Preface – about this revised edition
John and I revised Introduction to Clothing Manufacture on behalf of Gerry’s estate and his publisher a few years ago and we are privileged to be asked to again provide a revised and updated version of his work with our 2nd edition of Garment Technology for Fashion Designers. To do this we needed to expand the team with the addition of ‘Ms Garment Technology’ herself, Dorothy Fairclough, thus allowing us to present a book which sticks to Gerry’s original style but gives the fashion design student in the 21st century a useful overview of the technical aspects to fashion product development. Whilst it is true to say that the globalisation of the fashion industry has had a major impact on the distribution of roles between manufacturer and retailer many of the fundamentals of garment technology applicable to the design and development of fashion products have remained constant. The need for the designer to understand the impact of design decisions on production lead times and overall product costs is in fact of greater importance the more the marketing and design operations are decoupled from those of manufacturing and distribution. What we hope to provide with this edition is the technical knowhow to enhance the design, development and creation of fashion products and to minimise the disruptive impact of unsuitable, ill-conceived and poorly managed ideas fixed at the design stage but realised – and accounted for – during the creation phase. Three of the central themes covered in this edition are direct materials utilisation and labour costs, garment and textile technology and the operation of the product development department.
These are all necessary areas for the designer/product developer to understand if they are to deliver product to the right price, to the right quality, at the right time and right for the targeted consumer.
Acknowledgements
Much of the original material from the 1st edition is still applicable today and has been re-used, therefore our thanks are extended to the machinery manufacturers, their agents and other organisations who provided the technical material and permission to reproduce illustrations of their products and exhibits for the 1st edition and also to those who have helped by providing technical images and details specifically for this revised version. Thanks especially to:
Paula Wren, Manchester Metropolitan University for the creation of the design specifications used in Chapter 14.
Caroline Hertz, Manchester Metropolitan University for her help in understanding the Product Development Process.
David Mellett, Matalan Ltd, UK for his advice on all aspects of garment manufacture.
Table of Contents
Preface – about this revised edition vi
Acknowledgements vii
Part I The Commercial Designer 1
Chapter 1 The Designer’s Role within Product Development and Manufacture 3
Chapter 2 The Designer and Garment Costs — The Commercial Designer 7
Chapter 3 Pattern Cutting and Materials Utilisation 15
Chapter 4 Garment Trimmings 36
Chapter 5 Designing for Manufacture 47
Part II Garment Technology 53
Chapter 6 Understanding Textile Materials 55
Chapter 7 Sample Cutting 76
Chapter 8 The Principles of Fusing Technology 99
Chapter 9 The Principles of Sewing Technology 112
Chapter 10 The Principles of Pressing Technology 138
Chapter 11 Garment Finishing and Inspection 150
Chapter 12 Selecting Appropriate Technology 160
Part III The Operation of the Product Development Department 165
Chapter 13 The Sample Room 167
Chapter 14 Communication 173
Chapter 15 Management/Leadership and Organisation 184
References 193
Index 195