Manufacturing: stage 08 of 9
Packing is where an otherwise correct order gets rejected at a distribution centre. Assortment, ratio, labelling and carton marking are specified before production and verified before sealing.
Process
- 01
Garments are folded or hung, and polybagged to your instruction.
- 02
Cartons are ratio-packed or solid-packed as specified.
- 03
Carton marking and any retailer-specific labelling is applied to your artwork.
- 04
Carton dimensions and weights are recorded for the shipping documents.
- 05
Contents are verified against the packing instruction before the carton is sealed.
What you supply
- Packing instruction: fold or hang, ratio or solid pack
- Carton marking artwork and any retailer labelling requirement
- Barcode or SKU data where the program requires it
What you receive
- Packed and marked cartons
- Packing list with carton dimensions and weights
- Packing verification record
Risk
Every stage has a characteristic failure. Naming it is more useful than claiming it never happens.
The carton contents do not match the packing list and the DC rejects the delivery.
Contents are verified against the packing instruction before sealing, and recorded.
Carton marking is applied late and delays dispatch.
Marking artwork is confirmed during development, alongside labelling, rather than at packing.
Buyer questions
Yes. Retailer packing and marking requirements are worked to as supplied. They should be shared at development, because they often affect carton sizing and therefore freight cost.
We apply the labelling your program specifies, using the data and artwork you supply. We do not generate barcode data ourselves.
Send a specification and we will come back on construction, materials and commercial FOB costing against it.
Other manufacturing stages
Other manufacturing stages
Product Development
Development turns a reference garment, a sketch or a tech pack into a manufacturing specification the factory floor and your QA can both read the same way.
Fabric Sourcing
Fabric is usually the largest single line in an apparel cost and the hardest thing to change once a program is running.
Sampling
Sampling is where the specification is proven.