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In today’s data-driven environment, it is better to have an abundance of information rather than a shortage—especially in supply chain operations. Businesses must be able to keep track of various moving parts, such as shipping and arrival dates for materials or products and the quantity to be received.
While there is no shortage of information, there is a lack of predictability, says Jennifer Fennell, director of supply chain at Polo Custom Products, headquartered in Topeka, Kan.
“Volatility in raw material availability and pricing, especially for cotton, polyester and specialty fibers, as well as tariffs, geopolitical disruptions, fluctuations in energy costs, port congestion and container shortages, all contribute to a landscape that changes our industry day to day,” she says. “Another challenge is lack of visibility across tiers of the supply chain.”
The custom manufacturing company serves original equipment manufacturer customers in the government, industrial, medical, fire and safety sectors. The company offers domestic and global manufacturing options with engineered-to-order products ranging from motorcycle accessories to U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved medical devices.
According to Fennell, tracking beyond Tier 1 suppliers remains difficult for many textile manufacturers. This makes it hard to comply with regulatory requirements and anticipate supply chain disruptions, leading to production delays, increased costs, missed delivery windows and lost business, she says.
These are all reasons why strengthening supply chains by making them more flexible, transparent and robust is critical. Yet there are multiple obstacles in the way of attaining this objective. As Leonard Marano, former president of the Americas for Lectra, says, many impacts—wars, pandemics, tariffs, macroeconomics—are simply beyond manufacturers’ control.
Red flags
With U.S. headquarters in Smyrna, Ga., and world headquarters in Paris, France, Lectra provides an array of cutting equipment, software and data analysis solutions to industries using soft materials, such as automotive, fashion and furniture, says Marano. These solutions are designed to give customers better insight into and control over their supply chains to achieve greater resiliency.
According to Marano, resilient supply chains are adaptive, characterized by traceability, consistency and flexibility, with multiple fallback strategies that can be deployed when things don’t go as expected. To this, Fennell adds diversity, a quality that, in theory, would enable manufacturers to surmount disruptions and keep things moving forward. This includes the incorporation of different types and sizes of businesses, such as working with family-owned or small businesses.
According to Fennell, manufacturers often overestimate their supply chain resiliency, putting their operations at risk. Those who have survived one crisis assume they can weather any others, says Fennell. As such, they fail to implement proactive measures such as stress tests, which involve simulating scenarios with different market conditions or disruptive events to assess how the supply chain would respond and detect potential weak points. This results in supply chains potentially being more vulnerable than they outwardly appear.
Marano agrees. “Institutional knowledge has its upsides, but I think there is almost too much institutional knowledge in the textile industry,” he says. “A lot of people do things the way they always have, staying in their comfort zones. Companies that dig into what they’ve always done don’t adapt. And they don’t see those red flags early.”
There are multiple warning signs textile manufacturers should look out for, such as inconsistency, which “will be the first red flag,” says Marano. He also says to watch for the quality of materials declining and increasing instances of defects.
Fennell’s red-flag list includes frequent product shortages/items out of stock, longer lead times, reduced flexibility, a lack of diversity, poor and/or inconsistent communication, noncompliance with developing regulations, and a change in financial status. “Proactively establish alerts for your high-risk suppliers via Dun & Bradstreet and/or Google alerts,” she advises.
“If any of these are present, it’s a sign the supply chain may not be agile or resilient enough to handle disruptions,” Fennell says. “This should prompt further research on the buyer’s part.”
The road to resilience
Investing in digital technology will help fortify supply chains, says Fennell, adding that even small steps such as digitizing purchase orders or onboarding cloud-based inventory systems can make a huge difference. Other tools, such as supplier-risk dashboards and/or proactive analytics, can serve as early warning systems, alerting textile manufacturers to interruptions in the flow of materials.
“When signals indicate there could be a problem on the horizon, contingency plans to minimize disruption should be leveraged,” she says. “Alternate suppliers, inventory buffers or expedited logistics may be solutions to consider.”
Artificial intelligence (AI) is also stepping in, being deployed for more accurate demand forecasting, Fennell continues. Additionally, it is also being used for negotiating contracts, calculating supplier risk, optimizing data analysis and providing “global sourcing with risk awareness baked in,” in addition to other purposes, according to Fennell.
Technology can also help manufacturers become more sustainable, an area where supply chains often fall short, says Marano. Sustainability goes beyond being socially conscious, he explains. Instead, it encompasses nearly every aspect of operations—labor, waste management, sourcing, and the efficient use of resources such as water, energy and materials, etc.—making it a corporate must-have for performance and profitability.
As such, being able to substantiate the sustainability claims made about a particular product is of increasing interest to textile manufacturers. For example, since 2018, in addition to two strategic partnerships, Lectra has made nine acquisitions, one of which is TextileGenesis.
Headquartered in Hong Kong, this company offers a traceability platform providing end-to-end fiber tracking through its Fibercoin™ system. TextileGenesis has partnered with Stockholm-based Circulose (formerly Renewcell) to use its CIRCULOSE®, a material consisting entirely of discarded textiles, to integrate the Fibercoin digital token into every unit of that material. This enables tracing from pulp to finished product, providing digital documentation and data throughout.
Lectra also offers tools allowing textile manufacturers to achieve greater efficiencies in their operations. Among these is Valia. At present, the digital platform (company press releases describe this as being powered by Industry 4.0 technologies such as AI, the Internet of Things and advanced data analytics) targets the fashion, automotive and furniture markets.
The three versions are designed to simplify, streamline and standardize the entire production process, while the connectivity between Valia, Lectra’s cutting equipment and IT systems affords higher material utilization, reducing losses and optimizing savings.
Another Lectra subsidiary is Gerber Technology. Headquartered in Tolland, Conn., the company develops software and hardware solutions. Among these is AccuMark, a 2D/3D digital patternmaking tool allowing textile manufacturers in the fashion, automotive and furniture industries to achieve tighter control over production, materials and inventory waste.
If they haven’t already, Marano says those wanting to strengthen their supply chains should begin incorporating technology solutions into their operations sooner rather than later.
“The hardest thing is getting started,” he says. “But solutions have become so scalable that it is easier to get started than you think.”
At the same time, don’t overlook the human factor, Fennell cautions.
“Train your teams. Supply chain excellence depends on people as much as technology,” she says. “A relentless commitment to ongoing training and continuous improvement of foundational workflows is essential to building a resilient structure that can weather future storms.”
Pamela Mills-Senn is a freelance writer based in Seal Beach, Calif.
SIDEBAR: Before trouble hits
How can textile manufacturers begin the process of analyzing and auditing their supply chain to determine its resilience and avoid being caught off guard? Jennifer Fennell, director of supply chain at Polo Custom Products in Topeka, Kan., suggests a few things.
First, break things down. Segregate the entire supply chain—suppliers, logistics partners and service providers—into risk categories. Although the definition of risk will vary from organization to organization, in general, high-risk areas encompass things such as sole suppliers/sources, highly regulated products, materials with long lead times and so on, she says.
Next is to define, calculate and record. “Easily accessible and quantifiable supplier reports should be developed,” Fennell says. “Minimum scores for performance should be clearly defined and shared with your supply chain.”
Where to begin this process? Grading the basics, such as on-time deliveries and material quality, can be a good place to start. More technically “robust” organizations can go deeper—for example, using a framework like the Supply Chain Operations Reference. This tool allows manufacturers to appraise processes from sourcing to delivery, Fennell says, while data analytics enable the detection of inefficiencies, bottlenecks and waste.
Finally, Fennell recommends manufacturers stay informed. High-risk suppliers should be regularly evaluated to quickly identify and address any underperformance. “[Action plans] should be developed and monitored for verification and effectiveness,” she says.
“It’s also critical to engage cross-functional teams, including procurement, operations, compliance and sustainability in your evaluations to ensure the audit reflects the full scope of business needs,” Fennell adds.