A Multidisciplinary Model for Industry Support

In Missouri, as in many other states, manufacturing and retailing of apparel and related products is vital to the state's economy. The apparel and sewn products industry is the eighth largest manufacturing employer in the state with 21,500 employees and an annual payroll of $246,576,000.1 Missouri ranks 16th in the nation in the number of people employed in apparel manufacturing. About two-thirds of apparel manufacturers are located in rural areas of the state and about half of them employ fewer than 50 people.2

However, both apparel manufacturers and retailers are confronted with major challenges today. Issues facing these manufacturers include the need to address labor problems, invest in new technology, seek new markets, and improve relationships between manufacturers and retailers. Problems for retailers include over-saturation of the market, loss of customers to regional shopping centers, difficulty retaining qualified sales personnel, and the unpredictability of consumers. Problems facing these sectors in Missouri are typical of those confronting the industry in other states.

The poor economy of the state has led to an increased program emphasis on economic development and has also reduced the resources available to Extension. In response to a reduction in the number of regional textile and apparel management specialists serving Missouri communities, the Extension Textile and Apparel Management Program was redirected to provide support primarily to apparel manufacturers and retailers. An open state specialist position was filled in the Spring of 1991 to lead the newly established Missouri Textile and Apparel Center (MO-TAC). The mission of MO-TAC is to positively affect Missouri's economy by helping manufacturers and retailers of apparel and sewn products improve their competitive position.

Goals for the center encompass the threefold land grant mission of the university-teaching, extension, and research. Specifically, the goals of the center are to: facilitate communication among manufacturers and retailers for mutual support, coordinate access to technical help for manufacturers and retailers, and conduct innovative research and development. MO-TAC will be a facility where apparel manufacturers and retailers can get expert help with specific problems. The center will also enable university faculty and students to have hands-on experience with new technology used in the apparel industry, and it will provide support for research projects. This will strengthen the apparel manufacturing component of the Textile and Apparel Management program at the University of Missouri for both graduate and undergraduate students.

Other state Extension Services have recognized the need to help the apparel industry and have established cooperative programs.3 However, MO-TAC is trying a more comprehensive and ongoing effort than has been reported in other states. MO-TAC is designed to foster a multidisciplinary team approach. The center is coordinated by Textile and Apparel Management (TAM) Extension, which is integrated into the TAM Department in the College of Human Environmental Sciences at the University of Missouri. Each university, college, department, or agency cooperating in this effort contributes its area of expertise to support the work of the center. Collaborators include the College of Engineering, University of Missouri at both Columbia and Rolla; the University of Missouri College of Business and Public Administration and College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources; the University Extension System; and agencies such as the Small Business Development Center, Missouri Enterprise, Missouri Ingenuity, Trade Adjustment Assistance Center, and the Missouri Department of Economic Development. Representatives from these organizations have cooperated in initial planning sessions and are working together to help manufacturers and retailers. Extension regional specialists and local economic development coordinators offer the link between MO-TAC and the manufacturers and retailers in their areas of the state.

Interest in helping the apparel industry in Missouri began with a needs assessment survey in the mid-1980s.4 Since then, Extension, through MO-TAC, has sponsored several major projects to benefit apparel manufacturers in the state:5

• The center printed a 1990 Directory of Apparel and Sewn Products Manufacturers in Missouri. This has been used by Extension specialists and manufacturers in Missouri and surrounding states. It offers a way to network among manufacturers and promote Missouri contractors to manufacturers and retailers who need production sources.

• A computerized global trading network has been installed at the center, enabling manufacturers to find markets for their products all over the world. In addition, each manufacturer may be listed in the system so firms seeking production sources may find these Missouri manufacturers.

• A one-day seminar entitled "Ergonomics in the Workplace" was held in the Summer of 1991 by an industrial consultant with background both in physical therapy and industrial engineering. About 65 people representing apparel and sewn products manufacturers, health care professionals, insurance carriers, and educators attended. The positive evaluations indicated participants would like to have the opportunity to attend other educational seminars.

Input from manufacturers and retailers will continue to be important as plans for the center are developed and implemented. Initial planning for MO-TAC included two focus group sessions, one with selected Missouri manufacturers and one with selected Missouri retailers. Participants provided valuable insights about their needs and the service the center could provide. Manufacturers suggested updating the directory, facilitating networking among manufacturers, publishing a quarterly newsletter, presenting educational programs, helping find new markets, providing help in solving problems, and perhaps establishing a demonstration center. Retailers suggested fostering communication among retailers in the state, providing educational programs, and starting a library of resource materials such as videotapes and written publications.

Establishing MO-TAC as a multidisciplinary center has already produced benefits. First, it has facilitated cooperative discussions among University of Missouri departments and campuses, and fostered a mutual commitment to address problems in the apparel industry. Each collaborator has become aware of what other groups are doing to help these and other industries and how the partners can best work together as a team. This coordination and collaboration of expertise and resources is crucial to effectively benefit both education and business sectors.

Such a multidisciplinary effort has challenges, too. It requires that involved Extension professionals be knowledgeable about the apparel industry and able to interact with a diverse group of interested organizations to see the goals for the center are met. In addition, team members from all the cooperating entities must continue to communicate with others and contribute their expertise to the team. Continued input and evaluation from manufacturers and retailers will be most vital to MO-TAC's success and the strengthening of the apparel industry in Missouri. The use of a multidisciplinary center model exemplified in MO-TAC may also have broad application to Extension's economic development efforts with a variety of industries in the states.

1. Bureau of the Census, County Business Patterns (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1988).

2. K. G. Dickerson and M. Dalecki, "Assisting Missouri's Apparel Industry" (Columbia: University of Missouri, 1988).

3. J. E. McDowell and S. B. Hester, "Assisting Small Apparel and Textile Manufacturers in New York State: The Potential for University-Based Programs," Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, V (Fall 1986), 42-46 and L. J. Anderson, C. L. Warfield, and M. E. Barry, "A Unique Marriage," Journal of Extension, XXV (Summer 1987), 8-10.

4. K. G. Dickerson, M. Dalecki, and M. Meyer, "A State Apparel Industry Needs Assessment: Special Concerns for Rural Economies," Clothing and Textiles Research Journal, IX (Winter 1991), 37-44. 5. During the period of program redirection and center formation, the following individuals helped University Extension and the Textile and Apparel Management (TAM) Department in creating the vision for the center and launching the initial programs: Barbara Cunningham, regional TAM Extension specialist; Jana Hawley, TAM doctoral candidate; and Jeff Wissinger, regional business and industry Extension specialist.