Flat Knit
The flat knit product, such as:
· Pullover or sweater in many different styles, include: dresses, skirts, pants.
Inside the knitwear factory
The knitting machine is different with circular or woven machine.
In the knitwear factory, they just have a few sewing machine, they just use the sewing machine for sew the main, size, and care label.
Sometimes, they have over lock machine, they use that for join the seam, because if they use over lock machine, it can decrease their production cost and it faster then linking machine.
Knitted Panels
They knit the yarn to make it just like the pattern, after that they use over lock or linking machine for assembly the side seam.
Example, flat knit, “Raglan” Model
Which have slanting sleeve inset, sleeve and body are joined with linking machine and needle mark on the left and right on the seam, ca. 3cm long.
“Piece goods knitting” cut and sewn
This uses an automatically machine or computerizes system, have little gage, so it can cut and use over lock machine for joining the panel.
If they use automatically machine, the production cost are expensive than they use hand flat machine.
In
Computer controlled machine
If they use automatically system, they just need one operator to handling more than one machine, and this is faster than hand flat machine.
But what are the reasons that if we use automatically machine it can be more expensive than we use hand flat machine?
The computerize system has an expensive maintenance costs, and if we use hand flat machine, the salary for the operator is cheaper than the computerize machine maintenance cost.
And output of three hand flat machine is same with output one computerize machine (in 8 hours).
Linking Machine
Some Korean manufacture produce flat knit.
There is two ways for join the panel.
First, we can use over deck machine, it cheaper and faster than linking machine.
Second, we can use linking machine, it take longer time than if we use over deck machine, it’s about 8 minutes for join the body panels, and ca. 7 minutes for make collar, cuff, and bottom ribs. Because of that flat knit that use linking machine is more expensive than flat knit with over deck machine.
Inspection Facilities
In every production that is impossible to zero defect, because who make this product?, that is human, and maximum accuracy of a human is just 98%, so that is possible that the operator do something wrong, and it’s happen to in flat knit manufacture.
So, how can we repair the flat knit if there is something wrong about the knitting or joining?
They do the repairing by hand, with manual knitting.
End of yarn cone or broken yarn.
If there is a broken yarn or the end of the yarn, it must be tied with the next cone, and the most important is
· Tied end must be in side seam, and don’t let it in front or back body, because if it happens, the clothes are rejected by the quality control from buying agent or buyer and may be the permission for shipment held because of the amount of the reject product is more than the standard of the buyer.
Washing and Drying
All of flat knit product require for washed and dried (with spin dryer), except the product made from 100% acrylics.
Because it can be dirty during the production process, it can be because of the oil, dust, or maybe stain, and it must removed, because of that we must washing the clothes. or it can be the shrinkage problem because of we use the different yarn.
On washing process it’s important that we must use the right chemical, sets, and maintenance to correct the water temperature.
The biggest factor is pilling. Pilling is where the fabric is hairy.
Steam ironing
If the pullover are shrinking, steam ironing can help.
The ways is when you ironing the clothes, you can use something like woods, the wood shape is based on the measurement of the clothes, and after that you put in that in to the clothes, you iron that, and the measurement can follow the size spec, but the side effect is the stretch will decrease.
The knit fabric with dark or medium colors are very sensitive with the heat, don’t let the iron putted squarely on the garment, because the fabric can shiny patches,.
Keep the iron ca. 1cm above the fabric.
Folding of pullover
Fine knit garment with 7 GG has a smaller folding , folding 28 x 38 cm, polybag measuring 30 x 40cm.
Coarse knitwear 5GG down, need more space, and bigger polybag, folding 30 x 40 cm, polybag 36 x 50 cm.
CARTON PACKING – A WORD OF WARNING
The measuring of carton is specified by the buyer.
But the important is, don’t try to push or press the excessive garment in to one carton, because the carton will be bulging. The top of the carton will has a shape like a balloon or round.
KNITTING GAUGE
It’s based on how big the needle that we used same with how much the stitch in one inch (2, 4 cm).
THE DIFFERENT BETWEEN BIG GAUGE AND FINE GAUGE
Big heavy or big gauge, it is heavier than fine gauge, it use bigger or thicker thread, and the knitting is more tenuous than the fine gauge.
Fine Gauge, it’s lighter than big gauge, the knitting is more meeting, and it use smaller thread.
Special Gauge
Knit garment which use special gauge can not produce in
Example, 6 GG (Heavy coarse) for Jacquard,
14 +16 GG (Very Light) just a few factories produce it, because the output is just a few
18 to 24 (Extremely fine), extremely slow output
Weight of Knitwear
We count the flat knit garment with LBS (English pound) per Dozen
The weight of a pullover is determined by the buyer and we must follow that instruction that is very essential.
The weight is determined by the tightness of the knitting.
And the price is determined by the weight of the pullover.
The tighter knitting use many yarn, and it can make the price more expensive than the lighter knitting, and it is influential to hand feel or texture of the garment.
To adjust weight we must think about the quality of yarn, the gauge, and the tension.
Knitting Yarn
The highest quality is come from
Yarn can we classified in:
· Standard yarn
It represents ca. 50% from Asian market, 100% cotton and Acrylic, or it can be mixed.
· Fashion yarn
Yarn price
Prices depend on colors for natural fibers,
Colors are influential with the fabric price.
The fabric with white and light color is cheaper than the fabric which has medium, dark, and extra dark color.
But people often orders only until dark color, and very rare to order the fabric with extra dark colors, because beside the price is expensive, many consumer of pullover likes light color than dark color.
COLOR MATCHING – LAB DIPS
Knitwear must match with the color story of the full range.
Lab dips is some process when we must find the most similar color with the sample color that the buyer have send that to you.
To check the color we must use The Light Box machine that is compulsory had by the garment factory and buyer.
In the light box there are many reflecting setting.
In the light box, there are three thing of light
That is D65, TL84, and UV
But most of the buyer has a request to check the result of lab dip using D65 reflection.
Knitting Pattern (design)
If we just have hand flat machine that will be difficult to make the difficult design.
Computer system can create any pattern, although there is a difficult pattern and with the colorful design
Note: hand flat machine just can produce max. 5 color in the clothes design.
Maybe we can combine this with embroideries, beadings, etc.
Ribs
This is very suitable and fast for hand flat knitting, different yarn give the different look, maybe we can combine with cable, strips, etc.
Half and Full Cardigan Stitch
The half cardigan is cheaper than fully cardigan stitch, they can sell it every year and it makes it become a standard seller.
Half cardigan stitch has a distinctive, it just has ribs on the outside only, but full cardigan stitch has ribs on both sides, inside and outside the pullover.
That’s why full cardigan stitch is more expensive than half cardigan stitch.
CABLES
We must shift the needle to complete each cable, and it is very time consuming, and because of that the price of the pullover which has a cable design is expensive.
The amount of the cable and the difficult level of the design are influential too.
The suggestion is if the cable design is very difficult, use computerize machine.
This is give fashion appearance on the front and sleeve inset, and this is very attractive look.
Jacquard
This usually use semi- automatic machine.
The trends are change in every year, and it happens to with jacquard.
Just a few manufactures have machine for make jacquard.
Especially “Floating Jacquard”, it has long floating yarn on the inside.
Intasia
this machine allows to knit irregular design even the design is very complicated picture.
And maybe for the example the design of intasia is STAR
But it have one disadvantage, on the back side, the knitting seen fallow, and many consumer didn’t like this.
Why in the back side is fallow?
Because the needle can’t go around corner or to the sharp point, so we must cut the yarn, and that make the back side looks fallow.
if we have design like this, it is better if we use automatic machine.
“AJOUR” and “KANOKO” stitch
Ajour and kanoko has a light weight and transparent fabric,they can created use the hand flat machine but it little bit slow, especially kanoko.
ajour is popular in spring and summer season.
Kanoko’s output is very slow, because of that kanoko’s price is expensive.
For make kanoko and ajour must use special machine, and many factory can’t handle this.
PHANTASIE DESIGNS
Knitting on computer controlled machines
It has complicated and colorful design, so it is impossible to make it with hand flat machine.
And it means it has higher cost because of the expensive equipment and resulting depreciation.
Mostly made in
PULLOVER STYLE
Pullover has different neck opening, it can be turtle neck, crew neck, round neck, etc.
It has different bodies, shapes, tight and loose.
Standard model are plain bodies with specific neck opening.
Turtle neck and Troyer
This is popular during winter season.
The variety neck opening give knitwear in different look in each fashion collection.
Different yarn, embroideries, tapes, prints and beading are one way to give knitwear new look.
Cardigan and Jacket
The different from jacket and cardigan is, jacket use zipper front, and cardigan use buttoned front.
Sleeveless Top and Vest
Sleeveless top which ladies can wear this, the name is tank top. Have variety neck opening and combination knit, popular in spring and summer season.
Vest or pullunder with men style, majority the user is getting older consumers. Neck and plain knitting standard sometimes with stripes often use in this.
POLO and HOOD styles
Ladies and men can wear this.
It has half open front with button or zipper and polo collar
Hood styles have been popular and young customer and teenager likes this.
Tubular knitting
The decoration is made by handwork, and other part made by other contractors.