Coats Digital has introduced an amalgamated buying and cutting solution FastReactFabric, which is a fabric optimisation tool.
By implementing the new tool, fashion manufacturers can significantly reduce fabric costs by up to 2.5 per cent; shrink fabric buying and planning times by 95 per cent, and provide 100 per cent fabric tracking, in order to further advance sustainability credentials and reduce overall fabric remnants that so often end up in landfill.
With FastReactFabric, the apparel industry can reduce the fabric required which will have a positive impact on the environment while boosting profits – putting people, planet and performance into the very core of the fashion supply chain.
FastReactFabric combines Coats Digital’s previous industry-leading IntelloCut and IntelloBuy solutions into one single platform, providing a closed-loop, continuous 360-degree feedback ecosystem between buying and cutting operations, so that fashion manufacturers can accurately procure and utilise fabric effectively – reducing waste, boosting efficiency and significantly increasing their bottom line.
Akash Shah, Managing Director, Coats Digital, commented “We listened carefully to what our customers were saying about the fabric challenges they face, and realised that it made perfect sense to amalgamate and enhance our fabric cutting and buying solutions into one comprehensive single platform to eradicate key pain points in one swoop.”
Akash further mentioned, “With 70-80 per cent of fashion manufacturing outlay attributed to fabric costs, the digitisation of fabric-related processes is the most fundamental way that apparel manufacturers can make a real difference to their profits, as well as reduce the impact of fabric waste on the planet. We are very excited to be launching a comprehensive fabric solution that will prove instrumental in redressing some of the financial damage suffered during the pandemic, whilst helping the apparel industry future-proof against incoming global legislation around waste and sustainability compliance, at the same time.”
The new offering will ultimately unlock fabric buying and cutting data to deliver meaningful insights that drive confident decision making – enabling fashion manufacturers to optimise operations, make fast data decisions and streamline processes.
For merchandising teams, FastReactFabric delivers accurate fabric forecasts by applying advanced intelligence to fabric data. These insights help apparel manufacturers to quickly overcome the challenges caused by complex new styles, increasing colourways and shrinking leadtimes.
For the cutting floor, FastReactFabric uses advanced algorithms to generate optimised cut plans from millions of possible combinations in one click. Manufacturers can gain complete control over their cutting rooms by optimising key processes such as the generation of cut and lay plans and the allocation of fabric.
Unlike other fabric purchasing solutions, FastReactFabric claims to aggregate historical, past performance and real-time data from fabric utilisation processes, so that manufacturers can always have the most accurate, up-to-date view of the cutting floor.
Wesley Ekman, Senior Sales Director, Coats Digital, commented “Ultimately, our unique, new solution will deliver much greater customer value to both new and existing customers alike. Buying too much fabric is a costly mistake. In such a volatile trading environment, fashion manufacturers simply cannot afford to buy the wrong amount of their largest cost investment, if they want to keep up with increasing consumer demand for fashion in a variety of style and colour choices. A more streamlined production process using accurate fabric data significantly frees up warehouse and shop floor space, reduces inventory and enables manufacturers to adapt effectively to increasing garment complexities and colourways, and we expect our new solution will prove a highly compelling proposition to companies looking for a sure-fire remedy to mitigate rising costs fast.”
