Upcoming Gartex Texprocess 2022 fair to be held from May 12-14, 2022 at the Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai will highlight advanced and sustainable garment manufacturing technologies in India. The fair being jointly organized by Messe Frankfurt India and MEX Exhibitions will display innovative products showcased by 120 exhibitors. An exclusive one-day conference, Denim Talks will highlight latest digital manufacturing and bio dyeing techniques. Denim Show, Fabric & Trims Show and Screen Print India will be also be held simultaneously with Gartex Texprocess. Together, the three fairs will showcase innovations in textile and garment making machinery, denim, trimmings and screen-printing verticals.

Popular brands make a presence

The fair will be attended by popular brands including: Baba Textile Machinery (India), Balaji Sewing Machine, Cotton Council International, EH Turel & Company, Felix Schoeller, Gayatritex Engineers etc. Design studios, fashion designers and merchandisers, trade body representatives, distributors, machinery importers, wholesalers et al will also be there. The fairs are being supported by industry bodies including Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC), Retailers Association of India (RAI), Denim Manufacturers’ Association (DMA) and the Gujarat Garment Manufacturers’ Association (GGMA).

Vijoy Kumar Singh, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India points out, the textile industry is dependent on imported machines, the industry needs to step up manufacturing in the country. The Ministry of Textiles is formulating a scheme to incentivize textile machinery production in India. The scheme will not just incentivize local innovation but also encourage reputed international manufacturers to set up bases in the local market, he adds.

Machines on display

The fair will showcase some state-of-the-art machines for textile and garment industry including the Go Green machine by Ramsons. This machine is extremely efficient in achieving wet processing of garments in a sustainable manner. TS 1800 Digital Thread Dyeing System by Orange-O-Tec that dyes thread in millions of colors on demand with precision will also be on display. Textile manufacturer Mehala will showcase The Procut 1800, a highly precise automatic cutter for large quantities of apparel from Bullmer. Similarly, Bruce will display the R6000 digital feeding smart lockstitch machine.

Focus on sustainable denim trends

Denim Show 2022 being held simultaneously will showcase innovative, fashionable and sustainable denim trends. The show supported by Denim Manufacturers’ Association will reunite India’s biggest denim brands and mills under one platform. Hyosung India, Jindal Worldwide, Arvind, Ginni International, Raymond UCO Denim, Bhaskar Denim, LNJ Denim, Oswal Denims, KG Denim, Nandan Denim, and Ashima Group are lining up latest denim collections for the exhibition.

Scheduled on May 13, ‘Denim Talks’ series will discuss topics like flash dyeing of indigo, digital manufacturing and bio dyeing and sustainability initiative by Levi Strauss. This one day conference will highlight sustainability initiatives and innovations in denim manufacturing.

Making the right choice

Fabrics & Trims show will highlight the importance of selecting right fabric, styling, embellishments and manufacturing processes to create apparels of the future. It will feature fabrics, trimmings, embellishments and accessories.

Innovations in digital screen printing

Screen Print India 2022 will bring forth technologies in digital textile and screen-printing. Leading brands will showcase their innovative screen printing, digital sublimation, heat transfer, textile printing, and garment decoration techniques. Among the exhibitors are: Dhaval Color Chem, Konica Minolta, Skyscreen International, Stovec Industries, Epson India, etc. They will offer textile, garment and screen-printing industry a comprehensive platform to discover new production technologies.

Testex has opened a new office in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam which will enable the Swiss testing and certification institute to deliver its premium services in a country with great economic potential and a strong textile industry.

Vietnam is among the top textile producing countries and apparel exporters in the world, and the garment and textile industry is one of the key industries in Vietnam with the second-largest export turnover in the country, contributing to 16 percent of total GDP. In the past five years, the textile industry has continuously grown at an average rate of 17 percent annually.

As many of Testex’scustomers from other Asian countries are increasingly producing and investing in Vietnam, there is increased demand for auditing services in particular. With a branch office in Vietnam, TESTEX is now able to give its customers a more comprehensive service locally.

Luxury label owned by the LVMH Group, Fendi plans to expand production capacityby setting up a new factory in Fermo, Italy. As per Fashion Network, the brand recently inaugurated its first flagship store for its furniture line, in Milan

The new factory, equipped with solar panels, will extend over 7,000 sq m, including production facilities, offices and a warehouse. The façade will have a corrugated aluminium surface for an effect akin to draped leather, and the interiors, benefiting from plenty of natural light thanks to glass walls and skylights, will be exceptionally bright, and distinctive for their minimalist style, enhanced by steel furniture and quartz cement floors.

The Fermo factory will be inaugurated in autumn 2022, as will the other new Fendi facility being built in Bagno a Ripoli, near Florence. The latter is a new design and production plant specialised in leather goods, called Fabbrica, which is being constructed on the site of the old Fornace Brunelleschi blast furnace.

The former industrial wasteland will be transformed into a sustainable factory extending over an area of 12,000 sq m, almost entirely covered with vegetation, designed by Milanese architecture studio Piuarch. Fabbrica will initially employ nearly 250 people, growing to 400-500 at full capacity and supplementing the output of the other Fendi factory in Tuscany, located in Ponte aEma.

A sudden rise in demand will boost Bangladesh’s cotton imports for the first time to 9 million bales of cotton. says Mohammad Ali Khokon, president of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA).

In 2021, Bangladesh imported 8.5 million bales of cotton at a cost of over $3 billion. This year, cotton import will surge in the country as the export of Bangladeshi made garment items rose significantly with the gradual reopening of the global economies, he adds.

For instance, between July and December last year, the first six months of the current fiscal year, garment export grew by 28.02 per cent year-on-year to $19.90 billion.

Of the amount earned from the garment shipment, $11.16 billion came from knitwear, a 30.91 per cent rise year-on-year.

In the period, $8.73 billion came from woven, which is also 24.50 per cent higher year-on-year.

Revenues of the Vietnam National Textile and Garment Group (Vinatex) rose 144.2 per cent to over VND5.15 trillion ($224.26 million) in Q1FY 2022. As per a Saigon Online report, the Group’s pre-tax profit increased by 173.9 per cent to VND376.7 billion ($16.4 million) against the same period last year. Profits in the textile segment increased 139 per cent, garment segment profits rose 167 per cent over the same period last year.

Huu Hieu, General Director believes, growth can be attributed to the efficient control of COVID-19, which enabled businesses to deliver completed orders and accept more orders, along with stable prices of cottons and labor cost. This year, Vinatex plans to accelerate digital transformation to improve operating efficiency. The group has achieved 63 per cent of target in annual textile production while apparel segment reached pre-pandemic levels of growth, according to Le Mac Thuan, General Director.

Revenues of garment companies grew 1.2-1.5 times and two-times over the same period last year. Foreign partners have returned to Vietnam with big orders. In future, Vietnam will invest in the two industrial clusters of Thanh Hoa and Thai Binh, Thuan affirms.

To control rising raw material prices, apparel exporters’ body AEPC has urged the government to take immediate measures as the entire textile value chain is getting affected by the price hike. AEPC says, cotton yarn prices rose to Rs 406 per kg in April from Rs 376 per kg in March. Prices doubled from Rs 200 per kg recorded 18 months ago, the council says.

Narendra Goenka, Chairman, AEPC affirms, the industry is making adequate efforts to increase production capacity. However, buyers are abstaining from placing new orders due to high cotton prices. Lack of FTAs in leading EU markets is adding to the woes of Indian traders. This threatens to increase competiveness gap for Indian products, diverting its orders to competitors.

The price realization and foreign exchange of garment exports is much higher than raw material exports as they are value-added products, adds Goenka. Instead of raw materials, the government should increase exports of value-added products like apparel, he opines.

Apex trade body for cotton in India, Cotton Association of India (CAI) has signed an MoU with International Cotton Association (ICA) to increase co-operation and address quality issues. Headquartered in Liverpool, ICA is the world’s leading arbitral body for cotton. Majority of cotton trading across the world is done as per the ICA by-laws. Currently, an ICA delegation comprising Alex Hsu, President and Bill Kingdon, Managing Director is meeting various stakeholders in India.

As per Atul Ganatra, President, CAI, the MoU between the two trade bodies focuses on organizing yearly meetings to discuss mutual interest issues and increasing co-operation between the two trade bodies. It also includes organization of training programs in India; exchanging and disseminating available information, liaising with the government to addressing quality-related issues. The ICA delegation also discussed a proposal to organize training programs in India, ICA Bremen certification of a few CAI laboratories and their recognition. It also discussed a proposal to organize events, adopt by-laws for amending the CAI by-laws relating to international trade, etc, says Ganatra.

The delegation also plans to meet members of Confederation of Indian Textiles Industry (CITI), North India Textile Mills Association and multinational cotton companies. It also plans to visit the Central Institute for Research on Cotton Technology.

Global market leader in wood-based cellulosic fibers, the Lenzing Group posted a 25.7 per cent Y-o-Y revenue growth Q1, FY’22. Group revenue grew to €615 million, during due to a rise in demand for wood-based biodegradable specialty fibers and higher fiber prices. The group’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) decreased 7 per cent year-on-year to €88 million. Its EBITDA margin reduced from 19.3 to 14.3 per cent. Lenzing reported a 14.3 per cent growth in net profit for the quarter. Profit surged to €34.1 million, while earnings per share increased to €0.87.

Like the entire manufacturing industry, the Lenzing Group too was significantly affected by the extreme developments in global energy and commodity markets during the quarter. However, the group continued to focus on specialty fibers like Tencel, Lenzing Ecovero and Veocel that along with a positive market environment helped ensure a solid revenue and earnings trend. Gross cash flow increased 2 per cent to €86 million during the quarter. Cash flow from operating activities decreased 28.5 per cent to €79.7 million. The group continues to launch climate-neutrality initiatives across operations.

In 2019, Lenzing set a target to reduce its carbon emissions by 50 percent by 2030 and to become climate neutral by 2050. It also plans to generate electricity from renewable energies in future. Currently the group is involved in the construction of several photovoltaic systems at its site in Upper Austria.

Global economy is forecast to grow 3.6 per cent in 2022, predicts IMF. Currently, the manufacturing industry is being challenged by the deep recession caused by COVID-19, the Russia-Ukraine, global supply chain constraints, etc. Liquidity crisis are expected to persist in all regions relevant to Lenzing.

Lenzing also expects demand for environmentally responsible fibers for the textile and clothing industry as well as the hygiene and medical sectors to grow. However, the market remains challenged due to the rising energy and raw materials costs as well as disturbances in the supply chain.

Corinne Suder is the new Vice President-Events and Programming Department, American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) effective from June 13. A Certified Meeting Professional (CMP), Suder has over 25 years experience and was earlier engaged as the senior director at AAFA. In her new role, Suder will preside over several annual events and webinars, as per a Textile World report. The events will align with AAFA’s Strategic Plan across the priorities of brand protection; supply chain and sourcing; trade, logistics, and manufacturing.

AAFA organizes all events under a capable leader to support members’ growth and sustain inclusive and diverse cultures, meet and advance ESG goals, and draw upon the latest technology. The association plans to continue engaging members through collaborative meetings, webinars, and a hybrid calendar of virtual and in-person events.

Suder joins AAFA’s senior leadership team that currently includes: Steve Lamar, President and CEO; Nate Herman, Senior Vice President – Policy; Maureen Storch, Senior Vice President – Membership; Natalie LaBella, Vice President – Communications and Marketing; and Agata Borradori, Vice President – Finance.

Last month, international brands and retailers decided to lift the ban on cotton grown in Uzbekistan. The decision came as a huge relief to the country as cotton is the main cash crop in Uzbekistan, one of the main pillars of its economy. As per a daijiworld.com report, cotton cultivation in Uzbekistan dates back a few centuries. The crop is important to Uzbekistan’s national economy. However, since its independence in 1991, Uzbekistan has been accused of using forced labor, especially child labor for harvesting of the crop.

Ban drives elimination of child labor in Uzbekistan

The accusation led to 331 international brands and retailers banning cotton products from Uzbekistan since 2011. The Cotton Campaign was established to improve human rights in Uzbekistan while International Labor Organization (ILO) allowed to monitor production in the country. The boycott also led to around two million children and a million adults being taken out of forced labor by the ILO. In its ‘2021 ILO Third-Party Monitoring Report of the Cotton Harvest in Uzbekistan’ based on 11,000 interviews with cotton pickers, ILO says, 99 per cent workers involved in the 2021 cotton harvest worked voluntarily. Majority of cotton pickers also reported a marked improvement in working conditions since 2020.

Reforms eradicate child laborv In a joint press briefing held in March 2022, the Ministry of Employment and Labor Relations of the Republic of Uzbekistan noted in the last five years, the country has launched a massive drive to eliminate forced labor from the country. A leading partner of the Cotton Campaign Coalition, the Uzbek Human Rights Forum also denies the presence of forced labor in the country.

This accomplishment is credited to Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who has initiated several labor reforms. In a decree issued in 2012, Mirziyoyev banned children from working in cotton fields. He also launched numerous reforms as the President of the country to modernize Uzbeistan’s former agricultural economic model and eradicate child and forced labor from. The government banned adults from being forced to work in fields. It abolished the quota system for cotton production and as recommended by the ILO and the World Bank, increased salaries. Eradication of forced labor also led to the lifting of the international ban on cotton by the International Coalition Cotton Campaign.

ILO move to boost cotton consumption

Jonas Astrup, Chief Technical Advisor, ILO TPM Project in Uzbekistan says, the labor market in Uzbekistan is being democratized with minimum wages being raised by the government. Despite lifting the ban, brands continue to source from buyers diverting from China. The brands that have banned Uzbek cotton included H&M, which acted on the advice of industry certification agent, Better Cotton Initiative. Other brands like Nike, Ralph Lauren, Gap and American Eagle Outfitters, also banned vendors and suppliers from sourcing products or raw materials from Xinjiang. The ban is likely to boost cotton exports from Uzbekistan and create jobs in the country.

Lifting the ban may also help stabilize global cotton prices by boosting both consumption and production. The move is also advantageous to India which expects cotton yield to decline this year. India can purchase cotton from Uzbekistan at affordable rates. This strengthen bilateral economic relations between the two.