Course Title : Fully Fashioned Knitwear Technology

Course Code : IE 3027

Project On : A comparative study On Sweater
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Industries of Bangladesh
Submitted By : Submitted To :
Md.Amir Hossain Khan Engr. Md.Sadiqur Rahman
ID : 2171401011 Course Instructor
Semester : 9th Department of FDT
Batch : 14th Uttara University

Index
Serial number Topic Name Page number

1 Introduction to sweater industry of

Bangladesh 1-1

2 History of Sweater Industry of

Bangladesh 1-1

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3 List of Major Sweater Companies of
Bangladesh 2-2

4 List of Export Oriented Sweater items

3-7

5 Sweater Manufacturing Machine

8-10

6 Sweater Items Consumtion and

Costing 11-20

7 Problems and prospects of Sweater

Industry of Bangladesh 21-22

8 Conclusion
22-22

9 Referance
23-23

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Introduction to Sweater Industry of Bangladesh
Sweaters which also known as fully fashioned knitwear is a leading sub-sector of
ready-made garments in Bangladesh .The sweater production and export of
Bangladesh RMG sector is the encouraging sub sector . Sweater has a great
contribution in the field of nearly 12% to the total RMG exports of $30.61 billion
of FY17-18 where as it was $3.37 billion in the fiscal year 2016-2017 ,a rise of
9.22% within a year .Mohammed Nasir, Vice President of Bangladesh Garment
Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) said that “Sweater
manufacturers upgrade their machinaries from manual to automatic, for this
reason productivity of workers and overall factory production increases.” During
an interview with the Dhaka Tribune. Due to global climate change, the sweater
becomes trendy with fashionable accessories. People from this industry hope that
by 2021 this sector annual worth will be $8 billion.

History of sweater Industry of Bangladesh

DSSL is one of the flagship company of Bangladesh's DRAGON GROUP which is the
Pioneer of Bangladesh¹s Sweater Industry. The group played a pioneering role in
the sweater industry of Bangladesh by starting the first sweater project in
Bangladesh in the early 80's with technical collaboration from Hong Kong and
China. Since than the group has implanted the seeds for the development of the
sweater industry in Bangladesh. Today Bangladesh exports over $ 1.5 Billion US
Dollars of sweaters and the country employes nearly a million people in the
sweater industry

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Major Sweater Companies of Bangladesh
There are almost 700 hundred sweater factories in Bangladesh . Some of the
major players in sweater manufacturing in Bangladesh, all of which expanded
their capacity at least once in recent times are listed below :

 Dragon sweater and Spinning Ltd.

 Sweatertech Ltd
 Greenvale Sweaters Ltd
 NDC SWEATERS LTD.
 Pashmina Sweater Ltd.
 Gallant Sweater Ltd.
 Sunny Sweater Ltd
 Nnn International
 Safotex
 CN Tex
 Ridian Fashion
 Texwizard Bangladesh
 Merlin KNitwear Ltd
 Mollah Exim Trade
 MSNTEX LIMITED
 Esquiss Fashion
 Anontex Group
 RHQ Apparels
 Rupsa International
 Deltex Corporation
 Diganta Sweaters Ltd.
 Care Gently Fashion
 Around Star Sweater
 Rupa Knitwear (Pvt.) Ltd.
 Sweater Planet
 SOCOTEX Group

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Export Oriented Sweater Items Of Bangladesh
Exporting sweaters from Bangladesh have been increasing rapidly with
competitive pricing in the Western countries playing the outstanding role.
According to the Bangladesh Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data, the country
exported sweaters worth US $ 3.37 billion in the fiscal year 2016-17, up by 5.64
per cent year-on-year. Notably, some of the leading global brands including
Walmart, Marks and Spencer (M&S), GAP, Tesco, H&M, JCPenney and Zara are
the major buyers of Bangladeshi sweater product.
The major export oriented items of sweater from Bangladesh are Turtle neck
sweater, jackets, pull over,cardigans ,vest ,hoodies , coat, overcoat etc are
exported both in men’s ,women’s and kid’s wearing .

Men’s Export oriented Sweater Items

Turtle neck sweater V-neck sweater

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Jackets Hoodies

Cardigan Pull over

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Coat Over Coat

Vest Polo Sweater

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Women’s Exported Items

Cardigan Pull over

High neck long sleeve sweater Hoodie

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Jacket Over Coat

Vest Mock neck Sweater

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Sweater Manufacturing Machines
There are various types of machine used in sweater manufacturing .They are :
 Winding m/c.
 Automatic Flat Knitting M/c (Jacquard)
 Knitting m/c.(Vee bet flat knit )
 Dial Linking m/c (Adjusting all parts).
 Over lock m/c.
 Washing m/c.
 Hydro extractor m/c (For water removing).
 Dryer.
 Iron/ Steam Iron.
 Single needle lock stitch m/c ( For adjusting label)
 Button hole /button attaching m/c
 Flat lock m/c etc

Winding Machine

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Automatic Flat Knitting M/c (Jacquard)

Vee bed flat knit Knitting m/c.

Dial Linking m/c

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Washing m/c.

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Sweater Items Consumption and Costing
Sweater making process is completely different from knit and oven garments
since sweater is not made from finished fabric. Shape of the sweater parts are
made by linking with one yarn to another. Sweater making process don’t become
complete at a glance. Firstly different parts are made by v-bed knitting machine.
Then parts are joined with linking machine. So, consumption calculation of
sweater depends on the quantity of yarns needed to make a sweater garment.

Parts of a Sweater

The next task for a sweater merchandiser is to multiply sample weight with 12pcs
to know the weight of per dozen sweaters. Finally adding wastage percentage
with that, can make the sweater consumption.
Normally the wastage percentage range is 10-20%. It should be remembered
that, wastage percentage can vary depending on the types of yarn and styling of
garments. In case of cotton and acrylic, the range of wastage% is 5-7% and in case
of viscose, spandex and wool it is 10-12%.

Example:

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Suppose,
Buyer provides a sample by mentioning the below information-

Yarn: 100% Acrylic, 2/36”S, 2ply

Sample Weight: 180gm
Knitting: 12 G/G, (2×2) Rib
Specifications: Plain knit placket, Slit, 2 pockets.
Now preparing the yarn consumption of the above sweater item.

Solution:
Buyer provided sample weight- 180gm
Merchandiser made sample weight-190gm
Let, buyer approved the sample weight and style according to measurement
chart.
Now,
Yarn needed per dozen garments = (190 × 12) = 2280gm= 5.03lb (1lb= 453.6gm)
In case of acrylic yarn, wastage% is 5-7%.

So, after adding wastage% total quantity of yarn needed per dozen garments is-,
= 5.03 + 6% (here accept 6% wastage)
= 5.33lbs per dozen

So, Yarn needed per dozen garments is 5.33lbs

Sweater Items Costing

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Sweater costing is very important like woven and knit garments. In garments
merchandising, costing is the main process among all the others processes. Like
other garments the method of sweater costing varies from style to style since
there are different styles in sweater. If Sweater merchandiser can contract a
healthy costing of an order then all the other processes will be easy to complete.

Costing of Sweater Garments

Costing Calculation Method of Sweater Garments (Factory Costing):

Before costing of sweater garments, a sweater garments merchandiser should

confirm the following items:

1. Yarn Cost per lbs,

2. Embroidery Cost per dozen,
3. Printing Cost per dozen,
4. Cost of Making (CM) per dozen,
5. Washing Cost per dozen,
6. Accessories Cost (Zipper, button etc.),
7. Commercial Cost per dozen,
8. Others Cost per dozen.

Next duty of a sweater garments merchandiser is to determine the yarn

consumption and costing.

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Yarn cost can be calculated by using the following formula,
= [{(Garments weight in lbs per dozen) + wastage %} × Yarn price per
lbs].Generally we have added 10-20% wastage depends on styling.
After yarn costing, all the others necessary cost should be added with total yarn
cost to achieve total cost of a garment.

Example:
Suppose,
The buyer “M&s ” forwards a sweater order to you by mentioning the following
terms:

 Yarn: 100% Bright Acrylic, 2/52”S

 Weight: 255gm (2ply)
 Knitting: 12 GG plain knit in body, (1×1) Rib at bottom and sleeve opening,
 Specifications: Plain knit placket, slit, 2 pockets.

Now, calculate the garments costing of the above order.

Solution:

Let,

 Yarn Cost per lbs- $4.00

 Embroidery Cost per dozen- $1.00
 Printing Cost per dozen-$1.00
 Cost of Making (CM) per dozen- $30.00
 Washing Cost per dozen- $5.00
 Accessories Cost (Zipper, button etc.)- $5.00

Now,

Yarn costing per dozen garments:

As garments weight is 255gm for 1pc then for 1dozen garments, yarn needed (255
× 12),
= 3060 gm

= 6.74lbs (1lb = 453.6gm)

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After adding 12% wastage, total yarn needed- 7.55lbs
So, yarn cost per dozen stands at- $(4.00 × 7.55) = $30.20

By adding all the following costs with total yarn cost, we will get the total FOB
cost of garments per dozen.
Yarn cost per dozen ………………………… $30.20 ………………………. (A)
Printing Cost per dozen ……………………..$1.00 ……………….………… (B)
Embroidery Cost per dozen ……………… $1.00 …………………………. (C)
Accessories Cost per dozen ………………..$5.00 …………………………. (D)
Washing cost per dozen …………………… $5.00…………………………… (E)
Cost of making (CM)………………………. $30.00 ………………………….. (E)
Commercial cost ……………………………. $1.00 …………………………….. (F)
Others cost ……………………………….…. $0.50 …………………………….. (G)
So,
Total FOB cost per dozen = (A + B + C + D + E+ F + G + H)
= $ (30.20+ 1.00+ 1.00+ 5.00+ 5.00+ 30.00+ 1.00+ 0.50)
= $73.70 per dozen.

In case of factory, we received the order from a buying hose (Here, we got the
order from (“world fashion” Buying House), so we have to pay 7%commission to
them for that order.

So, in this situation, total FOB cost per dozen stands at-

= $73.70 per dozen + 7% commission

= $78.86 per dozen.
In case of factory costing, profit% for the factory (here-10%) should be added with
total FOB cost per dozen.

So,
Total FOB cost per dozen with profit% stands at ($78.86 + 10%) = $86.75
Now, total FOB cost per pcs is ($86.75 / 12) = $7.23
So, factory cost (FOB) per pcs garment is $7.23

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Sweater Costing Sheet
For basic concept given a sample example of Sweater Costing sheet

BUYER  ORDER 20,000 pcs

QUANTITY
Order / STYLE# 
DESCRIPTION  V-nk L/S pullover Delivery 15-April-2020
Date:
SIZE RANGE  S-XXL
YARN COMPOSITION  100% Cotton 2/32
YARN SUPPLIER 
GAUGE  12 gg
ACTUAL WEIGHT  9.00 Lbs/dz TOTAL YARN
WT+ WASTAGE (10%)0.9 9.90 Lbs/dz 16,500.00
Lbs
YARN RATE/LBS  $ 2.70
COSTING (IN DZ)
Yarn Cost (USD) / Dzn  $ 26.73
Regular Accessories / Dzn  $ 4.00
Fabric (Fur/Sherpa/Tafeta) 
Button/Dzn 
Embroidery/Dzn 
Zipper/Dzn 

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Lab test/Badge /per dzn 
CM / Dzn  $ 31.52
Commercial/ Dzn  $ 2.00
Total (USD) / Dzn $ 64.25
Buying  house $ 3.21
commission/Dzn 
Grand Total / Dzn  $ 67.46
Cost / Pc(USD)FOB  $ 5.62

To calculate CM (cost of manufacture) one must know the knitting, linking

productivity and labor cost of trimming, mending, ironing etc. In Bangladesh,
standard wage is calculated $3.15/day in average sweater factories for knitting,
linking operator. If knitting productivity is 4.5pcs/day, knitting cost will be
$0.70/pc. If linking productivity is 15pcs/day, linking cost will be $0.21/pc. Let us
see the following sample CM calculation sheet:

Sweater CM Calculation Sheet

DESCRIPTION Productivity USD BDT

Winding / Pc $ 0.0250 BDT 2.00

Knitting / Pc 4.5 $ 0.7000 BDT 56.00
Linking / Pc 15 $ 0.2100 BDT 16.80
Trimming & Mending / Pc $ 0.0750 BDT 6.00
Iron/Pc $ 0.0500 BDT 4.00
Zipper Attachment / Pc

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Fabric Attachment / Pc
Btn Attachment / Pc
Misc/Pc $ 0.0625 BDT 5.00
Total Labour cost/pc $ 1.1225 BDT 89.80
Prod Bonus/pc (25%) $ 0.2806 BDT 22.45
Fixed(overhead) cost/pc $ 0.7858 BDT 62.86
(70%)
Total Cost/pc $ 2.1889 BDT 175.11
TOTAL Cost / Dzn. $ 26.2665 BDT 2,101.32
Profit / Dzn. (20%) $ 5.2533 BDT 420.26
TOTAL CM / DZN. $ 31.5198 BDT 2,521.58

IMPORTANT FACTORS IN SWEATER COSTING

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Standard CM ranges (Compliance factory) CM based on gauge and season 

Types and gauge 

 Peak Season 
 Off peak season

Types of Gauge Off peak

3G ....................................$20/dzn ..........................$22/dzn 
5G ....................................$21/dzn .........................$23/dzn 
7G ....................................$22/dzn ......................... $24/dzn 
10/12G .............................$24/dzn ..........................$26/dzn 

Styling and designing charges

1. For raglan and saddle = $0.5/dzn
2. Drop and set-in = $0.25/dzn
3. For straight shoulder = No additional charges because no increase and
decrease.

Charges
1. Cables (Normal)------$0.25/line/dzn
2. Cables (Fancy)--------$0.50/line/dzn
3. Cables (Butterfly)----$1.50/line/dzn

Diamond
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1. Normal Diamond-------- $1.00/line/dzn
2. Fancy Diamond---------- $1.50/line/dzn

Example:

Calculate the costing/pricing of a men’s sweater with crew neck, raglan shoulder,
long sleeve, allover 6 line normal cables, and 4 lines normal diamond in 5G 100%
acrylic yarn. 

Shipment: 10th September. 

Weight: 15 lbs/dzn 
FOB Factory merchandising say yarn price $1.50/lbs. 

Solution: 

15+6% =15.90 lbs/dzn $1.50 = $23.85 

CM………………………… = $21.00 
Styling……………………… = $0.50 
Designing……………….….. = $5.50 
Trims/Accessories……….…. = $4.00 
Commercial+ Logistic+ Mise .....= $4.00 
…………………………………………………….. 
FOB factory ...........................= $58.85/dzn

Problems and Prospects of Sweater Industry of Bangladesh

Problems of Sweater Industry

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From the above discussion and experiment of the report it can say that Sweater is
a leading subsector of RMG sector of Bangladesh . Despite having a sound growth
however, there are also challenges, which is hindering the prospects of the
emerging sub-sector. The problems of this emerging sector are as follows :

 Low skill, poor management, insufficient infrastructure, inefficient

machinery and lead time .

 Shortage and high rate of raw materials to produce high-end goods.

 Barriers such as port congestion, delayed delivery and transportation

hindrance.

 Lack of well trained employees , technical expertise and upgraded
technology .

 Lack of stable and long-term policy to ensure the business-friendly

atmosphere in the country.

 Shortage of planning for exploring new markets.

 Unstable political situation hampers that hampers production.

Prospects of Sweater Industry

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For preparing the project based on the self-study through various sources I can
say that Bangladesh, the second largest exporter of clothing products, has a huge
opportunity in increasing exports of sweater products and has a great opportunity
to become a major sector of the RMG sector as well as also the major sector of
national economy .The principal prospects of sweater industry are as follows :
 Increasing port capacity to reduce lead-time.

 Availability of a lower labor cost in Bangladesh can helps the sweater

industry to secure a very strong position in the world.

 Expanding export of sweater is Increasing world wide gradually

 Ensuring proper quality of the product as per requirement of the global

buyers of the international sweater market

 Expanding New market and identifying new items

Conclusion
Finally I have completed the project after lots of inspection, experiment &
discussion. I have gathered a large experience about this project. I have
increased my knowledge about the Comparative analysis on Sweater industry of
Bangladesh .After all this analysis I can Say that as a sub-sector of RMG, Sweater
Industry can be the major earning sector of garments sector . “Bangladesh has
good quality product at a reasonable price. Expanding new market and reducing
lead time sweater industry can contribute over $8 billion to meet Bangladesh’s
export target of $50 billion by 2021.

Reference

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1.http://apparelmerchandisingworld.blogspot.com/
2.http://www.dsslbd.com/
3.https://www.facebook.com/groups/232216074797802/
4.https://www.listcompany.org/Sweaters_In_Bangladesh.html
5.https://www.textiletoday.com.bd/sweater-exports-continue-rise/
6. https://garmentsmerchandising.com/
7.https://www.textiletoday.com.bd/sweater-exports-continue-rise/

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