Maharashtra HSC NSQF Specialised Sewing Machine Operator flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Lockout/tagout

Procedure that isolates machine power and keeps the key or tag with the servicing person, so the machine cannot be started while guards are off or hands are in the needle area.

LEX,8h

Eight-hour equivalent noise exposure level used to judge hearing risk in a sewing room; it is compared with the action level set in the factory risk assessment.

Needle-stick response

Encourage bleeding, wash with soap and water, apply antiseptic, report and record the injury, and account for any bent or broken needle before restarting the machine.

Metric needle size Nm

Needle size expressed as shaft diameter in hundredths of a millimetre, so Nm 90 means 0.90 mm; the Imperial size is roughly Nm divided by ten.

Ball point needle

Needle with a rounded point that pushes between knit yarns instead of cutting them, preventing needle holes and laddering in jersey and other knitted fabrics.

Thread ticket and Tex

Ticket and Tex numbers rise with thread thickness, so a higher number means heavier thread; metric ticket Nm works the opposite way, so Nm 120 is finer than Nm 60.

Compensating presser foot

Attachment whose two sides move independently, letting the foot hold both a thick and a thin ply evenly so the seam feeds straight without slippage or puckering.

Bobbin case threading

Thread passes through the case slot, under the tension spring and out the delivery hole; the case must click fully into the hook before sewing resumes.

Upper tension too loose

Symptom is loops of needle thread visible on the underside of the seam; the correction is to increase needle tension or reduce bobbin case tension.

ISO 4915 stitch classes

Numbering system for stitch types: 100 single-thread chain, 300 lockstitch, 400 multi-thread chain, 500 overedge and 600 covering chain stitches.

Seam class SSa

Superimposed seam where two or more plies are laid on top of each other and joined with a stitch, as in a basic side seam or shoulder seam.

Skipped stitch causes

Wrong or bent needle, wrong needle bar height, late hook timing, incorrect needle-to-hook clearance, or flagging fabric that lifts with the needle.

Overlock differential feed

A setting above 1.0 gathers the edge to stop wavy overlocking on stretch fabric; below 1.0 stretches the edge where the fabric would otherwise pucker.

Flatlock top looper

Looper that carries the cover thread on a coverstitch machine; if it is threaded incorrectly the cover thread will not form at all on the seam.

Buttonhole bite and taper

Bite is the lip width of the buttonhole and taper the narrowing at its ends; both are set on the machine and checked on scrap of the same fabric.

Grain line

Arrow on a pattern piece showing how it must align with the warp, the lengthwise stable direction of the fabric, so the cut garment hangs correctly.

Fusing parameters

Temperature, pressure and time are the three settings for fusing interlining; too little gives bubbling, too much gives strike-through and shine on the face.

Bundle ticket

Document that travels with a numbered bundle of cut pieces, recording size, shade and quantity so mix-ups and shade variation are caught before sewing.

4-point inspection scoring

Fabric defect scoring by length: up to 3 inches scores 1, over 3 to 6 scores 2, over 6 to 9 scores 3, and over 9 inches or any hole scores 4.

AQL sampling

Acceptance sampling plan defined by lot size, inspection level and AQL value; the tables give sample size and accept or reject numbers based on defective units.

Critical defect

Defect that creates a safety or legal risk, such as a needle left in a garment, a sharp point, or a restricted substance, and is never accepted.

SAM

Standard allowed minutes, the standard time for one operation; line capacity in pieces equals available minutes divided by the SAM of the bottleneck operation.

Line efficiency formula

Standard minutes produced divided by minutes attended, multiplied by one hundred; a line producing 480 SAM in a 480-minute shift is at 100 percent.

Bottleneck operation

The workstation with the longest cycle time in a line; it limits total output, so balancing work away from it raises line productivity.

Job-work quotation

Price built from material, labour, overhead, wastage and margin, and it must include thread, needle and machine time, not only operator time.

Working capital in garment units

Money that covers fabric and wages before customer payment arrives; accepting long credit terms without it is a common cause of small-unit failure.

Udyam registration

Indian online registration for micro, small and medium enterprises, used by a small garment unit to establish its MSME status for benefits and formal supply.

Feed-off-the-arm machine

Specialised machine that makes flat lapped seams for knitwear side and sleeve seams, trimming the edge with knives as the fabric is guided straight.

Bartack density

Bar length, stitch count and needle penetration set on a bartack machine; excessive density cuts the fabric at belt loops and pocket corners.

Puckering causes

Excessive needle tension, wrong differential feed on an overlock, thread too heavy for the fabric, or the operator pulling the fabric while sewing.

Ply limit in a lay

Maximum number of fabric layers that can be cut accurately, limited by fabric thickness, cutting equipment and pattern accuracy; excess plies give stepped cuts.

Efficiency versus productivity

Productivity is output divided by input, while efficiency compares standard minutes produced with minutes attended; a line can be busy yet inefficient.