Reiterating the significance of skilling in the Apparel and Fashion industry

Providing the best in class B.Voc degree courses in the Apparel and Fashion industry, ATDC continues to stand as one of the finest training centres in the industry. Being a trendsetter, ATDC has been catering to the knowledge and skills of the professionals. To know and understand more about the aspirational values that ATDC is adding to skills in the Apparel industry, we visited their centre in Hyderabad and spoke with Mr. P Ravi Kishore, Sr. Regional Manager, ATDC, AP and Telangana. This Skill Talk focuses on the need to promote professional education and training among fashion and fabric enthusiasts through industry-integrated courses.

Q: Keeping in mind the aspirational value of Apparel Training and Design Centre, what can be done to attract engineering graduates of Telangana to take up courses like fashion designing and others?

A: When IT is definitely the first preference for almost everyone, there are places in Telangana like Karimnagar, Adilabad, Siddipet where youth have already moved away from IT industry to earn an immediate livelihood. When the importance of skilling and the opportunities in different sectors other than IT will be known to the youth, I am sure their aspirations will change. Considering the current industry trends, it is very important for all of us to map the aspiration of youth in order to change their inclination towards IT.

The engineering graduates have the ability to contribute immensely to the Apparel industry. They don’t’ need to become designers or manufacturers, they can start contributing towards the competitiveness in the state through process efficiency and productivity improvement. Their experience in software can be applied in areas like time management and study method in the Apparel industry. With so many engineering graduates, Telangana can become the talent hub for junior management positions to help the industry improve process orientation.

Q: How do we create more awareness and involve more stakeholders to mobilize the industry and create awareness among the parents?

A: There are opportunities, where the industry can be further mobilized and more stakeholders can explore different locations to set up their manufacturing units. Government initiatives are already contributing towards the same. However, is Indian garment industry ready to invest to develop the workforce as the industry input is crucial in order to mobilize the Apparel industry.

A change in mindset is required and it should start from the grassroots level, this is where parents come into the picture. Since, they have a greater influence in choosing higher education programs, than their children, parents need to be made aware of new opportunities. Many are not even aware about how Engineering students could find better jobs in Fashion and Apparel industry.

Q: How do we create awareness at the school and college level about different courses that are available?

A: CBSE and ICSE have 165 combinations that students can opt from. The boards are offering these courses to students of class 8th to12th. However, in most cases, commercialization of education is creating a barrier to break the monotony of our traditional education. And the parental influence is huge among students during their school days. Creating awareness in the parent’s level is the first and crucial step. Their mentality should be changed and they should have the knowledge of the other things that are happening apart from engineering.

To make the parent’s vision a little broader, along with my staff, I used to go to gatherings and clubs where we could address parents and make them aware about all the other opportunities that are awaiting for their children. Changing the mindset of parents will take time and a sustained campaign is required with commitment.

Q:  Can you brief us about the courses that are being offered in this centre?

A: Currently, we provide two types of courses, one is a paid course and the other one is subsidized.

Under the paid model, we are offering, 

• 3 yr B.Voc courses in FDR(Fashion Design and Retail) & AME (Apparel Manufacturing and Entrepreneurship)
• 1 yr Diploma courses in Fashion Design Technology and Apparel Manufacturing Technology. For this session the one year courses are sponsored by garment industry giants like GAP.

Under subsidized courses, we offer,

Industrial Engineer Program under DDUGKY project, with a duration of 6 months.All the courses offered are aligned to NSQF. The students learn basic spoken and written English, computer skills, soft skills as well. The eligibility criteria for all the programs is 12th Pass /Intermediate

1 year Diploma & 6 months Program in the domain knowledge

• Fashion Design Technology: we teach them about fabric, fashion, Principles & Elements of design, Product Development, How to illustrate, Make the patterns, sew and construct a quality garment.  
• Apparel Manufacturing Technology: we teach them about the fabric, how product is made? How to manage production and maintain  Quality Standards.
• Industrial Engineer: we teach them about the product, how the product is made and the time that is required to produce each piece of garment. The students start from the basic skills like cutting, sewing keeping in mind the delicacy of the fabric as each fabric is different and their handling is also different.  We also teach them about the SAM (Standard Allowed Minute) which is very crucial in measuring the task or work content of the garment and AQL (Accepted Quality Level) which is used for the final inspection of the garment.
•  The students are eligible to avail one month of industry training or on the job training (OJT) during the course.

 3 Yr B.Voc Programs

• It is an undergraduate program having a suitable mix of general education & skill development components based on NSQF as per AICTE prescribed framework through RGNIYD University
• The eligibility is 12th Pass /Intermediate.
• The candidates learn adequate technical skills in the stream he/she opts , general components like Mathematics ,ICT ,Youth related courses like life skills and personality Development .They undergo for internship every semester and get exposure to the practical environment which make them work-ready and enhance their employability.

Q: How do the students get a peek into the actual industry work environment while pursuing the courses?

A: For the students we have designed a lab as per the industry standards and requirements. After our students get acquainted with the sewing machine, we divide them into batches. One batch measures the time taken by the other and then they will grade each other based on the time taken. This is called batch planning. And the grading varies from highest to lowest. Based on the criticality of an operation and the grade of the operator, we assign different tasks. For Example an A+ operator will be assigned to a very critical operation and B+ or A grade operator will be assigned to a less critical operation. By measuring the time taken for each operation, the students will have a fair idea about the end cost of the garment.

 Also, they go for internships in the industry every semester.

Related article: ATDC’s first B.Voc convocation celebrates higher education in apparel industry https://nationalskillsnetwork.in/atdcs-first-b-voc-convocation-celebrates-higher-education-in-apparel-industry/

Q: What is your advice to students who wish to enter the apparel and fashion industry?

A: Apparel and fashion industry has great scope to absorb engineering and non-engineering students in supervisory and managerial roles. If they have an inclination towards working in the fashion industry, this could be a stepping stone! Formal education and training will help them take up interesting jobs and open up avenues for entrepreneurship as well.