Apparel Online Bangladesh Magazine December Issue 2018 | Page 61

RESOURCE CENTRE
AO: What is your take on human-
less sewing line? The classic
5-pocket jeans is a standard
product, so why there are no
efforts to make it completely
automated? Is it possible?
Alberto: It’s my personal
feeling and I ask this question
most of the time: Can we
actually achieve robotic sewing
especially in denim where the
complexity in sewing a jeans
is more? Is it actually feasible?
There is no use of developing
a complicated robot that has
limited use in performing
operations. And, what if one
operation stops due to a certain
reason? Can a manufacturer
afford the whole line of
thousands of pieces to stop?
Moreover, if they install it in
one unit, then is an investment
of EUR 10 million worth for
them? No…
We never believed in these kinds
of robots which are not easy to
operate. We have automated
sewing machines that serve the
same purpose, have low cost;
they are even more feasible and
most importantly, they are safe.
A machine should be simple
to use, simple to maintain
and should be affordable to
customers, that’s my vision.
What we, as a company are
doing is that we are developing
sewing stations with loaders
and unloaders. In future, the
production floor will need no
operators. All it will need is
just one helper to monitor 4 to
5 machines at the same time,
and for a small production
line, one helper can operate
more machines and more
operations. Imagine how much
automation will be there in
multiple lines put together with
reduced human intervention.
That is the future, not robotic
sewing. It is exactly what we
did in our pocket hemming
machine V700/701. In the
modified version of the pocket
hemming machine, an automatic
feeding station with 4 loading
docks has been introduced.
The automatic feeding station
can transfer the pockets to the
transport belt through a robotic
arm. And, once the pockets
are hemmed, an unloader
automatically stacks the pockets
in order on the storage disk at
the end of the transport belt.
This is ‘intelligent automation’
and when I say, we believe in
‘intelligent automation’ across
the production line, I mean
Vibemac is creating a fair
competition in the market.
Automation is going to cost
everybody in the same way and
the collective industry standard
will be raised.
AO: How did automation reduce
the sewing cycle time over the
last decade? 
Enrico: As a matter of fact, we
tell people that Vibemac is one of
the many brands in the market
but the way we use technology
in our machines is unmatchable.
If I talk about labour-intensive
countries such as India,
Bangladesh and Vietnam,
they cannot survive without
automation in many fields
because of the lack of skilled
operators in most of the areas.
Specifically India is used to
produce high-end garments and
these garments need immense
level of skills from operators.
This is where the manufacturers
need to put their hands in
automation. Human intervention
will always increase the sewing
cycle time, but over the last
decade, the cycle time has
reduced drastically as I can
see that the use of automation
has increased.
AO: So, what’s next for you? Any
new development in the pipeline
which you want to share?
Alberto: Of course. Automation
is a continuous development and
that’s the only way to help the
customers train their operators
and increase the quality level.
Today, people are working even
ESSENTIALS
In future, the
production floor
will need no
operators. All it will
need is just one
helper to monitor
4 to 5 machines
at the same time,
and for a small
production line,
one helper can
operate more
machines and
more operations.
harder than before and the
level of skill and knowledge is
increasing on a global scale.
Everyone is working to have a
better life with better paying
jobs and higher standards of
living. The day is not far when
securing a skilled operator
will be very difficult and very
expensive at the same time.
Our future strategy includes
stabilising automation,
upgrading and improvising the
machines that we have. At the
same time, our core principle
for development is centered
around operator-friendliness.
For example, we introduced
adjustable stands in our
machines, allowing the operator
to adjust the height of the
machine to avoid any fatigue
they may elsewise experience
operating a machine without
adjustable stands. This is just
one example.
We never start by asking our
existing customers to buy new
machines. First, we try to
upgrade what we have already
offered them. A machine
bought from us 15 years ago
has different mechanical parts
and different electronic parts,
we understand. But, why not
add some assemblies in the
existing machines that are
compatible with the old parts?
It’s simple for an innovative
mind to understand. This way
the manufacturer need not
invest heavily on replacing the
machines. At the same time,
they can massively increase
their revenue by making
upgrades to their existing
models like the loader for back
pocket hemming machine or the
inserted loop kit for the loop
setting machine.
It’s very important to explain
these ideas to customers and
we are doing that. We are
very hopeful and excited to
head towards the future. Our
collaboration with Jack is
surely going to give us best of
the results.
www.apparelresources.com | December 2018 | Apparel Online Bangladesh
61