Man-made fibre textiles may grow by 9% : Industry

Even as it organises an international conference at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A), the man-made fibre industry is expecting a growth of nine per cent in production this year in India. Currently, India is the second largest producer of man-made fibre at 6.1 million tonnes per annum, industry experts said.

Which is why, in a bid to stress on India's role as an emerging region, the industry is hosting a two-day 'International Conference on Man-Made Fibre Textiles' on November 18-19 at IIM-A campus here. The event is being jointly organised by textile portal Fibre2Fashion, Surat Art Silk Cloth Manufacturers Association (SASCMA) and South Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI).

"We wanted to review India vis-a-vis China in the man-made fibre industry. This is because China saw man-made fibre's importance almost 20 years ago.

The conference will look at how the man-made fibre sector can be improved from policy making, R&D and industry needs point of view," said P R Roy, director, Fibre2Fashion. While globally per capita consumption of man-made fibre is around 12 kg, in India it is merely 3.5 kg per annum.

However, industry players expect man-made fibre to play a major role in the growth of technical textiles in the country, followed by apparels and home textiles.

"The limitation of cotton in terms of its yield per hectare, quality, water needs and overall pressure on food security due to lack of availability of arable land will compel one to look up at the option for future need of textile, clothing and technical textiles. Man-made fibre textiles seem to be the only option wherein polyester and viscose would dictate the consumption for time to come. Currently, globally the fibre consumption ratio is at 40:60 for natural and man-made fibre. However, in India it is reverse at 64:36," Roy added.

Meanwhile, speakers at the conference will address the need to examine India's current strengths and to explore the growth potential of the man-made fibre sector in the country.

Topics to be deliberated upon will include developments in man-made fibres, product innovations, sustainability, strategic management and technical textiles.