INDUSTRY INTERFACE
by
Sedef Uncu, Graduate Student & Research Assistant
College of Textiles, North Carolina State University

NCSU College of Textiles faculty, staff and graduate students participated in an industry tour during NCSU Spring Break, March 12-14, 2001. The tour, led by Dean Blanton Godfrey, included visits to three major companies: Unifi Inc., Parkdale Mills, and Springs Industries. The aims of this tour were to a) bring together the industry and the university in a collaborative manner so that new solutions to problems could be explored, and b) have the faculty, staff and graduate students observe "real world" applications and gain insight regarding current industry issues.

COMPANIES VISITED

The first stop on the industry tour was Unifi Inc., the largest producer and processor of textile yarns in the United States and one of the largest in the world. Unifi's slogan is, "Where there is fabric, there is fiber….where there is fiber, there is UNIFI." Unifi's primary business is the texturing, dyeing, twisting, covering and beaming of multi-filament polyester and nylon yarns and they produce and distribute more than 450,000 tons of nylon and polyester fiber a year.

Over the years, Unifi has transitioned from a domestic manufacturer and supplier to a participant in the world marketplace. Today, Unifi maintains manufacturing plants in the United States and internationally. The U.S. plants are concentrated in North Carolina and Virginia, and the international plants are in Brazil, Colombia, Ireland, and the UK. In 2000, the company had sales of $1.28 billion.

The tour group visited Unifi's Yadkinville, NC, facilities. After the tour of T-5 and F-1 plants (POY spinning, air jet texturing and false twist texturing), Unifi sponsored lunch for the group in Unifi's Cafeteria. Following the luncheon, presentations were given by Tom Caudle, Sr. VP of Operations, Willie Wooldridge, Manager Professional Development, and Robert Snyder, General Manager of Manufacturing, Plant #5. An open discussion about future projects and products enabled the exchange of ideas between College of Textiles' and Unifi personnel.

Parkdale Mills was the second company visited during this tour. Parkdale is the largest spun yarn manufacturer and largest consumer of cotton in the world.

Parkdale pursues a strategy that involves focusing exclusively on the creation of the industry's most diverse mix of high quality spun yarns. Parkdale has virtually every technology to spin the yarn, e.g., air jet spinning, ring spinning, rotor spinning and vortex spinning systems. This variety provides Parkdale Mills with flexible and up-to-date production capabilities.

Parkdale Mills Magnolia Facility (Hillsville, VA) and Fiber Research Center & Fiber Distribution Center (Gastonia, NC) were visited. The tour group was able to see every step from yarn spinning to the distribution center for raw materials. Monday night, Andy Warlick, President & CEO, and Don Thompson, VP of Manufacturing/Magnolia, were the special guests for the dinner sponsored by Parkdale Mills.

The third stop was Springs Industries, Fort Mill, SC. Springs Industries was founded in 1887 and today, Springs supplies leading retailers with a complete line of coordinated home furnishings designed to simplify home decorating for every consumer. Production and marketing of bed and bath products for institutional and hospitality customers, home sewing fabrics, and baby bedding and apparel products have a strong presence in today's marketplace.

In the 113-year history of Springs, the company has grown from a single mill to a company with 41 manufacturing facilities in 13 U.S. states, with marketing and sales subsidiaries in Canada and Mexico. Springs employ about 18,000 people, led by Chairman and CEO Crandall Bowles, the fifth generation of the Springs family to lead the Company. Springs' consolidated sales in 1999 were $2.2 billion. Major brands made are Wamsutta®, Springmaid®, Graber®, Bali®, Nanik®, Dundee®, Wabasso®, and Texmade®. Major licensed brands are Harry Potter®, Liz At Home®, John Deere®, and Pokemon®.

GREAT EXPERIENCE

The NCSU College of Textiles has various programs in two departments: Textile Engineering Chemistry & Science (TECS) and Textile & Apparel, Technology & Management (TATM). During this tour, faculty, staff and graduate students from various departments found a chance to observe every unit in the workflow, including production planning, production, dyeing and finishing, technology, design, merchandising, and marketing. However, this tour was not only a "shop floor" tour but meetings with top management of the three companies introduced "real world" experiences about production, management, marketing, product development and knowledge about competitive strategies.

Mr. Derick Close, Springs Industries said "It was my intention when we issued the invitation to Dean Godfrey last year to get a handful of faculty members down to illustrate some of the innovation going on at a "traditional" domestic textile operation. The event that transpired was truly a momentous occasion that witnessed over 40 faculty members interacting with former students and alumni of NC State, offering frank appraisals of where the US textile industry is headed. This excursion was carried out on the factory floor itself, with an exciting dialogue in the midst of world class manufacturing, that can compete with any manufacturer in the world today."

"We feel this kind of real life classroom setting should be at least an annual experience for faculty and students alike, in an attempt to expose all sides to global trends that can only be exposed by getting both constituencies together."

As a graduate student, I hesitated at the beginning since it was not the best plan to spend my spring break. However, the payoff was more than I expected. In the past, I have been to many plant trips but the thing that made this tour special were meetings with the top management of the companies. A discussion session held at the end of each presentation was an opportunity to ask what you wondered about shop floor operations, marketing strategies, approaches to information technology, decision making characteristics of the company, and overall strategies of the company. Industry personnel were there to answer your questions. Besides observing large plant operations and how companies manage them, the high-level of information exchange between academia and university personnel was the attracting part that made the tour a great experience for me!

College of Textiles
P.O. Box 8301
Raleigh, NC 27695-8301
Telephone: (919) 515-6646
FAX: (919) 515-3733
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Last Site Revision:
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