With Coats expertise and thousands of case studies, we have established that we can reduce the overall cost of sewing, and reducing returns, by selecting the right sewing threads.

For example if we know that the garment is prone to seam puckering or issues relating to stretch, we can then give a range of thread, needle and stitch type recommendations to help overcome those particular issues.

Coats technical team would give thread and needle recommendations based on either fabric or generic garment type. We would analyse thread usage in the context of garment quality, shop floor productivity, consumption and wastage, and sewing and other work practices. We would then develop a comprehensive set of recommendations designed to increase productivity, reduce waste and improve overall product quality.

At Coats, we can help our customers ensure a high quality of garments for their end consumers. Coats Technical Services have experts with extensive industry experience, who will diagnose the core issues and provide practical and lasting solutions. These are focussed on practical application within a customer’s business, in areas where Coats has deep technical expertise and unrivalled experience.;

We will visit brands’ retail outlets and assess the quality of garments on the shop floor. Our team of experts can then view the garments as they are hanging in the shop and analyse them for issues including seam puckering, bad stitching, uneven or untidy seams and other manufacturing faults.;

Within this audit we would assess the garment, make a list of identified faults, take images and then do a report afterwards to be supplied to the customer. We would recommend a range of corrective actions for any problems found. We would then identify who and where the garment was made and then either send a Technical Services expert to go and visit or give an overview of the types of problems and deliver specifications to the brand that they should include their tech packs to help overcome those issues.;

A thread audit from Coats is a smart way to improve productivity and sewn product quality. Choosing the right thread and spending a little more on it can save a huge amount of stoppage time and reduce rejects due to defective quality. A good thread outperforms a cheap one at an unbelievable rate on the factory floor and the result is increased productivity that can translate into higher profits. Coats Technical Services advisors will visit our customers’ factories in order to give the correct thread and needle recommendations to use for each different seam on a specific garment type.

We audit your current sewing processes and provide recommendations for:

• Thread type and ticket size
• Package size
• Needle sizes and point styles
• Quality improvement
• Wastage analysis Cost reduction

In addition we will visit factory trim storage units to ensure that sewing threads are stored correctly . If thread is stored incorrectly it can have an adverse effect on its performance. To ensure sewing thread delivers optimal performance, it must be looked after properly.

Our team of experts will review thread cone sizes being utilised. If we perceive there is a large quantity of basic colours, we would recommend larger thread cones be used in those particular areas. If the customer is doing bespoke or small order quantities, then we would recommend short length options. This would increase the cost per metre but drastically reduce the overall cost and wastage at the end.

Coats Pre-production checks allows you to utilise the expertise of Coats Technical Services during the development stage of sewn items at your premises. This service helps our customers develop the most appropriate seaming conditions for specific end uses and recommend the best materials. This can be especially valuable when a factory initiates production of a new, unfamiliar product.

We will provide a structured report on conclusion outlining the objectives, recommendations and crucially, the quantification of the benefits. Our customers have found that this unique way of working at the beginning of the product process helps to avoid potentially costly problems when bulk production commences.

A garment is made up using a series of different seams. Therefore, a thread should be chosen for specific seams to ensure maximum benefits.

• Seam appearance
  Is the seam attractive, consistent, and neat?
• Seam strength
  Have the correct seam type and thread selections been made for the item being sewn?
• Seam durability
  Do the properties of the seam, thread, and fabric lend themselves to the desired length of use for the item sewn?

Fabric analysis is where our Coats experts would receive a piece of fabric from a brand or a vendor, and we would analyse it to see how much elongation and stretch the fabric has, to determine if there was going to be issues with that particular fabric type.

If a fabric type has no stretch in its warp and weft direction and it's a very close knit fabric, then there's going to be potential issues with seam puckering in both those directions. If it has elongation in one way or the other then that helps reduce the amount of seam pucker. If the structure of the fabric is such that it allows movement at 45 degrees then once the needle and thread penetrate the fabric it will relax back, and so reduce the amount of seam pucker.

We would therefore analyse the fabric and give recommendations back to the brand or vendor.