Garment specification sheet: factory requirements explained

This guide is written from the factory perspective — because at Sleek Apparels, we receive hundreds of specification sheets from brands and see the same problems repeatedly.

What factories actually need from your spec sheet

The measurement table must be complete

The single most common problem: brands send measurement tables with some cells filled and others blank. A factory cannot guess your measurements. If a cell is empty, our sample room will either stop production or make their own decision — neither is what you want.

Every size, every measurement point must be filled. If you don't know a measurement, note it explicitly: "To be developed by factory for review." Don't leave blanks.

Fabric composition must be specific

"Cotton hoodie fabric" is not a specification. We need: fibre composition (percentages), GSM weight, knit/weave structure, and any finish requirements. Without this, we're sourcing fabric blindly from whatever our supplier has available.

Be specific: "80% Ring-Spun Cotton / 20% Polyester, 380–420gsm, 3-end French Terry, enzyme washed."

Stitch specifications prevent the most common sample problems

The most common sample rejection reason we see: wrong stitching. If your spec doesn't say "flatlock seam on shoulder," our sample room uses a standard overlock. If you're making activewear, that's wrong.

Specify stitch type for every seam location. A complete spec might have 8–12 individual stitch specs.

Label placement diagrams prevent costly mistakes

Care label placement seems obvious — until your factory puts it somewhere it irritates the wearer, or in a position that fails retail buyer inspection. Specify: position from seam (e.g. "left side seam, 15cm from hem"), and how it's attached.

What we do with a good tech pack

When a brand sends us a complete, professional tech pack, our sourcing process moves in 24–48 hours to fabric sampling. We confirm availability of specified materials, confirm production timeline, and have a sample garment in development within 2 weeks.

When a brand sends an incomplete spec, the back-and-forth to clarify takes 2–4 weeks before we can even start sampling. That's 2–4 weeks of wasted time — for both of us.

Apparo generates tech packs that meet our own factory's requirements, because it was built by our team. Start free →