A Study on Raw Material Write Off in the Sri Lankan Apparel Industry

Abstract

The Sri Lankan apparel industry has become a key player in the economy of the country. Today the industry has to face many challenges on its sustenance. One such is the heavy dependence on importing raw materials. Therefore it is important to study on minimizing raw material wastage major factors that affect raw material write off in the apparel industry. The study was done as a case study of the Sri Lankan apparel industry and designed as a quantitative research. The dependent variable was raw material write off. Added surplus, order surplus and yield per yardage saving were identified as the independent variables based on comprehensive literature review and work floor experience of the selected company. The primary data were collected through author observations and several interviews. Data were collected from 85 schedules which were randomly selected. The necessary hypotheses were then developed and statistically tested with normality test and correlation analysis. Multiple Linear Regression analysis was conducted to identify the relationship between the variables. The results showed that yield per yardage saving mostly contributed on raw material write off hence the apparel industry should pay more attention on this factor to minimize raw material write off.