Quality control in the clothing production process of an under-resourced sewing co-operative: Case study

The availability and ease of access to substitute quality products and services has created an expectation among consumers in different markets to expect as certain standard of quality on any purchase they make. This expectation leaves some small manufacturing enterprises out of the market if they are unable to cope with the dynamic quality requirements of consumers. This paper uses a case study of a clothing manufacturing co-operative which has been operational for 48 years and which with resource constraints had managed to satisfy customers beyond expectation based on available customer feedback. This study shares a lesson which may be not generalizable in other contexts, which is that small manufacturing cooperatives should strive to focus their quality control efforts on the key quality control points mentioned on this paper. This research paper also suggests that more research be done on small manufacturing enterprises regarding Total Quality Management which is a knowledge area largely dominated by research on wellestablished enterprises. In principle this paper also calls for an increase in research which can benefit the operations management field about the knowledge of small manufacturing social enterprises which are common and beneficial for communities in developing countries.