Textile industry glossary
Plain-English definitions of textile manufacturing, quality, compliance, and technology terms.
Compliance
Yarn Forward Rule
Yarn Forward is a rule of origin requirement — for a garment to qualify for preferential tariffs under agreements like USMCA, the yarn must be produced within member countries.
RoDTEP Scheme
RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) is an Indian export incentive scheme that reimburses exporters for embedded taxes not refunded elsewhere.
UFLPA (Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act)
UFLPA is US legislation that presumes goods made in China's Xinjiang region, or linked to Uyghur forced labor, are produced with forced labor and banned from US import.
Production
Dye Lot
A dye lot is a batch of fabric or yarn dyed together in a single cycle. Each lot has slight shade variations that must be tracked for order consistency.
OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness)
OEE is the gold-standard metric for measuring manufacturing productivity. It combines availability, performance, and quality into a single percentage.
Loom Scheduling
Loom scheduling is the process of assigning weaving orders to specific looms based on fabric construction, capacity, and changeover cost.
Production Planning (Textile)
Textile production planning coordinates orders through spinning, weaving, dyeing, finishing, and cutting, with machine-specific constraints at each stage.
CMT vs FOB (Garment Manufacturing)
CMT and FOB are the two dominant garment manufacturing models. CMT = Cut-Make-Trim (labor only). FOB = Free on Board (full material + labor).
Quality
GSM (Grams per Square Meter)
GSM measures fabric weight per unit area, expressed in grams per square meter. It's the primary metric for classifying fabric density.
4-Point Inspection System
The 4-point system grades fabric quality by assigning penalty points for defects based on length and severity. It's the textile industry's standard quality method.
Shade Matching
Shade matching is the process of ensuring consistent color across different dye lots, rolls, or production runs using spectrophotometer readings.
Sustainability
Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM)
Higg FEM is the sustainable apparel industry's standard tool for measuring facility environmental performance across water, energy, chemicals, waste, and emissions.
ESG Reporting (Textiles)
ESG reporting documents a textile business's environmental, social, and governance performance. Required by EU CSRD, UK SECR, India BRSR, and major buyers.