FW
Aimed at developing skills in the youth to help them get gainful and sustainable employment in textile sector, the Ministry of Textiles has launched ‘Samarth’ scheme in the organized and traditional textile groups. The scheme was launched following approval of cabinet committee on economic affairs.
Synthetic and Rayon Textile Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC) chairman Narain Agarwal says the Samarth scheme aims at skilling nearly 10 lakh young Indians in organized plus traditional textile sectors over a period of three years from 2017 to 2020. He further added that the Centre has earmarked an outlay of Rs 1,300 crore covering the entire textile value chain, except spinning and weaving. The objective of achieving $300 billion exports in the textile sector by 2025 will be realized once 10 lakh skilled youths will be employed in the textile sector.
The scheme will have National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) compliant training courses with funding norms as per the common norms notified by Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE).
According to Agarwal, the textile committee as resource support agency (RSE) will perform various functions to identify and finalize skill development needs, standardize and develop the course content, specify the training centre’s infrastructure, standardize the admission assessment certification and accreditation processes, empanel assessment agencies, conduct training of trainers and training of assessors etc. The scheme also will ensure 70 per cent placement of successful trainees.
Experts say, the textile sector and the apparel market of Pakistan may suffer in the long term if the ongoing global trade war, between China and the US, continues further. It may cause a rise in the cost of production and raw material in developing countries, which in turn could cause inflation and threaten the global economic recovery. As trade declines and output falls, it may result in lower wages and unemployment. The trade war is taking place at a time when global investors are also nervous regarding the post-Brexit UK and EU trade negotiations, it is therefore to reduce trade between UK and its trading partners could decline. Additionally, other advanced economies can also step up protectionism and start making foreign imports more expensive through tariffs, para-tariffs and non-tariff barriers. This will hurt the decade-long efforts of trying to revive a more liberal trade regime and save multilateralism.
PolyOne has introduced a new fiber-colorant technology for polyester that incorporates proprietary high-pressure metering equipment with the company’s Color Matrix liquid concentrates. The technology enables the color-injection step to take place further downstream than in conventional colorant processes.
In the Color Matrix process, liquid color is injected into the polyester melt-flow between the end of the extruder and the spin head. This later-stage injection minimizes color contamination and reduces the time required for cleaning and color changeout. Further, several injection points can be added to run multiple colors or additives simultaneously on a single extruder line. This flexibility is especially beneficial to small-batch production, as manufacturers can use the same process to make a wide range of volumes and the process can be rapidly scaled onsite. Also, the new technology enables facilities that use reactor spinning lines to produce standard white polyester fibers to produce colored products inline, eliminating the need for a secondary aqueous dyeing process.
Traditional aqueous dyeing processes can use up to ten liters of water to color a single kilogram of fiber, but this new spin-coloring technology reportedly requires no water and consumes less energy and fewer chemicals.
It also eliminates the secondary treatment operations typically required to discharge wastewater safely into the environment. The technology’s precise mixing elements are crucial to harnessing the full benefits of flexibility and efficiency.
Japan, Korea and China are working on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). India is the only major economy seemingly distant from the idea of getting RCEP over the line. A reluctant participant from the very beginning, India finds that its own interests are almost entirely at a variance with those of the principal proponents of RCEP.
When most countries spoke of undertaking trade liberalization in both agricultural and industrial products, India drew its own divergent line in the tariff negotiations. India’s major concern was the presence of China. India was therefore reluctant to offer lower tariffs on too many goods to its northern neighbor. The concern was not without basis: even without preferential tariffs, India’s imports from China increased nearly eleven-fold between 2004-05 and 2017-18. During the same period, the increase in India’s exports to China was relatively modest, resulting in a steep increase in the trade deficit with China.
Adding to this is India’s not-too-happy experience implementing the three FTAs with Asean, Japan and Korea. India had agreed to eliminate tariffs on about 80 per cent of its products in each of these agreements and the outcome was quite similar—consistently rising trade deficits. While India lowered its tariffs to allow easier market access to its partner countries, Indian entities were unable to secure enhanced market access using the lower tariffs offered by the FTA partners.
Leading exhibition event organiser FAKT Exhibitions organised the 11th International Exhibition and Conference for Garment and Textile Industry (IGATEX- 2018) from April 26-29, 2018 at Lahore. The exhibition showcased stand-alone demonstrations of various cutting edge industry tools and technology, and also displayed the latest machinery, chemicals and equipment used in the textile industry.
Around 500 exhibitors from 32 countries including China, Italy, Germany, France, Japan, Russia, Turkey, UAE, USA, UK participated in the event. The event also featured a two day high-level conference covering topics related to technical textile, merchandising and supply chain which was discussed by 15 renowned speakers.
Global Organic Textile Standard will hold 'GOTS India Seminar 2018 at Le Méridien Coimbatore, India. The theme for this seminar will be ‘Sustainability as Key to Business Efficiency’. The one-day seminar, through its focused and challenging discussions, shall address issues relevant to the organic textiles industry. It shall equip delegates with best practices relating to the biggest opportunities and challenges, thus helping them transform their supply chains to achieve efficiency through sustainability. It will address key issues such as:
Sustainability in fashion industry: This will involve a survey of the current trends in eco-fashion domain, priorities and experiences of conscious buyers, integration of organic textiles in the products of Indian and international brands; Chemical and environmental compliance: This involves a study of the latest requirements in GOTS and the current trends in environmental compliances; Future of compliances and standards: The latest challenges in compliances and standards, how are other stakeholders in the market setting their requirement and how can organisations collaborate to reduce double working.
The fashion industry consumes vast amounts of cotton, water, and power to make 100 billion accessories and garments annually—three-fifths of which are thrown away within a year Less than one per cent of that is recycled into new clothes. The equivalent of a dump truck filled with textiles gets landfilled or incinerated every single second.
The industry’s growth is slowing as millennials increasingly understand fast fashion’s impact on the environment and exhibit a preference for spending on experiences rather than goods. By 2021, Gap will procure cotton only from organic farms or other producers it deems sustainable.
Uniqlo is experimenting with lasers to create distressed jeans using less water and chemicals. H&M is funding startups developing recycling technologies and fabrics made from unconventional materials such as mushroom roots. H&M is seeking to make all its products from recycled and sustainable materials by 2030, up from 35 per cent today.
There is a shift in the industry known for churning out super cheap stuff that fills closets for just a few months before being tossed into the used-clothing bin. With growing concern over waste, retailers have placed recycling bins prominently in many stores. Highlighting such initiatives in tandem with efforts to use greener materials can help win customers.
British Wool has launched the 2018 Golden Fleece Competition, in association with JG Animal Health. Designed to showcase the exceptional quality of the wool produced in the Great Britian, the competition highlights the importance of fleece presentation in maximising the value of wool.
Judging the competition will take place across three stages, with finalists invited to a presentation ceremony in Bradford in December, all receiving a £125 product voucher from JG Animal Health. The 2018 National Golden Fleece Champion will receive a competition salver and £1000 prize money. Reserve Champion will receive £500. Farmers registered with British Wool can enter the competition via British Wool’s network of 11 grading depots.
About half the industrial disputes that took place last year in Bangladesh were in the garment sector. The next highest incidence of industrial disputes was seen in the transport sector, followed by tobacco, agriculture, sugar and waterways transports.
Some 40 per cent of the disputes took place over arrears, 25 per cent over rights and other claims, ten per cent for closure of the factories, eight per cent for beating workers, four per cent for over-time allowance and four per cent for compensation.
A total 68 demonstrations, 21 human chains, 18 strikes, 15 road blocks and 12 gatherings was seen last year. Of the total, 307 were killed in the transport sector, making it the deadliest sector, followed by construction at 131. Almost 517, including 109 female, workers were injured in their workplaces last year. Of the number, 158 were in the garment sector, which is the highest, followed by construction at 91.
Since the garment sector is the largest in the country, the number of disputes is bound to be higher than in other sectors. Some 4.4 million workers are directly employed in the apparel sector in the country in more than 4,000 active garment factories. And if backward and forward linkage industries are included, the number would surpass a crore.
Deckers Brands a global leader in designing, marketing and distributing innovative footwear, apparel and accessories recently appointed William L McComb to its board of directors. He is an expert in building strong brands and leveraging omni-channel consumer engagement strategies.
Currently, serving as an advisor to Bain & Company’s digital consulting practice, William McComb also serves on the boards of the Center for Business Analytics at the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Business, and The Marshall Project, a NYC based non-profit, where he chairs the nominating and governance committee. He was formerly employed on the boards of the American Apparel and Footwear Association and the National Retail Federation, among others. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Miami University (Ohio) and a Masters of Business Administration in Marketing and Finance from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.
