About the Company

Lucky Knits Pvt Ltd was established in 2001 under the umbrella of Yunus Brothers. Since
then company has grown to become one of the most prominent garment exporting firms in
Pakistan. It is one of the few companies in Pakistan which a vertical infrastructure starting
from spinning to finishing.

Yunus Brothers is the flagship company and trading arm of the group which was formed in
1962 by Chairman (Late) Haji Abdul Aziz Tabba. Starting as a small commercial Exporter of
Yarn and Grey Cloth to Far Eastern countries, the company developed rapidly and expanded
its Exports to Europe and USA also. Yunus Brother Group is recognized internationally in
the world of Textiles and enjoying a strong reputation in respect of consistent quality,
reliability and superb customer services. The Yunus Brother Group has been a frequent
recipient of various awards and trophies for the Export Performance by the Government of
Pakistan.

Export countries include Australia, England, Russia, Srilanka, Brazil, Mexico, Philippines.
All type of garments including T-shirts, shorts, hooded pullovers, zipper hooded jackets,
sweatshirts and sweatpants etc are manufactured at the company.

Roles and Responsibilities

Engineers play a much bigger role in managing manufacturing processes rather than the daily
use of several engineering tools in a garment industry. Constant monitoring of all production
processes is carried out on a daily basis. Being a member of the Industrial Engineering (IE)
department, I was given the following responsibilities:

1. Evaluating the current production target and setting a new target keeping in view the
order deadline and shipment date.
2. Controlling the labour cost under all circumstances.
3. Recruiting sewing operators through standard test. A specific operator skill test was
carried out on all new operators and it was identified whether they belonged to Category
A, B or C (with A being the operator with the best skills).
4. In case of an operator that was in Category C but had the potential to be better than that, a
special training module/line was setup to educate the operators in after hours of the
production.
5. Setting up incentives for operators when certain production targets were, for example if
60% target was met Rs 2 were given on every extra garment produced.
6. Extending work measurement in other departments such as cutting and finishing sections.
7. Preparing daily production reports and keeping a record of monthly improvements with
graphical representation of all the data. The reports showed the line efficiency of different
style of garments being produced.
8. Carrying out the production of samples of new garment styles that are to be produced in
the near future. After a sample is made, trial run of that garment style is carried out by
setting up a temporary line with minimum operators to produce atleast 25 pieces of the
style and getting it approved by the Quality department.
9. Carrying out time study of various garment styles and updating old database. Time study
was conducted by video recording the sewing process of every individual operator in a
single line doing a certain job.
10. Researching on motion study and implementing it to reduce the cycle time by getting rid
of excess motions of the operators.
11. Researching on new machineries available in the market and latest systems that can be
installed in the company that helps in meeting the global demands. This also helps in
preparing cost benefits analysis.

Apart from this job description, I had to carry out the following activities on a daily basis:

 Measure the target vs. actual output every hour.

 Inspect the quality level of garments being produced.
 Check inline and end line quality reports.
 Discuss with quality inspectors and perform quality drill.
 Work with low output operators to inquire the reasons for failing to meet the target.
 Motivate and push operators to meet the production target.
 Follow up on new operators in training.
 Identify the bottle neck operations and balance accordingly.
 Provide immediate and continuous follow-up to repairs.
 Monitor and follow up on bundle tracking and outgoing bundles.

Types of Machines
There are several sewing machines used in a garment industry. The following are some
machines that were used in the production department of Lucky Knits:

 Single needle machine

 Two needle machine
 Over lock machine
 Flat lock top stitch machine
 Bar tack machine
 Button hole machine
 Kansai machine
 Tape cutting machine
General Components of a Sewing Machine
 Needle bar
 Bobbin case
 Bobbin winder
 Spool pin
 Thread guide
 Tension disc
 Presser foot
 Fly wheel
 Needle plate
 Face plate

Maintenance of Machines
Normally there are two kinds of maintenance that are carried out in Lucky Knits, i.e.
Preventive Maintenance and Breakdown Maintenance. Apart from these, daily maintenance
is carried out by operators at 11 am.

1. Daily Maintenance
Daily maintenance involves:

 Turning off the machines completely.

 Removing bobbin case, bobbin and the needle.
 Checking the quality of above mentioned components and replacing it if any one of them
needs to be changed.
 Checking the oil level by tilting the machine head and removing any dust particles from
the edges of the tanks.
 Cleaning the outer surface of the machine and the table with a cloth (provided by line
supervisors).
 Verify and recheck whether machine is running properly. In a case where this is not the
case, a mechanic is called immediately.

2. Preventive Maintenance
Scheduled or Preventive maintenance is carried out to reduce the number of machine breakdowns and
ensure smooth running of the machines over a long period of time. This ensures that the machine is in
good operating condition which results in increased productivity and quality of garments produced. In
Lucky Knits preventive maintenance is scheduled to take place every month on each production line.
A record is kept by the mechanical department to help them maintain the machines properly in the
future and also for audit purposes. Preventive maintenance involves the following activities:

 Cleaning the oil tank after draining the old oil.

 Removing the oil filter and checking for any contamination and replace it if needed.
 Removing all the components of the sewing machine and cleaning thoroughly all the dust
particles and fabric by using an air blower.
 Cleaning the machine motor with the help of the air blower.
 Cleaning the head chamber with a brush by removing the head cover.
 Cleaning all the surfaces that come in contact with the fabric and the needle and replacing them if
necessary.
 Usually a user manual is kept at hand when maintenance activities are carried out for individual
machines. All parts and covers are replaced and put into place correctly by following the
guidelines in the manual.
 At the end, oil is filled in the tank and the machine is left to run at a slow speed for a few minutes
to ensure that the oil flows into all parts of the machine.

3. Breakdown Maintenance
Breakdown maintenance occurs when a machine breaks down for any reason. As a result a
mechanic is called immediately to the production line to inspect the machine. The breakdown
can be major or minor. Minor breakdowns include those due to skip stitch, needle breakage,
loose stitch, thread breakage etc. Usually these minor breakdowns can be solved by most of
the operators who are trained to carry out such maintenance. In case of major breakdowns,
skilled mechanics are required for inspection. A machine breakdown card is placed at each
machine and is updated after every breakdown. Production time lost due to breakdown is
written on it and a history of breakdowns is maintained in this manner. The number of
breakdowns can be reduced if proper preventive maintenance is scheduled and carried out in
timely manner.