Textile Today | April 2018 by Textile Today

Bangladesh

Driving business with knowledge

ISSN 1999-2076 Reg. 8/2012 April 2018 www.textiletoday.com.bd

COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY HIDE THE PRODUCT Volume 11 | Issue 04 | BDT 150, USD 10 UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

COST-INCREASING FACTORS

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT See Details at pageHIGHER 13

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

Challenges of

Is automation

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY Bangladesh a threat for UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

knit sector apparel HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY and the way industry

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

out COST-INCREASING

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

workers? DEVALUATION FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY FACTORIES UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE Our government Bangladesh

shouldTO impose RMGCAPACITY industry HUNGRY TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE anti-dumping law shows a sea ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION COST-INCREASING FACTORS to protect our change on LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION local spinning safety TABLE. HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY industry… transformation

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME

INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY FACTORIES UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO See MULTIPLE advertisement at page 05

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

See advertisement at page 19 TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES TEXTILE & AUXILIARIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE CEFATEX PAMLION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL HIGHLIGHT Climate control in every PRICE situation

COST-INCREASING FACTORS

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE. ISO 9001:2015 GOTS Approved Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS 3.0)

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Bangladesh

Driving business with knowledge

years of

Transformation

Editorial Panel Editor in chief Prof. Md. Monirul Islam Executive Editor Prof. Dr. Engr. Ayub Nabi Khan Technical Editor Prof. Dr. Engr. Md. Saifur Rahman Dr. Engr. Md. Fazley Elahi Dr. Md. Abbas Uddin (Shiyak) Dr. Mohammad Nazmul Karim Consulting Editor Dr. NN Mahapatra Dr. Mohammed Tareque Aziz C.N. Sivaramakrishnan Ashfaque Ahmed Associate Editor Jamal Abdun Naser Md. Mominul Motin (Tusher) Sub Editor Akhi Akter Technical Team

Branding Textile & Apparel Transforming Human capital Promoting Sustainability

Co-ordinator Setara Begum Member S.N. Abdullah Amzad Hossain Monir Md. Abdul Jobber Rakibul Islam Al Takbir Mahim Editor & Publisher A.S.M Tareq Amin Published on 04th May 2018 by Amin & Jahan Corporation Ltd. House-41, Road-5, Block-B, Monsurabad R/A, Adabor, Dhaka-1217 Tel: +88 02 55093682 Email : info@textiletoday.com.bd Web : www.textiletoday.com.bd Printed by: VIP Printers, Fakirapool, Dhaka. The views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher or the editor. We have taken every effort to ensure accuracy. Bangladesh Textile Today does not accept any liability for claims made by advertisers or contributors. The publisher reserves the right to edit and publish any editorial material supplied and does not accept responsibility for loss or damages of any unsolicited material or contribution. ÂŠ All rights reserved to Amin & Jahan Corporation Ltd. 2018 Volume 11, Issue 04 (April 2018) Reg 8/2012, Dhaka.

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Driving business with knowledge

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Bangladesh

Bangladesh ISSN 1999-2076 Reg. 8/2012 April 2018

Driving business with knowledge

On the Cover

www.textiletoday.com.bd

Bangladesh Textile Today

COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY HIDE THE PRODUCT Volume 11 | Issue 03 | BDT 150, USD 10 UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

Driving business with knowledge

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT See Details at page HIGHER 17

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

ZSCHIMMER & SCHWARZ Mosdorf GmbH & Co. KG is a well know Germany based textile auxiliaries and specialty chemical manufacturer. Their high performance auxiliaries are easing the textile finishing process.

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

Challenges of

Is automation

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY Bangladesh a threat for UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

knit sector apparel HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY industry

and way HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT TURN A DEAF EARthe REGARDING out COST-INCREASING

FACTORS

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

workers? ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY FACTORIES UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE Bangladesh

Challenges of RMGCAPACITY industry HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S

Bangladesh TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE shows a sea

knit sector DEVALUATION COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY change on

and the way COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION LIMITATIONS DURING safety TABLE.

HIDE THEout PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY transformation UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

See advertisement at page 21 TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE. April 2018

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES TEXTILE & AUXILIARIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE CEFATEX PAMLION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL HIGHLIGHT Climate control in every PRICE situation

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

Content

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE.

HIDE THE PRODUCT COMPLEXITY & WAY OF WORKING DIFFICULTIES IN THE BUYING COMPANY DELIBERATELY UNREALISTIC TARGET PRICE & FOOL THE FACTORY SAME INQUIRY TO MULTIPLE FACTORIES

HUNGRY TO TAKE THE LION SHARE OF A FACTORY'S CAPACITY

TURN A DEAF EAR REGARDING HIGHER MATERIAL PRICE HIGHLIGHT

BANGLADESH FACTORY’S POOR PERFORMANCE

COST-INCREASING FACTORS ALWAYS HIGHLIGHT CUSTOMER END CURRENCY DEVALUATION

LIMITATIONS DURING COSTING MEETINGS TO MAKE THEM MENTALLY WEAK IN NEGOTIATION TABLE. ISO 9001:2015 GOTS Approved Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS 3.0)

Editorial

12-14

April’ 18 |

Textile Bangladesh

Importance of recognizing customers in your retail store & their .....

Cover Story

WRC launched to improve capacity of Bangladesh RMG trade unions

BGMEA celebrates graduation to developing country

The demand of Bangladeshi jute rising in global car industry

Market Analysis

15-23

Challenges of Bangladesh knit sector and the way out

Export Update 16 14

Bangladesh 15.2

Cambodia 14.1

Srilanka 11.9

10 8

Pakistan

7.2

Contributions of the industrial sector in GDP is growing but ........

Vietnam

8.9

Myanmar 6.9

Moldova

6.9

China

2.7

Global avg.

Bangladesh Economy

Volume 11 |

Issue 04

Campus today

40-41

Competency gaps of Bangladeshi professionals need to resolve for up-gradation in apparel value chain

Jute Today

Better jute initiative

Factory Tales

43-44

Bangladesh RMG industry shows a sea change on safety transformation

Bangladesh RMG industry is a model for other countries to follow, Alliance

46-47

Fakhruddin Textile Mills, the pioneer of synthetic fabric processing in Bangladesh

Z&Z’s second fabric week concludes successfully

1.4

US DUTIES AS A PERCENT OF THE TOTAL VALUE OF IMPORTS

Bangladeshi exporters pay highest tariff to the US

Opinion

Need a common platform to set compliance standards

Compliance Today

34 26-27

‘The trade war’ and urge for ‘free and fair trade’

Top Story

28-31

Is automation a threat for apparel industry workers?

Alliance looking for credible organization to handover their services

Spinning Today

36-38

Our government should impose anti-dumping law to protect our local spinning industry…

Content Textile Icon

49-52 Bangladesh textile and apparel industry is passing a good time and becoming more structured

Sustainability Today

April’ 18 |

Digital printing

Conventional printing

62-64

pigment, 53%

reactive/disperions/acid, 97%

pigment, 3%

Is there a future for pigment inks in textiles?

Good Governance

Impact of synthetic clothes on environment Owners and workers both should work for the betterment of RMG industry

Sustainable Fiber Green investment requires for sustainable economic growth

News & Analysis

66-68

Rana Plaza victims are yet to recover fully

Private sector credit growth trend till February 2018

Retailers Today

Spring, summer, sun: Enjoy the feeling of protection

Patent Re-examination Board of SIPO upholds Huntsman’s Patents

Cotton experiments in the international space station

Export Update

80 75

75 Bangladesh among highest growth takers in the world in T-shirt production

Uster acquires EVS

Garments washing industry should emphasize on R&D and innovation

Market Analysis

60-61

Clothing from banana fiber

70-72

WB projected manufacturing growth at 13.2 percent in FY18

Business Today

Ensuring higher quality with increased .....

Cotton Today

Laundry Today

54-55

Technology Today

Issue 04

Spinning Today

Digital Printing

reactive/disperions/acid, 47%

Volume 11 |

Closing of JC Penney’s 8 stores will not affect BD export

Bangladesh RMG export may cross $30 billion by the end of the current FY

Archroma and Montega Italy join hands to ......

The demand of Bangladeshi jute rising in global car industry

Textile Today is writing to this note to bring it all of your kind attention that there has been a mistake in the news of ‘Scarce women presence in leading trade bodies’ on our March 2018 issue, page No. 30. We mistakenly used wrong designation of Helena Jahangir in the news. Actually, Helena Jahangir is the Managing Director of Joy Auto Garments Ltd. but incorrectly it was written Knit Concern Ltd. whereas, Md. Joynal Abedin Mollah is the Managing Director of Knit Concern Limited. The mistake was done unintentionally and we are sorry for such inconvenience.

Intelligent Connection For your Air Compressor

Editorial

Importance of recognizing customers in your retail store & their contribution to your success Professor Mohammed Tareque Aziz Ph.D., Dean, College of Business Administration (CBA) International University of Business Agriculture & Technology (IUBAT), Consulting Editor, Bangladesh Textile Today In retail stores every day hundreds of customers enter. Some of them are just seeing things, some are doing window shopping, while some are serious buyers, walkingin for a purchase. The retailers need to know what kind of customer they are to allocate their scarce resources for providing best possible customer services in an effective manner. Usually, the types of customers enter in a retail store can be categorized into four broad types. They are; 1. W atchers: these customers will never buy from the store, no matter what kind of products and services you offer. These people generally enjoy to watch and to see. Watchers usually prefer to observe by scouting different stores. In many cases, they are not yet confident about the dimensions and features of their potential purchase. Therefore, their key objective is to get the primary glimpse of the products you have in your store. 2. P otential: these are the customers who really can be of great benefit to your store. As they come and visit your store to observe and to know about your products, with the objective of making a future purchase. Potential is the retail customers who truly evaluate and make comparisons

between brands to make their final selection. So, as retailers, your primary goal should be to provide as much information as possible to these customers, so that you can attract their attention toward your offerings. 3. Almost: these are the customers who are willing and waiting for the right time and reason to make a purchase in your store. These customers are very hard to predict. Their purchase decision making is influenced by so many factors, which can be truly out of your realm. They usually make their decisions

based on the price, features, after sales support and quality of the products and services. As they critically evaluate the alternative choices among retail brands, it is very difficult to offer that extra... which will ultimately cash in the prize for you. 4. C ustomers: these people actually make a purchase and they can be an element for the future brand loyal segment. These customers are your blessings, as they make the final purchases and you should provide them with the best possible after-sales support.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Editorial

Because of these people, your brand will gain wider market acceptance among your segments. As a retailer most of your energy, efforts, and initiatives are directed toward them to ensure they come back and become repeat purchaser, leading toward their brand loyalty. Now as a retailer you already have some idea about the customers who have been visiting your stores, now we can shed some light on the ways of evaluating these customers contribution in making your store a success story. Average Ticket Size (ATS) can be an effective way to measure your store’s performance. Therefore in the retail industry, most of the time, ATS is considered as the secret of the retail trade in measuring your store performance. ATS is a term that defines retail performance in many retail houses

This ATS can be used to track and compare Smart stores sales performance with reference to the other retailers in the neighborhood or in the region.

Another tool for measuring your store’s performance is Unit per Transaction (UPT). UPT is a vital tool for modern-day retailers in measuring their store efficiency. Total sales for a certain period of time UPT stands ATS = ----------------------------------------------------for ‘Unit per Number of customers paid for achieving Transaction’. the sales amount In order to measure your UPT, you need to divide your total all over the world. ATS stands for number of products sold with the ‘Average Ticket Size’. The retailers number of customers. By this, calculate ATS by dividing the you can measure the level of your amount of money with a number merchandise acceptance among of customers purchased. So, your target walk-in customers in an increase in ATS will define a the stores. successful marketing program for the retailers. As an example, we can consider the scenario in a local hometown retail store called Smart store. Suppose, on the month of June the store sells an amount of 20000 US$. On this particular month, around 2600 customers visited the store. Out of these 2600 customers, 1432 actually made some purchases from the store. So if you want to calculate the ATS of Smart store for the month of June you need to do it like: 20000 ATS in US$ = ----------- = US$ 13.97 1432

calculate the UPT of Smart store for the month of June you need to do it like: 3780 UPT = ----------- = 2.64 1432 UPT can be used to track down the rate at which the inventory is moving from the store till the end of the counter sales process. The Smart store can compare its UPT with other retailers in its community to find out the speed at which it’s products moving out (being sold). For retailers most of the times recognizing their customers and primarily measuring their role in making the stores successful have been two of the most important aspects of their day to day retail operations. In doing these we

Total number of products sold over a certain period of time UPT = --------------------------------------------------------------------------Number of customers paid for achieving the number

As an example, we can understand UPT from Smart stores perspective. Let us consider, on the month of June the total number of products sold in the store are 3780. On this particular month, around 2600 customers visited the store. Out of these 2600 customers, 1432 actually made payments to make their purchases. So if you want to

would like to draw all retailers attention to the point of building long-term relationships with your customers as only customer loyalty has the strength to ensure your retail stores success in the long run.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Cover Story

Challenges of Bangladesh knit sector and the way out Staff Correspondent Bangladesh knit sector is one of the largest knit garments manufacturing industry in the world. The sector is producing top quality knit garments for global fast fashion brands. Like many other sub-segments of the textile and apparel industry, the knit sector in Bangladesh has been suffering from profitability crisis. In recent times, the situation has been worsening with the increasing cost and reducing the price from the buying brands. On 25th April distinguished figures of countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Knit Sector gathered on a roundtable discussion (RTD) in a Hotel in Dhaka to discuss the challenges of the Bangladesh knit sector and suggest way outs. While presiding over by Engr. Md. Shafiqur Rahman, President, The Institute of Textile Engineers & Technologists Bangladesh (ITET),

Engr. Saiful Islam Khan, Managing Director, Essential Clothing LTD. gave the keynote at the RTD and later distinguished industry owners and chief executives discussed on that. The RTD session was sponsored by Divine Group, AukoTex Group, and Essential Clothing LTD., where Bangladesh Textile Today was the knowledge partner. This report summarizes the discussions of the session. Participants: Participants in the roundtable discussion program represented about 10 percent of the Bangladesh knit sector by its earnings. The forum is very important not only because of its contribution to the country, this is important also because the participants are influential opinion leaders of the sector. The forum agreed that such knowledge sharing session will help the

participating factories and also will help the sector as a whole to understand its challenges and taking out strategies and policies to come out from the challenges. The Industry: Bangladesh is one of the strongest knit garment manufacturers in the world considering both capabilities and competitiveness. The country is well known for its quality production at the lowest cost. Bangladesh has been a heaven for producing knit garments for the global brands. They are always getting the best deal here, taking out best quality out of the lowest possible money. In 2016-17, the total export in this sector was $13.76 billion which is approximately 6.5% of the global market share. Bangladesh market share in volume is much higher. The session informed that in 2016

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Cover Story

buyer pressure and a load of the unplanned high capacity, factories are keeping a high percentage of negative margin orders which are taking the factories to the dire loss situation. The absence of strategic sales planning and lack of loyalty & technical knowledge among the sales team has been identified an area to improve a lot for Bangladeshi factories. How the typical unethical buyers are taking advantage in prices • Send the same inquiry to multiple factories at a time • G ive unrealistic target price and fool the factory that they already achieved that target from someone

Figure 2: Engr. Saiful Islam Khan, Managing Director, Essential Clothing LTD. gave the keynote speech at the roundtable discussion session.

Bangladesh contributed 12% of global t-shirt market. The country has one of the highest capacities in knit garment manufacturing in the world. Through the last decade, knit factories in Bangladesh increased their capacities in a great pace and today they have become very large volume producers of knit garments. Impact of the $ 50 billion target in the unplanned capacity expansion: To fight back the setbacks of Rana Plaza collapse and Tazreen Fashion fire with a positive goal-setting approach, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers & Exporters Association (BGMEA) declared a target of increasing Bangladesh RMG export to $ 50 billion by 2021. The declaration came in December 2013. To achieve this target, RMG businesses in Bangladesh needed to achieve a consistent 15% yearly growth. But global fashion market was not growing at the same pace, rather it was shrinking. The country had no alternative but to poach business from its competitors to achieve the target. At that time an in-depth study was required on the competitor’s business model to beat them.

Whereas, apparel makers kept on expanding their capacities on an existing product line which resulted in surplus capacity than market demand particularly on some common products. This launched a fierce internal competition among the factories in Bangladesh. And so customers are taking undue advantages of this situation Products and its diversification: With almost all major retailers, Bangladesh has a significant market share in Cotton & Cottonrich knit products since last 15 years. It was not practical to increase the market share further on those product lines since all customers’ strategy is not to put all eggs into one basket. Now the manufacturers need to identify the products where they have a poor market share and they need to develop know how on those. Most value-added products are in smaller volumes. The session urged that Bangladeshi factories need to master the art of handling small orders efficiently. Current Situation: The session informed that Debt-Equity ratio is unjustified for many of their projects and so the factories are under pressure with high financial costs. Besides, because of extreme

• H ungry to take the lion share of a factory’s capacity, so it’s easier for them to control and blackmail • T urn a deaf ear regarding higher material price & other costincreasing factors • A lways highlight customer end currency devaluation, economic recession, and their margin sufferings etc. • H ighlight Bangladesh factory’s poor performance & limitations during costing meetings to make them mentally weak in negotiation table. • H ide the product complexity & way of working difficulties in the buying company deliberately Suggestions to counter customer price pressure • S hare logical open cost break up and actual margin with customer • E xpose the product complexity and all hidden costs in a positive manner • P resent a hypothetical analysis on what would be the impact of meeting customer’s unrealistic target price • R eturn the same technique of customers to give the excuse of other departments. ( ex: Accounts dept.) for not being able to meet their unrealistic targets • Highlight the positive aspects of

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Cover Story

our business and examples of our good service at the beginning of every costing session • A ddress the negative impact of price reduction to customer’s compliance & ethical department. Also, try to incorporate these impacts into your audit CAP wherever possible •N ot become too dependent to one single customer, so we are in a position to bargain. SWOT Analysis of our Knit Sector Strength  Competitive labor cost  Robust backward linkage  Excellent know how  State-of-the-art facilities  Loyalty to customers  GSP facility (other than the USA) Weakness  Lack of design input  Lack of product variety  Productivity challenge  Small runs & fast fashions  Poor infrastructure

in his introductory speech. He highlighted that “it’s a huge  Higher bank interest global market of $ 550 billion and Opportunities Bangladesh is the second largest RMG exporter in the world with $ 28.6 Goal of the program billion in 2017. is to generate new thought. Find out And we’re ideas to overcome facing lots of current challenges challenges of the sector. It’s a internally, also buyers dominating from foreign market. We’re not buyers. One even using 40% of our efficiency of the main challenges Engr. Salim Reza is buyers Executive Director, deducted Divine Group 13% price, whereas our production cost increased by 15%. Bangladesh  Increase Market Share by entering is going through a crisis phase. to the untapped product group And the election is also in this  Increase business by entering to year. So, we’ll emphasize way outs the untapped market to overcome present challenges.” O vertake extra business from China Engr. Md. Shafiqur Rahman is the President of ITET and Managing Threats Director of Hams Group.  Unplanned capacity expansion The keynote speaker Engr. Saiful  Stereotype mentality to stick to Islam Khan gave the inauguration the same product group holistic presentation with a SWOT analysis of knit sector pointing  Minimum wage & other cost increase out that our knit sector is not  GSP withdrawal can initiate a united to face the challenges. massacre. He highlighted that Bangladesh The discussion: Engr. Shafiq delivers the best in the world set the tone of the program out of the money of the buyers. We maintain commitment, which is not that available in the  Unstable power supply

“

we’ve to keep on pursuing to get a better price. Accord and Alliance impose their decisions on us. At first, we should solve our own factory problems. Push the government to deal the foreign buyers. Also, we’ve to tell the buyers about the resources we are exhausting and environmental disaster we’re creating for their products to gain upper hand in negotiating the price. Prof. Engr. Mashud Ahmed Vice-Chancellor, Bangladesh University of Textiles

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fierce global market. He further added that we have a weakness in product design, don’t have any priority-setting policy, poor infrastructure is affecting us also we’ve productivity challenges. And besides, we don’t concentrate on product variety, Mr. Islam added. He further stressed that we’ve to diversify our products. Also, we can tap into the untapped market. He warned all that sticking to only a few products for last 40 years and building capacities on those products have become a great threat for the sector. Mr. Islam advised all to keep in mind that we’ll gain the status of a developed country by the UN soon; we’ll lose some benefits we’re getting now. Engr. Selim Reza, Executive Director, Divine Group said “Goal of the program is to generate new thought. Find out ideas to overcome current challenges of the sector. It’s a buyers dominating the market. We’re not even using 40% of our efficiency.” Engr. Salim shared that many companies around him urged him to call for an open forum to discuss the challenges and opportunities of the sector and so he has coordinated the organization of the event. He informed all that based on the feedback of the RTD next course of action will be taken. Engr. Salim Reza is the Senior Vice President of ITET. Prof. Engr. Mashud Ahmed, ViceChancellor, Bangladesh University of Textiles said “we’ve to keep on pursuing to get a better price. Accord and Alliance impose their decisions on us. At first, we should solve our own factory problems. Push the government to deal the foreign buyers. Also, we’ve to tell the buyers about the resources we exhausting and environmental disaster we’re creating for their products to gain upper hand in negotiating the price.” He urged the industries to gain control over the textile and apparel value chain. He wondered about the possibility of overcoming the

current challenges unless the manufacturers can increase their influence on the value chain. Prof. Ahmed told that Bangladesh apparel industry is stapled by its head and tails by others. Bangladesh doesn’t have its raw materials also don’t have control over the market, so it’s very easy for everybody to exploit the manufacturers. He emphasized on knowledge and training to overcome this. He asked for providing negotiation training to the owners and marketing persons of the apparel industry. Engr. Md. Shamsuzzaman CIP, Managing Director, Micro Fibre Group said “We’ve to find out from where we can save money. We’re weak in raw power, we’ve to solve it. Our manpower is our strength. In summary, we’ve to be very smart to sustain. We’ve to change our composite culture. Professional excellence is a must for survival. We have

“

We’ve to find out from where we can save money. We’re weak in raw power, we’ve to solve it. Our manpower is our strength. In summary, we’ve to be very smart to sustain. We’ve to change our composite culture. Professional excellence is a must for survival. We have a dire crisis of truly capable plant managers who know the pinpoint details of each step of the operation and business. Engr. Md. Shamsuzzaman CIP, Managing Director, Micro Fibre Group

a dire crisis of truly capable plant managers who know the pinpoint details of each step of the operation and business.” Engr. Zaman explained the success story of his company Micro Fibre Group. He told that we are not cheap. He told, “We are earning more than 200 million USD per year by producing less than 50 million pieces of garments. Our average

“

In the past for textile processing pricing was united. But few owners broke the norm and now breaking has become norms. Now we’ve to unite again to solve this problem. Eng. Ehsanul Karim Kaiser Ex-Executive Director, Esquire Group

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

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over the current condition of the industry. He told that we have increased our capacity but don’t have enough orders. We have to explore new markets to bring right orders.

China is self-sufficient but we are not. Also, we’ve to find new markets.

”

Engr. Md. Mozaffar Hossain, Managing Director, SIM Group

cost of per piece garment is more than 4 USD. We have found out our competitive advantage and product group. We are saying ‘no’ to many orders because those we don’t want to do and our capacity is full.” He told that it became only possible by intense analysis and effort to set our competitive advantage and best product range selection which has market demand. We are not competing with neighboring factories for orders; we are bringing a new range of orders from outside. We are unbeatable on efficiency in the world.

Eng. Ehsanul Karim Kaiser, ExExecutive Director, Esquire Group said “In the past for textile processing pricing was united. But few owners broke the norm and now breaking has become norms. Now we’ve to unite again to solve this problem. He gave the example of one of the top global brands C&A, telling that C&A board has a central strategy to decreases 2% price every year whether our cost is increasing day by day. Buyers most of the time doesn’t give rational look on this. We must do something to solve it.” Prof. Dr. Engr. Ayub Nabi Khan, Pro Vice-Chancellor, BUFT said “to sustain in this industry we’ve to think if we’ll only stay in T-Shirt. We don’t have any integrated professional movement. Also, identify challenges and need efficient resource planning.

Engr. Md. Mozaffar Hossain, Managing Director, SIM Group said ”China is self-sufficient but we are not. Also, we’ve to find new markets.” He expressed frustration

A.L.M. Ziaul Haq, Managing Director, Amazing Fashions LTD. said, “Establishing a decision in BGMEA or BKMEA or in a top-level government position is difficult but we can easily unite among ourselves to solve the price and other various issues. We can form an alliance to do joint negotiation on purchases and sales, for example, this will give greater control to us on the value chain. He further suggested that we can also form an alliance of experts and consultants to solve problems and to get the right decisions.” Engr. Anwar Hossain, Director, Niagara Textile Ltd. said, “We’re doing the same business for last 40 years. We didn’t think anything on this issue. Pricing has many branches and controlling cost is challenging. We have a huge process loss. We’ve to reduce it. To sustain in this industry we’ve to reduce RFT. To overcome buyers’ challenges we’ve to keep

“

to sustain in this industry we’ve to think if we’ll only stay in T-Shirt. We don’t have any integrated professional movement. Also, identify challenges and need efficient resource planning.

Engr. Zaman urged others to study Micro Fiber’s model and said we are very open to sharing the inside stories. Engr. Zaman added “to counter the recent challenges we’ve to increase our knowledge level. Buyers don’t give all of their orders to us. They maintain a balance. We’ve to reduce dependence on basic products. Rather we’ve to do value-added products. And most importantly, this type of program should happen regularly.”

efficiency.”

Prof. Dr. Engr. Ayub Nabi Khan, Pro Vice-Chancellor, BUFT He urged all to call upon the government to facilitate necessary support to resolve the issue. He stressed that organization like ITET can play a pivotal role in this.” Engr. Sayed Farid Ahmmed, Managing Director, Unique Designers Ltd. said, “It’s with buyer and seller. And the buyers don’t know the actual cost. But though merchandisers they squeeze and don’t leave any profit for us. If I can’t manage my production cost, then how’ll I get a price from the buyer? Also, we’ve to develop our

the capacity to switch buyers. Also, produce different types of products. Always we have to keep our products cost-effective and need to find out how we can reduce operating cost.” Engr. Shawapan Kumar Ghosh, Executive Director, SM Group said, “We’ve to understand buyers motive. Buyers know that soon the wage will increase. And the buyers have planned how to come up with those. And that why they are always telling us to reduce cost in different other areas. However, we

Bangladesh Textile Today |

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It’s with buyer and seller. And the buyers don’t know the actual cost. But though merchandisers they squeeze and don’t leave any profit for us. Engr. Sayed Farid Ahmmed, Managing Director, Unique Designers Ltd.

also have a forward-looking plan. We need to plan how we increase the price from the buyers.” Engr. Engr. Sumaye Md. Mollik, Sr. General Manager, Universal Yarn Dyeing Ltd. said, “As we’re getting less price in knitting, to sustain we’ve to unite in setting the bottom price at least for the basic products.” Engr. Ibrahim Molla, Technical Director, Auko-Tex Group said, “We’re responsible for this current situation. We are biting each other’s cake. Market diversification is very important. We’ve to look for new markets.” Md. Moniruzzaman Badsha, Managing Director, Fiat Fashion

“

Establishing a decision in BGMEA or BKMEA or in a top-level government position is difficult but we can easily unite among ourselves to solve the price and other various issues. We can form an alliance to do joint negotiation on purchases and sales, for example, this will give greater control to us on the value chain. A.L.M. Ziaul Haq, Managing Director, Amazing Fashions Ltd.

“

We’ve to understand buyers motive. Buyers know that soon the wage will increase. And the buyers have planned how to come up with those. And that’s why they are always telling us to reduce cost in different other areas. Engr. Shawapan Kumar Ghosh Executive Director, SM Group

We’re doing the same business for last 40 years. We didn’t think anything on this issue. Pricing has many branches and controlling cost is challenging.

”

Engr. Anwar Hossain Director, Niagara Textile Ltd.

Ltd. said, “As wage will increase soon we’ve to think from now to create impact. Also, we’ve to change the labor law. Cause some of it being abused by the workers. Currently, a worker can stay on leave for 7 days without prior notice. Review it, and make it two days.” Engr. Badsha informed

that many factories in Bangladesh suffering from worker shortage and severe absenteeism problems. This is causing severe productivity loss. Md. Shakhawat Hossain, Country Manager of Shelsham Trading co. Ltd. said, “We supply more products than demand. BGMEA and BKMEA failed to play a vital role. We need to go door to door and getting more close to the markets.”

Saiful Islam Shahin, Executive Director, Impress Group said, “Buyers come here bearing in mind to give us 20 cents less. We also have to have proper study and plan what we want to achieve from buyers.” He added that still, the global knit sector can offer great business potentials for Bangladesh companies; we need to properly position us for that.

“

Shamim Rahman, Director, South West Composite said “We are

As we’re getting less price in knitting, to sustain we’ve to unite in setting the bottom price at least for the basic products. Engr. Sumaye Md. Mollik Sr. General Manager Universal Yarn Dyeing Ltd.

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known for our cheap labor. We’ve to change buyers’ mindset. Also, we need a different approach in pricing. We should fix cost per product.” Abul Hossain Sentu, Managing Director, Asialink Apparels (BD) LTD. said, “In a same international fair our different companies give different prices. And the difference is quite high. As generally, both are Bangladesh companies buyers have no reason to pay me high for the same product. And it’s a very sad scenario.” Md. Monjur Hasan, Director, Meghna Executive Holdings said: “We’ve to strengthen our position globally.” A. F. M. Touhidul Alam, Executive Director, Silken Sewing Ltd. said, “Our costing is hurting us most, there is no way out without reducing the cost of production” Tasdiqul Alam, General Manager, Marketing & Merchandising, Knit Asia LTD. said, “we follow others and start a business. Our every point should be preplanned and well thought.” Anwarul Hossain, General Manager, Alim Knit (BD) LTD., Mondol Group said “We’ve to remove our poor mentality. Also, we are doing competition within us.”

We’re responsible for this current situation. We are biting each other’s cake. Market diversification is very important. We’ve to look for new markets. Engr. Ibrahim Molla Technical Director, Auko-Tex Group know our position that we’re an important player here. We can win the negotiation.” Engr. Amin said that “it’s true that we’ve made some mistakes and haven’t rationalized our capacity properly. Still, in our current status, there’s a time to take a decision on how to utilize this capacity rationally.” Mr. Amin added, “And as we make commodity product we can come to a bottom price cause in whole the world, commodity products get sold at bottom price. And ultimately buyers have to take this 12% product from Bangladesh. On that note, if we leaders can take the initiative to set a bottom line and push the industry then it’s definitely possible. Also, we can engage BGMEA and BKMEA to set a bottom price for commodity RMG items we are producing in bulk.”

Saiful Islam Shahin, Executive Director, Impress Group

Moniruzzaman Badsha Managing Director, Fiat Fashion Ltd.

Engr. Md. Shakhawat Hossain Talukder, Secretary-General, ITET said: “we’ve united to solve this.” Tareq Amin, Founder & CEO, Textile Today said “In this event 20 leading factory key decision makers are present who contributes more than 9.15% of Bangladesh knit sector in terms of revenue. You are the people who carry great influence in this sector. You also can engage many others who are not present today. Global brands are filling about 12% of their knit products from Bangladesh, so they are strongly dependent on us. So, if our mindset is that we’re dependent on them then we’ll always be on the back foot on negotiation point. Although its industries decision that on which ground we’ll do negotiation. But if we

Md. Shakhawat Hossain, Country Manager of Shelsham Trading co. Ltd.

Shamim Rahman, Director, South West Composite Ltd.

Abul Hossain Sentu, Managing Director, Asialink Apparels (BD) Ltd.

Md. Monjur Hasan Director, Meghna Executive Holdings

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A. F. M. Touhidul Alam, Executive Director, Silken Sewing Ltd.

“

Tasdiqul Alam, General Manager, Marketing & Merchandising, Knit Asia Ltd.

Anwarul Hossain, General Manager, Alim Knit (BD) Ltd.

In the end, Engr. Shafiq added “We’ve to do sector wise programs. Like merchandisers, spinners weaving etc. Then we’ll go to the government.” He expected that such knowledge sharing event will help the sector getting right strategy in moving forward.

it’s true that we’ve made some mistakes and haven’t rationalized our capacity properly. Still, in our current status, there’s a time to take a decision on how to utilize this capacity rationally.

Among others, the RTD was participated by Md. Masudur Rahman, Managing Director of Blue Bird Intl. Ltd., Md. Liaquat Ali Sarder, Executive Director, Sun Tech Energy Ltd., and Engr. Md. Shariful Islam, Managing Director, Auxicolour Bangladesh.

Tareq Amin, Founder & CEO, Textile Today

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Export Update

Bangladeshi exporters pay highest tariff to the US Staff Correspondent According to the Pew Research Center, Bangladeshi exporters are the highest tariff payers among the 232 exporting nations to the US as the North American country imposes substantial import taxes on apparel and footwear. Pew Research Center found that Bangladesh and Vietnam export large volumes of clothes and shoes to the US, and those are the items for which the US imposes taxes at disproportionately high rates.

According to the survey, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Vietnam, and other such nations face the highest import duties in absolute figures, because of their substantial trade in clothing and footwear. For Bangladesh, tariffs were 15.2% of the value of all its shipments. Cambodia pays duties equal to 14.1 percent of the total value export to the US while Sri Lanka pays 11.9 percent, Pakistan 8.9 percent, and

16 14 12 10 8 6 4

Bangladesh 15.2

Cambodia 14.1

Srilanka 11.9

Pakistan Vietnam

8.9 7.2

for the high tariffs is protectionism. Big brands, retailers, and the groups that represent them, such as the footwear retailers and distributors of America have battled against these duties for some time. The USA is Bangladesh’s single largest export destination. About 20 percent of Bangladesh’s export receipts come from the US. The average American tariff for knitwear or crocheted clothing is 18.7 percent and 15.8 percent for non-knitted clothing, the two highest average rates out of 98 broad import categories. Footwear is close behind with the average tariff rate of 11.9 percent.

Myanmar 6.9

Moldova

6.9

China

2.7

Global avg. 1.4

US DUTIES AS A PERCENT OF THE TOTAL VALUE OF IMPORTS Figure: US import duties for South Asian countries. Source: Pew Research Centre.

In 2017, Bangladesh’s exports to the US totaled $5.7 billion, and 95% of them were clothes, shoes, headgear, and related items.

Vietnam 7.2 percent, according to the report. However, the duties on Chinese imports totaled $13.5 billion last year, or 2.7 percent of their total value. The ongoing trade dispute between the United States and China has led both countries to announce tariffs worth billions of dollars on each other’s products.

“Tariff depends on country’s products, Bangladesh exports only single digit products in US market. Besides, Vietnam, India exports more products in US, so that those country export tariff is less. Bangladesh government should discuss with US trade organization about GSP withdraw and include more diversify products.” -Dr. Khondaker Golam Moazzem, Additional Research Director, CPD

According to ITC database, the reason

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Opinion

‘The trade war’ and urge for ‘free and fair trade’ Alok Chowdhury Recently two reports attracted my attention. One was by Seshadri Ramkumar from Texas, the USA titled ‘Free, but fair trade is the need of hour’ and another one is a Textile Today report titled ‘Bangladeshi exporters pay highest tariff to the US’. Two reports generated thoughts. The first one urged China, not to imposed additional tariffs on US crops including cotton and second one comes with shocking information that the US is collecting highest tariffs from no other country but Bangladesh. The reporter from the Texas Tech University of USA reported that “While the United States and China engaged in tariff battles, cotton and grain sectors are nervous and are watching carefully, as the situations around proposed tariffs are uncertain. More importantly, in the High Plains of Texas, which is the ground zero for the U.S. cotton industry, where planting of cotton is around the corner, it may affect the planting intentions and hence influence the broader economy of the region.” Even though the impact of socalled trade war is not yet seen that clearly in the US or in other western countries, the price of petroleum and cotton is on the rise. This may affect the cost of textile materials in coming days. More importantly, the use of import duties and tariffs show once again how miser the

Figure 1: Recently China has imposed additional tariff on the United States products and vice versa

superpower nations are. While they are fighting among them to negotiate in trades they are still harsh in imposing extremely high tariffs on least developed and developing countries like Bangladesh. The above mentioned recent report showed that Bangladesh is paying a highest rated tariff to the US among all countries in the world. The report mentioned that products made by poor Bangladesh people are paying tariffs of average 15.2%. This is the highest tariff rate the US is charging from any country. Meanwhile the report from Texas written by Seshadri Ramkumar told that “On April 6, speaking at the 61st annual meeting of Plains Cotton Growers, Inc., in Lubbock Honorable Jodey Arrington, the United States’ congressman representing Lubbock and

the cotton growing regions surrounding this epic center of cotton production, emphasized the importance of level playing field for US trade. Arrington while supporting the proposed tariffs by the United States to safeguard America’s interest, stressed to execute those policies are more important. Outlining some of the recent successes to protect the cotton industry, such as the recognition of seed cotton in the Title 1 of the current Farm Bill and the ginning assistance program, Arrington stated free and fair trade are linked and more free trade agreements are needed to open up new markets.” The summary of the report from the US is that the US counterpart is worried about the recent announcement from China about the proposed 25% tariff

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Volume 11, Issue 04

Opinion

on 106 products from the United States. The reporter told that key agricultural commodities like soybean, sorghum, cotton may be impacted. Industry insiders here in Bangladesh urged the global leading nation to come out of such trade war which interns hide the great misery behind the slogan ‘Free and Fair Global Trade’. Countries like Bangladesh has never got any benefits by the WTO resolution from the US market. Bangladeshi exporters hoped that current US administration will keep this in mind while they are bringing major changes in the tariff policy. There should be no validation in imposing more than 15 percent tariff duty on Bangladesh products most of them are apparel and footwear involving millions of workers in the process. This is to mention that Bangladeshi products are facing tremendous pressure due to the high tariff in the US market and export growth is going down every year. Recently Bangladesh saw negative growth in export to the US. The report from the USA informed that Sorghum industry, which is an important agricultural commodity grown in the High Plains of Texas may feel the impact if the tariff proposal becomes reality. “Trade must be fixed, but farmers should be protected,” stated John Duff, strategic business director of Lubbock-based National Sorghum Producers. Last year, United States exported 189 million bushels of sorghum to China, which is about 78% of total exports from the United States. China is a significant market and there is demand for protein and quality cotton as it is a growing consumer society. As the US is now to see the negative impact of high tariff threat from China and pushing pressure the country not to impose such tariffs, poor Bangladeshi workers of the RMG

Figure 2: The US tariff policy for Bangladesh is none of free or fair.

and Textile mills also can expect same from the US administration, spokespersons in Dhaka told. Industry insiders urged the US government to withdraw GSP suspension from Bangladesh and to include Bangladeshi RMG products in the duty-free category. The US suspended GSP facilities for Bangladesh on the ground of Rana Plaza incident citing poor working condition in the factories. Though Bangladeshi RMG companies have never got any trade benefits from the US, the country imposed a list of requirements for the factories to do to gain back GSP. As per the Bangladesh government, despite the country has complied all those requirements, the US is still to withdraw the ban on GSP for Bangladesh. It is to mention that meanwhile due to the extensive effort by Accord, Alliance, and Bangladeshi factory owners; Bangladesh RMG has become one of the safest places in the world for producing apparel. As per the report from the US, Steve Verett, with 21-years of experience as the Executive Vice President of Plains Cotton Growers, Inc., stated, “Export markets are extremely important to U.S. cotton producers and up

to 80 percent of U.S. cotton is sold into export markets around the world, including China.” “The potential for current or future trade disputes to impact or redirect the flow of U.S. cotton is very real and it is a situation that we are monitoring closely,” added Verett. This is to mention that Bangladesh is one of the leading importers of US cotton. And Bangladesh imports cotton absolutely in zero duty and tariffs. Currently, Bangladesh has become the largest cotton importer in the world. The tariff issue clearly highlights the point that so-called ‘free and fair global trade’ was never been seen in the US-led trade world. And tariffs and barriers are always being imposed without thinking its impact on global citizens. Countries like Bangladesh eagerly look to the global leading nation like the US, as if the people of the country can make a better living on their expertise area. At this point of negotiation between trade giants, decisions should come which will also safeguard the people of the underdeveloped nations.

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To p S t o r y

Is automation a threat for apparel industry workers?

Recently it is the talk of the town that due to automation needs of workers is decreasing and future of garments labor is in uncertainty. How much is this thinking true? In addition, the real scenario of the industry is needed to be clarified. Textile Today has tried to explore this issue and in this regard, the magazine team talked to several factory owners and related other stakeholders. This report will help to understand the real possible impact of automation in Bangladesh apparel industry.

Akhi Akter Introduction Bangladesh, a country of about 29 billion-dollar apparel exports, started its apparel production before 1971 liberation war mainly based on traditional methods and it has become the main export product of Bangladesh since the late 1980s. Today, the industry has been changed a lot and it achieved the second position in garments exporting worldwide. However, to continue this position Bangladesh is facing different types of challenges. Long lead time-a big challenge As it is an era of fast fashion, it is normal that buyers want product within short lead-time but with low price. Already Bangladesh is lagging behind in lead-time management from its competitor countries. Recently, Vietnam and Cambodia have become major competitors of Bangladesh due to their shorter lead time. The lead time from Bangladesh is around 40 days, whereas it is only 20 days from the other two Asian nations. To sustain in the competitive market and fulfill the huge product demand of buyers many factories have started automating their

Figure 1: Automation greatly reduces the need for human sensory and mental requirement as well. The knitting industry (particularly sweater industry) has seen a great impact of automation in recent times in Bangladesh.

production line to boost output and cope with strict lead time, which ultimately reduced demand of human resources. According to World Bank data, the number of new jobs added by the garment and textile trades has fallen to 60,000 a year, from over 300,000 annually between 2003 and 2010. Government statistics show a crucial part of the supply chain, the production of basic textiles, is already seeing an outright decline in jobs. Automation reduces labor dependency Earlier, in 2016, a study of International Labor Organization predicted some Asian nations

could lose more than 80% of their garment, textile and apparel manufacturing jobs as automation spreads. Automation is the use of control systems such as computers to control the industrial machinery and processes replacing human operators. Female workers participation in Bangladesh readymade garments sector is decreasing due to the automation of manufacturing, finds a survey conducted by Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD). According to the most recent survey, female workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; participation ratio in the garment sector was 60.8 percent in 2016, however, that was 64 percent in

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

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To p S t o r y

says. The demand for skilled worker is increasing

Figure 2: A worker uses a laser-engraving machine to distress jeans at Denim Expert Ltd. (Photo Credit: WSJ)

2015. Khondaker Golam Moazzem, Research Director of the CPD, said that female workers’ participation is declining because the factory owners think female workers are not able to handle modern machinery properly. “Due to automated technology, productivity has increased and necessity of manpower has decreased,” said Abdullah Mohammad Talha, Deputy Managing Director of Noman Group. Many industries are already using these technologies. After 10 years when robot technology will come then, it will decrease labor further. Already many workers are looking for new jobs to the different sector, he added. While talking with Rafiq Hassan, Director of Northern Toshrifa Group, he said, “We are using new technology in our industry for making value-added products, because the market is competitive, the price is competitive and lead time has been also decreased. I think some manpower may be decreased due to automation but the industry needs more skilled worker to adopt the new technology.” According to a report of WSJ, at the Mohammadi Fashion Sweaters Ltd. factory, a few dozen workers are working as 173 German-made machines knit black sweaters for

overseas buyers. Occasionally the workers step into program designs or clean the machines, but otherwise, there is little for humans to do. It is a big change from a few years ago when hundreds of employees could be found standing over manual knitting stations for up to 10 hours a day. Mohammadi’s owners began phasing out such work in 2012, and by last year, the knitting process was fully automated. “It doesn’t make sense for us to slow ourselves down and not automate,” says Rubana Huq, Managing Director of Mohammadi Group, which makes sweaters for H&M, Zara, and other Western brands. Her factories have replaced about 500 workers with machines and may buy more, she

There was an abundance of labor in Bangladesh, reducing the urgency to automate. However, labor costs have been climbing, even in Bangladesh. In addition, technology is becoming so advanced, by which machines can increasingly handle difficult tasks such as manipulating pliable fabrics, stitching pockets and attaching belt loops to pants. There are strong different opinions in the industry on the impact of automation. “Many entrepreneurs use old technology due to their lack of knowledge of modern technology. New technology means new market and I think the demand for manpower will not decline for this reason,” said Swapan Kumar Das, Managing Director, Texworld Associates Ltd. Government and Association should take initiatives to make consciousness on technology, he added. “Demand of labor is not declining due to automation, it’s a wrong concept. Now industry needs more skilled people,” told Mohammad Fazlul Haque, Managing Director of Plummy Fashions Ltd. “Because of the absence of skilled manpower, foreign professionals are taking away 5 billion dollars every year from our country,” he also said.

Figure 3: An automated spreading machine at Pacific Jeans. (Photo Credit: WSJ)

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

To p S t o r y

Te x t i l e B a n g l a d e s h

WRC launched to improve capacity of Bangladesh RMG trade unions Figure 4: Most of the factories are not using advanced technology.

Kazi Salekin, Merchandising Manager of Mastertex International (Bangladesh Liaison Office), pointed out that “Many industry owners uses new technology for competitive market. Besides technology, industry owners need knowledge and training for operating new technology. Some labors are losing their job due to automation. But if they were skilled they would not lose their job.” Vidiya Amrit Khan, Director of Desh Garments Ltd, emphasized on increasing training for women labor with saying that “ I do not think Bangladesh garments industry is that much advanced in technology using and that is why we are seeing a declining of labor demand, especially female labor, due to automation doesn’t make any sense to me.” Conclusions In a world of increasing efficiency every day, jobs of men and women will hardly be considered. The key consideration for businesses will remain to get more automation to increase performance further. And demand of skilled workers in making manually will be reduced. On the contrary demand for skilled workers in using machinery and technology will continue to increase. The industry will be generating more output with less number of people. Demand for unskilled workers will also continue to be reduced day by day.

Staff Correspondent A Workers Resource Centre (WRC), between the two leading worker organizations- the National Coordination Committee on Workers Education (NCCWE) and the IndustriALL Bangladesh Council (IBC), has been launched on 11th April at CIRDAP center in the capital aimed at helping trade unions build capacity in Bangladesh Readymade Garment (RMG) industry and provide better services to its members. The initiative is supported by the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s Social Dialogue and Harmonious Industrial Relations project funded by Sweden and Denmark. Honorable Chief Guest Hasanul Haq Inu, Minister of Information, said, “WRC should lead to a more effective union movement by fostering a culture of consultation, capacity building, and information sharing. I hope this initiative can go beyond the RMG industry and benefit workers.” Sukkur Mahmud, President of Jatiyo Sramik League and Chairperson of the WRC said his presentation, “WRC will provide various services including advocacy, awareness raising and training on workers’ rights, dispute resolution, grievance handling, negotiation, collective bargaining as well as occupational safety and health.” “WRC already started in Tongi Industrial zone, Very soon WRC stated their activities to all industrial zone. It will also help promote the active participation of women in trade unions,” he added. More than 4.5 million workers are

Figure 1: Distinguished guest were present at the WRC launching ceremony.

working in garments sector, but only 2 million workers are attached with the trade union, said Towhidur Rahman, Secretary General of IndustriALL Bangladesh Council. Workers Resource Centre will help unions learn how to represent its workers in RMG factories, he added “Now Bangladesh has 63.3 million labor working in the different sector, every year 2 million labours are increasing,” said Kamran T. Rahman, President of the Bangladesh Employer’s Federation. We need more skilled worker to achieve the SDG by 2030. WRC will play a great role in capacity building for RMG workers, he added “WRC marks an important step in the strengthening of the trade union movement in Bangladesh,” said Kishore Kumar Singh. ILO will continue to work closely with the Government, employers and workers organizations to help facilitate and promote better social dialogue in the RMG sector and beyond, he added Razequzzaman Ratan, MemberSecretary of NCCWE, Delwar Hossain Khan, General Secretary of Bangladesh Labour Federation and Z.M. Kamrul Anam, Vice Chairman of the Workers Resource Centre were also present at the event.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Market Analysis

Te x t i l e B a n g l a d e s h

Contributions of the industrial sector in GDP is growing but employment generation is slow Staff Correspondent

BGMEA celebrates graduation to developing country Desk Report

According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) data, Bangladesh will achieve a GDP growth in fiscal 2017-18 is likely to be 7.65 percent, up from 7.28 percent a year earlier. The data also confirmed that the industrial sector is making the most impact on this projected growth.

industries (large, medium and small) is quite good compared to the previous FY. The export and the domestic industries sectors both have moved forward,” said Khandaker Golam Moazzem, Research Director at the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD). According to the source, the contribution of this sector in the GDP has exceeded 32%. Bangladesh currently has around 1,000,000 small and medium industries.

Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) organized a program titled “Members Night” for all its valued Members to celebrate the graduation of Bangladesh from LDC and 48th Independence Day on 26 March at Radisson Blu in the capital.

The labour force survey report by the BBS revealed that 3,700,000 people gained employment in FY 2016-2017. In the industries, only 200,000 people gained employment during the same period. “If we want to increase our growth, we need to do more private investment in economic zones especially in garments sector,” said Abdus Salam Murshedy, President of Exporters Association of Bangladesh. “Government will provide all facility for our investors,” he added.

Figure 1: Recently Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal informed the details to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at an ECNEC meeting held at the NEC meeting room at Dhaka’s Agargaon.

The industrial sector, whose contribution to the GDP is 33.71 percent, grew 11.99 percent against 10.22 percent in fiscal 2016-17.

According to the bureau, the

Figure 1: President, Vice Presidents, Directors, were present at the Members Night’.

Bangladesh’s graduation to a developing country makes every member of the apparel sector happy and proud as the industry has a significant contribution to this accomplishment, said BGMEA President Md. Siddiqur Rahman.

7.65 7.28

7.11 6.55 6.06

FY 2014

FY 2015

FY 2016

FY 2017

FY 2018(JUL-MARCH)

Figure 2: Showing GDP growth trend (in %) from 2014 to 2018. Source: EPB

There was a decrease in growth of wholesale and retail trade, transport and communication, financial intermediation, education, health and social work sectors. Only hotel and restaurants saw higher growth. “Growth in all three types of

growth of new employment opportunities in the industrial sector has been slow so far. In 2013, this sector employed around 12,100,000 people, which stood at around 12,200,000 in the FY 2015-16, and 12,400,000 in the FY 2016-17.

Figure 2: Fashion show by the students of BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology with creative dresses designed and modeled by themselves got huge applause from the audience.

Vice Presidents, Directors, former Presidents and thousands of Members of BGMEA attended the program. The program ended with a cultural session and dinner.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Bangladesh Economy

Need a common platform to set compliance standards Staff Correspondent Compliance is the major pillar Bangladesh needs to build to attain the $50 billion target. It could add value in Bangladesh textile and apparel industry, speakers of ‘1st National Compliance Carnival 2018’ opined. They also urged for a common platform to set compliance standards. Institute of Compliance Professionals (ICP) organized the event on 20th April 2018 at International Convention City, Bashundhara (ICCB) in the city where compliance professionals from different industries like RMG, FMCG, pharmaceuticals, MNCs, footwear, and leather attended. Minister of Information Hasanul Haq Inu, MP attended the program as the chief guest while Michael Schultheiss, Deputy Head of Mission and Head of the Economics Section, German Embassy Dhaka, Dr. Annie Vestjens, First Secretary SRHR and Gender, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Mohammad Hatem, 1st Vice President, Exporters Association of Bangladesh and Atiqul Islam, Former President of BGMEA also flourished the program attending as the special guests. Shaila Ashraf, Convener of 1st Compliance Carnival, presided over the event. As the chief guest, Mr. Hasanul Haq Inu said, the industry has to be more responsible to be sustainable and now the time to take the responsibility of all stakeholder. “More industrialization will help us to attain 2021 vision and in this regard, compliance is needed,” he said. “Good governance in the industry will be ensured by compliance,” he added.

Figure 1: Distinguished guests inaugurated the ‘1st National Compliance Carnival 2018’.

the financial capability to do these. But every year buyers are decreasing the price for the product.”

Shaila Ashraf highlighted the success of Bangladesh apparel industry in compliance. She said that Bangladesh has done significant improvement in compliance after Rana Plaza tragedy. Michael Schultheiss said. “To compete in world market compliance is vital. Compliance is the responsibility of everyone buyers, producers, and consumers. Germany aims to hand to enhance quality and skills of mid-level management.” Atiqul Islam said, “After the Rana Plaza incident we face huge challenges of dignity. We face negative propaganda against Bangladeshi product. But now all the companies are committed to their compliance issue.” Describing some misinformation about Bangladesh apparel industry that was sent to the world leaders, he requested to the workers union to send correct information about Bangladesh apparel industry to the world. Highlighting the importance of buyer’s contribution in compliance Mohammad Hatem pointed out “We are maintaining different types of compliance issue to ensure workers right and satisfy buyers. End of the day we need

As part of the program, there were three-panel discussions. ‘Transformation of the garments industry towards the target of $50 Billion by 2021 and role of compliance’ was the first one of those in which ATM Mahbubul Alam Milton, ED, Masco Group was the keynote speaker, moderated by Dr. Ayub Nabi Khan, Pro VC, BUFT while Tapan Kumar Ghosh, Additional Secretary (Export), Md. Arfan Ali, MD, Bank Asia, Mamun Zaman, Country Manager, Elevate and Manjur Morshed, Sr. Advisor, GIZ were present among the panel discussants. All of them emphasized on the participation of the government with the RMG factories and in this sense, compliance can be a strong weapon to achieve that $50 billion mark by 2021. In the keynote speech, ATM Mahbubul Alam Milton emphasized to set a unified compliance guideline. Tapan Kumar Ghosh said, “After 2024 we will be graduated from least development to the developed country while we will lose many facilities. So we have to be more compliant to face this challenge.”

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

C o m p l i a n c e To d a y

Te x t i l e B a n g l a d e s h

Alliance looking for The demand of credible organization to Bangladeshi jute rising handover their services in global car industry Desk Report

Staff Correspondent

Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety whose five-yearterm draws to a close at the end of the year has decided to look for a way to carry forward its inspections, safety monitoring, training and helpline services.

Jute is one of the cheapest and the strongest of all natural fibers and considered as the fiber of the future. Fortunately, Bangladesh is the second Figure : Global car industries are using Bangladeshi Jute. largest producer of jute after India, though, for many years jute has been seen as a lose project for Bangladesh. However, recently some hopes are created to revive the previous jute history that was a golden time for the sector.

According to a press statement, the Board of Directors of the 29-brand Alliance was in Dhaka last week to discuss plans to form a successor safety monitoring organization (SMO). Initially, the plan was not to extend the five-year term and to place the Alliance’s work in the hands of local stakeholders like the BGMEA (Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association) and trade unions.

Global car industry uses the natural fiber to manufacture the interiors of vehicles and in this case, jute fiber is the first choice for the industry. Bangladesh has the potential to become the main supplier of jute to the global car industry. According to the Jute exporters, the global car industry needs about 100,000 tons of jute a year, of which 12,000 tons come from Bangladesh.

100,000 Figure: Alliance Executive Director, Ambassador James Moriarty.

Alliance Executive Director, Ambassador James Moriarty said Alliance member brands are ready to collaborate with the Bangladesh Government and the BGMEA to establish an independent, credible, locally led organization that will continue our important work. “We have seen progress in our talks to date, and we are encouraged by momentum toward a collective agreement on a sustained safety effort,” Moriarty added. Safe garment factories protect millions of workers, and they are critical to maintaining Bangladesh’s standing as a world leader in garment production,” Moriarty said. Moriarty also said, “We are confident that reaching a multi-stakeholder agreement is the best way to continue supporting the safety and wellbeing of RMG workers across Bangladesh.” Since 2013, the Alliance has brought about a sea change on safety within Alliance-affiliated factories. Remediation across more than 600 factories is 90% complete; 1.4 million workers in nearly 1,000 factories have access to the 24-hour Alliance helpline; 1.5 million workers have been trained in fire safety, and democratically elected Worker Safety Committees have been established in nearly 200 factories.

tons of jute needed per year for global car industry

12000

tons of jute supplied by Bangladesh each year

$5 to $7 Billion

dollars jute and jute goods can be exports annually in the next 7 years.

According to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), jute and jute goods export maintain a steady growth as the country earn $66.18 crore in the first seven months (July-January) of the current fiscal year (FY2017-18). In early 2000, Bangladesh started supplying jute to high-end car brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, and Audi. Previously, the car industry used glass fiber to manufacture the interiors. But glass fiber is not recyclable or biodegradable. In 1994, the search for a green alternative began while jute emerged as the frontrunner. Bangladesh government stops the export of jute without any prior notice and for this reason, the car manufacturers do not fully rely on Bangladeshi jute. A few years ago government imposed a ban on the export of raw jute from Bangladesh, which left BMW facing a shortage of the natural fiber. Bangladesh has the potential to export jute and jute goods worth $5 billion to $7 billion annually in the next seven years said, Rashedul Karim Munna, Managing Director of Creation Private. The use of the natural jute fiber from Bangladesh by global car brands helped in the diversification of jute products, he added.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

ď&#x201E;? Our government

should impose anti-dumping law to protect our local spinning industryâ&#x20AC;Ś

Textile sector is contributing more than 12% in GDP and over 81% of the export earning comes from textiles and textilerelated products. Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA) is the national trade organization representing yarn, fabric manufacturers, and textile product processors mills of the country under private sector. BTMA is working to promote and protect the trade, commerce and manufacturers of Bangladesh. Mohammad Ali Khokon, the Vice President of BTMA and Managing Director of Maksons Group, is a selfmade entrepreneur who engaged with textile and apparel trade from 1987. He has versatile experience of more than 3 decades with the sector and in the meantime, he leads many organizations. Recently Bangladesh Textile Today has taken an exclusive interview with him where he shared his experience with this sector, discussed about problems they are facing and advised some suggestion to the government for establishing a strong backward linkage supportive industry.

Mohamed Ali Khokon Vice President, BTMA, Managing Director, Maksons Group

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

S p i n n i n g To d a y

Textile Today: What is the present condition of our spinning sector? M.A Khokon: Our spinning sector has improved a lot. Now we are producing around 95% yarn for knit and 35-40% for woven and 100% yarn for terry towel. It is helping our RMG industry to reduce the dependency of yarn import and to save time in order to meet on-time delivery of goods. In our total export USD 28 Billion, Primary Textile Sector (PTS) contribution is around USD 16-17 Billion. We are getting only Cutting and Making (CM) benefit in our RMG business. Our PTS has a great contribution in this regards. Textile Today: It is said that we are importing a huge amount of yarn from India. Does that mean we are depending on Indian market? M.A Khokon: Now our local yarn is meeting up around 90-95% consumption for knit products. We are giving some benefits to our garments industry which is helping our RMG exporters to meet the shipment schedule of the buyer. For example, someone places 50 MT yarn order to us. Immediately we deliver some portion of yarn from our stock and they can start production. If something found bad quality in bulk delivery, we are replacing it on the same day once we notified. They give us acceptance when their goods are under production or ready for production. But if they import yarn, suppliers ship when full quantity is ready and cannot start production. Also, have to pay by 21 days from BL day. Sometimes they have to pay before receiving goods. Textile Today: We produce mostly cotton and cotton blend yarn. Why can we not produce high value or fancy yarn? M.A Khokon: Yes in Bangladesh, we are producing mainly cotton and cotton blend yarn. But nowadays we also producing some other high valued yarn i.e. Viscose (chemical and natural/

Figure 2: The spinning mills of Bangladesh are fighting to cope up increasing cost of production mainly due to the hike of electricity and gas price.

cellulosic), polyester, 100% cotton Melange and Poly Blended MĂŠlange, Injected Yarn, Modal Yarn etc. Now a dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s many spinning mills have diversified their product category to high-value products. Currently, 30% of yarn consumption is fancy yarn and we can meet some portion of local consumption which was 100% import dependency previously. In Maksons, we are producing Viscose, Melange, Modal, Slub yarn. Textile Today: From Bangladesh, we are exporting many sweater items. Acrylic is mostly used for a sweater. There are only eight acrylic mills we have in Bangladesh. How we increase more acrylic spinning mill to meet local consumption? M.A Khokon: Sweater Acrylic yarn is a petrochemical product. We are not competitive in acrylic yarn as raw materials is imported from China and cost of production is higher than China. Power cost is increasing which has a direct impact to the cost of production. Plant and machinery cost is also higher. Therefore, our production cost is higher than that of our competitors. Textile Today: We are importing cotton from India. There is some saying in the local market that India is playing with us sometimes when cotton price fluctuating to

the world market. What is your opinion in this regards? M.A Khokon: India is our economic competitor. They adopting dumping, anti-dumping policy. When cotton demand is high then they increase price and when our yarn production is sufficient then they supply us yarn very low prices. Our government should impose an anti-dumping law to protect our local spinning industry. The government should take the counter policy to protect our textile industry. Textile Today: What type of step government should take to attract more investment in our textile sector? M.A Khokon: Government has taken initiatives to increase more investment in this sector and made economic zone in this regards. The government should announce special incentives for establishing new industry like as the beginning of the industry when the incentive was 25%, the gas cost was BDT 1.5/ unit. It can decrease bank interest rate as well. If the government does not take such initiatives, may the target will not be achieved. Textile Today: Government is importing LNG and announced for the gas price increase. How it will affect your business and how you will manage additional cost? M.A Khokon: Government is

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

S p i n n i n g To d a y

planning to increase gas price but there is no clear declaration in this regards. Already gas price increased 157% up to now and if it continues, then survival of the industry will be very difficult. We heard if LNG added with our national grid line, the price will be doubled. If price hike like this, our manufacturing cost also will be higher. Approximately the cost will be increased 20 cents per kg. We have requested the government to make a plan for a price adjustment. Maybe it can be 5 years plan and government can declare we will increase the price at 10% or 20% in current year and next year some 20% and so on. Thus we also can adjust our manufacturing cost. Textile Today: What initiatives government should take to solve the problems of this textile and apparel industry? M.A Khokon: There is no concerned authority we can talk with for these issues. We are trying to reach high authority of the government from our organization. As a Vice President of BTMA, I am trying to talk with whom I meet, discuss in the talk shows on electronic media, requesting paper media to write on these issues. The government also was busy for the last couple of years to confront some national and international burning issue. Hope after the national election, the new government will concentrate on this issue. The government should make a one-stop cell, where we can discuss our problems, suggestion etc. for the betterment of this sector. We are telling everywhere, everyone when we meet high authority of the concerned body or media. Yes, there is a ministry of textiles and jute but they are not playing an appropriate role. Other concerned government bodies also not discussing any important issue related to textile and apparel industry to them. For example, NBR or finance ministry can call the ministry of textiles before

national budget declaration to discuss about tax and other issue and advise them to discuss with its stakeholder like BGMEA, BTMA etc. but there is no discussion like this. If such urgent issue discusses in a roundtable then there must be some solution come out to solve the problem of textile and apparel industry.

initiatives to make our business sustainable. We have increased our productivity by adjusting some additional technology with current machinery. Our productivity is now increased around 10% with almost same overhead cost. For power saving, we have also used some modern machinery and techniques for less power consumption.

Textile Today: Currently we are graduating to developing country. Some of our facilities will be reconsidered in buyers importing country. How we overcome this upcoming challenges?

We have a capacity of 1,200,000 gallons reserved water for fire safety. Also, we have rainwater harvesting facilities.

M.A Khokon: We have graduated to the developing country recently. If we can continue all the eligibility criteria scores, we will enjoy such benefit more 9 years, up to 2027. This is a huge span of time for us. We will enjoy all the facilities in the importing countries as now we are enjoying. So, the government should take initiatives to continue and prepare a plan to confront all the issues will come up post developing country status achievement. Textile Today: In which aspect government should focus more on your smooth business operations? M.A Khokon: Government should improve infrastructure. We need huge time to send or receive goods to our port city Chattogram. No country in the world has such poor infrastructure. We are requesting the government to make an alternative road to reach Chattogram, which will save our cost and time. The government should also develop infrastructure that connected with other cities. It will help develop industry in the rural area and our manufacturing cost will also be less than now. In the remote area, land price is lower and living cost is also less than Dhaka city. Textile Today: What are Maksons initiatives for sustainable business?

Textile Today: What Makson is practicing for human capital transformation? M.A Khokon: We are providing training facilities continuously to our workers, stuff and top officials. We are arranging inside and outside training. This year we are sending our high officials to Singapore and previously we have sent in Thailand, USA, China etc. countries. We are spending a huge amount of money for our research and developments. We are hiring a consultant from the expert organization, BUTEX etc. We are participating in renowned seminars, workshops to learn about current technologies, trends and skill developments. Currently, we went Germany for producing special types of yarn by using similar technology for all in one. To motivate our workers, we are providing all common benefits like attendance bonus etc. We are providing accommodation facilities for 100% of our workers fully free of cost. We have rented a house outside of our factory premises. During Ramadan, we are providing iftar and dinner for those who are on shifting duties. We are providing extra full salary bonus who worked with us at least 2 years. We have special bonus scheme for stuff and high officials. We have also celebrated family day once a year.

M.A Khokon: We have many

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

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Competency gaps of Bangladeshi professionals need to resolve for upgradation in apparel value chain BUFT Correspondent Global apparel value chain, its opportunities, and challenges were discussed at a seminar titled ‘Opportunities and Challenges for Up-gradation in Global Apparel Value Chain’ on 8th April at BGMEA University of Fashion Technology (BUFT). It was organized by Centre for Export & Product development (CEPD) of BGMEA University of Fashion & Technology where Prof. Dr. Eng. Ayub Nabi Khan, Pro-vice Chancellor of BUFT, was present as chief guest and Tareq Amin, Editor and Publisher, Bangladesh Textile Today, was the keynote speaker. The keynote speaker discussed the global apparel value chain and stressed on the importance of keeping the aspects which creates value to final consumers. Tareq Amin, Founder & CEO of Bangladesh Textile Today emphasized on the importance of being visionary and keeping steadfast on the path of achieving the vision. When the seminar started with the dream of taking Bangladesh to the global leadership positions, Tareq Amin

urged the youth to come forward and take the challenge. He told the audience that you should not be a ‘Copy Cat’, you can never achieve what others have achieved, and you have to achieve your own goal. He mentioned that your goal has to be big enough as if it challenges you through the whole of your life and it has to be achievable as well. Prof. Dr. Ayub Nabi Khan inspired all participating students through his speech. “Think something

different, come out from the box and execute your thinking to represent Bangladesh to the world,” said Prof. Khan to the students. He also said, “We are the 2nd largest garments exporting country just after China. Bangladesh market share of garments in the world is 6.5% where China’s market share is 35%.” “We are producing some very common garments items for a long time. But it is high time

Figure 1: Tareq Amin, founder and CEO, Bangladesh Textile Today gave the keynote speech.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

C a m p u s To d a y

to diversify our garments product producing more valuable products like swimwear, bulletproof garment as well as all technical cloth, for example, agro product, space suit and so on, “he added. Expressing hope he said that if young leaders give concentration to this fact, one day we will achieve the 1st position in the world in garment export. After advising his students to do research on technical textile’s products, he thanked the Textile Today and its Founder Tareq Amin for its outstanding contribution to promoting textile and apparel sector in the national and international arena. A.S.M Tareq Amin started his keynote presentation by raising a question to the audiences about value chain of apparel. “Value chain means to value creation behind an apparel,” replied Md. Mehedi, a student of Textile Engineering. Another student Motakabbir Rahman Mine replied, “we are producing around 7-8 items of garments, which has a very low price that means low value. If we work with some more valuable apparel like space suite, swimwear, sportswear we can increase the value of apparel. We need to do research on technical textile thus we can develop more valuable apparel.”

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Better jute initiative Abdul Wadud, Consultant, Transform, E-Mail: awadud.transform@gmail.com Bangladesh produces one of the best jute in the world. Jute is ecofriendly and closely linked with the livelihood of farmers as a cash crop. Better and diversified use of jute can eventually contribute to the overall economy as it has the highest scope of value addition, right from raw jute to finished products made out of jute. Bangladesh exports roughly USD 28.6 billion of RMG a year while major raw material like fiber, a portion of yarn and fabric and accessories and dyeing and finishing chemicals, is sourced from outside and thereby value addition is roughly 20%. This means value addition through garments export is only USD 6 billion. If we can ensure multiple ways of utilizing jute for domestic use and export its contribution to the overall economy of Bangladesh would be much bigger than now it is. But to attain such impact following are very important: 1. Proper grading of Jute fiber quality: Authentic grading is the key to success. No compromise can be made with quality and grading. Unfortunately, our grading system is most unreliable though we produce the best jute fiber in the world. It is most important that “Gradewise” fiber is segmented properly and strict removal of mal-practices that hampers proper grading; like putting water or other impurity to gain short-sighted profit which eventually effects the reliability of grading system. 2. Introduction of Better Jute Initiative (BJI):

Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) has worked very well in cotton in order to ensure demand for sustainable cotton through making the cotton cultivation sustainable to farmers as well giving brands and retailers a traceable and reliable source of sustainable cotton. As per the BCI Fact Sheet 2017, “In 2016, less than 20% of global cotton production was independently verified as grown using more sustainable practices….” which is very encouraging.

b. U se of scientific technique to ensure authentic fiber grading system. And individual bale identification system to ensure traceability.

Compared with other sustainable initiatives in cotton BCI is really expanding very fast and meeting the need of sustainable cotton business and ensuring a proper balance in the value chain. Jute is an eco-friendly fiber that is bio-degradable and there is real demand for such fiber if we can have a common platform for the jute value chain that would ensure its reliability, quality, traceability and sustainability. We can call the common platform as “Better Jute Initiative (BJI)” and bridge between jute fiber to brands and retailers through addressing the following points and making a proper strategic plan: 1. Commitment from the buyer (Brands and Retailers) 2. Sustainable Jute fiber production through:

a. Use of better agronomy, cultivation practice and fiber preparation that would ensure better quality and productivity of jute fiber with less impact to environment through use of less input (chemical, fertilizer, water, etc.) that would eventually reduce cost and increase profit to farmers.

c. C ontinual improvement of authenticity of grading system, fiber quality, buyers’ commitment and profitability of farmers. 3. Ensure proper traceability in the value chain, step by step. Initially up to fiber and gradually spinning/ weaving/dyeing, etc. Introduction of sustainable initiative to jute fiber would bring an overall impact on the jute through: • Better agronomy • Less water use • Less use of fertilizer, pesticide and chemical. • Higher production and lower cost. • Better access to market for jute products • Higher profit to the value chain

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

April 2018

Bangladesh RMG industry is a model for other countries to follow, Alliance

Fakhruddin Textile Mills, the pioneer of synthetic fabric dyeing in BD

Editorial

Cover Plus

Bangladesh RMG industry shows a sea change on safety transformation

Figure 1: Activists hold up photographs of their missing relatives, who worked at Rana Plaza, outside of Dhaka on April 29, 2013. (Photo Credit: Reuters)

r is be s m ion nu n e eu 2 Th ad 63 tr

In this regard, local garment entrepreneurs put more than $1 billion to remediate the factories for preventing such tragedies in future. As per the recommendations of the inspection agencies, three bodies, including Accord, Alliance, and National Initiative, were formed to fix mainly three kinds of

Bangladesh RMG industry G 9% ov t in . is in ter pr du es ov st t in id ri s in al p g iz iri lo at ng a io g ns n re en

According to BGMEA, 3,978 factories have been inspected for building, fire and electrical safety under the combined efforts of the three safety initiatives.

“Rana Plaza incident was a wakeup call for us. The owner and local government were responsible for the lack of proper monitoring of the accident. It taught a lot to the nation. We have a big industry, so it is not unusual to occur an accident. However, we must have to be aware so that such incidents will not happen anymore, said Md. Nasir Uddin, Director of BGMEA and Managing Director of Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd.

“loopholes” relating to the structural, fire and electrical issues.

“The progress achieved in fortifying worker safety in the last five years, after Rana Plaza building collapse, has been unprecedented and Figure 2: Current status of Bangladesh RMG industry five years after Rana Plaza collapse. serves as a model for other countries to follow,” said Alliance Executive Director, The safety in Bangladesh RMG Ambassador James Moriarty. factories covered by the Accord Gagan Rajbhandari, Officer-inhas also improved noticeably Charge of International Labour since 2013. Safety in Accord Organisation (ILO) in Bangladesh, affiliated RMG factories have said, “Five years from Rana Plaza improved substantially as 84.1 [tragedy], workplace safety in the percent. According to Rob garment industry has certainly Wayss, Executive Director and improved. Acting Chief Safety Inspector Progress by Alliance of European inspection agency the Accord, “Accord currently Since 2013, the Alliance has has approximately 1,625 covered brought a significant change on supplier factories. Some 88,443 safety within Alliance-affiliated safety hazards, in total, were factories. 90% Remediation identified in Accord’s initial across more than 600 factories inspections of these factories. is complete; 1.4 million workers in Some 74,386 of these safety nearly 1,000 factories have access to the 24-hour Alliance helpline; 1.5 hazards have been fixed.” at

s s ha ie h or es ct ad fa gl en an e B gr 67

On the morning of 24th April, 2013 in Savar, Dhaka, the nine-story Rana Plaza building collapsed, killing 1,138 and injuring more than 2,500 workers. This accident did not take only hundreds of life, it also took away the reputation of Bangladesh garments industry. The world called for rejecting Bangladeshi products, but the situation is completely different now, as the people of Bangladesh know how to fight against obstacles.

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Akhi Akter

million workers have been trained in fire safety, and democratically elected Worker Safety Committees have been established in nearly 200 factories. The 1.2 million women and men who earn a living in Alliance factories now work in buildings that are structurally sound, free of fire hazards and equipped with modern electrical systems, sprinklers and fire doors. Progress by Accord

Green factory revolution Bangladesh’s export-oriented RMG sector is improving its status as a green industry. Md. Nasir Uddin mentioned, “At present, we have 67 LEED certified green factories. The top rated factory in the USGBC ranking is now in Bangladesh. Now the people who are making new factory keeping the green matter in their consideration.”

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Cover Plus

Of the 67 factories, 13 have been rated platinum, 20 gold, and five silver. At least 222 more factories have been registered with the USGBC for the LEED certification. Industry insiders say the number of green factories are increasing as global retailers are looking for eco-friendly apparel manufacturers since consumers around the world are growing concerned about how the production of their clothes affect the environment. “Within next two years, three of the four factories of Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd. will be completely green. Local and international media should

highlight this issue to facilitate positive branding except focusing only on negative issues,” Md. Nasir Uddin added. To encourage all industries to establish eco-friendly factories, the government is providing loans at 9% interest, especially to the RMG sector. In the 2015-16 fiscal year, banks and other financial institutions disbursed Tk46,590 crore in loans, of that amount, Tk39,695 crore went to green factories, most of which are in the RMG sector, according to the Bangladesh Bank. Trade union upraised The registration of the trade

unions in the readymade garment sector has increased significantly after Rana Plaza incident and now the number of trade unions is 632. Unions have the power to represent the concerns of workers, who in turn can take combined action on decisions, which affect their safety and security. Finally, there are still many things to do to continue remediation of RMG factories and to inspire a culture and practice of occupational safety and health. In this regard, buyers should contribute not only by giving a suggestion but also by providing financial support.

Bangladesh RMG industry is a model for other countries to follow, Alliance Desk Report The progress achieved in fortifying worker safety in the last five years, after Rana Plaza building collapse, has been unprecedented and serves as a model for other countries to follow, said an Alliance official press release. Five years ago, today, the collapse of the Rana Plaza building claimed the lives of 1,134 men and women, left thousands more injured and changed the Bangladesh garment industry forever. In the aftermath of the disaster, stakeholders from across the industry came together to bring a change in factory safety in Bangladesh. Marking this solemn day, Alliance remembered the men and women who perished at Rana Plaza, and it reaffirmed their commitment to continuing an uncompromising focus on safety.

The release said, “Today, millions of men and women who make a living in Bangladesh’s garment industry work in factories that meet international safety standards. They have been trained to protect themselves in case of an emergency. And they have tools to bring immediate attention to safety concerns, including a confidential, 24-hour helpline.” “The Alliance is proud to have played a role in driving these achievements,” it added.

these gains.

The release claimed that with Alliance factory remediation nearing completion, their factories have reached the starting line for safety, not the finish line. Brands, factory owners, and the Bangladesh government now have a shared responsibility to sustain

The release also pointed out that is why the Alliance will join with credible, local partners in the weeks ahead to form a joint entity that will continue to oversee inspections, monitoring, worker training and helpline services over the long term.

Figure: Bangladesh RMG industry is now one of the safest industries in the world.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

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F a c t o r y Ta l e s

Fakhruddin Textile Mills, the pioneer of synthetic fabric processing in Bangladesh Rahbar Hossain Akash Fashion trend is changing very rapidly with the concept of fast fashion and now consumers are accepting synthetic garment for both fashion and many functional aspects. Manufacturers are also changing their process and developing technologies to meet the consumer’s demand in synthetic garments. With this succession, CHTC Fong’s Industries Co. Ltd. brought DYECOWIN, the revolutionary high temperature dyeing machine with cuttingedge patented technology for modern synthetic fabrics. Fong’s and Pacific Associates Ltd. jointly organized an open house event on 21 April for newly launched DYECOWIN machine at Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd., a sister concern of URMI group. A DYECOWIN was installed at Fakhruddin Textile Mills on 4th January, 2018 as the testimony of their advancement in modern technology. The event was inaugurated by the welcome speech of Shahabuddin, Managing Director of Pacific Associates Ltd. The technical session was presented by Kenneth Chu, Fong’s sales manager of Bangladesh and Philippine. Md. Hafizur Rahman, Head of the Strategic Business Unit (Textile), Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd. received the crest from Fong’s as the first valuable customer of DYECOWIN in Bangladesh. Many textile experts of different factories actively participated in the event. Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd. is the pioneer of synthetic fabric dyeing in Bangladesh since it is

Figure 1: Distinguished guest from textile industry visited Fongs DYECOWIN machine at Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd.

established in 2002. It is also OekoTex, GOTS, OCS and RCS certified knit composite industry. Increasing in annual turn-over shows that how promising they are to their business. In 2003 the turn-over was 6 million US dollars and now it is about 149 million US dollars. About 12% of total dyeing capacity of FTML is synthetic fabric dyeing and they have 17 high temperature dyeing machines for that, among these, one is DYECOWIN single tube m/c, model DYECOWIN1T60D. FTML’s main buyers are Production Units DECATHLON, Knitting TRITON, Tchibo Dyeing and Puma. Md. Seamless knitting Hafizur Rahman Seamless Dyeing said, “Our 25% annual turn-over Printing comes from Embroidery sports items Washing and we are thinking of how to increase it.” In FTML, mainly

100% polyester and polyesterelastane blended (82% + 18%) fabric produced as per the buyer requirements. FTML has an aerobic biological ETP with the capacity of 4,000m^3 per day, roof top solar panel, exhaust gas boiler, hot water module etc. from sustainability aspect. It has received many national and international award in the environmental performance and inclusive skill development Capacity 25 tons/day 30 tons/day 100,000/month 5,000 pcs/day 40,000 pcs/day 3,000 million stitch /day 8,000 pcs (pigment dyeing)/day 15,000 pcs (acid wash, stone wash, special wash etc.)/day

Figure 2: Production units and capacity of FTML.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

F a c t o r y Ta l e s

caused by unsynchronized motion between nozzles and lifting rollers. Again the rectangular fabric transportation tube allows fabric to have free expansion and a smoother run along the channel thus reducing crease marks. Effective unloading design: The surface of the stainless steel roller is wrapped with polymer to increase lifting force and achieving an effective unloading operation.

Figure 3: Shahabuddin, Managing Director of Pacific Associates Ltd handovers a crest to Hafizur Rahman, Head of Strategic Business Unit (Textile), Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd at Fongs seminar.

category. The industry also actively participates in many CSR activities. FTML has more than 8,000 skilled man power and all are working to take the industry next level of fruition. DYECOWIN’s technology and feature DYECOWIN has come with big

concept and that is DYE + ECO + WIN means dyeing, economic and win-win. It is a major breakthrough in the long tube machine with lower liquor ratio (1:5). The roller less design of the m/c overcome the tangling problem against traditional machines, avoiding fabric surface defects such as scratch marks and shining marks

Figure 4: Schemetic diagram of material passage in new DYECOWIN M/C.

High fabric speed: Fabric speed can reach up to 600m/min for light fabrics. This design also favors open width dyeing as no additional process is required. The patented stainless steel storage chamber is capable of increasing the loading capacity with the use of ‘CONJET’ nozzle. This m/c is only recommended for synthetic and synthetic blended fabrics and not for any type of cotton or cotton blended fabrics. This m/c has three available models with different tubes and capacity. Generally during synthetic fabric dyeing some certain problems are arisen and Fong’s brought DYECOWIN as the solution of these problems. Mr. Ruhul Quddus, General Manager of FTML, shared his four months experience of DYECOWIN. He said, “Before we faced mainly four problems during synthetic fabric dyeing and these are yarn pull out, crease mark, shade matching problem and some mechanical problems. By this machine we have overcome the problems goodly.”

13 companies get Standard Chartered Trade Awards 2017 Desk Report Standard Chartered Bangladesh Trade Awards 2017 honored 13 companies in three categories for their business with the bank last year. The award-winning companies are Epic Group, YKK Bangladesh, Youngone Corporation, Ha-Meem Group, Square Group, Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation, TK Group of Industries, Akij Group,

City Group, Meghna Group of Industries, Pran-RFL group, Noman Group and Pacific Jeans Group. Naser Ezaz Bijoy, EO of Standard Chartered Bank, Bangladesh; Saket Sarda, the Regional Head of Trade, ASEAN & South Asia and other senior officials of the bank were present at the event.

Figure: Distinguished guests and winners of the award.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

F a c t o r y Ta l e s

Z&Z’s second fabric week concludes successfully Md. Ariful Islam Zaber and Zubair Fabric Ltd., a sister concern of Noman group have successfully concluded its second mill week for the season of Spring-Summer 2019 at their corporate office Gulshan from 2nd to 8th April 2018. Last year they arranged it for the first time in Bangladesh textile and apparel history for Autumn-Winter season. Mill week is a practice of global brands and retailers for selecting seasonal and special products from different suppliers. In Bangladesh Zaber and Zubair adopt this concept from supplier side to showcase their own designed fabric and garment to the buyers. The mill has opted to enhance its brand image across the world fashion market. In first mill week, they received huge feedback from the customer for their existing collections and received a new inquiry for development of more fashionable product trending to the current fashion industry. In the 2nd mill week, Zaber and Zubair displayed 5 new developments of fabric collection

along with regular developments by analyzing current fashion trend for upcoming clothing display. Ocean Stripes, Rockpile, Vintage Heather, Butterfly Hatch and Blooming Seersucker were their new presentation for the buyer. The design and construction were selected from their experience, customer demand and trend analysis by their expert R&D and design team. They are expecting that these will be the next design trend in the world fashion industry. “We participated at many renowned mill weeks globally with our design creations, where we have gathered vast knowledge about how to improve design innovation capacity,” said Founding Chairman of the Noman group Md. Nurul Islam. “Last year 150 buyers visited here. This year about 300 buyers from major clothing brands and retailers visited,” said Nurul Islam. Noman Group, the mother company of Zaber and Zubair Fabric Ltd. has the vast experience of around 49 years in fabric manufacturing and it

Figure 2: Buyers see Z&Z collections at mill week.

has 36 factories in operations. This practice they will continue twice in a year. “The management decided to initiate observance of mill week of Zaber and Zubair Fabrics, which would be an opportunity not only for the company but also for the country to brand its image globally,” Islam added. In a separate speech Mr. Abdullah Zaber, Deputy Managing Director of the company, stated, “We are the only supplier in Bangladesh that can meet seven days lead time”. “We will invest Tk 500 crore for specialized fabric plant at Bhaluka”, said Mohammad Zaber. “It is called the ‘Coolmax All Season’, the fabric’s demand is on the rise globally as it transports moisture away from the body to keep the wearer cool and dry on hot days, while the fabric’s fibre structures provide insulation on colder days,” Zaber added. Noman Group is producing 17 Million yards of woven fabric which 12 million yards are nondenim and 5 million yard is denim fabric to meet countries fabric consumption and saving currency to go out to import. Its annual turnover was $ 1.2 billion in the last fiscal year 2016-2017.

Figure 1: Md. Nurul Islam, Chairman of Noman Group inaugurated the Z&Z mill week.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Editorial

“

Bangladesh textile and apparel industry is passing a good time and becoming more structured Md. Nasir Uddin CIP, Director, BGMEA, and Managing Director, Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd

Bangladesh RMG industry, the second largest ready-made garment exporter in the world, has scrambled many challenges and still it is overcoming many tough situations. Now Bangladesh is a trustworthy name for the international buyers. Many skilled, dedicated persons and entrepreneurs are working hard to flourish the sector. They actually know the insights of the industry and their knowledge can help all other people related to the sector. Md. Nasir Uddin CIP, Managing Director, Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd, is one of them, who has vast knowledge on country’s textile industry. He is also playing an important role as Director of BGMEA. Recently Md. Nasir Uddin CIP shared his experiences and thoughts with Textile Today on several issues including his struggling story to reach today’s position, future aspects of RMG sector, different crisis and way of overcoming the challenges and role of dynamic young generations etc. Here we have presented glimpse of the discussion between Md. Nasir and Textile Today.

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Volume 11, Issue 04

Te x t i l e I c o n

Textile Today: You are a successful businessperson, could you please share us how was the journey of Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd.? What were the challenges and how did you overcome those challenges?

market development, crisis management. Especially in Gazipur zone, I have to supervise all factories. The country’s garment industry has progressed a lot on the issue of political unrest index. Sometimes problems are raised with pay-bonuses during Eid and festive season, but we fix those quickly. The understanding between workers and owners has been much improved now than ever before. We can do close monitoring. Our garment industry has sporadically developed. Now that’s going to be the structural format. The industry is passing a good time for changing the formation. From that direction, I can say that we are 90% successful.

Md. Nasir Uddin: We started the business in 2002 with only 30 sewing machines, renting a space at HM Plaza in Uttara, which was a very small place around 7000 square feet. Since my home is in Gazipur and the maximum factories have been built in this zone, I had many opportunities to exchange views with lot of managements and entrepreneurs of different factories. Traders from different parts of the country came and installed industries here. If they can do it, why can’t I move ahead from staying here? From Textile Today: According to a recent MoU, BEZA will this thought, after completing graduation, I joined allot 500 acres land to BGMEA in Mirsharai Economic Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd. as a Director with 25% Zone to upsurge apparel export. What are the plans of shares. Originally, Sadma Fashion Wear was started BGMEA to utilize that land? To attract foreign investors by four textile engineers, two men left later and in Mirsharai Economic Zone what could be done? one senior brother and I joined Md. Nasir Uddin: Not only Sadma as young entrepreneurs. Bangladesh, the largest model The company was small; so there In the Economic Zone, garments village among Asia will were problem with LC opening, Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd. be built in Mirsarai Economic Zone. banking, exporting and so on. The is going to make another In this economic zone, additional company fully relied on the local factory on 10 acres of land. facilities will be provided for the sub-contact. After understanding There will available full entrepreneurs. As a result, the the responsibility, I found that utility, facilities, central whole scenario of Mirsarai will there was a lot of unnecessary ETP, dormitory etc. That be changed. Employment will be expenditure, which was possible to means Mirsharai is going to created for millions of people. minimize. be an organized industrial Besides, 60 garment factories are park. Mirsarai village will I can remember, 18 thousand US$ being transferred from Gazipur, be allocated among the was my first LC. Then 30 thousand, Narayanganj, Savar and the capital. entrepreneurs for 50 years 90 thousand, 120 thousand US$ for Long ago, Accord and Alliance in rural lease. basic T-shirt orders were received provided the conditions to relocate from German ‘Hoffmen’ buyer. these factories. Some of them Because of on-time delivery and are closed. Some of the factories good performance, buyer and are partially operational. These bank were satisfied on us. Later we had no need to factories will be brought to Mirsarai. More than 500 look back for order. The bank willingly gave me a factories including those will be set up in the village. limit of 3 crore BDT and advised to build a large scale The new economic zone will return to life in full swing. factory in Gazipur, out of rented building and said, In the Economic Zone, Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd. is we will spread our hand of cooperation in full swing. going to make another factory on 10 acres of land. After roughly one year, Sadma Fashion Wear shifted There will available full utility, facilities, central ETP, to its own factory in Gazipur and in 2004, one and dormitory etc. That means Mirsharai is going to be a half million dollar products were exported. There an organized industrial park. Mirsarai village will be were a lot of obstacles to run the factory. However, allocated among the entrepreneurs for 50 years in compliance issue, sustainability, green industry issue rural lease. At present, development work has started were not so much in hard line like now. No pressure on 500 acres. But two thousand acres of expansion from the buyer also, so Sadma Fashion Wear Ltd. was opportunities have been kept. Each plot has at least built obeyed by our country’s basic building code. one acre. As its location is at just 60 kilometers west Then the business expanded slowly. of Chittagong port, the factory will get lead time Textile Today: As a Director of BGMEA, what are your key facilities in the export. The village has already become responsibilities and how much are you successful here? a center of attractive investment. Md. Nasir Uddin: BGMEA is the heartiest organization to all owner and workers. In any problem, the organization’s policy makers try their best to solve that. Each of us has divided responsibilities. As a Director, I cover new trade license, labor issue,

The zone is expected to bring foreign investment of about $1 billion and create employment opportunities for one lakh people. Already many investors are showing keen interest to build green factories. BEZA has been working to set up 100 economic zones by

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Te x t i l e I c o n

2030, which will create jobs for one crore people and produce goods and services worth $40 billion. It has identified 74 locations across the country for setting up economic zones. Textile Today: ‘Crisis Management’ is a part of your responsibilities. Gas and Electricity crisis is increasing day by day. How do you manage this crisis?

Md. Nasir Uddin: To survive in the growing garment industry, we have to give highest priority in worker efficiency, energy efficiency, green and renewed energy for future challenges. There are so many active entrepreneurs who don’t get bank loan but the defaulters get it easily. The authority needs to be careful about them. From coming out of traditional thinking, we will have to adopt and install material movement handling, automation and modern machineries. Safety and sustainability concerns are another big challenge.

Md. Nasir Uddin: Textile sector is fully depended on gas and electricity. The issue of gas-power crisis is very old for the industry. The entrepreneurs are backtracking due to the crisis of gas supply, one Product price loss is a big challenge. Since last few of the fundamental utilities for production. New years, price has been decreased by 40 percent, profit industries are not expanding. The pace of investment margin stands at very tight. Power, gas, port, political has slowed down. If uninterrupted gas-power supply stability, shortage of skilled manpower are our future is not guaranteed, it will be difficult to achieve export challenges. Bangladesh exports 80% low value added target of $ 50 billion by 2021 and moving further. Due products like trouser, shirt, t-shirt, to the gas crisis, the factory boiler sweater etc. It has to increase high is being run by diesel. It costs too value items like lingerie, swimwear, There are so many active much. Diesel based boiler unit sports item, functional fabric, entrepreneurs who don’t costing is 46 Taka. On the contrary functional textile etc. get bank loan but the for gas run boiler maximum unit defaulters get it easily. cost is three and a half Taka. The decline of the population in The authority needs to be Europe, the hub of our garment Although the production of careful about them. From export, is a risk for us. Although electricity has been increased 4 to coming out of traditional the risk is very slow but steady. 5 times after 2002, the government thinking, we will have to Consumption reduces if population is unable to supply the gas and adopt and install material decreases and our order flow electricity as per the demand. movement handling, supposed to decrease forcefully. However the government is trying automation and modern Though the raw material cotton to cope with the situation; some machineries. Safety and is being produced in very small of their initiatives have been quite sustainability concerns are quantity in our country, we rely appreciable. If they can import another big challenge. on foreign countries regarding on LNG at the fastest time, gas this issue. We have no significant crisis will be reduced to a great dyes, chemical manufacturing plant extent; affordable LNG can solve also. Those who have these in hands will dominate the shortage of around 50%-60% of the demand. the market in future ultimately. We should emphasize However, government should be more attentive to build high quality chemical plants. Manpower is towards solar & air power generation, a sustainable our biggest strength; we have to go ahead with this energy production by short investments. capital. Textile Today: Minimum wage is going to be Textile Today: As a successful entrepreneur, what do increased. Most of the factory owners said that they you say to the new entrepreneurs? How can they be will not be able to continue their factory if wage successful? increases more than 30-40%. What do you think about it and how this crisis could be minimized? Md. Nasir Uddin: Youth will definitely shine if they proceed by fixing a target. They have to leave the Md. Nasir Uddin: As the cost of each item is conventional life and start thinking differently. Now increasing, the wage should be increased at the knowledge is open. Social media, Google, YouTube same rate. But it must be in tolerable level. Increasing browsing are available for many solutions that around 15-20% will not be so difficult. But if workers were not available at our start-up. Earlier there press the owner to increase the wage more than was no word like ‘IE’ in the garment factory. Now that rate, it will never be rewarding. Everyone has to it is common one. Educated personnel is coming understand the good and bad aspects. Buyer is not to the garment industry. Mid-level management is giving us more price. Still America’s market is not developing. We will go ahead as much as this level duty-free for us. As long as the European market is will be developed, our efficiency will be increased, open, we can keep competitiveness. In this situation, and gaps won’t be created between workers and the demands from the workers should be raised in owners. Efficient entrepreneurs and engineers are organized, systematic and logical way. always in demand. Young people should be attentive Textile Today: What are the future challenges for the towards skill development. sector you see and how it could be overcome?

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

S u s t a i n a b i l i t y To d a y

Impact of synthetic clothes on environment Al Takbir Mahim Think about all your clothing made of acrylic, nylon, and polyester. Yes, that means fleece, trousers, blouses, socks, and even your underwear. Did you know, every time you wash these synthetic fabrics, millions of microfibers are released into the water? Microfibers are too small to be filtered out by waste treatment plants, so they end up in our waterways and oceans, where they wreak havoc on marine animals and the environment. However, could synthetic fibers be a wonderful thing as their production requires far less water than cotton and they do not require toxic pesticides to grow? Does that make them environmentally friendly? Sadly not. The expansion of fast fashion would not be possible without polyester. Relatively cheap and easily available polyester is now used in about 60% of our clothes. However, if we take into account the fossil fuels used in its production, CO2 emissions for polyester clothing are nearly

three times higher than for cotton! Our reliance on polyester is one of the reasons why the fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world; both in terms of its emissionsheavy production and the nonbiodegrade addable waste it leaves behind. One piece of clothing can release 700,000 fibers in a single wash Once our clothes reach a washing machine, the synthetic fabrics release tiny strands: so-called microfibers. These are essentially microscopic pieces of plastic, just like the microbeads you find in cosmetics. Every time you run your washing machine, hundreds of thousands of microfibers are flushed down the drain. And a good portion of it reaches beaches and oceans where they can remain for

Figure 2: S Fast Fashion infographic & studio shoot of microplastics from the water. 53

hundreds of years. Swallowed by fish and other sea life, microplastic travels up the food chain, where they end up on our plates. 30% of ocean plastic pollution comes from microplastics According to a new IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) report, microplastics could be causing even more of a problem than we thought. Between 15% to 31% of marine plastic pollution could be from tiny particles released by household and industrial products, rather than larger plastic items that degrade once they reach the sea. The IUCN calculates that 35% of this microplastic pollution comes from washing synthetic textiles. Europe and Central Asia alone dump the equivalent of 54 plastic bags worth of microplastics per person per week into the oceans. So what can we do? It is unrealistic to think that we can get rid of synthetic fibers altogether. Their use is too widespread and the sheer volume of clothing that we produce simply cannot be manufactured using only cotton and other natural fibers. And while the manufacturing industry is developing solutions; like more efficient filters for washing machines, they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t yet tackle the problem. We need to radically rethink the way we manufacture and products what we wear. Clothes should be produced without polluting the environment. These should be designed with durability in mind so that these can be recycled only after many years of use. As consumers, we have a big part to play in preventing microfibers from polluting the oceans, simply by buying less. If we reduce consumption, we reduce waste. It starts with being more conscious of the issue, and the rest should be simple.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

News & Analysis

Rana Plaza victims are yet to recover fully Staff Correspondent Five years ago on 24 April 2013 in the Savar Industrial Zone, the Rana Plaza building collapsed, which killed 1135 garment workers. Recently Action Aid Bangladesh published a survey that shows 48% survivors of the Rana Plaza collapse are out of employment due to their physical and mental weaknesses. Action Aid Bangladesh conducted the follow-up survey on 200 out of 1400 survivors over the phone. The objective of the survey was to understand the level of progress in the rehabilitation and reintegration of Rana Plaza victims. The findings are based on the perception and acknowledgment of respondents. The survey found that the condition of 12 percent survivors is getting worse, 70.5 percent are more or less stable and 17.5 percent are completely stable. Getting worse

More stable

70.5

Completely stable

17.5

Table 1: Trend of physical health recovery of survivors in %. (Source: ActionAid)

The condition of the 12 percent is deteriorating, as they are suffering from headache, pain in hand and leg, back pain as some of the major problems. In terms of psychosocial health, 22.5 percent are still in trauma in comparison to 30.8 percent survivors last year. Currently, 63 percent are more or less stable and 14.5 percent have recovered fully. Fully recovered More or less Stable Traumatized

Among the survivors currently employed are engaged in different types of activities where 21.6 percent survivors have returned to garments. Farah Kabir, Country Director, Action Aid Bangladesh said, “Though five years have been passed, the workers are getting nothing other than financial assistance. As part of compensation, we have to work in rehabilitating them mentally, socially and financially.” Many initiatives have been taken after the Rana Plaza incident by the government owners, buyers. However, the initiatives, sometime, have been taken separately or on an ad-hoc basis. “We need to make the initiative institutionalized’, she added. I think workers’ wages should be increased as per market demand because we are moving towards

14.5

92.5

73.7

22.5

Table 2: The trend of mental health recovery of the survivors in %. (Source: ActionAid)

The survey found that about 51.3 percent survivors are engaged in various types of wages and selfemployment. Of 48.7 percent survivors claimed that they are not working. For these who could not get back to work cited physical weakness (59.6 percent) and mental weakness (13.1 percent) as the main reasons for being unemployed. Survey also found that majority of them (97.6 percent) has not worked in the last 6 months.

55 44

51.8 48.2

57.6 42.2

51.3 48.7

26.3 7.5 2013

2014

2015

Got Employed

2016

2017

2018

Unemployed

Figure 3: Trend of the employment status of the survivors in %. (Source: ActionAid)

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

News & Analysis

Figure 4: Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, Executive Director of the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies.

developing country, said, M M Akas, Professor, Department of Economics, Dhaka University. According to the Survey, Bangladesh government already formed wage board for workers, which covered 42 sectors but not to all workers and missing national coverage and standard setting.

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More than 4.5 million workers are working in garments sector, but only 2 million workers are attached with the trade union.

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“The issue of workers’ compensation is still not settled. The compensation is still Tk1 lakh,” he said. “On the day of Rana Plaza collapse, the workers were forced to enter the factory despite safety risks. The owners did not consider the value of lives and they went unpunished,” said Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed, Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) executive director. Anne-Laure Henry-Greard, Officer-in-charge of the International Labour Organization in Bangladesh suggested avoiding discrimination in trade union registration, establishing congenial industrial relations between owners and workers and being more compliant to maintain trade privilege to the European Union for better garment business. Also Read: LIMA, a new era of digitalized labour inspection system

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Survey also said Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) manpower is not strong in terms of inspectors (312 Inspectors) and huge lack of logistics support. “Rana Plaza is our learning point, after this incident our industry is safer due to Accord and Alliance. After transaction period of Accord and Alliance, DIFE would be monitoring their activities, said Mohammad Hassan, Executive Director, Babylon Group. “I think DIFE could not be handling all issues, it can be electrical problem handling by Power division, health issue handling by the ministry of health and family Welfare,” he added.

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Sustainability today

Green investment requires for sustainable economic growth Staff Correspondent Investment from the private sector in eco-friendly or green technology is the key to the green transformation of business and enterprises in the country. A scale-up of green investment will not only ease the impact of climate change but will also promote sustainable economic growth and generate employment in Bangladesh.

Figure 1: Danish Ambassador in Dhaka Mikael Hemniti Winther was present as the chief guest while Former Bangladesh Bank Governor Atiur Rahman was the special guest along with BGMEA Senior Vice-President Faruque Hassan, and Sustainable and Renewable Energy Development Authority (SREDA) Member Siddique Zobair at the program.

Economists, trade analysts, and business leaders made the remarks at the Green Development Conference and Green Tech Expo 2018, organized by NeoSTAR on 29 March at KIB complex in the capital. Dr. Atiur Rahman, Former Governor of Bangladesh Bank said, “It is essential to make parallel the finance system with sustainable development strategy of the country so that private sector investors get access to required finance.” “Though the banking sector was trying to focus on eco-friendly business practices, the majority of investment must come from the private sector,” he said. He also said, “To promote eco-friendly activities through green financing Figure 2: Dr. Atiur Rahman, strategy Bangladesh Former Governor of Bangladesh Bank. Bank is providing policy support and created a Tk 200 crore fund. Another fund of $200 million has been created to transform the readymade garments (RMG) and leather industry into green factories.”

“Technology is the key to green development and it will accelerate economic growth curbing energy consumption, said Mikaek Hemniti Winther, Danish Ambassador to Bangladesh. “Bangladesh and Denmark have similarities in lacking natural resources. Therefore, we have to develop a new system for green growth and we need to be cautious about using energy,” added Mikael Hemniti

Figure 3: Mikael Hemniti Winther, Danish Ambassador to Bangladesh

Bangladesh RMG sector has established eco-friendly factories despite challenges to produce clothes for global buyers. Proper policy support and right incentives from the government will foster the growth of this kind of green factories, said Fazlul Hoque, Managing Director of Plummy Fashions Ltd. “Now, Bangladesh has the highest number of green factories in the apparel sector, the policy is must for green revelation as it shows the paths,” said Faruque Hassan, Senior Vice President of BGMEA. More than 400-megawatt energy could be generated in two or three years if rooftop solar energy project is started working properly, added Faruque Hassan. According to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Bangladesh has Figure 4: Faruque Hassan, Senior Vice now 67 LEED President of BGMEA. (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified green factories, of them 13 are LEED Platinum rated while more than 280 factories are registered with USGBC for LEED certification.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

B u s i n e s s To d a y

Private sector credit growth trend till February 2018 Staff Correspondent The private sector has to play a big role to help Bangladesh in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this regard, private investment to gross domestic product needs to be scaled up to 40 percent or $400 billion by 2030.

Figure1: Mirsarai Economic Zone (MEZ) will be the industrial capital of Bangladesh and play a pivotal role in fulfilling the country’s investment.

Figure1: Mirsarai Economic Zone (MEZ) will be the industrial capital of Bangladesh and play a pivotal role in fulfilling the country’s investment. The new monetary policy is failing to contain the private sector credit growth with the rate rising to 18.49 percent in February although the bank owners have already bagged a number of facilities pleading liquidity crisis. In January, private sector credit growth stood at 18.36 percent, up from 18.13 percent the previous month and way past the ceiling of 16.8 percent set for the latter half of fiscal 2017-18. AB Mirza Azizul Islam, Former Finance Adviser DEC, 2017 18.13 of Caretaker Government NOV, 2017 19.6 OCT, 2017 18.63 said, “Private sector SEP, 2017 17.8 credit growth in last few AUG, 2017 17.84 JULY, 2017 16.94 months indicated that JUNE, 2017 15.66 there was no problem Figure 2: Private sector credit in the supply side and growth in last nine month (in %). no liquidity crisis either.” Source: Bangladesh Bank “Banks would not be able to give such amount of credit if there was any liquidity crisis,” he added. FEB, 2018

JAN, 2018

18.49

18.36

The average private sector credit growth fell to 15.66 percent in the fiscal year 2016-2017 from 16.78 a year ago as the banks were grappling with excess liquidity. “Private sector needs predictable and businessfriendly policies,” said Md Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry. “Business policy reforms will be brought about in consultation with the private sector and related stakeholders,” he added.

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Banks private sector credit growth was 18.13 percent in December 2017 after witnessing 19.06 percent growth in the November of the year mainly due to banks’ lending frenzy. According to Bangladesh Bank data, the domestic credit increased to Tk 9,55,852.9 crore including Tk 8,62,224.8 crore in the private sector. Besides, credit in the public sector, however, fell by 14.24 percent in February this year from 11.70 percent negative growth in the previous month.

For Better Tomorrow

News and Analysis

WB projected manufacturing growth at 13.2 percent in FY18 Special Correspondent Bangladesh is continuing its strong development trajectory, even as the pace of poverty reduction has slowed down, said a new World Bank report titled “The Bangladesh Development Update April 2018.”

challenges, GDP growth is projected to be robust, in the 6.5 to 7 percent range during FY18-20. However, Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal is shocked over the downsized projection by the World Bank.

In the opening remarks during the release of the report on 9 April, Qimiao Fan, World Bank country director for Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal, said despite having floods twice impacting agriculture, the country had maintained robust growth in the current fiscal year. “While actual graduation is a few years away, this is an important milestone,” he added.

“I am sorry to World Bank (WB). I can’t accept your forecast on gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the current fiscal,” he said while addressing at a press briefing at NEC conference room at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital on 11 April.

Manufacturing growth projected at 13.2 percent in FY18 from 10.2 percent in FY17, though job creation growth was only 2.3 percent in 2017. Dr. Zahid Hussain, Lead Economist of the World Bank, raised a question to the journalists to know the reason behind this puzzle. Using advanced technology and machineries in the manufacturing sector could be one of the reasons behind this puzzle, said Textile Today reporter, however, Dr. Zahid Hussain said, “It may happen in garments sector but what will you say about the other sectors. And I think garments industry just started using advanced technology, it is not spread out around the industry in vast level.” Its exports have rebounded – primarily led by the Ready-Made Garments (RMG) sector – with a 6.33 percent growth in FY18, compared with 4 percent in the previous year. A 17 percent growth in remittances, with more Bangladeshis going to work abroad, combined with effective action against illegal money transfers, may have contributed to the recovery, said the report. Despite macroeconomic 58

The key growth drivers are expected to be exports, driving manufacturing growth, and services, driven primarily by domestic consumption. However, private investment, which stagnated in recent years, is expected to pick up with growing confidence on infrastructure development prospects, strong domestic demand, and stronger global markets. Poverty is falling but at a slower rate. The national poverty rate fell in both rural and urban areas, but the speed of reduction was much slower in urban, largely because of slower rates of poverty reduction in Dhaka and increasing poverty in Chittagong. With the increase in urban population, now more people (3.3 million) lives in extreme poverty than in 2010 (3 million). Dr. Zahid Hussain said, “With inequality in agricultural growth, more than half the population are vulnerable to falling back into extreme poverty. In addition, the

 I ndustrial production and services growth remained resilient.  Inflation has accelerated, primarily due to supply shocks.  Monetary policy has been accommodative. F inancial sector vulnerability is rising.  With a tightening of prudential controls, lending rates are back to double digits. D espite significant recovery in both exports and remittances.  The current account deficit widened sharply, driven by a surge in imports. (Source: A new World Bank report titled “The Bangladesh Development Update April 2018.”)

influx of over 688,000 Rohingyas since August 2017 has put a strain on resources for host communities in Teknaf, Cox’s Bazaar”. The reports highlighted key challenges like macro stability challenges include a rise in inflation due to increase in international inflation as well as expansionary macroeconomic policies and persistent external deficit due to continued growth in payments for food, industrial raw materials, capital goods and machinery imports. Dr. Zahid Hussain said that with around two million young people entering the job market every year, Bangladesh must achieve export-led growth by breaking into new markets with new products to create more and better employment opportunities.

 Robust economy with exports rebounding G DP growth projected to be in the 6.5% - 7% range during FY18-20 P overty has been falling but the pace of poverty reduction has slowed M anufacturing growth projected at 13.2% in FY18 from 10.97% in FY17  Only 0.2 million jobs (2.3% growth) created in 2017 C onsumption to GDP ratio projected to increase from 74.67% in FY17 to 76.39% in FY18

R emittances recovering, however, level of remittance is still 2.7% less than in July-March FY16

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Market Analysis

Bangladesh among highest growth takers in the world in T-shirt production Desk Report Bangladesh exported different types of apparel products all over the world. In T-shirt Production, Bangladesh has attained the highest growth among the other producing countries within the period 2007 to 2015. China (3,881 million units), Bangladesh (1,521 million units), and India (1,062 million units) had the largest production of T-shirts in absolute volumes. Bangladesh (+11.2% per year) and India (+7.6% per year) attained the highest growth rates of T-shirt production among the main producing countries from 2007 to 2015, while China (-1.6% per year) experienced negative dynamics, according to a report published by Index box, a leading market research publisher. The report was titled “World: T-Shirts - Market Report. Analysis And Forecast To 2025”. Country

Global market share (in%)

China

39%

Bangladesh

12%

India

11%

Turkey

Vietnam

Cambodia

Table 1: The market share of top T-shirt producing countries in 2016.

China appeared as the key world T-shirt producing country with an output of about 5,158M units in 2016, which accounted for 39%

Figure 2: Global T-shirt market is growing rapidly.

of total global output. The other major producers were Bangladesh (12%), India (11%), Turkey (6%), Vietnam (3%) and Cambodia (3%). These countries were the main producing countries of T-shirts in the world, together comprising 74% of global T-shirt production. Despite the fact that China remains a key global centre for the production of T-shirts, production is gradually shifting to the other countries in Asia, where the cost for the manufacture of light industry products is significantly lower than in China. Global T-shirt market is growing According to market research conducted by Index Box, global production of T-shirts was estimated at 11.7 billion units in 2015, which was 57 million units more than in 2014. There was

an annual increase of +2.7% in physical terms and +4.4% in value terms for the period from 2007 to 2015. In value terms, T-shirt production stood at 44.1 billion USD in 2015. The report also said, in 2016, global T-shirt market grew to 12.2M units, rising by an average growth rate of +3.2% over the last nine years. In wholesale prices, the market totaled $40.5B in 2016, approximately mirroring the previous year figure. Following a slight decline, the market expanded at a double-digit rate from 2010-2011, subsequently leveling off over the next fiveyear period. This figure reflects the total revenue of producers and importers (excluding logistics costs, retail marketing costs, and retailers’ margins, which will be included in the final consumer

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Market Analysis

price). T-shirt production continued its growth T-shirt production increased from 10,460M units in 2007 to 13,046M units in 2016, expanding by +2.5% per year. In value terms, production stood at $49,333M in 2016, with only a slight increase compared to the previous year. Overall, from 2007 to 2016, the average annual growth rate with regard to production value amounted to +4.3%. China, Bangladesh, India, and Turkey constitute the largest exports of T-shirts In 2016, the volume of global T-shirt exports totaled 11.8B units, a 4% growth from the previous year. In value terms, exports remained relatively stable over the last year at $44.7B in 2016.

urbanization, the rising population, and increasing income levels. The global trend of the T-shirt market is expected to continue, with a growth of +1.7% annually in the medium term. The report noted that the global T-shirt market would develop and expand at various rates in different regions. While the economically mature markets of the U.S., Canada, and Western Europe are close to their saturation point in terms of T-shirt consumption, the emerging economies, such as China, India, Russia, and Brazil are far from saturated. They share a few similar characteristics, including a rising population, an improved economic situation, rising disposable incomes, and urbanization. The US and China remain the main consumers of T-shirts

China (25% of total exports), Bangladesh (13%), India (8%), Turkey (7%), the U.S., Mexico and Vietnam (4%, each) were the main global suppliers of T-shirts. From 2007 to 2016, Vietnam (+13.1% per year), Bangladesh (+10.6% per year) and India (+8.6%) were the fastest growing suppliers amongst the major exporters. The increased exports in these countries are due to the export-orientated means of production, feasible as a result of the cheap labour costs. While the share of Bangladesh (+7 percentage points), India (+4 percentage points) and Vietnam (+2 percentage points) increased, the share of China (-14 percentage points) displayed a negative dynamic. The shares of the other countries remained relatively stable throughout the analyzed period.

The countries with the highest consumption were the US (25%), China (19%), the UK (5%), India (4%), Japan (4%), Germany (3%), Canada (3%), Korea (3%), France (2%), and Italy (2%). The other major countries comprised almost 30% of global consumption.

In the medium term, the T-shirt market is set to continue moderate growth

Table 3: The countries with the highest consumption of T-shirt.

According to projections, T-shirt consumption is set to maintain an upward growth trend in the immediate term, due to the recovery being seen in the global economy, the process of ongoing

Country with the highest consumption

Consumption (in%)

USA

25%

China

19%

India

Japan

Germany

Canada

Korea

France

Italy

The highest annual rates of growth in terms of T-shirt consumption from 2007 to 2016 were recorded in China, with a +12.6% growth, India, and Japan, with +6.5% and +5.0% growth, respectively. Consequently, China significantly

strengthened its share in terms of global consumption from 9% in 2007 to 19% in 2016. By contrast, the share of France (-2 percentage points), Spain and the UK (-3 percentage points) declined over the period under review. Amongst the leading consuming countries, high levels of per capita consumption were recorded in Canada (10 unit/year in 2016), the U.S. and the UK (9 unit/ year), which were significantly higher than the world average of 2 unit/year. From 2007 to 2016, per capita consumption in the U.S. grew by +2.0% per year; in Canada and the UK, it declined by -1.6% per year and -2.7% per year. The annual growth of per capita consumption from 2007 to 2016 was the most notable in China, with +12.6% growth. The U.S. assumed about 29% of global T-shirt imports The volume of global T-shirt imports increased by 8% over the last year to 11.0B units in 2016, which was equal to $35.8B. The imports trend pattern generally mirrored that of exports: these trade flows globally complement each other. In 2016, the U.S. (29%) constituted the leading destination for T-shirt imports, followed by Germany, the UK (7%, each), Japan, Italy, France (4%, each) and Spain (3%). The remaining importers together accounted for 42% of global imports. From 2007 to 2016, Japan (+4.6%) and the U.S. (+3.2%) had the highest growth rates of imports. The remaining importing countries showed more moderate or even negative paces of growth. The U.S. (+3 percentage points) strengthened its position in terms of the global imports, while the UK and France (-2 percentage points, each) saw its share reduced from 2007 to 2016. The shares of the other countries remained relatively stable throughout the analyzed period.

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Digital Printing

Is there a future for pigment inks in textiles? Authors: Andreas SchĂśnfeld, Dr. Julia Ahrens, Dr. Nora Wetzold, Peter Oehme, Oliver Richter By Zschimmer&Schwarz digital printing team

1. Introduction Since the mid-90s, research on digital textile printing has become more and more important. This application field offers the possibility of printing photographic-quality images with quick design time. A great advantage, especially for the fashion industry, is the ability to print-on-demand in small quantities down to a lot size of one. According to an analysis by the WTiN Intelligence: Digital Textiles, the worldwide output of digitally printed textiles is growing at an annual rate of approximately 20%. Despite this rapid growth, the proportion of textile production that uses digital printing is only about 3-5% up to now. One difficult criterion for effective industrial digital printing on textiles is the various number of different textile substrates ranging from natural such as cotton, wool or silk to synthetic materials like polyester and blended fabrics. All these fabric types require different types of inks and additional different needs for pre- and post-treatment as well as processing. The ink types mainly used in industrial applications are reactive inks for natural fibres and sublimation/disperse inks for digital printing on polyester. However, the ideal would be to have an ink suitable for all kinds of

textile substrates. This request is to be fulfilled by the use of pigment inks. In this article, Zschimmer & Schwarz will describe the role of pigment inks for digital textile printing â&#x20AC;&#x201C; do they have a real chance in the future or is it just a hype? 2.1 Pigment inks: characteristics, application, and market Rather than a dye that is soluble, water-based pigment inks use an insoluble pigment to provide coloration of the textile. Compared to dyes, the pigments do not have a real affinity for special fibres, which makes them suitable for colouring on the top layer of a various number of fibres as well as blends. However, the global textile printing market (Fig.1) shows that pigment inks represent only about 3% of inks used in digital textile printing. Inks most commonly used are still based on reactive, disperse and acid dyes.

low market share of pigment inks in digital textile printing. As previously mentioned, due to the top layer of printing by using a binder for better substrate adhesion, most pigment inks are limited when it comes to multiplewash as well as rub-fastness. Furthermore, the feel of the fabric is often stiffer than in reactive printing which is one of the main problems, especially in fashion or bed linen for example. On the other hand, the use of pigment inks shows some remarkable benefits (Tab. 1). With the suitability of printing on a various number of textile substrates a broad field of application can be served, ranging from home textiles, soft signage and banners to fashion (mainly T-shirts) or speciality products. Pigments are especially beneficial in areas where high light-fastness Digital printing

Conventional printing

reactive/disperions/acid, 47%

There are different reasons for the current

pigment, 53%

reactive/disperions/acid, 97%

pigment, 3%

Figure 1: Worldwide textile printing market (source: R. Wills, Digital Textile, 5/2017)

Bangladesh Textile Today |

Volume 11, Issue 04

Digital Printing

HIGHLIGHTS

MAIN PROBLEMS

High light-fastness

limited multiple-wash

Suitable for many substrates

limited rub and abrasion-fastness

Easy process

Stiffer touch

continuous flow that avoids sedimentation and thus clogging the nozzles. In particular, the white pigment inks mostly based on the inorganic compound titanium dioxide need those circulating systems.

Tab. 1: Pros and cons of using pigment inks in digital textile printing

2.3 Diamontex solutions in digital pigment printing on textiles With Diamontex P HQ, a unique printing solution for a variety of fabrics (cotton, polyester, linen, blends, etc) is offered. The pigment inks are available in the basic colours; Yellow, Magenta, Cyan and Black as well as in special spot colours such as Scarlet or Green. Diamontex P HQ inks exhibit a reliable printing performance, an easy handling, and cleaning, an outstanding light-fastness and can be processed according to the easy process described in chapter 2.2. Furthermore, due to their chemical characteristics, it is possible to achieve very good rub-fastness values with these inks (Fig. 3, exemplified for cotton raw material). The dry rub-fastness values are in a range of 4-5 and the wet rub-fastness in a range of 3-4.

Figure 3: Comparison of the process steps of reactive and pigment printing

Magenta

Yellow

Black

90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10

25 x 60 ˚c

15 x 60 ˚c

20 x 60 ˚c

5 x 60 ˚c

10 x 60 ˚c

Unwashed

25 x 60 ˚c

15 x 60 ˚c

20 x 60 ˚c

5 x 60 ˚c

10 x 60 ˚c

Unwashed

25 x 60 ˚c

15 x 60 ˚c

20 x 60 ˚c

5 x 60 ˚c

10 x 60 ˚c

25 x 60 ˚c

Unwashed

15 x 60 ˚c

20 x 60 ˚c

In comparison, the pigment printing process does not need the complex steaming and washing steps. Since the pigment dye is printed only on the top layer of the fabric without any chemical bonding, the textile fabric has to be condensed at 150-170°C for a few minutes to fix the

Cyan

Additionally, investigations looking into multiple-wash have been done for cotton raw material by washing the printed and fixed textiles at 60°C for several times up to 25 times. Figures 4 and 5 illustrate the outstanding performance of Diamontex P HQ inks in case of multiple-wash. Any significant

100

5 x 60 ˚c

Fig. 2 schematically shows the process of printing with pigment inks compared to reactive inks. Due to their chemical characteristics, reactive dyes have to be bonded to the textile fibre after printing. Therefore, a steaming process of 8-12 minutes at 102°C (saturated steam) is necessary. Subsequently, the unbound dye has to be removed in a complex washing process (after treatment) at different temperatures ranging from about 50°C to 98°C, with soaping agent to 60°C, and finally 30°C (slightly acid). Then the printed textile has to be dried.

Nevertheless, an additional point has to be mentioned regarding the printing process with pigment inks. Due to the insolubility of the pigment particles, the sedimentation of them could result in problems of nozzle clogging in the fine nozzles of inkjet printing machines. Therefore, to overcome this, two things should be noted: firstly, all the inks have to be well stirred before using and secondly, the necessity of a print head with a circulating system becomes more and more important. The circulation provides a kind of

10 x 60 ˚c

As mentioned in 2.1, one benefit of using pigment inks in digital textile printing is the ease and length of the process.

Unwashed

2.2 Pigment versus reactive printing

pigments. Consequently, the pigment printing process requires significantly less water due to the omitted washing step. This may be a crucial deciding factor when deciding on whether to use digital pigment printing in the future.

Average L*

is required. Furthermore, the entire process, compared to reactive prints, is very quick and easy.

Fig. 4: Fastness to multiple-wash at 60°C, average luminance L* of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black pure colour inks after different times of washing (100% cotton raw material, printed with 720 x 720 dpi)

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Volume 11, Issue 04

Digital Printing

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Rub Fastness - Dry

Rub Fastness - Wet

Cyan Magenta Yellow Black

Figure 5: Rub-fastness values of Diamontex P HQ Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black; left: dry rub-fastness, right: wet rub-fastness (ISO 105-X12, 100% cotton raw material, printed with 720 x 720 dpi)

changes in the colour yield of the print could not be observed after up to 20 times of washing at 60°C. The average luminance is nearly stable in all basic colours. This colour stability is the basis for coloured printed motifs over several washes which can be seen in Figure 5. 3. Outlook Pigment inks have the potential to have a big future in digital textile printing, especially when it comes to environmental aspects and process simplification. As well as being used on commonly used textile materials such as cotton, polyester, and polyamide, pigmented inks can also be used to easily print on mixed fabrics such as cotton-polyester blends where two different ink types are usually necessary. Moreover, the usage of Diamontex pigment inks opens up the possibility to print on specialised materials. Some tests have already been done on textile substrates that are usually difficult or almost impossible to digitally print on and these tests have had promising results. Finally, pigment inks for digital textile printing have a great chance to prevail in the market for special material applications but also for the commonly used textile fibres when needing to save energy and water consumption.

Fig. 5: Multiple-wash of 100% cotton raw material printed with Diamontex P HQ with 720 x 720 dpi (60°C washing temperature, starting from top to bottom: 1 – unwashed, 2 – 5 times washed, 3 – 10 times washed, 4 – 15 times washed, 5 – 20 times washed, 6 – 25 times washed)

Good Governance

Owners and workers both should work for the betterment of RMG industry Staff Correspondent Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) believes that after the Rana Plaza Accident, there is significant progress in establishing good governance in the organized garment sector, but in many cases, there is still a deficit. They said it at a press conference organized by the TIB on 26 April to publish a research report on ‘Good governance in the readymade garments sector: Progress and challenges. TIB Board of Trustees Chairperson Advocate Sultana Kamal, Executive Director Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, Director of Research and Policy Division Mohammad Rafiqul Hassan, Senior Program Manager, and Research Assistant Md. Wahid Alam were present at the press conference. Presenting the research findings, TIB Assistant Program Manager Nazmu Huda Mina said, 39% of 102 different initiatives, taken by stakeholders since the 2013 industrial disaster, had been implemented, but a whopping 41% of work had not yet been implemented while the remaining 20% of tasks were making slow progress.The study also found numerous barriers to implement the projects, including a lack of political will and other issues. These include the absence of adequate fire service stations and inspectors, inconsistency in the definitions of factory owners and workers in the existing labor law, obstructing workers from forming associations, and harassment of workers by factory owners. The government has not yet

Figure: TIB Executive Director, Iftekharuzzaman spoke at the press conference on “Good governance in RMG sector: progress review”.

signed the ILO Convention concerning Benefits in the Case of Employment Injury, while the cases filed over the Rana Plaza collapse and 2012 Tajreen Fashion fire are in limbo, according to the TIB research. The report also said, there is no safety inspector in 147 RMG factories, and the absence of necessary fire-extinguishing equipment in many high-rise factories also poses significant fire and explosion risks. Some 400,000 workers lost their jobs as around 1,200 factories were shut down for different reasons following the Rana Plaza disaster that left 1,134 workers dead and countless more maimed, the study reveals. Speaking of the absence of good governance in RMG factories, Sultana Kamal said, “The measures taken by factory owners are meant to maximize their benefits and safeguard their businesses, not to protect workers’ rights. Apart from owners, workers are a big stakeholder of a factory. Therefore, it’s imperative that both parties work for the betterment of the industry.”

Alongside, eight recommendations have been made in the research report to bring good governance in the readymade garment sector, which includes forming a single authority for RMG industry, taking measures to properly ensure workers’ benefits enshrined in the labor laws, and quick disposal of cases filed over workplace accidents by turning the existing labor courts into tribunals. “In order to implement the remediation co-ordination cell, the financial and technical capacity of the RCC will be increased by the government, buyer, and ILO. Monitoring of RCC activities should include neutral experts, and must be brought under the obligation of the bureaucrats to sustain the RCC activities,” recommended TIB. The research was conducted between May 2017 and March 2018 period. In this, information gathered at the institutional level from the stakeholders including the officers of the factory inspection, the Department of Fire Service and Civil Defense, the Ministry of Labor and RAJUK.

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Sustainable Fiber

Clothing from banana fiber Dr. N.N.Mahapatra B.Sc ( Hons), B.Sc (Tech )(Bom), M.Sc ( Chem ), Ph.D ( Chem ), M.B.A ( IMM,Cal), C.Col FSDC ( UK), CText FTI (Manchester), Int Trg (Australia), Sen Mem, AATCC (USA), FAIC (USA) FIC, FTA, FICS, FIE, FIIChE, MISTE (INDIA) President COLORANT LTD. Natural Fiber Natural fibers have been used historically to produce our clothes, carpets, cordage, paper, ships sails, and insulation and building materials. The use of natural fibers, both plant, and animal, to meet our needs goes back thousands of years and plays a significant role in history. In the history of natural fibers, one of the oldest recorded uses of plant fibre for fabrics is the use of hemp which was already being cultivated in China in 2800 BC. Like agriculture, textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the dawn of civilization. Fragments of cotton articles dated from 5000 BC have been excavated in Mexico and Pakistan. According to Chinese tradition, the history of silk begins in the 27th century BC. The oldest wool textile, found in Denmark, dates from 1500 BC, and the oldest wool carpet, from Siberia, from 500 BC. Fibres such as jute and coir have been cultivated since antiquity. In the last hundred years or so there has been a turn away from natural fibers towards synthetic materials, mostly derived from petrochemicals. This change was a result of the technological revolution and the short-term economic advantages of synthetics. Why natural fibers are getting momentum again The pendulum is once again

swinging towards natural fibres and we are now seeing a growing movement away from petrochemical-based fibers back to natural fibers. There are several reasons for this. Petrochemical based fibre production has undergone continuing rising costs. Synthetic fibres rely on precious non-renewable resources and incur environmental costs in their production. Petrochemical based products pose a health risk in most applications, both from direct exposure and also from secondary exposure through the soil, water, and air pollution. Natural fibres are produced from either plant, animal or insect sources. They are being extracted from plant leaves and inner bark or fruit seed crop, or from animal wool/ hair, or insect cocoon or from the mineral product. Plant sources of fiber include cotton, hemp, pineapple, ramie, sisal, flax, jute, coconut and banana (abaca). Animal sources of fiber include sheep, alpaca, llama, goat, and camel, and can be either wool, hair or leather. Insect fibre is predominantly from silkworm cocoons. The return to natural fibres to meet our fibre needs is only one part of the change that is required if we want to achieve sustainable living. We must also return to traditional methods of production back to chemical free and organic

production methods. Cotton is one of the most environmentally expensive fibers to produce. Cotton production is the second largest agricultural use of pesticides in the world with five of the nine top â&#x20AC;&#x153;nastyâ&#x20AC;? pesticides used. Cyanide, dicofol, naled, and propargite are commonly used in cotton production and these chemicals are known cancer-causing chemicals. Natural fibers are greatly elongated substances produced by plants and animals that can be spun into filaments, thread or rope. Woven, knitted, matted or bonded, they form fabrics that are essential to society. While the methods used to make fabrics have changed greatly since then, their functions have changed very little; today, most natural fibers are still used to make clothing and containers and to insulate, soften and decorate our living spaces. Increasingly, however, .traditional textiles are being used for industrial purposes as well as in components of composite materials, in medical implants, and geo-and agro-textiles. Banana fiber and its history The Banana family (Musaceae) is one of the plants which provide natural fiber. The genus Musa belongs to the Musaceae, a family of monocotyledons. It contains between 60-80 species, including the cultivated banana plant and several wild bananas.

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Sustainable Fiber

The Musaceae family of plants is one of the most useful in the world.It provides us with all manner of foods and industrial raw materials. Musa sapientum, for example, gives us the banana; Musa textiles are a source of the papermaking and cordage fiber abaca or Manila hemp. This vegetable leaf fiber is derived from the Musa textiles plant. The banana plant is indigenous to the Philippine Islands; native islanders were making textiles from its fibres when Magellan visited the islands in 1521 during his circumnavigation of the globe. During the early 19th century, supplies of banana began to reach the Western world, and its value as a cordage fiber was quickly appreciated. It was better than hemp for many purposes, particularly in marine ropes and hawsers. Despite the many attempts that have been made to establish banana production in other parts of the world, the Philippine Islands remain the chief source of the fiber. In the Philippines, abaca is planted over an area estimated at 130,000 hectares. It is also cultivated in Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia and Costa Rica, and has been successfully introduced into Ecuador, now the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s No 2 producer of the fiber. In 2007, the Philippines produced 60,000 tons of abaca fiber. Bangladesh also cultivates a huge number of banana plants having all potential to become a major producer of banana fiber. Production and processing of banana fiber As will be seen later, fiber can also be obtained from the edible banana plant, and there are, moreover, various species of wild banana which produce a fiber that is used for local purposes in various countries. The plant is of great economic importance, being harvested for its fiber, once generally called Manila hemp, extracted from the leaf sheath around the trunk. On average, the plant grows about 20 feet (6 metres) tall.

Figure 1: Fiber extracted from Musa Plant (A type of banana plant).

For fiber production, the most important of the Musa species is Musa textiles Nee, from which Abaca fiber, also known as Manila hemp, is obtained. As Musa textiles are a member of the banana genus, in appearance it closely resembles the banana, and indeed the plants can easily be mistaken for each other. There are one or two differences, however, by which the two plants can be distinguished. Abaca stalks are generally more slender, and the leaves are smaller, narrower, and rather more tapered, than those of the banana plant. Abaca is extracted from the leaf sheath around the trunk of the abaca plant (Musa textiles), a close relative of the banana and native to the Philippines. Each sheath contains a thin layer of fiber. The plant comprises a cluster of sheath-like leaf stalks. Harvesting abaca is very laborintensive. Each stalk must be cut into strips which are then scraped (usually by hand) to remove the pulp. The long white fibres are then washed and dried and baled for transport. For use in blends for the automobile industry, highquality fiber is spun into yarn, put onto bobbins and exported. The fiber is obtained from the outer layer of the leaf. The Banana plant has long been a source of fiber for high-quality textiles. In Japan, the cultivation of banana for clothing and household dates back to at least the 13th century. In the Japanese system,

leaves and shoots are cut from the plant periodically to ensure softness. The harvested shoots must first be boiled in lye to prepare the fibres for the making of the yarn. These banana shoots produce fibers of varying degree of softness, yielding yarns and textiles with differing qualities for specific uses. For example, the outermost fibers of the shoots are the coarsest, and are suitable for tablecloths, whereas the softest innermost fibres are desirable for kimono and kamishimo. This traditional Japanese banana cloth making process requires many steps, all performed by hand. In another system employed in Nepal, the trunk of the banana plant is harvested instead, small pieces of which are subjected to a softening process, mechanical extraction of the fibers, bleaching, and drying. After that, the fibers are sent to the Kathmandu Valley for the making of high-end rugs with a textural quality similar to silk. These banana fiber rugs are woven by the traditional Nepalese hand-knotted methods and are sold RugMark certified. The fibre is extracted by separating the ribbons of fibre from the layers of pulp. These ribbons, which are known as tuxies, are then drawn under a knife, usually made of metal, and the residual pulp is removed from the fiber, which is then hung up to dry. Processing occurs when it is separated mechanically

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Sustainable Fiber

decorticated into lengths varying from 3 to 9 feet. The leaves grow from the trunk of the plant, and the bases of the leaves form a sheath (covering) around the trunk; there are approximately 25 of these, with 5 cm in diameter and from 12 to 25 leaves with overlapping petioles, covering the stalk to form a shrub, “false trunk” or pseudo trunk about 30 to 40 cm in diameter. They grow in succession, with the oldest growing from the bottom of the trunk and successively younger ones from the top. The sheaths contain the valuable fiber. The coarse fibers range from 5 to 11 feet (1.5 to 3.5 metres) in length. They are composed primarily of the plant materials such as cellulose, lignin, and pectin. After the fiber has been separated, it is sold under the name Manila, the capital of the Philippines. The plant is normally grown in well-drained loamy soil, using pieces of mature root planted at the start of the rainy season. Growers harvest Abaca fields every three to eight months after an initial growth period of 18- 25 months and a total lifespan of about 10 years. Harvest generally includes having several operations concerning the leaf sheaths; a. Tuxying (separation of the primary and secondary sheath) b. Stripping (getting the fibers). c. Drying (usually following tradition of sun-drying). The fibers can then be spun into twines or cordage. In the process of cleaning abaca fiber, the use of coarsely serrated stripping knives and the lack of proper tension on the stripping knife result in the production of coarse low-grade fiber. Delay and carelessness in drying affect both the colour and strength of the fibre. Structure and properties Abaca is very strong and has great luster. Abaca rope is very durable, flexible and is very resistant to damage from salt water. It is

Figure 2: Abaca fiber made from the banana plant is used for making fashion garments.

classified as a hard fiber, along with coir, henequen, and sisal. Abaca has good natural luster. Its color depends upon the conditions under which it has been processed; good quality abaca is off-white, whereas some poor quality fiber is nearly black. It is strong and sufficiently flexible to provide a degree of ‘give‘ when used in rope. Individual fibre cells are cylindrical and smooth –surfaced. They are as much as 6 mm (¼ in) long, are regular in width. The ends taper gradually to a point. In cross-section, the fibers are polygonal and cell walls thin. The lumen is large and distinct; it is round and uniform in diameter although both fiber and lumen show occasional constrictions. In places, the lumen contains granular bodies. Abaca fibres are largely cellulose (about 77% of moisture-free fiber) but are coated with considerable amounts of lignin (about 9 %). The individual fibers can be freed by boiling the strands of alkali. Abaca fibre is bleached and dyed as per other cellulosic fibers. Uses of banana fibers One traditional use of the coarse abaca fibers, which range up to 3 meters in length and have very high tensile strength, was as cordage, especially for ship’s rigging. Today, most abaca is pulped and processed into tea bags, vacuum bags, a casing for sausages, banknotes, cigarette papers and high-quality writing

paper. Recently, research engineers patented a novel mixture of polypropylene thermoplastic and abaca yarn for use in automobile components, including external panels. Once a favored source of rope, abaca shows promise as an energy-saving replacement for glass fibers in automobiles. The fiber was originally used for making twines and ropes as well as the Manila envelope; now most Abaca is pulped and used in a variety of paper–like products including filter paper and bank notes. It can be used to make handicrafts like bags, carpets, clothing, and furniture. Some of the fine inner fibers from the abaca leaf–stalk is used directly, without spinning, for making delicate, lightweight, yet strong fabrics. These fabrics are used in the Philippines for clothing, and for hats and shoes. Some abaca is used for carpets, table mats, etc. In South India lot of Banana, cultivation is found which has helped the local people to extract fiber from the leaves of the banana plant which is being used in making banana yarn and blended with cotton, and synthetics and various lightweight fabrics are produced. It has to be popularized further in India similar to the Philippines. Acknowledgements The author is thankful to Mr. Subhash Bhargava, FSDC ((UK), Managing Director, Colorant Ltd. for giving permission to publish this article.

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Garments washing industry should emphasize on R&D and innovation Md. Mehedi Hasan, Founder President of BGWTF and AGM of Sterling Laundry Limited

The garment wash is a new technology in the garment trade. Normally washing means cleaning something, however, in the garment trade, only cleaning of garments is not the garment wash. Garment washing is a technology, which is applied to change or modify the outlook, appearance, comfortability, and design of garments. Garment washing is applied on solidly dyed garments or solid printed fabric. Bangladesh garments washing industry established in late 90’s and now there are more than 500 garments washing plant, from which about 250 medium to large and another 250 small opareting in Bangladesh. Bangladesh Garments Washing Technologist Federation (BGWTF) was established in 2009 to drive the innovation of Bangladesh garments washing industry. It is dedicated to the development for the industry and it is planning to establish a specialized institute for garments washing technology. BGWTF Founder President and Assistant General Manager of Sterling Laundry Limited Md.

Mehedi Hasan gave an interview with the Textile Today’s Industry Correspondent Md. Masudur Rahman. The report is created based on their discussion.

washing sector, from then the industry got a huge acceleration and now became fast growing and value adding industry,” Mr. Mehedi added.

Bangladesh garments washing sector

“Day by day our local textile engineers gathered experience and now they are running numerous washing project successfully. Most of the wash technicians in the buying house are Bangladeshi, gradually we are replacing foreign experts with our capabilities,” he explained.

“Abundance of fresh water is the main catalyst to establish garments washing plant in Bangladesh. However supply of gas and electricity form government and cheap labor are also spurred entrepreneur and investors joining this division,” said Mr. Mehedi. In the very beginning of this sector, textile technologist did not pay much attention to the washing sector seeming that it just a laborious laundry work. So since its inception, foreign experts from Turkey, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India got engaged in this sector and taught our people washing technologies. Very few local textile technologists are involved in this sector so the majority of the manpower was non-specialized. “Since 2005 specialized textile individuals began to join the

Value addition Garments washing is the sector where innovation is a must. A washed product could add 100 times more profit than ordinary product. “The common practice of Bangladesh is to copy buyer’s module, but it will not help us become competitive. It is high time to concentrate on own development. While few factories are developing their own development but others are lag behind it,” said Mr. Mehedi. BGWTF inspires Bangladeshi manufacturers to work for their

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L a u n d r y To d a y

own development. Each year it organizes an exhibition where factories get an opportunity to exhibit their own development. Last year more than 60 new developments were submitted from them while three of them got rewarded. “Washing plants should put more emphasis on R&D. Dedicated washing technologists, fashion designers, lab support is must to bring innovation to the factory,” Mr. Mehedi emphasized. BGWTF, a dedicated name for the garments washing industry BGWTF started its journey from 2009 as a non- profit, non- political charitable foundation. The mission of this foundation is to share technical

solution regarding garments washing and to help the members through charitable activities. Mr. Mehedi explained how to solve the washing technical problem. “We have a group in social media where members upload the garments body image and specification and indicate the problem they are facing. Our experts analyze the problems and give solutions. Members could also contact the experts for further assistant.” BGWTF also arranges technical training for the members and for the manpower to sharpen their knowledge. They also arrange training for the chemical use and safety for the workers. “Garments

washing consumes a vast amount of chemical. If the workers are not aware about the chemical using methods and its effect they will suffer from fatal diseases including cancer,” said Mr. Mehedi. The foundation also provides a financial fund to help the members in their needs. “When Rana Plaza collapsed we responded, we responded while our members got hospitalized,” Mr. Mehedi added. Each year on 1 May, BGWTF arranges an annual general meeting where a roundtable discussion panel is arranged on washing technical issue and also exhibits factory’s own wash development.

10 apparel companies receive OSH Good Practice Award Desk Report On the occasion of National Day on Occupational Safety and Health (28 April), Government of Bangladesh has awarded 10 apparel companies for maintaining high safety and workers’ health standards in their factories, said a press statement. State Minister of Labour and Employment Mujibul Haque handed over the ‘Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Good Practice Award’ to the representatives from Wisdom Attires Ltd., Fakir Fashion Ltd., Knit Concern Ltd., Hop Lun Apparels Ltd., Square Fashion Ltd., Snowtex Outwear Ltd., Echotex Ltd., Tarasima Apparels Ltd., Viyellatex and AKH Eco Apparels Ltd. at a ceremony held on 28th April at the Krishibid Institute in Dhaka. As Chief Guest of the event, Mujibul Haque said, “The ILO introduced World Safety Day in 2003 and since 2016 we have started observing this day in Bangladesh. Workplace accidents

and injuries occur due to lack of awareness of employers and workers. Our industrial growth and productivity will increase hastily if awareness on workplace safety can be enhanced.”

Figure: Distinguished guests and winners of the award.

The Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Afroza Khan said, “Our government believes that a safe and healthy workforce is the pillar of sustainable development. This year on National OSH Day, we have introduced OSH Good Practice award for the first time to recognize business owners who have made proactive efforts to ensure the welfare of employees.” The Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) under the Ministry of Labour and Employment carries out health and safety inspection in factories and industries in Bangladesh. Speaking at the event, Inspector General of DIFE, Md. Shamsuzzaman Bhuiyan

congratulated the award winners and reiterated DIFE’s commitment to ensuring industry compliance through inspection and monitoring. “Knowledge and sharing of good practices is key to preventing workplace accidents and injuries. Therefore it is important that our employers and employees have a good understanding about occupational safety and health (OSH) practices. DIFE has formed an OSH unit to address structural, fire, electrical and ergonomic safety issues at workplaces. We are committed to ensuring workplace safety through enhanced and effective inspection and awareness activities.”

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R e t a i l e r s To d a y

Closing of JC Penney’s 8 stores will not affect BD export MM Uddin

106000 family members and now its market revenue is US $12.547 (2016) billion.

In this FY 2018 JCP is expecting to close eight of its department stores in the U.S. market, a spokesman told the CNBC. The announcement has created some unwanted Figure 1: JC Penny is expecting to close eight of its anxiety to the JC Penney’s department stores in the U.S. market. suppliers and vendors in Every Year JC Penney, one of the Bangladesh. However, this most important buyer of apparel closing will not create any impact products from Bangladesh, buys in any exporter country around the around US $160 to US $180 million world. Because the store reduction worth of readymade garment from is a strategic decision about the Bangladesh through to direct and nonperforming or non-profitable indirect strategic sourcing. Only store which maintenance, inventory 2017, the company’s direct liaison cost is huge but it is very inefficient office of Bangladesh exported for the mother company. “Yes! Total around USD $50 million except Max, buy will reduce a little bit,” said a Hong Kong office and Opex, India. senior officer of Bangladesh who wanted to be anonymous. JC Penney, an American Buyer, started its journey in 1902, which now operates roughly 875 department stores today with

Actually, it is not an uncertain conclusion rather than it is a part of the company’s ongoing plan to

right-size JCP’s store speedy as more sales move online. JC Penney said it would also close one of its fulfilment centers in Wisconsin this summer, eliminating more than 600 jobs as a result. The eight store closures are estimated to result in about 480 job cuts, the company said, and operations at those locations should be completely wound down by May. The Bangladeshi officer also shared some important suggestions for Bangladesh’s locale suppliers to prepare themselves to continue a sustainable business with JCP. Recently, the company is focusing design-based suppliers and gradually dropping their own design. In the near future, which supplier will not able to generate fashion design that will not a competitor anymore for the JC Penny’s strategic sourcing. The company also focuses on IRP (Individual Inspection Ability).

Archroma and Montega Italy join hands to help enhance the standards of Pakistan’s garment industry Desk Report Archroma, is one of the global leaders in color and specialty chemicals, and Montega S.r.l., Italy, (Montega) has decades of rich experience in developing the most recent fashion trends with its high standard chemical treatments, announced a collaboration aimed at supporting the fast-growing garment and apparel industry in Pakistan, mainly in the denim segment. Their joint efforts will focus on fostering excellence in the finishing of textile garments.

The company reported “We, at Archroma offers a wide range of brand and textile specialty chemicals that caters to the local industry in Pakistan for both its internal and export markets. The company’s expert team provides innovative solutions to its customers, tailored to their individual requirements”.

For garments and fabrics, Montega offers solutions in finishing effects, enzymatic products, bio-polishing, bio-finishing and specialty products for indigo dyes, proteinaceous fibers such as wool and silk, and garment washing and/ laundry. All applications are geared toward environmental sustainability.

Now, Archroma will represent Montega in marketing their products in Pakistan. Their partnership between the two firms will provide a unique synergy of combined expertise, reliability and commitment to environmental sustainability, especially toward the reduction of water usage and

the emission of greenhouse gases during textile finishing processes. Mujtaba Rahim, CEO of Archroma Pakistan, commented that “We, at Archroma, believe in continuous improvement and challenging the status quo to make our industry sustainable. We have dedicated ourselves to bringing innovation in our product lines and to closely partnering with like-minded organizations to build industrial rapport. Through this initiative of joining hands with Montega, we will be able to share latest R&D developments with the textile industry in Pakistan, and help grow Pakistan’s contribution in the global textile arena.”

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S p i n n i n g To d a y

Ensuring higher quality with increased productivity of yarn: Suessen Elite Compact System Abdul Wadud, Director, Spintech Associates Ltd. Customer expectation on quality of yarn is increasing day by day. Clean surface has become one of the important issues of fabric quality. This has created the necessity to reduce yarn hairiness. But improvement of quality (Hairiness) requires either or combination of the following actions: 1. Use of better raw material. 2. Using higher TM (Twist Multiplier) in the ring frame. 3. Slower speed in the process machinery. All the above actions eventually result in increased cost of production of yarn. Not only that, for knit yarn increasing TM may result in “Spirality” issue which is very difficult to handle. So, a solution that can improve quality as well can improve productivity is the ultimate solution that market has been looking since long time. SUESSEN picked the market requirement first time as a new

century started in 1999, in Paris ITMA and provided the market with a solution that could meet the ends; Productivity with Quality. Initially it was not easy to meet the two ends but SUESSEN kept their relentless effort in R&D and today only SUESSEN ELITE COMPACT SYSTEM Figure 1: SUESSEN Elite Compact decreases hairiness, increases productivity and strength is equipped to provide a significantly. complete solution which makes it possible to 3. Increase strength by 20-25% with improve yarn quality with higher the same material and speed, in productivity. comparison with the conventional SUESSEN Elite Compact can ring spinning system. ensure the following: Considering the above benefits so 1. I ncrease productivity by 10far worldwide and in Bangladesh, 15% with the same material and 12 million and 1 million spindles, mixing ratio, in comparison with respectively, has been converted the conventional ring spinning to SUESSEN ELITE Compact system. System and its population is rapidly growing in Bangladesh. 2. D ecrease hairiness by 20-25% with the same material and TM, in comparison with the conventional ring spinning system.

From the investment point of view, the payback period is maximum 2 years, depending on how it is utilized and yarn marketed.

Uster acquires EVS Desk Report

The Uster Group is one of the leading high-technology instrument manufacturers of products for quality measurement and certification for the textile industry. Recently Uster Technologies AG has announced the successful closing of the acquisition of Elbit Vision Systems Ltd. (EVS) for automated vision inspection in the textile industry, said an official press release. According to the release, this development shows USTER’s competencies in quality control and strengthens its product portfolio. The benefits of these EVS’s products are to automatically locate, label and

trace defects of fabric and web products, and ultimately to grade the quality and determine the value of the produced goods. This acquisition fits perfectly into their vision to be the world’s leading supplier of quality solutions for the textile industry from fiber to fabric. In this aspect the release said quoting Thomas Nasiou, Chief Executive Officer of USTER, “I am delighted that we are now able to finalize this major milestone, which embodies the strengthening of USTER’s activities across the globe.” In addition, Sam Cohen, CEO of EVS, has quoted that “They have made during the last few years

in improving their products and services leading to increased customer satisfaction.” “And now, they are looking forward to continue working for EVS, as part of USTER, and combining their offering. I believe that we will demonstrate the potential to provide our customers with new, innovative products that can address unmet needs,” he added.

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Te c h n o l o g y To d a y

Spring, summer, sun: Enjoy the feeling of protection Desk Report The Hohenstein Institute, an accredited test laboratory, and research institute involves the testing and certification of textiles worldwide. Recently it has recommended using UV protection textiles to protect skin from Ultraviolet (UV) rays. The sun is the ultimate power source. But too much sun can harm us. Ultraviolet rays (UV rays) in particular can cause lasting damage to eyes and skin. When sunbathing, we normally use sunscreen with UV protection. However, even the most powerful of these – known as sunblock – only provides a sun protection factor (SPF) of 50. This gets washed off when we are in the water or gets rubbed off when we are drying yourself and must be re-applied several times to ensure long-term protection. Sunshades or awnings only

provide limited protection from indirect or reflected sunlight. That is why dermatologists recommend that you wear clothes covering our body as sun protection. Long trousers, a long-sleeved shirt, and headgear with as wide a brim as possible are all useful, while children should wear neck protection as well. The best way is to choose textiles that guarantee a high level of UV protection. Check whether a textile has been awarded a UPF (Ultra Violet Protection Factor), and which level was awarded. This helps us to see to what extent a textile offers protection from sunlight. UV-protective textiles provide extremely effective protection from UV rays. Depending on the basis, they can provide a protection factor (UPF) of up to 80, which would allow us to spend the whole day outside without any problems.

“When determining a reliable UPF for the consumer, the special challenges facing sunscreen textiles during use must be taken into account,” emphasizes Silke Heidt, Head of UV protection testing at Hohenstein. “That is why we recommend that you wear modern UV textiles, tested to the UV STANDARD 801, to ensure your safety when out in the sun,” Silke Heidt added. Textiles have been tested using the UV STANDARD 801 for 20 years. This provides effective prevention, as the textiles are also tested when wet, stretched and used – under realistic conditions – as part of the UV STANDARD 801 test procedure. “This helps us to guarantee that you can enjoy the sun to the fullest, without having to worry. Enjoy the summer with these tips and pieces of advice from Hohenstein,” Silke Heidt said.

Patent Re-examination Board of SIPO upholds Huntsman’s Patents Desk Report Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated chemicals is pleased to announce that the Patent Re-examination Board of the State Intellectual Property Office, China (PRB) upheld Huntsman’s Chinese Patents Nos. ZL00106403.7 and ZL200480003051.4. These patents were contested by Shaoxing Bangyi Chemical Co. Ltd. and Taixing Jinyun Dyestuff Co., Ltd. The PRB rejected the positions of the petitioners by its ruling and confirmed that Huntsman’s patented technology, which is used in Huntsman’s NOVACRON® Super Black G and NOVACRON® Super Black R dyes. These are Huntsman’s valuable innovation for producing deep black shades. Huntsman brought a claim Jiangsu Jinji Industrial Co. Ltd. and Taixing Jinyun Dyestuff Co. Ltd. for 78

infringing the above mentioned Chinese Patents at the Beijing Intellectual Property Court by using Huntsman’s patented technology in six black dyestuff products. Huntsman is seeking substantial damages and an injunction against further infringement. Huntsman is also seeking substantial damages and an injunction against further infringement in a separate lawsuit against Zhejiang Longsheng Group Co. Ltd., Zhejiang Keyong Chemical Co. Ltd., and Shanghai Colva Dyestuff Industry Co. Ltd. This matter is currently being heard before the High People’s Court, Shanghai. In earlier decisions, both the Shanghai Intermediate People’s Court and the Shanghai High People’s Court ruled that Shanghai Colva Dyestuff Industry Co. Ltd. had infringed Huntsman’s Chinese Patent No. ZL00106403.7 by

manufacturing and selling Colvazol Super Black LC-G and Colvazol Super Black LC-R dyes. Rohit Aggarwal, President of Huntsman Textile Effects said that “We are very pleased with the PRB’s decision which demonstrates the State Intellectual Property Office’s commitment to steadfastly uphold intellectual property rights in China which protect valuable and advanced technology. This encourages companies like Huntsman to continue to invest in research and development in our aim to bring cutting-edge innovation to the textile industry. Huntsman will vigorously pursue those who are infringing our intellectual property rights to stop the unlawful infringement and pursue full compensation for our losses”.

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C o t t o n To d a y

Cotton experiments in the international space station Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University, USA Experimentation with cotton in the international space station receives big boost. Target Corporation has committed to 100 percent sustainable cotton by 2022. This effort is getting a boost from Target by providing huge sums of money towards sustainability of cotton. The International Space Station cotton sustainability challenge program sponsored by Target and supported by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASS) recently selected three projects. Each project will receive up to a million dollar in funding supported by Target. Through a collaboration between CASS and NASA, the project will be implemented at the International Space Station. Upstream Tech of Alameda, California will work on field scale, aggregated best management

help with good fundamental knowledge. Such information may help with better growing cotton under stressed conditions.

practice verification and monitoring. Upstream has developed machine learning tools to acquire data from satellites. This capability will be used to monitor cotton agriculture practices which will help Target in its cotton sustainability goals. A project led by Christopher Saski of Clemson University will utilize gene sequencing tools to investigate gene expression and genome sequences of three cotton cultivars. In zero gravity, information obtained on the process of regeneration will

Simon Gilroy of the University of Wisconsin-Madison will focus on roots as part of the space station project, as resistance to stresses such as drought are somewhat related to the root system. The international space laboratory will provide opportunities to know about the environmental factors and the genes that control root growth in zero gravity. These studies may not only help with cotton agriculture, but the fundamental knowledge will lead to advances in agriculture as the resources are shrinking. There is a growing need to feed the increasing population, particularly in those parts of the world such as India, where land space is limited.

PPI Training on

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ge n e all ills h c gm e l n ab inni t i v p ne on s i An cott to

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Time: 9.30 AM to 5.00 PM (Friday) 4.00 PM to 8.00 PM (Saturday)

Mentorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Profile

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Export Update

Bangladesh RMG export may cross $30 billion by the end of the current FY Staff Correspondent According to EPB data as shown in figure 3, the readymade garments (RMG) sector, the highest foreign currency earner, has contributed $22.83 billion, posting a 9.11% rise in July-March period of financial year 2017-18. Knitwear exports rose 11.61 percent to $11.32 billion and woven garments exports increased 6.75 percent to $11.51 billion during the period. Besides RMG, export earnings from jute and jute goods in the first nine months of the current fiscal also has increased significantly by 11.91 per cent to $818.09 million from $731.02 million. Export earnings from, Home textile products increased 15.08 percent to $669.87 million and footwear rose 5.84 percent to $187.09 million. Industry insiders has opined that if the current trend remains, at the end of the financial year Bangladesh

3.2

JUL

The shipment of leather and leather goods sector went down largely as the relocation of tanneries from Hazaribagh to Savar has hampered the production of leather goods.

RMG and Textile export is to see a record growth. RMG export may cross 30 billion by the end of the financial year. If the country can achieve this, that will be milestone success. However countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s overall export earnings fell 1.38 percent year-onyear to $3.05 billion in March 2018 mainly due to a decline in leather goods shipment. According to Export Promotion Bureau, in March receipts fell short of the $3.16 billion from the target for the month.

Leather and leather goods sector, the second 3.65 largest export 3.41 3.06 3.09 3.08 earner after 2.84 3.05 garments fetched $848.78 2.03 million in the July-March period, down 8.04 percent AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MARCH year-on-year.

Figure 1: Export earnings in billions of $ (Source: EPB). Products

According to industry owners, all the tanneries have been relocated, but only 25 out of 155 have so far started production in their new location. BGMEA President Siddiqur Rahman said the higher exchange rate of the US dollar helped exports a bit. The exchange rate rose to Tk 84 a dollar, up from Tk 78 and Tk 80 previously. According to BGMEA, Bangladesh has the highest number of green garment factories in the world. Nearly 90 percent remediation work in the garment factories has already been completed, which has brightened the image of the sector. Now we are going to be developing country from LDC so that we should increase our growth and we have to focus on product diversification and value addition, said Tapan Kumar Saha, Managing Director, PN Composite Ltd. Besides we will increase our mid-level management efficiency, he added.

Export

Strategic

Export

% Change

Export Performance for July-

% Change of export

for

Target of

Target for

Performance

of Export

Mar. 2016-17

performance July-Mar.

2016-

2017-18

July-Mar.

for July-Mar.

Performance

2017-18 Over July-Mar.

2017-18

Overs. Export

2016-17

Target RMG

28149.8

30160.00

22163.18

22834.44

3.03

20928.83

9.11

Knitwear

13757.3

15100.00

11096.29

11321.14

2.03

10143.55

11.61

Woven

14392.6

15060.00

11066.89

11513.30

4.03

10785.28

6.75

Bangladesh Textile Today |

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