Manpower planning is one of the most important — and most frequently miscalculated — tasks for production managers in Bangladesh's garment factories. Too few operators and you miss the shipment date; too many and your CM cost goes up unnecessarily. The right number depends on your order quantity, the garment SAM, your working hours, and your realistic efficiency target.
The Manpower Requirement Formula
Operators Required = (Order Quantity × SAM) / (Working minutes per day × Efficiency % × Working days) Example: Order quantity: 10,000 pieces Garment SAM: 18 minutes Working hours: 10 hrs/day (600 minutes) Efficiency target: 65% Available working days: 20 Operators = (10,000 × 18) / (600 × 0.65 × 20) = 180,000 / 7,800 = 23.1 ≈ 24 operators
Adjusting for Absenteeism
In Bangladesh's garment factories, daily absenteeism typically runs 5–12%. If you plan for 24 operators but expect 8% absenteeism, your available operators on any given day will average around 22. You need to either hire more operators, plan for overtime, or set a lower daily target that accounts for realistic attendance.
Effect of Absenteeism on Required Headcount
| Target Operators | Absenteeism Rate | Avg Present/Day | Required Headcount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | 5% | 22.8 | 26 |
| 24 | 8% | 22.1 | 27 |
| 24 | 12% | 21.1 | 28 |
| 40 | 8% | 36.8 | 44 |
Operator Count vs Line Count
The manpower formula gives you total operator count — but production managers must also decide how many lines to run. A single line of 25 operators produces differently than 2 lines of 12 operators running the same total headcount. Smaller lines are more agile and easier to balance, but lose some economies of scale. Most Bangladesh factories run lines of 20–40 operators for standard woven and knit products.
Tip
Always calculate manpower based on your actual expected efficiency — not your target efficiency. If your lines historically run at 62%, plan at 62% even if your target is 70%. Optimistic planning creates pressure, late shipments, and overtime costs that eat into your CM. Use the target as a stretch goal, not a planning assumption.