StitchWorld Editorial Issue September 2018

Positive, Domestic Market Growing

Last month was a very busy month for us, with the dates of both Gartex, New Delhi and GTE, Bangalore clashing. It created quite a chaos for some companies that would have liked to be at both the places, but overall, the fairs were successful.

Though the focus of the two fairs was different, the feedback from the industry was very similar. At Gartex, the emphasis was on digital technology, embroidery and denim, while GTE was mostly about sewing technology. And, both fairs saw good visitation along with a significant presence of the domestic market which was noteworthy.

The fairs revealed that the domestic market is thriving with opportunities and not only have the bigger manufacturers upgraded themselves, but even smaller units are looking for growth avenues.
It was enlightening to talk to these small, often considered marginal players, to know about their keenness to explore new technologies, specially in the value addition segment, which was indeed amazing. Many of them actually placed orders for digital printing technologies!

As for the exporters, they also came, but their attitude was more cautious and reserved. Enough has been said on the role or rather on the absence of a role, by the Government, particularly of the textile ministry supporting the industry in its time of need. The good thing that has come out of all this is that the industry has finally come to terms with the fact that they have to pave their own road rather than just waiting for things to happen.

It is obvious that the industry has evened out and only those who are ready to change will remain and prosper. Opportunities are floating, but grabbing them requires a strong mindset and a competitive manufacturing set-up. It was good to see a more practical industry, ready to take on the challenges.

A technical review of both fairs can be found in the following pages of Stitch World. Besides these reviews, some of the other interesting analyses include an ever-raging discussion on the performance of men vs. women at work. For any other industry, the views are very subjective, but on the shop floor, women sewing operators seem to have emerged as clear winners. Read on to find out what the industry thinks…

Check shirts are men’s favourite, be it casual style or formal… every male has a check shirt in his wardrobe. The beautiful, symmetrical checks take the maximum time in cutting department due to mitering requirements in different areas of the garment. While mitering or matching of checks (in different parts of the shirt) enhances the aesthetics of the shirt, some become a nightmare (the ones which are made symmetrical to create brand identity). Dr. Prabir Jana, Professor, NIFT, Delhi questions some of the critical parameters of shirt making in the article ‘Shirt Making: Technical Excellence or Design Nightmare’.

Another important topic touched upon in this issue is on the ease of PMTS solutions. While one requires a formal training to operate the time and motion study software, timeSSD breaks all such barriers with an interesting experiment conducted among NIFT students.

Stitch World Editorial Issue September 2017

The Indian lion is now starting to roar!
Having attended two technology fairs, almost back to back – Gartex and GTE Ahmedabad – one fact that emerged loud and clear from these shows was that Indian-made technology is finally finding its footing.

I have never seen Indian companies that manufacture technologies so proudly displaying their products. Even the industry is looking at them with a fresh perspective.

The ‘Make in India’ lion was displayed prominently at all booths presenting some Indian technologies and even accessories. I could actually feel the difference in the attitude of the company’s owners and their teams.

It was obvious that the PM’s thrust on manufacturing has finally brought these companies out of the shadow of their foreign counterparts…No longer are they ‘poor cousins’ in technology, being popular with those who cannot afford European/Japanese technologies, but they are rather finding an admirable place among the best.

The range of technologies being made in India covers a wide spectrum now from testing equipment of Delhi based Paramount to eco-friendly washing solutions from Xcel Stiro and Ramsons to fusing machines and sublimation printers from Cheran Machines to paper solution for cutting rooms from Krishna Lamicoat, besides many flat and circular knitting machines being produced in Ludhiana, not to forget a host of IT solutions available from Indian companies…, the list goes on.

It was indeed a treat to see indigenously made sewing machines available with few of our technology providers being proudly placed along with other ‘foreign’ brands on display at the events.

These manufacturers have for time immemorial been convincing customers that they are second to none and the fact that they are cheaper is only because of local manufacturing and ‘not’ because of any defect or inadequacy in technology.

It seems that finally the moment has come for them to become bigger players and I can very well anticipate that many of the technology providers who have been itching to get into local manufacturing, are finally going to take the plunge.

Stitch World Editorial Issue May 2017

Speed factory, store factory, micro-factory and cluster factory (a term coined by me) are some of the concepts conceived especially to reach out to the consumers faster… These very consumers are the ones who are also driving the price and the products they want.

The fallout is that so many of the big-box retailers and brands are either folding operations or stagnating in their growth, therefore necessitating new concepts to evolve with the help of IT innovations (collaborative designing and its communication), 3D printing, digital printing, dyeing, and also robotics, which in a simpler form means customized automation.

Some of the newer concepts slated to debut at Texprocess 2017 are digital processing, use of low-energy radial shockwaves to clean textile and cold ironing... In digital processing of performance textiles, functional chemicals are applied through inkjet technology; the low-energy radial shockwaves take lesser time, operate at low temperature and don’t harm textile much; and cold ironing technology simply reduces the energy consumption by 60 per cent.

These concepts may not be for many of you as manufacturers, as of now, but you can draw out a hint from the directions and take necessary steps which need to be there when the changes begin to shape up.

Continuing to present the current and future of the industry…, our section on Technology 4.0 discusses ‘Innovations in these disruptive times’. In this article, Frank Henderson, President, Henderson Sewing Machine along with Dr. Prabir Jana, Professor, National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Delhi, talk about interesting concepts in sewing automation, three-dimensional sewing, robotics, affordable automation, IoT and smart wearables. Also discussed is ‘3D printing of sewing machine parts’ – a concept developed by Dr. Jana and Dr. Deepak Panghal, who is also a Professor at NIFT Delhi.

However much we may dwell into the future and prepare for the same, it is also important to be in present and ensure that the factories are running productively. In our production technology segment, David Permenter, Educational Director, DCC Print Vision LCC details the Kaizen concept in screen printing in a three-part series. He emphasizes that ‘synergizing’ printing, manufacturing and leadership are the three pillars of screen printing.
Read the section to know more...

Also in focus are the growing number of Chinese sewing machines manufacturers invading the Indian market, and a preview of what to expect at the Texprocess in Frankfurt.