A CASE ANALYSIS OF ADOPTION OF AN RFID-BASED GARMENT MANUFACTURING INFORMATION SYSTEM

A case study approach was used to explore the adoption of an RFID-based garment manufacturing information system in a garment factory in China. The results of our findings indicate that both technology push and need pull factors influence the intention of the garment factory to adopt RFID technology. Technology push factors include relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, extendibility, and cost of the technology while need pull factors include competitors and customers pressure. We have identified eight factors for successful adoption of the RFID-based garment manufacturing information system, namely vendor selection, organizational motivation, cost/benefits evaluation, top management support, user involvement, extent of progress supervision, staff competence and training and policy, structure and operation process compatibility

Empirical Evidence of RFID Impacts on Supply Chain Performance

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the actual benefits of radio frequency identification (RFID) on supply chain performance through the empirical evidence. Design/methodology/approach - The research reviews and classifies the existing quantitative empirical evidence of RFID on supply chain performance. The evidence is classified by process (operational or managerial) and for each process by effect (automational, informational, and transformational). Findings - The empirical evidence shows that the major effects from the implementation of RFID are automational effects on operational processes followed by informational effects on managerial processes. The RFID implementation has not reached transformational level on either operational or managerial processes. RFID has an automational effect on operational processes through inventory control and efficiency improvements. An informational effect for managerial processes is observed for improved decision quality, production control and the effectiveness of retail sales and promotions coordination. In addition, a three-stage model is proposed to explain the effects of RFID on the supply chain. Research limitations/implications - Limitations of this research include the use of secondary sources and the lack of consistency in performance measure definitions. Future research could focus on detailed case studies that investigate cross-functional applications across the organization and the supply chain. Practical implications - For managers, the empirical evidence presented can help them identify implementation areas where RFID can have the greatest impact. The data can be used to build the business case for RFID and therefore better estimate ROI and the payback period. Originality/value - This research fills a void in the literature by providing practitioners and researchers with a better understanding of the quantitative benefits of RFID in the supply chain

Fashion Industry

Fashion is a lot more than providing an answer to primary needs. It is a way of communication, of distinction, of proclaiming a unique taste and expressing the belonging to a group. Sometimes to an exclusive group. Currently, the fashion industry is moving towards hyperspace, to a multidimensional world that is springing from the integration of smart textiles and wearable technologies. It is far beyond aesthetics. New properties of smart textiles let designers experiment with astonishing forms and expressions. There are also surprising contrasts and challenges: a new life for natural fibers, sustainable fabrics and dyeing techniques, rediscovered by eco-fashion, and "artificial apparel," made of wearable electronic components. How is this revolution affecting the strategies of the fashion industry

Relationship of supply chain capabilities and supply chain technology adoption towards supply chain operational performance in textile and apparel industry

In today’s dynamic business environment, competition is no longer between firms, but between supply chains. The supply chain dependency leads the business focused on supply chain performance. Considering the importance given to the third industrial master plan by the Malaysia government, current supply chain environment accentuated the need of supply chain technology adoption to facilitate supply chain management. To explain the concerns, this study examined the impact of supply chain capabilities namely, relational capability, information technology capability, and organizational culture capability on supply chain operational performance and supply chain technology adoption. This study also examines the successive impact of supply chain technology adoption on supply chain operational performance and investigates whether supply chain technology adoption mediates supply chain capabilities and performance relationship under study. In order to achieve the research objectives, a two-step approach namely quantitative research method and a triangulation research approach are necessitated. 201 survey questionnaires were distributed to respondents in Malaysian textile and apparel organizations. 121 usable responses representing 60% response rate were empirically tested through structural equation modeling by using SPSS and SmartPLS. Research findings revealed that relational capability, organizational culture capability, and supply chain technology adoption contributed to firm’s supply chain operational performance, whereas, information technology capability was insignificant. The findings further revealed that supply chain capabilities have a positive influence to supply chain technology adoption. The findings also revealed a significant mediation effect of supply chain technology adoption in the model under study. A triangulation research approach was employed through face-to-face interviews with four industry practitioners to get their in-depth experiences and perceptions on the model under study. ATLAS.ti results showed that developed model had achieved agreement of industry experts with the suggestion of two emerging terms (human support and work experience) as moderators for future study on the model. Limitations and recommendations for future study are discussed

Smart contract and web dapp for tracing sustainability indicators in the textile and clothing value chain

Mestrado em Engenharia Informática na Escola Superior de Tecnologia e Gestão do Instituto Politécnico de Viana do CasteloNa sociedade atual, o têxtil e vestuário é um dos maiores setores de mercado do mundo. O rápido crescimento desta indústria está a ter impactos sem precedentes na sustentabilidade do planeta, respondendo por consequências negativas ambientais, sociais e de saúde. As tendências da fast-fashion, juntamente com a falta de transparência na cadeia de valor têxtil global, somam-se a cenários desfavoráveis para o mundo, à medida que os níveis crescentes de poluição e consumo de recursos dentro da cadeia de valor atingem máximos históricos a cada ano que passa. O ciclo de vida de uma peça de roupa precisa de se adaptar a um modelo económico regenerativo em vez de linear, que acaba no equivalente a um caminhão de lixo de produtos têxteis sendo descartado num aterro sanitário a cada segundo [1]. Não só as indústrias precisam de reformular os seus processos para circularizar as suas cadeias de valor e promover ações sustentáveis, mas também os consumidores precisam de participar do processo de manter os produtos no círculo da cadeia de valor, pois cabe a eles decidir o destino final de um produto vestuário aquando o seu fim da vida útil. Com estas questões em mente, esta dissertação visa desenvolver duas soluções que possam mitigar os problemas a cima mencionados e promover ações sustentáveis rumo a uma economia circular na cadeia de valor do têxtil e vestuário. Uma solução business-to-business baseada em smart contracts do Hyperledger Fabric para gerir a cadeia de valor do têxtil e vestuário com funcionalidade de rastreabilidade foi desenvolvida como prova de conceito para apoiar as reivindicações de sustentabilidade dos participantes na cadeia de valor, da fibra à peça final de vestuário. A actual funcionabilidade de rastreabilidade desenvolvida no smart contract fornece aos operadores da cadeia de valor a capacidade de rastrear um lote até à sua origem, contudo, também limita a escalabilidade devido ao aumento exponencial do tamanho do bloco, especialmente se considerarmos uma cadeia de valor circular. Para os consumidores, foi proposta uma aplicação descentralizada business-to-consumer-to-consumer com elementos de eco-gamificação para promover o envolvimento e motivação do utilizador para a realização de tarefas que contribuam para a adoção de uma economia circular na cadeia de valor do têxtil e vestuário. Após testar a usabilidade da aplicação com o questionário AttrakDiff, concluiu-se que o sistema precisa de focar a sua usabilidade em prol de um produto orientado à tarefa em vez da orientação pessoal atual da aplicação a fim de promover ações que contribuam para a economia circular da cadeia de valor do têxtil e vestuário.In today’s society, Textile and Clothing (T&C) is one of the biggest market sectors world wide.The sheer size and fast growth of this industry is having unprecedented impacts on sustainability, accounting for negative environmental, social and health consequences. The fast-fashion trends along side the lack of transparency in the global T&C value chain add up to unfavorable scenarios for the world as the increas- ing levels of pollution and resource consumption within the value chain reach historic highs with every year that passes. The lifecycle of a clothing item needs to adapt to a regenerative economic model instead of a linear one that ends up in the equivalent of a garbage truck full of textiles being disposed into a landfill every second [1]. Not only do the industries need to revamp their processes to circularize their value chains and promote sustainable actions, but the consumers also need to partake in the process of keeping the products in the value chain loop as it is up to them to make the final decision upon the end-of-life of an item of clothing. With these issues in mind,this dissertation aims to develop two solutions that can mitigate the aforementioned problems and promote sustainable actions towards a circular economy in the T&C value chain. A Proof-of-Concept (PoC) Business-to-Business (B2B) T&C value chainmanagement smart contract solution builton Hyperledger Fabric with traceability features was developed to support the sustainability claims of participants in the value chain, from fiber to garment. The current traceability feature developed into the smart contract provides value chain operators the capabilities to trace a batch back to its origin, however, it also constraints scalability due to the exponential in crease in block size specially if considering a circular value chain. For the consumers, a Business-to-Consumer-to-Consumer (B2C2C) Decentralized Application (DApp) was proposed with eco-gamification elements fo rpromoting the user’s engagement and motivation to complete tasks that contribute for the adoption of a circular economy in the T&C value chain. After testing the consumer DApp’s usability with the AttrakDiff survey, it was concluded that the system needs to focus it susability towards a task-oriented product instead of the current self-oriented results in order to promote actions that contribute to the circular economy of the T&C value chain

The Technology Development and Management of Smart Manufacturing System: A Review On Theoretical and Technological Perspectives

This paper encompasses a state-of-the-art review on smart manufacturing system (SMS), focusing on theoretical relevance to technology development and technology management. The theoretical foundation of technology development has been reviewed based on the Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovation (DoI) theory and technology management has been focused on the basis of Technology Strategy Model (TSM) of Rieck and Dickson to shape the paper with theory of Management of Technology (MOT). A patent on SMS has been discussed to show how different technologies are integrated into this system. The characteristics of SMS have discussed the overall aspects of this future technological system. The the global textile complex has been depicted with a proposed SMS model of the apparel production unit. This study integrates the latest articles and technology on future manufacturing system perspectives, which gives a robust idea of mintegration have been identified as the major components of SMS. A brief model of SMS in the apparel production system demonstrated how SMS works in the industry level. The researchers on smart manufacturing can take away the above insights into their future research to take SMS research more forward.inimizing human interaction and maximizing the production efficiency in the manufacturing industry. The cyber-physical system, AI, ERP, digital twin, big data, additive manufacturing, cloud manufacturing, simulation, and vertical and horizontal&nbsp

A historical review of the development of electronic textiles

Textiles have been at the heart of human technological progress for thousands of years, with textile developments closely tied to key inventions that have shaped societies. The relatively recent invention of electronic textiles is set to push boundaries again and has already opened up the potential for garments relevant to defense, sports, medicine, and health monitoring. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the key innovative pathways in the development of electronic textiles to date using sources available in the public domain regarding electronic textiles (E-textiles); this includes academic literature, commercialized products, and published patents. The literature shows that electronics can be integrated into textiles, where integration is achieved by either attaching the electronics onto the surface of a textile, electronics are added at the textile manufacturing stage, or electronics are incorporated at the yarn stage. Methods of integration can have an influence on the textiles properties such as the drapability of the textile

A Relationship-Based Acess Control Model for On-demand Privacy and Security Entitlement in RFID-enable Supply Chains

RFID adoption in supply chains is both viable in gaining on-target end-to-end visibility and crucial to sustain competitiveness. RFID-based information flow will cut across partners in business chains that extended beyond borders. Privacy and security preferences (PSP) are manifested when supply chain parties are sharing (EPC-RFID-based) data to gain visibility. The role of each party cannot be singly used to determine the preference of either party to derive the necessary entitlement for the requesting party. The preference-based entitlement must ensure data sharing is privacy-protected and security-enforced. In this research, a Relationship-Based Access Control (ReBAC) model is proposed for on-demand privacy and security entitlement in RFID-enabled supply chains. The model includes two key concepts: on-demand preference and privacy and security scheme. Preference is governed by the two parties’ relationship, and the scheme is driven by the data dimensions (i.e., data sensitivity, data location and data ownership). RBAC is capable of addressing one party’s need to gain pre-determined permissions according to role assignment or activation. The relationship-based approach is on-demand, two-party, relationship-based preference to gain entitlement (for visibility services) with scheme-enabled privacy and security activation