A collar is one of the most visible parts of a shirt. The collar appearance is enough to determine the value of the shirt. With automation becoming the future of garment industry various machines are being developed and implemented throughout the industries. In this post, I will show 4 different technology levels for making a collar (collar run stitch) in the readymade garment manufacturing industry.
In clothing, a collar is the part of a shirt, dress, coat or a blouse that fastens around or frames the neck. It is made from a separate piece of fabric rather than folded or cut part of the same piece of fabric of the garment. It can be permanently attached to the main body of the garment or detachable. There are various levels of technology available for collar making each having its advantages as well as disadvantages.
Video Source: YouTube
Video source: YouTube//Richpeace
These are the technologies which are mostly available for sewing of a collar. The use of jig template and automation is not being preferred with the decrease in the order number and fabric limitations, thus making the manual sewing more common and efficient in present industries.
In clothing, a collar is the part of a shirt, dress, coat or a blouse that fastens around or frames the neck. It is made from a separate piece of fabric rather than folded or cut part of the same piece of fabric of the garment. It can be permanently attached to the main body of the garment or detachable. There are various levels of technology available for collar making each having its advantages as well as disadvantages.
1. Manual sewing of collar making
The most basic one is the manual sewing wherein one ply (shell fabric) is sewn over the other ply (fused fabric) with Single Needle Lock Stitch machine and the edges are cut with vertical edge trimming attachment.
The trimming can be done simultaneously or cut separately. This technology is mostly used in medium-sized factories as it requires very less investment on machines. It also justifies with the order quantity. It is very suitable for lighter fabrics or sensitive fabrics as stitching collars out of them will depend on the skill of the operator. The time taken is much more and there is a lack of consistency in the quality of the stitch, making it more susceptible to defects.
The trimming can be done simultaneously or cut separately. This technology is mostly used in medium-sized factories as it requires very less investment on machines. It also justifies with the order quantity. It is very suitable for lighter fabrics or sensitive fabrics as stitching collars out of them will depend on the skill of the operator. The time taken is much more and there is a lack of consistency in the quality of the stitch, making it more susceptible to defects.
Source: Youtube, uploaded by Chandan Kumar
#2. Making collar using Auto Jig and Template
The next level of sewing collar is the use of jig which is a template having slots through which the sewing will follow automatically on feeding it to the sewing needle, thus eliminating the need for a human hand in the process. With this, there is a consistent stitch throughout the bulk which makes it suitable for a large quantity of order. Only dimensionally stable fabrics can be used as no human hand will be there for adjustments with stretch in the fabric. Jig templates are not suitable when the order quantity is low as it will require the making of the templates for each and every order.Video Source: YouTube
3. Collar run stitch using multiple jigs
The third level is the use of multiple jigs or the large area jig template sewing. Here the template remains constant and the sewing machine moves according to the jig slot. Since the machine moves along the jig, more than one number of machines can be synchronised to move if placed next to each other. It is an upgrade from the single jig and again it is most efficient with huge order quantities. The advantages and disadvantages are same as above but the productivity is much higher than the above. It is expensive as a different setup is required thus making it inaccessible for medium-sized factories.Video source: YouTube//Richpeace
4. Full automatic collar run stitch machine
Finally, the most advanced method is the complete automation in collar sewing. There will be a set of machines which will be responsible for complete sewing of the collar and everything will be automatic. The setups are also able to change stitch length at the corners to make the seam stronger. The jig sizes are adjusted automatically which effectively reduces the frequency and cost of changing the jig. Not many factories are seen using this method but it has a huge potential for contributing to Industry4.0.These are the technologies which are mostly available for sewing of a collar. The use of jig template and automation is not being preferred with the decrease in the order number and fabric limitations, thus making the manual sewing more common and efficient in present industries.