Manufacturer Price Analysis Engine

Fabric consumption and marker waste

Accurate costing does not start with fabric price per kilogram alone. The real figure is gross consumption: net consumption per unit plus marker waste allowance.

For knitted garments:

160–220 GSM single jersey t-shirts typically have a net consumption of 0.18–0.26 kg per piece. For 280–340 GSM 3-end fleece (brushed or unbrushed) hoodies, this figure rises to 0.70–0.90 kg.

Marker waste is not a fixed 5%. It depends on marker efficiency (how tightly pattern pieces are nested on the lay), fabric width, size ratio (size breakdown across the order), end-of-roll loss, and lot-to-lot variation in fabric weight or width.

If the waste assumption is wrong, the unit cost appears lower than it actually is. The gap shows up when the production invoice arrives.

Operation-based CMT labor

CMT is not simply "cut-sew-pack." Proper costing is built on operation count and the time required per operation, usually expressed in SAM (Standard Allowed Minutes).

A basic crew-neck t-shirt typically involves 8–12 sewing operations: shoulder seaming, sleeve setting, side seam closing, neckband rib attachment, sleeve hem coverstitch, body hem coverstitch, label attach, and so on.

A hoodie pushes into the 18–25 operation range: hood panel assembly, hood lining attachment, tunnel stitching for the drawstring channel, kangaroo pocket mount, buttonholing, drawstring insertion, rib knit cuff and waistband attachment, overlock + coverstitch combination on multiple seams.

As operation count goes up, total minutes per unit go up. As minutes go up, line cost goes up. This is why a hoodie FOB from the same factory is typically 2–3x that of a basic tee. Both fabric and operations scale together.

Trims and embellishment cost

Trims are the items most frequently underestimated in cost planning:

Woven brand label, care/wash instruction label, hang tag, polybag (gauge matters), carton standard, and neck print (inside-collar branding).

On the embellishment side: single-color screen print remains the most economical method for runs above 200 units. DTG (Direct to Garment) is more suitable for multi-color or photographic designs at lower quantities. Embroidery cost is driven by stitch count and the number of color changes, not by the visual area of the design.

Factory overhead

Overhead is not just the electricity bill.

It includes management salaries, production planning and merchandising, quality control department, machine depreciation and maintenance, and sample development cost (protos, size sets, pre-production samples).

Smaller operations tend to carry a higher overhead ratio because they cannot amortize fixed costs across volume. High-volume facilities optimize this ratio, but the difference is not always passed on to the buyer.

Manufacturer margin

Every FOB price includes a manufacturer profit margin.

Typical ranges:

High-volume producers: 12–18% Mid-size operations: 18–25%

Quotes that come in significantly below market usually carry hidden trade-offs: lower yarn quality in the fabric, reduced stitch count per cm, fewer operations (skipping a seam or a coverstitch pass), or weaker quality control at the end of the line.

The cost is still paid, just not at the factory. It surfaces later as returns, quality complaints, and brand damage.

The effect of MOQ on unit cost

Minimum Order Quantity does not only affect fabric price.

As quantity increases: marker efficiency improves (better size groupings on the lay), line setup cost is amortized across more units, time per operation decreases as operators reach steady rhythm, and fabric procurement pricing improves.

Moving from 100 to 500 pieces typically produces a meaningful drop in unit cost. Above 2,000 pieces, further savings are primarily driven by fabric negotiation rather than production efficiency gains alone.