Fabric cutting can be done either by hand* or with CNC machines. Most often, manufacturers choose manual cutting for samples and CNC cutting for mass production.
However, there can be exceptions to this:
- Clothing manufacturers can use single-ply cutting machines for sample production or
- They can rely on workers to cut for mass production manually.
It’s all a matter of budget and/or manufacturing volume basically. *And of course, when we say by hand, we actually mean with special cutting machines that have no autonomy and that rely on the human hand 100%.
Let’s dig deeper into both options.
Fabric cutting at FUSH˚
At our two clothing factories, we cut samples with simpler machines. For bulk production that includes more plies, we use automatic fabric cutters. Being that we are custom clothing manufacturers, this workflow is perfect for us. That’s because custom manufacturing implies a lot of sample production.
Manual fabric cutting
This is a cutting machine that we use when we’re cutting materials to make samples.
As we make a lot of samples on a daily basis, we do a lot of manual cutting too. In order to do it better, we use a band-knife machine. And to use it safely, our cutting room staff uses the metallic mesh glove shown in the picture below.
This is mandatory equipment for using the band knife.
The three reasons samples are made on a band-knife and not on a CNC cutter:
- No interference with mass production and therefore no interference with deadlines
- It saves energy (CNC cutters use up more electricity than band-knife cutters)
- It’s faster (to set up an automatic cutter alone takes as long as to cut the samples manually)
Automatic fabric cutting
Automatic fabric cutter Orox Flexo C-800 with a top-of-the-line robotic arm and easy-to-use CNC controls. This one is located at our Belgrade factory.
Once we make the samples and the client approves them, automatic cutters hit the stage. They handle precise cutting in bulk and calculate the best fabric usage ratio. We usually use between 85% and 95% of the material per cutting project. We give all the remaining trimmings to a company that makes boxing bags (they use scrap textiles as fillings). As a result, we manage to create zero textile waste.
One more fun fact – our CNC cutters are capable of cutting through layers as thick as 8-12 cm.
Why do some companies always cut fabrics manually?
The answer is that they’re severely underpaid by their clients. Sadly, there are many clothing factories around the world that can’t afford to buy cutting machines for this exact reason. That is often why some of your fast fashion t-shirts become impossible to fold properly after a few washes.
Another reason is that they need to cut way too many layers at a time, which is too much even for the most advanced CNC cutters. Whatever the case, cutting materials this way always leads to some margin of error which results in clothing of lower quality.
Automatic fabric cutters vs manual cutting
Automatic cutters’ main advantages:
They fasten the fabric with a vacuum. This means there’s absolutely no wiggle room for the material and no room for error. This is ideal for mass production. It is also ideal for thicker and heavier materials like brushed fleece which is often used for streetwear manufacturing.
CNC cutters use lasers for maximum precision and work faster than their fastest human counterpart.
Main advantages of manual cutting with a band-knife machine:
- Perfect for low quantities and single-ply work
- Zero preparation time, all you need to do is turn it on to start a cuttin’
Other fabric-cutting methods
The following two machines are used in extreme cases – it’s either extreme cost-cutting or extremely high volumes of product. Alternatively, manufacturers can use the straight-knife cutting machine to cut materials for samples (shown in the image below).
Straight-knife cutting machine – cuts fabrics and costs
This type of cutting knife is the most popular in the textile industry still. Since garment making is the slowest one to make it into the 4th industrial revolution, this comes as no surprise.
King of mass production – automatic cutting line for continuous fabric
This machine is perfect for clothing manufacturers that make huge quantities of clothing. It feeds tubes of fabric into a cutting area that’s equipped with something called a cutting die. A cutting die is basically an arrangement of sharp knives in the shape of a garment that presses itself into the material.
Some of these machines are capable of making almost 5000 pieces in an hour. We still don’t use them because we’re nowhere near the production quota necessary to warrant the investment.
Final thoughts
There you have it, you read about four different machines for four different uses when it comes to fabric cutting. For those of you thinking about working with a clothing manufacturer, now you know more about what comes with the price of manufacturing.
To sum it up once more:
- For manufacturers that handle huge quantities, automatic cutting lines are the answer
- For factories that handle reasonably high quantities, CNC fabric-cutting machines are the way to go
- For garment makers that make a lot of samples, band-knife machines are a lifeline
- For manufacturers that must cut costs everywhere, straight-knife cutting machines are pretty much the only option
Thanks for reading this far. Now that you’re more informed, we encourage you to write us an email and let us know how we can work together. The form below is the perfect place to start. If you would like to enquire about our minimums, our usual MOQ is 500 pieces/design or colour in any size. Also, keep in mind that we only work with companies that have VAT and EORI numbers.
Learn more about working with us – visit the what we do page.
Request a quote from us
To get the best possible price and lead time estimate, please include the number of designs and pieces per design, fabric choice, sizes, and printing options.
- FUSH˚ Addresses:
- Velizara Stankovića 67
Belgrade, Serbia (view in Google Maps) - Oraovačka BB
Oraovica, Serbia (view in Google Maps)
- Velizara Stankovića 67
- Phone: +381 11 359 10 48
- Email: info@fush.rs