TYTTI ALAPIETI
CREATING AN EFFICIENT AND SCALABLE MANUFACTURING SYSTEM FOR CUSTOMIZED MADE-TO-MEASURE JEANS
Master of Science thesis
Examiner: Professor Heikki Mattila Examiner and topic approved in the Automation, Mechanical and
Material Engineering Faculties Council meeting on the 8th of February 2012
ABSTRACT
TAMPERE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
Master’s Degree Programme in Fibre and Textile Technology
ALAPIETI, TYTTI: Creating an efficient and scalable manufacturing system for customized made-to-measure jeans
Master of Science Thesis, 94 pages May 2012
Major: Textile & Clothing Production Technology Examiner: Professor Heikki Mattila
Keywords: made-to-measure, mass customization, jeans, production, co- design, textile and clothing industry
This Master of Science thesis is done for Nomojeans Corporation Oy (NOMO Jeans), which was founded in Helsinki in September 2010. NOMO Jeans designs, produces, and sells customized made-to-measure jeans. The idea is based on observed customer need, as it can be very difficult to find perfectly fitting jeans with desired design from the vast selections of apparel stores. The goal of this thesis is to create an efficient and scalable manufacturing system for customized made-to-measure jeans.
The apparel industry has faced significant changes in the last decades, and increasing competition has created a need for new strategies to answer the growing, fragmenting and faster changing demand with wider product variations. Mass customization is a strategy to fulfill customer needs more profoundly. Mass customization requires the use of flexible processes to produce varied customized products and services at low cost with a standardized mass production system. One important goal of customization is high customer satisfaction, which is realized by giving the customer an opportunity to affect the product features and fit.
Flexibility with excellent quality is difficult to achieve with changing volumes. Thus close relations and frequent communication with producers and suppliers is required as well as steady sales and growth in volumes. Quality assurance is important in every part of the supply chain. The production efficiency can be increased by optimized, pre- designed and standardized detail options, from which the customers can choose from, and by increasing modularity in product architecture and in production. Accurate measurements and body shape information from a 3D body scanner, automated individual pattern creation, and standardized customization options enable agile mass production of customized made-to-measure jeans.
TIIVISTELMÄ (ABSTRACT IN FINNISH) TAMPEREEN TEKNILLINEN YLIOPISTO Kuitu- ja tekstiilitekniikan koulutusohjelma
ALAPIETI, TYTTI: Tehokkaan ja joustavan valmistusmenetelmän kehittäminen räätälöitäville mittatilausfarkuille
Diplomityö, 94 sivua Toukokuu 2012
Pääaine: Tekstiili- ja vaatetustuotantoteknologia Tarkastaja: professori Heikki Mattila
Avainsanat: mittatilaus, massaräätälöinti, farkut, yhteissuunnittelu, valmistusmenetelmät, tekstiili- ja vaatetusteollisuus
Tämä diplomityö on tehty NOMO Jeans Corporation Oy:lle, joka on perustettu Helsingissä syyskuussa 2012. Idea pohjautuu asiakastarpeeseen, sillä täydellisesti istuvien ja halutun tyylisten farkkujen löytäminen voi olla hyvin hankalaa vaatekauppojen erittäin laajoista valikoimista. NOMO Jeansilla on tällä hetkellä kaupat Helsingissä ja Hampurissa, ja ensimmäinen tilaus tehdään aina NOMO-kaupassa, jossa asiakkaan mitat otetaan 3D-vartaloskannerilla. Asiakas voi valita valikoimasta farkkujensa mallin, sekä erilaisia yksityiskohtia, kankaan ja viimeistelyt. Myöhemmin asiakas voi tilata lisää farkkuja myös NOMO Jeansin omasta verkkokaupasta.
Ostotapahtuman jälkeen tilaukset kerätään eriksi, jotka ajetaan tilaus- ja kaavoitusohjelmien läpi, jolloin jokaiselle tilaukselle syntyy omat tuotekortit ja kaavat.
Tämän jälkeen farkut valmistetaan alihankintana tehtailla Kiinassa ja Virossa. Valmiit farkut toimitetaan viikoittain päätoimistolle Helsinkiin, jossa ne tarkistetaan, yksittäispakataan ja lähetetään asiakkaille tai kaupasta noudettaviksi. Tällä hetkellä toimitusaika on 4-8 viikkoa, ja tavoitteena on lyhentää toimitusaika 3-4 viikkoon. Tämä vaatii jokaisen toimitusketjun vaiheen kehittämistä ja tehostamista. Tämän työn tarkoituksena on kehittää tehokas ja joustava tuotantomenetelmä räätälöitäville mittatilausfarkuille.
Vaatetusteollisuus on muuttunut valtavasti viime vuosikymmeninä, ja kasvava kilpailu on pakottanut luomaan uusia strategioita vastaamaan kasvavaan ja nopeasti muuttuvaan kysyntään yhä vain laajemmilla tuotevaihteluilla. Vaatemarkkinoiden pääpiirteitä ovat lyhyet tuote-elinkaaret, hankala ennustettavuus, laaja vaihtelevuus ja ostoimpulsiivisuus. Muotituotteiden myynnissä on erittäin tärkeää saada oikea määrä oikeita tuotteita markkinoille juuri oikeaan aikaan. Massaräätälöinti on strategia palvella asiakkaita paremmin. Massaräätälöinti tarkoittaa, että asiakas voi osallistua tuotteen suunnittelemiseen ja vaikuttaa sen ominaisuuksiin, mutta valmistus tapahtuu massatuotannon keinoin. Massaräätälöinnissä (englanniksi mass customization) räätälöinti ei tarkoita räätälöintiä perinteisessä käsityö- ja mittatilausmerkityksessä.
Tälle sanalle on englannin kielessä oma sana: tailoring. Tarkoituksena on tarjota asiakkaille tarpeeksi vaihtoehtoja, jotta tuote tuntuu räätälöidyltä ja yksilölliseltä niin,
etteivät kustannukset nouse huomattavasti. Vaihtoehtojen määrä tulee optimoida ja standardisoida, muuten valintaprosessi on luultavasti useimmille liian hankala, samoin kuin tuotteen valmistaminen. Vaatetusyritykset keskittyvät yhä enemmän tarjoamaan henkilökohtaisia palveluja asiakkaille. Massaräätälöinnissä tuote valmistetaan aina tietyn asiakkaan tilauksen pohjalta.
Vaateteollisuudessa massaräätälöinti on vielä hyvin marginaalinen konsepti, mutta kiinnostus sitä kohtaan kasvaa jatkuvasti. Tällä hetkellä NOMO Jeansin lisäksi on joitakin olemassa olevia ja vastikään aloittaneita yrityksiä, jotka myyvät räätälöitäviä ja mittojen mukaan valmistettavia farkkuja Euroopassa ja Pohjois-Amerikassa. Useimmat näistä on perustettu viime vuosikymmenen aikana, ja tällä hetkellä näistä millään ei ole kaupallisessa käytössä 3D-vartaloskanneria, vaan tarvittavat mitat otetaan käsin. Levi Strauss Co. oli pioneeri farkkujen räätälöintikonsepteissa aloittaen vuonna 1994, mutta se lopetti konseptin vuonna 2003.
Toimitusketjun nopeuttamiseksi automatisoitujen ja tietokoneohjattujen laitteiden käyttö on tarpeellista. Nopea yhteydenpito ja virheetön informaation kulku asiakkaiden ja toimitusketjun välillä sekä toimitusketjun sisällä on välttämätöntä massaräätälöinnissä. Tuotetietohallintaan pitää panostaa, sillä se mahdollistaa suurien ja vaihtelevien tietomäärien hallinnan sekä suunnittelu- ja valmistusryhmien yhteistyön.
Automaatiota tarvitaan tarkkojen mittojen mukaisten tuotteiden valmistukseen suuremmalle joukolle asiakkaita nopeasti. Vartalon mittaamiseen on kehitetty eri tekniikoilla toimivia vartaloskannereita (3D body scanner), joiden avulla saadaan nopeasti tarkat kolmiulotteiset mitat ja muodot, joita tarvitaan räätälöinnissä, kun halutaan täysin sopivan kokoinen vaate.
Massaräätälöinnillä voidaan saavuttaa monia etuja tavalliseen myyntiin ja valmistukseen verrattuna. Asiakastyytyväisyys ja –uskollisuus voivat kasvaa, ja tarjoamalla räätälöintiä yritys voi parantaa brändiä ja imagoa. Taloudelliselta kannalta myyntikate voi kasvaa, alennuksella myyminen vähentyy ja samoin kuin valmiiden tuotteiden inventaarion tarve. Joustavuuden ja erinomaisen laadun saavuttaminen on haastavaa vaihtelevan kokoisten erien kanssa. Tämän vuoksi hyvät suhteet ja kommunikointi valmistajien ja toimittajien kanssa on hyvin tärkeää. Laadun hallinta on tärkeää toimitusketjun jokaisessa vaiheessa. Tuotannon tehokkuutta voidaan kasvattaa optimoimalla ja suunnittelemalla etukäteen yksityiskohdat ja materiaalit, joista asiakas voi räätälöidä haluamansalaiset farkut. Modulaarisuutta voi lisätä sekä tuotteissa että tuotannossa. 3D-vartaloskannerilla otetut tarkat mitat, automatisoitu kaavojen ja tuotekorttien luominen sekä standardisoidut räätälöintivaihtoehdot mahdollistavat räätälöitävien mittatilausfarkkujen valmistuksen massatuotannon keinoin.
PREFACE
I have been interested in mass customization concepts for a long time, and it was a great opportunity and an interesting experience to write this Master’s thesis for Nomojeans Corporation Oy. It was possible to continue research on the same area than in my Bachelor’s thesis in an innovative start-up company.
The thesis work started with a trip to China with company co-founder Jussi Mononen and Pattern Master Pirjo Elbrecht, and this was the best way to get an introduction to the company. Later on, my fellow traveler in the visits to the factory in China has been Chief Designer Outi Potila. I would like to thank the whole NOMO team for all conversations and creating an enthusiastic working environment. Special thanks for CEO Mari Silvennoinen for instructing and supervising the thesis.
Furthermore, I would like to thank Professor Heikki Mattila for good advice, comments, and instruction. Thanks to Researcher Milka Mustonen for interesting conversations and providing various references.
Finally, I would like to thank Antti Henttonen, my family and friends for support.
Helsinki, May 21st, 2012
Tytti Alapieti
CONTENTS
1! Introduction... 1!
2! Clothing & Denim industries... 3!
2.1! Traditional supply chain/pipeline in the apparel industry ... 4!
2.2! Denim and jeans industry ... 6!
2.3! Companies offering customized jeans ... 7!
2.3.1! Levi Strauss Co... 8!
2.3.2! Getwear... 13!
3! Mass customization... 16!
3.1! Definition of mass customization ... 16!
3.2! Frameworks for mass customization ... 18!
3.2.1! Advantages and limitations... 21!
3.2.2! Co-design and forecasting ... 22!
3.2.3! Production and enabling technology... 24!
3.2.4! Enabling technology for agile production ... 27!
3.3! Modularity in mass customization... 29!
3.4! Quality management in mass customization ... 32!
4! Measuring performance ... 36!
4.1! Key performance indicators for retailing... 36!
4.2! Productivity and efficiency... 38!
4.3! Inventory management ... 41!
4.4! Costs and profits in mass customization compared to traditional production 44! 5! NOMO Jeans corporation oy ... 46!
5.1! Business idea... 46!
5.2! Design options for customization ... 48!
5.3! Individual fit with a 3D Body Scanner ... 51!
5.4! Production processes for NOMO Jeans ... 54!
5.4.1! Creating an order ... 54!
5.4.2! Sourcing ... 55!
5.4.3! Problems and challenges in production at the beginning ... 56!
5.5! Logistics and deliveries ... 57!
6! Creating a manufacturing system for customized made-to-measure jeans... 58!
6.1! Modularity and product architecture... 58!
6.2! Optimal production plan and manufacturing strategy ... 61!
6.2.1! Organizing the manufacturing ... 62!
6.3! Quality assurance... 74!
6.3.1! Return handling... 78!
6.4! Risk analysis ... 80!
7! Conclusions... 82!
7.1! Discussion... 82!
7.2! Results... 84!
7.3! Further studies... 85!
References... 86!
ABBREVIATIONS AND NOTATION
CAD/CAM Computer aided design/Computer aided manufacturing Cloud service Cloud service or computing allows convenient, on-demand
access to shared pools of data, applications and hardware.
CM Cut and manufacturing
CMT Cut, manufacturing and trimming
CRM Customer relationship management
CODC Customer order de-coupling
Configuration Arrangement of parts, components or elements to create a product or system for a specific purpose.
Customize To make or alter according to individual or personal specifications
EDI Electronic data interchange
ICT Information and communication technology
JIT Just-in-time, an inventory and manufacturing strategy
KPI Key performance indicator
OPP Order penetration point, synonym to CODC
PCDA Plan-do-check-act model for continuous improvement QR Quick response, an inventory partnership strategy between
suppliers and retailers
RFID Radio Frequency Identification
SKU Stock keeping unit
SME Small and medium enterprises
TBMP Time-based manufacturing practices
UPS Unitary production system
3D body scanner Three-dimensional body scanner
1 INTRODUCTION
This Master of Science thesis is made for NOMO Jeans Corparation Oy (later on NOMO Jeans), which designs, manufactures and sells customized made-to-measure jeans. NOMO Jeans is a start-up company, and the first store was opened in Kamppi shopping mall, Helsinki, in September 2011. The second store was opened in Hamburg, Germany, in November 2011. At the moment, NOMO Jeans is the only company in the world offering customized jeans, which are purchased at own special store, and the body measurements are taken with a 3D body scanner.
The purpose of this thesis is to create customized manufacturing system, which is efficient and scalable, as well as agile and flexible. As a result, many tools for production were developed. The practical part of this thesis consists of identifying the biggest challenges in the production of NOMO Jeans’ customized made-to-measure jeans and finding solutions for them. The sewing and washing quality level has been raised with detailed instructions for production, systematic quality assurance as well as frequent monitoring and feedback. The factors for efficiency and scalability of the production workflow are studied. This thesis work started in September 2011, and has included three visits to a subcontractor factory in China, and two visits to a more recent subcontractor factory in Estonia.
The thesis consists of a theoretical part and a practical part. The theoretical part begins with an introduction to the clothing and denim industries (Chapter 2), and explains the characteristics of these industries, as well as the major changes in the last decades. In addition, two denim companies implementing mass customization are presented. Levi Strauss’ Original Spin was the first concept in mass customization of jeans, but the concept was discontinued in 2003. The reasons for ending the program are studied. The second example, Getwear is one of the most recently established companies offering customization for jeans as the website was opened in February 2012. The theoretical part continues with mass customization concept (Chapter 3), and this chapter introduces definitions and different frameworks for mass customization. Furthermore, requirements and enabling technology for production of made-to-order customized product are studied. Modularity has been emphasized as a strategy to achieve agility in mass customization in several research studies. Also quality management has special requirements in mass customization.
The different factors affecting the performance, and the ways to measure success are studied in Chapter 4. This chapter introduces the main key performance indicators for retailing, production, and inventory management. Also cost and profits of mass customization are compared to traditional production. Chapter 5 introduces Nomojeans Corporation Oy and its operations. The main practical part of this thesis was creating a manufacturing system for customized made-to-measure jeans, which is presented in Chapter 6. The conclusions and results are discussed in the last chapter.
There are many companies that offer customization alongside of traditional production.
However, there are fewer companies and research about companies that produce only mass customized clothing. There are not many case studies about apparel customization available, so also Internet articles and sources were used to describe companies, which offer customized jeans. It can be concluded that even Levi Strauss Co., which invented jeans in 19th century, and is expert in jeans manufacturing, had difficulties in implementing successfully customization concept. Even thought the concept is challenging, there are lots of possibilities and potential in the future.
2 CLOTHING & DENIM INDUSTRIES
The textile and clothing sector is a diverse industry, with around 128 000 companies in Europe, employing over 1,9 million employees. The sector had an annual turnover exceeding 172 billion Euros in the year 2010. (Euratex, Key figures 2012) Nevertheless, apparel industry has undergone major changes in last decades. Increasing competition has forced companies to create new strategies to answer growing, fragmenting and faster changing demand with wider product variations and growing pressure to differentiate from competitors. The main characteristics of the clothing market are short product lifecycles, high volatility, low predictability, and a high level of impulse purchase (Cerruti & Harrison 2006; Christopher et al. 2004) In fashion and apparel markets it is very important to get the right quantity of products at the right time into retail business (Fernie and Sparks, 1998). Market demand and all the factors that influence demand are difficult to forecast in markets like clothing where the trends and seasonality cause varying of demand patterns.
International supply chain operations, developments of production technology, and data transfer have enabled companies implement strategies such as quick response (QR), and lean manufacturing including JIT (just-in time). Common goal for these strategies is to enhance mass production and minimize supply-chain lead-times to increase competitiveness against global competition and to bring new products available to customers in faster cycles, and especially at the right time. The biggest challenge with these strategies is the handling of a wide and growing product range, which leads to selling unsold garments at reduced prices and loss of sales when there is no right model or size available at the right time and place.
At present, mass customization is still a marginal concept in apparel industry, and there are few companies implementing it. However, the interest towards mass customization is growing, and moving from mass production towards mass customization is of the three main visions of the European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and Clothing (2004). The vision is that mass production would end and there would be a transfer to more and more individual products. In addition, textile and clothing products would be combined with intelligent production, logistics, delivery and service concepts.
SERVIVE is an EU research project about subjects related to customization in the clothing industry. It is an EU funded project, which aims to be the launching platform for enabling large-scale implementation of mass customization in the European Fashion Domain. Project is co-operated by different mass customization companies and
Universities. The main goals of the project are enlargement of the assortment of customizable items that are currently offered, enhancement of all co-design aspects such as functionality and fun, and development and testing of a new production model based on decentralized networked SME (small and medium enterprises) cells. (SERVIVE, www)
2.1 Traditional supply chain/pipeline in the apparel industry
The term “supply chain” describes the flow of goods from the very first process encountered in the production of a product all the way to the hand of the consumer
(Bruce et al. 2004). Traditional pipeline in the apparel industry is linear push type sale to final consumer, and contact with consumer is generally in the late stage of the pipeline, in the sale, or contact with consumer might not exist at all (Kincade et al.
2007). Figure 1 shows the operation times in a traditional seasonal collection, which generally takes many months. The traditional supply chain in the textile industry is complex, and often relatively long, with a number of parties involved. However, fashion trend cycles have become more and more shorter and the traditional supply chains cannot answer the demand as required. Therefore, careful management of the supply chain is important in reducing lead times and achieving quick response to market demands.
Figure 1. Traditional pipeline for apparel production (modified from Kincade et al.
2007).
Ideas and research -Understand marketing concept -Search information -Observe consumer -Create a color library
-Analyze competitors’
garments
Collection design
-Sketch garment ideas
-Search and evaluate fabrics and accessories -Approve color -Approve patterns -Decide
optimum design solutions and amounts
Preparation for production -Create
production patterns -Create specifications and instructions -Produce sewn samples
-Evaluate sewability of fabric and trim -Order textiles
Market preparation -Prepare samples for market
-Evaluate sample appearance -Review marketing strategies -Distribution and ship to market
12 months 11-9 months 10-8 months 7-1 months
Time before sale to consumer
There are many so-called fast fashion companies in the clothing sector, which have extremely low profit margins. Producing and holding even small quantities of stock is not generally a viable option for them. This is why many companies in the sector have to produce products rapidly to fulfill demand. Bruce et al. (2004) conclude that the textile and clothing industry have combinations of lean and agile manufacturing to ensure fast product replenishment and minimize stocks. It is also important to build and maintain supply chain partnerships and flexibility in response to the volatility of demand from retailers and customers. (Bruce et al. 2004, Jones 2002)
Global sourcing and purchasing in fashion and clothing have brought many new challenges for companies, and required changes in management and supply chain operations. Cost savings are the major advantage of the international sourcing.
Nevertheless, international sourcing has also disadvantages and risks. There is a number of things that have to be considered carefully so that the opportunity of international sourcing can work in its full strength. Various kinds of skills are required with different sourcing concepts.
The main sourcing concepts in clothing industry are CM, CMT, Full-Package, and Private Label. CM includes cutting and manufacturing of garments, and CMT includes cutting, manufacturing, and trimming. In the CM and CMT models, the customer must have the skills to buy and send all materials to a manufacturer. Full-Package includes production and materials, and Private Label includes also design. In Full-Package and Private Label sourcing, only product specifications are needed, since the manufacturer takes care of sourcing or manufacturing of the materials. (Mattila, 2008)
Generally, customers have to search the desired product from wide assortments. Mass- producers are rarely in contact with customers, and the production is based on standardization and large volumes. Product variation is one answer to better meet customers’ desires. The problems occur when companies try to define the most probable customer type according to sales data and market researches, and then create products that would satisfy as many customers as possible. This has led to very wide product variations and collections. (Gilmore & Pine 2000) Customers are used to the fact that they cannot affect the style or the size of the product, but even product variation does not satisfy all customers.
Finding the right fit is an extensive problem in mass-production of clothing. It can be very difficult for customers to find the right size, since almost every company has their own sizing charts. There are differences between countries, and sizes can be shown with numbers, letters, and also with an age in children wear. In addition, there can be differences with same sizes of two different products, even if the producer is the same.
The sizes have been determined according to average body shapes and sizes, so
consumers with non-average body type have especially difficulties to find fitting garments.
2.2 Denim and jeans industry
Jeans have very saturated markets, and the base product has not changed since invention of it in by Levi Strauss in the 1870’s. The classical five-pocket indigo dyed blue jeans have only grown its popularity and spread across the world. Jeans have become a global, ubiquitous piece of clothing. Of course, there are various differentiations and new innovations in colors, washes, models, details, finishing techniques, and effects.
For example, denim trends have been following:
• Avoiding or obtaining color changes,
• Destructive techniques such as stonewash or enzyme-wash,
• Bleaching with potassium permanganate or with more expensive enzymes,
• Creating the bleach or brushed look with laser,
• Vintage look and worn-out look with, for example, whiskers, scratches or paint
• Waxed jeans with a shiny leather look (CBI, 2009).
• Pastel and bright color dyed denim jeans are the biggest trend in the spring and summer of 2012.
• Denim fabrics with different color yarns used in warp and weft to create denim, which is different color from the outside and inside.
The total size of the denim market in the EU can be estimated at 389 million pairs, value of ! 14.0 billion in 2007. As the population of the EU is almost 493 million, it can be concluded that on average 78% of the EU population bought one pair of jeans in 2007.
Per capita consumption accounts for 1.1 pairs of jeans per year in the UK. In Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium the consumption is 1.0 pair per capita, and in France (0.9), Italy (0.8) and Spain (0.7) less than one pair of jeans per year. Germany is the largest market, despite a slight fall in consumption during the period 2005-2007 and, growth in volume was stronger than growth in value caused by slightly decreased consumer prices among the major EU countries.
Italy is the leader in manufacturing of jeans in the EU, but production has been shifting to Eastern Europe and North Africa because of the lower labor costs. Other EU countries with significant jeans industry are Spain, Portugal, and Romania. In 2007, 554 million pair of jeans at a value of ! 5.4 billion were imported in the EU, indicating an average import price of ! 9.81 per unit. Turkey was the leading supplier to the EU in 2007, as the country’s exports to the EU increased 12 % compared to the previous year.
Imports from second largest supplier China were 70% higher in 2007 than in the previous year, while exports from Italy to other EU countries decreased by 12% during the same period. (CBI, 2009)
Leading brand names in the EU and worldwide are Levi Strauss, Wrangler and Lee, and all of these come from the USA (CBI, 2009). Table 1 presents an overview of main companies in the jeans industry classified by price and consumer fashion acceptance (CBI, 2009 according to Fashion & Vision 2008).
Table 1. Major player in the jeans industry (modified from CBI 2009, according to Fashion & Vision 2008).
Pursuing sustainability in manufacturing of denim fabrics and jeans as well as in the whole supply chain is one of the prevalent trends. The goals of various companies include reducing impact on the nature by minimizing water consumption and chemical usage, replacing harmful chemicals with less harmful of harmfulness. It is important to reduce waste and improve wastewater handling, and stop using harmful finishing techniques such as sandblasting, which is dangerous for the health of the workers. In addition, the main concerns include improvement of working conditions, and actions to prevent use of forced or child labor.
2.3 Companies offering customized jeans
There are not many companies offering customized jeans, with most of these companies having started during the last decade. Levi Strauss Co. was a pioneer in creating a customization concept for jeans in 1994, but Levi’s ended the concept in 2003. Today, there are few existing companies that sell customized jeans in the Europe and North America. In this chapter, Levi’s Original Spin and recently founded Getwear will be introduced more closely. The most of the companies offering customization can be
M&F Girbaud DSquared2 Blue Blood
Diesel
True Religion Nudie
Edun True Jeans
Seven for all mankind,
J Brand DKNY jeans Armani jeans
--
G-star Levi’s Red
Premium Repley
Only Guess
Pepe Miss Sixty
Dockers Mustang Edwin Levi Straus
Lee Jeans Wrangler Very Nice
--
Cheap Monday Dr Denim
&D (H&M) MNG (Mango)
TRFC (Zara)
Gap Jinglers (C&A)
Mic Mac
Dressman Zeeman No-brand names Innovators Trendsetters Trend followers Late adaptors
High 80-200 !
Medium 50-120 !
Low 20-60!
Price category:
Fashion acceptance:
found from the Internet, for example INDIcustom, Do My Jeans, UJeans and Smart- Jeans. The concepts of these companies are very similar. Die Jeans is a German company, which sells customized jeans in the web shop, where jeans can be customized and customer’s individual measures entered. Jeans are produced in Germany. Die Jeans is currently setting up a network of measurement stations in Germany, where it is possible to get measured for free. (Die Jeans FAQ, www). In the table 2, different companies offering customization are compared.
Table 2. Companies offering customized made-to-measure jeans (sources: websites of the companies).
Benchmarking of the companies is very important and interesting. With the case of Levi Strauss Co., the reasons for ending the concept are studied to recognize the main challenges in customization, and to find out ways to overcome them. With the existing companies, the most interesting things from the production point of view are the promised delivery time, and how it is achieved, how the measurements are taken as well as the option selections for customization. Only Fitted Fashion takes the measurements with 3D body scanner as NOMO Jeans, as the others have instructions to take self- measurements in their web pages. Anyhow, Fitted Fashion has not opened any stores yet.
2.3.1 Levi Strauss Co.
Levi Strauss Co. “Personal Pair” was the first customization concept for jeans originating in 1994. At the beginning, it was aimed for women and later on also for men. Personal Pair jeans were customized mostly on fit, but also on look based on the five-pocket variety. This service was available in 56 original Levi’s stores across the United States and Canada. In a store, four initial measurements were taken from waist, hip, inseam and rise by trained fit specialist. The measurements were entered into a computer, which suggested a prototype pair of jeans. The customer tried on the prototype jeans and fit modifications could be made according to the four initial measurements based on the customer preference, such as tighter fit, looser fit, shorter,
longer and so on. Fitting of two or three prototypes was usually required to find the perfect fit for the customer. The order with final fit was sent via modem to Levi Strauss’
factory in Mountain City, Tennessee, where a dedicated team of sewing operators constructed the jeans. The customized jeans were ready in two to three weeks, and they cost about 65 US$ at the time, and this was around 15 US$ more expensive than buying directly from the shelf. (Oleson 1998; Lee & Chen 1999 according to Abend 1996)
Figure 2. Levi’s “Personal Pair” customization process in store (modified from Lee &
Chen 1999).
In 1997, Levi Strauss Co. Original Spin was emerged from Levi’s “Personal Pair”. The Original Spin had much more options for customization in addition to the fit, and the concept was redesigned to match the target group (15-25 years old) better. In the picture (next page) of an Original Spin flagship store, the three steps are listed:
1. Design your own unique Levi’s jeans from a menu of choices.
2. Have your measurements taped and try on a sample pair.
3. Purchase them and we’ll make you your own unique pair. You’ll receive them in about 2 weeks.
Trained salesperson Measurements of the customer
(Waist, hip, inseam, rise)
Computer system Identification of a prototype test jeans
(from 500 pairs)
Manufacturer Customer
Try on prototype chosen by computer
Customer & Salesperson Modification of fit compared to
try-on prototype
Modem
Picture 1. Original Spin store (Jackson, www).
The menu of choices included different models, colors, hem and leg styles, and zipper or button front fly. Each flagship store included an interactive kiosk utilizing web technology. (Jackson, www) The process begun at a kiosk, where the shopper registered and entered personal data. The measurements were still taken with measuring tape, until the opening of the 15th Original Spin store that was a part of the new 24 000 square foot, four-story Levi’s multi-experience outlet in San Francisco, where a TC2 body scanner was introduced at first time to take measurements in August 1998. The white-light scanning technique was developed by [TC]2, Tailored Clothing Technology Corporation. The scanner system had four light projectors and four cameras (upper, lower, front and back) which each took a series of photographs of still subject over a two-second period, producing 300 000 data points. The cameras were cabled directly to a single PC that was loaded with a graphics board and software, where the data was used to create a tiff image. To complete the experience, the customer received a printout of the scan. (Livingstone 1999, www; Bruzzi & Church Gibson 2000)
After the scan, the sales person utilized the information to offer a variety of appropriate styles to try on, and personal preferences such as loose or close fit were possible. The sales person entered the selection data into the customer’s profile, and the file was transferred to remote manufacturing facility. At this time, the production was in San Antonio, Texas. In the San Francisco flagship store, it was also possible to put customized designs on customized jeans. The process used computer-controlled, high-
intensity laser light to vaporize dye on the surface of jeans, creating a design without compromising fabric strength. Customers could choose from availed designs or brought their own image or text, which was scanned and attached in few minutes. (Livingstone 1999, www)
However, despite of good reputation and feedback, Levi Strauss discontinued Original Spin program without further explanations in the end of year 2003. Professor Frank Piller (2004, www) analyses reasons for ending the program. One of the major reasons could have been the general bad business situation of Levi Strauss, as if the premier business struggles, it is reasonable to maintain core competencies and focus on mass production, and eliminate less profitable side operations. Also the last factory in the United States was finally closed due to cost cutting efforts, and this had been the plant that had produced the customized jeans. Piller speculates that from the mass customization perspective, the Original Spin was more just a marketing and PR gimmick, not a real business model. Overall, the concept was only based on the availability of flexible manufacturing technology, but Levi was not able to turn customized products into customized relationship with its customers or to use the knowledge from individual orders for customer knowledge management. According to Piller (2004), re-ordering was never easily possible, and nobody ever answered to requested feedback. (Piller 2004, www)
Especially the closing of the last production facility and moving abroad might have caused difficulties for the program. Reducing production costs by moving production in to low cost countries generally means that skills and education of workers decreases.
This would have affected the processes, and increased the lead and delivery times as well as make them more uncertain. In addition, longer distance would have increased the delivery costs. On the other hand, the youth target group (age 15-25) of the program must have set limitations. This particular group has less money to spend, and is less ready to pay much extra for customization, so there was not much possibilities to increase the price without changing the whole concept and turning the focus on a different target group.
The consumers, who are interested in customizing fit and ready to pay extra, are the ones with extraordinary body shapes and difficulties to find fitting jeans from the shelves. However, these body shapes are the most challenging from the pattern making point of view. It might be difficult to satisfy even customers with normal body type, since customers have different expectations and feelings about fit, which would have then increase the amount of returns. There might have been less appropriate technology or skills to utilize scanned or tape measured measurement to create fitting customized jeans for all. The costs of producing customized jeans are higher than of mass-produced, and there is no retail value in returned customized jeans. This might have also affected
the decision-making when ending the program, especially if general business situation was not good and there was a high pressure to reduce costs.
Levi Strauss has not brought customized jeans back to the markets. In 2011, Levi’s developed a new kind of strategy to serve better female customers by focusing on the body shape. Levi’s Curve ID divides body types into four categories: slight curve, demi curve, bold curve, and supreme curve. This division is based on results from body scanning and measuring over 65 000 women around the world to develop better fitting jeans. The fit categories are based on the ratio between hip and seat measurements, and about 80 % of women should belong in some of these categories. Customers can define their own body type by choosing a matching body shape, and answering three questions about most common fit problems (Picture 2). Alternatively, customers can self-measure hip, seat and thigh according to clear video instructions in the website and insert results to get the answer in which category she belongs. Then the customer can buy available jeans from that category according to hip measurement, and the jeans should fit well. It is possible to buy Levi’s Curve ID jeans from Levi’s online store in the US and most European countries, but for example Levi’s Finnish site does not have link to the online store yet. (Levi Stauss Co., Curve ID)
Picture 2. Defining fit with Levi’s Curve ID (Levi Strauss Co. Curve ID, www).
Levi’s Curve ID does not allow customers to co-design, and it does not have solutions neither for men’s fit problems nor for the 20 % of women with extraordinary curves.
The advantages of this concept are that it is possible to target much larger markets in online than only with traditional retail stores, and the production can be arranged as normal mass production. The fit of the jeans depends on the denim fabric, so the same size made from different fabrics may feel different, which can be hard to estimate in an online store. However, the customer has a possibility to try-on and change to different size, and there is no need to re-produce the jeans. Also. This is not a new way to customize jeans, but a new way to shop for jeans as stated in Levi’s web pages (Levi Strauss Co. Curve ID, www).
2.3.2 Getwear
Getwear is one of the most recent companies, which offers customized jeans, and their web pages and online store were launched in February 2012. The company has started in the United States in 2009, and the strategist and concept developer behind the site is Yaakov Karda, who got the idea after his studies in Fashion Management in Italy.
Getwear differs from competitors by focusing on custom design in addition to custom fit, but most of all it focuses on social commerce and P2P interactions (Piller 2012, www). Customers can design a pair of jeans via the site, and in addition to purchasing the customized jeans, it is possible to share the design with other users of the site. Each time another user of the site selects a link to a design and purchases, the designer of the jeans is entitled to a “Getwear credit” worth of 10.00 US$. It is possible to get the credit even though another customer edits the original design before purchasing. Credits can be used for purchases from Getwear. Alternatively, a payment to an account can be requested if the credits exceed 100 US$ with certain limitation and rules. (Getwear terms of use, www).
This type of credit and community idea has been implemented also in some custom- made print and clothing web-companies such as Spreadshirts, where customers can open an own t-shirt shops and sell self-designed t-shirts. Another one is Threadless, which sells clothing with prints that are scored and commented by the community. All of the customers can submit designs for evaluation, but only highly scored are selected to become Threadless products. (Speardshirt & Threadless, www)
Picture 3. Custom design tools in Getwear’s website (Getwear design, www).
The Getwear jeans are co-designed and customized in the online store (picture 3), where all options are presented. At the moment, the selection includes one black and one blue denim fabric. There are seven different models for women and ten for men, and there is a video of each model in addition to the pictures. There are two stitching yarn colors, different options for buttons, zippers, belt loops, and front and back pockets. Waist height and length of the jeans can be altered. There is a selection of embroideries, effects, brushing, paint and cuts, which can be located to desired places. Selected options appear on a 2D-model, which can be looked from the front and back. There is also a magnifying glass tool, which can be moved around the jeans to look more closely at different parts. (Getwear design, www)
The price of the jeans starts from 99 US$, and rises depending on the selected options.
For example, embroideries cost about 20 US$ extra per piece. When the jeans are customized as wanted, it is possible to pick a size in the US or the EU sizes, or order jeans according to one’s own custom-fit. If the custom-fit is selected, the customer is guided through the measuring process in picture 4 (next page). First, the body shape is selected from three different options: flat, average or curvy. Six different measurements are required, and there are short instruction videos for each one of them. It is optional to enter normal jeans size to ensure that the measurements are correct. There is also possibility to write special requirements. The final page shows the picture of designed jeans and a list of the selected options. (Getwear design & size, www)
Picture 4. Custom fit tools in Getwear’s website (Getwear size, www)
Production time varies, depending on the intricacy of the order. Jeans without embroidery are shipped within seven business days from the order, and jeans with embroidery or heavy distress are usually sent from the factory in nine business days.
Getwear uses a unique parametric pattern making system that produces ready for cutting patterns in seconds. They also have an especially dedicated production unit in India, which does not do any other work. Shipping by UPS takes three days, and it is guaranteed that every order will take less than two weeks to process. Getwear aims to further reduce the delivery time to one week in the future, since the fast fulfillment is one of the key success factors for mass customization business as stated by founder Yaakov Karda (Piller 2012, www) Shipping prices vary by country, and the shipping costs 10 US$ in the United States, and 15-20 US$ to other countries, but there might be additional duties and customs costs depending on country. Jeans can be exchanged for same design if they do not fit properly. Returns and refunds are possible for defective items. (Getwear shipping & returns, www) Since the company is so new, there is not any information available about customer satisfaction, or about veracity and realization of the promised delivery times.
3 MASS CUSTOMIZATION
Stan Davis mentioned the term mass customization first time in his book Future Perfect (1987). Before the Industrial Revolution, the dominant market paradigm were the local markets, which were bound to limited geographical area. After the revolution, the emergence of the mass markets begun, as producers started to standardize goods and services, and the markets started to develop from local to global. Goods became more affordable because of mass production, but this resulted in similar, one-size-fits-all products. Davis foresaw the next progression in the markets; from niche markets to
“mass customized markets”, where each customer could be served as a unique individual instead of being considered to be a part of a homogenous mass. (Gilmore &
Pine 2000; Davis 1987)
3.1 Definition of mass customization
Mass customization is one way to fulfill customer needs more profoundly. Mass customization combines mass production and customization, so that the unique products are mass-produced according to customers’ orders. Production volumes are relatively high, and there are no significant tradeoffs in cost, delivery, and quality compared to mass-produced products. Mass customization has cost-saving effectiveness of mass- production, and it adds value by product variations and personalization. (McCarthy 2004; Duray 2002; Da Silveira et al. 2001)
Mass customization is a business strategy that aims to satisfy individual customer needs, with nearly with mass production efficiency (Blecker & Nizar 2006, Tseng & Jiao 2001). It is a concept to develop, produce, market, and deliver affordable goods and service with variety and customization so that nearly every customer is satisfied (Fatur
& Dolin!ek 2009). Mass customization requires the use of flexible processes and organizational structures to produce varied and often individually customized products and services at a low cost with a standardized mass production system (Hart 1995).
Implementing of mass customization requires technology to transfer quickly large amounts of information and to interact with the customer. Even thought the required technology for agile and flexible manufacturing has existed in many industries for a long time, only the development of the Internet has enabled efficient data transfer. This explains the long gap between the start of conversation about mass customization in 1970’s and large scale of implementation of concepts in 1990’s. (Berger & Piller 2003)
Possibilities and means for shorter supply chains, growing competition in maturing global markets, shorter product life cycles, as well as more conscious consumers are key drivers for mass customization (Gilmore & Pine 2000, Pan & Holland, 2006). Customer focus and operational competence are the two critical success factors for implementation of mass customization (Kristal et al. 2010). Agile manufacturing, which is a feature of and requirement for mass customization, is the ability to respond quickly and effectively to current market demands, as well as being proactive and develop future market opportunities. (Brown & Bessant 2003; Da Silviera et al. 2001).
Mass customization integrates customers as part of the supply chain, and can allow customers to participate already in the product design phase. Co-design is fairly common for example in the IT and architecture industries, but it has not so commonly been connected with apparel industry. Generally, the more expensive product, the more customers are interested in customizing it, but development in technology reduces customization costs and makes it easier and possible also for less expensive consumer goods. (Ulrich et al. 2003) Mass customization is new type of organizational design, where service becomes part of products.
In the apparel industry, mass customization is a service concept where customer can take part in designing of the product, affect the different features and possibly also the fit, but the product is produced according to mass-production principles. Compared to traditional tailoring, the aim is to offer enough options for customers so that the product feels unique, but the cost of production does not rise substantially (Clodfelter 1993).
The range and amount of options should be optimized so that the purchase process is not too complicated for the customer and production does not become too complex (Hart 1995). From the production point of view this means that the options have to be standardized and pre-designed.
Mass customization enables the offering of individual service for the customers. The product is produced after order, and customer is able to affect on different features of the product, for example the fit and appearance, as well as select preferred model, fabrics, colors and accessories. One important goal of customization is high customer satisfaction, which is realized by giving an opportunity to affect the product features and fit. (Rosenau & Wilson 2001) Mass customizer offers solution, not just a product, because after successful and well executed configuration process, the process itself affects the customer satisfaction. Nowadays, customers expect high quality with affordable prices, and there is severe competition in clothing industry. Mass customization can be a good strategy to differ from competitors, since customization of fit, functionality and style of the product adds value and quality. (Berger & Piller 2003)
3.2 Frameworks for mass customization
Mass customization is not a univocally defined procedure or strategy, and it can be applied different ways in different companies. In addition, there are no clear limits in which part of the process the customer can participate and affect the product, and how large volumes should be produced so that it will be called mass customization. Gilmore and Pine (2000) have defined four different ways to approach mass customization depending on the situation and customer’s needs. This framework is presented in figure 3.
Figure 3. Four approaches to customization (Gilmore and Pine 2000).
The approaches are following:
• Collaborative customization includes a high level of communication with customer to find out individual needs in order to fulfill them. Collaborative customization is good way for apparel customization, and it has similarities to tailor-made garments. In most cases this approach focuses on customer’s possibility to customize details of the product, but also affect on another features depending on usage.
• In adaptive customization a company offers certain standardized product which is designed so that it can be customized or adjust by the customer. This is good approach when customers want the product to work differently in different situations and technology enables to alter the product at home. This approach differs from prevalent definitions, in which product is customized for the customer before producing it.
• Transparent customization means that company follows a customer’s behavior and offers customized product according results from observation so that the customer is unaware of this. In this case, the actions of the customer have to be easy to forecast and repetitive.
• Cosmetic customization represents or markets the same product differently for different customers. All customers use the product same way but want to have it personalized, for example with own name or company’s logo on the package. In this case, the customization is only cosmetic which means that it is not possible to change the product. However, this possibility gives additional value. (Gilmore
& Pine 2000)
Lambel and Mintzberg (1996) divide company’s value chain into four stages, which are design, fabrication, assembly, and distribution. Based on this, they have identified five strategies depending on which part of the value chain the customization is made. The first category is Pure Standardization, in which there is no customization made in any stages. In Segmented Standardization, customers are divided into different segments and each segment is seen as a whole. The standard products are customized in the distribution stage to match the aimed segment characteristics. Customized standardization means that customer can select from pre-designed standard components, so the assembly is customized. This strategy is also called modularization or configuration. Tailored customization is done in fabrication, assembly, and distribution. There are generic prototypes that are tailored according to customers’
individual needs, for example fit in made-to-measure clothing. In Pure Customization, customer can take part already in the design stage, and can affect the whole production process. (Lampel & Mintzberg 1996)
Anderson et al. (1995) define levels, which have different layers of customization from design stage to production. These are presented in the figure 4 (next page). These six levels of mass customization are design, production, fit, location, fabrication, and styles that are considered as design, feature, fit, post-production and fabrication. The levels of intensity are discussed starting from mass production and moving towards mass customization.
Figure 4. The different levels and layers of customization (Anderson et al. 1995).
Customer order de-coupling point (COPD) defines the point up which customer is involved in the final specification of the product. This point is also called order penetration point (OPP) (Duray et al. 2002). In figure 5 (next page), customer order de- coupling points are added into Lambel and Mintzberg’s five strategies. It also indicates which stages of the value chain are standardized and customized. For example, in tailored customization, which is mostly used in apparel customization, the customer can take part only up to design, and create the product from standardized and pre-designed options. After this the product is produced for the customer. Senanayake & Little (2010) summarize that mass customization is a viable business model for apparel, but the points must be configured so that the extents of customization are not at the extreme levels of mass production or customization. (Senanayake, M.M. & Little, T.J. 2010)
Figure 5. Customizing strategies (Senanayake, M.M. & Little, T.J. 2010, according to Lampel and Mintzberg, 1996; Wortmann, 1997; Senanayake, 2004)
All these frameworks show that the characteristics of mass customization can be broad, and customers can take part to process in many possible stages. Mass customization is a customer-oriented strategy, where customers are not just end users of the products, but the products are produced according to customers’ preferences. It is not steeply defined in which part of the design and production the customer can take part, and how the product can be customized. Also the mass customization concept can be customized to fit the company in the best possible way.
3.2.1 Advantages and limitations
Possible advantages of mass customization are increased customer satisfaction, improved customer loyalty, and positive impact on the brand and image (Rosenau &
Wilson 2001). Mass customization enables its practitioner to collect information about customers, and well-planned and realized utilization of this can create a deep and durable relationship between the customer and the company. Customer loyalty increases after purchasing and receiving a successful customized product, since after this it is much easier for customer to buy again from the same trusted place. Even if the competitors would have equal customization skills, customer would face additional costs to change since it would require to insert again all needed information for customization and there would be uncertainty about product quality in the purchase process, since customer cannot see the final product before purchasing. (Piller & Müller 2004)
3.2.2 Co-design and forecasting
A special purchasing experience and taking part in the design can increase customer satisfaction. In addition, customer gets a unique product, which fits according to measurements, and has desired style compared to standard products. The ustomer knows that the product is produced just for him or her. On the other hand, there are additional costs, as most likely the product cost more that non-customized. Besides, insecurity and complexity of purchase and customization process can have negative effects. It is reasonable to limit the choice of customization options offered to customer, and take into account that the customer may not have sufficient knowledge to make the best decisions, so special service and instructions are important. Limiting the options also help to reduce manufacturing complexity (Senanayake & Little 2012).
The customer cannot try, see or touch the final product beforehand, and these are important phases in normal apparel purchase process. Instead, it is usually possible to view comparable products, samples or the final design from the computer screen.
Additionally, the customer does not always know what is the best solution for his needs.
(Piller & Müller 2004, Berger & Piller 2003) The customer can create an image how the customized garment will look and fit, and the final product might not fulfill these expectations, and result can be different thought and imagined beforehand. The delivery time can be long or uncertain, which also affects the purchase decision.
Figure 6 (next page) shows what would be possible to produce compared to cost of the service level. The largest circle (A) includes everything that could be offered for customized jeans, but this would be too expensive to produce if offered to the customer.
Circle B shows what would satisfy most customers and is possible to produce at a certain quality. This circle would be the best target, in which most of the customers are satisfied. If the customers would only be offered the limited options in the innermost circle (C), they would not be satisfied. Everything that is finally offered should be pre- engineered and the quality and lead-times should be guaranteed. (Larsson 2009)
Figure 6. What would be possible to produce compared to cost of service level (Larsson 2009).
Forecasting in mass customization has pros and cons. It is difficult to forecast demand for fashion products, because in addition to amounts and sizes of the products, also sales of certain styles and colors should be forecasted, and decisions seldom correspond to fast changing fashion trends. In normal clothing store chains, some products, or certain sizes can be sold out in one store and there can be excess of the same product in another store. It is expensive to transfer products from store to store, and customer is unable to buy desired product. In mass customization, products are produced and delivered only when demanded, and the need for storage decreases. There is no risk for discount sales of unwanted products. (Gilmore & Pine 2000, Piller et al. 2004) On the other hand, it is hard to forecast amount and time of purchases in mass customization. This is most probably the biggest reason why mass customization is generally offered only in addition to traditionally sold and produced products in most companies. (Ulrich et al.
2003) The manufacturing of made-to-order products requires flexibility. Flexibility can be defined as ”the capacity to deploy or redeploy production resources efficiently as required by changes in the environment” (Spring & Dalrymple 2000).
Scheduling has a daily or weekly horizon, and it is unnecessary to cover a long-time periods since the amount of orders can change according to the market demand (Zangiacomi et al. 2004). The peak demand in any day should be estimated as well as the portion of orders that will be satisfied in a desired time when planning the production to find out needed amount of equipment, machinery and workers (Oleson 1998). Designing and developing of new models, styles and details as well as sourcing new materials happens alongside the production. This way new styles can be added or taken away quite fast according to trends, customer feedback, or for example depending on the time of the year. The co-design process in mass customization gives an opportunity to collect information from customers’ choices and desires of materials and details, and this can be utilized in design (Ulrich et al. 2003). If a clothing company
offers its customers the possibility to choose from a range of certain pre-decided materials, there has to be a buffer storage of these materials.
3.2.3 Production and enabling technology
Pan and Holland (2006) state that most research on mass customization has focused on consumer marketing perspectives and technological achievements. There has been less feasible applications developed for the total process of an industry supply chain, and in addition there has remained a great division between design and production. In fact, this interface between design and production is crucial in implementing mass customization strategies. (Pan & Holland 2006) Production of mass-customized products requires special adjustments. Traditional line production is widely used in mass production of jeans and other clothing, but it lacks many requirements for manufacturing of customized products, especially it lacks flexibility. New challenges arise when the customer can take part in design and configuration, instead of only being the final user, and the product is produced after the purchase (Piller et al. 2004). These are the most significant changes compared to a traditional supply chain. Producer’s resistance to change from existing manufacturing methods may present potential obstacles (Pan &
Holland 2006).
In the last decades, there have been tremendous enhancements in shortening the lead times of a traditional supply chain, with development of more flexible operations such as vertical integrations of different parts of the supply chain, computer-aided design and electronic-data interchange and locating production close to customers. It is possible to get new products into stores even within two weeks instead of months. In some cases of traditional mass production of apparel, it can take even over one year from planning to finally get the finished products into the stores. In mass customization, lead times have to be very fast, and integration of customer as part of the chain increases the importance of production technologies, data transfer, and operation management in supply chain.
These systems are the basis for creating and planning production for mass customized made-to-order products. More time is required for product design and development, and managing of the production and the supply chain. In traditional production, product variations and varied features have become crucial in meeting fast changing demand of customers, and tailoring is too expensive to sustain. Processes need to change from specialized mass production to more flexible and responsive with shorter production times. (Pan & Holland 2006, Oleson 1998)
Mass customization has become an important manufacturing strategy against current levels of market globalization, rapid technological developments and intense competition (Da Silveira et al. 2001).The role of manufacturing strategy is an important precursor for achieving agility needed in mass customization, and the ability to become agile as well as to manufacture mass customized products can only be achieved by
combining skills, technologies, know-how, processes and alliances with other players.
In order to enhance and utilize these capabilities, manufacturing strategies need to be developed. A comprehensive manufacturing strategy includes a range of internal factors such as manufacturing data management, schedule management and forecasting, quality, capacity planning, product development, process technology, inventory management, and innovation, as well as strategic external linkages within networks.
Efficient production management is important in controlling overall profitability of an industrial unit, and implementing and realizing the strategy on operative level. (Brown
& Bessant 2003; Chiplunkar et al. 2001)
Production planning includes a decision about the production method, which also affects the lead times and efficiency. Customized products can be produced in batches of unique products or in a “batch-size-of-one”. Both ways have advantages and disadvantages. Batch production is more similar to mass production, where economies of scale are pursued. Anderson (2004) argues that manufacturing in batches drastically raises costs and lead-times because of its effect on space, throughput times, work in progress inventory, recurrent defects, flexibility, and disruptions caused by more important rush jobs, which are interrupting scheduled production (Anderson 2004).
Gathering of the batches automatically increases the lead-times, since the orders have to wait that a requisite amount of certain kind of orders are ordered. Also if the orders are sent to manufacturing in batches depending on time, for example weekly, the customers who have ordered in the beginning of the week have to wait a week longer than the customers who have ordered in the end of the week. On the other hand, one-piece production lacks the possibility to divide manufacturing tasks with high volumes so that one worker is concentrating to produce certain part of the product, while others are concentrating to another parts. However, this depends on the similarity of the products.
If the customized products are repeating pre-designed details, batch production is much more efficient. From the customer’s point of view, the shortest possible delivery time is required, especially in the apparel markets with lots of competition and substitutive products.
Tu et al. (2001) study the relations between time-based manufacturing practices (TBMP), value to customer and mass customization. Time-based manufacturing is defined as externally focused production system that emphasizes quick response to changing customer need, and its primary aims are to improve responsiveness and enhance competitive advantage by focusing on time compression techniques listed in figure 7 (next page). Value to customer is an external measure, which describes the customer’s degree of satisfactions with the company’s products. This is affected by customer’s perceptions of the value of product variety, customer satisfaction with product quality and features, and customer loyalty. Time-based manufacturing enhances value to customer directly, because customers value high quality, short response time,
