at 55 per cent – 58 per cent efficiency. He stresses that improving efficiency is vital for the industry’s progress and profitability. Enhanced efficiency and productivity, improved workflows and a skilled workforce lead to higher efficiency and better quality, reducing costs and increasing profitability.
Improving changeover capabilities
Improving quick changeover capabilities is essential, as inefficiencies during style changes can significantly impact productivity. Factories have the potential to boost productivity by 15 per cent – 30 per cent, depending on their baseline performance. Enhancements in the finishing and cutting departments and improvements in first-time quality can increase profitability by 15 per cent – 25 per cent.
Sunaina Khanna, Director of Methods Apparel Consultancy India, emphasises the importance of industrial engineering in improving shopfloor efficiency. Her company works with leading groups in Bangladesh to streamline operations.
Skilled team development
The industry is transitioning towards automation, but building a solid mid-management and a fresh pool of talent at the junior executive level is equally important. Ayan Barua, CEO of Diverzent, notes that efficiency improvement projects often fail due to a lack of skilled management. He highlights the importance of proactive shopfloor management and the creation of a ‘digital twin’ of the manufacturing floor.
Md. Mahbubur Rahman points out that training of operations personnel is typically limited to their transition from helper to operator. Continuous training is rare, although some factories recruit and train multitasking operators as per their needs. He mentions that in good factories, they recruit efficient, multitasking operators and train them accordingly, but comprehensive training programmes are still lacking.
There are successful examples of upskilling that have resulted in efficiency improvement from a very high baseline of 85 per cent to 96 per cent; efficiency improved by 41 per cent in a relatively new line with a lower efficiency base.
Though few of the companies are focusing on automation but there is a lot of manual work taking place in terms of record keeping, planning, tracking their WIP movement between cutting to packing.
Technology integration
Diverzent has helped apparel businesses with digital transformation and Barua shares that many factories lack proper planning for fabric cutting, resulting in significant fabric waste. Manual record-keeping and planning are still prevalent, but AI-enabled solutions can streamline these processes. For example, factories often manage fabric cutting without proper planning, leading to wastage and maintain handwritten registries that require significant manual effort to compile reports.
Methods Apparel Consultancy’s technology-based solution Pro-X 4.0 has helped factories track various aspects in real time, improving efficiency and reducing defects. In one RMG group with 3,000 workers, the system tracks fabric inspections, cutting room quality, fabric utilisation monitoring, complete QMS, endline, inline checking, auditing, roving QC and measurement checking from fabric to packing. Workers’ performance is tracked using a tablet and QR codes, identifying bottlenecks and WIP levels in real time and incentivising workers based on their efficiency and quality.
“This has streamlined the entire process of the company and resulted in significant improvement in efficiency, reduction in repairs, DHU (defects per hundred units) levels and downtime,” informs Sunaina Khanna.
AI and IoT in RMG factories
AI is an emerging technology in the RMG industry, with some real-life implementations already in place. Progressive manufacturing groups are adopting Industry 4.0, including RFID-based tracking and real-time data systems. Experts foresee greater investments in IoT and AI-based solutions for enhanced production monitoring, optimised inventory management and improved responsiveness to market demands.
Ayan Barua mentions that AI models can now auto-upload buyer tech pack and packing list information to ERP systems, saving significant time for merchandising and other key teams. AI also provides proactive feedback for upcoming production challenges and optimises cutting plans, significantly improving efficiency compared to traditional manual systems.
