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ITMA birmingham 2003

Achievements of the Indian textile engineering sector

With vast opportunities available in the open trade regime, the TEI will have a crucial role in supplying machines and accessories to the domestic textile sector and in the machinery export markets.

C V Radhakrishnan

The Report of the Expert Committee on Textile Policy (Sathyam Committee: August 1999) has observed that: “The textile machinery industry exhibits a mosaic of multi-layered production capacity and technological capability levels.” The textile engineering industry (TEI) is a product of the post-independence era. Over the last five decades, it has built up an annual capacity of about Rs 3,800 crore including capacity of Rs 350 crore for components and accessories. The industry produces virtually the entire range of textile machinery for cotton, blended and manmade fibre textiles.

The TEI enfolds over 170 units producing complete textile machines and about 450 units producing parts and accessories as well as equipments for testing and monitoring of fibres and textiles. It provides direct employment to an estimated 50,000 workers with an investment of Rs 1,600 crore.

Though a few items of textile machines and parts were produced before independence, the actual production in an organised way had commenced in the late 50s and gathered momentum in the following two decades with the emphasis given by the government of India through its 5-year plans for industrialisation. Investments through foreign collaborations were at the peak in the late 70s and beginning of 80s.

Production range

Initially, the TEI was producing machines mainly for the cotton textile sector. Subsequently, production of machines required by the manmade fibre sector, the woollen sector and even the jute sector was taken up. Today, the entire range of equipment required from opening of the cotton and manmade fibres upto finishied fabrics is produced in India. Side by side, the ancillary and textile testing and monitoring equipment sectors too developed appreciably.

Over the last five and half decades, the TEI has supplied more than 30 million spindles to the domestic textile industry for its expansion and modernisation needs. Substantial number of weaving preparatory and weaving machines of different types and processing and finishing machines have been supplied during the period, thus contributing largely to exports of yarn and fabrics by the textile industry which is today the largest export earner of the country and the second largest in the world. This has enabled the country to improve its economy.

Growth prospects

The TEI depends on the user textile industry for its demand and development. India’s total textile production is estimated at US$ 35 billion. Of this, the value of textile exports is around US$ 12 billion. It is a happy augury that the Indian economy has regained momentum and is on the high road of robust growth. A good monsoon predicting an agricultural upswing, impressive revival of business confidence, steady growth in exports, augmenting foreign exchange reserves, food security, low interest rates and inflation contained at around 4.5- 5.0 per cent, all forebode the GDP growth of 6-7 per cent in the current year.

The textile industry has retraced its path to profitability. Added to this, the textile quotas for exports will be dismantled from January 2005, throwing open textile exports to frontier free competition.

It can be gleaned from the foregoing that textile investments will be back on rail both for modernisation and expansion. The TEI will have a significant role to play in re-equipping the user industry.

Capability and achievements

The TEI is built up through technical and technical-cum-financial collaborations with reputed companies from Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Japan, etc. The industry is capable of offering machinery to process cotton, natural and artificial fibres right up to the finished fabrics. The components and accessories sector as well as the testing and monitoring of fabric segments have moved in tandem with developments taking place in the world. The TEI is endowed with a pool of well-trained personnel. With vast opportunities available in the open trade regime, the TEI will have a crucial role in supplying machines and accessories to the domestic textile sector and in the machinery export markets.

Preparatory and spinning machinery

The level of technology of the indigenously manufactured textile spinning preparatory and spinning machinery is very much on par with the technology of machines manufactured in the industrially advanced countries since most of the machines are produced under technical collaborations or joint ventures. Some of the latest features and electronic software offered by the foreign partners are introduced in these machines.

Substantial and sustained efforts to strengthen indigenous efforts and technological back-up are made to improve the quality and performance. Today the major manufacturers are able to supply modern machines.

Yarn processing and synthetic processing machinery

The TEI is producing yarn processing machinery including two-for-one and three-for-one twisters for spun yarn, automatic pirn winders, high speed and automatic cone winders with electronic yarn clearers either with knotters or with air splicers.

Yarn/dyeing/universal package dyeing machines, fully automatic yarn mercerising machines suitable for various types of yarn besides hank to cone winding machines are produced by the industry. All these machines are equipped with microprocessor based programmer.

In the synthetic processing machinery sector, two-for-one twisters for filament and synthetic yarns, high-speed draw texturising machines, draw twisting machines, rewinders and precision cone winders of modern design are produced indigenously. The leading manufacturers in this sector have collaborations with manufacturers in developed countries like Japan, Italy and Germany.

The level of technology used is almost comparable with the technology used in industrially advanced countries. Advanced automatic features are not offered, though technology for the same is available, on account of the cost factor. Machines manufactured under collaboration serve the needs of the Indian draw texturising industry, though in developed countries due to the advent of techno-economic progress, new machine concepts have emerged like high-speed and automatic raw material handling equipment.

Weaving machinery

The development in the weaving machinery sector was affected due to fragmentation of the weaving sector. Almost 70 per cent of the fabric production is covered by the decentralised weaving sector, while the composite mill sector’s share in weaving activity is now less than six per cent and the balance production is carried out by the handloom and hosiery sectors. This has led to lack of viable and sustained demand for sophisticated weaving equipments produced under collaborations. Hence, this sector could not make much headway in upgrading its products, though shuttleless looms of rapier types and airjet looms of international standards are produced in the country under licence from foreign manufacturers.

Besides, sectional and direct beam warping machines, multi-cylinder sizing machines, zero twist sizing machines as well as single yarn sizing machines are produced in the country. Imported electronic instruments and control systems can be incorporated in the machines.

A wide variety of looms including plain powerlooms, automatic shuttle looms equipped with drop box for cotton, silk and synthetics, pirn change fast reed automatic weaving machines equipped with positive CAM motion and negative CAM motion are produced in the country.

Demand for sophisticated weaving machinery has to pick up in view of the government’s decision to make the entire textile industry and the weaving and processing sectors in particular, strong enough to compete in the global market on phasing out of the MFA

Knitting machinery

High speed circular knitting machines of various diameters and feeders as well as small size single knitting machines, single jersey machines and mini-jacquard single knit circular knitting machines are produced in the country. The productivity is 1.5 to 2 times more than the productivity offered by the manufacturers from the Far East. Higher technology machines can be offered provided there is sustained and continuous demand.

Processing and finishing machinery

The entire range of processing machines of modern design and technology are produced in the country for yarn and fabrics of different fibres. A few joint ventures have been established in the recent past to produce higher level technology machines than are seen in India and South-East Asian countries. Even the state-of-the-art equipment is now being manufactured in India such as one-step bleaching, cold pad batch and continuous dyeing, hot mercerising, printing and high speed stenters designed to save power, steam and water. Further, these equipments are offered with microprocessors based on programmed dosing arrangements to obtain repetitive, identical results for better reproducibility. Preparatory processing machines as well as wet and dry processing and finishing machines which contribute to value addition are offered by indigenous machinery manufacturers. The progress made in the sector will enable both the composite mills and independent processors in producing value-added yarn and fabrics and compete in the world market.

Electronic testing, monitoring and controlling equipment

This sector has shown great progress over the years in line with the information technology developed within the country. Online monitoring systems for spinning and weaving are available. In addition, various testing equipments for fibres, yarn and fabrics, controlling systems for different sections of the textile industry including drives and panels are produced in India. Many equipments are manufactured under collaborations with well-known foreign manufacturers. Many items developed indigenously too compete with those produced under collaborations or the imported ones. However, further upgradation in the electronic field is called for to meet the exacting needs of repetitive orders.

The TEI has serviced the textile industry consistently to enable that industry to reach great heights. In the post-quota regime, technology, productivity, quality and cost would dictate sharpness in competition. The role of the textile engineering industry in this context is important.

Remove impediments

The TEI can play a far bigger role and sustain its monitoring activities better if some of the impediments in the way of its development are removed. These relate to anomalies in fiscal levies, unrestricted imports of used textile machinery, support by way of the Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme for the machinery industry and support measures for exports of textile engineering goods. These matters are being pursued vigorously with the government and it is hoped that the situation will improve in the coming months.

Import of machinery and parts

It is unfortunate that the government has not heeded to the submissions of the TEI to restrain the explosive import of used textile machinery. It is high time that the government review the policy of import and withdraw concessional rates of duty for import of used textile machines. Similarly, a stable policy should be evolved to allow imports of inputs for manufacture of machinery at lowest rates to strengthen the competitiveness of the local units.

Exports of machinery and components

TEI exports 20 per cent of its annual production amounting to Rs 420 crore to over 60 countries. The technology and the capability of the TEI is proven by the fact that the machines and components have found acceptance in important textile producing countries. The industry has sought support measures similar to those offered by our competitors to augment exports.

Research and development

The TEI has established an R&D Centre at IIT-Powai to do research on textile machinery and components. This centre is expected over a period of time to develop new designs and new products to meet the gap in local textile engineering industry and free the units from borrowed technology. Conclusion

The Report of the Expert Committee on Textile Policy has observed: “The TEI has to be in the forefront in the process of modernisation and technology upgradation of the user industry because that is the way to optimise the benefit to the country in terms of import substitution of capital goods, upgradation of productivity, quality and cost-effectiveness of the textile industry together with higher exports of textiles and clothing. In order to meet these twin objectives, TEI has to be provided with the required support and environment through appropriate policy inputs, which would enable it to manufacture quality machinery of latest technology in cost-effective manner upto its full potential”.

It is the earnest plea of the TEI that one of the largest capital goods industry engaged in giving a thrust to the all-important textile industry, should be offered a level playing field so that the user industry and the nation would greatly benefit from the same.