Itma to be held in Spain from June 20 to 26, 2019, will feature companies that use new and emerging textile technology. One is Natural Fiber Welding that uses a closed loop platform to fuse fibers together without denaturing the natural polymers of the fibers. The technology hinges on a key technical insight that the glue that holds cellulose molecules in cotton together – intermolecular forces – can be extended from within a fiber to bridge surrounding neighboring fibers. The technology uses intrinsically safe salt-based chemistries to activate fibers to controllably fuse them together (using no resins, glues, or synthetic plastics) to make new materials. The salt is then continuously reclaimed and recycled making the process closed loop.

Software Automation is a US-based company that’s disrupting the sewn products industry by creating autonomous sewbots that use artificial intelligence to automate garment and footwear production. Software uses machine vision to map fabric and robotics to steer the fabric through the needle. This is the critical step to creating rapid reaction urban manufacturing anywhere in the world regardless of the supply of cheap labor.

Wider is a company that provides diagnostic tools such as workers’ mobile phones to track and encourage improvement in labor practices along the textile supply chain.

Isko is presenting Denim Sound Textures at Milan Design Week, April 8 to 14, 2019. This is an immersive and interactive experience that will introduce guests to the surprising multi-sensoriality of denim. This project is the result of Isko’s focus on pushing the unlimited possibilities of denim: an ongoing technical, aesthetic and functional research process which highlights the core values of the company – competence, creativity, social and environmental responsibility – as its leading force. Isko presents this experience in collaboration with a selection of premium fashion brands like Hugo, Madewell, Replay, Dovetail Workwear, François Girbaud, Taylor Stitch, 7 For All Mankind, Blue de Gênes, Tiziano Guardini and O’Neill which have relied on Isko fabrics for their collections.

The core of the project is a series of advanced denim technologies that Isko designed and developed over the years. Isko was the first to introduce the life cycle assessment methodology in the denim industry, which in line with the ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 certifications makes it possible to evaluate and quantify the environmental footprint of a product throughout the entire life cycle, from the raw material to the finished product. The company is committed to applying the life cycle assessment to all its 25,000 products, with the aim of identifying areas for improvement for sustainability.

The Cotton Association of India (CAI) has estimated exports for the season 2018-19 at 47 lakh bales which are lower by 22 lakh bales compared to the export of 69 lakh bales estimated last year. The CAI has estimated cotton crop for 2018-19 at 321 lakh bales of 170 kg each, which is lower by 7 lakh bales than its previous estimate of 328 lakh bales made during last month. The CAI reduced crop estimate for Gujarat by 1 lakh bales, Maharashtra by 80,000 bales, Telangana by 4 lakh bales, Andhra Pradesh by 1 lakh bales and Karnataka by 75,000 bales whereas there is marginal increase of 50,000 bales in Tamil Nadu and 5,000 bales in the State of Orissa.

The main reason for reduction in cotton crop during this year is the scarcity of water in some states and the fact that farmers uprooted their cotton plants in about 70-80 per cent area without waiting for 3rd and 4th pickings.

At the 14th edition of Prime Source Forum in Hong Kong, IAF President Han Bekke, stated the apparel supply chain is dramatically fragmented at the moment and needs more collaboration. IAF (International Apparel Federation) has taken the initiative to participate in projects with global reach and focus on industry development and harmonisation. In his address to the Forum, Bekke mentioned that the collaborative work with OECD, SLCP and ITMF has reduced audit and standard fatigue.

IAF is the only global network for the apparel industry with members in more than 60 countries around the globe. Its mission is to unite all stakeholders of the fashion and apparel industry including brands, retailers, manufacturers, suppliers and country associations from around the world to enable and promote smarter, stronger and more sustainable supply chains. This years 35th IAF World Fashion Convention will be held from November 12-13, 2019 in Lahore, Pakistan.

Rubana Huq, Managing Director, Mohammadi Group, and the first woman to head one of Bangladesh’s biggest garment associations, BGMEA plans to boost female leadership in the country. She looks to educate women workers to secure their futures and step up to mid-managerial levels in factories. She also plans to set up a gender-based leadership program that ensures more women are empowered to take on these roles.

In Bangladesh’s 4,500 RMG factories, women have traditionally had to negotiate with male managers over pay, workplace safety and respect on the job. Haq’s election comes at a time when Bangladesh’s Supreme Court is deciding whether to shut down Accord, a factory inspection mechanism set up by European fashion labels after the Rana Plaza factory collapsed in 2013, killing 1,100 people. Huq has urged manufacturers to strengthen their own monitoring mechanisms to help the government take over from the Bangladesh Accord - signed by about 200 major brands.

The European Union and China will strengthen their trade relationship and work toward opening up China’s economy for foreign investors. On surrendering intellectual property to gain access to China’s market, both sides have agreed there should not be a forced transfer of technology. The EU and China have agreed to a joint study on improving the inter-connectedness of rail systems. Both have also stressed a shared commitment to a rules-based system.

The EU has grown increasingly concerned about Chinese state-led companies buying key European assets while the level of market openness is not reciprocated in China. Politicians and businesses in the EU and the United States have criticized China for forcing foreign companies to hand over intellectual property in order to gain access to China’s economy — which is the second largest in the world.

The EU is China’s biggest trading partner. China is the bloc’s second-biggest trading partner, coming in only after the US. The US seemed to be the protectionist elephant in the room throughout the EU’s negotiation process with the Chinese. The US, by virtue of its heavy tariffs, has more muscle and may yet extract more in the way of hard concessions from China than the EU, which has mainly won more in political commitments.

Globally, there has been an increase in online sales of knitwear products. Knitwear products are a major segment of the fashion industry. The e-commerce fashion industry in the US and Europe is expected to expand at a CAGR of 8.8 per cent and 8.7 per cent between 2017 and 2022. The e-commerce fashion industry in China is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.1 per cent between 2017 and 2022.

In terms of product type, knitwear is classified into innerwear, T-shirts and shirts, sweaters and jackets, sweatshirts and hoodies, shorts and trousers, evening dresses, suits and leggings, and accessories. Based on material type, the market is classified into natural, synthetic, and blended. On the basis of application, the market is segmented into outerwear, innerwear, sportswear and others. Based on consumer group, the market is segmented into men, women, and children.

Technology advances are expected to influence the expansion of the global knitwear market. The global knitwear industry ecosystem analysis includes a value chain analysis of the global knitwear industry including natural, blended, and synthetic fabric suppliers, textile companies spanning knitwear fabric and knitwear manufacturers, knitwear products distributors and export channels, and various retail outlets including department stores, specialty stores, discount chains, and mass merchandise chains.

Dubai’s textile industry is adopting innovative technology solutions. A manufacturing plant is being set up to make pellets from old clothes that are broken down into raw material. The plant will break down old clothes with polyester and cotton fiber through a recycling process to create PET pellets. These pellets are then used to manufacture new fabric that is then put back into the supply chain for a variety of uses including the fashion industry. The technology is already being used by high-end retailers such as H&M for whom a Japanese company is making clothing by dissolving polyester fiber from used clothing, purifying it and then turning it into a polyester resin that can be used again as raw material for polyester. Innovative technologies can be the answer to a greener footprint within the hydrocarbon dependent textile industry. The commercial benefits of the manufacturing process will save the textile industry millions of dollars every year as it weans its dependence away from the hydrocarbon industry.

In the UAE, textile industry is the country’s largest trading sector after oil. UAE’s textile exports cover more than 90 countries in Africa, the Middle East, South Asia and Europe.

Clouver from Bullmer is a product for knife, laser, plasma, and waterjet cutting that makes processes more transparent and production more efficient. Bullmer is a machine manufacturer from Germany. With Clouver which links production with its digital image production processes can be analyzed in detail, hidden production costs can be identified, and bottlenecks can be detected at an early stage. Clouver also provides an indicator for detecting and correcting drops in productivity due to production performance or scrap. This solution also provides the basis for condition-based maintenance. With Clouver machine operators see the operating and maintenance status of their machine, plant managers have an overview of the entire production area from their office, and decision-makers receive reliable, compact information that helps them with strategic decisions. Everyone gets the information that they need for their work in a clearly arranged form.

One component of Clouver that saves money is the maintenance monitor. Based on operating hours, oil levels, or other criteria, the monitor determines when the next planned maintenance should be performed. Maintenance and repairs can thus be planned more easily and inexpensively than with rigid maintenance intervals. Use-based maintenance helps to avoid unplanned downtime. Machine builders can also use Clouver to compare machines of the same type and to optimize service on the basis of a pool of experience.

Burberry is undergoing a major transformation, with a new designer, a new focus on ultra-luxury, a new logo and a change to the way it drops its product. The company has seen the successful launch of its new go-to-market model with social selling innovation contributing to building brand heat. Most discussions to evolve its wholesale distribution are now complete and the required changes to its third-party distribution network are expected to accelerate in the second half of the year. The brand’s strategic focus is on igniting brand heat — starting with influencers and key opinion leaders, which will cascade to all consumers.

Burberry has been deploying strategies to cut down under-performing retail locations. In the last eight months the British luxury fashion house closed four stores in Shanghai, China’s commercial capital, in its efforts to bring down costs and as part of a global restructuring effort. But while the early signs are encouraging, transitioning the product offer, evolving its distribution, changing wider consumer perception and seeing this translate into positive business performance will take time. The company’s switch to regular monthly drops via its B Series has got off to a good start too.

The broader luxury industry faces the prospect of slowing economic growth globally and weaker demand from Chinese consumers.