Cutting costs by 14% in a sewing room near Łódź
We changed the scrap settlement system and reorganized 2 sewing lines. The client recovered 4,200 PLN per month already in the second month.
The owner of the ModaPol sewing room struggled with declining margins. Instead of firing people, we decided to check how much money was escaping through poor material management and chaos on the floor.
The challenge
The company lost nearly 12% of every fabric roll due to thoughtless cutting patterns. Seamstresses on two production lines wasted an average of 18 minutes a day walking for buttons and threads because the warehouse was at the other end of the building. Energy costs were rising, and old lighting over the machines consumed electricity like a large factory, although ModaPol only employs 23 people.
Our approach
Our consultant, Dariusz, spent 4 days on the floor with a stopwatch and scales. Instead of drawing charts in the office, he weighed scraps after each shift and measured the distance every fabric roll traveled. We discovered that the biggest losses resulted not from a lack of orders, but from the fact that no one counted the waste that ended up in the container.
The solution
Orzeł Strategii Group introduced three specific changes. First, we rebuilt the cutting system – now material scraps are segregated and resold to a local upholstery firm as filler. Second, we moved the accessory racks directly under the seamstresses' hands, which eliminated empty trips. Third, we replaced old lamps with directional spotlights over the machines, which cut unnecessary power consumption.
Results
Within three months, ModaPol stopped losing money. The company not only spends less on electricity and materials but has also started earning on what it previously threw in the trash. All without changing worker rates.
Timeline
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March 2024Audit of material losses and work time measurements at 23 stations.
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April 2024Change of hall layout and introduction of scrap segregation.
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May 2024Signing a contract with a waste recipient and verifying electricity bills.
"Honestly, I was skeptical because others only promised big changes. Orzeł Strategii Group simply stood by the machines and pointed out where I was throwing away money."