The third edition of the biennial Techtextil India 2011, which took place at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai earlier last month, welcomed 3814 visitors from 27 countries to visit its 130 exhibitors.

The exhibiting countries were (in order of highest attendance) India, Germany, PR of China, France, Belgium, South Korea, USA, Sweden Netherlands, Japan, Turkey, Thailand, Italy and UK. The show also included national pavilions from Belgium, PR of China, France and Germany.

Visitors from (in order of highest attendance) India, Malaysia, Japan, UAE, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, USA and Bangladesh, were said to be highly satisfied with the variety and quality of the exhibitors.

The fair was organised by Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt Ltd and supported by the Office of the Textile Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles Government of India, Bombay Textile Research Association (BTRA), Indian Technical Textile Association (ITTA) and the Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council (SRTEPC). On display were the latest range of technical textiles, nonwoven products, and technical yarns, textile machinery, twisting and cabling systems, winders and precision needles. 

Commenting on the show, Mr Raj Manek, Managing Director, Messe Frankfurt Trade Fairs India Pvt Ltd said: "Techtextil India was very successful for both exhibitors and buyers from the Indian and international technical textiles and nonwovens sectors. There was great excitement during the three-day show with booths busy with buyers until late evening. The atmosphere of hard work, concentration and intense discussion all helped to make Techtextil India a trend setting exhibition for the large and affluent Indian consumer market which is looking for innovation and high quality technical textiles and nonwovens."

Speaking at the Techtextil India opening ceremony, Mr Shri A. B. Joshi, Textile Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles, for the Indian government said:

"I am glad that Techtextil India is encouraging the fast growing Indian technical textile market which has now reached INR 63,000 crores (USD 12.85 billion). The sector is also forecasted to grow to INR 158,000 crores (USD 32.24 billion) by 2016-17 with a projected growth rate of 20% growth per annum."

He added that the main growth sectors were Medical (Medtech), Geo-Textiles (Geotech), Protective Textiles (Protech) & Agricultural Textiles (Agrotech).

In his welcome speech, Mr Michael Jaenecke, Brand Manager Technical Textiles / Techtextil for Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH, thanked the Indian Government for their constant support of the show since its launch in 2007 and added that India's presence as a global textile industry player is fast gaining the respect of many countries.

Also speaking at the opening ceremony was Mr S. P. Agarwal, President, Delhi Exporters Association & Board Member of SRF Ltd who suggested ways of growing and developing India's textile industry. For easy and efficient sourcing,

Techtextil India was categorised into the product groups of machinery, raw material, fabric manufacturers and related accessories.

Successful symposium programme added to show value

Adding value to the show was the Techtextil India Symposium 2011 with its theme of "Learn collaborate and innovate". Presented in collaboration with International Newsletter (UK) and BCH - Business Co-Ordination House - (India), the symposium catered to the textile industry's diverse range of professionals. Topics covered were the issues and challenges facing the worldwide technical textile markets, building and maintaining successful partnerships and finding a market niche.