Kandhan Knitts was set up in 2003 in Tirupur, India. This dynamic clothing manufacturer produces a wide range of knitwear products for customers across Europe. Operating out of a 100,000 sq ft high tech production facility run by over 500 production staff, Kandhan Knitts produces upto 180,000 pieces of clothing each month, comprising T-shirts, sweatshirts, casual and work wear, beachwear and night wear. Today, the company is well known in India and its markets for its forte in fabric print and embroidery.

The Challenge

Kandhan Knitts recently identified a misalignment of its in-house inspection practices against international textile inspection standards. This resulted in the company facing several product rejections, an issue that quickly prompted them to take active steps, not only in identifying the inspection inadequacy, but also training fabric department employees on the latest inspection methods to help the company close such gaps.

The Approach

To ensure its efforts were supervised by tried and tested process protocols, Kandhan Knitts turned to the professional third party expertise of TÜV SÜD South Asia, who helped the company address the problem and supported it with well-structured solutions.

Among the various operational areas, TÜV SÜD provided advisory into the development and implementation of a targeted Quality Improvement Project (QIP) to govern quality control for fabric raw materials. As part of the QIP, initial audits were carried out by TÜV SÜD experts to identify current resource management practices and facility controls. By analysing the results, TÜV SÜD was able to design a quality system to help Kandhan Knitts effectively address the issues it faced with their inspection criteria and subsequent utilisation of raw materials.

Employees in the fabric department were also made aware of identified weak links in quality control activities as well as the implications of non-conformities to the efficiency of Kandhan Knitts' whole production process. They were taken through comprehensive training programmes in which they were shown different aspects of fabric quality management and updated on structured inspection techniques and formats they could use to help them optimise these areas in line with globally accepted practices. Over the course of the QIP, Kandhan Knitts was able to significantly enhance its fabric department efficiencies by reducing the number of rejections in fabrics. In addition, effective training helped the company bridge the gap between its in-house inspection practices and internationally accepted ones.

“TÜV SÜD has been instrumental in helping us improve our inspection criteria and processes in our fabric department, thereby enabling us to enjoy lesser garment rejections and more cost efficiencies,” says P. Dhanapal, Chief Executive Officer for Kandhan Knitts. According to him, partnering with TÜV SÜD to better manage the company's fabric requirements has enabled them to streamline processes and improve fabric utilisation to minimise inefficiencies and wastages. In addition, TÜV SÜD's professional training expertise has helped the company's employees better understand the best practices for handling, inspecting and storing fabrics, value creation that the company's clients have come to appreciate.

TÜV SÜD also supports Kandhan Knitts with a wide range of testing solutions to help the company qualify and improve the physical performance of its fabrics, and conform to the style, material and colour specifications of its customers. Kandhan Knitts is working with TÜV SÜD to integrate its in-house test labs and testing capabilities. In addition, its employees also participate in external training programmes such as care labelling regulations, organic textiles and REACH awareness conducted by TÜV SÜD.

The Achievement

Kandhan Knitts is now exploring further areas of association with TÜV SÜD South Asia, working hand in hand to pave the way for enhancing its clothing supply chain and preserving its brand image as a premium clothing manufacturer.