Tech Pack Creator Files: 14 Checks Before You Send
A pre-send audit is a ten-minute review of a generated spec before it reaches a factory. Any tech pack creator will produce a complete-looking document on the first pass. What decides whether it gets quoted or returned is a small set of fields that read as finished but are not, tolerances, grade rules, artwork positions and unit consistency. Genpire builds these fields into the first draft, but the audit is still yours to run. These are the fourteen worth checking every time.
Why factories send files back
Almost every returned pack traces to one of five causes: a measurement with no tolerance, a construction point with no stitch specification, a size range with no grading, a trim nobody can source, or artwork placed by description rather than by dimension. None of these look like errors on screen. A tech pack creator fills the structure correctly; it cannot know the fit intent you never stated. They only surface when someone on a production floor has to make a decision you did not make for them.
The 14-point audit
- Base size stated. Every point of measure is taken from one declared base size, and that size is named on the cover.
- Tolerance on every measurement. Not just the critical ones. A blank tolerance field is an invitation to improvise.
- Grade rules across the full range. Every POM has an increment per size, from smallest to largest.
- Units consistent throughout. Centimetres or inches, never both in the same document.
- Composition on every BOM line. Fibre content or material type, spelled out.
- Weight or gauge specified. Fabric GSM, leather thickness, metal gauge, whichever applies to your category.
- Trim sources marked. Either a named supplier or an explicit "factory sourced" note.
- Consumption per unit. How much of each material one finished piece requires.
- Seam type and stitch class. Specified for each construction point, not just a general finishing note.
- Seam allowance stated. Wherever it affects fit or finished measurement.
- Artwork dimensioned from a fixed point. "8 cm below the collar seam, centred", never "centre chest".
- Label content, size and placement. For care, brand and size labels.
- Pantone codes mapped to components. A colourway names the shell, the lining and the trim separately.
- Revision number and date on the cover. Matching the file name you send.
The three that cost the most
Missing tolerances are the most expensive omission, because the factory sets its own and you discover the range at sampling. Missing grade rules are second: without them you either receive one size or pay for a grading round you did not plan. Third is artwork described rather than dimensioned, which is the single most common cause of a reprint.
Each of these adds a sampling round. At two to four weeks per round, the audit is a good trade for ten minutes.
When the factory comes back anyway
Some questions are normal and healthy, a manufacturer proposing a different stitch class for a fabric they know better than you do is a good sign. What matters is the volume. One or two clarifications on a first pack is ordinary. Fifteen means the file was incomplete, and the fix is upstream in how the pack was specified, not in answering emails.
FAQ
How long should the audit take?
Ten to fifteen minutes for a single style once you know the list. Faster after the first few.
Does an AI techpack still need this?
Yes. Generation produces a complete structure quickly, but you are the one who knows the fit intent and the finish you actually want.
Should I send it to more than one factory?
Yes, and send the identical file to each. Quotes are only comparable if the spec is.
My output already looks complete, why audit it?
It will always look complete. A finished AI techpack has a finished structure, but the audit checks the fields inside that structure, which is where gaps hide.
Send a file that gets quoted
Most returned packs are not badly designed. They are incomplete in ways that are invisible until someone tries to build from them. Genpire's AI tech pack generator builds the fields this audit checks for, tolerances, grade rules, dimensioned callouts and a full bill of materials, into the first draft, so the review is a confirmation rather than a rescue. Run one style through it and audit the output against the fourteen points above.
Generate a style in Genpire, then run the 14-point audit above against the output before you send it anywhere.
Related reading: What's inside an AI tech pack and how to brief an AI tech pack generator.