Apparel engineering is the application of engineering principles and techniques from apparel design to manufacturing processes within garment industries. It aims to improve efficiency, quality, and sustainability in producing RMG and other textile products.
Let’s know what apparel is first. The final product of textiles, apparel, basically refers to manufactured garments.
Table of Contents
What is Apparel Engineering?
Apparel engineering is a multi-disciplinary field of arts and science that enhances productivity in the apparel industry. It is the modern technical knowledge of the proper production of apparel.
Apparel Engineer
An apparel engineer is a graduate (B.Sc./M.Sc./Ph.D./ PGD) who has a specialized skill that involves apparel designing, developing, and manufacturing clothing to complete the shipment process.
The task of the Apparel Engineer
The task of an apparel engineer ranges from manufacturing apparel to reaching a buyer.
Apparel Engineering has changed all the old concepts of the apparel industry. It has brought a touch of innovation. Apparel Engineer is the pioneer of modern technology, completing garments from manufacturing to marketing. It starts from designing or receiving techpack from the buyer, Sampling, fabric spreading, cutting, sewing, washing (if necessary), and finishing are done, and the full clothes we wear are the steps from the fabric to the entire finishing process.
Quality of Apparel Engineer:
An apparel engineer Should be technically sound and clearly understand textile, fiber, yarn, fabrics, dyeing, printing, apparel manufacturing, washing, dying, testing, etc.
- Should knowledge about order procurement/ collection
- Should knowledge about the sourcing of materials
- Strong language skills, i.e., should be good at English speaking, listening, reading, writing,
- Sufficient convincing power to control other
- Should knowledge about production planning and scheduling
- Should have strong knowledge of production literacy
- Capability of product analysis.
- Should knowledge about costing and commercial activity
- Self-motivated, hardworking, sincere, honest, etc.
- Communication regarding the products, goods, apparel, etc.
Salary of Apparel Engineer
An apparel engineer’s initial salary is $150 as an MTO (Management Trainee Officer) or Trainee merchandiser. Salary in this sector can be up to All Averages ($150 to $5000). In this case, you must be skilled. You can do much better in this sector if you work with skill and hard work.
Job Sector
After bachelor’s graduation, most apparel engineers join as trainee officers. He/she can Join the following Apparel Merchandizing and Marketing Job sector:
- Buying House base
- Liaison House
- Apparel Supply Chain Management
- Textile Machineries Company
- Washing and Dyeing Industry
- Apparel Packing Industry
- Apparel Design and Product Management
- Entrepreneurship And Project Management etc.
Career Prospects:
Jobs you can do as an Apparel Engineer:
- Apparel Merchandiser,
- Fashion Designer,
- Fabric Technologist,
- Buying House Manager,
- Accessories Designer,
- Quality Control Manager,
- Supply Chain Manager,
- Audit Officer,
- Quality Assurance Manager,
- Process Engineer,
- Technical salesperson,
- Consumption and Costing Engineer,
- Production Officer,
- Shift Incharge,
- Plant Engineer, etc
Higher Education:
After a B.Sc in Apparel Engineering, higher education can also be taken from Apparel Engineering. You can go for higher education in the USA, UK, Germany, Australia, Canada, Netherlands, China, Korea and other countries. You can take PGD- Post Graduate, MBA in Merchandising, MSc, or even PhD from abroad.
Researchability
Apparel Engineering has the opportunity to join many prestigious research organizations worldwide as a research scientist! Prestigious research organizations include NASA, Trutzschler, Centexbel, Textile Research Center-Leiden, and IFM!
A textile research scientist can research high-performance and technical textiles, such as protective textiles, firefighter cloth, medical textiles, military textiles, nanotechnology, electrical textiles, etc.
What is taught in apparel engineering?
Apparel Engineering teaches the entire process of making an apparel product from the beginning to the end. It includes some basic concepts of various textile engineering subjects, and all methods, including marketing systems, are introduced.
Primary Subjects
Some of the primary subjects of Apparel Engineering are mentioned below:
- Introduction to Apparel Engineering
- Apparel Manufacturing Process 1,2
- Preparatory Apparel Production Operations
- Application of Computer in Apparel Manufacturing
- Apparel Finishing Process
- Clothing Comfort
- Apparel Washing
- Dyeing and Printing
- Apparel Production Management
- Special Apparel Production, etc.
Importance of Apparel Engineering Subject
Apparel Engineering is one of the most important subjects. The reasons are as
- Production Efficiency Improvement: Apparel merchandiser streamlines apparel production processes, incorporating textile technologies to enhance efficiency and reduce time-to-market for clothing and textile products.
- Quality Enhancement: By employing rigorous testing, quality control measures, and advanced manufacturing techniques, apparel merchandisers ensure consistent and high-quality products that meet industry standards.
- Innovation in Design: Using CAD, CAM, and prototyping techniques allows for innovative and precise garment design. It’s fostering creativity in the fashion industry and meeting evolving consumer preferences.
- Sustainability Integration: Apparel engineering is crucial in incorporating sustainable practices. From material sourcing to production processes, contributing to environmentally friendly and socially responsible garment manufacturing.
- Cost Reduction: Lean manufacturing principles and automation technologies in apparel manufacturing help identify and eliminate waste. It leads to cost savings in the production of textiles and clothing.
- Supply Chain Optimization: Apparel engineers contribute to optimizing supply chain processes, reducing lead times, enhancing logistics, and improving overall supply chain management within the apparel industry.
- Technology Integration: By incorporating advanced technologies such as RFID, automation, and data analytics, apparel engineering keeps the industry at the forefront of technological innovation, fostering competitiveness and adaptability.
- Market Responsiveness: The flexibility and efficiency of apparel engineering practices facilitate the ability to quickly adapt to changing market trends and buyer demands.
- Customer Satisfaction: Consistent apparel quality, innovative designs, and timely delivery, all facilitated by apparel engineers, contribute to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty.
- Environmental Impact Reduction: Through sustainable practices, textile waste reduction, and the adoption of eco-friendly materials, apparel engineering helps mitigate the environmental impact of the fashion and textile industry.
- Global Competitiveness: By embracing modern textile engineering principles and technologies, the apparel industry remains competitive globally, meeting the demands of a dynamic and evolving market.
Conclusion
Among the other textile engineering subjects, apparel engineering is easier to understand and has practical applications in most garment factories. If you have the option to choose apparel engineering, then you can select it.
Mahedi Hasan is a Textile Engineer, as well as a Top Rated content writer at Upwork, a Level 02 Seller at Fiverr, Level 02 Publisher at Ezoic. A passionate textile and fashion content writer, fashion SEO expert, and fashion web designer. Having a B.Sc. in Textile Engineering Degree from Textile Engineering College, Noakhali (TECN). The department is Apparel Engineering. Highly Experienced fashion writer for the last 3+ years. Have extensive 7 years of experience in the wholesale clothing business.