Clothing Tech Packs
A clothing tech pack is a technical description document of a design specially made for clothing manufacturers. Only top-level tech packs ensure accurate and top-level samples.
A tech pack is a complete guide that outlines how to construct a garment from start to finish, including all materials, measurements, colours and construction details.
Clothing manufacturers need a tech pack in order to make a prototype. These prototypes are the basis for bulk production and are called Samples or Salesman Samples. Tech-packs are made by a Freelance menswear designer, product developer, technical designer or a freelance apparel designer .
Clothing manufacturing is a long and elaborate process in which many components have to be created, such as; fabrics, prints, patterns, buttons, zippers, cords, labels, Etc. All these elements and details have to be explained in a complete Tech-pack in order to get an accurate sample.
BOM sheets
Fashion line sheets
Size specs
Size block charts
Tech Packs For Fashion
Clothing Tech Packs - BOM Sheets
BOM (Bill of Material)
BOM sheets must contain all the information on the components needed to make a clothing sample. Working with concise but complete BOM sheets is vital because they are used to calculate the piece price of the design. My BOM sheets are comprehensive and concise and explain all details of a clothing design. I include full-colour drawings, Pantone colours, and a list with all the fabrics and trims. In my layout, I put the company’s logo and the collection season at the top left of the frame. On the right side of the frame, I mention the information about the components of the designs, including fabrics, fabric treatments, trims, artwork, labels, Etc. Each colourway has its own Bom sheet.
Clothing Tech Packs - Fashion Line Sheets
Describing design drawings as detailed as possible is vital because people can interpret even the most detailed technical drawings in multiple ways, resulting in incorrect samples and delays. For that reason, a description sheet, also called a Fashion Line Sheet, is essential in a tech pack. A Fashion Line Sheet must explain all the design elements of a drawing and should also clarify the drawing techniques. For example, if fashion designers want to illustrate stitching, they often use dotted lines. But a dotted line in a drawing could also mean something else entirely – for example, a dotted print. Therefore, a precise and detailed Fashion Line Sheet wherein every detail is explained is essential in creating an accurate salesman sample. I always aim to create Fashion Line Sheets with ‘just enough’ details so that a manufacturer can focus on interpreting what is stated instead of wasting time analysing the drawings. Therefore my Fashion Line Sheets are concise, easy to read, and never long and drawn out.
Clothing Tech Packs - Measurements Sheets
A Measurements Sheet in a clothing tech pack explains the measurements of a design’s details. With that, I mean the dimensions of pockets, zippers, badges, collars, cut lines Etc. I also describe the positioning of these details on a garment on these sheets. The measurements are in the chart on the right side of the frame. I call the measurements on these sheets ‘Style Specific’ measurements. The main measurements, such as the front length and the chest width, also called ‘Block Sizes,’ I describe on the Size Block Chart page.
Clothing Tech Packs - Size Block Charts
A Size block chart is a measurement chart created for pattern cutters. Pattern cutters will make a pattern based on the measurements in a Size block chart. These patterns are needed to make a sample. When creating a Size block chart, I always start with the most critical measurement and work my way down. That way, all other measures will fit within the parameters. In a Size block chart, all main measurements, such as the front length, chest width, shoulder length of a garment, Etc, are stated and put in the chart on the right side of the frame. On the left side of the page, I put black-and-white drawings to make the measurements more visual for the pattern cutter, and I’ll point out more elaborated details with red dotted lines and arrows. The standard measures, such as the chest width, are not highlighted. The clothing size I put at the right top of the frame. I only provide measurements for one clothing size. When a design has a unique fit, I add a page to the tech pack explaining how I got the measurements. This page is called a ‘POM sheet’ or ‘POM’s sheet’ (Points of Measurement).
Technical Jargon
Flats or Technical flats
These are drawings that show how a garment would look when laid flat on a flat surface (hence the name). These drawings can show a design’s appearance from different angles—front, back, side and inside.
Colour Ways
Care Instructions
Clothing Construction
When one talks about Clothing Construction, it generally refers to the overall process of making clothing. However, sometimes Clothing Construction relates only to the pattern-making aspect of a garment. Top-level clothing tech packs describe all the construction details of creating and assembling each component—including stitching techniques, seam reinforcements, bar tacks, zipper closures Etc.
5 - Benefits Of Clothing Tech Packs
Tech packs are essential to create samples, streamline production processes, calculate piece prices and maintain consistency across product categories. Other advantages of having a tech pack include the following:
Benefit 1
Tech packs provide clear and concise technical instructions to clothing manufacturers, which will help reduce production errors and miscommunications.
Benefit 2
Tech pack can help you to keep track of your product development process, deadlines and agreed requirements.
Benefit 3
Tech packs are required to estimate costs associated with the production of your product.
Benefit 4
Tech packs are required to find the proper manufacturer for your clothing. When you own a top-level tech pack, you can send it to multiple vendors and compare quotes.
Benefit 5
Tech packs contain the original specifications of a design which you need to counter-check the sample and salesman sample for differences
The Development Time Of A Tech Pack
The time it takes to make a tech pack varies and depends on the complexity of the product. For example, a tech pack for a simple product, such as a T-Shirt, may only take a few hours to create, while a complex product with many parts, such as a technical jacket, may take an entire day. Therefore, specific factors determine the amount of time it takes to make a tech pack.