Jack, a prominent sewing equipment manufacturer and AI solutions provider based in China, plans to establish its first manufacturing plant in India, marking its first expansion outside of China.
More crucially, the company aims to advance unmanned production and develop humanoid robots by integrating software, hardware and AI technology. To achieve this objective, the company plans to increase R&D investment to nearly 10 per cent of the budget, up from 7 per cent, as stated by Ruan Jixiang, Founder of Jack Group and COO, Jimmy in an exclusive interview with Apparel Resources.
“Last year, our total sales exceeded US $ 800 million, with approximately US $ 56 million dedicated to research and development,” highlighted Ruan and Jimmy. They emphasised that this achievement stands out amidst challenging market conditions where nearly 40 per cent of sewing machine companies in China reported losses.
Despite market downturns, including a 20 per cent decrease in the Chinese market and a 25 per cent decline in exports, Jack has expanded its market share and sales domestically. Regarding its sustainability initiatives, the duo mentioned that as a listed company, Jack is mandated by the government to secure an ESG license, which stands for Environmental, Social and Governance. The national ESG disclosure guidelines require large companies, including those in domestic stock indexes and overseas listings, to publish sustainability reports by 2026.
Ruan and Jimmy also discussed the potential impact of their new product on the industry’s growth, their solutions for small and medium-sized manufacturers, their plans to enhance after-sales service and more.
AR: What are the challenges that your new product aims to solve and what are its unique features?
Ruan: Last year, we launched the AMH (A5E-A) lockstitch machine, and this year, we are excited to introduce the URUS overlock sewing machine. URUS not only addresses the persistent challenges of traditional overlocks but also sets a new standard in efficiency and precision.
As the industry shifts towards smaller orders and quick reorders, traditional overlock machines often struggle with issues like machine jams, fabric wrinkles and broken needles or threads, especially when handling diverse fabrics. URUS is designed to tackle these challenges head-on with its industry-leading AI full-speed feeding system, enabling it to handle thick fabrics, delicate yarns, stretchy materials and tough denims seamlessly.
What sets URUS apart is its ‘super brain’ technology. It features a sophisticated model library with million-level pressure-to-feed ratios and a rapid multimodal detection system that adjusts to fabric thickness changes up to 32,000 times per second. This allows URUS to instantly compute and apply optimal pressure and feeding parameters as soon as fabric variations are detected.
Once the calculations are complete, URUS’s core technologies—the Presser Foot Transformer and Smart Rhino Feeding—spring into action. The Presser Foot Transformer swiftly adjusts pressure distribution within 0.00006 seconds to accommodate fluctuations in fabric thickness. Meanwhile, Smart Rhino Feeding ensures precise torque control up to 9.2 Nm, maintaining perfect balance between pressure distribution and fabric feed in real-time.
| We started by producing sewing machines and now offer total solutions for garment factories, designing factory layouts for new projects and providing comprehensive solutions from raw material warehouses to cutting, sewing, sorting and finishing sections. |
AR: How are you addressing the cost concerns of small manufacturers in India and Bangladesh who want to modernise but have limited capital?
Jimmy: Whether it’s a small factory in China, India, Bangladesh, or elsewhere, every small factory aspires to grow bigger in the future. As a sewing machine provider, our priority is to make high-quality machines that reduce costs and improve efficiency and quality. This is crucial because labour costs will keep rising across countries year by year.
The main costs for garment factories come from raw materials and labour, followed by machinery and property expenses. Coming up with innovative solutions and investing in right machinery is crucial to reduce cost. Take cutting machines, for instance. Many think they are too expensive for small or medium-sized factories. But in China, there are fabric cutting hubs where small manufacturers can use these facilities at a fraction of the cost instead of investing heavily in buying cutters.
This model could work really well in Tirupur, a key manufacturing hub. Such hubs could also offer additional services like Automatic Pocket Welting, Automatic Pocket Setting and Automatic Template Machines, significantly lowering operational costs for small manufacturers while upholding quality standards.
Another critical aspect is reducing garment factories’ dependence on skilled labour. Skilled workers often command higher wages and frequently switch jobs to secure better pay, posing increased costs and risks for factory owners.
By creating machines that need little operator skill, even new workers can use them effectively. For example, with an automatic template machine, operators input the material and the machine sews autonomously without further intervention.
AR: What customisable services do you offer to manufacturers with older setups who can’t invest heavily in new infrastructure to help them improve efficiency?
Ruan: We started by producing sewing machines and now offer total solutions for garment factories, designing factory layouts for new projects and providing comprehensive solutions from raw material warehouses to cutting, sewing, sorting and finishing sections.
For instance, our hanger system is an integrated device of hardware and software equipment used in conjunction with sewing machines to improve clothing production efficiency. The hanging mode can replace traditional methods such as handling, tying and statistics in pure manual production. Equipped with display devices, it provides real-time production data and analyses production conditions on the spot, markedly enhancing efficiency and product quality while cutting down on labour and management expenses.
Our approach to intellectualisation involves building a cloud database, connecting systems and utilising IoT, Internet and cloud computing technologies for streamlined, personalised operations. Through digitisation, we develop platforms and systems like CAD, MES, WMS, SSCM and APS to enhance design efficiency and management. Our automation services offer comprehensive automated hardware solutions for all sewing stages.
We also promote lean production with research and rectification reports on factory layout, process adjustments, production line analysis, standardised operations and efficiency enhancements. For older factories, we leverage IoT technologies to retrofit existing machinery, transforming them into smarter facilities. While this approach may be more costly and less accurate than using new machines, it remains a viable option. We welcome discussions to explore how we can facilitate these smart factory transitions.
AR: What are your plans for the Indian market and how will you improve your after-sales service?
Jimmy: I’m excited to announce our plans to establish a Jack manufacturing plant in India soon, demonstrating our dedication to the Indian market and our commitment to enhancing our delivery capabilities. Providing prompt service to our customers has long been a significant challenge for us.
Currently, 10 per cent of our revenue comes from India. In future, Jack Technology expects to generate more than US $ 15 billion per year. Of course, this won’t be limited to just sewing machines; it will include everything from cutting to finishing, hardware to software, solar and energy-saving equipment and new industries related to garment manufacturing. Talking about after-sales service, our current practice is to provide over 2 per cent backup units to everyone. This ensures quick replacement if a machine needs repair, minimising disruptions to our customers’ operations. Due to travel restrictions, our Chinese team couldn’t visit India, so we invited our Indian branch employees and technicians to China for training, although this isn’t our primary focus.
Recently, we’ve expanded with branch offices in five locations across India, employing more than 55 people. This year, we’re increasing our workforce to further enhance our service capabilities. We’re also actively engaging our agents, who play a crucial role in directly selling to customers and sub-dealers. They must be well-trained to provide excellent service and support.
Additionally, we’re introducing a trade-in service where factories can exchange their old machines for new ones. This initiative is cost-effective, as sewing machines are relatively low-cost compared to the efficiency gains and labour savings they enable. Upgrading to newer machines can boost efficiency by 20 per cent to 30 per cent, allowing factories to recover their investment within a few months. We offer a competitive trade-in price above market rates to encourage adoption of our advanced technologies. This service aims to facilitate modernisation for factories without imposing significant financial burdens.
AR: Do you plan to continue acquiring companies like Bullmer, MAICA and Vibemac to integrate best practices from different parts of the industry?
Ruan: We’re actively seeking partnerships to offer more solutions to our clients, especially with AI and software providers like CAD for cutting machines, PLM, APS and finishing machinery suppliers.
AI is a big focus for us. For instance, we’re integrating AI into our fabric inspection machines to catch defects early and improve our hanger systems and sewing machines. That’s why we’ve partnered with top universities like Stanford, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tsinghua University and Zhejiang University. We’ve also brought on board over 10 PhDs specialising in AI to drive innovation.
Knowing how much the textile industry relies on labour—employing between 100-120 million workers worldwide—we’re looking ahead. Our goal is to develop AI-powered robots for factory tasks in the next 5 to 10 years, which could help offset rising labour costs.
Moreover, we’re exploring partnerships with other sewing machine makers to keep pushing boundaries and delivering better solutions to the industry.
