JUNE 2021

VOLUME 9 | ISSUE NO. 6 | RS 100 | Pages 64 ISSN NO : 2278-8972 |RNI NO : MAHENG/2012/43707

JUNE 2021

THE VISCOSE WORLD: THEN AND NOW

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EDITORIAL

VISCOSE, A VERSATILE FIBER!

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Human clothing has evolved from the use of wood leaves to natural fibres to synthetic fibers. Natural fibers like cotton, silk and other fibres have evolved during these times. The journey of clothing started from necessity clothing to fashion clothing to functional clothing. After the Industrial revolution, globalization, and privatization; Intercountry textile and fashion industry has depended on each other for the exchange of knowledge, research, information, and products. The Discovery of new fibres has given the global fashion industry a boost.

Fashion needs experiments, freshness, and newness every day. The fashion industry started to use unconventional fibers, then the journey of new fibres started…

Demand for man-made fibre (MMF) textiles worldwide is increasing as a substitute for cotton amid changes in global fashion trends. Currently, MMF dominates global textile fibre consumption with an approximately 70 : 30 ratio, i.e., MMF 70% and 30% is Natural fibre. The share of MMF has been steadily increasing due to the inherent limitations of the growth of cotton and other natural fibres. In the MMF fiber category, Viscose contributes 15 % of the share.

India is presently self-dependent in the entire textile value chain. It has sufficient raw materials/feedstock for manufacturing MMF textiles. Adequate raw material availability reduces India's dependency on other countries for raw materials. It produces MMF textiles of international standard to meet the global demand.

Presently, India's per capita fibre consumption is 5.5 kg / per capita. MMF consumption per capita is 3.1 kg only, which is among the lowest compared to the world per capita MMF consumption, even below Africa. Hence, there is ample scope for increasing MMF per capita fibre consumption in India. Viscose is versatile, flexible and fluid fibre, which is adaptable to any fabrics and garments. Industry can explore more research on Viscose and increase its share to the MMF category.

Wish you a versatile life ahead!

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Cover PAGE IMAGE courtsey: Grasim Industries Ltd. (VFY- Fashion Yarn Business)

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CONTENTS 05 08 10 12 14 16 20 22

COVER STORY A FASHION YARN IN A ‘MADE IN INDIA’ FABRIC DYEING OF VISCOSE FIBRE IN VARIOUS FORMS by Dr. N. N. Mahapatra PRODUCT INNOVATION FOR EVERY FABRICS AND GARMENTS by Birla Cellulose VISCOSE IMPORT AND EXPORT LOOKING AHEAD AT THE FUTURE OF SUSTAINABLE FASHION by Avinash Mane RECYCLING OF VISCOSE RAYON by Surya Vamsi Krishna Pallapothu BAMBOO VISCOSE FIBER by Kshipra Gadey

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TECHNICAL TEXTILE

NANOTEXTILE UNVEILS NEW WEBSITE BY 2021

by Nur Hani Aqilah Binti Salehin and Thomas P. S. Ong

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MARKET REPORT

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COTTON REPORT

FIBRE PRICES TRACKED SWINGS IN RAW MATERIAL IN JUNE

COTTON EXPORTS THAT DWINDLED DURING THE PANDEMIC, STABILIZE POST PANDEMIC

52 53 TRADE REPORT 54

COTTON EXPORT NEARS 9 MLN BALES UP TO MAY

USA TEXTILE AND APPAREL IMPORTS

USA CARPET FIBER IMPORTS IMPROVE IN 2021

LYOCELL FIBERS by Rugveda Pisat

INTERVIEW

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TURKEY MANIFESTS GROWTH IN HOME TEXTILE EXPORTS IN 2021-Q1

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

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SHIFT IN CHINA’S TEXTILE AND APPAREL IMPORTS

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HR FOCUS

58 TEXTILE MACHINERY REPORT

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DENIM UPDATE

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TEXTILE PRINTING UPDATE

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PEER-REVIEW PAPER

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39 44

SHORT TERM COURSES WITH MULTI-EXIT AND MULTI-ENTRY IS THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION INDUSTRY

IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY OF MAHARASHTRA

REFRAMING – A POWERFUL TOOL TO OVERCOME LIMITING BELIEFS by Rajiv Misra

INDIAN DENIM INDUSTRY FACING PROBLEMS

by Dr. B. Basu EVOLUTION OF TEXTILE PRINTING TECHNOLOGIES AND INNOVATIVE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS by Zydex Industries

CHROMATOGRAPHY IN DYESTUFF by Sachin Dalvi

DETECTABLE DROP IN TEXTILE MACHINERY EXPORTS BY INDIA

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MINISTRY HIGHLIGHT

61

FASHION INSIGHT

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TEXTILE INDUSTRY TAKES A DIGITAL LEAP

by Priyanka Jagtap

WELCOME OUR NEW CAPTAIN… SHRI PIYUSH GOYAL JI !!!

EXPLORING THE MODERN-DAY MIDDLE EASTERN DRESS CULTURE

ADVERTISER INDEX

EVOLUTION OF INDIGENOUS GOND ART by Renuka Mayekar and Sabita Baruha

REVIEW PAPER

SEPARATION AND RECLAMATION OF VECTRAN FROM COMPOSITES - A REVIEW by Vishal Khilari and Dr. Suman Mundkur

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Page 2: Raymond Page 54: Future of Designing Webinar by Fashion Value Chain

COVER STORY

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A FASHION YARN IN A ‘MADE IN INDIA’ FABRIC The Fashion World thrives on freshness, experiments, and novel creativity every single day! It is indeed a reflection of the garments and accessories that adorn the consumer. It is the culmination of one’s imagination and aspirations meticulously worked across styles, designs, colors, tones, prints, textures, drapes, and a whole lot of elements that evolve almost every day.

But, Fashion, at a very fundamental level, is truly a reflection of the ingredient that curates it - the multitude and wide range of yarns and fabrics that stay at the heart of curating Timeless Fashion. As the fabric used in Fashion is what determines the fall, feel, texture, dye-pick, comfort, glamour, and style quotient of any attire, at the core, of this fabric lies the yarn that weaves it. Needless to say, and a well-known fact is that it is this yarn, the manifestation of which, articulates the characteristics in fabrics.

Viscose Filament Yarn – The Fashion Yarn The world of fibres and yarns is as old as the history of mankind. However, the textile industry over the centuries and decades have given new meanings and life to textile ingredients across natural, manmade and synthetic fibres. The journey of textiles from necessity clothing and home textiles to fashion clothing, technical textiles and functional textiles is also the manifestation of science, technology and creativity of weavers, processors, fabric traders, designers and all in the textile value chain.

Among the multitude of fibres and yarns that drive the fashion world, one

is well known for its versatility, soft and luxurious feel, and richness it adds to fabrics for being the most desired in festive and ornate wears. This is Viscose Filament Yarn. A yarn synonymous with Fashion. A perfect Fashion Yarn!

As with its versatility, this yarn also adorns multiple names – it is popularly referred to as Rayon. Some call it ArtSilk too. Fabrics made from this yarn also have varied names comparing it to silk. These fabrics are considered as the most premium, after silk, and shadows silk in USP (unique selling proposition) and Use.

– the comfort of cotton and the feel and lustre of silk. The viscose filament yarn offers a plethora of dazzling properties, making it a desirable ingredient to work with. The process of manufacturing VFY consists of various steps: steeping and pressing; shredding; aging; xanthation; dissolving; ripening and filtration of the viscose solution; wet spinning; drawing; raw yarn aftertreatment; and winding. There are 3 key technologies for manufacturing

Viscose filament yarn (VFY) is derived from wood pulp and is generally known as “regenerated cellulosic yarn”. This differentiates it from most other manmade fibers like polyester or nylon that are synthetic in their origin. VFY is one of the most versatile ingredients, known to have the best of both worlds

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COVER STORY gin and ability to blend flawlessly with other naturally occurring fibers and yarns like cotton, wool and other manmade fibers.

There had been multiple companies who fueled growth of VFY in India, from time to time. Today, India’s largest VFY manufacturer is Grasim Industries Limited who is also the 3rd largest VFY manufacturer globally.

Grasim Industries Limited – A ‘Made in India’ VFY Journey

VFY globally – the classic Pot Spun Technology, the advanced Continuous Spun Technology, and a unique Spool Spun Technology.

VFY’s History - Global Adoption of a Versatile Yarn While the curiosity and attempt of mankind to emulate a yarn similar to silk dates back almost 350 years, the commercial and viable production of VFY documented dates back to early 1900 – almost 100 years back. While the production started in the U.S., globally today ~98% of production happens in China and India.

VFY has been adopted by the Textile industry as the premium value-based yarn contrary to the volume-based saga of most manmade fibers and yarns. Today, the consumption centers for yarns are spread globally with China, India and Pakistan contributing to ~85%. The appeal and consumption of fabrics however, is desired world-wide.

The gamut of applications extended from apparel to embroidery to home textiles globally. There is usage in premium suit lining, knitted apparel, intimate wear and many more - the appeal and preference being much more in luxury wears. Interestingly, VFY, in particular, has always been known for women’s wear.

As VFY is immensely versatile, it lends itself beautifully to the everchanging need of fashion, particularly in women’s wear. One can find references to

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celebrity dressing with Rayon. Red carpet stories had the aroma of art-silks. A picture of feminine elegance is draped in VFY. Yet again, justifying its position as the Fashion Yarn.

VFY in India – A Saga of a Luxurious textile ingredient in the Land of Creativity India, since ages has been the land of textiles, of creativity and of handcrafted fashion. From ancient civilization to Mughal era, Indian textiles and art have reached corners of the globe and even today, finds umpteen mentions in the history of textiles and fashion.

Even today, Indian fashion designers have significant universal appeal and popularity. One hears of Indian weaves, hand embroidery work, pashminas, carpets and many more. This land of cotton, jute, wool and silk and its craftmanship does justice to all the manmade fibres and filaments.

Needless to say, this country of the talented textile fraternity adopted VFY with elan and enthusiasm years back to weave tales of luxury, to create fashion for royalty and contemporary, to give this Fashion Yarn its rightful due.

India started the journey with VFY over half a century ago. In the past 60 years, India has emerged as a leading producer of viscose filament yarns and a key consumption center. Its demand and acceptance in the textile fraternity has grown multiple folds in the last few decades owing to its 100% natural ori-

Grasim Industries limited (VFY – Fashion Yarn Business) has been on the forefront of India’s VFY story. The company’s inception dates back to 1950’s and since then has transformed into the largest viscose filament yarn manufacturer in India and a VFY leader of global repute. The company has a strong reach to the global market and now stands as the largest VFY exporter from India with exports to over 45 countries.

The company has a rich heritage of over 60 years and is a part of the Aditya Birla Group, a global conglomerate in the league of Fortune 500. There are two (2) manufacturing units at its twin locations i.e., Shahad, Maharashtra and Veraval, Gujarat. This company has all three (3) VFY manufacturing technologies, namely Pot Spun Yarn (PSY), Continuous Spun Yarn (CSY), Spool Spun Yarn (SSY). It maintains highest level of operational excellence and is accredited with ISO 9001, ISO 14001 (Environment), ISO 45001, REACH compliance, OEKO-TEX certification, and FSC® certified products (C149993 & C151684) for both units.

Raysil®, the fashion yarn brand of Grasim Industries Limited, draws its inspiration from VFY’s unique characteristics and accentuates this through high quality pulp, years of expertise in VFY manufacturing and advanced, high performance technologies.

Raysil®, the fashion yarn, is a 100 percent natural yarn of cellulosic origin, produced from superior quality wood pulp, that imparts skin-friendly and comfortable characteristics. A secret behind every rich fabric that has a superior lustre, drape and fluidity,

COVER STORY Raysil® adds a royal touch to a fabric.

Additionally, the lustre, brilliant color depth, excellent softness & smoothness, high thermal protection, no pilling and anti-shredding properties, ensures all properties a perfect VFY should have.

This versatile fashion yarn is available across 20 deniers to 1200 deniers of bright and dope dyed VFY (600 shades with flexibility to reproduce any shade as per customer requirement). The product portfolio also includes airtexturized yarns, double and twisted yarns, dull yarns, flat yarns, special yarns, yarns with two tone effect and many more. Raysil creates the best of Georgettes, Crepes, Chiffons, Chinnons, Upada, Organza, Tabby, Tussar, Satin, Shantun, Velvet and many more unique blends for apparel, embroidery & home textiles applications.

Woods to Wardrobe – The Raysil Journey VFY starts its journey from sustainable forests, weaves its way to express the dreams and imagination of designers and craftsmen, wins the hearts of the wearer and gently returns to into the folds of nature as a biodegradable

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Raysil - The Fashion Yarn in a ‘Made in India’ Fabric

product. The best quality wood pulp is responsibly sourced from sustainable and traceable forests to make 100% natural viscose filament yarns. The yarns are carefully woven to create a wide range of fabrics that are extremely skin-friendly and comfortable. These fabrics are used to curate garments and home textiles.

With years of manufacturing and R&D, Grasim Industries Limited (VFY – Fashion Yarn Business) stands as the backbone for India’s VFY Industry catering to the ever-evolving fashion needs not only within the country, but also globally. From Indian ethnic wear to saris and dupattas, to creation of Indo-western wear, fusion wear, and western wear to fashion accessories, the company addresses the VFY needs of the Indian Weaving and Fashion Fraternity. When any Indian artist of a textile canvas looks to curating a timeless collection through embroidery or weave a dream with bedlinen, upholstery, tapestry or carpets, the company ensures that their aspirations become a reality through the palette of yarns – types, colors and blends that is in the offering.

The company stays invested in ensuring the best of VFY fabrics, the ultimate embroidery and the most opulent home décor is Made in India, by Indian weavers with India’s very own fashion yarn. Shall we say, when it is a ‘Made in India’ VFY textiles, it is Raysil®!

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COVER STORY

DYEING OF VISCOSE FIBRE IN VARIOUS FORMS Dr. N. N. MAHAPATRA Business Head (Dyes) SHREE PUSHKAR CHEMICALS & FERTILISERS LTD., MUMBAI

In the late sixties all over the world viscose was replacing cotton in textiles.

The leading viscose manufacturer was Lenzing, Austria, Accordis , Germany, Thairayon, Thailand, then gradually in India Grasim started making viscose staple fibre at Nagda (M.P). They used to make Dope dyed viscose fibre and Grey Viscose Fibre in various deniers like 1.2 D, 1.5 D, 2 D, 3 D, in staple length like 32 mm. 44 mm, 51 mm 64 mm etc.

dope dyeing:

7. About 5000 shades range

• Viscofil Black 2BLN. (It is glycol-free pigment dispersion)

9. Over 120 shades manufactured every month.

• Viscofil Black VBC. (It is a pigment preparation.)

The disadvantage of Dope dyed viscose:

• Viscofil Blue ARN.

1. Brightness /Lustre are less.

• Viscofil Blue B2G 30 VP3494.

2. Prone to Thermomigration.

• Viscofil Blue BL 500.

Following are the forms of dyeing viscose fibre

• Viscofil Brown HFR 30.

3. Monopoly in standard shades minimum quantity to be ordered 3 tons and non-standard shades minimum quantity to be ordered is 5 tons.

1. Dope dyeing of Viscose fibre – It means mass colouration pigments are added during the viscose manufacturing stage. total production of Grasim industries, Nagda (M.P) viscose staple fibre is 400 tons/day. Out of this 200, tons/day is dyed and 200 tons/day is grey fibre. The biggest consumer of dope dyed viscose fibre in India is Sangam Spinners, RTM, Chenab Textile Mills, Jammu, Banswara Syntex, Banswara (Rajasthan), Birla Textile Mills, Baddi (H.P) and RSWM LNJ Bhilwara group (Rajasthan).

These pigments are manufactured by Clariant, Switzerland.

Dope dyed viscose is used by dyed p/v spinning units. It is manufactured from wood pulp. Which is imported in fine quality? The wood pulp is chemically treated and made into a viscous solution where colour pigments are added and dyed viscose tow is made, then it goes to cutter where it is cut into different staple lengths.

Following are the pigments used in

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• Viscofil Bordeaux BB 30.

• Viscofil Golden RVD.

For a very long time, dope dyed viscose was used by every spinning mill in India making Polyester/viscose yarn, cotton /viscose, 100 % viscose yarn etc Advantages of dope dyed viscose: 1. Washing Fastness is good. Rating 4-5.

2. Perspiration fastness is good, rating 4-5 3. Lightfastness is good, rating above 5 4. Fastness to Organic Solvent, Rating 4-5 5 .Sublimation fastness, Rating 3-4, 4, 4-5 (depending on shade) at 1500 C,1800 C, 2100 C. 6. Runnability in the spinning dept is very good.

4. During summer months the working in spinning mills is disturbed.

5. Difficult to manufacture in very light shades – less than 0.1 % pigment depth.

2. Exhaust dyeing of viscose loose (staple) fibre - Nowadays the dyestuff technology has advanced and viscose fibre is being dyed using vat dyes, reactive dyes and sulphur dyes. The type of dyes is selected as per the end-use. For example, 100 % dyed viscose yarn is being used in carpets in Belgium. Middle East, Turkey, Egypt and some European countries. The shades made out of dope dyed viscose get rejected due to less brightness /lustre. So some units like RSWM, Gulabpura (Raj), Reliance Chemotex, Udaipur (Raj), RTM, Bhawanimandi (Raj) have switched over to their dyed viscose.

100 % Own dyed viscose is very difficult to spin into yarn. But nowadays, the spinning technicians have overcome this problem. By the support of fi-

COVER STORY bre dyehouses like better washing, better antistatic finish and uniform drying (use of RF dryer). For better lustre reactive HE dyes are recommended. Viscose fibre is dyed in HTHP dyeing m/ cs. The material to liquor ratio in the dyeing machine should be maintained between 1 to 7 and 1 to 10. If water is hard it is better to add EDTA or chelating chemical. For example, in 500 kg capacity dyeing m/c the loading will be 550 kg. (Maximum).

Viscose is a semi-synthetic fibre.it is a purified form of cellulose and hence unlike cotton scouring is not required directly start dyeing. Before dyeing water should be checked. The soft water should have a TDS between 100 ppm and 200 ppm. Water hardness less than 50 ppm. pH should be neutral.

To avoid uneven dyeing of viscose fibre it should be opened properly with hand and manually loaded (no stamping m/c should be used).loading density should be uniform to avoid channeling and uneven dyeing.

The steps for dyeing viscose loose fibre are as follows: 1. The setting of dye bath - use sequestering agent /dye bath conditioner and TATA or Grasim salt run for 15 minutes.

2. Dissolve HE dyes outside and filter and add half quantity through addition tank 3. Run for 10 minutes at 500 C. 4. Then add half quantity dyes at 600 C run for 5 minutes.

5. Then at 60 0 C add salt (as per the depth of shade) in 3-4 instalments through the stock tank.

6. Then raise the temp to 850 C at 10 C/ min and run for 30 minutes.

7. Then cool to 70 and add soda ash (as per the depth of shade) in 2 instalments and run for 30 minutes at 850 C .

8. Then cool to 600 C and drain.

9. Washing with plain water and drain.

10. Hot wash at 950 C, and drain.

11. Then acid washes and drain.

12. Soaping at 950 C and drain.

13. Hotwash at 950 C and drain.

14. Cold wash with plain water.

15. Dye fixing at 400 C with acetic acid and drain.

16. Washing with plain water.

17. Finish with cationic softener/antistatic finish.at 500 C and drain.

The total time required varies from 6-7 hours per batch.

The dyed fibre goes to Hydro extraction. Please note: Wet Fibre Opener is avoided as the chances of fibre damage is there. Then it goes to steam dryer/ RF dryer.

The fibre is dried and goes to spinning with 12-13 % moisture.

In shades like Royal Blue, Turquoise Blue and any bright shades Glauber’s salt should be used. A suitable leveling agent would ensure greater uniformity.

In many dye houses bifunctional reactive dyes are used to dye viscose fibre at 600 C and better leveling.

3. Dyeing of viscose in package form – Dyeing viscose in package form is very difficult. Chances of unevenness within the package are there. Because viscose has got a swelling property in an alkaline medium. The package becomes very hard. Dye penetration is very difficult. Still in places like Tirupur, some of the dye houses are dyeing 1/40 count or 2/40 count 100% viscose yarn package or cotton/viscose blends,

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The process flow for the second method is as follow.

Soft Package --- Hot wash --- Hydroextraction --- RF dryer --- again SoftPackage --- Dyeing --- Hydroextraction --- again RF dryer.

The second method is time taking but the results depend on precision winding and dyeing machine-like Fongs and Thies. Scouring is not required. Bifunctional reactive dyes are recommended.

Brightness is more in package dyeing.

It is used in sarees and dress materials in South India, Benaras etc.

4. Dyeing of viscose in hank form Due to the above problem in package dyeing many local dyers in Panipat, Bhadoi, Benaras are dyeing viscose in hank form. In cabinet Hank dyeing machines. Then converting hank to a cone and selling in the market. In Surat, there are fully imported Nozzle Type Hank Dyeing machines used for dyeing of Viscose Embroidery threads.

The hanks are sent to Hank to cone winding machine.

Viscose dyeing is gaining importance in the textile industry. The dye and chemical manufacturer should come out with special dyes to dye viscose fibre and maintaining the same properties of dope dyed viscose manufactured

by Grasim industries, Nagda (M.P) Similarly, dyeing machinery manufacturer should come out with a viscose tow dyeing machine, just like acrylic tow dyeing machine or continuous padding machine.

Following are the considerations to be made while dyeing viscose yarn in package form: 1. Package weight should be small (500 to 600 gms) 2. Precision winding is required. (No random winding).

3. There are two methods for dyeing viscose yarn in package form.

The process flow for the first method is as follow, Soft winding ---Dyeing ---Hydroextraction --- RF dryer.

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COVER STORY

PRODUCT INNOVATION FOR EVERY FABRICS AND GARMENTS Mr. ManMohan Singh President - Marketing and Business Development, Birla Cellulose

Product Innovation for every product Fabrics and garments, technical textiles, home textiles and many more At Birla Cellulose, we have a structured process not just for fibre innovations and but also for the development of new fabrics ( Knitted / Woven) for different applications to ensure differentiated functionality /product offering.

New fibre development is an initiative driven by scientific research. Our R&D centres like Aditya Birla Science and Technology Centre (ABSTC), and the Fibre Research Centre (FRC), are premier research and development centres focused on product innovations and process improvements for Man-Made Cellulosic Fibres.

Textile Research and Development Centre (TRADC) brings innovation to the textile and fashion industry TRADC offers services that assist our value chain partners in bringing cellulose fibre products to market and at the same time handhold and scale up with the value chain.

In addition, LIVA’s in house design team comes out with Seasonal Collec-

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tions which are based on WGSN trends and inputs from Premiere Vision.

Research methodologyyou apply for Innovation Our research focus is on developing and introducing premium differentiated products, offering an enhanced value proposition. All our innovations are backed by continuous quality improvement & environmental sustainability of our products. This is accomplished

by managing a pipeline of projects that address near-term and mid-term needs, as well as exploration of future opportunities and be ready for next-level value chain & consumer expectations.

We have well-equipped state-of-the-art research facilities to support innovations across the development spectrum.

The Aditya Birla Science and Technology Centre conducts fundamental investigations using sophisticated analytical instruments and computational tools.

The Pulp and Fibre Innovation Centre spearheads conceptual bench-scale research on fibre innovations. The Fibre Research Centre (FRC) houses a pilot plant that is a smaller replica of our production lines and enables our scientists to convert their ideas into scalable implementable innovations. The Textile Research and Development Centre (TRADC) develops innovative textile solutions and offers opportunities for our scientists to transform fibres and yarns into exciting new fabric offerings.

Process Innovation in fibre and yarns An unwavering focus on enhancing

COVER STORY Customer Experience has driven us towards the timely launch of several key Specialty products. Amidst heightened hygiene concerns owing to Covid-19, we quickly established the anti-viral performance of Antimicrobial fibres by Birla Cellulose and facilitated its availability through three fibre plants commercially.

Through the launch of Liva Reviva, we now offer viscose fibres made partially from cotton waste. By up-cycling cotton waste otherwise destined for low-end applications, incineration or use in land-fills, Liva Reviva serves the pressing global challenge of textile circularity and waste reduction.

Liva Reviva thus enables the consumers to be consciously fashionable.

Livaeco by Birla Cellulose™ is an ecoenhanced fashion ingredient derived from FSC® certified natural renewable resources following globally accepted principles of Sustainable Forestry Management that ensures green cover and no harm to the endangered forest.

Livaeco by Birla Cellulose is our offering of a rich bouquet of sustainability features while retaining the fashion quotient. Garments made with Livaeco

by Birla Cellulose contains a unique molecular tracer that helps the end buyer to trace the origin and entire journey of fibre to garment with the help of a QR code.

Approach on sustainability and development of products We are not only committed to delivering sustainable solutions but also help and extend value to our customers and

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ity assessment tool that standardizes how facilities to measure and evaluate their environmental performance, year over year.

Consumer mindset for LIVA and initiatives for B2B partners

stakeholders to enable the sustainability journey. We aggressively pursue initiatives to reduce the environmental footprint of our products. Our principal raw material – wood – is sourced from sustainably managed forests that not only continually regenerate the raw material from wood, but also act as great sinks for the absorption of GHG emissions. Furthermore, wood does not require added fertilizers or pesticides, which are necessary for other natural fibres, and which could cause significant land and groundwater pollution.

Our commitment to sustainability was recognized by Canopy, and we are ranked no. 1 globally for our wood sourcing practices and has been accorded with a ‘dark green shirt’ rating, the highest category, as per their annual publication in 2020. The top ranking in the environmental report reflects the company’s relentless attempt to improve sustainable wood sourcing practices, conservation of forests, innovations in the development of nextgeneration fibre solutions and transparency across its value chain.

We are amongst the lowest consumers of water in the viscose process. Employing the 4R principles, we challenge ourselves to continuously reduce our water consumption. Our site in Vilayat is EU BAT compliant, and we at Birla Cellulose are working towards achieving EU BAT compliance in all of our other plants by end of 2022. We also have benchmarked verified scores in Higg (3.0) FEM which is a sustainabil-

In 2015, we launched a fashion ingredient brand LIVA for our cellulosic fibre offerings (Viscose) in consumer space with a differentiated value proposition of natural fluid fashion in India.

We have been consistently nurturing LIVA and its variants (Livaeco by Birla Cellulose, Antimicrobial by LIVA) with concerted brand-building initiatives (360 0 marketing across ATL, BTL & Digital) to create consumer pull since its launch. Our efforts have yielded results as more than 50% of fashionforward women who buy from apparel retail brands in India are now aware of LIVA and associate premium fashion imagery with it. Alongside our brand building, we also collaborate with top retailers every season to co-market the collection made with LIVA based fabrics to further build our brand awareness and fashion image association with end garments consumers buy from these brands.

The above initiatives have inspired brands & retail in India to adopt more LIVA based merchandise in their collections every season. Currently, LIVA is available in 40+ retailers across 3500+ stores spread across 220 + cities nationally with 50 million tags annually.

Livaeco by Birla Cellulose – our ecoenhanced offering with stronger ecocredentials has also found favour both in India and globally with leading players across the globe are adopting Livaeco by Birla Cellulose in their collections.

For the B2B partners (Value Chain Partners), the team closely works with partners and promotes their innovation through LAPF Studios. Strategic hub development meets are organised for creating awareness about LIVA and its possibilities in various applications.

Support for onboarding on major ecommerce platforms is a “last mile connect” initiative by our team benefiting most of the category partners.

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COVER STORY

PANDEMIC CREATES SHIFT IN VISCOSE IMPORT AND EXPORT Textile Value Chain

Source: Trademap

Viscose stable fiber output was 578 million kg in 2019-20, which increased from 342 million kg in 2015-16. Viscose filament yarn output was 55 million kg in 2019-20. VSF production is more expensive than VFY production that explains why VSF imports and exports are more than VFY’s.

Viscose Staple Fiber (VSF), a natural, biodegradable fibre with characteristics similar to cotton, is made from wood pulp or cotton pulp. China's VSF imports fell by 33 percent from 226 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 150 thousand tonnes in 2020. The United States' imports climbed from 83 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 103 thousand tonnes in 2020. Singapore's VSF import in 2020 was 98 thousand tonnes,

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barely 2 thousand tonnes higher than Bangladesh's VSF import in the same year.

Bangladesh's VSF imports increased by 60.97 percent, rising from 59 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 96 thousand tonnes in 2020. In 2020, India's imports fell from 63 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 57 thousand tonnes. Vietnam's imports in 2020 totalled to 49 thousand tonnes, ten thousand tonnes fewer than the previous year's imports.

Germany's VSF imports fell from 55 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 45 thousand tonnes in 2020, representing a 18 percent decrease. Indonesia's imports fell precipitously from 53 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 36 thousand tonnes

in 2020. Global VSF imports increased by only 2.65%.

VSF exports increased by 8.11 percent in 2020, well outpacing worldwide VSF imports. China was the largest VSF exporter, with an annual growth rate of 4.06 percent, as its shipments increased from 360 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 375 thousand tonnes in 2020.

There was a notable disparity between Indonesia's VSF imports and exports, as it was the world's second largest exporter of VSF in 2020, with an export of 342 thousand tonnes, which was 7 thousand tonnes fewer than the export in 2019.

Despite being the second largest exporter. Singapore's VSF export was 112

COVER STORY

13

tonnes in 2020. Sri Lanka increased its exports in 2020 from 2,000 tonnes in 2019 to 8,000 tonnes in 2020. Spain's exports fell from 9 thousand tonnes to 4 thousand tonnes in 2020. Malaysia's exports increased by 228.57 percent in 2020, indicating a significant increase in the country's exports.

Source: Trademap

thousand tonnes, barely one thousand tonnes higher than Thailand's export in the same year, 2020. Thailand's exports fell, despite the fact that they were 12 thousand tonnes higher the prior year. India's export was 76 thousand tonnes in 2019, however it fell to 66 thousand tonnes in 2020, resulting in a 12.17 percent reduction in annual VSF export growth. Germany's exports

increased by 28.47 percent, from 43 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 55 thousand tonnes in 2020. Taiwan's export decreased from 45 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 21 thousand tonnes in 2020, which was less than half of the previous year's export, with reduction in its yearly growth by 51.34 percent.

Japan's exports decreased from 13 thousand tonnes in 2019 to 9 thousand

China was the largest exporter in 2019 and 2020, with exports of 85 thousand tonnes and 71 thousand tonnes, respectively. The Czech Republic was the second biggest exporter in 2020, with shipments of 7,000 tonnes, which were 2,000 tonnes fewer than the previous year's export for the same period. India exported 9 thousand tonnes of VFY in 2019 and 6 thousand tonnes in 2020, respectively. Poland, which was not at the top of the list of VSF importers and exporters, rose to fourth place in the list of VFY exporters for 2019 and 2020. Its exports were 6.8 thousand tonnes in 2019 and 4.8 thousand tonnes in 2010. Vietnam’s VFY exports were just 76 tons in 2019 that climbed up to 1716 tons in 2020. India’s export for the dwindled from 9,219 tons in 2019 to 6,066 tons in 2020.

Global VFY exports were 119 thousand tons in 2019 that decreased to 96 thousand tons in 2020.

Import & Export Data: 2018-2021.

(Man-Made Fibers & Yarns) Quantity in Thousand kgs

Sr. No.

Commodity

Import

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

VISCOSE RAYON SPUN YARN OTHERS VISCOSE RAYON SPUN YARN SINGLE YRN CNTNG 85% OR MORE BY WT OF POLYSTER STAPLE FIBRES MULTIPLE(FOLDED)/CABLED YRN CNTNG 85% OR MORE BY WT OF POLYESTR STAPLE FIBRES OTHER YARN OF POLYESTER STAPLE FIBRES OTHR YARN OF POLYSTR STPL FIBRS MIXED MAINLY/SOLELY WITH ARTIFICIAL STAPLE FIBRS OTHER YARN OF POLYSTR STPLE FIBRS MIXED MAINLY/SOLELY WITH WOOL/FINE ANIMAL HAIR OTHER YARN OF POLYSTER STAPLE FIBRS MIXED MAINLY/SOLELY WITH COTTON STAPLE FIBRES OF POLYESTER NT CRD/CMBD VISCOSE RAYON STAPLE FIBRES NT CRD/COMBD

12

VSF-OBTAINED FROM WOOD OTHER THAN BAMBOO

2018-19

2019-20

2020-21

11,592.41 7,808.69 780.2 49,566.68 901.86 559.48 15,817.71 46.92 217.31 90,400.09 41,897.17

36,025.44 15,748.92 1,630.73 59,728.44 756.5 562.86 14,584.21 48.22 205.73 114,303.48 54,350.05

77,455.86 22,572.30 102.5 57,000.00 2,687.95 393.31 23,033.49 285.35 212.58 83,009.95 N. A

N. A

N. A

17,589.55

Export 13 14

STAPLE FIBRES OF POLYESTER NT CRD/CMBD VISCOSE RAYON STAPLE FIBRES NT CRD/COMBD

254,350.94 78,572.88

284,552.50 70,947.71

290,694.38 N.A

15

VSF-OBTAINED FROM WOOD OTHER THAN BAMBOO

N. A

N.A

68,908.38

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COVER STORY

LOOKING AHEAD AT THE FUTURE OF SUSTAINABLE FASHION AVINASH MANE Commercial Head – South Asia and Middle East, LENZING AG

The COVID-19 pandemic has made us reassess our approach towards everything in life, especially fashion. The fashion industry has grown to be one of the most natural resource guzzling and polluting sectors, the COVID-19 crisis has spurred a change in people’s mindsets about ‘Sustainable Fashion’, a trend that had been slowly gathering pace among brands and consumers. Consumers are questioning their choices and its impact on the environment thus paving the way for a conscious effort to adopt a sustainable lifestyle.

Consumer habits are changing, and brands are taking notice. The year 2020 if nothing else has ushered in what we believe a new era within the fashion industry where sustainability will take center stage. The pandemic made it clear that efforts to minimize impact on the environment needs to be a brand’s focus. What were corner whispers in pre-COVID era has now become mainstream conversation as consumers are starkly aware of the damage done by fast fashion and depleting resources.

The findings of a recent survey by McKinsey Sentiment towards Sustainability published in 2020 reveals that consumer sentiment across Europe is strongly tilted towards sustainability.

Of consumers surveyed by McKinsey, 57 percent have made significant changes to their lifestyles to lessen their environmental impact, and more than 60 percent report going out of their way to recycle and purchase products in environmentally friendly packaging. The study findings reveal

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that consumers are strongly considering sustainable materials as an important purchasing factor. Consumers now want to know who made the product, who is going to be benefitted from the product along with the origin, materials, and history of the product. In such a scenario, traceability becomes very substantial.

While the change in consumer behavior is quite noticeable, similar changes need to be embraced by the industry as well. Globally, brands are proactively embracing sustainable alternatives to create their products, this trend is only seeing an upward growth in India across categories.

The fashion industry has always been known to cause major pollution in landfills and release of tonnes of plastic microfibers into the ocean. According to a 2017 report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, even before the pandemic, the global apparel industry was producing about 92 million tons of textile waste a year.

The World Wildlife Fund recently shared that the textile industry annually emits 1.7 billion tons of carbon dioxide that is pumped into the air we breathe. Roughly 20,000 liters of water is needed to produce a kilo of cotton – the equivalent of a single pair of jeans

– cotton can be found in nearly 40% of all clothing manufactured each year.

Additionally, 85% of the world’s textiles end up in dumps annually where many of the synthetic materials cannot degrade. Other fabrics either release enormous amounts of micro-plastics into the ocean or rely heavily on animal leather.

COVID-19 has only made this worse.

The obvious environmental impact is already making ‘sustainability’ a top priority for the industry.

The textile and apparel industry is currently re-looking at strategies to navigate the on-going pandemic. The environment changing consumer sentiment and business impact on the envi-

COVER STORY ronment should be a key consideration for businesses.

Started as a niche but vital part of the apparel industry, sustainability is no longer a buzzword. It was quickly embraced by conscious industry experts and leading designers and fashion weeks , hence setting the right trend for the future.

More & more brands and organizations are including sustainability goals as part of the commercial targets thus leading to an important economic transformation, the next step to which will be to deep dive into the processes to realize this. Sustainability has been an intrinsic part of our core strategy and in 2019 Lenzing announced that by 2030, it aims to reduce its specific CO2 emissions per ton of manufactured pulp and fibers by 50 percent.

This is a huge undertaking. Leading global apparel brands such as M&S, Inditex, H&M etc have undertaken targets to shift towards more sustainable products and supply chains. M& S recently undertook science-based tar-

gets that include taking a pledge where by 2025 a quarter of their clothing and home products will be made using 25% recycled materials.

While embracing more sustainable production and consumption patterns, the industry will also need to be mindful about managing value chains more effectively, identify and address labour and human rights violations and environmental impacts, combat counterfeits, and handle reputational risks.

As part of this improving transparency and traceability needs to become a priority for the industry.

According to a 2019 U.S. sustainability survey by Statista, less than half of Americans believe that global environmental problems can be solved by developing and implementing new technologies. Innovative technologies can help businesses neutralize their carbon footprint and also help create a trickle-down effect that makes these efforts even more impactful.

Among the innovations that have tak-

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en place in the space of sustainable fashion, one of the most crucial one is traceability. Traceability allows us to trace the true sources of the end-product. It conveys the source location of the product at each step of the production process and at the same time the impacts the product is having on the environment and people around. Last year three sustainability pioneers in the fashion industry in 2020 – Lenzing, Armed Angels and Schneider – joined hands with TextileGenesis™ to create an unprecedented level of traceability.

Adopting ‘first of a kind’ blockchainenabled traceability for its fibers specially TENCEL™ and LENZING™ ECOVERO™ fibers makes them the most sustainable viscose.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a defining moment for the journey of sustainable fashion. The future of fashion has already taken its roots in sustainability. The question that needs to be answered now is how to take it to every conscious consumer.

ANDRITZ WILL PROVIDE PULP PRODUCTION

NEWS

TECHNOLOGY AS WELL AS ESSENTIAL PROCESS EQUIPMENT TO BRACELL’S MILL IN BRAZIL Andritz is delivering significant energy-efficient and environmentally friendly pulp manufacturing technology, as well as critical process equipment, for Bracell’s Project “STAR” in the Brazilian city of Lençóis Paulista, in the state of So Paulo.

Bracell is nearing completion of its Project Star effort to expand its activities in Lençóis Paulista, in the state of So Paulo’s interior. The facility, which will have a manufacturing capacity of up to three million tonnes per year, will begin operations in mid-August 2021. The initiative is exceptional because of its sustainable DNA, sophisticated technology, and use of renewable raw resources to make biodegradable goods.

Andritz Pulp & Paper manufactures various sorts of pulp, paper, board, and tissue using equipment, systems, full facilities, and services. Four of the six most significant process islands in the pulp mill are provided

by Andritz on an EPCC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Civil Construction) basis. Four chipping lines, two stacker-reclaimers, eight chip screening units, biomass handling with two Andritz BioCrushers, and biomass storage are among the features.

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COVER STORY- REVIEW PAPER

RECYCLING OF VISCOSE RAYON

SURYA VAMSI KRISHNA PALLAPOTHU

DR. SUMAN MUNDKUR Visiting Faculty

M.Tech. Student

Department of FIbres and Textile Processing Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology ICT Mumbai

Abstract Viscose Rayon is one of the regenerated fibre manufactured from wood pulp as it has similar properties compared to cotton in terms of water-absorbing and comfort. It has gained popularity across the globe. Recycling, Reuse, and upcycling of the fiber are some of the essential parameters to be considered.

These approaches help to establish a sustainable and green approach.

Rayon production involves solubilizing cellulose. One popular method involves the use of alkali and carbon sulphide.

Rayon can also be manufactured by another method using ammonia solutions of copper salts. Alternately, the lyocell process, relies on a particular solvent.

Chemical Reaction Involved for Viscose Rayon Production

• A viscous solution of cellulose

The cellulose is treated with a 17.5% of NaOH, which converts it into sodacellulose. The soda-cellulose with carbon disulphide react to form sodium cellulose xanthate. Sodium cellulose Xanthate is dissolved in dilute solution of caustic soda. It is extruded into sulphuric acid, which regenerates the cellulose now in the form of long filaments (Viscose rayon)

• A synonym of rayon

Cell-OH + NaOH

• A specific term for viscose rayon is because, rayon made using the viscose process

Cell-ONa + CS2 Cell-O-CS-SNa (Sodium Cellulose Xanthate)

Introduction Rayon is a Regenerated synthetic fiber produced from natural sources such as wood and agricultural products. It has a similar molecular structure to cellulose. Viscose can mean

Many types and grades of viscose fibres and films are developed. Some fibres give the feel and texture of natural fibres such as silk, wool, cotton, and linen. The types that resemble silk are often called artificial silk. The fibre is used to make textiles for clothing and other purposes.

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Fig. 1 Manufacturing process of Viscose rayon

Cell-OH

Preparation of the wood pulp: a particular variety of woodViscose rayon is produced from . But wood contains lignin other than cellulose. For producing viscose rayon is by purifying cellulose from wood. Here the barks are removed, and wood is shredded into pieces and treated with Ca(HSO3)2.

The treated chips are cooked with steam under pressure for 14 hours.

Generally, Eucalyptus trees are used as a raw material for manufacturing viscose rayon. The flowchart of Viscose rayon manufacturing is given in Fig.1 below:

a) Steeping and pressing: These prepared wood pulp contains 90 to 94% pure cellulose. First they are conditioned by storing in a room at controlled humidity and temperature. The pulp is then soaked in a 17.5% solution of NaOH for 1 to 4 hrs.

Cell-ONa + H2O

Cell-O-CS-SNa + H2SO4 + Na2SO4 + CS2 (3).

Production of Viscose rayon

COVER STORY- REVIEW PAPER b) Shredding: The shredding machine consists of a drum inside, which revolves around a pair of blades with serrated edges. In 2 or 3 hours they break it up into fine 'crumbs' (break into tiny pieces). c) Aging: After shredding, the crumbs are aged. They are placed in a galvanized vessel with a lid. Through oxidation with atmospheric oxygen, derivative changes set in. some depolymerization occurs, and the degree of polymerization drops from about 5000 to 350 in this process. The higher the temp. The more rapidly does aging. d) Churning: After aging, the soda cellulose crumbs are added into a rotating air-tight hexagonal churns. About 10% of their own (crumbs) weight of CS2 is added, and the crumbs and CS2. With a result, a result, a deep orange gelatinous sodium cellulose xanthate is formed. e) Mixing: The sodium cellulose xanthate is stirred with dilute caustic soda (NaOH) solution for 4 to 5 hours in the mixers. The vessel is cooled. The xanthate dissolves to a clear-brown viscous liquid appearance like honey. This liquid is known as viscose but is still too impure, too young to spin. f) Ripening: The sodium cellulose xanthate reacts with H2SO4 & forms regenerated cellulose. The viscose solution is stored for 4 to 5 days at 10-18°C, for ripening. At first the viscosity falls, then rises so that by the time the solution is ready to spin, the viscosity has nearly risen to its original value. g) Spinning: When the viscose is ripe, it can be fed in the spinneret of a spinning unit with additives to form Viscose (3).

Applications of Viscose Rayon Viscose rayon is used in a multitude of applications • Yarns – Embroidery thread, Chenille, Cord, Novelty yarns • Fabrics- Crepe, Gabardine, Suiting Lace, Fur Coats, and Outer Wear • Apparel – Blouses, Saree, Jackets, Sportswear, Curtains • Domestic – Bed Spreads, Blankets, Draperies, Sheets Slip, Upholstery

• Industrial - High tenacity rayon is used to reinforce mechanical rubber goods (tires, conveyor belts, hoses) (4).

With such diverse applications, from casual wear to technical textiles, recycling is an important consideration.

Reason of Recycling Recycling involves reuse, reprocessing, or reproducing a product with multiple aims of conserving raw materials, energy, water, and other chemicals, diminishing waste, preserving environmental impacts, and so on. Though it is beyond doubt that the reuse of any material will be very much beneficial in conserving various resources enlisted above, it will not be much applicable in the case of second-hand clothing due to limited practical applicability (5).

Recycling brings ample benefits to both the environment and the economy (6).

But unfortunately, it has a lot of barriers, such as financial, technological, educational, legal, and infrastructural barriers, which prevent textile recycling from being a successful option at the end-of-life stage (7).

Recycling textile fibers will aid in progress towards the sustainability of both products and processes (5). The importance of recycling reduces the load on landfills. If not recycled, the next destination could be a landfill, which is not desirable because it negatively impacts the environment (8).

Recycling of Viscose rayon Viscose rayon market has increased tremendously in the past two decades, which was surveyed by the ministry of textiles around 13 %. It contributes to the global share recycling of viscose fiber helps reduce carbon footprints and develops a circular economy in future production.

Approaches in recycling Viscose Rayon Bartl, A. (2005) stated that for recycling fibres a proper characterization method is required. Detailed knowledge of the fibre morphology makes it possible to evaluate potential applications. It is necessary to determine fibre length and width. Most of the literature on the recycling of fibres does not provide details about fibre characteri-

17

zation. However, characterization of short fibres such as recycled fibres is not an easy task. Due to their rather short length, standard methods for fibre characterization fail. But at the same time, due to their extreme nonspherical shape, established methods for particle characterization are not applicable (5). It has been demonstrated that a Mor Fi analyzer, which was developed for pulp characterization (9), is suitable for the characterization of short fibres originating from renewable resources. Characterising the fibres can be helpful to separate and identify helps recycle.

According to Karen S. Prado, during the manufacturing of Viscose rayon fabric, small fibres are wasted during the weaving process; these fibres can be used for recycling.

Fig. 2 Recycling process for Viscose Rayon waste

As viscose rayon is made of cellulose treatment with sulphuric acid, i.e. acid hydrolysis reaction (Acid hydrolysis with mineral acids (6–8 M), at 40–100 °C, from 30 min to several hours) produces Nano-cellulose.

Nano-cellulose is an interesting material because it has unique physicochemical properties such as large specific surface area, high strength, and low density. The potential applications of Nano-cellulose are in the fields of Nano-composite, template formono hybrid synthesis, food packaging, drug delivery, tissue scaffolds for cellular culture, oil treatment (10).

The emergence of fast fashion has led to increased consumer purchasing and shorter clothing life cycle, and higher rates of clothing disposal. Some of these clothes can be recycled and up-cycled

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COVER STORY- REVIEW PAPER

according to the available resources since many awareness programs have been implemented to develop recycling.

A large amount are going to landfill.

Some of the fibres are shredded and used for the making of the carpets.

Studies show that in carpets, imparting different types of chemical finishes value addition can be done. Another approach is to use the waste from the sustainable fashion of viscose and cotton blends, prepared into yarns by shredding. The recycled spun yarns are made into carpets, and flame retardant finishes are applied (11).

Recycled rayon waste-kapok mixture (RRWK) for the sorption of different types of oil (diesel oil and motor oil) under static conditions. Oil with a higher viscosity tends to have a higher initial sorption ratio. The SEM images of RRWK show that fibre structure affects oil sorption due to the hollow lumen and the gaps between the fibre.

RRWK showed that the capacity for oil sorption was higher than polypropylene. It can be concluded that utilizing industrial waste to produce RRWK is an effective way to create low-cost, environmentally friendly oil sorbents (12).

The mechanical properties of viscose sandwich composites composed of uniaxial warp knitted viscose fabrics as surface layers and non-woven viscose fabrics as the sandwich core were investigated. The aim was to investigate a low-cost non-woven viscose fabric used in structural composites so that a sandwich-type laminate was obtained.

Combining a higher cost and high performing fabric, with a low-cost fabric, was possible to minimize the overall costs without a significant sacrifice on the mechanical performance. Combining the percentage of uniaxial warpknitted and non-woven fabrics with varying configurations shown to be effective for improved impact resistance behavior. The results showed that samples with higher uniaxial fibre weight and configuration could withstand a significantly higher force (13).

Chitosan-Viscose rayon bio-composite was successfully prepared using a chitosan matrix reinforced with viscose rayon filaments in uni-direction. FTIR spectra suggested a molecular inter-

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action between the components in the composite. Tensile strength of the biocomposite increased in proportion to the reinforcing material with a simultaneous increase in stiffness, as shown by the decrease in elongation. The thermal stability of the composite was far higher than the pure chitosan film.

The bio-composite was more crystalline as compared to the blank chitosan film. SEM indicated a uniform distribution of the chitosan polymer around the viscose rayon filaments. Thus, such bio-composites, composed of sustainable cellulose and protein resources, are biodegradable with excellent mechanical and thermal properties that can be used in various fields like medical, construction, and automotive (14).

Recent Developments in Viscose production Viscose rayon occupies a global share of about 31% of all the fibres recent research states that recycled cotton waste fibres and viscose rayon can be produced by using cotton as raw material, as we know that Viscose is manufactured from tree pulp cutting down of trees and forests can be saved helps to regenerate the oxygen levels and helps to maintain ecological balance (16).

Birla Cellulose has committed to the circular economy by using a minimum of 20% in-house cellulosic pre-consumer industrial fabric and had plans of increasing the potential use upto 50% waste from industrial fabrics and postconsumer clothing with a distinction of Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) (17).

In 2021, Reviva was launched as a next Gen innovation bu upcycing cotton waste. The focus on recycling of cellulosic pre- and post consumer waste as raw material thus reducing the dependence on virgin raw materials for Viscose rayon manufacturing (18).

Conclusion As Viscose rayon is one of the fibres that is popular, the demand across the globe has risen. Recycling, reuse and up-cycling of Viscose can help develop a green and sustainable solution to the environment and also helps to reduce the water and carbon footprints. Many applications have been developed from Viscose rayon, but the scope for further-

ing applications is immense. Although mechanical shredding of yarns to a fibrous form to go back in production gives scope for circularity, there is also a potential through chemical means.

References 1.

Rayon Accessed from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rayon

https://

2. Muhammad Rehan Ashraf (2014), https:// textileinsight.blogspot.com/2014/09/historyof-viscose-rayon.html 3. Md. Omar Faruk, (2018),Viscose Fibre, Viscose Rayon Production, Properties of Viscose Rayon. Accessed from https://textilestudycenter.com/viscose-rayon-production/ 4.https://www.swicofil.com/commerce/ products/viscose/278/applications 5. Bartl, A., Hackl, A., Mihalyi, B., Wistuba, F. I., Marini, I., (2005). Recycling of fibre materials.

Process Saf. Environ. Prot. 83 (B4), 351–358.

6. Economic Benefits of Recycling, DHEC's Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling, Columbia, SC, OR-0591 3/08. It can be downloaded from http://www.scdhec.gov/ environment/lwm/recycle/pubs/economic benefits of recycling.pdf.

7. Bhalla, N, (2005). Market Transformation Programme–Waste Clothing Textiles. Environmental Resources Management, October 2005. www.erm.com.

8. Recyclability Potential Index (RPI): The concept and quantification of RPI for textile fibres. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2011.10.003 9. Passas, R., Voillot, C., Tarrajat, G., Caucal, G., Khelifi, B. and Tourtollet, G., (2001), Morfi as a novel technology for morphological analysis of fibers, Recents Progres en Genie des Procedes, 15: 259–264.

10. Karen S. Prado, Danielle Gonzales, Márcia A.S. Spinacé (June 2019), Recycling of viscose yarn waste through one-step extraction of nano cellulose, International Journal of Biological Macromolecules 136, 729–737 11. Raj Kishore Nayak, Shadi Houshayar, Asis Patnaik, Long, T. V. Nguyen, Robert Shanks, Rajiv Padhye, (December 2019), Sustainable reuse of fashion waste as flame-retardant mattress filing with ecofriendly chemicals. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.119620 12. Chaowalit Senanurakwarkul, Panadda Kongsricharoen, Darathip Pejprom, Sutha Khaodhiar, Supawan Tantayanon, (2012)

COVER STORY- REVIEW PAPER Utilization of Recycled Rayon Waste-Kapok Mixture (RRWK) as a sorbent for oil removal, International Conference on Chemical, Bio-Chemical and Environmental Sciences (ICBEE' 2012) December 14-15, 2012 Singapore 13. Mikael Skrifvarsa, Hom Dhakalb, Zhongyi Zhangb, Joseph Gentilcoreb, Dan kessona, (2019), Study on the Mechanical Properties of Unsaturated Polyester Sandwich BioComposites composed of Uniaxial Warpknitted and Non-woven Viscose fabrics, Composites Part A 121, 196–206 https://doi. org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2019.03.025

kar Parmaj and Ravindra Kale, (2020), Preparation and Characterization of Chitosan/ viscose Rayon Filament Bi-composite Journal of Natural Fibers Volume: Issue, 20 May 2020.

15. P. Franciszczak, R. Merijs-Meri, K. Kalniņ š, A.K. Bł ędzki, J. Zicans, (2017), Short-fibre hybrid polypropylene composites reinforced with PET and Rayon fibres – effects of SSP and interphase tailoring -Composite Structures. Composite Structures.

16. A. A. Polyutov, L. S. Gal'braikh, A. V. Byvshev, R. Z. Pen, Yu. Ya. Kleiner, and V. M. Irklei, (2000), Cotton Cellulose: Ecological

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and Resource-saving Raw material for the production of Viscose Fibres, Fibre Chemistry, Vol. 32, No. I. https://www.textileschool. com/156/rayon-the-multi-faceted-fiber.

17. Birla Cellulose Manufactures Viscose Fibre Using Pre-consumer cooton Waste, (2019), https://www.adityabirla.com/media/press-reports/birla-cellulose-manufactures-viscose-fibre-using-pre-consumer-cotton-waste.

18. Sustainability Report 20-21 Viscose Accessed from https://sustainability.adityabirla.com/pdf/reportspdf/policies_reports_ pdf_30_1614145577.pdf

14. Vikrant Gorade, Babita Chaudhary, Om-

NEWS

ANALOG DEVICES AND KEYSIGHT COLLABORATE TO SPEED DEVELOPMENT OF O-RAN SOLUTIONS Analog Devices, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADI) and Keysight Technologies, Inc., today announced a collaboration that accelerates network interoperability and compliance testing for Open RAN radio units (O-RUs).

The companies are collaborating to create a robust test bench to verify the interoperability of a new O-RU that includes ADI’s low-PHY baseband, software defined transceiver, power, and clock integrated with an Intel© FPGA. Applying Keysight’s Open RAN emulation, signal generation and signal analysis capabilities to a wide range of use cases improves the testing process, reducing complexity and testing time.

“We are pleased to align our resources with ADI, a leader in O-RU technology solutions, to help service providers realize the full potential of the O-RAN

specifications,” said Kailash Narayanan, Vice President and General Manager of Keysight’s Commercial Communications Group. “Keysight and ADI offer technology and test solutions that create an effective bridge between the radio unit and the core network, resulting in accelerated development and interoperability testing.”

Open RAN technology is expected to account for more than 10 percent of the overall radio access network market by 2025, according to the Dell-Oro Group.

The ADI and Keysight collaboration address commercial opportunities in this industry that is transitioning towards open, disaggregated, and virtualized RAN (vRAN) architectures.

“As a result of combining our technology, tools and design resources, ADI and Keysight are able to provide the O-

RAN ecosystem with a robust platform to quickly develop reliable O-RUs,” said Joe Barry, Vice President of Wireless Communications at Analog Devices. “By working together, we offer our customers the fastest path for developing cost-effective, power-efficient, and interoperable O-RAN ready O-RUs.” An Open RAN infrastructure, based on O-RAN ALLIANCE open interfaces, enables mobile operators to create a robust multi-vendor network environment designed to streamline the delivery of advanced 5G services for enterprises in manufacturing, financing, transportation, logistics and healthcare. Performance validation of O-RUs and interoperability testing between network elements from the edge of the RAN to the 5G core (5GC) allows mobile operators to effectively deploy ORAN in multi-vendor 5G networks.

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COVER STORY

BAMBOO VISCOSE FIBER KSHIPRA GADEY Textile Value Chain

Bamboo rayon is another term for bamboo viscose. It's a fabric made from bamboo plant fibers that's spun and combed till yarn is generated. Bamboo viscose is also known as regenerated bamboo because it is the first generation of bamboo fabric. Modal and lyocell are the next two materials.

Bamboo viscose has a higher price tag when compared to other cellulose fabrics. Nonetheless, the rayon fabric's softness and breathability make it worthwhile to spend the extra money.

The sustainability and durability of bamboo viscose fabric sets it apart from other materials.

French industrialist Hilaire de Chardonnet came up with the first-ever viscose fiber. The initial bamboo viscose fabric was taken off the market when they discovered its high flammability.

Nowadays, bamboo fabric can be found on a variety of items, mostly in the bedroom and clothing department.

Bamboo is a plant that is both natural and environmentally friendly. It's found in fabrics and home goods. It has incredible qualities as a very sustainable crop that grows quickly without the use of fertilizer, pesticides, labor, or additional water.

China is the world's greatest bamboo producer, followed by India. However, there is no guarantee that the bamboo grown there is environmentally friendly. Without regulations, intensive bamboo production can be harmful to the environment.

The manufacture of bamboo viscose is often hazardous. Chemicals such as carbon disulfide, sulfuric acid, am-

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monia, acetone, or caustic soda are required. These extremely dangerous compounds pollute the environment and endanger the health of workers.

If bamboo viscose is worn frequently, it might be a highly dangerous fabric.

Its manufacture spills harmful gas and chemicals into drinking water, soil, and the atmosphere. It devastates ecosystems and causes the extinction of flora and animals.

To make viscose fabrics, several textile firms use highly harmful chemicals and processes.

Fortunately, important players in the fashion sector are attempting to develop new eco-friendly bamboo viscose manufacturing technologies. They're aiming for non-toxic solvents, recyclable materials, and biodegradability.

Where does bamboo viscose come from?

Bamboo fabric is almost certain to come from the cellulose or pulp of the bamboo wood, given its name. There may

also be eucalyptus viscose, sugar cane viscose, and beech viscose present. Because all these fibers are generated in the same way, it can be confusing if a bamboo fabric product merely says it is made of viscose and does not specify the wood source.

The bamboo viscose will be extracted from the plant and treated in diluted sodium hydroxide to produce a pulpy material. A proportion of 7 to 15 percent bamboo cellulose to 5 percent sodium hydroxide is required for the fiber to be viscous enough.

Multiple times, this solution will be fermented, filtered, and degassed. It will then be pumped through spinneret nozzles into a big container of diluted sulphuric acid. The viscose fibers stiffen at this phase. The bamboo fiber filaments are then created.

The Moso bamboo plant provided most of the bamboo viscose fibers. Furthermore, most of them are farmed, processed, and produced in China.

COVER STORY This is where the procedure for bamboo viscose comes to an end. However, if you are seeking for modal or lyocell bamboo textiles, expect to go through a few more steps in the manufacturing process. The contrasts between the three are detailed below.

as well as its variety of patterns.

Dresses, tees, nightgowns, bathrobes, and more may all be made using it.

Due to its airy nature, it is also a great choice for intimate clothes like swimming suits, underwear, and cover-ups.

Bamboo clothing is more durable and offers a variety of advantages. If you are going to buy bamboo apparel, make sure the fabric is genuine.

Advantages of Bamboo Viscose Bamboo viscose is popular because of its soft texture, which is less likely to pit than cotton. Aside from its soft feel, bamboo viscose has the following advantages over other fabrics: Properties That Regulate the Thermology Because of its outstanding breathability, bamboo viscose is very popular. It keeps you cool during scorching summer days and if you get nighttime hot flashes.

Wicking The Moisture Bamboo has a stronger moisture-wicking ability than cotton since it is four times more absorbent. Because of this property, the bamboo fabric will absorb a lot of water and feel heavy when hung up to dry after washing. However, it dries quickly, so it should not be a problem.

Properties Antibacterial Bamboo fabric is also recognized for its antibacterial capabilities, which help to keep odors at bay. This is an excellent option for people who have problems with body odor. It will help keep your bed smelling fresh if applied on pillows and sheets.

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many people are willing to overpay for the sake of convenience.

High Maintenance If you plan to buy bamboo viscose clothing, bedding, or pillows, keep in mind that they will demand additional care when washing. To begin, bamboo cloth should not be washed with other textiles. This will keep lint from adhering to the fibers of your bamboo viscose.

Aside from that, bamboo cloth should only be washed in cold water.

Bamboo Viscose Applications Bamboo viscose fabric can be used for a variety of things, including sheets, clothing, and even medical supplies.

Here are a few examples of how this fabric can be used on everyday products.

Apparels In the fashion sector, this one has been gaining favor. Bamboo fabric clothing is well-known for its cooling properties

Medical And Sanitary Supplies Yes, bamboo viscose is utilized in several sanitary products and medical supplies, which may surprise you. Medical masks, sanitary towels, absorbent pads, gauze, and surgical gear are just a few examples.

Non-woven Other useful things made from non-woven bamboo cloth include sanitary napkins and food-grade packaging. The viscosity of the fibers is used in these items before they are spun and converted into thread. Non-woven bamboo cloth is still soft and antimicrobial. It is for this reason that it is employed in private spaces.

Conclusion Bamboo viscose fabric is a great substitute for cotton, linen, and silk fabrics. It has a soft, comfortable feel to it without losing breathability or durability. Although it is more expensive than other common fabrics, it is well worth the expenditure.

Hypoallergenic Cotton can cause allergy reactions in some people due to the chemicals used in the manufacturing process.

Disadvantages of Bamboo Viscose Just like any other fabric, bamboo viscose has its drawbacks. Some of the disadvantages of utilizing bamboo cloth include: Very Expensive Bamboo cloth is more expensive than its equivalent in other fabrics. This is understandable given the complex procedure it goes through. Even still,

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COVER STORY

LYOCELL FIBERS RUGVEDA PISAT Textile Value Chain

Introduction

How to wash lyocell fabric?

Lyocell is a material that is made from wood pulp or wood cellulose. This material was first developed at the American Enka Fibers facility in the year 1972. Later, more development was carried out in the United States as Tencel. Tencel division was sold to the Lenzing AG, an Austrian company which is recent, a giant and major lyocell producer around the globe. Lyocell is used in a variety of things like denim, shirts, T-shirts, trousers, and even the in-home furnishing sector.

For washing lyocell fabrics, warm or cool water should be used with mild detergent. Gentle Hand washing is advisable. Never squeeze or twist the wet fabric as it can create creases. Airdry the fabric using a hanger. Also, it is a must to use oxygen-based bleach to remove the stains on the fabric or to whiten the fabric. For the ironing, it is advised to keep it at the lowest temperature or maximum at the medium temperature, to avoid damage. Also always iron on to the wrong side or backside of the fabric. The use of pressure cloth can help and reduce the damage caused by the ironing to the fabric. Ironing at a very high temperature is risky for the lyocell fabric as it can cause scorch to the fabrics.

How Is Lyocell Made?

As a raw material, trees like eucalyptus, Oak, and birch are harvested from the forests. They are debarked and chopped into small several pieces in the mills. Then these pieces are put into chemical digesters that soften them and transform them into wet pulp.

This pulp is then washed with water and dried. Later it is rolled up onto the spools. After this, cellulose present in the pulp is dissolved by breaking it into small pieces. After this, it is loaded into the heated and pressurized containers which are filled with amine oxide.

As soon as cellulose dissolves into the clear solution, it is filtered out to ensure no chipped cellulose is present. After the filtration process, the solution is passed through the spinnerets. So that when the solution passes through it, we get long continuous strands of fibre coming out. Later, these fibre strands are washed in demineralized water. After the washing process, the absorbed water by the lyocell fibre is removed by heating. Then, the strands of fibre

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are passed through the finishing area, where lubricants like soap, silicon are applied to it. This process is important as it helps to untangle the fibre strands. After this process, the fibre strands are moved to the carding process where the combing of fibre is done.

The carded fibre is then rolled up and sent for further processes like spinning and weaving, into a fabric mill.

Characteristics of the lyocell fabric Talking about the characteristics, Lyocell is a versatile fabric, as it can be used in various applications from textiles to home furnishing and many more. Lyocell has a soft and smooth texture. It is breathable, comfortable, and lightweight. Its elasticity and strength properties make it an excellent durable material. It has better moisture absorption compared to cotton. These fibres are excellent for sensitive skin due to their soft feel. Lyocell is biodegradable. Also, its production does not require any irrigation process or pesticides. Lyocell is also anti-bacterial due to its moisture management property. Due to these properties, lyocell has made its position in the fashion and textile industry.

Conclusion: Lyocell fibres are a recent discovery that can be fruitful to the environment. Concerning the price, it can be made possible to common people also, if it is blended with other natural fibres and produce comparatively more on to a large scale. Comparing its properties with cotton and other fibres, Lyocell is a great solution to bring a sustainable change in the textile and fashion industry.

INTERVIEW

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SHORT TERM COURSES WITH MULTI-EXIT AND MULTI-ENTRY IS THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION INDUSTRY DR. NEELAM GREWAL Vice Chancellar, Guru Kashi University, Talwandi Saho, Bathinda

•Education and Professional Journey Looking back at the milestones in my life, I have started believing that I am one of destiny’s favorite children.

Youngest of the 3 children in the family where mother was an academician and father, an army officer, the environment at home promoted discipline and intellect, full of great amount of reading and discussions. After finishing high school when all my friends moved towards medical stream to become doctors, I went into Home Science as I would have been underage to go into medicine after finishing Sr Secondary.

A topper and Merit Scholarship holder at PAU, Ludhiana in B.Sc., I choose to forgo the scholarships and the comfort of home to go in for Master’s in Food and Nutrition at MSU, Baroda, Clothing and Textiles being my second choice. Another trick of destiny, I was told that I would be able to complete Master’s in FN in two and half years while CT Head said that I could finish it in two years if I cope up well with prerequisite Electives. That’s how landed up in Ct, where I worked on a very forward looking research topic under the mentorship of Prof B Balakrishnaih.

Before I could finish master’s I had 3 job offers in hand, one from a very wellknown textile house from Ahmadabad, another from a reputed hosiery from Ludhiana and the third from my alma mater, PAU to work as a Teaching Assistant. Goes without saying that I choose the third one, later got selected as an Assistant Professor there itself.

Thus, began my career in academics.

Since I was passionate about my work

and a voracious reader, writing, that too creative technical writing came naturally to me. In 1985, I got my first research project, to document and write about traditional embroideries of J & K, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, culminating into a book, The Needle lore, that was released in 1988 by Sh Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India. The field exposure gained during that project laid the foundation for putting my domain knowledge into field application, helping craft persons with their livelihood. Armed with a Ph D degree from MSU, Baroda, in 1991, the rest of the promotions were logical outfalls of the professional journey. On the way, I worked on some more research and extension oriented projects dealing with skill development, livelihood and quality of life in rural Punjab. Being an educationist, your journey in industry life and interaction. Being a meticulous planner and good communicator, I acquired the reputation being a thorough professional, good organiser and a trouble shooter in the University, and this led to another milestone of becoming a Dean at a relatively young

age. This post opened up a lot of new vistas for me in the National Agricultural Research and Education System (NARES) in the country. I was nominated as a Member of several Committees of ICAR related to agricultural education. Also got the opportunity to be a Consultant for UNFPA and had several assignments of MHRD and Min of Rural Development. Other challenging assignments came along – Director, ICAR-Central Institute for Women in Agriculture, Bhubaneswar; Dean, Postgraduate Studies at PAU, Ludhiana; Member, Punjab Public Service Commission, Patiala and now , Vice Chancellor of Guru Kashi University, Talwandi Sabo, Bathinda.

• Industry Exposure Ludhiana being the hub of hosiery industry, my interaction with textile and hosiery industry started around 198384, when we used to take the students for field trips to various textile industries. Then moved on to inviting experts for guest lectures, Refresher Courses, MoUs with the industry, students’ internship placements and taking help of the industry in PhD research as well. Alternatively, in leadership roles as Head of the Department and later Dean, College of Home Science, I mentored the departmental faculty to increase their interaction with the industry. A number of industry relevant EDPs and trainings were conducted in collaboration with the Regional Centre of SMSEs. A few value chain analysis exercises were also undertaken for the industry.

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INTERVIEW

• Quality for PhD students The system didn’t allow any choice to the Supervisor with respect to allotment of PG students. However, reading and analytical abilities to raise the bar of their own logic for explaining the hows and whys of what the research undertaken by them has been a very enjoyable and satisfying experience.

Handholding them initially, with one step at a time, I have seen a number of shy students going on to crack national level tests. Similarly, some of the BSc students mentored by me have gone to win Overall Best Graduate of PAU Medal and have topped the national level competitive examinations.

• Textile industry Evolvement The industry has evolved itself technically at par with the best in the world.

In fact India has been an outsourcing hub for a number of best brands in the industry. A lot has been happening in terms of upgradation of machinery, skills , automation, etc. However, Indian textile industry has restricted itself to being a manufacturing hub only. Its growth on globally competitive designing and designers’ front has been lim-

NEWS

ited. As far as manufacturing is concerned, many of our neighbours have overtaken us in terms of competitive pricing and GDP growth. In this context, it is time that we undertake a critical analysis of various textile clusters, identify and fulfill the gaps therein and imbibe and integrate some of the best global practices into our own industry.

• Latest trends in the education industry..

In the pre COVID times, education was moving from teacher centered lecture and notes types of exercise towards blended teaching digital platforms that are learner centric. The COVID pandemic has put this whole concept into a fast forward mode with a number of teachers struggling to pull along on various digital platforms. But it is important that the digital skill gaps on the part of the faculty and the digital divide among various stakeholders is removed for this concept to thrive.

Another feature of education that is catching fancy of the students as well as employers are very focused, short term skill oriented courses that have more scope in terms of employabil-

ity. Such courses with multi-exist and multi-entry options are going to gain popularity rather than long term degree courses where the knowledge and skills acquired in the course of degree study may become obsolete by the end of the course.

• New trend in Agricultural education In a way agricultural education in India is much ahead of other streams.

The much hyped concepts of Internship/ implant training as well as the Experiential Learning in the New Education Policy had been incorporated into Agricultural Education in the years 1998 and around 2009 on the recommendations of the Third and the Fourth Deans’ Committee recommendations of ICAR. The Experiential Learning Units being run by students in various agricultural education programmes not only hone their domain specific skill but have a component of entrepreneurship also. Similarly, the Credit Transfer programme that the New Education Policy cites to promote mobility of students among various agricultural universities is also being followed.

US ACADEMICS DEVELOPED A COVID-SENSING FACE MASK

Academics from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have collaborated to create a sensor-laden face mask capable of identifying COVID-19 instances in as little as 90 minutes.

Researchers at MIT have created a face mask that can identify the SARSCoV-2 virus. The sensors are built from freeze-dried cellular machinery that was previously employed in paper diagnostics for viruses like Ebola and Zika.

The team has applied for a patent on the technique and claims to have gar-

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care professionals, and military people,” James Collins stated.

nered interest from a number of businesses. “We anticipate this technology enabling next-generation wearable biosensors for first responders, health

When exposed to an infected patient, MIT researchers designed a garment with sensors that can detect changes in the body’s immune system. The technology is also expected to be used in smart clothing such as lab coats. The team experimented with several textiles to see which would be most successful in facilitating the test in this format. They discovered that polyester and other synthetic fibres were the optimum material mix.

CURRENT AFFAIRS

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IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON THE TEXTILE INDUSTRY OF MAHARASHTRA

RUGVEDA PISAT

KSHIPRA GADEY Textile Value Chain

Textile Value Chain

The Indian textile industry has been one of the most impacted by the COVID-19 issue. Covid-19's impact on India has been largely disruptive in terms of economic activity as well as human life loss. Almost every industry has suffered a setback. The textile industry is one of the largest contributors to the country's exports. The COVID-19 global pandemic affects all 7.8 billion people in similar and distinct ways. We are dealing with growing COVID-19-related death rates, shattered health-care systems, famine and malnutrition, joblessness, varying-severity lockdowns, a shadow pandemic of force, and this may only be the tip of the iceberg. The textile and garment sector in India is in a state of disarray that must be addressed. The industry, often considered as the second-highest job creator after agriculture, employs over 45 million people directly and another 60 million indirectly across the country.

The COVID-19 issue had a significant impact on tiny labour-intensive textile operations that relied heavily on migrant labour. While the world's attention is now focused on food, medication, and protective gear, the pandemic has presented a severe danger to all areas of the economy. Economies all around

the world have reached rock bottom.

The Indian textile sector faced significant problems, ranging from maintaining output and meeting the need for protective gear to dealing with the deficit caused by the shutdown and retaining migratory labourers.

Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu, India's textile production centres, are among the states worst impacted by the pandemic. The business relies heavily on migrant labour from Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and

Orissa. The textile plants were closed in March due to the severity of the epidemic. The migrant labourers returned to their various home countries due to a lack of income and an impending risk to their lives.

When it comes to Maharashtra's contribution, it has great infrastructure in the textile sector. Maharashtra accounts for half of the power loom sector in India. Maharashtra's textile sector accounts for around 65 million kg of cotton output, which is roughly equivalent

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CURRENT AFFAIRS

to 25% of the country's total production. Maharashtra is the single greatest exporter, accounting for around 27 percent of overall Indian exports. The state also provides 10.4 percent of the country's textile and apparel output and accounts for 10.2 percent of India's employment sector. Maharashtra produces around 272 million kgs of cotton yarn.

Maharashtra too has a bright future in global markets. It may also offer value in areas like as apparel and ready-towear items. Textile parks are also being established in Maharashtra in order to retain the state's strong position in exports and production. The goal of these parks is to offer high-quality infrastructure for the textile industry. The availability of raw materials, mostly cotton, and large numbers of qualified employees is a critical component of the textile business. The state government is focusing its efforts on bolstering the textile sector by constructing textile parks in Nagpur, Ambernath, and Dhule. Bombay dyeing, Raymond, and Century Textiles are important participants in the textile business.

Maharashtra is a significant fabric manufacturer, with 12 lakh powerlooms. The state's largest textile clusters are Bhiwandi, Malegaon, and Ichalkaranji. When it comes to the function of Bhiwandi, its power loom industry is one of the oldest and largest in India. It also has a high concentration of cotton textiles and synthetic textiles. Furthermore, both textile goods are in the decentralised sector.

Bhiwandi now produces ten thousand million metres of grey cloth each year.

Ichalkaranji, popularly known as the Manchester of Maharashtra, is the state's third largest textile centre.

The textile sector has been critical to the city's growth. Specifically, between 1951 and 1961, Ichalkaranji had a surge in textile activity. There are roughly one lakh power looms in operation now, with almost 1.2 lakh people employed in auxiliary businesses.

Malegaon is the second most important textile weaving centre, having used a power loom from the early twentieth century. Malegaon was the traditional handloom-weaving centre in Maha-

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rashtra for many years. The textile industry prospered as a result of the introduction of power looms, which increased production. Every day, about 3 lakh power looms in Malegaon create 10 million metres of fabric. It has provided job opportunities to individuals from Uttar Pradesh, Khandesh, and the Deccan.

Small fabric production operations on a big scale may be found in these key clusters. The machines in these units are poorly spaced, and so violate the usual six-foot social distance rule between employees. The entire shutdown of industries during the pandemic produced some major issues for the industry. Few of those issues are enlisted below: 1. Labour scarcity: In Maharashtra, the Malegaon cluster utilises local labour, but the rest of the clusters rely on labour from other states. Because of the lockdown, workers returned to their home states, causing a labour shortage in the cluster. This had a direct impact on industries that were already running well due to the large number of other state workers.

2. Transportation: Transportation is the backbone of any supply chain, whether raw materials or completed commodities. Because of the lengthy duration of the lockdown, transportation has suffered greatly, affecting both established and small companies. It may take some time to rebuild the supply chain and get manufacturing, shipping, and delivery back on track.

3. Financial crisis: As a result of the pandemic. Industrialists and labourers were confronted with a massive financial crisis. The industry was closed for months, resulting in no business or revenue for both industrialists and labourers. Despite the lockout, industrialists were obligated to pay taxes and fees for resources. They also had to look after their workers. This drew the industrialists into the fray.

During the period of total lockdown, the Malegaon textile centre suffered a loss of 400 crore rupees. After more than two months of shutdown, the state administration has granted permission for power loom operations to restart.

This news energised the inhabitants of Malegaon, and they returned to work in the textile sector. In Malegaon, over 2.5 lakh power looms are now in operation, producing roughly 2.47 crore metres of grey fabric each day, valued over 37 million rupees.

Bhiwandi Bhiwandi, known as the power loom city, has around 6 lakh such machines, in addition to auxiliary industries involved in sizing, dyeing, stitching, fabric processing, and yarn retailing, employing more than 10 lakh people.

Every road is studded with both large and tiny looms. Locals believe that at least six lakh people labour on the approximately 15 lakh looms that are now in operation to spin yarn and produce fabric. An extra one lakh day labourers operate as loaders and carriers at these looms.

The importance of the Bhiwandi powerloom sector in mass and low-cost textile manufacturing and huge employment, particularly of medium to low-skilled workers, cannot be overlooked. It is one of India's oldest decentralised powerloom industry. Because of its proximity to the Bombay textile market and port, it has grown in significance and fame.

Power loom units are dealing with their own issues. Cloth demand is just 40% of what it was previously. To remedy the issue, the government must address long-pending requests of the power loom and allied businesses, such as regulating yarn pricing and giving electricity subsidies to sectors such as sizing and dyeing.

The economic downturn has had a significant impact on the power loom sector, with most loom owners incurring significant losses. The Centre's two policies – demonetisation and GST – have inflicted a devastating blow to the majority of loom owners and workers in the region. Bhiwandi cluster’s growth has slowed dramatically during the last decade. And such judgments simply serve to exacerbate it’s plight.

Migrants account for about 80% of Bhiwandi's population. As soon as the lockdown went into force, loom owners who could afford it gave some additional compensation to their employees.

CURRENT AFFAIRS Some even got involved with the local shambles and demanded that their employees be given food on credit until the end of the month. Later, mess owners suspended this service due to the shortage of food.

Though the pandemic's dread and intensity have subsided, Bhiwandi's key powerloom business is in shambles.

The unpredictability of yarn pricing has been a significant challenge to powerloom owners, who just started full-fledged operations in August of last year.

Ichalkaranji Ichalkaranji is well-known for producing grey fabric, which is then shipped to Surat, Mumbai, Bhiwandi, and Delhi for further processing. The city, which has powerlooms, air-jets, knitting machines, and handlooms, also exports fabric all over the world.

The mills in Ichalkaranji, Maharashtra's textile powerhouse, had experienced a decrease in work as migrant workers returned home due to the spike in Covid-19 cases and the tight restrictions in place. Last year's stringent lockdown and decrease in orders had a significant impact on the textile centre. Only looms with export orders are currently operating at 50% capacity, while local supply has been halted.

Textile traders are suffering With the price of yarn changing, the owners are cautious to make an order since it will be difficult to recoup the money if the price of yarn falls more. As a result, merchants from other textile-producing towns such as Surat, Mumbai, Bhiwandi, Delhi, Meerut, and Kanpur are not placing fresh orders. Because of the increase in Covid instances, a handful of them have cancelled their orders.

Unlocking the Depths of Malegaon Industry Post Pandemic The Covid 19 pandemic had a negative influence on numerous sectors worldwide, creating a significant impact on the individual country’s national economies. Maharashtra was the most affected state in India, with the highest number of active cases. This large number of patients resulted in a three-

month lockdown and the inability of companies to function.

Malegaon is Maharashtra’s second biggest powerloom cluster. It was one of the worst impacted cities as a result of covid 19 during the early phases of the first lockdown. With industries closed for three months, employees and employers in the powerloom business faced a severe financial crisis.

Mr. Sajid Ansari, President of Malegaon Powerloom Udyog Vikas Sanghatana, said, “Malegaon sector has suffered a lot owing to covid 19. We were helpless and unable to pay our employees due to the lockout, inflicting significant financial hardship for many Malegaon families.” in an exclusive interview with Textile Value Chain.

“The government has not waived the powerloom industry’s electricity costs for the months when the industries were closed owing to the lockdown.

The bill quantities are large, and we industrialists are unable to pay such a large sum. We are attempting to recover from the financial and economic damage inflicted by the lockdown.” Mr. Sajid Ansari went on to say.

Since this week, the Malegaon powerloom industry has been on strike, asking that the government waive their outstanding debts. This strike is anticipated to last until the state administration agrees to their demands.

“We also want the government to offer us an electrical bill subsidy. We are in talks with the state administration, and we are hopeful that our requests will be met.

If the industrialist produces sufficient paperwork of the particular industry, the government is willing to give them a subsidy. “We have been in this industry for generations,” Mr. Sajid told Textile Value Chain. “The majority of industrialists are running businesses that were founded by grandfathers or great grandfathers with little or no paperwork. The availability of such papers is a big concern for the majority of us right now.” he added further.

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fering as a result of this demand and fulfilment method. Mr. Sajid showed displeasure when he told us, “We are attempting to meet the needs of our workers. We don’t want them to be in pain. But we must continue to strike until our demands are met and our expenses are waived.”

The Malegaon sector is also experiencing a number of difficulties as a result of incorrect yarn betting, which results in lower earnings for industrialists and unsuitable yarn sales. The industry also requires a reasonable price for the yarns. Prior to 2016, there was consistency in yarn and commodity pricing.

Yarn costs are fluctuating a lot right now in the business.

The walkout lasted a week, after which the industry resumed normal operations. Maharashtra is India's economic centre, with three large textile clusters. It was the hardest impacted by the pandemic. It will take time for the textile sector to recover from its losses.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put the economy in jeopardy, causing various systems to fail and leaving the economy gasping for air. The textile industry is mostly disorganised. The government has taken specific efforts to assist alleviate the effects of the Covid epidemic on the textile industry, as well as to promote production, marketing, and job possibilities in the sector. Maharashtra is a major state in the textile industry. It has the potential to become a leader with greater attention and suitable new policies. The pandemic may be over soon, but the aftermath may linger for a few years.

Not only industrialists, but also the labour class, which is an essential component of Malegaon industry, are suf-

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HR FOCUS

REFRAMING – A POWERFUL TOOL TO OVERCOME LIMITING BELIEFS RAJIV MISRA R Square Consultancy Ever saw the mighty elephant being tied with a simple rope / chain to a bamboo fence and wondered what stops him from breaking free with all the power he has?

Many times you would have felt to let go of your shackles and break free too, but you simply could not!

Why? These are Limiting Beliefs or Imagined Constraints!

A limiting belief or imagined constraint is something which we believe to be true about ourselves, others or the world. These could limit us by not letting us make the right choices, decisions or let opportunities that come our way pass. These beliefs are formed through our past direct experiences.

We act, something happens, and we draw conclusions. Such beliefs can be helpful, but they can also be very limiting. here are some examples of limiting beliefs: a. I don’t have the ability to compete with my key competitor as they have more money. b. My team is not good enough to sell in this market. c. I will not try anything new as If I fail in this task people will not trust me with any other job d. If I share my challenges at work with my boss he will use it to deny me promotion / increment. e. I cannot trust my peers because I’ve been betrayed by someone before…

We all have a perspective or a lens with which we view the world based on our previous experiences and this perspec-

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tive is what we use to make meaning of any event or situation. Perspective is a point of view; a way of looking at or interpreting a set of events. So while we cannot always change our circumstances; we can choose to change our perspective at any time.

REFRAMING is one of the effective techniques used by successful people to overcome limiting beliefs and achieve breakthrough results. So what is Reframing ?

to help find a solution to the limiting beliefs listed out above: a. What other advantages do I have other than money? Product, Quality, Price, Relationships and so on. What actions can I take to get the best out of them? b. How do I train and coach my team so that they can excel in this challenging market? c. Is there a possibility of gaining first mover advantage with a new or innovative product? d. How can I seek coaching or guidance from my boss so that I can overcome the challenges I am facing at work? e. If one of the peers has betrayed my trust in the past, how can I learn from that experience and find more supportive and trustworthy peers?.

Reframing is seeing the current situation from a different perspective or in a different light. Reframing is an important technique because it helps us in problem solving, decision making, learning, embrace new ideas and most importantly; keep moving …

Reframing normally involves changing the mindset to an empowering or a positive one to see through the situation or challenges in varied ways to deal with them.

Whenever we feel that that we are unable to make headway in any situation or find a solution to a given problem, consider using the following questions

Breaking up the problem in small parts is another way of trying to look beyond the obvious bottleneck as solving smaller parts may become lot easier.

This will help you to experiment with new ways of doing things, questioning and learning new skills and allowing yourself to experience and reflect. What next? Ask yourself more questions- : “If I can do this, what else is possible? Can I try to now solve the next complex part of the larger challenge” It is said that in any problem or issue that you face 10% impact is due to the situation and 90% impact is due to the way you react to the situation. Reframing helps us move towards a positive mindset so that we respond to the situation with the mindset of finding solutions.

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INDIAN DENIM INDUSTRY FACING PROBLEMS DR. B. BASU Textile Industry Consultant

Denim fabric manufacturing was considered a sunrise industry in the entire textile value chain of India. Over the last decade, it was registering a 15% CAGR. (Compound Annual Growth Rate – CAGR) (1). The compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is the rate of return that would be required for an investment to grow from its beginning balance to its ending balance assuming the profits were reinvested at the end of each year of the investment’s lifespan.

The industry has an annual installed capacity of 1.5 billion meters, which is the world’s second largest, after China.

Its sales turnover is estimated at Rs. 15,000 crores. The industry gives direct employment to four lakh workers, besides indirect employment. At present the total number of denim fabric mills operating in the country has reached 46 against 30 mills in 2012, representing an increase of 50%. The installed denim fabric production capacity has also increased from 800 million meters in 2012 to 1,500 million meters with still a capacity of 150 million meters in the pipeline for expansion.(2) The current domestic consumption of Indian denim fabric is 750-800 million meters, growing at an annual rate of 12%. Also, denim fabric exports are estimated at 200 million meters. As per the Ministry of Commerce, denim exports for 2016-17 were moved at $316 million, registering a total of 11% fall in comparison to 2014-15 which it was $355 million. [2] “Post-GST, the denim industry has temporarily closed down 30-40% capacity across the board and at present is operating at 60-70% capacity due to slowdown in demand and

of jobs in this industry.”

“With oversupply in the denim industry as well as low demand and liquidity crunch in the domestic market, the negative impact has started becoming visible in the sales and profit volume of top denim mills in India in Q2 FY17-18 and the adverse impact would continue in Q3 as well”, said Arpit Jain, Vice President (Research), Arihant Capital & Brokerage. over-capacity in the industry. If the present trend continues there can be more production cuts,” the DMA Chairman, Sharad Jaipuria, said.

“Besides over capacity, the industry has also been paralyzed due to the reasons that denim needs to be cut, sewn and washed before it can be marketed.

These upstream activities are majorly done in the unorganized sectors located at the SSI hubs of Gandhi Nagar and Tank Road in Delhi, Ulhasnagar in Mumbai and Bellary near Bangalore.

These hubs mainly slowed down due to the liquidity crunch in the economy post demonetization and the slow acceptance of GST by small players to become part of the formal economy.

As almost 85% of the fabric is sold in the domestic market, denim mills are badly hit”, stated by Akhilesh Rathi, Director, Bhaskar Denim.

According to Amit Dalmia of R & B Denims: “Since the upstream activities of garment sewing & washing in SSI hubs will take a while before them change for working smoothly with the formal banking system, we are not foreseeing any short-term recovery of the market. This has led to shutdown / slowdown of many denim mills and loss

Atul Singh, Director, Ashima, stated that, considering the current problems of the denim industry, the Government has announced immediate enhancement in the duty drawback rates and also extending some more benefits under the ROSL scheme(Rebate of State levies) and MEIS scheme (Merchandise Export from India Scheme, Govt incentives for export of Goods -2 to 5%) the focus product and focus market scheme so that denim mills can tap the potential of export markets”.(3) Denim Market in India Market Size and Growth Denim is of the most promising category in India’s apparel market. In 2013 the denim market of India was worth INR 13,500 Cr. which accounts for 5% of the total apparel market of the country. The market is projected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 15% to become an INR 27,200 Cr. market in 2018. (Source: Technopak Analysis) The denim market in India is skewed towards men’s segments with 85% contribution coming from it. Women’s denim segment contributes 9% to the market and the kids segment the rest 6%. The women’s and kid’s denim segments are expected to witness high-

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er growth rates due to their lower base and increasing focus of brands.

Denim Market Size and Growth The market size of Indian Denim Wear was estimated to be Rs 20,205 crore in 2016. The market is now projected to grow at a CAGR of 14.5 per cent and reach Rs 39,651 crore by 2021, and Rs 77,999 crore market by 2026. (4) (i) Until a few years ago, denim was popular with men in the urban cities only, however, it has now gradually become popular in the semi-urban and rural markets also. Growing awareness and an increasing affinity for global fashion have led to this development. Denim is considered the most versatile fabric for men with multiple applications over casual wear, work wear and everyday wear. (ii) Among Indian women, jeans or denim trousers are the most popular articles. Women across different age brackets and spanning all shapes and sizes like to wear denim as it is comfortable, functional and durable. Denim is also gaining popularity in athleisure form among women owing to the comfort provided by stretch denims. Women who are not at ease with western wear have taken up wearing jeans by pairing them with Indian ethnic wear like kurtis. This mix and match style is gradually picking up, particularly among women in small towns and those who come from a traditional background and is likely to further fuel the growth of the segment. (iii) Kids’ Denim Segment: This is the smallest segment in the domestic market but is expected to grow at a high rate primarily due to the availability of the products led by the innovations in the industry for natural, hygienic and flexible fabrics.

Comparison with Denim Consumption of Some Other Countries In general, the western fashion has accelerated the trend of casualization across the globe. This trend has boosted the consumption of casual fashion apparel like denims, dress shirts, tees, casual shirts among both men and women consumers in all the developing countries including India. The average number of denim items owned by Indi-

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an consumer is much lower in comparison to consuming market of the United States, Europe etc. The number is even lower than countries like Brazil and China. This difference in the number demonstrates the huge potential that exists for denim in the domestic market.(5) City-wise Distribution of Denim Market The value share of denim market is skewed in favour of mega metros and metros which account for almost half of the total denim market at a share of 49%. Though the markets of other urban areas and rural India contribute high in volume terms, their combined share in market value is only 51%. As the penetration of denim category and the awareness of denim quality increases in those cities and rural India, their share in market value will start increasing with a greater number of consumers willing to pay premium for the quality, design and fit.

Presence of Brands In India unbranded denim products dominate the market with around 60% share of the market. The share of brands in denim market stands at 40%.

Most of the unbranded players operate on the lower price segment of the market where awareness of quality of fabric, finishing and washes, design and fit are relatively low. (5) The emergence of semi-urban clusters, areas having a smaller number of farming communities, across the country has opened a plethora of opportunities for regional brands and retailers. A typical denim consumer of the semi-urban cluster demonstrates a blend of the characteristics of urban and rural consumers; like an urban consumer she/he shows awareness of brand and product quality and like a rural consumer pricing and affordability plays a crucial role in her/his purchase decision. The regional brands have focusing to cater to these typical requirements of the semi-urban consumers. However, presence of lots of unbranded players in such markets it a market of intense competition to many national level brands.

Driving Factors for Denim Market Some of the key driving factors for the

denim market in India are: • An aspiration youth ((15 to 29 year olds) with higher spending power than previous generations, which make 26% of the consuming population • A wide range of consumer segment that consider denim as an apparel of choice owing to its comfort and style \ • Favoured preference for denim amongst youth owing to its versatile association • Increasing usage of denim products by women and youth in smaller cities and rural India (6) Denim Value Chain in India India is the second largest producer of cotton yarn. The denim fabric production capacity of India is more than 1000 million meters per year, and India is still witnessing entrance of more denim fabric manufacturers in the industry. Denim fabric production in India is concentrated in the western and northern parts of the country with more than 45% contribution coming from Gujarat alone where Ahmedabad is the production hub. Denim apparel production in India remains a fragmented industry where only 20-30% of denim apparel is manufactured in the organised units. The denim apparel production activities are concentrated in Delhi/NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore and Ahmedabad.

Select Trends in Denim Market In India most of the denim manufacturers focus on the domestic markets as the value realisation remains higher in domestic market than in export markets In the recent times the industry has witnessed entrance of new fabric manufacturers which is expected to make the market for denim fabric more price competitive in the coming years.

Cotton remains the fibre of choice in denim apparel. In blended denim fabrics polyester is being used as weft threads. The demand for stretch denim is growing at a faster rate in India market due to its comfort and fit characteristics. The colour of denim jeans is no longer limited to traditional blue colours. Indian youth has started accepting denim in different colours including green, red, yellow etc.(7)

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Issues and Challenges for Denim Market

The Suggestions and probable solutions:

• India at present lacks behind in its ability of the denim product development and innovation.

• There should be Denim of lower segments also. Say 10-12 OZ with separate Brand name. The present brand name is known to a costlier Varity among the common people.

• There is a need to develop a larger portfolio of denim garments and accessories, including shorts, shirts, bags, dresses, accessories among others.

• At present the market is skewed towards denim jeans.

• The weight (gsm) range of available denim fabric could be broadened to widen denim application. Most of the Branded Companies manufacture the high class of denims only.

• Emphasis is also to be given on low price segment jeans for the rural and semi urban Population • There is a lot of scope of improvement in right processing and value addition in denim through fashion-led processes and finishes.

• The coarser yarn can be manufactured from O.E. Spinning rather than ring yarn. The more utilisation should be from OE yYarn in case of lower segment. The upper segment cloths can be manufactured with the permutation and combination of rotor yarn and ring yarn to reduce the manufacturing cost.

• The steps are the taken for more cost control, capacity utilisation, waste control and reduced electricity consumption.To see the possibilities of availing the subsidised electricity.

• Skill development scheme can be started for all the categories of the staff.

• Establishment of high-quality processing and washing units could help to improve the quality of finishes and colours, this attracting more consumers to try denim.

• The increasing awareness of sustainable fashion provides additional opportunity to promote denim as a product of natural cotton fibre which is perceived as ecofriendlier than synthetics.

These are the major Denim Producers with Brand. There are in total 46 Mills in India (Page 1) and the production has gone much higher as against consumption of 750-800 millinium meter per annum. Besides, there are much more decentralised sectors. The major denim fabric manufacturers in India are Arvind Mills (market leader with 14% share in 2014), Aarvee Industries (9% share) and Nandan Denim (8% share). Some of them have slowed down their production rate.

Why the Organised Sectors of the denim Manufacturers are suffering?

• It is found to be over produced by the Organised sectors than that of the Consumption.

• More and more manufacturers are coming with varieties and qualities with less Raw material and Production cost to survive in the market.

• More cheap and durable Jeans are being produced by the Un organised sectors. (Sasta & Tikau) • Bangladesh in a big competitor in the Export Market because of it`s cheaper varieties. China is much ahead with fashion and varieties.

• The Organised Sectors are suffering due to more overhead cost, Larger Campus and it`s maintenance, more Power Tariff, to face the Govt Duties etc.

• The Organised Sectors are mostly manufacturing the high standard products of upper segment.

Directory of Denim in India (Branded) (9)

Sr.No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Name of the Organisation Aarvee Denims and Exports Ltd. AHT Denim International Arvind Limited Ashima Group - Unit Denim Bhaskar Industries Limited Blue Blends (India) Ltd. Century Textile and Industries Ltd. Etco Denim Pvt. Ltd. Ginni International Ltd. Jatin Cotton Mills Pvt. Ltd. Jindal Worldwide Limited Kanchan India Limited KG Denim Limited KG Fabriks Limited LNJ Denim Mafatlal Industries Limited Mahak Synthetic Mills Pvt. Ltd. Malwa Industries Limited Modern Denim Limited Nandan Exim Limited(chiripal) Oswal Denims Partap Spintex Ltd R & B Denims Ltd. Rainbow Denim Ltd. Raymond UCO Denim Pvt. Ltd. Sangam (India) Limited, Denim Division Shri Lakshmi Cotsyn Ltd. Soma Textiles & Industries Ltd. Sudarshan Jeans Pvt. Ltd. Suryalakshmi Cotton Mills Limited Vinod Denim Limited

Source: Market Survey

Prodn in millennium mtrs per yr 85 NA 110 10 42 18 20 50 18 NA 20 20 19 12 18 30 NA 20 20 60 40 40 20 18 40 8 18 18 40 40 18

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• The Officers must be given KRA. At every 6 months, they can be assessed by the External Expert for their awareness, contribution to the organisation, capabilities to handle more responsibilities and mental abilities.

• There should be mass awareness program, brain storming sessions and quality circle among the officers.

• The best performer award can be followed at each year.

• Today about 40% of the denim factories are underutilised. More advanced Technologies are required for the utilisation of denim cloths in the garment sectors in the washing lines.

• We can follow the International Brands in all aspects.

Conclusion The main reasons of the sufferings of the Organised sectors in denim Industries are due to (i) Over Production (ii) More and More Industries are in competition field (iii) More Manufacturing cost than that of the decentralised sectors who are 60% in number (iv) Decreasing Export Market (v) They must be able to produce with low segment cloth with different Brand name (v) Cost cutting steps are to be considered

NEWS

(vi) To penetrate in rural sectors.

Future of Denim The event may throw light on the way forward.

PLANET TEXTILES SUMMIT TO PROVIDE A BLUEPRINT FOR CHANGE IN DENIM PRODUCTION Global denim leaders, brands, retailers and alike will gather at the Planet Textiles Summit on Sustainability that will be held on June 22, 2019 at ITMA 2019 in Barcelona, Spain.

The key point of discussions will include how the denim manufacturing industry should make jeans by 2025?

And what breakthroughs in technology and thinking are needed to make this happen?

Moderated by Andrew Olah, the summit will include panelists like Sanjeev Bahl, CEO and founder, of theVietnamese denim mill Saitex, Alberto Candiani, CEO of Italian jeans maker Candiani Denim Mills, Miguel Sanchez, owner of Gavilan, along with Mike Kininmonth, denim specialist at cellulosic fiber producer Lenzing, which is supporting this session.

The delegates at Planet Textiles will

discuss key changes in the denim production alongwith some of other predicted changes in the segment. A proposal to develop a ‘blueprint’ for real change that buyers’ retailers and brands can use as a sourcing guide will also be outlined.

Bibliography 1. Indian Denim Industry facing Problems – Textile Magazine 12th January – 2018 2. Denim Industry says 30-40% of operative capacity shut – Dilip kumar Jha, Mumbai 12th December `17 3. Tecoya Trend – “Indian Denim Industry under stress “9th December `17 4. Indian Denim wear Market from 2017 to 2027- Images Business of Fashion – 11th sept `17 5. Denim Market in India – Technopak .

6. An over view of the Global and Indian denim Market – Textile Magazine, October 2016 7. the Indian Denim Textile Industry 2017 -Press reader 25th July `17.

8. Denim Market In India – India Retailing .com 7th January `15 9. Lists of Denim Mills in India , Denim website from Denim Resource .

SRTEPC applauds the government for continuing the RoSCTL rates till 31st March 2024

Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi ji the Union Cabinet given go ahead for continuation of Rebate of State and Central taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) for exports of the Made-ups (covered under Chapter-63) along with Apparel/Garments (covered under Chapters-61 & 62) and the rates will be the same as notified by Ministry of Textiles vide Notification dated 8th march 2019. The scheme will continue till 31st March 2024.

However, the other Textiles products (excluding Chapters-61, 62 & 63) to be covered under the RoDTEP scheme and the RoDTEP rates are likely to be announced very soon by the government.

SRTEPC Chairman Shri Dhiraj Raichand Shah and Vice-Chairman Shri Bhadresh Do-

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dhia thank Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, and Hon’ble Minister of Textiles, Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Shri Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Textiles Smt. Darshana V Jardosh for their kind consideration for continuing the RoSCTL rates till 2024.

SRTEPC Chairman Shri Dhiraj Raichand Shah informed that Made-ups is one of the highest value-added segments in the textile sector and currently around US$ 1500 million of Made-ups made out of the MMF textiles are exported from India to various countries.

Continuation of the RoSCTL will certainly

strengthen the Made-ups segment that is highly labour intensive and majority of the beneficiaries are the women, Shri Dhiraj Raichand Shah stated.

With regards to the supporting measures to the exporters SRTEPC Chairman Shri Dhiraj Raichand Shah and Shri Bhadresh Dodhia, Vice-Chairman of SRTEPC informed that Government should declare the RoDTEP rates as early as possible as the current situation is challenging and there is huge liquidity crunch.

He also insisted that supportive measures need to be extended to the entire MMF textile value chain viz, fibre, yarn and fabrics under the RoDTEP scheme and minimum rates should be around 7 percent.

TEXTILE PRINTING UPDATE

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EVOLUTION OF TEXTILE PRINTING TECHNOLOGIES AND INNOVATIVE SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS EPRICON – AN ALTERNATE TO CONVENTIONAL AND DIGITAL PRINTS

Zydex Industries The consumer behavior is changing ever fast, becoming more demanding with the evolution of digital era and swift flow of information. The new business models are emerging with e-commerce booming, keeping physical retail stores at bay and stressed. Fashion brands are under immense pressure for quick replenishments and grappling for instant gratification of consumers’ personalized demands. Sustainability, circularity and traceability are gaining grounds in the textile industry and in pursuit of technological advancement.

The trend of fast fashion, mass customization and personalization are ever demanding for shorter runs at competitive prices and speed to market. While the entire textile industry is aligning itself to changing trends for shorter value-chain, the last lap – textile printing is most adept to serve customized demand at a faster pace.

As per the estimates, the textile printing industry is valued at USD 175 Billion in 2020 and expected to grow at CAGR of 8.9% to reach USD 266 Billion by 2025, much of which will come from fast growing newer printing technologies.

Evolution of Textile Printing Technologies Let’s look at the history of printing industry to understand its evolution. The term ‘printing’ was coined in 18th century and defined as a localized dyeing on the substrate with pre-defined designs and patterns. In early days, majorly wood blocks with raised surfaces

were used for textile printing. Further advancement led to engraved metallic roller printing for continuous production and longer runs, while open-mesh silk gauze screens were used for shorter runs. At the beginning of 20th century most of the textile printing were done on engraved roll printing machine. Dyes were selected according to the substrate to be printed, while synthetic pigment systems were first used in 1930s. Automation was the word in the 1950s as firms such as Bayer and Hoechst developed wet-on-wet printing chemistry. By this time, flatbed-screen printing was well accepted in Europe and US, and companies had developed automated moving belt with automatic lifting of print screens, and thus moving the squeegee to print.

Rotary Screen Printing During late 1950s and early 1960s, printed fabrics were produced predominantly on roller print machines for long run, low-priced products and on flatbed screen printing machines

for shorter yardage and higher-priced, more exclusive designs. Attempts were made to make the flat screens into roller form, mounted on metal cylinders, with printing paste fed from one end of the cylinder, and as it rotates on the moving fabric, printing happens in a continuous process. While various research work on rotary screen printing machine were in progress, Stork launched the first model ‘RD I’ at ITMA in 1963. This brought the revolution in the printing industry with nickel based screens, bringing down the cost for longer print runs. This was soon followed with commercial launches from leading OEMs – Zimmer, Reggiani, MHMS, Ichinose.

The rotary screen printing technologies evolved over years. The latest models of various OEMs offer up to 24 colours closed/ open print head bearing system with individual servo motors for excellent controls and its digital synchronization. It comes with pneumatic blades squeegee or roller squeegee with permanent magnet or combination of both.

It can run up to a speed of 120 m/ min with repeat possibility of 640 mm to 1018 mm. Printing width up to 3200 mm is now a reality.

The major challenge for rotary screen printing is that it is not economical for shorter runs of fabrics due to high cost of screens and its preparation. The print length of fabric over 5000 meters per design per colour ways is considered cost effective on rotary system as compared to other advanced printing

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methods.

The first two decades of 21st century registered exponential growth in rotary printing system specially in Asia to produce large volume of printed goods to cater to booming fashion industry. It is estimated that around 15,000 rotary machines are actively running and represent 60% of printed textile goods.

min. The other developments emerged are of hybrid printers – inkjet and flat screens.

The Future

Digital Printing

The evolution of digital printing has carved its own space with minor share of 6% in textile printing, estimated to grow at CAGR of 15%, while screen printing growth will hover at CAGR 2-3% during this decade.

In early 21st century the digital era had begun with commercial launches of digital printing machines for textiles – the scanners with multi-passes though at a fairly low speed 50 m/ hr and at a very high cost of printing.

This technology allows the print heads to deposit ink droplets onto the fabric based on a predetermined pattern from the digital file. This non-contact printing technology eliminates the need to produce screens which are required in traditional printing methods.

One of the key advantages of digital textile printing is its endless design capabilities with greater image quality and colour control. It involves preand post- fabric treatment depending on type of substrate and inks used.

Like in rotary screen printing, reactive inks always require both pre- and post-treatment to ensure that the dye chemically bonds with the fibre, and to remove excess dyes from the printed fabric during washing. For pigments, washing is generally not required.

This evolution continues with upgradation in technologies and new launches by various OEMs with better print quality and higher speeds, offering complete package – printings inks and heads. However, the low production and high printing cost are still deterrent for its quick adoption at large scale. The launch of high-speed digital printing single-pass machine – Lario by MS in 2012, revolutionise the industry and seen as the paradigm shift in the printing space. In this technology only fabric moves while print heads/ bar are stationary and claimed to print at 75 m/ minute. The last decade witnessed improved versions of single-pass machines by various OEMs and the latest entry was of EFI Reggiani in 2018 with model Bolt, boast to have cutting-edge technology with high production uptime, excellent printing uniformity and accuracy, in addition to superior print head life and minimal maintenance needs which claims to run at 90 m/

The major challenge for the adoption of digital textile printing in a competitive textile market is the high ink cost, and the large number of printing heads used in high speed single-pass machine whose maintenance and replacement cost is prohibitive and makes it uncompetitive against rotary printing.

The prices of reactive inks have recently come down considerably, while pigment ink is still under evolution and supplied by few ink manufacturers. Digital pigment printing has good scope in European market catering to niche environment conscious premium segment but when it comes to large volume in Asia, it faces stiff competition from rotary prints.

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The future definitely lies with newer technologies but conventional prints are going to create a balance with cost advantages and sustainable solutions, to coexist in coming times.

Sustainable Printing Solution – EPRI-

CON from Zydex Industries When we look from sustainability perspective, pigment printing has better future scope with minimal usage of water. The digital pigment printing can be applied on various textile substrate but it is still very expensive and at nascent stage of adoption. In case of rotary screen printing, pigment printing had been used for long with some limitation to fastness and fabric handle.

Taking the lead in this direction, Zydex industries has made breakthrough and technological revolution by introducing new generation binder system ‘EPRICON’ for rotary screen printing, which gives excellent softness and fastness to pigment prints with potential to replace at least 50% of existing reactive and conventional prints, thus saves water, energy with increase in productivity. This is based on poly-urethane binders and gives excellent softness to printed fabrics with higher solidity, depth and brilliancy equivalent to reactive prints.

EPRICON allows customers to achieve reactive-like feel, fastness and depth along with excellent brightness. Its simple process eliminates washing and steaming processes and effluent treatment hassles associated with reactive printing. This not only saves overall cost but also results in higher production. EPRICON package allows printing at finer meshes which can help to achieve digital-like prints with deeper shades and brighter colours at much lower costs. This offers advantages such as lower printing cost & higher production compared to digital and reactive printing, lower wastages and pollution, high brilliancy and easy colour shade matching.

EPRICON printing solution aims to replace water consuming printing systems to make a big difference in the textile industry.

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CHROMATOGRAPHY IN DYESTUFF SACHIN B. DALVI Colourtex Industries Pvt. Ltd., Surat, Gujarat- India.

Abstract Some substances, Dyestuffs or pigments or any chemicals appears homogenous, but are actually a combination of substances of different mixtures of dyes, chemicals, or different compounds. In addition, the many dye are used in this dyestuff area is a mixture of different colored materials. In many instances, we can separate these materials by dissolving them in an appropriate liquid and allowing them to move through an absorbent matrix, like paper, liquid, Thin-Layer Chromatography (TLC), etc. Chromatography is a method used in laboratory for separating organic and inorganic compounds so that they can be analyzed and studied. By analyzing a compound, a scientist can figure out what makes up that compound. Chromatography is a great physical method for observing mixtures and solvents.

Chromatography is a powerful separation tool that is used in all branches of science, and is often the only means of separating components from complex mixtures. The Russian botanist Mikhail Tswett coined the term chromatography in 1906. The first analytical use of chromatography was described by James and Martin in 1952, for the use of gas chromatography for the analysis of fatty acid mixtures.

Keywords: Dyes, Chromatography, TLC, HPLC, Paper-Gas-Liquid-Chromatography.

Introduction Chromatography is a laboratory technique for the separation of a mixture of color or pigments, chemicals. The mixture is dissolved in a fluid called the mobile phase, which carries it through

a structure holding another material called the stationary phase. The various constituents of the mixture travel at different speeds, causing them to separate. The separation is based on differential partitioning between the mobile and stationary phases. Subtle differences in a compound's partition coefficient result in differential retention on the stationary phase and thus affect the separation. (01) Some of the colored substances dissolve in the solvent used better than others, so they travel further up the paper. A pencil line is drawn, and spots of ink, pigment or dye are placed on it. Mixtures that are suitable for separation by chromatography include inks, dyes and coloring agents in textile material.

As the paper absorbs the solvent, the different components of the dyestuff in the dyes react differently to it. These different spots of color will separate out, allowing you to see exactly what the components of the colors were. You can then use the spot to draw a picture to try to notice the different colored dyes that you identified in the chromatography. The colorant is a pigment or dye that gives its specific color. Whether black, blue, red, neon, yellow, pink or any other hue, the colorant is what you actually see when you look at a line made by a marker.

Chromatography may be preparative or analytical. The purpose of preparative chromatography is to separate the components of a mixture for later use, and is thus a form of purification. Analytical chromatography is done normally with smaller amounts of material and is for establishing the presence or measuring the relative proportions of analyses in a mixture. The two are

not mutually exclusive. (02) “Chromatography”; “chroma” from the Greek word for “color”, combined with “graphy”, meaning writing or recording. (03) The word chromatography means "color writing" which is a way that a chemist can test liquid or solid mixtures. While studying the coloring materials in plant life, a Russian botanist invented chromatography in 1903. His name was M.S. Tswett.

History The history of chromatography spans from the mid-19th century to the 21st.

The term is chromatography, literally "color writing".(03) Chromatography was first employed in Russia by the Italian-born scientist Mikhail Tswett in 1900. (04) He continued to work with chromatography in the first decade of the 20th century, primarily for the separation of plant pigment such as chlorophyll (which is green), Carotenes (which are orange), and Xanthophylls (yellow). Since these components have different colors (green, orange, and yellow, respectively) they gave the technique its name. New types of chromatography developed during the 1930s and 1940s made the technique useful for many separation processes.(05) Chromatography is such an important technique that two Nobel prizes have been awarded to chromatographers.

Over 60% of chemical, dyestuff or pigments are analyzed worldwide thoroughly done with chromatography or a variation thereon.

Chromatography technique developed substantially as a result of the work of Archer John Porter Martin and Richards Laurence during the 1940s and

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1950s, for which they won the 1952 Nobel Prize in chemistry. (06) They established the principles and basic techniques of partition chromatography, and their work encouraged the rapid development of several chromatographic methods Paper chromatology, Gas Chromatology, and what would become known as High Performance liquid chromatology. Since then, the technology has advanced rapidly. Researchers found that the main principles of Tswett's chromatography could be applied in many different ways, resulting in the different varieties of chromatography described below. Advances are continually improving the technical performance of chromatography, allowing the separation of increasingly similar molecules.(06) Chromatography is used by many different people in many different ways.

Chromatography is based on differential migration. The solutes in a mobile phase go through a stationary phase.

Solutes with a greater affinity for the mobile phase will spend more time in this phase than the solutes that prefer the stationary phase. As the solutes move through the stationary phase they separate. This is called chromatographic development There are four two types of chromatography. These are A – Planar Chromatography (Stationery Phase) B – Physical state of mobile Chromatography Hoew it works: In all chromatography there is a mobile phase and a stationary phase.

The stationary phase is the phase that doesn't move and the mobile phase is the phase that does move. The mobile phase moves through the stationary phase picking up the compounds to be tested. As the mobile phase continues to travel through the stationary phase, it takes the compounds with it. At different points in the stationary phase the different components of the compound are going to be absorbed and are going to stop moving with the mobile phase.

This is how the results of any chromatography are gotten, from the point at which the different components of the compound stop moving and separate

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from the other components.

In paper and thin-layer chromatography the mobile phase is the solvent.

The stationary phase in paper chromatography is the strip or piece of paper that is placed in the solvent. In thinlayer chromatography the stationary phase is the thin-layer cell. Both these kinds of chromatography use capillary action to move the solvent through the stationary phase.

What is the Retention Factor RF ?

The retention factor, Rf, is a quantitative indication of how far a particular compound travels in a particular solvent. The Rf value is a good indicator of whether an unknown compound and a known compound are similar, if not identical. If the Rf value for the unknown compound is close or the same as the Rf value for the known compound then the two compounds are most likely similar or identical.

In chromatography, the retardation factor (R) is the fraction of an analyze in the mobile phase of a chromatographic system. In planer chromatology in particular, the retardation factor Rf is defined as the ratio of the distance traveled by the center of a spot to the distance traveled by the solvent front.

(07) Ideally, the values for RF are equivalent to the R values used in column chromatography (07) The Retention factor, Rf, is defined as, Rf = distance the solute (D1) moves divided by the distance traveled by the solvent front (D2) Rf = D1 / D2 Where, D1 = distance that color traveled, measured from center of the band of color to the point where the color was applied D2 = total distance that solvent traveled

Figure 1 & 2 : Chromatography

The Different Types of Chromatography 1. Liquid Chromatography It is used in the world to test water samples to look for pollution in lakes and rivers. It is used to analyze metal ions and organic compounds in solutions. Liquid chromatography uses liquids which may incorporate hydrophilic, insoluble molecules. Liquid chromatography (LC) is a separation technique in which the mobile phase is a liquid. It can be carried out either in a column or a plane. Present day liquid chromatography that generally utilizes very small packing particles and a relatively high pressure is referred to as High performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC).

Figure:-3 Liquid Chromatography

2. Gas Chromatography It is used in airports to detect bombs and is used is forensics in many different ways. It is used to analyze fibers on a person’s body and also analyze blood found at a crime scene. In gas chromatography helium is used to move a gaseous mixture through a column of absorbent material.

Gas chromatography (GC), also sometimes known as gas-liquid chromatography, (GLC), is a separation technique in which the mobile phase is a gas. Gas chromatographic separation is always carried out in a column, which is typically "packed" or "capillary". Packed columns are the routine work horses of gas chromatography, being cheaper and easier to use and often giving adequate performance. Capillary columns generally give far superior resolution and although more expensive are becoming widely used, especially for complex mixtures. Both types of column are made from non-adsorbent and

DYES UPDATE chemically inert materials. Stainless steel and glass are the usual materials for packed columns and quartz or fused silica for capillary columns 3. Thin-layer Chromatography The first developments in thin layer chromatography occurred in the 1940s, and techniques advanced rapidly in the 1950s after the introduction of relatively large plates and relatively stable materials for sorbent layers.(08)

less solvent, High-Performance TLC can be used. An older popular use had been to differentiate chromosomes by observing distance in gel (separation of was a separate step) 4. Paper Chromatography

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per as the stationary phase. Capillary action is used to pull the solvents up through the paper and separate the solutes.

Affinity chromatography

It is one of the most common types of chromatography. It uses a strip of pa-

Affinity chromatography is based on selective non-covalent interaction between an analytic and specific molecule

A.

B.

It uses an absorbent material on flat glass or plastic plates. This is a simple and rapid method to check the purity of an organic compound. It is used to detect pesticide or insecticide residues in food. Thin-layer chromatography is also used in forensics to analyze the dye composition of fibers.

Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) is a widely employed laboratory technique used to separate different biochemicals on the basis of their relative attractions to the stationary and mobile phases. It is similar to paper chromatography. However, instead of using a stationary phase of paper, it involves a stationary phase of a thin layer of adsorbent like silica gel, alumina, or cellulose on a flat, inert substrate. TLC is very versatile; multiple samples can be separated simultaneously on the same layer, making it very useful for screening applications such as testing drug levels and water purity and also using for dye compositions. (09) Possibility of cross-contamination is low since each separation is performed on a new layer. Compared to paper, it has the advantage of faster runs, better separations, better quantitative analysis, and the choice between different adsorbents. For even better resolution and faster separation that utilizes

Figure: - 5 Paper Chromatography

A&B

Table:-1 Table below summaries the information from above

Type

Applications

Why and What is it Used to analyze metal ions and organic compounds in solutions. It uses liquids which may incorporate hydrophilic, insoluble molecules.

Liquid Chromatography

Test water samples to look for pollution,

Gas Chromatography

Detect bombs in airports, identify Used to analyze volatile gases. Helium is and quantify such drugs as alcohol, used to move the gaseous mixture used in forensics to compare fibers through a column of absorbent Material. found on a victim Uses an absorbent material on flat glass plates. This is a simple and rapid method to check the purity of the organic compound.

The most common type of separating amino acids and anions, chromatography. The paper is the RNA fingerprinting, separating and stationary phase. This uses capillary action to pull the solutes up through the testing histamines, antibiotics paper and separate the solutes.

Detecting pesticide or insecticide residues in food, also used in Thin-Layer Chromatography forensics to analyze the dye composition of fibers Paper Chromatography A.

B.

Figure:-4 Chromatography paper (A) & (B)

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DYES UPDATE

[09]. It is very specific, but not very robust. It is often used in biochemistry in the purification of proteins bound to tags. These fusion proteins are labeled with compounds such as His-tag, biotins or antigens, which bind to the stationary phase specifically. After purification, some of these tags are usually removed and the pure protein is obtained.

Affinity chromatography often utilizes a biomolecule's affinity for a metal (Zn, Cu, Fe, etc.). Columns are often manually prepared. Traditional affinity columns are used as a preparative step to flush out unwanted bio-molecules.

However, HPLC techniques exist that do utilize affinity chromatography properties. Immobilized Metal Affinity Chromatography (IMAC) is useful to separate aforementioned molecules based on the relative affinity for the metal (i.e. Dionex IMAC). Often these columns can be loaded with different metals to create a column with a targeted affinity.

Conclusion Chromatography is an important biophysical technique that enables the separation, identification, and purification of the dyes components or pigments of a mixture for qualitative and quantitative analysis. Dyes or Dyestuffs can be purified based on characteristics such as size and shape of surface, and binding capacity with the stationary

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phase. Four separation techniques based on molecular characteristics and interaction type use mechanisms of ion exchange, surface adsorption, partition, and size exclusion. Other chromatography techniques are based on the stationary or mobile phase, thin layer and paper chromatography.

In addition, in this competition we justified the proper product compound and structure of the product. It should know us for the identification. Chromatography is used in many different ways. Some people use chromatography to find out what is in a solid or a liquid. It is also used to determine what unknown substances are. The Police, F.B.I., and other detectives use chromatography when trying to solve a crime. It is also used to determine the presence of cocaine in urine, alcohol in blood, PCB's (polychlorinated biphenyls) in fish, and lead in water.

A wide range of chromatographic procedures makes use of differences in size, binding affinities, charge, and other properties. Many types of chromatography have been developed. These include Column chromatography, High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), Gas chromatography, Size exclusion chromatography, Ion exchange chromatography etc References 1. McMurry J (2011). Organic chemistry:

with biological applications (2nd ed.).

Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. pp. 395. ISBN 9780495391470.

2. Hostettmann K, Marston A, Hostettmann M (1998). Preparative Chromatography Techniques Applications in Natural Product Isolation (Second ed.). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 50. ISBN 9783662036310.

3. "Chromatography". Online Etymology Dictionary.

4. Ettre LS, Zlatkis A, eds. (26 August 2011). 75 Years of Chromatography: A Historical Dialogue. Elsevier. ISBN 978-0-08-085817-3.

5. Ettre LS, Sakodynskii KI (March 1993). "M. S. Tswett and the discovery of chromatography II: Completion of the development of chromatography (1903–1910)". Chromatographia. 35 (5–6): 329–338. doi:10.1007/ BF02277520.

6. "The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1952". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 25 August 2016.

7. IUPAC, Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 2nd ed. (the "Gold Book") (1997).

Online corrected version: (2006–) "Retardation factor, R in column chromatography". doi:10.1351/goldbook.R05352 8. Touchstone, pp. 1651–1652 9. Wilchek M, Chaiken I (2000). "An overview of affinity chromatography". In Bailon P, Ehrlich GK, Fung WJ, Berthold W (eds.). Affinity Chromatography. Methods in Molecular Biology. 147. Humana Press. pp.

SIRCILLA IS NOW A FLOURISHING TEXTILE TOWN

On 4th July, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao visited the RajannaSircilla area. During his visit, the Chief Minister took part in a variety of programmes.

people’s faces. The welfare and development initiatives in Sircilla provided significant help to the population, particularly the weavers who are now free from the debt trap.

Sircilla, also known as ‘Uricilla,’ was a location where weavers committed suicide in the past owing to financial difficulties. However, a succession of initiatives launched by the TRS administration following the creation of the state saw Sircilla undergo a dramatic metamorphosis, bringing smiles to the

The state government prioritised weavers’ welfare and issued a Rs.2,500 crore order for sarees to be distributed throughout the Bhathukamma, Christmas, and Ramzan festivals. With this purchase, each weaver would get a monthly payment of about Rs.16,000, covering up to 15,000 weavers. The

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construction of an Apparel Park on 60 acres in Pedduru village, Sircilla, at a cost of Rs.174 crore, is underway at a brisk pace.

Extending Rythu Bima to farmers, constructing irrigation projects, allocating 2BHK houses to beneficiaries, undertaking various works under Mission Kakatiya and Mission Bhageeratha, distributing KCR kits and Palle Pragathi, and other activities were undertaken for the benefit of the people of Sircilla.

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EVOLUTION OF INDIGENOUS GOND ART

RENUKA A. MAYEKAR M.Design Student (Fashion Design)

DR. SABITA BARUAH M.Design Faculty (Fashion Design)

Sir Vithaldas Thackersey College of Home, SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai

Abstract An indigenous form of traditional art from the state of Madhya Pradesh has come to be known as Gond Tribal Art. Like many other indigenous Indian art forms, Gond art is also being passed on from one generation to the next by members of the tightly knit Pradhan Gond tribe. The intricate pictorial themes within this unusual Indian art form are usually inspired by elements of nature or beliefs in Hindu Gods. In many instances, the paintings have evolved from narrative poetry or folk songs inspired by mythical stories of Gods. The paintings were first depicted on the walls of village houses in Madhya Pradesh. It was believed that Gond Art paintings on walls would bring good luck to the family. This paper is a study on the major transformation of Gond paintings and traditional motifs used for this art form. Over a period of decades however, Gond art has made a shift from traditional paintings to more elaborate embroidery. In this process, the original art form might have been diluted and lost. Furthermore, another giant leap to modern day digital printing has occurred and further threatened the survival of the original techniques. Meanwhile, many new in-

fluences in the form of pastel shades and neutral colours are being incorporated. They are now being commonly seen in contemporary forms of Gond art. The motifs are also being simplified and modernized carefully while keeping the essence of this incredible tribal art.

Key words: Gond Art, Evolution, Folk Art, Traditional Painting.

paint begins. Paint is applied with help of cotton buds or handmade fabric buds made by using a small stick. The sticks for Gond art are usually made from Babul or Neem tree branches. In Gond painting, traditionally colours are collected from the natural elements such as herb, vegetable, clay or stone. The colours frequently used are black, saffron, green and yellow [2].

Introduction Currently, the Gond art is practiced by the sub caste of Pradhan Gond tribe.

In their paintings, they express their respect for nature. While searching for a purpose in life, the most common pictorial themes revolve around common elements of nature such as trees, animals, birds, peacocks, and Gods.

Originally, tribal paintings were done on the walls of houses. They are done with the help of layers of mud applied on bare walls. This is followed by painting depicting natural themes [1]. An artisan first applies a layer of white or black coloured clay along with a cow dung mixed paste. This creates a reasonably smooth surface for the painter.

The clay is called as Garuor Gar in local parlance. After the initial layer of clay dries off, the first application of

Fig:1. Tree of life.

The most significant character of this tribal art painting is the use of geometrical shapes, intricate dots, lines, diagonal lines, drops of water, seed shapes, fish scales and curves [3]. These elements give the desired effect and slightly enhance the quality of motifs

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PEER-REVIEW PAPER incorporating stones, sequences, and kundan in a creative way. Today many of the designers apply Gond art work on the garment using Zardozi embroidery along with Aari and Dabka work.

Diagonal lines

Big Dots

Fish Scales

Curve Lines

Straight

Dots

lines

Fig :2. Elements in Gond art

(Fig:2). However, Gond art work typically lacks the professional quality that any commercial endeavour would need.

While being conspicuously primitive in character and lacking aesthetic beauty, the art work merely points to the existence of a civilization stranded in a different epoch and is unwilling to invest time in honing drawing skills. Even a painter lacking rudimentary artistic talent can attempt to create Gond art.

Gond artists need to be given intensive training to help them enhance the commercial value of their creations. The quality of their drawings needs to improve to make them more aesthetically appealing.

Though lacking sufficient aesthetic appeal, Gond paintings are still being used for festivals and events such as Karwa Chauth, Deepawali, Ahoi Ashtami, Nag Panchmi, and Sanjhi.

Motifs used in these Gond paintings generally depend on the festive occasion. The common occasions include religious festivals or wedding ceremonies [4]. The main objective of this paper is to study the constant transformations within this traditional art. A study was carried out with particular attention to transformations occurring in motifs, techniques, and colour palettes. The principal objective of these changes was to help enhance consumer appeal. many transformations have therefore occurred while a sincere attempt to preserve and retain the traditional essence.

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Discussion Evolution of technique used in Gond art In olden days the artisans used buds and sticks made out of natural material like stick of a neem tree. Lately, it has been observed that the use of brushes, acrylic colors, batik technique, digital printing, hand embroidery, machine embroidery, stonework, and sequences are becoming quite common. These new approaches have transformed the traditional Gond painting into a more contemporary art form.

Fig 4. Gond art in batik on saree pallu.

Another brand named ‘Kaisori India’ made a collection called ‘Narmada’ narrative craft-stories of Madhya Pradesh –Gond art form by Bhils, on to a hand spun and hand-woven Maheshwari by the Ansari and hand - painted Batik by the Guttis of Ujjain. It was observed that today Gond painting is not only transformed to embroidery, but designers have very artistically experimented with batik painting without ruining the essence of it (Fig:4). To take this heritage one step further, the brand-named PETAL HOME came up with machine embroidered motif of the tree and bird which is commonly seen in many Gond paintings on the bath towel line by using pastel colours (Fig:5).

Fig 3. Gond art in embroidery by Label SAAJ

In its modern version, the traditional lines, dots, and curves in art work are being highlighted even more by

Fig 5. Gond art in bath towels with machine embroidery

PEER-REVIEW PAPER Interestingly, it was evident that many researchers have done an extensive study on Gond painting motifs for use in apparel by screen printing. This is one of the methods used to revive this exclusive tribal art. In this study, beautification of traditional Gond painting has been given a new shape using technological tools and techniques. This might help the product to become acceptable among the consumers in the present market. It will also provide employment to Gond artisans. The fusion designs prepared were successfully applied on different apparel products using screen printing. The created products were highly rated by consumers [5]. Another study on Digital Textile Printing inspired by Gond Paintings revealed that the designs used for digital printing on dress material have incredible market potential [6]. Today, many designers are constantly exploring new avenue to introduce digital Gond painting in the fashion and apparel industry.

Evolution of motifs and colors in Gond art

Fig : 6. Original Gond art motifs

The Gond artisans create their motif for paintings on a variety of themes, including subjects based on folklore, religious beliefs, social customs, and nature. Usually, motifs used in Gond paintings are known as the expression of their love for nature and quest for life. However, it was found that traditional Gond art motifs have been steadily changing with time. The mo-

tifs depicting flora and fauna which is narrated on to the canvas or the mud walls have been transformed into contemporary styles by modern technology. Lighter shades or pastel colours have also been introduced.

Fig: 7. Contemporary Gond art motif

Currently, there is a visible difference created in the motifs by using different techniques and colour variations. The motifs have been contemporized by incorporating modern techniques involving machine embroidery and digital printing. Designers are also using new techniques to introduce innovative ideas in the fashion industry. Motifs are also being modified into their minimalistic forms (Fig: 6 &7). They are then being highlighted with minimum detailing. Complimenting colour palates have also been implemented.

Such modern art forms are usually applied on mainstream products such as wall hangings and decorations. Today, Jangarh Singh Shyam, the pioneer of modern Gond painting, developed and decorated the traditional paintings of the Gonds, These new designs and motifs, which were mainly inspired by Pithora paintings, received attention across the world. In fact, the commercialization and market competitions have influenced Gond painters. They legally register a motif as either a distinct identity or the signature motif of the painter [7].

Application of Gond art in Fashion The Gond painting as part of a new fashion and art collection that seeks to preserve India's dying textile heritage

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as well as conserve wildlife. One has to give credit to global influences for promoting and showcasing the beauty of this tribal art on clothing and accessories, making these even more sought after. Fashion designer Ritu Kumar has been meticulously documenting the long cultural journeys of traditional art forms and textiles in India.

This reservoir of knowledge will not only help in more accurately reviving traditional art forms, but also create a platform for exploring its adaptability to contemporary consumer tastes.

The designer Ankita Chaudhry from label SAAJ unveiled her Gond art inspired collection at Amazon India Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2017.

The collection comprised of an ancient art form inspiration, which depicts Mother Nature. She played around with embroidered animal motifs in vibrant colours. Rich fabrics like georgette and organza were used to give the summer touch to the collection (Fig:8).

Fig : 8. Gond art in Fashion

Gond art has been gradually influencing today’s fashion. Many brands are also experimenting with new solutions to convert Gond paintings into a form that can be easily applied on fabrics and later stitched into garments. It was also found that Meesa Couture gives importance to this tradition of Indian craftsmanship within a contemporary range. “The label offers day-tonight wardrobe solutions by contouring beautiful fabrics with Gond art into an ensemble that can be adorned by every

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PEER-REVIEW PAPER tional exhibitions.

References 1. Gaur U. & Das A. (2013). Recent Indigenous Art of India, BINDU Modern Gallery.

2. Sharma, E. (2015). Tribal Folk Arts of India, Journal of International Academic Research for Multidisciplinary, Volume 3, Issue 5.

3. Goswami, M. P. & Yadav, P. (2019). Dots and Lines: Semiotics of the Motifs in Gond Painting, Journal of Media and Communication, 3(2): 35-50.

4. Bharadwaj, K. (2014). Colors in Gond Tribal Art: An interpretation and critical evaluation of Colors in Gond Paintings of Madhya Pradesh, International journal of Research – Granthaalayah.

5. Bora, S. (2017). Designing of apparel using traditional gond painting motif, International Journal of Home Science 2017; 3(1): 304-309 Fig: 9. Evolution of Tribal Gond art from Traditional to Contemporary

urban confident woman. Also, Meesa Couture presented collection named Karpa, which depicted flocks of birds.

Another brand named ‘Chiaroscuro’ has depicted Gond painting on leather handcrafted bags and accessories (Fig:9).

With globalization, Gond paintings have now become quite common on merchandise.

Common consumer products such as cushion covers, bags, wooden trays, wooden furniture and apparels that showcase Gond art are becoming popular. In the modern day and age, Gond paintings are as much part of a rich traditional Indian history as they are in sync with current global trends. Gond Artists are no longer faceless, nameless unknown artists, but have made a mark with their own unique individual artistic identities in the global art market [8]. It is amazing to find how this indigenous humble tribal art completely transformed from mud wall to canvas and all the way to contemporary fashion and global art world (Fig:9).

Conclusion From a broad overview of this tribal art of India, it was found that this craft has incredible potential in future fash-

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ion markets. The intricate elements used in this Gond painting makes the craft even more exclusive and widely appealing to consumers within the global market. However, more attention ought to be given to the art itself and all the Gond artisans to help retain and restore this craft. Governments can take initiatives to encourage Gond artisans to continue investing time in further honing their skills. This is the best way of preserving an ancient and original Indian art. The Design Institute can encourage young designers to begin exploring new innovations while incorporating Gond art. This type of engagement between designers and Gond artisans will be beneficial to both parties. Gond paintings remain till date one of the most historically entrenched and yet contemporary Indian visual art traditions.

The government of India has taken several steps to preserve the art of the Gond tribe. These measures are not taken only to empower the artisans economically, but also for the sake of the future generation’s artistic fulfilment. The efforts resulted in more popularity of Gond art and paintings.

Works of folk art are put on display with great pride at various interna-

6.Jain, R., Sharma, N & Jain, C. (2014). Design and Product Development: Digital Textile Printing Inspired by Gond Paintings of Madhya Pradesh, Asian Resonance, RNI No.UPENG/2012/426228 VOL.-III, ISSUE-IV, 257-261.

7.https://www.mojarto.com/blogs/gondart-the-deccan-lifeline 8.https://www.researchgate.net/ profile/Manash_Goswami5/publication/338855986_Gond_Painting_A_ Study_of_Contemporary_Scenario/ links/5e301bfc92851c9af72a46f3/ Gond-Painting-A-Study-of-ContemporaryScenario.pdf 9.https://worldartcommunity.com/items/ Hardbound-Diary-with-Gond-Painting-Motifs-Blue-Deer/ 10.https://kolorobia.com/placemats/5962196-gond-art-placemats.html 11.https://jhinichadariya.com/product/ gond-art-hand-painted-nandsundari 12.https://www.sujatra.com/products/hand-painted-gond-art-palluand-front-with-pure-raw-silk-basesaree?variant=33033571011 13.https://www.nevanta.com/saaj-ankitaamazon-india-fashion-week-springsummer-2017/ 14.https://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/books/the-rich-history-of-gond-artand-its-evolution-2832507/

PEER-REVIEW PAPER 15.https://www.allkarts.com/ gond-painting/#:~:text=The%20 present%2Dday%20Gond%20 paintings,animals%2C%20plants%2C%20 and%20trees.

16.https://www.businesstoday.in/magazine/

features/gond-tribe-traditional-art-globalrecognition-selling-well/story/202691.html 17.https://www.petalhome.in/?s=mac hine+embroidery+hand+towels&post_ type=product&type_aws=true 18.https://www.facebook.com/meesacou-

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ture/photos/?ref=page_internal 19.https://life11.org/2018/03/02/gond-thevibrant-folk-and-tribal-art-of-india/ 20.https://chiaroscuro.in/collections/ the-gond-edit/prodcts/gond-bronzejamie?variant=32963252191285

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A 150-ACRE TEXTILE PARK WILL BE BUILT IN NOIDA, A FIRST IN UTTAR PRADESH The Uttar Pradesh government intends to build more integrated textile parks in the state’s major textile manufacturing districts, including Meerut, Agra, Jhansi, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Lucknow, and Kanpur divisions.

The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has given 150 acres of land in Noida for the Apparel Export Cluster, paving the way for Uttar Pradesh’s first textile park.

A total of 152 firms are planned to put up factories at the textile park, with a projected investment of Rs 8,365.73 crore and employment for roughly five lakh people. In the first phase, work on 91 textile and apparel facilities is well underway, with production set to begin in January of next year.

The state government’s objective, according to industry department sources, is to create a global garment hub that can tap into the lucrative international textile supply chain, which now includes Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Indonesia as significant producers.

“The intention of the UP Government is to get ahead of these countries in textile production. There is a lot of potential for expansion in the textile and garment sector in the state, but the number of fully integrated textile

parks in the state is negligible,” said an official, adding that currently, Uttar Pradesh is the third largest textile producing state of the country.

“The share of Uttar Pradesh in textile production at the national level is 13.24% and the state ranks fifth in the country in terms of handlooms and silk production. There are 2.58 lakh handloom and 5.5 lakh powerloom weavers in the state. The state has 58 spinning mills and 74 textile mills in the nonsmall scale industrial sector and the

state’s share in carpet production in the country is 90%,” he said.

According to sources, in the last four years, 66 large companies have submitted bids to invest Rs 8715.16 crore in the textile and apparel sector. Twelve textile factories have already been established, with the development of 18 more currently underway. The goal is to get the 18 textile facilities up and running this year. In addition, 17 additional textile units are scheduled to be produced.

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REVIEW PAPER

SEPARATION AND RECLAMATION OF VECTRAN FROM COMPOSITES - A REVIEW

VISHAL KHILARI

DR. SUMAN MUNDKUR

Student

Visiting Faculty

M. Tech , Department of Fibres and Textile Processing Technology, ICT Mumbai.

Abstract Vectran is a polyester (polyacrylate) fibre made from polymer with a high degree of crystallinity. It is a secondgeneration super fibre that followed Kevlar® and Twaron®, which are referred to as the first generation of super fibres. Vectran is the latest fibre discovered so its waste management is to be analysed before the waste becomes unbearable. The polymer is mostly used in composites so separation and reclamation are needed to be developed. This paper is a review of various reclamation process available and the future possibilities.

Keywords: blending, composites, dissolution, thermotropic, Vectran, Introduction Liquid crystal polymer may be a thermoplastic polymer from aligned molecule chains with spatial regularity of rigid crystal [1]. Affording to the situations during which the liquid is made, liquid polymer is often parted as thermotropic and lyotropic. &e first is by dissolving the polymer with a given solvent to realize lyotropic liquid-crystal polymers, while the second may be a thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer, when the liquid crystalline nature is possessing a thermal change under cooling and heating at a given temperature range is thanks to the chemical nature of polymer. Vectran as HM-HT fiber possesses strength and modulus a minimum of 2 GPa and 50 GPa, respectively [2]. Vectran which is fully aromatic polyester is commercially produced

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within the melt spinning method and it's the sole thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer used on a billboard scale. liquid is thanks to some molecular motion matching with liquid and ordered crystal. Vectran forms a liquid crystal; due to an interactive and rigid polymer, it can easily be oriented through a fiber manufacturing process [3]. Vectran fiber is obtained from the dried then melted pellet thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer by melt spinning process and when it passes through a spinning hole it gives a high molecular orientation although; and by controlled cooling and solidification the structure of the fiber can be achieved. An excellent molecular orientation achieved during spinning causes an unnecessary post drawing process [4]. Production of Vectran is named cost-effective since it's a melt-spun fiber than other high-performance fibres like aramids and UHMWPE; however, the need of high heat treatment for solid-state polymerization after melt-spun can offset its economical approaches. Vectran fiber application includes a high-performance purpose such as aerospace, military, and industrial applications [5].

Technology for Making Fibre from Thermotropic Liquid Crystal Polymer The following part evaluates the characteristics of the Vectran polymer and the production process.

1. Thermotropic liquid crystal polymers Vectran was developed by applying the second methodology. The liquid

polymer formed from the molecular structure that’s, the thermotropic liquid polymer obtained through the melt polymerization of p-Hydroxy carboxylic acid (HBA) and 2-Hydroxy-6-Naphthoic Acid (HNA)—was became fiber by melt spinning. The molecular chain of this liquid crystalline polymer features a high degree of orientation within the direction of the fiber length, which provides it excellent physical properties [6].

Figure 1. Molecular structure of Vectran’s main polymer

Figure 2. Diagrams of fibre structures.

2. Creating fibers from thermotropic liquid crystal polymers To turn thermotropic liquid polymers into fibers, pelletized polymer is first dried, then, after being melted in an extruder, it's became fibers using the melt spinning method [7]. When ther-

REVIEW PAPER motropic liquid polymer is spun under high shear stress, a high degree of molecular orientation takes place when the fabric passes through nozzles; this structure (orientation) is maintained until the fibers are cooled and solidify due to the lengthy time constant. If the fiber is ordinary polyester, it must be stretched to enhance its strength. On the opposite hand, because Vectran’s molecules are already during a rodlike and aligned state at the spinning phase, there's no got to stretch the spun fibers again at a high draw ratio [8] .

Figure 3. Fibre production concepts

3. Heat-treatment Although spun fiber already possesses considerable strength and coefficient of elasticity, which suggests stretching makes no sense for fiber formation because the molecular orientation has already been achieved within the spun state; heat treatment is performed to reinforce further performance [9]. The goal of warmth treatment is to extend the strength and coefficient of elasticity, and improve heat resistance. this is often achieved by continuously removing by-product materials in one among the subsequent conditions: (1) reduced-pressure (2) noble gas atmosphere (3) active gas, including air atmosphere.

Super fibers developed before Vectran were made by melting resin during a solvent (lyotropic liquid crystals); because solvents like vitriol were used, the manufacturing process was complex and dear. As Vectran is manufactured by the melt spinning method, this difficulty in the process is eliminated [10].

Need of Reclamation The differences within the mechanical properties of conventional injection moulded plaques and pre-generated micro composites generated by using the twin extrusion process are studied for various TLCPs (Vectran) and matrices [11]. The pre-generated micro-composites are freed from skin-core morphologies that are present in injection moulded plaques. Therefore, the optimum processing method for generating in place TLCP (Vectran)/TP composites is that the dual extrusion process. Unfortunately, the high cost of TLCPs represents a drag only comparing this new sort of composites to composite systems that are reinforced with optical fiber, because Kevlar and carbon fiber are costlier [12]. Approximately the value of pure thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers ranges from $8.00 to $12.00 dollars a pound [13].

This is often quite like other traditional reinforcements utilized in thermoplastics as an example, carbon fiber is around $8.00 to $30.00 per pound and Kevlar fiber is around $15.00 per pound [14, 15]. However, with reference to the optical fiber utilized in composites, the value of the Vectran is far above the $1.00 per pound cost of this fiber [16]. Therefore, albeit TLCP / TP composites have excellent mechanical and physical properties, the general cost of the thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer / thermoplastic composites is substantially above the value of the glass filled composites. So, we can lower the cost of composite by recycling the TLCP and thus increasing the marketability. Many recycling methods believe merely grinding the composite blends then reprocessing the materials into further composite blends [17]. These methods would work for the injection moulded or the strand extruded composites, since these processes already involve compounding or mixing the materials together in one step. There has already been some work wiped out this area of reprocessing wholly thermoplastic composite strands by grinding up the recovered waste then reintroducing them back to the method [18].

They found that polypropylene reinforced with an undisclosed TLCP (Vec-

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tran) can undergo ten of those grinding / reprocessing cycles and see no loss in tensile strength. Unfortunately, this type of recycling would only work for composites, whose components have overlapping processing temperatures, and for composites that are processed within the same device.

In conclusion, the dual extrusion process produces the very best properties of composites generated with thermotropic liquid crystalline polymers and engineering thermoplastics. This process also eliminates the matter of morphological anisotropy or skin-core morphologies by producing continuous strands of TLCP fibrils within the composite fiber. Furthermore, by having the ability to extrude the 2 components separately, TLCPs and TPs with nonoverlapping processing windows are often used and therefore the highest mechanical properties are often obtained.

Separation of Intimately Blended Species In recent years, the world of mixed plastics recycling has seen a rise within the amount of research performed [19] . Intimate blending refers to a state during which, the dimensions of a pure introduce a mix is smaller than the dimensions of the littlest particle possible from mechanical grinding. Therefore, this part deals with the present technologies for the separation of heterogeneous blends.

1) Mixed Plastics Recycling In the area of recycling plastics, three methods are used to separate mixtures of polymers. The primary method of separation is named macro separation and it deals with separating large, pure components of polymers from one another. The second method of separation is named micro separation and it deals with the grinding of polymeric mixtures then using density differences to affect a separation. The third method of separation is named molecular separation and it deals with dissolving the polymer(s) then using temperature to cause a separation. For the macro separation method to be used, the mixture of polymeric pieces must contain large fractions of pure polymer within the mixed system [20]. Within the case of mi-

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46

REVIEW PAPER

cro separation, since the respective polymers are adhered together, the pieces must be pre-processed within the sort of grinding. Once the materials are ground into sufficiently small pieces, the polymers are often separated using differences in density. This sort of separation relies on the principle that, though the polymers are adhered to every other, grinding of the materials leads to a distribution of particles that contain some pure components of every of the polymers present. The density is used to differentiate these pure components. However, this method only works if the polymers aren't intimately blended [21].

2) Selective Dissolution of Polymers One of the new areas of separating mixed plastics is named molecular separation, and it deals with the utilization of a solvent to dissolve the polymers faraway from one another.

Currently, this method is merely being studied on the tutorial scale thanks to the utilization of pricy and / or toxic solvents.

Figure 4: Diagrammatic representation of the dissolution process (25)

The Figure 4 shows the dissolution process of the polymer; blue lines represent polymer chains and yellow dots represent solvent molecules. (a) polymer in solid state just after added to a solvent; (b) a swollen polymeric gel; (c) solvated polymer dispersed into a solution.

There are two methods used for this sort of selective dissolution and separation method. the primary method involves using one solvent to dissolve all of the mixed polymers and therefore the second method involves using one solvent to only dissolve one polymer at a time. [22] The first major step within the molecular separation method is named selective dissolution, while the second major step is named flash

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devolatilization. The mixed polymeric material is ground up into very small pieces then sent to the separation unit.

The separation unit, or selective dissolution step, consists of adding the polymeric mixture to a solvent then using the temperature to selectively dissolve certain components of the mixture.

One among the polymers has been thoroughly and selectively dissolved, subsequent step is to filter the answer of non-dissolved contaminants then to blend in some stabilizers. Once the stabilizers are added, subsequent step is to require this solution to the flash devolatilization process. This process involves evaporating all of the solvent far away from the plastic and thereby leaving a pure, solvent-free polymeric material [23].

Conclusion Vectran fibers is a synthetic fibre and are developed from a rigid-rod structure of TLCP. These works are concerned with developing an entirely thermoplastic composite which will compete with and / or replace traditional carbon or optical fiber composites.

However, the cost of Vectran becomes the problem. The power to recycle or reclaim the thermotropic liquid crystalline polymer component (Vectran) of those wholly thermoplastic composites would be very cost effective. it might also make these composites more economically and environmentally attractive than the normal composites.

Unfortunately, thanks to the relative youth of those pre-generated microcomposites, no work is often found that deals with the separation and reclamation of the Vectran component. So, the research during this field should be supported to seek out an answer to waste management beforehand.

References 1 X. Wang, J. Engel, and C. Liu, “Liquid crystal polymer (LCP) for MEMS: Process and app,” Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, vol. 13, no. 5, pp. 628–633, 2003 2 Y. Ji, Y. Bai, X. Liu, and K. Jia, “Progress of Liquid Crystal Polyester (LCP) for 5G Application,” Advanced Industrial and Engineering Polymer Research, vol. 3, 2020.

3 A. Blumstein, Liquid Crystalline Order in Polymers, Elsevier, Amsterdam, Netherlands,

2012.

4 K. Shaker and Y. Nawab, “Fibers for protective textiles,” in Fibers for Technical Textiles, Springer, Cham, Switzerland, 2020.

5 A. Greiner and H.-W. Schmidt, “Aromatic main-chain liquid crystalline polymers,” Handbook of Liquid Crystals, Wiley, Hoboken, NJ, USA, pp. 1–28, 2014.

6 H. Han and P. K. Bhowmik, “Wholly aromatic liquid-crystalline polyesters,” Progress in Polymer Science, vol. 22, no. 7, pp. 1431– 1502, 5 S. Eichhorn, J. W. S. Hearle, M. Jaffe, and T. Kikutani, “Fundamentals and manufactured polymer fibres,” Handbook of Textile Fibre Structure, Elsevier, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 2009.

6 A. E. Zachariades and R. S. Porter, High Modulus Polymers: Approaches to Design and Development, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA, 2020.

7 S. Matsubara, H. Umetsu, T. Hase, and Toray Industries Inc, “Liquid crystalline polyester composition, method of producing the same and molded product manufactured from the same,” U.S. Patent 8.778.222, 2014.

8 J. Nakagawa, “Spinning of thermotropic liquid-crystal polymers,” Advanced Fiber Spinning Technology, Woodhead Publishing, Cambridge, United Kingdom, pp. 160–171, 1994.

9 J. Sarlin and P. Torma La, “Heat treatment studies of a TLCP ¨ fiber,” Journal of Applied Polymer Science, vol. 50, no. 7, pp. 1225– 1231, 1993.

10 Y. Yamamoto and J. Nakagawa, Structure and properties of high-modulus, hightenacity Vectran fibres,” in Handbook of Textile Fibre Structure, pp. 413–428, 2009.

11 J. D. Menczel, G. L. Collins, and S. K. Saw, “& Thermal analysis of Vectran fibers and films,” Journal of thermal Analysis, vol. 49, no.

1, pp. 201–208, 1997.

12 J. E. Taylor, A. Romo-Uribe, and M. R. Libera, “Molecular orientation gradients in thermotropic liquid crystalline fiber,” Polymers for Advanced Technologies, vol. 14, no. 9, pp.

595– 600, 2003.

13 Prescott, R., Modern Plastics Encyclopedia, McGraw Hill, New York (1992) 14 Pigliacampi, J.J., Modern Plastics Encyclopedia, McGraw Hill, New York (1992).

REVIEW PAPER 15 Anon, Modern Plastics Encyclopedia, McGraw Hill, New York (1992).

tion”, Proceedings of Society of Plastics Engineers RETEC Conference- (1989)

16 Leidner, J., Plastics Waste: Recovery of Economic Value, Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York (1981).

20 S. Okamoto, M. Hirakawa, and Sumitomo Chemical Co Ltd, “Method for producing a liquid crystalline polyester and the liquid crystalline polyester,” U.S. Patent 7.009.026, 2006

17 Sasaki, K. and Tomita, T., Kobunshi Ronbunshu, Japan. Journal of Poly. Sci. and Technology, 50, 11, 855 (1993).

18 Hegberg, B.A., Brenniman, G.R., and Hallenbeck, W.H., Mixed Plastics Recycling Technology, Noyes Data Corporation, Park Ridge, New Jersey (1992).

19 Lynch, J. and Nauman, E., “Separation of Commingled Plastics by Selective Dissolu-

21 H. Avci, A. Hassani̇n, T. Hamouda, and A. Kiliç, “High performance fibers: a review on current state of art and future challenges,” vol. 27, no. 2, pp. 130–155, 2019.

22 K. Hori, Y. Hoshino, and H. Shimizu, Vectran: Development of High-Functionality Fiber and its Applications at Kuraray Co., Ltd

47

2014.

23 H. Hoshiro, R. Endo, and F. E. Sloan, “Vectran: super fiber from the thermotropic crystals of rigid-rod polymer,” in High Performance and Specialty Fibers, pp. 171–190, Springer, Tokyo, Japan, 2016.

24 S. Okamoto, M. Hirakawa, and Sumitomo Chemical Co Ltd, “Liquid crystalline polyester and method for producing the same,” U.S. Patent 6,512,079, 2003.

25 L. L. Chapoy, Recent Advances in Liquid Crystalline Polymers, Springer Science & Business Media, Berlin, Germany, 2012

CLARIANT AND INDIA GLYCOLS SUCCESSFULLY

NEWS

ESTABLISHED JOINT VENTURE FOR RENEWABLE ETHYLENE OXIDE DERIVATIVES Company to operate as Clariant IGL Specialty Chemicals Private Limited

personal care”, said Conrad Keijzer, CEO of Clariant.

To become one of the leaders in green ethylene oxide derivatives

Originally announced in March 2021, the joint venture is now effective and combines IGL’s renewable bio-ethylene oxide derivatives business, which includes a multipurpose production facility including an alkoxylation plant located in Kashipur, Uttarakhand (India), with Clariant’s local Industrial and Consumer Specialties business in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. This combination is to become one of the leaders in green ethylene oxide derivatives and be a leading supplier of these renewable materials to the rapidly growing consumer care market in India and neighboring countries.

Serve as a leading supplier of renewable materials for home and personal care Clariant, a focused, sustainable and innovative specialty chemical company, and India Glycols Limited (IGL), a leading company in the manufacturing of green technology-based chemicals, today announced the successful creation of their 51-49% joint venture for renewable ethylene oxide (EO) derivatives after receiving all necessary regulatory approvals. The joint venture will operate under the name Clariant IGL Specialty Chemicals Private Limited.

“The successful closing of this joint venture strengthens our core portfolio and makes Clariant one of the leaders in green ethylene oxide derivatives. As part of our strategy, we are committed to adding value through sustainability.

Our partnership with India Glycols will make us one of the leading surfactant suppliers in India, with a focus on renewable solutions for home and

Clariant will fully consolidate the joint venture as of July 1, 2021 and expects an incremental addition to the top-line of the Business Area Care Chemicals in the range of around CHF 50 million for the FY 2021.

“I am very pleased with the swift manner in which both parties were able to obtain all necessary regulatory approvals. This allows us to now move ahead and leverage IGL’s position as the larg-

est manufacturer of green EO in the world in a value-generating combination with Clariant”, commented U.S. Bhartia, Chairman of India Glycols Limited.

Christian Vang, Global Head of Clariant’s Business Unit Industrial & Consumer Specialties, added: “We experience a growing demand among our customers for home and personal care applications based on renewables. With the joint venture officially established, we will press ahead to fulfill this with innovative, sustainable and high-quality solutions based on the unique capabilities of both partners.”

The joint venture will be led by Nitin Sharma, currently Head of Clariant’s Industrial and Consumer Specialties business in South Asia, who added: “Profitable growth through sustainability is the key target for all of us in this newly formed company. The entire team will work together to leverage the contributions made by both partners to the joint venture into innovative solutions that serve the growing markets around us.” Mr. U.S. Bhartia acts as the joint venture’s Chairman.

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48

TECHNICAL TEXTILES

NANOTEXTILE UNVEILS NEW WEBSITE BY 2021 NUR HANI AQILAH BINTI SALEHIN Off the camera, NanoTextile Sdn Bhd has always had so many enquiries about what they do, their services, what are their core values, and so on.

Hence, within this week, NanoTextile Sdn Bhd is launching a new corporate website to encompass the business insights within the five years of journey.

Advancement of digital technology and economy, the business communications have become more engaging. This is the perfect timing for the company to unveil the new site in the second quarter of 2021. The new site features a simple, contemporary design with a full update of the new portfolio, tools, and effective navigation. We aim to please our viewers and international clients. By clicking on our webpages, details and information are easy to find and refer. In addition, mobile users for Android and Apple devices will enjoy the same experience as viewers on laptop and desktop computers as it is fully optimized and compatible with the same ease of use.

As stated by the Chief Executive Officer of NanoTextile Sdn Bhd, Dr. Thomas Ong, “NanoTextile wanted to give new experience to the viewers and client to know more about us as we have a vast of interesting stories to tell and we need our website as a new way for our clients to engage with us. We have been fortunate in the past few years especially in 2020 where NanoTextile nab Nanotechnology – Apparel trophy in Malaysia Technology Excellence Awards. Hence, we want to give the audience an easy access to pertinent information quickly. At one time, it represents us, and our mission to tap on the innovative potential of nanotechnologies in functionalized textiles. By the time they (clients) click on our website,

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THOMAS P. S. ONG

it will give them some sort of idea on what NanoTextile is”.

In supporting the affected business players in the textile industry during this pandemic COVID-19, in line with our professional services, we provided pro bono consulting and advisory since 2020. Besides, you (viewers or clients) can review it on our website if you are curious about business partnerships, and we welcome you to know us more as we invite you to become part of us.

“Having our website is like our introduction card; ever evolving and similarly. It can be introduced to anyone.

In media platforms, as the world is revolving, so do us. Indeed, one of the best features is, we have included a new inquiries mode for our client; a single click determines whether you would want to commercialize using our technologies for your products or get advisory and consultation from us as we assist you based on your product range. Besides, we welcome collaboration with a higher organization such as Research and Development (R&D) institutes and not to forget, the brand retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. As we move forward into 2021 and beyond whilst still practicing the new norm, getting the idea about our services is vital. With our technologies, we enable business players to venture into a new demand such as our antibacterial technology.

Moreover, the audience can now review consolidate featurettes such as press releases, interviews, and success stories such as the recognitions across the world; i.e Malaysia Technology Excellence Award in Nanotechnology – Apparel category is within touch from the website. Our new partnerships with Volvo Car Malaysia for example, is a click away from useful links to their sustainability principles by launching their premium Batik face mask infused with our technology.

In terms of the website provider, we have worked closely with the team from Exabytes in terms of designing, copywriting, and developing. Plus, Exabytes also has been trusted by 140,000 customers worldwide and they have created websites for high-end customers such as Royal Brunei Airlines, Abbott and Nando’s.

About Nanotextile NanoTextile Sdn Bhd is the first nanotechnology service provider in the textile industry in Malaysia which established in 2015. We offer a range of technologies in the service and supply of textile value and supply chain. Our professional services include consultancy and advisory mostly to manufacturers, wholesalers, and brand retailers, complete end-to-end fabric supply solutions in terms of service and fabric supply and facilitating investment activities in textile technologies. Our technology series that we are offering to the customers ranging from hygienic, care, protection, comfort, advanced and premium series. Indeed, we look forward to having more partnerships not just revolves around clothing textiles, but with home, technical, medical, sports, and military textile.

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49

FIBRE PRICES TRACKED SWINGS IN RAW MATERIAL IN JUNE TEXTILE BEACON in offers in Karachi market although freight rates were lifted. Offers from overseas suppliers for 1.2D ASF were steady at PakRs.450-455 a kg (US$2.86-2.89 a kg) in Karachi market.

Polyester Polyester staple fibre prices were lifted in China and Pakistan during June while they stayed firm in India.

In China, bolstered by rising costs, offers for polyester trended higher. Trading prices were also hiked, indicating a smaller discount in firm deals under negotiation. In Shandong and Hebei, offers moved up, with available discount. The sale/production status appeared weak towards weekend, seeing most ratios at 70-120%. Offers for 1.4D direct-melt polyester staple were raised to average 6.74-6.85 Yuan a kg (US$1.05-1.07 a kg, up US cent 1) in Jiangsu and Zhejiang while the same in Fujian and Shandong were lifted US cents 1-2 to US$1.06-1.08 a kg.

In Taiwan, offer for 1.4D were rolled back US cents 5 to US$1.05 a kg FOB. In Pakistan, polyester fibre offers were raised in the final two weeks of the month over stronger demand from downward processors. 1.4D PSF offers were raised PakRs3 to PakRs.203-205.25 a kg (US$1.29-1.31 a kg, down US cent 1 due to weak currency).

In India, producers had fixed their offers for H1 and H2 June amid flat demand and low buying interest from spinners. Producers offers for June were pegged stable at INR96.75 a kg (US$1.31 a kg) for 1.2D and at INR96 a kg (US$1.30 a kg) for 1.4D. Overall, amid lack of improvement in demand, polyester markets will mainly track swings in feedstock costs in coming month.

Nylon Nylon-6 staple fiber offers were low-

In India, producers generally revise their offer on monthly basis, hence June offer were lowered on falling cost of production and weak demand. Offers for June were at INR221-223 a kg (US$3.00-3.03 a kg, down US cents 16 from May average). ered at the lower end and raised at the upper end in June as upstream caprolactum cost was up while polyamide or nylon chip cost was down. Fibre producers reported breakeven business, amid slightly improvement in demand.

1.5D offers averaged 16.00-17.00 Yuan a kg (US$2.49-2.65 a kg, up US cents 4 on the month at the upper end).

Acrylic Acrylic staple fibre prices moved sideways in Asian markets during June as feedstock acrylonitrile cost adjusted downward and some acrylic fibre producers lowered run rates amid moderate demand.

Offers for Taiwan origin 1.5D acrylic fibre were rolled back US cents 10-20 over on the month to US$2.85-2.90 a kg FOB. In China, reference prices of cottontype staple fiber, tow and top were raised as market sentiment changed little. Demand for acrylic fibre was steady as downstream users only made hand-to-mouth volume purchase. Prices for medium-length and cotton-type acrylic fibre 1.5D and 3D tow were up at 17.90-18.20 Yuan a kg (US$2.792.84 a kg, up US cents 10).

In Pakistan, no change was reported

Viscose Viscose staple fibre markets remained weak during June in China, over a lack of demand from processors while prices appeared to have bottomed out in Pakistan.

In China, prices stayed at lower levels, with limited activities. Producers saw sparse fresh orders, as downstream mills were cautious about purchasing on the back of high stocks at the moment. In turn, the sentiment was stalemated. Spot prices eased somewhat as traders lowered their price in firm deals while producers maintained their offers steady for medium-end and high-end goods. In spot, average prices fell to 12.40 Yuan a kg (US$1.93 a kg) for 1.5D and 1.2D to 12.60 Yuan a kg (US$1.96 a kg), both down US cents 25 from May. In Taiwan, offers for 1.5D were steady at US$2.10 a kg FOB. In Pakistan, offers from overseas suppliers were raised in Karachi to PakRs360-365 a kg (US$2.29-2.32 a kg, up US cents 7).

Overall, transaction is expected to remain insipid, while prices may stand still in July. Players will generally hold weak expectation.

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COTTON REPORT

50

COTTON EXPORTS THAT DWINDLED DURING THE PANDEMIC, STABILIZE POST PANDEMIC Textile Value Chain India is the world's second largest cotton exporter and one of the world's major cotton producer. Cotton is a staple crop in India, as well as a key raw material in the local textile industry. The cotton sector in India is the second largest employer after agriculture, employing more than 110 million people directly or indirectly. According to the Ministry of Commerce and Sector, the Indian textile industry provides around 5% of India's GDP, 14% of industrial production, and 11% of total export profits. Cottonproducing states in India include Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. Cotton accounts for around 74% of Indian clothing exports. Cotton is freely exportable from India, with significant export destinations being the United States, Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, Pakistan, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Thailand.

There was a significant decline in the export of manmade staple fiber between the FY 2017 to FY 2021. Raw cotton

India - Cotton Supply and Demand Statistics (1,000 HA and 1000 480-lb. Bales) Year

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

Market Year Begins

Aug-17

Aug-18

Aug-19

Aug-20

Beginning Stocks

7,880

9,225

9,004

17,584

Area Harvested

12,600

12,600

13,400

13,300

Production

29,000

25,800

29,500

29,000

1,677

1,800

2,280

800

38,557

36,825

40,784

47,384

5,200

3,521

3,200

5,000

24,310

24,300

20,000

24,300

24,310

24,300

20,000

24,300

Ending Stocks

9,047

9,004

17,584

18,084

Stock to Use %

31

32

76

62

Imports Total Supply Exports Use Loss Total Dom. Cons.

Source: USDA

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including waste exports that were swelling up from FY 2017 to FY 2019 dwindled in the FY 2020 and again climbed up in FY 2021. Exports of Raw cotton including waste were better than manmade staple fiber.

There was a hike in the exports of cotton textiles between the FY 2017 to FY 2019 with a drop in the exports during next couple of financial years. Export of readymade garments was 8 billion USD for all the years except the FY 2021 in which the exports declined to 6.7 billion USD. Cotton yarns and fabric exports that were increasing also shrinked due the pandemic from 9 billion USD in the FY 2019 to 7 billion USD in the FY 2021. Exports of manmade textiles was very less than the exports of cotton textiles in all the mentioned years except the FY 2021. Exports of manmade textiles were less than the exports of cotton textiles since FY 2017 except the FY 2021 when exports of manmade textiles were 8 billion USD more than the previous year’s exports and was 1 billion USD more than the exports of cotton textiles in the same year. Due to the pandemic, there was a decline in the exports of wool, silk, and handloom textiles in the FY 2021.

Jute exports that lowered in FY 2020 increased noticeably in the FY 2021. There was an obvious decrease in the exports of carpets and other textile materials.

Exports of cotton yarn that exhibited a huge drop in the month of April and May 2020 displayed signs of stabilizing post pandemic with consistency in the worth of exports. November 2020 and January 2021 witnessed less exports in comparison with the exports in the same months, previous

COTTON REPORT India’s Cotton Yarn Exports Month April May June July August September October November December January February March Total

Apr - Mar 17

Apr - Mar 18

278.47 255.20 258.80 222.56 209.97 241.30 235.97 298.21 369.22 376.31 309.17 282.27 3,337.45

219.59 216.53 253.96 228.11 256.85 308.98 300.78 333.77 351.43 275.85 300.78 378.28 3,424.91

51

Values in US $ Million

Apr - Mar 19 Apr - Mar 20 Apr - Mar 21 336.78 348.52 377.64 332.27 367.48 323.25 308.13 298.04 285.79 277.90 292.89 346.76 3,895.45

266.05 241.16 188.30 185.69 200.10 194.93 221.15 245.69 252.96 284.19 266.47 213.74 2,760.43

52.60 153.83 244.02 255.08 234.49 239.48 227.59 239.33 271.04 260.08 275.47 337.83 2,790.84

Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry

year. Cotton yarn exports that were worth 3.8 billion USD in the FY 2019 were highest among the mentioned financial years, dropped to 2.7 billion USD in the FY 2021. These exports were 30 million USD more than previous year’s export, in the FY 2021.

Cotton fabric exports that depicted a subsequent growth for past three years slightly dropped due to the pandemic. There was a major decline in the exports during April 2020 and May 2020 for the same. From 110 million USD in March 2020, exports dropped down to 110 lakhs in April 2020.

Raw cotton including waste exports hiked from 1 billion USD in FY 2020 to 1.8 billion USD in the FY 2021, which was 2nd highest export since FY 2017. These exports showcased a subsequent growth since April 2020 to March 2021 where the exports swelled up from 12 lakh USD to 3 million USD, respectively. A huge drop was noticed these exports between April 2019 to November 2019 which gradually started swelling up and

dropped again in April 2020.

Pandemic has affected people globally and has hit hard to textile industry which is the 2nd largest industry after agriculture in India. In spite of this loss, there are bright days for cotton as textile sector is moving towards sustainable textile trend and India is the 2nd largest exporter of cotton.

Values in US $ Million

India's Exports of Textile Products (USD Million) Product Name

Apr Mar 17

Apr Mar 18

Apr Mar 19

Apr Mar 20

Apr Mar 21

Fiber Manmade Staple Fiber 575 579 551 491 367 Cotton raw incl. waste 1,621 1,894 2,104 1,057 1,897 Sub Total 2,196 2,473 2,655 1,548 2,264 Cotton Textiles Yarn/Fabric/Made-up 7,913 8,152 9,045 7,921 7,874 Readymade Garments 8,470 8,459 8,644 8,587 6,798 Sub Total 16,383 16,611 17,688 16,508 14,672 Man-made Textiles Yarn/Fabric/Made-up 4,554 4,823 4,974 4,815 3,801 Readymade garments 5,036 4,747 3,853 3,506 2,631 Sub Total 9,590 9,570 8,827 8,321 6,432 Wool Textiles (Yarn/Fabric/Made-up/RMG) 123 140 168 148 93 Silk Textiles (Yarn/Fabric/Madeup) 62 53 58 58 56 Silk Textiles (RMG) 142 158 170 119 90 Silk Textiles (Carpet) 10 3 16 20 14 Handloom Products 356 354 343 318 222 Jute (Yarn/Hessian/Floor Covering/Others) 380 399 392 391 405 Carpets (excluding Silk) Handmade 1,247 1,199 1,242 1,161 1,088 Other Textiles Material - Readymade3,463 garments3,122 3,223 3,065 2,585 Total Exports 33,949 34,083 34,781 31,658 36,515 Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry

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52

COTTON UPDATE

COTTON EXPORT NEARS 9 MLN BALES UP TO MAY 2021 TEXTILE BEACON

Spun yarns shipment totaled 135 million kg worth US$481 million or INR3,500 crore. The unit value realisation of all types of spun yarn averaged US$3.57 per kg. Bangladesh was the largest import of spun yarns during the month, followed by China and Egypt.

Cotton yarn export was 106 million kg worth US$396 million (INR2,894 crore). These were shipped to 77 countries at an average price of US$3.72 a kg, up US cents 2 from previous month.

Bangladesh was the top importer of cotton yarn, followed by China, Portugal, Vietnam, and Egypt.

100% man-made fibre yarn exports were at 9.5 million kg, comprising 2.9 million kg of viscose yarn, 4.1 million kg of polyester yarn and 2.3 million kg of acrylic yarn. Viscose yarn was worth US$10 million or INR75 crore, exported at an average price of US$3.49 per kg in May. The major market was Bangladesh, followed by Turkey and Belgium.

Polyester spun yarn export was worth US$9.7 million exported at average unit price of US$2.36 a kg. Brazil was the largest importer of polyester yarn, followed by the USA and Turkey.

Cotton shipment in May was 8.85 lakh bales worth INR2,125 crore or US$290 million. This takes the total export to 87 lakh bales worth US$19,000 crore or US$2,600 million in the first nine months of 2020-21 marketing season.

China was the largest market for Indian cotton during the month, followed

by Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

Blended spun yarns worth US$58 million were exported in May, including 13 million kg of PC yarns and 3.6 million kg of PV yarns. Bangladesh was the largest importer of PC yarn from India followed by Egypt while Turkey was the single largest importer of PV yarns from India followed by Vietnam.

Export price realisation for cotton averaged INR141 a kg or US cents 87.64 per pound during May. This was much below Cotlook A index, the global spot price benchmark and higher than domestic spot price for benchmark Gujarat Shankar-6. During the month, Cotlook averaged US$90.76 per pound while Shankar-6 was at US cents 81.90 per pound, implying that Indian cotton was competitive in the global market.

All kinds of filament yarns shipment totaled 77 million kg, valued at US$134 million or INR978 crore.

Basic textiles comprising fibres, spun and filament yarns shipment were worth US$968 million or INR7.066

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crore, accounting for about 3% of total merchandise exported from India during the month.

We have intentionally refrained from analyzing year on year comparison (May 2021 over May 2020) since May 2020 was a month of Covid-19 lockdown with values abysmally low and outliers to the trend.

MARKET REPORT

53

USA TEXTILE AND APPAREL IMPORTS SOMASREE ROY Textile Value Chain The US industry is one of the leading importers of textile-related products in the world. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown imposed by the government, the import of textile goods in the United States has decreased significantly.

The total import of apparel products was worth approximately 64.60 million USD in 2019 which dramatically fell in 2020 due to the covid-19 pandemic.

In 2020, the USA imported around 53 million USD worth of textile and apparel products. In both years, China remained the highest importer. Import from China in 2019 was around 39 million USD, which increased to around 45 million USD in 2020.

China topped the list of exporters with a global share of 38.28%. The second highest exporter country in both years was Vietnam which exported textile apparel worth 14 million dollars to the US with a global share of 12.45%.

US imported apparel worth 8.83 million USD and 7.61 million USD from India in the respective years 2019 and 2020 and India’s total share was 6.50%.

Bangladesh’s share was 4.76% among the global exporters of textile and apparel to the US with exports worth 6 and 5.5 million USD in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Turkey’s share was the lowest(2.06%) with an export of around 2 million USD in 2019. Apart from the top exporters countries mentioned, the share of the rest of the countries’ total export of textile apparel to the USA was just 39.1%, which was less than China’s total share.

textile apparel exports increased to 14.97%. Despite the pandemic situation, China remained the highest exporter of textile products to the US to 2019 and 2020 respectively. There was

a fall in the imports of Textile and Apparel products in the USA due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is expected to rise eventually when the situation goes back to normal.

Turkey’s global share increased by 17.81% in 2020 with the export of textile apparel worth nearly 2.5 million USD. Whereas China’s total share for

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54

TRADE REPORT

USA CARPET FIBER IMPORTS IMPROVE IN 2021 Textile Value Chain

Carpet fiber is the material from which carpet strands are produced. Carpeting fibers come in a variety of kinds. Each fiber has its own set of qualities, including unique strengths and weaknesses.

The recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a dramatic drop in US commerce. Imports and exports have both dropped by more than 20% compared to 2019. Given that foreign trade flows are typically more unpredictable than local economic activity, this drop may not be too surprising. Large increases in economic activity are usually accompanied by much greater shifts in trade flows.

The only other recent instance of such a drop occurred in early 2009, during the Great Recession. However, the graph above demonstrates a significant difference between the two recessions: Recently, exports have fallen far more than imports, which is the inverse of what happened during the Great Recession.

This disparity might be attributed to the two recessions' distinct characteristics. During a recession, imports often fall faster than exports, but the COVID-19 pandemic may be an exception: Imports may have declined less than they would have otherwise due to increased demand for imported vital medical supplies to battle the pandemic.

Although tariffs had a part in the reduction in these imports, looking at the monthly charts for both years [20192020], the import patterns were pretty similar period to period, indicating that the drop was likely caused by a pandemic rather than a tariff war impact.

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USA carpet imports that dwindled in April 2020, swelled up in March 2021 and April 2021. USA imported most of the carpet fiber from India through this whole duration. Imports from India that were worth 65 million USD in April 2020 climbed up to 124 million USD in March 2021 and remained constant in April 2021, giving it 35% global share in the USA carpet fiber imports. Turkey was the second leading exporter of the same to USA during the three months mentioned. Turkey’s exports were 63 million USD in April 2020 that hiked to 106 million USD in March 2021 and remained constant in the following month. Turkey’s share in global USA imports for the same was 30%.

China’s exports to USA have dropped since the Covid 19 pandemic which has also affected its export of carpet fiber. China that was on the top in pre-

vious years was on the third position with the exports worth 25 million USD which climbed up to 49 million USD in March 2021 and dwindled again in April 2021 when it dropped to 37 million USD. China’s share of carpet fiber imports in USA was 11%.

Egypt’s share in these exports was 6% as USA imported carpet fibers worth 12 million USD from Egypt in April 2020 that increased to 20 million USD in March 2021 and dropped by 3 million USD in April 2021. Belgium’s export was 9 million USD in April 2020, which declined to 7 million USD in March 2021. Its export was 12 million USD in April 2021. Its share was 4% in carpet fiber imports of the given period.

Vietnam’s exports were 5 million USD in April 2020 which hiked up to 12 million USD in March 2021. Their exports dropped by 2 million USD in April

TRADE REPORT

55

2021. Its share was 3%. Mexico’s share was 2% with the exports worth 6 million USD in March 2021 and 5 million USD in April 2021 which had increased from 8 lakh USD in April 2020. Canada, Netherland, and Korea’s share was 1% each. Korea’s exports were 12 million USD combined for the month of April 2020, March 2021 and April 2021, which was 2 million USD more than Netherland’s export and 3 million USD more than Canada’s export to USA in the same duration.

CARPET EXPORTS ARE GAINING TRACTION IN IRAN Handmade carpet exports totaled 366.9 tonnes worth $4.8 million in the first two months of fiscal 2021-22 (March 21May 21), representing a 275.1 percent and an 84 percent increase in weight and value, respectively, over the previous year’s corresponding period, when 97.8 tonnes worth $2.6 million were exported.

Fars News Agency stated that 214.4 tonnes worth $2.7 million were export-

NEWS

ed in the second fiscal month (April 21May 21), representing a 155 percent and 28.5 percent increase year on year.

According to the most recent production figures published by Farahnaz Rafe’, Director of Iran National Carpet Center, Iran’s handwoven carpet output increased by 34% over the first ten months of the previous Iranian year (March 20, 2020-Jan. 21) compared to the same time the previous year.

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56

MARKET REPORT

TURKEY MANIFESTS GROWTH IN HOME TEXTILE EXPORTS IN 2021-Q1 Textile Value Chain 1st quarter of 2020 was the most important as WHO had declared Covid 19 as global pandemic which resulted in strict lockdown in numerous countries across the globe. These lockdowns affected most of the industries badly textile being 2nd largest after hotel industry. Most of the imports and exports of textiles dropped heavily due to the lockdown across the globe. Though there was a hike in medical textile business globally, there was shrinkage in ready to wear clothing business and home textile business.

Home textile exports of Turkey that dwindled in the 1st quarter of 2020 showed a noticeable global share in the 1st quarter of 2021. Turkey’s export of home textiles increased by 25%.

Israel manifested the global share of 3.49% in imports of home textiles from Turkey. Its imports were 14 thousand USD in 2021-Q1 which were 9 thousand USD in 2020-Q1. Turkey exported home textiles worth 8 thousand USD toSpain in 2020-Q1 which increased to 14 thousand USD in 2021-Q1, manifesting it the global share of 3.47%. Netherlands global share was 3.18% with the imports worth 11 thousand USD and 13 thousand USD in 2020-Q1 and 2021-Q1. Austria’s global share in imports of home textiles from Turkey were 8 thousand USD in 2020-Q1, which hiked up to 12 thousand USD in 2021-Q1.

Bulgaria, Poland, and Switzerland imported the home textiles worth 7 thousand USD in 2021-Q1, which claimed increase in comparison with 2020-Q1. Czech

Republic, Iraq and Russia’s import of home textiles was worth 5 thousand USD in 2021-Q1.

There was a significant hike in the exports of home textiles

by Turkey in 2021-Q1.

Unit : 000 USD

Turkey - Home Textile Exports Importers

2020-Q1

% Share in Total Imports

2021-Q1

Germany

82,831

88,936

20.87

USA

43,142

72,061

16.91

France

17,835

27,790

6.52

Italy

18,533

20,060

4.71

United Kingdom

14,149

16,974

3.98

Israel

9,857

14,861

3.49

Spain

8,775

14,808

3.47

11,844

13,565

3.18

Austria

8,393

12,132

2.85

Bulgaria

6,532

7,996

1.88

Poland

5,072

7,626

1.79

Switzerland

6,667

7,140

1.68

Romania

3,886

6,709

1.57

Czech Republic

3,201

6,443

1.51

Iraq

6,620

6,424

1.51

Russia

5,545

6,197

1.45

Belarus

4,990

5,990

1.41

Kazakhstan

2,734

5,786

1.36

Belgium

3,744

5,109

1.20

Sweden

2,943

4,555

1.07

Others

73,386

75,054

17.61

Total

340,679

426,216

100.00

Netherlands

Source: Trademap

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MARKET REPORT

57

SHIFT IN CHINA’S TEXTILE AND APPAREL IMPORTS Textile Value Chain China is one of the top importers and exporters of textiles and apparels in the world. Covid 19 has led to a huge dwindle in the exports of not only textiles and apparels but also other products that were majorly exported from China before pandemic. As China's manufacturing costs grow, several low-cost developing countries are gaining traction in this export market. Imports that were considerably less in the previous years have visibly hiked post pandemic.

China had imported textile and apparel products worth 1.4 billion USD during January – April 2020 from Europe which swelled up to 2 billion USD in 2021 during the same period. There was 44.11% growth observed in the imports from Europe. 35.74% growth was observed in the import from Vietnam as it increased from 1.2 billion USD in January to April 2020 to 1.7 billion USD in 2021 during the same period. Import from USA that were 0.6 billion USD during January to April 2020 increased by 0.4 billion USD in January to April 2021 marking 72.98% growth in the same. Highest growth was observed in Italy’s export of textile and apparel products to China.

India’s export of Textile and Apparel imports almost doubled from 0.4 billion USD to 0.8 billion USD with 67.83% growth. Japan’s export to China remained constant for both the mentioned durations which were worth 0.7 billion USD. There was a slight growth in Brazil and Australia’s exports which were 0.6 billion USD and 0.5 billion

USD respectively. 10.14% growth was observed in Taiwan’s exports to China as its exports swelled up from 0.4 billion USD to 0.5 billion USD. Korea’s export dropped from 0.6 billion to 0.4 billion USD with -29.85%.

Unit:US$1,000 China - Textile and Apparel Imports Countries

Apr-20

Apr-21

Jan - April 20 Jan - April 21

% Change

EU

312,773

529,436

1,421,268

2,048,142

44.11

Vietnam

289,294

440,459

1,287,155

1,747,136

35.74

USA

188,328

174,821

610,349

1,055,756

72.98

Italy

97,665

259,509

458,038

999,219

118.15

India

79,230

287,952

489,239

821,085

67.83

Japan

197,822

197,144

732,249

723,376

-1.21

Brazil

47,945

102,869

619,674

692,632

11.77

Australia

166,394

210,329

572,091

590,324

3.19

Taiwan

127,196

158,924

496,308

546,609

10.14

Korea

121,842

124,140

660,632

463,404

-29.85

Others

539,674

623,743

2,408,964

2,481,683

3.02

Total

2,168,164

3,109,326

9,755,968

12,169,367

24.74

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58

TEXTILE MACHINERY REPORT

DETECTABLE DROP IN TEXTILE MACHINERY EXPORTS BY INDIA Textile Value Chain

The year 2020 has been the most difficult in our lifetimes. What began as a good year for our sector suddenly turned into a challenging one. The COVID-19 epidemic brought the whole globe to a halt, disrupting markets and supply networks everywhere. Consumer purchases of textiles and clothing were severely harmed as a result of worldwide lockdowns and the economic downturn. The Covid-19 epidemic in 2020 has hampered India's textile machinery exports. Even the previous year (2019) saw a drop in exports as a result of the economic recession and inadequate capital expenditure.

The export of textile fiber production machines has dropped significantly since the outbreak of the Covid-19 epidemic. In fiscal year 2019, textile fiber processing machinery exports totaled 309 million USD. It fell to 182.88 million USD in FY 20, then to 160.97 million USD in FY 21. Spinning machinery exports decreased dramatically in FY 21 from 223.86 million USD in FY 19 to 87.63 million USD. Preparing machines had an increase in exports, increasing from 23 million USD in FY 19 to 34 million USD in FY 21 with a 23.63 percent increase in exports. The export of combing machines from India increased by 26.30 percent. Exports of combing machines were $9.24 million USD in fiscal year 20 and rose by 11.67 percent in fiscal year 21. Carding machine exports fell from 12 million USD in FY 19 to 8.71 million USD in FY 21.

Exports of winding and reeling machinery decreased. Exports fell from 12 million USD in FY 19 to 7 million USD in FY 20, and then to 6 million USD in FY 21. Twisting machine exports peaked in FY 19 but fell precipitously in the following two years. Exports of

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Unit: USD million

roving machines fell from 2.42 million USD in FY 19 to 0.66 million USD in FY 21.

Weaving machine exports were valued 38 million USD in FY 19, but fell to 32 million USD in the next two fiscal years. Exports of shuttle looms used to weave cloth wider than 30 cm fell from 32 million USD in FY 19 to 25 million USD in FY 21. When compared to the shuttle type loom stated above, exports of machines for weaving cloth with widths less than 30 cm broad were quite low. The export of this equipment, which was 1.66 million USD in FY 19, was reduced to 1 million USD in FY 21.

Exports of shuttle type power looms for weaving cloth wider than 30 cm broad increased by 34.21 percent, from 0.8 million USD in FY 19 to 0.51 million USD in FY 21. Shuttle-less looms for weaving cloth wider than 30 cm broad were shipped worth 3 million USD in FY 19, fell to 3 million USD in FY 20,

but increased to 5 million USD in FY 21.

There was a further increase in knitting machine exports in FY 21 as compared to FY 19. Knitting machines, stitch bonding machines, and equipment for creating gimped yarn, tulle, lace, embroidery, trimmings, braid, or net, as well as tufting machines, were exported worth $2 million in FY 19 and increased to $4 million in FY 21In fiscal year 21, the export of circular knitting machines with a diameter smaller than 165 mm was worth 0.51 million USD. Flat knitting and stitch bonding machine exports were 2.78 million USD in FY 21, representing a 19.31 percent increase. Circular knitting machine exports were steady throughout the three years, representing a 31.82 percent increase. Machines for manufacturing tulle, lace, needlework, trimmings, and other fabrics were valued 0.76 million USD in FY 19, increased to 1.5 million USD in FY 20, and fell to 0.75 million USD in FY 21.

MINISTRY HIGHLIGHT

59

WELCOME OUR NEW CAPTAIN… SHRI PIYUSH GOYAL JI !!!

Avinash Mayekar, MD & CEO, Suvin Advisor

Warm Welcome to the Textile Industry!!!

Your capabilities & sheer persona for driving growth are no stranger to India. Sir, we all are aware of your remarkable accomplishments from the various portfolios handled by you. With your appointment, the entire textile & apparel industry is expecting the same driving force for its growth under your able leadership. However, being an age-old industry, and one of the major employment generating industries, it should not be ignored by the government. The textile & apparel industry is often seen to be more demanding as most of the times, its demands and credit worthiness are somehow not understood or sidelined in the vast industrial domain of our country. The major reasons for this are: The age of the Industry presumes that it is all settled The challenges of connecting the various dots of various fibres, segments, locations, diverse processes, etc. among the industry Over the years, the Industry has witnessed action plans for growth with many Ministers. Each one of them in their capability has tried their level best to uplift the industry. However, being a vast industry with a wide presence of lobbies across fibres, processes, sectors, government bodies, etc. it has a number of challenges, interferences and influences. Naturally, there are lobbies which work very closely with the honorable minister in their favour.

By the length & breadth of the lobby, things are being taken care of for the growth of their own lobby. So the overall upliftment of the industry has somehow not taken place to the full extent of India’s capabilities.

China, currently the number one country across the textiles & Apparels trade is losing its share, the reason is well known to all. The anti-sentiments & negative vibe that emerged in the pandemic is no more a hidden secret.

The vision to develop a policy for channeling the growth across all parts & parcels of Textiles & Apparels is the need of the hour. I am sure Mr. Piyush Ji with your strategic approach & global vision we will see the industry soar higher & higher.

An overview of the Textiles & Apparel Industry, which I am sure you would already be familiarized with. Indian Textiles & Apparels industry is at distant number 2 in the global trade scenario across the world. But the position is not to be satisfied with as we are at this position for a very long period & all our neighboring countries namely Bangladesh, Cambodia, Viet Nam, Sri Lanka etc. are now doing exceedingly well despite lower capabilities & other challenges. India has a huge domestic market & a well-established brand “India.” Also, the recent crisis has shown India’s true capabilities of rising to the occasion & being able to do anything & everything under the sun during a pandemic. We did quite well with medical textiles.

Since 2012, the entire globe is eying for India to emerge as the hub for textiles & apparels. Unfortunately, we have not yet fully understood our potential.

The market is also now more favorable than before towards India owing to the dynamics of politics across the world.

The pandemic has also created an alarming situation for countries to look for other options & reduce dependency on China. The US & EU biggest markets of the textiles are now more stringent on rules, regulations, social compliances which is another reason for the reduced share of China in view of not abiding by the led down regulations. Certifications for the originality and tracking of raw material sources are mandated by global brands. Though China’s economy of scale & their policy of investment in other countries is the challenging factor in beating their number 1 position. However, India can rise to its full potential & very well reduce the gap & be a competitor number 2 rather than a distant number 2 player. We can easily drag more share into our belt with a chalked-out vision for the entire value chain of textiles & apparel industry. Some of the guidelines for better mileage generation in line with our vision: 1. To have a global market focus strategy 2. Playing to our strength by mapping target destination countries •

Raw material & resource availability

•

Focus sectors growth

for

exponential

3. Focus & organize the domestic market •

Avoid malpractices

•

Avoid dumping of imported prod-

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MINISTRY HIGHLIGHT

60 ucts •

Loopholes elimination in the duty structure.

•

Relining & educating the manufacturers with legal framework.

•

Adhering to international norms & regulations.

4. Educate & necessitate the need for modernization & developing worldclass infrastructure to: •

Reduce operating cost in terms of power & utility cost reduction by adopting new technologies.

•

Renewable sources of energy to take care of environment.

•

To adopt & follow environment friendly culture.

•

Adopting to all social compliances.

5. Strengthening our weaknesses & developing policy to help the producers & create benefits for exporters to compete effectively in the international market 6. History has seen the progress of ex-

port-oriented units however, we need to focus on the complete value chain with international standards for exports

across other segments •

Focus on replacement products especially for producing products through non-conventional technology to encash on the economy of scale.

•

New outlooks for products for e.g.

Traditional curtains to be replaced with nonwoven disposable innovative curtains & also in line with hygiene necessity especially for hospitality industry.

7. Boost sectors coming up with finished products for domestic as well as international markets 8. Promotion of marketing wings development.

•

Participation in International shows with aggressive brand India

•

Product portfolio development & marketing channel development.

•

Support for international marketing activities.

9. Cost controls on raw materials to adhere to the international pricing policy 10. New Product developments especially in technical textiles is the need of the hour.

•

Our sudden number 2 stature in medical textiles showcases the vast capability of India however a more focus on quality is the necessity to continue the success streak

Dear Piyush ji, we have admired your work & are well aware of the dynamics of positive changes that you bring across. We have high expectations from you and we believe you will bring innovative solutions & strategic approaches to help Indian Textile & apparel industry.

We are once again dreaming of the golden era for our industry and we are sure that it will take its well-deserved position in the global market for leading the textiles & apparels trade under your able leadership!!!

NEWS

AHLSTROM-MUNKSJÖ ADVANCES MALMEDY CAPACITY INVESTMENT Ahlstrom-Malmedy Munksjö’s factory in Belgium is on track to increase manufacturing capacity. The €10 million expansion, announced in January 2020, would more than quadruple the plant’s capacity and expand output to include filtering materials. The investment will result in the creation of 40 new employment opportunities in the area.

Ahlstrom-Munksjö is a major provider of wallcovering materials, offering a wide range of high-end nonwovens.

The market for high-end wallcover-

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ings is projected to develop further due to rising demand for digitally printed wallcoverings, new and creative textures and colours, and increased customer desire for home décor and new interior design trends.

Ahlstrom-Munksjö is a global leader in the supply of high-quality filtration materials for the industrial and transportation markets.

“This investment will enhance Ahlstrom-position Munksjö’s in providing innovative fiber-based solutions for

both the wallcovering and filtration markets.” It demonstrates our flexibility in reacting to changes in market demand and allows us to continue to assist our clients in the future,” says Pierre Mary, vice president of Nonwovens and Abrasives.

FASHION INSIGHT

61

EXPLORING THE MODERN-DAY MIDDLE EASTERN DRESS CULTURE shorts or sleeveless shirts on the streets, although looking at the development in this region, the restrictions might be softened.

Introduction The fashion industry in the Middle East area is prominent in its own right. Clothing not only defines a person's personality, but also their origin and socioeconomic status.

The choice of dress, such as hijabs or jilbabs, also symbolises the region's core moral character. Men are dressed in keffiyehs and long tunics. Their clothing reflects a wide range of cultures and religious beliefs. The attire is also mostly determined by the climate of the location. The long white and loose clothing, for example, are to keep them cool in the hot environment, and have now become a part of their identity.

Fashion in the Middle East is a complicated reality in which western trends coexist with local traditions. However, in other countries, western fashion is still forbidden by the government, and individuals are forced to dress according to the government's standards, such as women being forced to wear hijabs, limiting their independence. The citizens have no option but to observe these regulations since violating them will result in a punishment.

Middle East Fashion market The Fashion industry in the MENA region has accomplished a worth of 55 billion dollars. The spending amount of the people in this region is estimated to be double compared to countries like the US and China who have a higher population count. The region is filled with opportunities for a bigger market with an intriguing mix of western and cultural fashion.

Type of Clothing Clothing in the Middle East region has its cultural importance. The women have their traditional attire that includes: Hijab, Salwar, even an Abaya and niqab.

In business meetings, it is appropriate to wear suits for both men and women. For women, the trousers or skirts should fall below the knee and the elbows should always be covered at all times with a shirt or vest.

E-commerce The men's fashion includes keffiyeh and long tunics, Sifrah Glider that is especially worn by Emirati and Arab men, also Kanduoura, Agaal and Bisht.

Clothing restrictions for women In the Middle East, women are specifically dressed to cover their full body while travelling outdoors following their religious custom. Their clothing includes Abaya, a black overgarment or Hijab and sometimes Burqa.

Though in some countries in the Middle East region, women are given the freedom in choosing their attire but the only condition is to dress conservatively.

Informal fashion and other etiquettes for foreigners Even though the weather is mostly hot in the Middle East region, the Arabs women are not spared from their traditional clothing. They are expected to dress in their regular clothing or else are objectified as ‘easy virtue’ or a prostitute.

Whereas in their home, the younger females of the family are allowed to wear western clothes.

Tourists, especially foreign women, have no restrictions on their clothing style unless it's not considered conservative according to the Arab culture. Whereas men tourists are recommended to avoid

E-commerce in the Middle East region is surging as internet penetration in UAE and Saudi Arabia is at 99 and 89 per cent respectively, which is a huge number compared to other developed countries. It is estimated to grow around 40 per cent a year over the next 5 years increasing its penetration by 7 per cent from the current, whereas, in some fashion categories in Saudi Arabia, it has already reached 20 per cent.

The local business leaders such as Ounass, The Modist, Namshi, Omnichannel and Pure players are already in the race to invest in this trend. Virtual platforms such as Amazon, Farfetch and many more are also interested in extending their market in the Middle East region.

Future of MENA Fashion The impact of Western and American culture on the way people dress in the Middle East and Africa will grow in the coming years. However, it appears that the Middle Eastern and African nations will preserve their traditional and deeply entrenched dress culture.

The intriguing opportunity to collaborate western fashion with their traditional culture is certainly something to look forward to in the upcoming future. With the new opportunities rising along in the Global Fashion industry, the people have a lot to explore and design.

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62

FASHION INSIGHT

TEXTILE INDUSTRY TAKES A DIGITAL LEAP PRIYANKA JAGTAP Bollywood Costume Illustrator and Founder, House of Binibini

After agriculture, the textile sector is India's second largest industry. It not only employs many people but also contributes significantly to the Indian economy. Textile production is one of the primary operations carried out in the textile sector that results in the creation of new employment. Since the previous decade, there has been a significant shift in Indian textile patterns, making it difficult for value-conscious designers to keep up. Since the textile industry's digitization, there has been a significant transition away from hand drawn drawings and design drafts.

Today, the textile sector is making significant strides toward digitization.

If you are acquainted with this term and are still wondering how and why digitalization is occurring in the textile business, then you are about to delve into the depths of current textile breakthroughs and trends that will soon take the industry by storm!

Digitalization, which is significantly affecting the textile value chain, is more than simply a little click for completing your desired activities; it extends beyond the click and picks. Today, a textile designer may create a fabric, verify its repetition, check its appearance as a fabric or as a finished product, and have hundreds of those designed textiles made with the click of a button!

Is it graphic design if it's so simple?

NO! While many aspiring designers devote their valuable time to learning graphic design, many are unaware that they are aiming for the wrong fish. The textile design process includes systems

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with built-in software that automatically matches swatch color, resulting in finished goods that are precisely what you saw and designed on the screen.

Digital Textile Design teaches students and practitioners of textile design all they need to know about designing and printing digitally. Textile designers are realizing the creative possibilities of digital textile design and are quickly catching up with graphic designers

who have gone digital.

The emergence of digital textile printing brings significant benefits to more than just production. Digital printing technology also removes some significant constraints that traditional printing imposed on designers. As a designer, digital printing allows you to broaden your creativity while also allowing you to better adapt to market demands.

FASHION INSIGHT

second largest industry. Every year, India exports millions of tons of fabric throughout the world. Keeping up with the trend and offering something better than the competition is always a fantastic approach to stay ahead in the market. The following are some of the reasons why you should use digitalized textile design in your business.

Advantages of Digital Textile Design Textile designers have become used to the constraints imposed by traditional printing over the years. These constraints are now inextricably linked to the design process. However, a new generation of designers is emerging, and more and more designers are becoming aware of the benefits that digital textile printing can provide.

It saves a lot of time that would otherwise be spent on traditional design; • It improves the fabric effects in your design sample and makes it appear more authentic.

1. A broader color palette from which to select Colors are created on a micro level by combining minuscule dots of the fundamental process colors in a digital textile printing machine. That implies a digital textile printing machine can produce approximately 16 million distinct colors in total. Consider what you can accomplish with such a diverse color pallet at your disposal.

Only a limited number of colors may be utilized in traditional printing. For example, if you have an eight-color rotary screen printing equipment, you can only produce designs with those eight colors and no others. Furthermore, you must divide your design according to the number of colors you intend to utilize. Each color utilized in your design necessitates the usage of an additional screen, thus it is preferable to use a single screen. That severely limits the amount of creativity you can put into your design. Digital textile design has no color limits and saves time because you no longer must separate colors.

2. Designs that are one-of-a-kind and do not recur In traditional textile printing, you deal with screens, which means that as a designer, you must constantly consider the possibility of a repeat in your design. This implies that the length of the one-of-a-kind design is governed by the circumference of the screens, and the design will be repeated throughout the fabric. The most popular screens have a circumference of 64 centimeters, implying that each 64 centimeters of cloth has the same design.

However, with digital printing, you may create a one-of-a-kind design

63

without being constrained by the constraints imposed by a screen. Your design may be if you want it to be. The only theoretical restriction is the size of the file you choose to generate. That implies you may, for example, design a garment with a front and backside that do not replicate (unique image from bottom to top).

3. Fast altering sample design Design is a time-consuming endeavor.

As a designer, you are responsible for making the necessary adjustments for the customer. Adjusting is traditionally a time-consuming procedure. You may use digital textile design to not only make rapid modifications to the sample design, but also to swiftly develop variants for the same.

The benefits of an e-textile swatch interface include •

Reducing the number of fabric swatch books made and the waste associated with disposing of obsolete fabric swatch books

•

Reducing the number of textile prototyping periods.

•

Reduce the amount of unneeded stock fabric.

•

Improve the problem of transport pollution generated by delivering physical fabric swatch books and sample textiles.

It allows you to give more design variants with realistic representation.

Excellent for e-catalogues. Clients can be given e-catalogues.

Only sell designs on the internet.

Through automation, it is possible to link to looms such as jacquard and powerloom.

Future Scope and Limitations of Textile Industry Digitalization With the digitization of the textile sector, there will be tremendous technological development. It would save a lot of time, personnel, and money while producing outstanding outcomes and a wide range of options. Digitalization is an obvious future that will result in significant advancements in the textile sector. Despite this tremendous progress, the textile sector may lose the allure of traditional and modern fabrics owing to digitization. However, advancement is never a negative thing. It unquestionably opens the door to new chances and achievements.

Why does your textile manufacturing firm require digital textile design?

The textile and clothing sector is India's

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