[ Innovation in Manufacturing.]

  courtesy :segeti.se

BY RAJENDRA D.ALPHLE LEAN CONSULTANT  &  TRAINER

Innovation is being talked about for a long time in management literature, conferences and at various forums. This article attempts to discuss the concept of innovation in the context of manufacturing, and the concept of disruptive innovation; with a view to helping the readers implement practically structured innovation in their organizations.

The word innovation is widely used to mean starting from something existing and improving it to make it of better quality, lower cost. easier to make or maintain; or a combination of them. This can be an idea, a product, or a combination of them. This can be an idea, a product, or a process. Innovation may follow a systematic process or at times can come as an idea as a spark. An organization cannot rely on sparks to fly from time to time. It is, therefore, necessary to follow a systematic process and develop a structured approach, with serious commitment from the top management. sparks

Disruptive innovation(Clayton Christensen, HBR 1995), is an innovation that creates a new market or a value proposition and eventually disrupts existing products and services that is satisfying the needs of the market. The innovation of automotive, for instance, was a revolution, but when they were introduced in the late 19th century, they did not disrupt, as they were very expensive, and did not replace the horse carts quickly. When Ford introduced mass manufacturing through its manufacturing innovation, it caused a major disruption. Disruptive innovations, therefore, are, tend to hit the base of the market pyramid and provide a dramatically low-cost solution. Disruptive innovations, therefore, are characterized by low cost and high penetration, low margins as they target the base of the pyramid, and difficult to predict.

The advent of factory system about 200 years ago in England itself can be said to be a disruptive innovation, as it created an ecosystem and reached the masses to provide affordable products at large volumes, out of the home-based industry. The textile industry, therefore, can be said to be a pioneer in disruptive innovation. Other examples of disruptive innovation include steel mill, integrated circuits, computers, smartphones, the internet and so on.

It is, therefore, obvious that disruptive innovations may not be a day to day affair. Business while trying to look for disruptions, need to look at continuous innovation, which may not be revolutionary, or disruptive. Therefore, the objective is to look for a competitive edge by way of better products, which have better value for money and better customer service.

Many manufacturing innovation efforts focus on technology in some way or another. The technology involved may be the manufacturing technology used by the business or information technology. Getting advanced technology, automation (the most common understanding of the word innovation), cycle time reduction are some of the common interpretations of the term and most innovation efforts in manufacturing are directed towards achieving these objectives.

Many innovation efforts, on the other hand, concentrate on developing new products or services, the need for which may be triggered by competitions or customers. Product innovation has its challenges. They often require investments, which may be visible cost. New products involve a risk in terms of performance of the product, accepted by the customers, manufacturing risk, and the warranty associated with the product. Also, there is a strong possibility, particularly in B2B space of someone learning from the innovation and then improvising on it, leaving the competitive advantage in a shorter time window.

Process related innovations, on the other hand, are perhaps more sustainable, as processes are not easy to learn.

More often than not, however, such product or process innovation efforts involve significant investment not only in equipment like machinery and tooling but also in retraining the employees to work with the changes. People's aspects often are ignored and are difficult to achieve even if efforts are taken in this direction too. We also find that often, reduction in operation cycle time (e.g. time taken to reduce the VC time taken to machine one part) does not increase throughput in the system.

This is to say that the overall output, dispatches, or sales hardly improves, and reduction in cycle time or similar efforts, which should "logically" improve output. It is also noted that such efforts often require significant knowledge of technology, hence is difficult to be carried out by people who are not export in such technology.

For a business of any size, process innovation can be a key to make rapid progress. Such process innovation can be low cost, implemented quickly and sustainable. Such innovation will need work practices to change that can be achieved by using methods by deploying lean methods, that involve a structured approach to involve people, train them suitably to solve day to day and long term problems and create a culture of innovation.

Innovation is a complex process. A business may follow the following process to be successful at innovation.

1. Develop a strategy for innovation with an assessment of the capability of the business to innovate - successful innovation will need the presence of competent people, in addition to the availability of reasonable resources. Most importantly, the top management must have an open and supportive approach to experimentation. The perspective must be to encourage exploration with the cognizance of the fact that some innovation may fail.At the same time, the innovation must have reasonable goals and various people may need to be aware of the responsibility.

2. Identify / define business problems - while innovation can be done in multiple areas, one may prioritize them based on urgent business needs and where quick success with innovation can be obtained.

3. Analysis of current state - Business must start with defining and redefining customer needs,any gaps in the needs and their current offering, current trends in our industry and related industry.

4. Develop an ideal portfolio - based on the business requirements and capabilities. various ideas may be generated.These ideas should be subsequently evaluated based on business needs, probability of success, resource requirements, and investment required.

5. Pilot and testing - these ideas should be tested on a small scale to prove their viability. Often one may not realize the downside of many suggestions. The pilot testing needs to be through and and one comes across many innovations that were deployed when the cost and reduction seemed attractive while ignoring some important and damaging side effects.

6. Commercializing the innovation - this step involves implementing the innovation in the area it was developed for and also deploy horizontally wherever possible.

7. Involve people and make it a part of the culture - the best results are obtained when all people are involved Innovation is not the responsibility of one person or one department, as innovation can and should come from anyone. People need to be trained in the right tools and the right direction and motivation need to be provided. Such efforts create a culture that becomes difficult to imitate. This, however, is not easy to achieve,though the results are worth the efforts. If the organization is large enough, appointing a Chief Innovation Officer to run these initiatives can be thought of.

8. Management reporting, review, and celebration - Periodic reporting to management is important. Through reviews, we get a lot of ideas of improvising. If the business is multi - divisional or multi location, we must create opportunities to share best practices and innovations implemented. The management may encourage them by awards, certificates, and celebration.Innovation is a tough task and motivations must be kept high at all times.

Innovations is a tool that can help even a small or a medium size companies without having the same amount of resources. This can be achieved by approaching the markets not served by large companies. Smaller companies can accelerate the speed of innovation by cutting bureaucracy and make quicker decisions. To get the best results, the business should create a conscious and structured approach to innovation, which gives one an imperative to survive.

Republished from an article from the magazine ITAMMA VOICE December - 2019 ( Permission given by Director General ( Technical), ITAMMA, www.itamma.org Mumbai - 1.

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Blogger's experience:

1. Innovation in a Textile Mill is more complex than any other type of manufacturing, how do you innovate, how to change the looks that a customer eyes sees at the  fabric that he looks when he sees the fabric you have made which is kept in the local textile shop.

2. Textile mills make fabrics in every color that you can think of but still, when you go to buy a fabric you may not get the exact color you wanted. So, you go to another big shop. What innovation is possible here?.

3. When a customer looks at several varieties of fabrics which are on the table, what does he do?. He takes his hand places his 4 fingers below the fabric and his thumb over the fabric and gently rubs the fingers. What happens?. What innovation can we think off?.

4. Now let's go inside a textile mill. What innovation can we think of in a textile mill running 24 * 7 producing fiber to fashion fabrics and apparels. It's mind blogging to think of innovation for every person working in the mills including the top management.

5. What is the worry of the top management on Innovation?.

As General Manager of the mills accountable for running the mills on net profit my mind was roaming from raw materials to processing of the yarn and from yarn to fabric and fabric to finishing and packing and logistics and finally to customer' demands on quality of similar product,quality complaints from customer, Quality Control in material process, Civil Engineering, Electronics / Automation.Further to maintain standards in mill operations to labor management.Labor Laws, Legal knowledge in disputes, Govt controls which were mandatory social obligations etc...

As a 'Qualified Chartered Textile Technologist' after several years of working in reputed private textile mills. I had gathered more practical knowledge than my theory in college and textile mills. I did further research practically by changing several textile mills in textile capitol of south and north India. This was a accumulated knowledge that was the force that mede me to go for changes and innovate in any such activity that improved the all-round performance of the mill. Therefore Innovation was part of my Job.

The various mills I worked as General Manager was mills controlled by Government of India managed undertaking known as National Textile Corporation which was running 111 textile mills all over India. It was most important to run the mills on Govt procedure and controls. Innovation, here was not my cup of tea. However when I tried it cost my Job.

[ At KRSNA Engineering, technology leads the way.]

From left, Priyank Shah, Chandresh Shah, H.D. Shah, and M.D. Shah, Directors, KRSNA Grou


Krshna introduced the Soft Flow Dyeing Machine in India for the first time in the year 1992.Mr.M.D.Shah who is the chairman of the company was awarded not once but twice by the and the same has ever since become extremely popular among the people of the industry.

Having successfully created its own niche in the development and supply of import-substitute textile machinery, KRSNA Engineering is now focused on installing the latest technologies at its plants to provide textile machinery at par with those made in Europe and elsewhere.

From left, Priyank Shah, Chandresh Shah, H.D. Shah, and M.D. Shah, Directors, KRSNA Group.

KRSNA Group was started with the vision to develop and manufacture import-substitute textile machinery and they have continued to adhere to this vision from inception till date. The company first started developing and manufacturing vacuum extractors, then soft flow dyeing machines, and now offers a continuous fabric washing range.

The company was set up by M.D. Shah, who has a degree in Textile Engineering from VJTI and is also a Fellow of the Textile Institute, FTI, Manchester. Shah has the valuable experience of working both in textile mills as a chemist as well as in textile machinery  manufacturing company at its marketing division. Thus, when entrepreneurship beckoned, he was firm about foraying into the field of textiles.

This is what set the roots for KRSNA Engineering. “I had always wanted to develop textile technologies which would save water, steam, dyes and chemicals. We began by manufacturing a vacuum extractor machine following which we developed soft flow dyeing machinery in India, both of them being the first of their kind in the country. It thus helped towards import substitution,” Shah informs.

The company has won national awards in 1996 and 1997 for developing these technologies. “My second vision is to manufacture machines which are at par in quality with those offered by our European competitors. The mills should not need to think twice before purchasing our machines. We have already reached that stage with our soft flow dyeing machinery range,” Shah adds.

In 1997, Chandresh Shah, nephew of M.D. Shah joined the company and began to look after the sales and marketing functions.

The same year, they also introduced new production technologies in their first facility and then in due course of time also added a second and a third production facility. With the starting of the new production units, the company started manufacturing spares and electrical accessories in-house, which are used in the production of textile machinery. This enabled the company to keep a strict check on the quality of the machines. “It helped us get repeat orders from up to 90% of our customers,” says Chandresh Shah.

The company began exports in 1993 with an order from Thailand for a vacuum extractor. Ever since there has been no looking back. KRSNA Engineering now exports 35% of its production to 24 countries across five continents. As of date, the company has sold around 3,000 dyeing machines across the globe with the motto ‘Make in India and Sell to the World’. The dyeing machines supplied by KRSNA Engineering have a lower liquor ratio of 1:5.5 as against 1:7 in conventional machines, while their prices too are very competitive when compared with European manufacturers. They have also supplied two dyeing machines with a capacity of 2,100 kg for dyeing terry towels as against a maximum capacity of 1,500 kg in conventional machines.

Chandresh Shah claims that their dyeing machines can dye any type of fabric and in any construction. “We have kept on upgrading our textile technologies with the passage of time and currently our company has the capacity to produce around 100-120 machines per year,” he informs. In 2014, the company introduced a new fabric washing machine named KRSNFLOW, which also offers massive savings in water consumption. In conventional washing machines, the fabric is washed in open width and consumes around 60-70 litres per kg while KRSNA Engineering has introduced an open width fabric-cum-rope technology which uses just 25-30 litres water per kg. Now they are also supplying a continuous machine range, again a first of its kind in India, which includes washing, scouring and dyeing.

Sales, service and innovation.

For after-sales service, the company has stationed services engineers at Ahmadabad, Delhi NRC, Ludhiana and Tirupur. The service complaint is attended to within 24-36 hours. They also keep a good stock of spares and their customer list includes leading companies like Arvin Ltd., Nahar Spinning, Ginni Filaments, Jain Cord Industries, Chiripal Group, Shrijee Lifestyle, Jeyvishnu Textile, etc. Recently, KRSNA Engineering bought an aqua finish dyeing technology from a German company called Krantz Synergy. It will first buy prototypes of two aqua finish dyeing machines and then start manufacturing at its new plant in Ahmadabad. Once the new plant begins operations,  

Krantz Synergy will stop manufacturing these machines at their plant.

Meanwhile, as part of its strategy to expand, the company has already purchased land for setting up the project, which is expected to be operational in 2023. Once the plant goes on-stream, these jet dyeing machines will be manufactured only in India and will be supplied across the world. When fully operational, it will employ around 100 people. While in conventional dyeing machines the liquor ratio is 1:6 to 1:6.5, that offered by the JV will be between 1:4 and 1:4.5. This will result in savings of water, steam and chemicals of around 15%. Subject to Krantz Synergy’s satisfaction with   operations at the JV, the German company may offer more technologies to be produced at the facility in the future.

"We are very optimistic about the growth of the Indian textile industry. In current times, when other textile machinery companies are complaining about a shortage of orders, we are comfortably placed. The biggest reason is that we continue to upgrade our textile technologies regularly,” says Chandresh Shah. “Our only concern is in the control of effluent water released by textile mills. If the government lends a helping hand to process houses in setting up common effluent treatment plants (CETPs) as done in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, then there can be no end to growth.

These CETPs are particularly needed in states of North India as it is not financially viable for small and medium-scale process houses to install their own ETPs,” he adds. He also wants the government to continue TUFS for another five years after the current scheme expires next year as it has helped textile companies to upgrade their technologies over the last few years. He also expects the government to restart the State or Central schemes, whereby those setting up new production plants were given fiscal incentives. “It is unfortunate that the big and major mills in India have a mentality that only European-make machines can deliver quality. But we offer full assurance that our machines can also deliver fabrics of comparable quality,” Chandresh Shah says.

SOURCE :


Mr.MD Shah, B.Tex, FTI (Manchester), Chairman, KRSNS ENGINEERIN, Mumbai.

[ Impact of Industry 4.0 in Textile Machinery Manufactureing. ]

It can be said without a doubt that digitization is now the key to success.Any industry that needs to stay ahead in the market needs to adapt to various digital means. The consumer world is rapidly upgrading itself, and the sellers need to keep up with that. The textile industry also comes under the same rule.

The textile industry has also been adopting digital means to get more creative and productive. Due to the increasing production cost, high maintenance customers, and the complicated chain of value, the textile industry has been facing a specific problem. Moreover, professionals from other sectors are reinventing those industries. Therefore, it calls for the reinvention of the textile industry as well.

Now, Industryb4.0 refers to a particular concept that has strongly appealed to various industrial tycoons belonging from different industries. Industry 4.0 or the 4th evolution of the industry refers to a trend that will take the help of higher levels of automatic processes and exchange of data by taking advantage of cloud computing and IoT. Such kind of technology will make the textile to the future where artificial intelligence will handle the complete manufacturing process as well as the post-production marketing strategies.

Hanover Messe introduced the concept of industry 4.0 in the year 2011, and the road map of this goes back to 2013. Industry 4.0 refers to a lot of factors, including,

horizontal integration of the networks, vertical integration along with networked production systems and digitization of the complete chain of value.

Industry 4.0 will help in making the production and manufacturing process virtual and modular with the help of CPS along with other kinds of software like ERP, PLM, MES and SCM. It can be implemented in the textile industry as well and will bring about a lot of positive results.

Another thing that can be put to use is a rea-time conversation between machines or between machines and humans. CPS can help to implement it, and IoT can also help. The entire network that is associated with the complete process would get to know the shared information by the discussions.

The digital services will take control of the textile industry from raw materials to the selling of the products, There will be tracking devices that would be connected to interrupt data and analyse them, forecast errors, and self configures as well.

Industry 4.0 in the textile Industry:

Industry 4.0 in the field of textile manufacture or textile 4.0 is vital digitization precess of the existing ways of textile manufacturing. The critical technological changes include automatic weaving, spinning, and automation of different other tasks associated with the process of creating a textile product.

Implementation of Textile 4.0 would help to create a completely independent chain of manufacturing and post-production of products. Warp Beam, bobbin, and fabric can be used as the career of information as they contain textile materials. Information like the status of the production process and the maintenance of the manufactured products can be collected and stored via sensors and RFID (radio frequency identification technology).

The digitized manufacturing plants will self configure themselves and will also update on their own from time to time. Such efficiency would ensure timely completion of orders as well as the production of high-quality products that would meet customers demands. These plants are also flexible and will provide lot of opportunities to customized a particular product. While the entire process goes on, all the collected and essential information will be fed to the ERP and MES to ensure that they can be used in the future for quality management decisions.

Advantages and disadvantages:

Industry 4.0 comes as the next stage in the field of textile. It would bring era that would witness the integration of smart technology with traditional means of production. It is crucial to spread awareness about the different kinds of techniques that would be used in the field as well as train the required people.

Without a bunch of skilled professionals, automated machines will be difficult to set up.Moreover, the industry needs people who will understand what is wrong when a particular machine malfunctions. An excellent way to start the implementation of industry 4.0 is by introducing a pilot plant and then spreading the required information. Medium and small-scale business can use HCA or homogenization complete alliance.

However,it will not be very wise to be wise to blindly go after Industry 4.0 as it is stills in its developing phase.It is essential to understand the pros and cons of the technology thoroughly digitization would lead to several people losing their jobs.

Summary:

The trend of re-industrialization will undoubtedly revitalize the textile industry as it would make the process of manufacturing very intense and more competitive. The traditional model has several flaws and digitizing the industry would certainly help to resolve them. When the entire production process would be machine based, it would naturally be more efficient as well as fast-paced.

The production rate would increase as the machinery would work tirelessly with out pausing and with the right maintenance, the chances of machine malfunctioning are less. However, to implement the required technologies, it is necessary to train the professionals first so that they can handle the tools well. The textile industry should take things slowly and give its time to get upgraded to Textile 4.0.

Republished from Magazine ITAMMA VOICE December - 2018, Permission granted by Director General (Technical), ITAMMA - Mumbai - 1.

[ How to Reduce the Carbon footprint in the Textile Industry. ]

It is a well-known fact that the textile industry is causing significant damages to the environment. The production of textile items causes a lot of greenhouse gas production, and that contributes to global warming. The carbon footprint of the textile industry consists of the emitted GHG and Carbon dioxide in the manufacturing process. Various harmful chemicals and dyes are used in the textile industry that not only causes damage to the human skin when applied. They can cause skin cancer and various other skin diseases coming to direct contact with the skin. However, the modern world is quite worried about the environmental decline of the earth.

More and more people are getting concerned, and various industries are trying to opt for eco-friendly means of production and manufacturing. The same goes for the textile industry. The textile industry is bringing some renovations in its model of manufacturing to ensure that it causes a lesser carbon footprint and thus does minor harm to the environment. Some of the technique that is adopted by the textile industry to reduce its carbon footprint are mentioned below.

Opting for alternative materials of manufacturing:

The traditionally used materials in the textile industry are the reasons behind leaving such high carbon footprints. Cotton, the most commonly used fabric in the industry, causes a considerable amount of pesticide. It causes more harm than any other kind of crop in the market in the market. The material of polyester needs almost 70,000,000. or even more barrels of water every year. Due to such harmful characteristics, the textile industry is now thinking of changing most commonly used materials.

Using chemically tested dyes:

Many manufacturers in the textile industry use colours that are chemically tested but have failed to pass the qualities to qualify as a suitable dye. Due to such actions, the textile industry not only causes harm to nature but also damages to the human skin. Using chemically untested colours increases the amount of carbon footprint the textile industry leaves behind. The harmful dyes emit Carbon dioxide and it contributes to the overall climate change. It has been happening for years now, and it is time that the textile industry does something to change the situation.

Many manufacturers now are using dyes that have passed all the chemical requirements of being a safe dye. There are also dyes available now that are made of organic components. Thus, they are entirely harmless, both on the environment and also on the skin of the user of the product. It would ensure that the industry emits less harmful gases and also reduces the amount of harm it does to the human skin.

Increasing recycling:
 

Recycling is the right way of reducing the amount of waste an industry produces. The same rule applies to the textile industry, as well. The industry is currently focusing on recycling old materials and making new products out of them. It not only reduces textile waste but also helps in reducing chemical waste and emission of harmful gases. The modern textile industry is also using various items like thrown away beer bottles or bags made of polypropylene to create fibres that can be used in the industry. These materials are broken into massively beautiful pieces, and then they get melted and finally extruded to get used as fibres in the textile industry. Such innovative techniques also help in reducing toxic waste. It is an excellent way to fight the amount of carbon footprint the textile industry leaves behind.

Using Natural fibres:
 

The textile industry is now focusing on using natural fibres over the traditionally used synthetic fibres for several reasons. The primary benefit of using natural fibres is that they cause a lot less carbon footprint than those of synthetic fibres. Besides, various micro-organisms can decompose natural fibres when they go to waste. However, the same does not happen in the case of synthetic fibres. These fibres do not get decomposed and thus cause the release of various harmful chemicals and heavy the metals into the ground and soil.

The natural fibres, on the other hand, release its fixed amount of carbon dioxide in the air and thus help to maintain a balance. The synthetic fibres cause long term damages to both water bodies and soil. Recycling synthetic fibres are also very costly, and they further contribute to increasing the carbon footprint of the textile industry. Due to various such reasons, the textile industry now is focusing on stopping the use of several types of synthetic pesticides or fertilisers to make sure that lesser harm is done to the environment.

These are some of the ways following which the textile industry can significantly reduce its carbon footprint. However, this is a long-term process. Many manufacturers in the industry are still now aware of the harm that the textile industry is causing the environment. It is high time to spread awareness and bring essential changes to the traditional methods to reduce the emission of harmful gases and other chemical wastes. The waste management system of the textile industry also needs to be renovated as these toxic wastes cause harm to both land and soil. The textile industry is slowly evolving in this part, and hopefully, soon, it will be able to reduce the amount of harm it is doing to the environment.

From ITEMMA VOICE, Magazine December - 2019 Republished with permission from Director General (Technical), 'ITAMMA'Mumbai 1,

[ HOW IS E- COMMERCE IMPACTING MASS PRODUCTION? ]

The e-commerce industry has changed the way of business. Previously, there were only physical sops, and no matter what you had to buy, you had to visit those shops and get it. The choices of items were less, and you had to give a great deal of time and energy to shop anything. It is right in the field of textiles, automobile, electronics, or any other essentials. But then, gradually, the scenario changed. An online market place built up and changed the way people shop. The e-commerce site has also taken on the world with a storm It is providing hassle-free shopping in all the sectors. Be it textile or electronics, and you can now shop with the help of your fingers.

The textile industry has been remodelled in many ways because of the emergence of e-commerce. The online clothing stores are providing the customers with the freedom that the physical stores could never do. People are now shopping for their clothes at midnight and getting them delivered at their doorsteps. They are saving their time and energy and are also getting access to a lot more variety than the physical shops can offer. The checking out options are simple, and once they know what they want, they can finish off their shopping with a few taps. The e-commerce market has positively impacted mass production in the textile industry, and some of the ways mentioned below how online market place has brought changes in the industry.

Understanding the requirements of buyers:

The e-commerce industry gives a chance to the owners to have direct communication with the buyers. Previously the manufacturer's manufacturers had to sell their products via various retail shops, and there was no such direct communication with the customers. However, with online shopping, it has become easier for manufacturers to understand what the customers want and what they hate. It has affected mass production in the textile industry positively. Manufacturers are now mass building products that are popular among the buyers. Such a strategy has helped in reducing the loss that happens due to the production of clothes that fail to make an impact on buyers. Manufacturers now have a clear idea of the customer's requirements, and that has lead to a better process of production.

Increase in the rate of mass production:

Given the fact that the e-commerce marketplace is booming with a vast number of online stores, the manufacturers are now focusing on increasing their rate of production to keep up with customer demands. With so many sites selling textile products online, the competition has gone fierce, and every manufacturer is trying to make sure that no customer is leaving his place because of the lack of variety of products. Due to such high pressure of meeting the demands of the customer, the rate of mass production is undoubtedly increasing. The manufacturers are focusing on the creation of popular items so that they do not go out of stock. Thus, they lead customers to a competitors site.

Reasonable Prices:

The e-commerce market works as a wholesale market. The manufacturers here are in direct contact with the customers, and that makes sure that they do not have to pay any middleman to sell their products. The customers are directly viewing the manufactured products, and they are getting delivered to them at some minimal shipping charges and delivery fees. Due to this, the prices on e-commerce stores are reasonable, and that boosts the production of more items. People are naturally tending to do more online shopping because they are being sold directly by manufacturers. Due to the rise in the sale, there is a rise in production as well> It helps to maintain the balance between the preparation cost and selling cost and also keep the margin profit of the manufacturers well protected.

Nurturing creativity:

A significant change that e-commerce marketplace has brought in the mass production of textile items is making space for creativity. Previously people had fewer options, and they settled for whatever they got. But with online shopping, this scenario has changed. People are now spoilt with choices. Thus they are no longer paying for anything other than what they want. It has made the manufacturers of clothing items to get creative with their products. Customers of the present day do not want to go with boring clothes. They find original and quirky designs attractive. Thus, the manufacturers of the textile industry are making sure that their lot of mass-produced clothes are creative enough to attract the customers. It has given a positive boost to the industry as there are lots of creative ideas going around, enhancing the quality of the products.

Creating Brand awareness:

The e-commerce sites are particularly useful for building brand awareness among consumers. If you mass-produce a particular brand's items and they hit among the customer, then it would certainly boost your production as well as create awareness around the brand. A lot of brands deal with particular e-commerce sites where they are mostly sold. It helps in the manufacturers dealing with the brand directly and thus bringing fresh and high-quality products for the consumers. It works well for everyone, the brand, the manufacturer, and the customers as well.

These are some of the ways how the e-commerce market place is affecting the mass production in textile industries. The e-commerce has not only increased the quantity of mass production but has also ensured that quality is maintained as well. Today's customers are willing to pay more money, but they demand authentic and creative products. With so many online clothing stores operating at the same time, the textile industry is indeed renovated. It has boosted the sales, and now a particular brand is no longer limited to a specific locality. With national and international shipping benefits, the various brands are spreading themselves all over the world. Such positive features of the e-commerce marketplace have helped to redefine mass production in the industry of textiles.

Permission to Republish obtained from Director General (Technical) ITAMMA, admin@itamma.org/

[ President's Columan ]

Jugal Kishore Pansari

President - ITAMMA (2019-2020)

Innovation has reached centre-stage in policy-making in the science and technology domain.This has strengthened the resolve of the government to encourage innovation-based enterprises.At the same time, it has helped in unlocking the latent creative energy of our billion plus people in many fields.

We need all public and private systems around grassroots innovations to become empathetic enablers. And we need to do it, not just for India, but for the whole world. It is our responsibility to prepare India's youth with requisite skills for a future that is already here.

India must not miss out on the opportunities offered, in the textile industry, by the fourth industrial revolution.

So, what are the ways we can better support science, technology and innovation in our industry? Let me quickly proffer a few.

*Rebuild skills. * Revamp textile institutes focusing on science and technology. * Reorient reengineer our universities and learning systems to prepare people for the jobs of the future, not the jobs of the past. * Promote a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, not the culture of consumption.

With pride, I wish to mention that ITAMMA has also initiated the mission of innovation for Sustainability through its various activities at important Textile Engineering Clusters of India. Activities like 5S, Lean, Design Awareness, ZED Certification, training on lean Six Sigma Yellow and Green Belt Certificate etc have been successfully implemented in Gujrat Cluster. Whereby ITAMMA had a tie-up with The South India Textile Research Association (SITRA), to work together in a consortium for setting up the proposed "Apex Skill Development Centre (ASDC)" of the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Council (TNSDC) for importing high-end advanced training of our members. Events focusing Smart manufacturing, Digitalization and responsible manufacturing are regularly organized through Workshops, Seminars and Technical Sessions Clusters Ahmedabad, Coimbatore and Mumbai involving Experts. Newly introduced awards like Make-in-India, Operational Excellence and Recognition of Patents have further registered a trend towards Technological Development among our members.

With these words of Wisdom, I welcome you all to another exciting edition of ITAMMA Voice focusing on "Innovation in Textile Industry" I hope the topics discussed here will be informative for all our member and readers from the entire textile value chain. Let the force of creativity and ingenuity be with you always!

Permission to Republish given by Director General (Technical), ITAMMA VOICE, Mumbai 400 001.

[ High-capacity 3D weaving creel for AMRC.]

© Cygnet Texkimp.

Custom machinery manufacturer and fibre processing specialist Cygnet Texkimp has supplied a 3000-position 3D weaving creel to the Composites Center at the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Center (AMRC, Sheffield, UK). The high-capacity creel will be used alongside AMRC’s 3D jacquard loom to produce woven structures from carbon, ceramic and other technical fibres for automotive and aerospace applications.

Chris McHugh, Dry Fibre Development Manager at the AMRC Composite Centre, said:

“AMRC is taking dry fibre processing for composites to a new level in the UK. Significant investment in advanced technologies will help the manufacturing sector develop composite solutions for wide-ranging applications in automotive, aerospace, space and beyond.”

“Controlling tension of fibres, varying speed of fibres and minimizing degradation to ensure highest performance is realized, are key factors that we need in our processes. The UK partnership between AMRC and Cygnet TexKimp helps us to realize this with the installation of this advanced 3D weaving creel.”

The two organizations began working together in 2014. In 2018, AMRC commissioned Cygnet Texkimp to design a 2D weaving creel which is also housed at its state-of-the-art facility for advanced composite manufacturing research and development.

“We’re delighted to be working with the Composites team at AMRC again as two British manufacturing brands supplying solutions to the global composites industry,” says Chris Furphy, Product Director at Cygnet Texkimp, which began manufacturing creels for the traditional textile market over four decades ago and now designs and builds a range of fibre handling and converting technologies for the international composites and advanced fibre markets.

“The way fibres are fed into the weaving process is absolutely vital to the quality of the finished product,” he explains. “Which means that fibre tension and fibre path – ensuring the fibres never come into contact with each other as this can easily cause damage – are really important when it comes to designing a creel like this.”

With a footprint of less than 40m², AMRC’s new 3D creel is one of the highest volume-per-square-meter weaving creels in the world. The technology features an intelligent control system to maintain low and consistent running tension of the fibre into the downstream weaving process and enable operators to adjust the tension of individual positions or zones according to fibre weight and position in the woven structure. A bespoke guide system accommodates varied fibre counts (k-counts) and tow widths, and a tension recuperation mechanism offsets the shedding motion of the loom.

COURTESY By.

Source:
Author,

Inside Composites.

https://www.insidecomposites.com/machinery-equipment/highcapacity-3d-weaving-creel-for-amrc/

[ 4 DECADES OF SPEARHADING INN0VATION WITH COMMITMENT TO QUALITY. ]

By Hari Shankar.

The Celebration of overcoming milestones and obstacles is necessary in order to encourage people regarding further processes which are coming one's way. India's ITEM Society, however, prefers to do something much more than conducting more celebrations. To commemorate this occasion, the society is launching a lot of new activities for the betterment of the entire textile society, right from institutes, associations to the industry.

One such activity of the society is an Award contest for the various Associations in the textile society who are working for the betterment of their segment as well as for the hardworking women leaders of this sector. Society has decided to use this opportunity to recognize & give due credits to the honourable service that various Associations are providing to the textile Industry.

Woking to make their venture successful, India ITME Society has called for open nominations from all the Associations of the Industry through the mailers, website and social media campaigns. The award nominations for following categories were called for:
* Category 1 - Outstanding Association
* Category 2 - Digital Adaptation
* Category 3 - Emerging Association
* Category 4 - Women Leadership

To commemorate this occasion, Society launched new activities such as "Global Connect" facilitating industry associations to inter at multiple levels.

Global Connect:

An initiative to give increased global visibility and promotion to the organizations by uploading and linking their logo as the same enables to connect & better services to their websites in being viewed directly by members worldwide.

Additionally, the following complimentary services by India ITME Society strives to bring Manufacturers, Women Entrepreneurs, Institutes, Associations & budding Entrepreneurs together.

Academic Industry Connect

Complimentary services of India ITME website to the Institute, faculty, and students are textile programmes that enable them to join this global programme and showcase their strength as an educational institution to the whole nation and globally. Open asses to a broad programme of activities aligned with the objectives to transfer technological know-how, drive innovation and collaborative networking. Give assess to placement's facilitation free of cost whereby the students can be viewed globally by the company's for opportunities. (Recognized or Govt approved Universities / Institutions only)

Women Entrepreneurs.

Opportunity for 'Women Entrepreneurs' to connect globally on our corporate website. India ITME Society website is offering a platform for women entrepreneurs to empower them & to connect with the industry and business world. This special section is to encourage women to explore their potential in business, creative talents which can be accessed by the textile fraternity world over helping them to connect with Indian & International companies. This facility can be utilized by the inspiring spirit and aspiring women across the globe to spread their wings and connect to peers professionally.

A Special e-library portal - Wisdom of Textiles' to publish the research articles/works by students and technical institutes which can be accessed by the textile fraternity world over creating, connect with companies and other international institutes, enhancing the knowledge exposure, exchange of dialogues for all concerned. Along with showcasing a strong presence, providing technical education and shaping the future generation for the Indian Textile and Textile Engineering Industry.

Webinars

Complimentary access to various technology papers and periodic webinars on key topics in textile technology can be used by the Association and members at the corporate site of India ITME Society.

Opportunity for Investments & Notifications:

To access information on new tenders, business and investment opportunities this section provides the latest updates.

11N ZONE:

An opportunity for members to register complimentary at our corporate business networking section "11N Zone" A unique and exclusive online platform for Textile & Textile Engineering Industry. Your members can list their services/products here free of cost & promote their company/brand worldwide.11N Zone serves an excellent marketing tool for small & Medium Enterprises /Agents/Consultants/Dealers & Service Education & Research Institutions/Trade Magazines//Publication.

True to the mission and vision of the Society a 360-degree effort has been made over the years to connect to upgrade and facilitate every aspect of the textile engineering industry of this nation.

Keeping in mind a long term knowledge of any sustainable development for the next-gen pursuing textile subjects a special interactive session with Prof.Yves-Simon Glory, RWTH Aachan Institute of Textile Technology, Germany is also organized. This shall also benefit the students from all regions of India to interact with an international faculty and also access the latest information on the selected topic.

to lead the Textile Industry & Textile Engineering

Exhibition Industry has acclaimed India ITME Society for its exceptional service with awards like Excellence in Operations, Corporate Excellence, Knowledge Hub, Best Use Of Technology, The Royal Show, & The Mega Quality Award. Best amongst the most deserving, India ITME Society was conferred jointly by the Economic Times & IEIA as India's Top 10 Exhibition Organisers & India ITME Exhibition ranked as India's 1st Runner up in TopB2B Exhibition. Recently India ITME Exhibition won the award of "The Most Eminent Indian Exhibition by an Association - Catalyzing India's Economic Growth."

The Road ahead shall be as challenging and unpredictable but India ITME Society will continue to pursue and strengthen its capabilities to lead the Textile Industry & Textile Engineering to further heights.

The humility of action, the integrity of purpose and transparency of conduct will be key traits driving India ITME Society's growth and journey forward.

Mr.S. Hari Shankar
Chairman
India ITME Society

Permission obtained from 'INDIA ITME SOCIETY' to Republish, From - ITAMMA VOICE - Magazine Vol.MMX1X No.7, December 2019