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A u t o m a t i o n i n S e w i n g R o o m – I
Button Sewing &
Buttonholing Indexer
Both quality and productivity improvement are the driving forces for accelerating the growth of factories. While
some factories specialize in manufacturing of a particular product category and thus require specialized machineries
with maximum level of mechanization, companies involved in manufacturing of multi-product categories look for
flexibility in the machinery which will accommodate multiple products with least set-up time. Handling of fabric with
precision is one of the biggest challenges of automation in garment sewing; and while the sewing and unloading
of garment are now completely automated without any human intervention, most of the sewing automats still
require manual loading by the operator that entails picking up one ply of fabric component(s) by one/two hand/
hands, placing/aligning/folding/matching and sliding below the presser foot. Ironically, training people for loading
in an automated system is a challenge. In this new series – Automation in Sewing Room – Dr. Prabir Jana, NIFT
Delhi, along with Team StitchWorld, analyses how the common sewing automats work for your benefit.
T
raditionally, preparations of
pieces (marking of positions by
chalk) for buttonholing and button
sewing are manual, cumbersome,
and prone to error and time taking.
Different kinds of issues would arise
at the final stage like misalignment
of buttons, visible marks, etc.
which would result in rejects, spot-
washing and reworks, but with
the development of technology,
different types of sewing automats
have come into button sewing and
buttonhole making machines in the
market. The Brother BAS series
of button sewing and buttonholing
indexers were introduced as
early as the nineties, but probably
timing was too premature for the
Asian manufacturers to adopt the
technology. In recent times, Juki,
Zoje, Sakho, Yuho and Duerkopp
Adler, have all launched button
sewing and buttonholing indexers
for men’s shirts, ladies blouses,
etc. These automatic machines
carry various advantages over
conventional buttonholing and
button making machines like
reduction of manufacturing time
due to reduced sewing cycle time,
reduction of defects due to increased
accuracy and reduction of helpers
which were previously required to
mark positioning of buttons and
buttonholes.
The positioning accuracy
achieved by the machine cannot
be matched manually. Operating
time is also considerably reduced
because it is almost as good as
an automatic robot doing the
work by itself and there is lesser
waiting time since one operator
can operate two to three machines
simultaneously. The automation in
sewing is increased up to 50 per
cent as the operator doesn’t have to
align the garment panel repeatedly
or mark the panel for stitching.
Nowadays, manufacturers prefer
lockstitch buttonholing and button
sewing indexers over chainstitch
ones because of demand of more
seam security in garments by
the buyers.
To understand which technology
better suits different needs, detailed
56 Apparel Online Bangladesh | AUGUST 2017 | www.apparelresources.com
ESSENTIALS
The button sewing
and buttonholing
indexer
attachment from
Sakho (Loiva)
enables the
pressing and
folding of a shirt
on the same
station, reducing
the space
requirements on
the shopfloor.
This equipment
is suitable for
companies
handling low-
order quantities
and also having
space constraints.
information about operating methods
of buttonhole and button indexers
in conjunction with advantages and
special features of various options
available in the market is elaborated
here.
Technology behind
Buttonholing and Button
Sewing Indexers
A typical button indexer unit is
equipped with a sewing head, direct-
drive motor, preset board, and three
sub-clamp catch plates and in some
machines with a long holder called
carriage, cloth plate, adjuster gauge,
carriage and a stacker to dispose
sewn shirt front. Below stated are
the advantages of distinguishing
features present in various
machines which result in enhanced
productivity, efficiency and quality of
the machine.
• Available in the indexers from
Duerkopp Adler and Juki, the
preset mechanism allows the
operator to place the subsequent
garment piece on the preset