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I understand that the MUM will not tolerate plagiarism and that I may not be awarded a mark for an assignment In which Contents 1. Introduction 2. Definition of Fixed Capital 3. Definition of Labor Intensive 4. Production Process Pre-production Operations Grading 2 Cut Order Planning and Marker Making Laying/Spreading 5. Other Production Processes 6. Niche Market 7. Conclusion Reference List 3 5 Introduction This essay aims to explore the validity of the above statement. Further more, it will define certain terms such as fixed capital and labor intensive in order to ascertain the exact meaning of the statement.
Once the statement has been defined then this essay will explore the facts regarding the production process as well as identify what niche market is in order to prove the above statement as valid. Definition of Fixed Capital Investigated defines fixed capital (2012: 91) as the capital investments or assets that are used to start and conduct a business. Investigated further explains in the article that examples of fixed capital can include factories, office buildings, computer servers, insurance policies, legal contracts and manufacturing equipment.
Definition of Labor Intensive The Collins English Dictionary defines labor-intensive (2003: 91) as a term used to describe a task, industry or organization where a high proportion of costs is spent on ages or salaries. Production Process: General Sewing Data (n. D: 91) states that eighty percent of costs are committed at the design sampling stage. It goes on to say that the majority of pre-production operations involve predicting costs of labor, sample making and production.
Mad, a fashion professional, explains in the article entitled The Step-by-step Process of Garment Manufacturing (2012: 85) that grading involves the process of making a pattern larger or smaller regarding its standardized size. She also points out that grading can be done by hand or by use of computer aided design. Cut Order Planning and Marker-Making Cut order planning is the process of planning the cutting of the order and is part of the marker-making activity. Marker-making is the course of creating a cost effective layout on the fabric and marking its position to ensure minimal waste.
Once the marker-making activity is complete then the layers of fabric are cut either by hand or with the use of sophisticated cutting apparatus such as laser cutting. Jacobs-Bleach, Ammo’s, Schuster and Smith,1996:2) Laying is the process whereby one would place layers of fabric on top of each other in order to allow the cutting of multiple garment parts to create piles which would be rooted in order of assembly. In the event of a fabric defect the material would be spliced and adjusted to be placed over the defect. Spreading – Layering the Fabrics, 2010: 91) Other Production Processes In addition to the above information, Mad (2012: 85) states that the process includes predominantly these steps: designing or sketching which involves the process of spontaneous recording of ideas, pattern designing, sample making which means to create samples of the patterns by cutting and testing the accurateness of the pattern, grading which means to create different sizes of the pattern, cutting, Ewing/assembling, pressing/ finishing which involves various ways of steaming or ironing the garment in order to create a neat and aesthetic finish.
Niche Market of the market on which a specific product is focusing. ” The article further adds that small capital providers often focus on niche markets with narrow demographics to increase their gains. Conclusion As one can ascertain from the above paragraphs, the production process requires relatively few fixed assets. The main fixed assets that would be necessary would include, a sewing machine, various stationary: scissors, rulers, tape measures etc. An overlooked, an iron and a factory which could even be home based.
It could be assumed that the main expenditure in one such business would be the labor as each step that has been explained requires a handler or technician. In retrospect the amount of labor required far outweighs the minimal expenditure necessary in order to purchase the fixed assets. This essay has defined both the terms, fixed capital and labor intensive. In so doing it has exacted the meaning of the initial statement. The essay then went on to explain the steps involved in the production process in order to ascertain what fixed assets ND proportionate labor would be necessary to conduct a fashion business.
It also explored what a niche market is to express the fact that young designers could use niche markets in order to create a brand identity and focus on a particular need of a certain demographic. In conclusion, the fashion business is definitely a labor intensive one contrarily the fixed capital required would depend on the size of the business and its expected unit production. In most cases, initially, such a business would require little fixed capital but a large amount of labor therefore the statement has proven itself valid.