Value-addition, product diversification and marketing support are desperately needed for growing technical textiles in India, Commodity Online reports.

According to industrialists, who attended INDA’s two-day nonwovens training programme, coordinated by Tecnitex Nonwovens, the Indian technical textiles sector that includes nonwovens needs focus and should diversify.

The Elementary Nonwoven Training Course, organised by INDA, the association of the nonwoven fabrics industry, was held from 6-7 July at the Orchid Hotel, Mumbai, India. Participants from leading companies, such as Kimberly Clark, Welspun, Johnson and Johnson, attended the workshop and participated in interesting discussions to spearhead the growth of the industry.

Spunbond nonwoven sector

Currently, the spunbond nonwoven sector is concentrated on packtech and is not performing well in India, Commodity Online reports. According to the company’s source, a few years back, the industrialized state of Gujarat had over 40 spunbond manufacturers.

The sector is dominated by Chinese machines and is focused on developing 60-80 GSM fabrics catering to the packaging sector. With fierce competition, the need for new products and new market, some spunbond manufacturers have shut down.

There is, therefore, an urgent need for product know-how and help with marketing support. The industry needs to convert the sector so it can develop products that meet the demands of consumers. Indian government should focus of custom duty issues to support manufacturing value-added goods domestically. Current duty structure is not favourable for the domestic converting of technical textile products.

Basic knowledge

Basic knowledge of nonwovens and a few technical textiles products is currently available in India, thanks to the US based INDA and Brussels based EDANA that have conducted many training programmes in India.

This scribe has been involved as a tutor in almost all the workshops organized by INDA in India. The recent programme of INDA is the 25th awareness workshop conducted by INDA and coordinated by Tecnitex Nonwovens.

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