US clothing industry and DLA discuss business practices

09 Dec '13

2 min read

Representatives of the domestic textiles and clothing industry met with officials of the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and military at a “Captains of Industry” meeting and discussed better ways of doing business, a DLA press release said.

The meeting, third of its kind, gave attendees a chance to bring up issues that affect the clothing and textiles industry at large.

The previous meetings held for the textiles and clothing supply chain discussed reverse auctions.

Speaking at the event, DLA Director Navy Vice Adm. Mark Harnitchek said, “My desire is for us to all have a relationship so we can decide strategically how we are going to do business. It is important that we work through issues that are somewhat strategic in nature that aren’t necessarily related to the contracts.”

He said the homework was to figure out whether reverse auctions were a healthy way to do business with the textiles industry and also whether it was the best way to get the best deal for the Government.

The director added, “Fabric suppliers are getting fewer and far between, so based on that we decided they weren’t the best way to do business.”

Officials at the meeting agreed that a common goal in the coming years must be maintaining a viable and healthy domestic industrial base that includes large, small and mandatory sources.

Other topics of discussion included DLA’s effort to reduce the time it takes to award contracts, surge requirements, flexible contracts, and innovation and product diversification.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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