Readymade Garments (RMG)
Bangladesh’s garment industry — one of the largest in the world — has longer lead times compared with competitors due mainly to reliance on imported fabrics and logistics challenges.
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Woven garments: Typically 90–120 days from order to shipment.
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Knitwear: Shorter because most raw materials are locally available — typically 45–60 days.
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Total production times can vary and may reach 100–130 days without supply chain efficiency measures.
Breakdown for RMG (approximate examples from industry studies):
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Raw material procurement (fabric & accessories): 40–55 days (can be longer if materials come from China or other distant suppliers).
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Port handling and inland transport: 15–20 days (often slowed by port inefficiencies).
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Production to delivery to buyer: 35–45 days.
Note: Lead times can be reduced if materials are sourced locally or if buyers place orders with shorter timelines in mind, though this may increase costs.
2. Import Lead Times (Goods Coming Into Bangladesh)
Lead time to import goods into Bangladesh varies depending on product type, customs procedures, and transportation mode.
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Median import lead time (from port discharge to delivery) historically ranged from roughly 30–50 days in earlier years, though this varies by product and logistics performance.
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These statistics reflect the time required to handle paperwork, inspection, port transit, and inland transport.
However, for raw materials sourced regionally (especially from India), lead times can be much shorter, sometimes 2–3 days for delivery following shipping, which major buyers increasingly prefer.
3. Export Logistics (Goods Leaving Bangladesh)
For exported products, global logistics performance indicators show that:
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The median time from shipment point to loading on export is often measured in a few days, reflecting customs and port handling — e.g., historical data showed around 2–4 days on average.
However, this does not include production lead time, which is generally the largest component for manufactured exports like apparel.
4. Other Manufacturing Categories (General Estimates)
For non-RMG categories (machinery, electronics, consumer goods, etc.) there is no single public database with detailed breakdowns by product type, but typical supply chain stages include:
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Raw material and component import: 20–60 days depending on origin and shipment mode
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Assembly/manufacturing: 15–60 days depending on complexity
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Domestic transport and delivery: 5–20 days
Important note: These estimates vary widely by category, supplier, and logistics arrangements. Lead times for heavy machinery or custom industrial equipment can exceed 60–90 days, while simpler consumer goods sourced locally can have lead times under 30 days.
