Union Minister of Textiles, Smriti Zubin Irani, inaugurated the 6th India International Silk Fair (IISF) at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi on Oct 17, 2018. The exhibition features 108 exhibitors from all over the country including 10 from North East and 9 from J&K. Around 147 buyers Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Australia, Kuwait and Egypt are attending the event.

The 3-days exhibition, organised by Indian Silk Export Promotion Council, is expected to generate business of over US$ 20 million for the SMEs engaged in producing silk and silk blended garments, fabrics, accessories and floor covering.

The Indian Silk Export Promotion Council is also organising B2B meeting of participants with buyers and a Fashion Show for the participants.

The 30thApparel Importers Trade & Transportation Conference will be held in New York on November 7, 2018. Hosted by the U.S. Fashion Industry Association (USFIA) and American Import Shippers Association (AISA) in conjunction with USFIA Premier Partner & Host Sponsor PwC, the event will bring together executives working in compliance, logistics, sourcing, supply chain management, government relations, and corporate social responsibility to discuss the impact of the elections on trade and business, as well as other hot topics.

The agenda will focus on the U.S.-China trade tensions and how companies can mitigate the impact of the Section 301 tariff increases. Confirmed speakers will include Bill Jackson, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Textiles; David Spooner, Barnes & Thornburg LLP, former Chief Textile & Apparel Negotiator at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Import Administration; Erin Ennis, Senior Vice President of the U.S.-China Business Council; and Avedis Seferian, President & CEO of Worldwide Responsible Accredited Production (WRAP), who will discuss factory safety and compliance considerations for companies considering shifting sourcing to combat price increases.

In addition to trade policy, the conference will include discussions on retail, sustainability, and innovation, including experts from Levi Strauss & Co., Macy’s Merchandising Group, BSI, Canopy, Lenzing, and PwC.

Headquartered in Milan, C.L.A.S.S., the global resource for smart material innovation, education, marketing and communication, will support this year’s Textile Exchange Sustainability Conference.

The C.L.A.S.S. team will demonstrate the embedded values of a fantastic range of smart material innovations backed by sustainable credentials from C.L.A.S.S.’ Material Hub. Giusy Bettoni, C.L.A.S.S. CEO and Founder and her team will have a dedicated space to engage attendees in an open discussion regarding the importance of fashion business strategies as they highlight a wide-range of responsible materials.

The experience in the space will start with the vision of a film by Cristina Picchi that represents harmony between the various phases of the textile process and the cycles of natural elements.

Visitors will walk through a three-dimensional installation designed by Cécile Feilchenfeldt to inspire creativity and explore the limitless possibilities using innovative smart materials. Many of the materials, the C.L.A.S.S. team will showcase speak to circular economy such as Re.VerSo™, Bemberg™ and ROICA™ by Asahi Kasei, Iluna Group and Tintex Textiles and many others that use technological breakthroughs to offer fashion materials that provide significant reductions in water during the manufacturing process.

To be held in Milan from October 22-24, 2018, this year’s Textile Exchange’s Sustainability Conference will offer an opportunity to connect with industry pioneers and learn about cutting edge solutions and innovations in textile and apparel sustainability. The theme of the 2018 conference is United by Action: Accelerating Sustainability in Textiles and Fashion.

Titas in its 22nd year of its edition is underscoring the primacy of need for ‘Global Smart Value Chain’ besides maintaining the core products of functional, sustainable side of the business. Therefore in order to offer a more comprehensive one-stop service to both exhibitors & attendees, in collaboration with Taipei Sewing Machine Association (TSMA), this year TTF has also invited TSMA members to present the latest devolpment in smart manufacturing including automatic sewing machines and smart sewing systems & solutions.

All new pavilion for smart textiles

TITAS serves as a core platform to promote innovative textiles centres on functionality, sustainability & smart textiles. With the advent of technology and dynamic challenges posed to the manufacturing per say advance technologies such IOT & AI is also influencing the conventional industry like Textiles/ Apparel also. In response to this evolving macro trends for the 1st time over here also a smart Smart Textile Pavilion is organized within TITAS 2018 edition under three mega trends

Smart Textiles Smart manufacturing

Smart Solutions to basically introduce the upcoming automation and intelligentization of manufacturing.Up on the display is products and solutions like Smart thermal clothes integrating temperature control and positioning functions. Textiles with temperature control & warning feature. The colour measurement technology breaking through traditional thinking to detect miniscule colour diffrences Software based solutions adopting IT, AI and RFID technologies.Textile technologies combining isolated microcontrollers with yarns & fibres to enhance the applications of multi-functional textiles.LED arrays display clothes using using ESTM (Embedded smart textile module) to present a new garment image marrying art and tech to the best of it.

The entire exercise is aimed at bringing to the spotlight the need to highlight that ‘It is both sets of drivers and their potential implications for supply chains which creates a powerful lens through which to reimagine/ rediscover the ways that multi stakeholders to global supply chains create desired value and start to contribute unequivocally a sustainable & more livable world.

As a part of TITAS 2018 Seminar series under the knowledge forum titled as- “ISKO ARQUAS and ISKO responsible innovation approach” presented, By Rosey Cortazzi, Marketing Director & Ms. Ebru Ozkucuk Guler -Senior Corporate Social Responsibility Executive. Rosey avers ‘Respect for the planet’. She further adds ISKO stays true to Responsible Innovation goals as this is a company clearly with missionary goal; 

Fatih Konukoglu, CEO 

“To produce value through an effective combination of production, performance, responsibility, and sustainability. This goal is surely challenging, but I see that our daily hard work and positive results testify to our efforts.” THE APPROACH | RESPONSIBLE INNOVATION

ISKO is also the only denim mill in the world to have achieved both the Nordic Swan Ecolabel and EU Ecolabel for the ISKO Earth Fit collection, which is made with raw materials like organic cotton, recycled cotton and recycled polyester from PET bottles.

Moreover, ISKO is a signatory member of the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Program, which tackles the issue of hazardous chemicals in the textiles industry, and manages the environmental impacts of their operations through the Environmental Management System certified to the international standard ISO 14001 ISKO stays true to Responsible Innovation™ goals

ISKO is the first denim manufacturer in the world to obtain pre-certified Environmental Product Declarations (EPD®s) for the Life Cycle Assessment (LCAs) of all its 25,000+ denim fabrics. These EPD®s are being used to create independently developed Product Category Rules (PCRs), which will help form a way, for the first time ever, to have standardised assessments for denim across the industry. 

"The report was not appreciated by the fashion industry, which warned that the sector could face staff shortages if these recommendations come into force. James Eden, Managing Director, Private White VC, employs around 80 per cent of its staff from EU as pattern-cutters and machinists. The brand recruits both skilled and non-skilled workers, and any obstacle to stop this would be a matter of great concern to it."

The UK Migration Advisory Committee’, recently, published the EEA migration in the UK: Final report. The report recommended easier migration rules for higher-skilled workers to the UK. At the same time, it also recommended certain restrictions for lower-skilled workers.

Report disappoints apparel industry

The report was not appreciated by the fashion industry, which warned that the sector could face staff shortages if these recommendations come into force. James Eden, Managing Director, Private White VC, employs around 80 per cent of its staff from EU as pattern-cutters and machinists. The brand recruits both skilled and non-skilled workers, and any obstacle to stop this would be a matter of great concern to it.

Adam Mansell, Chief Executive, UK Fashion and Textile Association, also expressed his disappointment with the recommendation. He believes the country needs to attract the brightest and the best talent. This includes sewing machinist, pattern-cutter or weaver. The existing visa scheme for non-EU national jobs does not include the highly skilled workers. The EU should formulate a new visa system that recognises a highly skilled sample machinist on par with the designer.

Skilled labour shortage forces companies to recruit from new countries. Schools and colleges currently do not focus on manufacturing as a career. As a result, the industry is experiencing a limited pool of home-grown skilled manufacturing talent. This, in turn, is forcing the companies to recruit from countries such as Poland, Romania and Hungary.

Migration rules to negatively impact consumers

Jenny Holloway, Chief Executive at London manufacturer Fashion Enter, expressed doubts about Migration Committee recognising the skills of the EU machinists. Reiterating the need for a pipeline of experienced and skilled workers, she urged the officials to be industry-focused and create a benchmark for higher skills. She urged the Education & Skills Funding Agency to release more Adult Education Budget funds to allow upskilling of these machinists in the UK.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the BRC also believes that restricting the migration system would negatively impact consumers. She urged the government to publish the details of new system to ensure consumers and businesses are not adversely affected. In March 2017, recruitment website Indeed Analysed Office for National Statistics data and found that of the around 1 million jobs created in the UK since 2008 – 44.3 per cent of all new jobs – had been filled by people who were born in another EU country.

As per the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), the monthly Index of Industrial Production (IIP) for textiles for August 2018 has increased by 7.8 per cent from 116 during August 2017 to 125.1 during August 2018. However, the cumulative index has increased by 2.9 per cent to 119.7 during April-August 2018 from 116.3 during April-August 2017.

Similarly, the monthly index for wearing apparel has increased from 121.4 during August 2017 to 144.3 during August 2018, showing a robust increase of 18.9 per cent. However, the cumulative index has increased from 142.6 during April-August 2017 to 144.2 during April-August 2018 showing a marginal increase of 1.1 per cent.

The general Index for August 2018 has increased by 4.3 per cent as compared to the level in August 2017. The cumulative growth for the period April- August 2018 over the corresponding period of the previous year stands at 5.2 per cent.

Giriraj Singh, Minister of State for MSME [I/C] presented the guild certificates to nine framers in Picture Framing Segment athe t 46thedition of IHGF-Delhi Fair Autumn being held at India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida from October 14 – 18, 2018.

Also present on the occasion were: O P Prahladka, Chairman, EPCH, Jesmina Zeliang, President of the fair, Mohan Singh Bhati and Ahmed Akberali Sundrani, Vice Presidents of the fair, R K Passi and Sagar Mehta, Vice Chairmen, EPCH and Rakesh Kumar, Executive Director, EPCH. Santosh Ranjan Rai, Rajesh Chaudhary and Naveen Kumar also attended the fair.

Handicrafts’ growing importance in Indian economy

Distributing the guild certificates to winners, Singh stated the Indian soul resides in handicrafts sector, which keeps us close to the roots. Nearly seven million artisans and crafts persons work in different craft clusters of the sector and are its backbone. He urged everybody to make efforts to increase their livelihood. Singh appreciated EPCH for giving them the opportunity to display their intricate craftsmanship through this show, generating employment for them as well as providing technical support for enhancing designs of their products to compete in the world market.

Paying the artisans the real value of skills

He further said handicrafts sector can flourish only when artisans are paid the real value for their skills. Whatever progress the handicraft sector has so far made, is because of hard work of artisans and crafts persons of India.

EPCH in collaboration with Manish Gourisaria, Joint Managing Director of Lion India has taken an unique initiative to upgrade the Picture Framing Industry in India by conducting GCF training programme for Indian framers in association with Fine Art Trade Guild, London, UK. Rakesh Kumar, ED, EPCH revealed this will enable framers to acquire higher skills and quality of workmanship and accommodate different levels of framing with the bespoke market to International standards.

The International Monetary Fund has cut its 2019 growth forecast for the US economy from 2.7 to 2.5 per cent as President Trump’s trade policies are likely to harm domestic and international growth. In a recent interview with Lesley Stahl on “60 Minutes,” President Donald Trump expressed his plan to impose more tariffs on China. Trump has already imposed $250 billion in tariffs on products imported into the U.S. It further plans to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel dumping and 10 per cent on aluminum dumping.

China has retaliated against the tariffs and will further retaliate against any additional tariffs. Multiple industries have felt the impact of this trade war and retailers are likely to pass on the costs to consumers to mitigate the tariff effects.

FICCI in partnership with the Ministry of Commerce & Industry is organising the India Pavilion at the 22nd Taipei, Innovative Textile Application Show (TITAS), being held from October 16 to 18, 2018. The pavilion is showcasing the best of Indian textile accessories, textile related technologies and services. The India pavilion has a strong exhibitor presence with companies like Indorama industries, J Korin Spinning, Dodha Synthetics, Paras Fashions, Kireet Apparels, etc, among the exhibitors.

One of the largest employment generator, Indian textiles industry is estimated at around $120 billion and is expected to reach $230 billion by 2020. The industry contributes approximately 4 per cent to India’s GDP, and 14 per cent to overall Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

With 45 million people employed directly, the textile sector is one of the largest sources of employment generation in the country. With 3,400 textile mills having installed capacity of more than 50 million spindles and 842,000 rotors, it is the second largest sector in the world

The textiles sector is also one of the largest contributors to India’s exports with approximately 15 per cent of total exports. The industry is extremely varied, with the hand-spun and hand-woven textiles sectors at one end of the spectrum, while the capital intensive sophisticated mills sector at the other end of the spectrum.