The Hindu Business Line : Global meet on non-woven textiles to facilitate tie-ups

Showcasing India
The two US professional bodies are set to exchange views with the local industry on the scope of partnering in advanced fibrous material manufacturing in India.
The global companies are also looking at India as an alternative investment destination to China as they do not want to place all in China basket.

Coimbatore, Aug 2

The textile community in Tamil Nadu may have an opportunity to explore close collaboration with global majors in non-woven textile technology as two of the US professional bodies — American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) and Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA) — are to sponsor for the first-ever international conference on technical textiles here next week.

The associations are set to exchange views with the local industry on the scope of partnering in advanced fibrous material manufacturing in India.

The AATCC and INDA, which represents the interests of some of the `Fortune 500' companies involved in non-woven/technical textiles, along with their team of experts will assess the potential of India in the area of non-woven textile manufacture and marketing.

The three-day conference to be held here from August 7 to 9 is jointly organised by the Komarapalayam-based SSM College of Engineering in association with the Institute of Environmental and Human Health of the Texas Tech University from the US.

Briefing presspersons on the conference here on Tuesday, Mr M.S. Mathivanan, Chairman of SSM College of Engineering, said several leading global companies such as Rohm and Hass, Noveon, Trident, Hills Inc, AccuMed Technologies and Aegis Environments from the US, technical textiles/technology/machinery companies such as Coatema, Fleissner and Schoeller from Germany, PCMC Nonwovens from the UK, Bluesign Technologies Ag and Rieter Ag from Switzerland and Cupron Inc from Israel are to participate in the conference.

Reliance, ATE, SGS Testing Services, BCH and K's Technical are some of the Indian companies expected to participate in the meet and present scientific papers. Dr Seshadri Ramkumar, faculty of Texas Tech University, who is co-ordinating in organising the conference, said India presented huge potential in tapping non-woven/technical textiles for exports and domestic market but faced impediments in the form of lack of technology and the hard mind-set to look beyond the conventional commodity textiles manufacture.

Impediments

This is despite the fact that non-woven ventures would be low investment and less labour intensive but high valued product turnout.

INDA's Global Marketing Director, Mr Ian Butler, and Mr C.K. Wong, representing the board of INDA, are expected to report back to the INDA board on the Indian market scene after the conference.

The global majors in non-woven/technical textiles, which are increasingly finding applications in automobiles, defence, medical dispensation, are also looking at the flexible labour market in India, its pool of good technical skills and technical educational institutions.

Alternative to China

According to Dr Seshadri Ramkumar, these companies are also looking at India as an alternative investment destination to China as they do not want to place all in China basket.

He is of the view that if India has to achieve its targeted $85-billion textile trade by 2010, it has to invest in high valued non-woven/technical textiles manufacture and cannot afford to depend entirely on commodity textiles where China would continue to remain formidable.

More Stories on : Events | Textiles | Tamil Nadu

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page