O c to b e r 2 01 8 A Textile Today Initiative l Published with Volume 11, Issue 10 l Pages 61 to 78
The dilemma of biological treatment of textile effluent-I want to learn the magic
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Editorial-Sustainability Supplementary
The dilemma of biological treatment of textile effluent-I want to learn the magic Kazy Mohammad Iqbal Hossain, South Asia Regional Sustainability Manager, Lindex HK Ltd. The textile industry in Bangladesh is going for biological effluent treatment plant extensively assuming that this is the low cost safest solution for wastewater treatment. And my colleagues in the industries are certifying those ETP as “GREEN ETP”. Let’s see what is the relationship between two major parameters of wastewater is and how it affects the design consideration of an ETP. BOD= Biochemical Oxygen Demand indicate the amount of oxygen required to degrade the degradable organic matter present in the wastewater. So, the main objective of this measurement is to know the amount of biodegradable organic carbon. COD= Chemical Oxygen Demand indicate the amount of oxygen required to oxidize (Carbon to Carbon Di Oxide) the organic matter present in the wastewater. This includes both biodegradable and non-biodegradable organic matter. The relation is given belowCOD= bCOD+nbCOD NbCOD= COD-bCOD In general, we call bCOD as BOD. For testing purpose, we only measure BOD5, which actually measures the amount of biodegradable organic carbon that will degrade naturally in 5 days in normal temperature.
Figure: A biological ETP in a textile factory.
If BOD/ COD is > 0.6 then the waste is fairly biodegradable and can be effectively treated biologically. If BOD/COD ratio is between 0.3 and 0.6, then seeding is required to treat it biologically, because the process will be relatively slow, as the acclimatization of the microorganisms that help in the degradation process takes time. If BOD/ COD < 0.3, biodegradation will not proceed, thus it cannot be treated biologically, because the wastewater generated from these activities inhibits the metabolic activity of bacterial seed due to their toxicity or refractory properties.
So, the amount of nonbiodegradable hydrocarbon present in the ETP =
That clearly means the amount of non-biodegradable Organic carbon present in the wastewater is 510ppm (mg/l). And biological treatment is not possible for such wastewater. But my factory installed a biological effluent treatment plant and it is certified as ‘GREEN’ by my colleagues and friends.
NbCOD= 720-210=510 ppm, i.e. 510 ppm is biologically nonbiodegradable.
I have reviewed several scientific research paper on this and found this conclusion in almost all papers-
BOD/COD ratio =0.29
“If BOD/ COD is > 0.6 then the waste
Now I have a wastewater test report from 1 of my supplier factories, it shows the inlet wastewater contain: BOD=210 ppm, and COD=720 ppm
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is fairly biodegradable and can be effectively treated biologically. If BOD/COD ratio is between 0.3 and 0.6, then seeding is required to treat it biologically, because the process will be relatively slow, as the acclimatization of the microorganisms that help in the degradation process takes time. If BOD/COD < 0.3, biodegradation will not proceed, thus it cannot be treated biologically, because the wastewater generated from these activities inhibits the metabolic activity of bacterial seed due to their toxicity or refractory properties.” You will obviously ask me what is the outlet wastewater test result, it shows outlet BOD= 03 ppm and COD= 10 ppm. I do not know how it is possible. How non-biodegradable organic matter will degrade here. The factory doesn’t have any type of oxidation process or don’t use any sophisticated filtration technology like UF/ NF, etc. so where this carbon goes? Maybe there are something magical in between which I don’t know, so can you please help me to understand the reason, I like to learn this magical reason, I am ready to accept any type of criticism, would be grateful if any of you became able to help me to understand this situation.
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S u s t a i n a b l e Te c h n o l o g y
Environment conservation and digitalization are still the trends of textile machinery industry Shanghai being the host city of major textile machinery exhibition ITMA Asia + CITME 2018 is showcasing the latest trend of global textile machinery industry. With more than 1000 Chinese exhibitors, more than 500 European exhibitors and more 30 Japanese exhibitors the combined show of ITMA Asia and CITME have become the real place of showcasing latest trends and developments of Textile machinery industry. Tareq Amin Shanghai being the host city of major textile machinery exhibition ITMA Asia + CITME 2018 is showcasing the latest trend of global textile machinery industry. With more than 1000 Chinese exhibitors, more than 500 European exhibitors and more 30 Japanese exhibitors the combined show of ITMA Asia and CITME have become the real place of showcasing latest trends and developments of Textile machinery industry. Wang Shutian, President, China Textile Machinery Association said proudly that China is the world’s largest textile machinery manufacturing country now. And of course it is well established now that Chinese machinery is not just cheap machinery, it has done significant improvements in quality and innovation. Mr. Wang was speaking at the press conference of ITMA Asia held on 15th October in National Exhibition and Convention Center, Shanghai. Wang Shutian said that the machinery industry currently is building on three pillars.
Figure 2: Wang Shutian, President, China Textile Machinery Association was speaking at the press conference on 15th October in Shanghai.
1. E nvironment-friendly machinery that are reducing emission and reducing impact down the line. 2. More efficient less consumption of energy and reducing the cost of textile manufacturing. 3. D igitalization, automation, artificial intelligence. Echoing with his voice Earnest Maurer, First Vice President, CEMATEX told that now it is the time for specialized cleaner and environment-friendly technology. He emphasized the impact of fashion trend changes and its impact on the machinery industry. The printing industry is particularly seeing great growth which
Figure 1: Machinery industry leaders from China and Europe poses at ITMA Asia + CITME 2018.
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is well reflected in ITMA Asia 2018. For the first time in the exhibition, Printing has become a separate chapter and it has seen double growth. The official release informed that by product categories, spinning is the largest sector, occupying 22 percent of the total exhibit space. Finishing machinery forms the next biggest group at 20 percent, followed by knitting (19 percent) and weaving (17 percent). Despite the odds, the machinery industry has been very strong through 2018. Experts opined that the strong growth was maybe because of a number of BMRE and technology up gradation of the machinery. Machinery manufacturers received record orders throughout 2018. Mr. Maurer informed that European manufacturing companies’ orders are all booked for 2018 and those deliveries will be continued through 2019. However, he was cautious about 2019 and said that the year may go flat. Ernesto Maurer was talking in the opening day of ITMA Asia 2018.
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Sustainability in Spinning
10 ways to save energy in a spinning mill
Energy is one of the main cost factors in a spinning industry. There are various energy saving methods that exist in every spinning mills. Engr. Aslam Parvez Executive Director Hazrat Amanat Shah Spinning Mills Ltd.
Spinning mills in Bangladesh are facing greater challenges day by day. Rising power tariff (Gas & Electricity) makes industries more vulnerable. For more than two decades, the spinning sector was flourishing based on two points:
discussed that can reduce power consumption significantly.
•
All main motor and suction motor of ring frame must be included inverter drive that will reduce power up to 30%.
•
A co-generation system to be introduced to minimize operating cost of chiller and boiler.
Now both are nullified and more challenges are waiting for the future.
Periodic maintenance and the preventive measure will reduce power consumption substantially.
Power saving tricks in a spinning mill
PFI should be corrected by changing capacitor bank timely in Sub-Station.
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•
•
2. Low power cost
The textile industry is one of the most energy consuming industries and it contains fragmented and heterogeneous sector such as spinning, weaving, processing etc. Energy is one of the main cost factors in a spinning industry. There are various energy saving methods that exist in every spinning mills. Here, some important ways will be
•
Humidification plant is a big power consuming area. Using inverter on a trial basis may give optimum result. Old, worn out equipment may consume more power that should be replaced immediately.
Proper lubrication, good quality bearing, and driving belt can reduce power.
1. Cheap labor
install over factory shed.
• •
Compressor pipe leakage should be repaired promptly to reduce power consumption. The inverter may be installed in compressor also.
•
The normal light should be replaced immediately with LED light.
•
The solar panel may be used for room light and security light. The rooftop solar panel may easily
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•
As the spinning sector’s manufacturers are facing a competitive environment, so they tend to reduce production costs without affecting the production and quality of the product. As the energy prices are increasing day by day, so this will lead to increase the manufacturing costs. Therefore, the saving of energy is very much important to overcome the problems. People should be more concern about power saving as every single penny is very crucial to survive in the sector.
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S u s t a i n a b l e Te c h n o l o g y - S p i n n i n g
How does Suessen EliTe compact ensure sustainability? Suessen EliTe compact is a step in the right direction to ensure sustainability through higher tenacity, less wastage etc. Abdul Wadud, Director at Spintech Associates Ltd. strongly with the standard of living. It is also obvious that we simply do not have enough energy to raise everybody’s standard of living by conventional means.
Sustainability has become a ‘fashionable’ word, but I think there are some real concerns for us, both as entrepreneurs and as responsible human beings. In well-fed Europe and to a lesser extent in the equally well-fed USA, consumers care about this. If we can say our products were produced in a sustainable manner, this is certainly a sales argument in Europe.
Sustainability is achieved most easily if it also makes economic sense. In Germany, gasoline has been taxed very heavily for years. This is why German cars use less gasoline with similar or better performance than American cars. German engineers are not smarter than their US counterparts are – they were simply forced by customers to think about this harder.
Energy consumption statistics of different countries
Social Progress Index vs Energy per country
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Switzerland
Sweden
Denmark Uruguay Hungary
75
Brazil
Irland
USA
UAE
Israel
Kuwait
Russia
Mexico
Philippines
Norway Canada
Japan
Costa Rica
How Suessen EliTe compact contributing in sustainability
Saudi Arabia China
Indonesia
55
Bangladesh
India
Iraq
Pakistan Ethiopia
35
Yemen
0,5
Nigeria
Angola
5
Liter Oil Per Day [Per Capita, Energy Equivalent]
All of us have traveled in Asia and also in Europe. We all want the people of India, Bangladesh, and many other places to have a standard of living like their European or American counterparts. A few figures show what I mean (they are from 2013, in units/ capita/year). I only picked ‘warm’ countries, as in cold countries we need more energy for the same level of comfort. Bangladesh 2,515 units/capita/year Indonesia 9,900 units/capita/ year Thailand 23,180 units/capita/year Singapore 56,370 units/capita/year (USA 81,290 units/capita/year, Germany 45,105 Units/capita/year) It seems obvious, that today the energy consumption increases
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Now, I am certainly not arrogant or stupid enough to claim that with our 50 Suessen EliTe compact we can save the world! All I want to show is that the Suessen EliTe compact is a small step in the right direction. D epending on spindle speed, your RSM uses about 40–50 W/spindle. With EliTe we are adding 4–5 W/spindle, say 10%. At least with hosiery yarn, we get 15% higher production, so the UKG are actually lower. W hy do you need 40–50 W to drive a spindle? The biggest ‘consumers’ are the cops which need to be rotated at 20,000 rpm and the yarn balloon which rotates at virtually the same speed. The air friction is the culprit! (This is why every 10–15 years one seems ‘vacuum spinning’ at some ITMA, developed by some institute. Unfortunately, these things do not work.)
Figure: Suessen EliTe compact spinning m/c installed in a Bangladeshi factory.
I think it is plausible, that less hairy cops and a less hairy balloon reduce this friction and measurements, as well as theory (Soliman’s formula), bear it out. This reduction may be similar or more, depending on the spindle speed than what is added by compact suction. EliTe compact gives higher tenacity. This means, that lower grade cotton/organic cotton may be used for applications where previously this was not possible. L ower grade cotton/organic cotton need less water and less fertilizer, again a right step towards sustainability. A shed full of EliTe spindles has much less fluff and fly in the ambient air compared to a conventional mill. This has several advantages- A healthier environment for the workers, a positive effect by itself. - Less cleaning of the A/C filters may be required, a cost-saving and presumably energy saving. - Less waste is created, definitely a step towards sustainability. As you see, none of these points, not even combined, will save the world. However, these are small steps in the right direction.
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EliTe®CompactSet Advanced Your compact spinning system for any application in short-staple fibre ring spinning. Join the market leader and bench mark – with 20 years of experience with EliTe®Compact Spinning Systems running on ring spinning machines of any brand and type.
www.suessen.com
Spintech Associates Mr. Anisur Rahman, anis@spintechbd.com Bangladesh Textile Today |
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S u s t a i n a b l e Te c h n o l o g y - R e c y c l i n g
FILOTEX Ltd. model of recycling ‘cutting waste’ is replicable globally Due to the shifting of consumer behavior towards fast fashion, textile production and consumption has been increased considerably and leading to a higher amount of textile waste. Filotex Ltd is the pioneer in Bangladesh to produce recycled products from ‘cutting waste’ of garments industry. FT Research Team Filotex Ltd., a sister concern of Mosharaf Group, is playing a pioneering role in solving the solid waste problem in Bangladesh textile and apparel industry. The company is producing luxurious recycled products to be used for home furnishing and upholstery since 2014 using sophisticated recycling technology from valuable ‘cutting waste’ of garments industry. It is the first factory in Bangladesh working with ‘Circular Fashion’ and 3R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) concept introduced by the global brands. They think out of the cage to expel the concept of solid waste and need of virgin raw materials. ‘Circular Fashion’ and Filotex Major global brands recently have committed to recycling back used garments into new recycled products to reduce the solid waste problem. Due to increasing
Figure 2: Colorful doormat made from ‘cutting waste’ recycled yarn.
using the ‘Cutting Waste’ of those brands as the raw materials of those products. As most of the leading brands are producing their garments in Bangladesh, they will be able to send the ‘Cutting Waste’ from their vendor factories
reliance on both national and international market by their highquality product and they are on it. Available colors of the products are• White • Red • Pink • Yellow • Black • Sky-blue • Royal blue • Orange • Light & Deep Green Filotex product variety is-
Figure 1: Different color yarn packages processed from ‘cutting waste’.
• Doormat
consumer pressure for sustainable products ‘Circular Fashion’ is getting popular every day.
to Filotex to recycle them into fashionable sustainable products.
• Table mat
Filotex product range
The global brands will be able to sell Filotex products under the criteria of ‘Circular Fashion’ by
• Carpet etc.
Filotex is producing different types of products with high quality. Filotex’s target is to achieve
Production process
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• Terry towel
Filotex gives zero tolerance about
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A SISTER CONCERN OF MOSHARAF GROUP
LUXURIOUS
RECYCLED HOME FURNISHING AND
UPHOLSTERY PRODUCTS FOR
‘CIRCULAR FASHION’
RECYCLED PRODUCTS BY SOPHISTICATED RECYCLING TECHNOLOGY FROM VALUABLE ‘CUTTING WASTE’ OF GARMENTS INDUSTRY.
OUR PRODUCT RANGE IS• DOOR MAT • TABLE MAT
• TERRY TOWEL
• CARPET
CORPORATE OFFICE Red Crescent Borak Tower, 37/3/A, Easkaton Garden, level -7(SE), 71-72, Old Elephant Road, Ramna, Dhaka 1000 Phone +880249350721, +88029330763, Fax : +88029332165, Email : info@filotex-bd.com web : www.filotex-bd.com
S u s t a i n a b l e Te c h n o l o g y - R e c y c l i n g
quality and they have installed the world’s best machinery for recycle yarn production. Production process flow chart of recycled yarn• Collecting the cutting wastage • Color-wise sorting • Beating • Mixing • Waste opener (Margasa Recycling) • Bale pressing • Mixing and Blending • Carding • Rotor spinning • Winding, Doubling, Coning • Sectional Warping • Warp and Crochet Knitting • Warp and Crochet Knitting • Jacquard In Filotex mainly knit fabric cutting wastages are recycled because when knit fabric are beaten then easily turn into fiber stage, the quality and strength are better than compared to other textile wastage. Sometimes polyester is blended with cotton if the buyer has requirements and often the ratio is 90% cotton and 10% polyester. But most of the time it is 100% cotton.
Figure 3: Lush and varied textures bring interest and visual movement to the home as subdued colors achieve a warm and understated elegance.
16,356 tons in 2017. It is expected that the amount of solid waste will be 43,000 tons in 2025. The wastage not only comes from garments producing stage but also arrives from after use of a product. So, this is now a global headache but some of the countries use 3R to manage this wastage. In fashion waste management system i.e. landfilling, incineration or other processes are costly and not eco-friendly. Also, there are many
products. Conclusion There is a huge demand for eco- friendly products in many developed countries. And what Filotex producing is absolutely eco-friendly. The recycled products price is a bit more than regular same type product where the quality is the same or better. There is a huge possibility of these recycled products both in the national and international market.
In the production process, every stage is controlled very carefully for ensuring the quality of the yarn. Filotex has 12 world class brand Rotor spinning m/c which capacity is 15 tons daily. They have installed Italian branded m/c e.g. Zerbo, Comet, Somet, Magetron, Comez etc. for producing qualitative final products mentioned before. Environmental footstep It is difficult to say the exact figure but assumed that China has about 26 million tons of textile wastage, where Japan has about 1 million ton, and the USA has about 1.2 million tonnes. Bangladesh also produces a considerably large amount of textile waste. In 2013, the knit fabric cutting wastage was 12,512 tons that reached
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Figure 4: Waste opener (Margasa Recycling) at FILOTEX Ltd.
limitations for many countries. So, it is better to recycle and reuse the wastage than burning or landfilling them. In this regard, Filotex is utilizing and saving the environment by recycling the garments cutting wastage and producing luxurious upholstery
The buyers and consumers should adopt the mindset of giving a better price to the suppliers as the textile supply-chain can ensure the concept of making sustainable products. So, Filotex could be an example for the Bangladesh textile industry regarding this situation.
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Reforming all standards into one will help everybody to become more efficient and more sustainable To reduce the complexity and cost of bluesign® and ZDHC should work jointly to agree on the same standards. Currently, the ZDHC gateway is not connected with the bluesign® system, on the other hand, the acceptance level of the ZDHC gateway is not unquestionable. In this regard, many people do not understand the necessity of this gateway. The gateway needs to be managed differently. Eric Hopmann, CEO, Head of Global Sales & Marketing, DyStar Group Bangladesh’s textile industry is a big market for dyes and chemicals as it consumes textile dyes and chemicals worth of about 800 million USD every year. And the consumption of dyes and chemicals is increasing day by day. The DyStar Group, a leading dyestuff and chemical manufacturer and solution provider, offering customers across the globe a broad portfolio of colorants, specialty chemicals, and services, is a major player in Bangladesh’s dyes and chemicals market. With a heritage of more than a century in product development and innovation for the textile
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industry, it has set the company up to consistently grow their business and also venture out into new markets and industries. Recently in an interview with Textile Today Eric Hopmann, CEO, Head of Global Sales & Marketing, DyStar Group shared their business portfolio, development and new approach for the customers and many other aspects. Textile Today: Can you explain DyStar groups’ latest business portfolio and what is the development and new approach for your customers? Eric Hopmann: First, let me state that I am very pleased with the
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developments in Bangladesh. Yesterday, I was reviewing the progress of the Bangladesh textile market and found that industries here have made a huge progress! DyStar is also very happy with the steps taken and to be a major player in Bangladesh with new opportunities coming up every day. Demand in Bangladesh is increasing but also the focus on sustainability is rising rapidly requiring new technologies and products to be introduced in the market place. Important as well for the industry is to follow closely the developments in China as China is changing and these changes will have a major long-term impact on the global Textile but also Chemical supply chain. At DyStar we are also moving and growing further globally, also in 2019. What are some of the new strategies and steps taken: First, DyStar acquired the American Emerald Specialities Business Group, involved in the manufacture and marketing of Consumer Products, Food chemicals and Food dyes as well as performance chemicals. We have been very busy integrating this company into DyStar and setting up the business on a global footprint as the former Emerald business was mainly focused on America. On the product development front, we have of course a lot to talk about. But overall our focus has been to develop new concepts to serve the industry better. For example, our Cadira® concept which we were presenting to the Industry in Bangladesh in our seminar. We have developed Cadira® concepts, for the cotton industry to save energy, water and other resources, but we also developed a concept for efficient dyeing and printing of polyester, for wool, and other fibres and dyes classes, overall 8 Cadira® concepts with the focus on saving energies and optimizing dyeing processes. In addition, for the denim sector we have the most sustainable denim package combining the
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Sustainability-Exclusive Interview
cleanest Indigo available in the market place together with our organic reducing agent Sera Con C-RDA. This helps the industry avoiding the usage of hydrosulphite in production of more sustainable denim fabrics. Another important news is that we have registered a new company named BluWin in Europe. This company will incorporate all services of DyStar like Texanlab, Sustainable Textile Solution (STS) and Colour Solutions International (CSI). With this new formation we want to emphasize the focus of our teams on servicing the textile industry better, help this business to become also more independent and develop business in new industry segments. You probably know as well that Texanlab Laboratories Private Limited is going to set up soon a new state-of-the-art laboratory here in Dhaka, because we believe that the testing services nowadays are key for making sure the exports of textiles also meet the requirements of retailers, especially of course eco requirements. Besides this we are also continuing to expand our production in India for our auxiliary business which will not only support the demand for more sophisticated products in India but in the whole subcontinent. This is in a nutshell what is new but of course we could spend a lot more time talking in detail about the features and performance of the many new products we have launched since our last meeting. Textile Today: Sustainability issues are raised a lot in brands, manufacturers and retailers. We also see that manufacturers’ profitability is a great issue. Their profitability went down and at the same time they need to continue investing in environmental and social aspects. So how DyStar solutions can help them for becoming more efficient and increase their profitability as if they can become more sustainable?
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Eric Hopmann: That is a very big and complicated question. So let’s try to look at the different aspects. I think DyStar has strong chemical and technical expertise to help the industry to be as efficient as possible and as mentioned earlier to reduce cost of dyeing by using energy and resource efficient chemistries etc.
Another important news is that we have registered a new company named BluWin in Europe. This company will incorporate all services of DyStar like Texanlab, Sustainable Textile Solution (STS) and Colour Solutions International (CSI). With this new formation we want to emphasize the focus of our teams on servicing the textile industry better, help this business to become also more independent and develop business in new industry segments.
In DyStar we have developed a unique program called econfidence® since many years. econfidence® is a program of DyStar with which we trace all raw materials we use in our production process. We therefore clearly know first how to meet the legal requirements of all countries (which are very different and not easy to comply with). We trace all the chemicals, especially the banned chemicals, to take them out from our supply chain right from the beginning. But with econfidence® we also go way beyond the legal steps to meet the requirements of the retailers. And that’s where it gets very complicated. Today every retailer has different standards, different RSL’s (Restricted Substance Lists). Therefore, we need to propose
products with different abilities to meet different sets of requirements. Let me give you an example: you have a retailer who wants to have Cradle to Cradle™ as accreditation for its textiles and garments. That means, if we want to do business with the supply chain of this retailer, that we need to register our products by Cradle to Cradle™. But other retailers may use different accreditation programs like GOTS or bluesign® or Oekotex® and this means we also must register our chemicals with these programs. This also means that textile mills need to use different kind of chemicals to produce textiles for these retailers and get their fabrics tested to comply with all different accreditation programs if they want to supply these retailers. In other words, this makes the whole supply chain extremely complicated and in particular costlier for all players, chemical suppliers, textile manufacturers but also retailers without any real benefits for the industry. DyStar together with some key players from the industry has started recently an initiative to engage with the retailing industry and more particular with ZDHC on how the chemical industry can help streamlining these standards and agree on one standard for the industry. That will help everybody to become more efficient, cut a lot of cost in the supply chain. This is not a single company’s efforts, this is an effort that needs to be taken by the whole industry. It will certainly take some time to achieve this goal, but we are confident that through open communication and exchange as well as some understanding among key players and perhaps some courage we will achieve our goal. Textile Today: That is very interesting issue what you are saying. A few days back we organized a seminar with ZDHC about the implementation of their project. ZDHC also give their roadmap and also introduced their gateway. But still the textile
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manufacturers are not finding the right chemicals on the gateway to comply with the various RSL’s from retailers. How do you see the situation? Eric Hopmann: We know how difficult this process is, believe me, DyStar is spending a lot of efforts, time resources and money ultimately to be able to offer a full range of products complying with these requirements, so we can meet all requirements of almost all retailers. The question is, does it make the end product, the garment better? Does it help to raise efficiency in production and reduce costs and ultimately does it give a more sustainable product to the end user. I have serious doubts on that point. But to meet the retailer’s individual requirements the textile producers in Bangladesh need to carefully select their dyes and chemicals, check carefully what products can meet which RSL and of course test the fabrics at the end of the process to make sure the expected quality and eco profiles are met. At DyStar we have launched eliot®, an internet program grouping all information on our products meeting various individual RSL from various retailers. This selection is very complex and believe that this free of charge tool is helping the industry in Bangladesh. The industry knows and is informed that products available on the gateway of ZDHC do not meet all requirements of the retailers they represent, and this is certainly one of the issues our Global Chemical Industry Group is trying to address openly with ZDHC (See Open Letter to Stitching ZDHC Foundation dated 07.05.2018). We as an industry are prepared to engage with ZDHC but certain issues need to be changed. In a first step we should perhaps define a pyramid principle with different levels of accreditation, Level 0,1,2,3 as example. Although one could ask if ‘Level zero’ i.e no legal compliance is acceptable to the industry, ‘Level one’ could be
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Figure 2: From left Jayant Khera, Vice President South Asia, Dystar India Private Ltd; Eric Hopmann, CEO, Head of Global Sales & Marketing, DyStar Group; Majaharul Islam Sumon, Manager (Bangladesh) DyStar Singapore Pte Ltd; Ridha Najar, Country Manager Bangladesh, DyStar Colours Distribution GmbH.
a starting point moving upwards step by step to meet the best available level according to us which as of today would be the bluesign® accreditation. One could also include at that level some of the products from the list of Inditex. And ultimately, we could try to work hand in hand to develop in future a level 4? There is no doubt for us that ZDHC is a good platform with many well-known retailers to work with, a good partner to discuss important topics like this. So, it is a complex issue and all the players of this industry need come to the table and define together what is best for the industry and find the right solution! DyStar will support to its best this initiative, but alone this will not work! This has to be a joint effort and I am convinced that other players from our Industry are also prepared to join and support the initiative. Again, if we ultimately all work on setting up one standard it will benefit all players without damaging the fashion industry but in contrary allow the supply chain to improve much faster its sustainability footprint!
Please give me one argument why this should not be feasible? Textile Today: And on top of that, the happenings in China is affecting supplies of dyestuff and other chemicals how these things are affecting the industry? Eric Hopmann: Okay, let’s talk about the Chinese textile industry and the chemical industry. The textile industry of China has grown exponentially when China joined WTO from 2002 to 2014 and if we see some statistics in 2016-2017 the world textile and garment exports reached close to 800 billion dollar and China represents approx. 45% of that. But in the last 2-3 years their textile export started to slow down, mainly because of two reasons: 1. T he costs in China have increased rapidly in the last couple of years and the garment industry has started to move towards cheaper regions, especially Vietnam and Bangladesh 2. T he government of China had to take serious measures to crack down on pollution The problem in China is the speed of implementation! Change have to come overnight, and this
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Sustainability-Exclusive Interview
creates a lot of problems. That’s why the textile industry is moving out of China but also the chemical industry and other industry for sure. Now let’s make no mistake. Big players in the textile and chemical field will stay, but they must be clean, profitable and be innovative if they want to stay! And therefore, I believe that small and medium companies will have no other choice but to shut down as the costs of becoming clean are too high as well as access to new technologies might not be possible. Because of the higher costs of manpower and complying with new stringent policies, big chunks of the industry have started to move. This will give a lot of opportunities to the industry in Bangladesh, for garment manufacturing as a starting point but also of course in dyeing and finishing. In fact, I am very impressed with some of the investments that have been done since my last visit! But to come back to what we call the ‘China impact,’ many chemical industries are being shut down as we speak, and I cannot tell you when this will end. Last week we have seen in the news that the Chinese authority announced, that they will shut down about 1000 chemical companies over next three years in Jiangsu province. 1000 of inspectors have been hired by the central government to implement the new laws, which are very stringent! Perhaps you may think you are safe if you are not manufacturing in China, but the problem is that a Chinese company that supplies raw material to your company may be shut down and your supply chain will be interrupted. This is one of the reasons for extremely volatile prices in our industry. But besides price increase we all must understand, textile manufacturers as well as retailers, that there will be major changes in the supply chain. There will be interruption, and there may be products which will need to be
Bangladesh Textile Today |
cancelled, chemistries stopped to be supplied in future. Of course, there are alternatives available and DyStar is working hard on making such recommendations and helping its customers to find alternatives, but the process itself cannot be stopped and avoided. It’s a very complex situation and its not to be a short-term situation, this must be clear. The current situation is not like the supply problems we have seen during the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008, this is severe and permanent, everybody has to realize this. Textile Today: So, what is the DyStar strategy in this aspect? Eric Hopmann: DyStar is very lucky to have shareholders who are backward integrated, especially in the case of Longshen, our major shareholder, they have already some years ago invested into state of-the-art waste water treatment facilities, into new technologies and have been a very stable supplier of raw materials and intermediates to DyStar. This is no doubt of great support for us. But we also have no other choice but to accept cost increases to make sure we can maintain our supply to our customers. There is no way to avoid this at present. And we do understand that some customers are not happy with price increases but at this stage most important is to be able to continue supplying our products. We are discussing this situation openly with our customers but also with retailers we are meeting regularly and in fact with the whole supply chain we are engaging with. Textile Today: Considering these global happenings is there any positive issue for Bangladesh? Also, what are you thinking from DyStar for the current situation of Bangladesh? Eric Hopmann: From our point of view, Bangladesh is progressing very rapidly because of its focus on the Textile business, the skilled and competitive labour force, the speed of service to retailers but also the investments into new
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and sophisticated technologies. I have seen some latest dyeing and finishing equipment being installed and even digital printing is growing! These are important factors for the exports of textiles which have in the meantime grown already over 30 billion dollars and I would not be surprised if Bangladesh will reach higher levels soon! The energy supply in Bangladesh needs to continue being worked on, though quite some improvements have taken place as I have been told, but I hope of course that the Bangladesh government will continue supporting the efforts from the Industry! Many Bangladeshi factories have in the meantime become more sustainable, no doubts about this and my true impression is that Bangladesh is getting more professional day by day. Yet there will be more opportunities for Bangladesh to grow up their industries because of its competitive situation and the expertise available. But let’s not forget that there are also a lot of competitors in India or Pakistan etc. which are also very capable in the production of textile fabrics, like in denim. Textile Today: So you already tell about the fabric demand of Bangladesh. So what do you think about establishing a factory of dyestuff and other chemicals in Bangladesh or close to Bangladesh? Eric Hopmann: First of all, to establish a factory in Bangladesh is not a simple process and an easy investment! We have already many factories in different countries from where we export our products globally. But we provide a good local technical support in Bangladesh and are working on increasing our service and technical expertise as I mentioned earlier. We do support our local management team, Ridha Najar and Majaharul Sumon, through our Regional team based in India and which is managed by Jayant Khera, our regional Vice
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Sustainability-Exclusive Interview
President. We also send when needed experts from our global team based in Germany, two of which are with us this week and coming very regularly to Bangladesh! We are trying to help our customers here to understand better the requirements of the global retailers and using the most advanced processes. Hence the investment in technologies in Bangladesh is very important for us. But overall, I do not wish the textile industry in Bangladesh to grow as big and as fast as the one in China did, because ultimately it was not sustainable. This country needs to make sure sustainable effluent and waste management is set up properly and whenever new factories come on stream. Otherwise the country may face one day a similar situation like China today. Textile Today: So you have many services like Texanlab, STS, CSI etc. So what are the packages of products you want to offer Bangladeshi industries? Eric Hopmann: Yes, there are many services we offer to our customers. First of all, in CSI we offer colour standards to our retailers. In this regard, we arrange many programs where we offer different colours to various important retailers, NIKE, Adidas but also Gap or Walmart to name a few. This is a service we offer to enhance the colour communication between retailers and mills, to help developing colours faster and better meeting best available technologies in terms of dyes and chemicals. Sustainable Textile Solution (STS), is a platform offering not only very special services in the auditing of textile mills but also many kinds of training to the whole industry, i.e. on sustainability issues or RSL’s or i.e. Higg Index etc… Here we try to help building up industrial awareness and understanding of the key issues of the industry throughout the industry. Texanlab is a testing laboratory for both chemicals and textiles with
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its headquarter in Mumbai. We are expanding this business in India with our laboratories in Mumbai, Tirupur and Delhi offering a wide range of testing services to the textile industry but also outside of the textile industry i.e. testing food chemicals, or wood etc. We definitely want to expand this business now in Bangladesh and at a later stage in Vietnam and Turkey. Again, this business needs to be developed step by step and proper guidance is also needed in this sector. Textile Today: I think the industries are facing lots of challenge and one of them is increasing of cost and this will give a huge impact on Bangladesh. But cost of chemicals and dyestuff are not big compared to the total costs of garments. Can you explain what are the cost drivers for chemicals and why you expect those to rise? Eric Hopmann: If you ask me the improvements in chemistry can be lead through many aspects like fastness, sustainability and performance, this does not necessarily lead ultimately to increasing costs, I mean total cost of processing. There are many different concepts that can be used in production. Sometimes you also have such type of products, which are more expensive because the overall manufacturing process in synthetizing a dyestuff takes longer. We do have some dyes in our product range that take over 6 months to be produced! But the most important when looking at costs is not the individual product costs, but the total process costs. This is the key nowadays with modern equipment! If you can reduce the production time by half, reduce water and energy, this will make your company more competitive and more profitable! A price per kg should not be the decision-making argument for selecting dyes and chemicals! Important to know is that in the chemical industry, if you produce and treat your waste properly this comes with costs. This may not
have been the case in the past years in some countries, like in China, leading some factories to be polluting air, soil and water. With the new policies being implemented now in China I have no doubt that this will stop in future and hence we expect costs for dyes and chemicals to increase. There is no way out even if this will take some time. I do have actually to spend quite some time to review and explain the situation and changes of the industry to customers but also retailers. Textile Today: So if companies like ZDHC, bluesign® etc.. cannot convince the brand to pay more for sustainable products and consumers are only prepared to pay a little bit more to get the best products, will sustainable products really make a great impact? Eric Hopmann: I think young people are more and more concerned about sustainability issues, using internet and social networks specially to voice their ideas. They are really concerned about environmental issues, how much waste we are creating, about the future of this planet. As such they will also have a big influence on this industry, through their behaviours, the way they purchase their garments, the type of garments they purchase, and how! These are some of the new challenges for our industry. But please allow me once again to mention: using clean chemistries do not need to be linked to higher costs! How to improve our industry, how to preserve better our environment and resources, these are the challenges of the whole textile industry. Solutions are available, initiatives started, we need now the courage and the willingness to be wanting to move together and to make this industry better and cleaner!
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S u s t a i n a b l e Te c h n o l o g y
German dominance in displaying ‘original’ and ‘efficient’ technology
Special Correspondent ITMA ASIA + CITME 2018, Asia’s foremost trade fair dedicated to textile machinery, is once again marked by a significant presence of German companies both in their number and in the quality of their technology. A press conference organized by VDMA, the association for German textile machinery manufacturers informed ITMA Asia this time is hosting more than 100 exhibitors from Germany, including more than 80 VDMA member companies. They cover nearly all different machinery chapters with a focus on spinning, nonwoven, weaving, knitting, warp knitting and finishing. The overall exhibition space occupied by German machinery manufacturers is more than 7,000 square meters, confirming Germany’s leading position among exhibiting foreign countries. The German exhibitors increased their booth space by approximately 15% compared to 2016.
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“Choose the original – Choose success” is the message of the VDMA Textile Machinery at this trade fair. On the occasion of the VDMA press conference on the opening day of ITMA ASIA, Ms. Karin Christine Schmidt, Technical
But only originals do not simply follow but are pacesetters of technological progress.” Original technology is a keystone of innovation. It has the potential to successfully turn visions of entirely new possibilities in the textile production into reality. During the press conference, 17 spokespersons of renowned VDMA member companies showed how their original and most energy efficient technology can indeed play a major role in China’s and other Asian nation’s efforts to increase the resource efficiency of the textile industry and to interconnect information technology and manufacturing processes.
Copycat machines may look similar to the systems they are designed to emulate. But only originals do not simply follow but are pacesetters of technological progress. Ms. Karin Christine Schmidt Technical Director VDMA Textile Machinery Director VDMA Textile Machinery, emphasized: “Copycat machines may look similar to the systems they are designed to emulate.
Topics of the companies included automation, performance improvement, quality, sustainable solutions (raw material, energy, water saving), Industry 4.0 (in China called intelligent manufacturing), digital AR/VR services, platforms, and software.
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Volume 11, Issue 10
Fabric to denim laundry
Unveiling industry best practices
Unveiling industry best practices
O c tob e r 2 01 8 A Textile Today Initiative l Published with Volume 11, Issue 10 l Pages 79 to 93
October 2018
G-star Raw to boost further sustainable denim sourcing from Bangladesh
Bangladesh Denim Expo to explain production simplicity
Fabric to denim laundry
Balancing between sustainability and fashion is the crying need for the denim sector
Denim Market
Bangladesh’s denim exports to EU: Opportunity and challenges Bangladesh has enormous opportunity to grow its denim exports to EU. To tap the opportunity, Bangladesh should focus on research and innovation. Staff Correspondent Bangladeshi denim products are increasingly becoming more popular to European consumers as the export earnings continue to rise and stood at €917.14 million in eight months of the current year. According to Eurostat, statistics directorate of the European Commission, latest data, in January to August period of 2018, Bangladesh earned €917.14 million exporting denim goods to the European Union Countries, which is 4.23% higher compared to €879.84 million in the same period a year ago. Bangladesh, the largest exporters of denim products to EU, in 2017 exported denim products worth of €1.30 billion – a 0.54% hike from 2016’s €1.29 billion. The reason behind exports rising Talking to Textile Today, sector people opined that China shifting created a great opportunity for Bangladesh as the world largest exporter of clothing products is moving towards the hi-tech industry. It is leaving the manufacturing of clothing products due to environmental hazards. In addition, Bangladesh has increased the capacity of fabrics production in the last couple of years, which also helped to attract more orders from global retailers of denim goods. On safety improvement in Bangladesh apparel sector is another reason for raising work orders from the EU buyers. “As we all know, due to rise in carbon emission and rise in workers wage, China is leaving
Bangladesh Textile Today |
the production of apparel products and moving toward hitech industry. As a result, global buyers are increasingly moving to Bangladesh for denim products,” Anwar-Ul Alam Chowdhury, Managing Director of Argon Denims explained the Textile Today. On the other hand, Bangladesh is now recognized as the safest workplace in the globe as the Accord on Fire and Building Safety and Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety have certified the apparel makers as safer, said Anwar, also a Former President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). These boosted the investors’ confidence on Bangladesh to source goods from Bangladesh, he added. “Bangladesh has two opportunities one is a reasonable price and another is the capacity to execute a large volume of work orders. This is why; Bangladesh is attractive for sourcing to global buyers,” Former Advisor to caretaker government AB Mirza Azizul Islam said the Textile Today.
Figure: Bangladeshi denim products are increasingly becoming more popular to European consumers.
In remaining competitive in the European Union countries, the manufacturers have to move for more value-added products so that it can meet the demands of buyers. To this end, manufacturers have to make an investment on research and development to innovate new designs and products, he added. “Bangladesh has enormous opportunity to grow as it has come up with new technology and investment to improve capacity, and of course quality,” Denim Expert Ltd Managing Director, Mostafiz Uddin said the Textile Today.
There is also the challenge of port congestion, which causes lengthy lead time, a big concern for the manufactures as well as the global retailers, said Mirza Azizul Islam.
In tapping the opportunity, Bangladesh should focus on research and innovation as the future of denim lies in innovation, added Mostafiz, also Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Denim Expo, an international platform to promote Bangladeshi denim sector to the global buyers.
The economist urged the Bangladesh government to take effective measures to improve port capacity to ensure smother shipment of finished goods and timely delivery of imported raw materials.
In every year, we are organizing the Bangladesh Denim Expo twice to make the manufacturers familiar with the latest technology and innovation. The ninth edition of the exposition will be held on November 7 and 8 in Dhaka, he added.
Remaining challenges and way outs
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Denim Insight
‘Balancing between sustainability and fashion is the crying need for the denim sector…’ Jamal Abdun Naser, Director, Shasha Denims Limited
Shasha Denims Limited (SDL) has started their glorious journey after the establishment in 1998 and now it is one of the finest and greenest denim fabric producers in Bangladesh. Over the years, the company has been researching sustainable technology which enables the company to produce top quality denim products. They are deemed as a top exporter from Bangladesh to the EU and Australian markets. Lately, Textile Today FT Research team met Jamal Abdun Naser, Director of Shasha Denims Limited. Through the conversation, many unknown stories came out.
with fibers rather it is a mechanical trapping in the fiber. As a result, we need a lot of water in the indigo dyeing process and this cannot be a sustainable process. Keeping this context in our head, we have developed a new process of Indigo which consumes 60-80% less water and 40-60% fewer chemicals compare to any conventional Indigo process.
Textile Today: Shasha Denims Ltd. started its operation in 2000 with the latest sustainable technology and vision, please share us the sustainability story of Shasha.
So here we make a perfect bridge of fashion DNA and sustainability together. Figure: Jamal Abdun Naser, Director of Shasha Denims Limited. And we named it ‘Balance’. We have been working for this ‘balance’ restlessly since long.
Jamal Abdun Naser: 18 years back nobody bothers about sustainability but Shasha was born with the concept of sustainability having the most modern technology of that time. If you see the last span of time, the word ‘sustainability’ has come repeatedly in the denim sector. The question may arise ‘why’. My answer is, denim is a product where indigo and sulfur dyestuff is used to dye the warp yarn. Indigo is the single color in the world which has been ruling in the clothing world since the last 6000 years. But like a coin, Indigo has also its two faces. One face is fashion DNA of Indigo and another is its huge water consumption character. Unlike reactive dyestuff, Indigo cannot create bonds
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But like a coin, Indigo has also its two faces. One face is fashion DNA of Indigo and another is its huge water consumption character. Unlike reactive dye-stuff, Indigo cannot create bonds with fibers rather it is a mechanical trapping in the fiber. As a result, we need a lot of water in the indigo dyeing process and this cannot be a sustainable process. Keeping this context in our head, we have developed a new process of Indigo which consumes 60-80% less water and 40-60% fewer chemicals compare to any conventional Indigo process.
Textile Today: How Shasha Denims Limited promoting and working for sustainability? Jamal Abdun Naser: Denim is a product which deserves fashion along with sustainability. Definitely, you won’t buy a product if it has no fashionable look whether it is sustainable or not. That’s why we are balancing this gap as I have already mentioned our process. Apart from the process, our entire raw material also contains sustainability. So in this regard whatever we are producing, we give importance in two affairs about that product. First of all, it should be sustainable and secondly, the product needs to be fashionable.
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Denim Insight
The true story of fashion needs to come out by which consumer purchases the product and the story of sustainability needs to be revealed behind the story of the product. This is the story of how Shasha is working for sustainability. We are confident that we are the greenest denim producer in this industry. Textile Today: Shasha’s marketing activities gives it extra strength in the market. How actually are you doing your marketing activities that are making your business more sustainable? Jamal Abdun Naser: Actually we do our homework first and then go to market. We always try to bring variation to our product by adding value and that gives us the privilege in the market.
The true story of fashion needs to come out by which consumer purchases the product and the story of sustainability needs to be revealed behind the story of the product. This is the story of how Shasha is working for sustainability. We are confident that we are the greenest denim producer in this industry.
Our present production capacity is 29 million yards per year. The customers with whom we are working with most of them are world’s renowned. In many cases, Shasha is the only nominated supplier for them in Bangladesh. Every month or every alternate month we come up with sorts of new concepts and go to the buyers. Recently we developed a fabric with a new concept in which sulfur does not contain any kind of hydrogen sulfide. As a result, there is no more bad smell and there is no hazardous material for end users and the environment. So, we named this as “Eco-black”. So we are developing many more things under the umbrella of sustainability and taking these to market. Textile Today: About 30 factories are there in the market producing denim products, what is your suggestion for the newcomers? Jamal Abdun Naser: It is true that many new entrepreneurs are interested in this denim sector. There is some rumor that China won’t continue its production in the future. This is really good for us but we have to take the opportunity. You can’t survive this industry by producing so-called products. So, we need to be innovative and need to develop our products quality as well. This is how we could be in a stronger position globally together.
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Denim Event
Bangladesh Denim Expo to explain production simplicity Bangladesh Denim Expo, an international exposition dedicated to promote Bangladesh’s denim and showcase Bangladesh’s strength and capacity in denim manufacturing.
Staff Correspondent The ninth edition of Bangladesh Denim Expo is going to be started on November 8 with a theme of “Simplicity” to showcase the innovation and technology used in denim sector and latest fashion trend in a very simple way. The two-day mega exposition will be held at the International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB) in between November 8 and 9, Dhaka to display the latest trend of denim products to the global brands and retailers as well as Bangladeshi manufacturers.
Figure: The ninth edition of Bangladesh Denim Expo is going to be started on November 8 with a theme of “Simplicity” to showcase the innovation and technology used in the denim sector. Courtesy: Bangladesh Denim Expo official Facebook page
A total of 62 exhibitors from all over the world are participating in the Expo, which is expected to attract the highest number of international visitors in an apparel event in Bangladesh. The theme of this edition ‘Simplicity’ is aimed at defining a much simpler, much easier definition to understand sustainability and ecology in denim. The expo will also focus on how to make things simpler to understand the demand of buyers, how to prepare for and negotiate them, and how the denim sector of Bangladesh can profit from more simplicity. The Founder and CEO of Bangladesh Denim Expo Mostafiz Uddin said, “The underlying concept of the Bangladesh Denim
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Expo is to fulfill the needs of the international denim community, offering the opportunity to make new contacts with potential buyers, discovering new products and to gain a comprehensive overview of the latest developments available from the Bangladesh denim industry.” “In the world market of denim, simplicity is now the ultimate sophistication. So, in this edition, the Bangladesh Denim Expo will try to give a much simpler message about sustainability and ecology in denim”, he added. In making the edition livelier, there will be three panel discussions on Simplicity from Designers to Consumers - the collaboration,
Simplicity & Standardization in the apparel industry, and Simplicity in Production - Innovation, Technology and Optimized Handling of Resources. In each session, denim experts from home and abroad will speak about the latest development, innovation, and technology already introduced in the denim sector to improve products quality. In addition, in the Trend Zone of the 9th edition of Bangladesh Denim Expo, the latest trend and design of denim fashion will be displayed to give a chance to the visitors to touch of experiencing the newness of innovation.
Bangladesh Textile Today |
Volume 11, Issue 10
Bangladesh Ethiopia India Jordan Myanmar Srilanka Turkey Vietnam
ECOCHEM BANGLADESH (PVT) LTD.
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D e n i m Tr e n d
Bangladesh denim exports to US jump 11.72% in Jan-Aug Bangladesh’s denim products export to United State market, the single largest export destination, has seen an 11.72% rise to $358.73 million in July-August period of the current year. Staff Correspondent According to the Office of Textiles and Apparel (Otexa) of the US, in January-August period of the year 2018, Bangladesh fetched $358.73 million, up by 11.72%, which was $321.11 million in the same period last year. In the year 2017, Bangladesh earned $507.92 million, which was 9.55% up compared to $463.61 million in 2016, according to data from the Office of Textiles and Apparel (Otexa) in the US. Apparel sector people and trade analysts have attributed the quality of Bangladesh denim products and competitive prices of goods for the
manufacturers have moved to introduce the latest technology for quality improvement, he added.
July-August 2018-19
July-August 2017-18
Rise (%)
$358.73 million
$321.11 million
11.72
rise on export earnings. “In the US markets, Bangladeshi denim products are doing better for its quality and competitive prices. In recent time, production cost in China and other country have gone up due to the wage hike. As a result, US manufacturers are moving to Bangladesh for sourcing denim products,” Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) Senior Vice President Faruque Hassan said the Textile Today. On the other hand, Bangladesh has increased its production capacity both in fabrics manufacturing as well as in jeans manufacturing, said Hassan also Managing Director of Giant Group. On top of that, Bangladeshi
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“In the coming years, Bangladesh will become the leader in the denim markets as the country has safe and compliance factories. The retailer’s platforms have accredited the industry and they are putting more orders,” Exporters Association of Bangladesh (EAB) President Abdus Salam Murshedy said the Textile Today. While Bangladesh’s denim fabrics mills played the key role in increasing the global market share, said Salam Murshedy, a Former President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). Salam also the Managing Director of Envoy Textiles, a LEED Platinum certified green factory in the world, has given the credit to government efforts to increase the
production capacity by offering proper policy support. “Considering the global present business status, Bangladesh is doing better compared to other competitor countries. This is because of our price competitiveness,” Former Finance Advisor to caretaker government AB Mirza Azizul Islam said the Textile Today. But in remaining competitive in the global market Bangladesh has to move for products and market diversification. While it has to concentrate on producing valueadded products, said Islam. In addition, Bangladesh needs to focus on infrastructural development to reduce lead time and on time shipment of finished goods, said the economist. Bangladesh currently exports Blue Denim Trousers WG, Blue Denim Trousers MB, blue denim skirts, blue denim jackets, blue denim suit type coats MB, playsuits, and sunsuits and so on to the international market.
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Volume 11, Issue 10
G-star Raw to boost further sustainable denim sourcing from Bangladesh Shafiur Rahman, Regional Operations Manager, G-Star Raw With the philosophy- ‘Just the Product’- G-Star Raw started their glorious journey from 1989. They are continuously doing innovation and product development to challenge the ordinary denim designs and producing high-end denim products both for male and female. G-Star Raw started the business here in Bangladesh since 2005. Recently a Textile Today team has met Shafiur Rahman, Regional Operations Manager of G-Star Raw and discussed their business position in Bangladesh, possibilities and many other burning issues of the industry.
Bangladesh Textile Today |
Here is some of the conversation revealed for the Textile Today readers. Textile Today: G-Star Raw is one of the renowned denim producing brands in the world. Please share us the story of when G-Star Raw started the business in Bangladesh and what kind of products G-Star Raw is sourcing from Bangladesh? Shafiur Rahman: G-Star Raw is a private own company founded in 1989 in the Netherlands. In Bangladesh, G-Star Raw came in 2005 and started its business. From the very beginning, we are
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directly sourcing from vendors. We struggled much and it was not that easy to work directly with the factories because we were not familiar here to the local factories. But from the end of 2005, we started our journey in Bangladesh with a renowned group of companies namely Viyellatex Group. We believe in innovation and quality more than volume. Our first order was the t-shirt of 12 different styles and gradually we started to source polo shirt, sweater, shirt etc. From 2008, we started denim sourcing from Bangladesh though
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D e n i m Ta l k
it was not easy for us because we had to maintain some standards. Now our business size in Bangladesh is around 50 million dollars annually. Textile Today: As a prominent brand, how are G-Star Raw maintaining sustainability in Bangladesh textile sector? Shafiur Rahman: We are always aware of sustainability that is why we do lots of R&D to innovate sustainable production process, products and we are trying to use 100% sustainable materials. G-Star Raw has a goal to use 100% sustainable materials by 2020, but still, it is a big challenge for us and we are working on it. When it is denim, G-Star Raw is the most sustainable denim innovator in the world and it is around 98% sustainable. We use all sustainable dyes and chemicals and recently we are trying to use organic cotton sewing thread. The fair wage is another big part of sustainability. We provide training to our vendors and responsible parties. By sharing knowledge, sustainability could be spread among the peoples and we believe that. Textile Today: Bangladeshi manufacturers are more focused on production, do you think that branding is needed in manufacturers end? If yes, what should be the strategy? Shafiur Rahman: Thanks for such a realistic question. I think first of all manufacturers should give a holistic thinking about their own self and set the target market for whom they want to produce. If one is not ready to produce for a brand, then they should build themselves, I mean gradually they should grow. Also, there is price pressure already, workers wage, management cost and other costs are also increasing day by day. So, it is high time for the manufacturers to go for branding to grab more high-end brands and retailers. At the same time, it
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would also help them to get more visibility from the brands which will be a sustainable business model. Textile Today: As you know, that lack of skilled manpower is an unavoidable acute problem for the Bangladesh textile industry, how the industry can overcome this problem?
billions of dollar taken by foreign expertise. So, top management of an industry should lead and arrange training to mitigate this situation. I feel our universities curriculum should also be updated since there is a huge gap between universities and the industry. So, a bridge is needed between the industry and education. At the same time, I think it is not essential to hire lots of trainer from outside. Every factory has their own trainers. If they are enough proactive, they can be able to train their own peoples.
We are always aware of sustainability that is why we do lots of R&D to innovate sustainable production process, products and we are trying to use 100% sustainable materials. G-Star Raw has a goal to use 100% sustainable materials by 2020, but still, it is a big challenge for us and we are working on it.
Textile Today: Recently RMG worker’s minimum wage has been set to 8,000 BDT. How do the brands and buyers see the whole scenario? Shafiur Rahman: Workers are the heart of the RMG industry, they should be treated well. As a brand, we are ready for the new wage board even if it is more, we are ready to pay.
When it is denim, G-Star Raw is the most sustainable denim innovator in the world and it is around 98% sustainable. We use all sustainable dyes and chemicals and recently we are trying to use organic cotton sewing thread.
Actually, everybody involved should have taken the responsibility. Brands, manufacturers, and workers as well, should facilitate each other for a sustainable business model.
Shafiur Rahman: Once the industry was more production oriented where there was available low-cost manpower, but now it is more professional, challenging and much more organized. Skilled manpower is now a situation demand and manufacturers cannot survive without a skilled workforce as they have to continuously adopt new technology, process, and many other things. In the industry, mid-level management pro-activeness is another big challenge. Every year
There should be a winwin situation both for the manufacturers and workers. Also, brands and buyers have to accept this wage board positively. Most importantly, it has to be confirmed that by this wage board workers living standard is really getting up to the mark. Textile Today: What is the business plan of G-Star Raw in Bangladesh? Shafiur Rahman: Basically, we have our own sourcing strategy. In the last 10 years, there were lots of ups and downs in our country. By the end of this year, there is the national election. We don’t know what will happen in the next three months. We as a brand, should not put everything in the same basket. We are already in 30% mark. Although we are trying to increase our denim business in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh Textile Today |
Volume 11, Issue 10
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Natural Indigo
AMA Herbal brought sustainable Bio Indigo® dye with ‘Life Cycle Analysis’ for the denim manufacturers India’s AMA Herbal Laboratories Private Ltd has brought Bio Indigo® dye with ‘Life Cycle Analysis’ that will provide a sustainable solution of having lesser environmental impacts to the denim brands and manufacturers. Desk Report AMA Herbal Laboratories Pvt. Ltd. of India has made a breakthrough in the dyeing sector by presenting Bio Indigo® dye with ‘Life Cycle Analysis’ (LCA) for the first time. LCA is a scientific and analytic approach in calculating benefits that brands can get on a sustainable balance sheet by just switching to Bio Indigo® in denim production. Recently the textile world is extensively working to become 100% sustainable. Brands, as well as manufacturers, are also thinking how to be more sustainable in terms of raw materials, processes and whole supply chain. However, natural dyes is kind of unexplored area in sustainable approach due to unavailability of data for calculation of sustainable benefits. The innovation of AMA Herbal Laboratories Pvt. Ltd. has opened a new door for denim manufacturers to become sustainable. Bio Indigo® dye is obtained from leaves of plant Indigofera tinctoria, commonly known as indigo, which also exhibits medicinal properties. This dye comes in powder form and is certified on ‘GOTS Version-V’, also has ZDHC, ‘REACH’ to its credit. Its Fastness
Figure: Bio Indigo® dye from plant Indigofera tinctoria.
properties, the process of dyeing and method of use remains same or at par with synthetic indigo. Many big denim mills from Turkey, India, Pakistan, China, Italy, and Japan are already using Bio Indigo® on their rope dyeing machines. Bangladesh Denim manufacturers also showing a good response to this concept. Designers also love Bio Indigo® for its greener cast and the kind of cut effect that it gives. Denim and Indigo blue goes hand in hand. Initially, denim was
Comparison of LCIA inpacts for 1 kg of dyed cotton yarn Synthetic Indigo dye Bio Indigo® dye < 16% >
Acidification Potential (AP) [kg SO2 eq.]
< 2% >
Eutrophication Potential (EP) [kg Phospohateeq.]
< 9% >
Glpbal Warming Potential (HWP 100 years) [kg CO2 eq.] <20% >
Photochem. Ozone Creation Potential (POCP) [kg Ethene eq.]
< 8% >
Primary energy demand Potential (net cal. value) [MJ] < 23% >
Ecotoxicity [CTUe]
< 14% >
Human toxicity, non-canc. [CTUh]
< -0.4% >
Blue water consumption (AP) [kg] 0%
90
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
made from Natural Indigo only, but now Indigo is also produced synthetically. Synthetic indigo (Indigotin, CAS no. 482-89-3) is produced through a chemical process and makes up for the majority of commercially produced indigo dye in the denim industry. Bio Indigo® dye being a sustainable product as well as compare with ‘Synthetic Indigo Dye’, AMA Herbal Laboratories have evaluated its environmental impacts using ‘Life Cycle Assessment’ approach as per ISO 14040/44 standard. The study helps to evaluate the various environmental impacts of the Bio Indigo® dye and how it stands compared with the ‘Synthetic Indigo Dye’. The study shows that dyeing with Bio Indigo® dye has 16% lesser acidification potential when the global warming potential is 9% lower, the primary energy demand was also 8% lower whereas the fresh water demand was
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Volume 11, Issue 10
Natural Indigo
0.4 % higher. The difference in the positive impacts was in the range of 0.4%-23% for various environmental factors defining sustainability of denim. Additionally, the study shows the comparison of environmental impacts for the production of 1 kg of both the dyes. Except for fresh water consumption, all the other environmental impacts are 10-100% lesser in case of Bio Indigo® Dye. The key findings of this study are summarized as follows: • The impact contribution of dye production in both cases of dyed cotton yarn production is not more than 8-9% across various impact categories. The major impact contribution comes from the cotton yarn and energy consumption in rope dying process. Use of Bio Indigo® dye leads to impact reduction, from the credits, it generates as a raw material as well as utilization of
dye wastewater in agriculture as a source of nitrogen. • The impacts from dyes are highly dependent on the quantity of the dye required. Better utilization of Bio Indigo® dye will lead to further impacts reduction. • This study provides Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) and Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) as regional averages (India) across the industry for dye manufacturing. • Decisions, as well as the choice of modeling approaches and assumptions, can influence the results of LCA. • Bio-diversity is not assessed in this study due to its limitations in the LCA methodology. • The decision should not be taken on toxicity parameters due to their high level of uncertainty. But when compared with Synthetic Indigo Dye, Bio Indigo® dye has lesser impacts for sure.
Bio Indigo® dye can provide a sustainable solution of having lesser environmental impacts to the denim brands and manufacturers. In general, natural dyes have certain advantages over synthetic dyes. Natural dyes are non-toxic, non-allergic and have reduced negative environmental impacts than synthetic dyes. AMA Herbal Laboratories will explore this area as the next step in their LCA journey. To become sustainable, fashion industry needs sustainable materials and Bio Indigo® dye thus promise in this endeavor.
Thai firm to develop textiles from plastic waste Desk Report A Thailand-based investment group Saha Pathana InterHolding Plc (SPI) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with PTT Global Chemical PLC (GC) for the development of textile products using plastic waste, a press release said. GC is to provide the technological know-how for transforming plastic waste into textile products. The company will focus on developing products that are less environmentally damaging while tackling the problem of plastic waste in the country, said the press release from GC. The move was prompted by the rise in demand from consumers for sustainability and environmental protection. Vichai Kulsomphob, SPI President and Executive Director, said that, “SPI recognizes the importance of investment in the textile industry,
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Figure: Saha Pathana Inter-Holding Plc (SPI) and PTT Global Chemical PLC (GC) signed MoU aiming to bring Thai textile products up to international standards. Credit: www.pttgcgroup.com
and realizes that textile products created from plastic waste are an interesting business, as the global shift of sustainability and environmental protection continue to rise among the consumers.” Vichai further added that, “In this partnership, GC will bring expertise in the petrochemical business and manufacturing of plastic resin
by incorporating innovative and groundbreaking technology.” The combined strengths of the two organizations will ensure the promise of long-term business and simultaneously maximize the potential for Thai businesses, while also corresponding with the growing trend of green business across the world, said the release.
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Volume 11, Issue 10
Denim Profile
The sustainability story of Prosperity Textile FT Research Team As a large-scale denim fabric manufacturer with 80 million yards capacity, Prosperity Textile is a dedicated to push for sustainable development in denim since founded in 1999, focusing on the eco material, green energy, and clean production. In 2017, 20% of their product sales were from sustainable collections. They have developed a wide range of ecofriendly products, from sustainable cotton to TENCEL™ Lyocell and from recycled polyester to water/ chemical-less dyeing, RE+INVENT denim collection. Prosperity Textile is adding recycled cotton as one of the latest highlights to promote the circular economic idea, which is also certified with Recycled Content Standard. On top of that, Prosperity Textile managed to keep the original blue color of the recycled stuff, then they weave this yarn in the weft which exhibits super-nice blue faded cast too. Which is truly vintage and easy-toidentify the recycled concept. And for the dyes, here comes the CARMINE BLUE, which is their signature free-of-hydrosulfite dyeing technology with prereduce liquid indigo.
total denim production output at Prosperity Textile in 2017 was increased by 20% to 2016, we have successfully managed to reduce the GHG emission per meter Figure 2: R95002, the second generation of the Itema by 5.4%, water and denim-dedicated rapier weaving machine. electricity consumption was also down by 11.5% and 7.9% respectively per meter.
In July 2016, Prosperity Textile successfully connected a 218 KW solar system on the rooftop of their warehouse to the grid, in 25 years, the average annual electricity generation is 190,000 kWh, reducing CO2 emissions of 198 tons a year. They are also expecting to install another 2 MW solar projects in coming years, to cover more energy use with clean energy. Prosperity Textile is also acting as a pioneer and choosing the first sustainable innovation in the weaving industry, the brand-new iSAVER™ equipped on R95002 denim by Itema, for its newlyopened Vietnam denim mill. This new technology is able to eliminate completely the left-hand weft waste, allowing to insert the weft yarns in the fabric without the need of additional yarns. iSAVER™ significantly reduces raw material waste, leading to tangible benefits in terms of machine’s efficiency, cost reduction, and energy saving, for the first time in the weaving industry, a sustainable approach when choosing the weaving equipment is now possible, 1000 Kg of cotton per machine per year means 3% of the total raw materials will be saved.
Figure 1: Prosperity Textile successfully installed 218 KW capacity solar system on the rooftop of their warehouse.
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As a result, while the
Prosperity Textile is a bluesign® system partner and committed to sustainable development. They
Figure 3: Andy Zhong, Marketing Director of Prosperity Textile (HK) Ltd.
are closely working with many third-party certification institutions to make sure the claims of production and products are true and accurate. They have been awarded the certifications of ISO 9001, 14001, Oeko-Tex® 100, OCS, RCS, Textile Security Label, etc. and are also the members of LYCRA EXCHANGE, BCI, COTTON LEADS and SAC. In April 2015, Prosperity received the awards of Top 5 in energy reduction of CLEAN by Design 2014 from Natural Resources Defence Council and World Bank. And in 2016, Prosperity Textile became the first Chinese denim mill joining the bluesign® system.
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