PD ... what?
So let’s talk software. As an apparel decorator, project-data-management software can be a tool that will behave like a combination of your production manager, your art director, your sales and merchandising people, your ink mixer, your embroidery digitizer, your bookkeeper and your secretary—all rolled into one. Information can be retrieved with the touch of a button. You make a quick check in the system and the files are brought to you in the way you would like to receive them. Then, as you wish, you email them across the planet to your contractor in Asia, or across the plant to your production manager. We’re talking about an electronic data manager (like my original work-flow manager way back in 1991) that, if working correctly and properly selected when purchased, should manage the flow of your work in ways you could never have imagined doing manually. The machine gives you instant information flow. It creates a digital working environment where information is no longer written on paper with, perhaps, impossible-to-read instructions for a given apparel-decorating job. It is a container that receives your exact instructions and, without mistakes, sends them directly to the person you intended them for. Now we’re keeping perfect track of inks and thread colors, the exact design placement on the garment, that garment¹s size, the type of screen mesh, halftone line screen, squeegee angle and more—all the elements you need to successfully build a decorated garment.

And once it has managed your workflow, it now becomes a sales and marketing tool. Need a sales line sheet, or an embroidery or screen-print job sheet? How about printing a report for any design or any body style at any time with any specific instructions you would like to go with it? Do it online or print it out as a color job sheet on paper. How about all this in an email format that you can send around the world 24/7? What about your sales representative in meetings with prospective clients? Show them your most current work, up to the minute on a laptop, desk-top or with paper you can print on the fly? That’s right, no more waiting for FedEx deliveries.

Software selection criteria
What should you look for in such a system for your business? This will depend on your specific requirements, but you should certainly be looking for an apparel-decorating-specific solution rather than a generic off-the-shelf database built by a stranger. Look for one that offer functions as closely related to your daily operations as you can find. You also need to ask yourself: Do I need a system that will provide me with only production and pre-production management, or do I need something that will entirely manage my business, including my accounting and other functions?

In either case, specific solutions are currently available for apparel decorators, and are available at pretty reasonable prices. At this time, most systems available will require some degree of customization to fit your specific needs. This is standard and will vary in degree of needed customization based upon which package you purchase, the specific departments that will be using the system and your own ability to actually operate it. The best system for you should be the one that is the most ready to go on line, has the features you know you need and, will allow you the fastest implementation time with the least amount of customization.

There are six general areas that should be considered when evaluating the right business/production-management software for your company.

They are: Operational ease—How do the actual screens that I must work on look? Are they confusing or do they make intuitive sense to me? Am I looking at lines of data or combinations of data with graphic images that I can understand at a glance? Remember that in your kind of work you are usually dealing with some type of graphic. Thus, the ability of your software program to deliver color images of your production details is as important as is core-manufacturing or pricing data.