Textile is the most important manufacturing sector of Pakistan having largest production chain with inherent potential for value-addition at each stage of processing from cotton to ginning, spinning, fabric, dyeing and finishing made-up garments. The sector contributes nearly one-fourth of industrial value-added, provides employment to about 40% of industrial labour force. Consume about 40% of banking credit to manufacturing sector and accounts for 8% of GDP. Its average share is about 58% in national export, however, despite being the 4th largest producer and 3rd largest consumer of cotton globally, Pakistan's comparative advantage diminish due to export of low value-added textile products.
Technical textile is an emerging area of high value-addition but Pakistan still lags behind in technical textile products. Now the government and textile industry endeavouring towards synchronizing textile products with emerging needs of world market by developing higher value-added products and for this purpose, there is a need to invest in R&D in this area. In the past, government as well as the textile industry has kept their focus on conventional and traditional textiles ignoring technical textile and knowledge-based products.
What is technical textile?Technical textile defined as textile material and product manufactured primarily for their technical performance and functional properties rather than their aesthetic and decorative technical textile end-use range from simple product such as dental floss and sutures to heart valves and vascular prosthesis from air filters to heat and flame barriers and from car seat covers to load bearing composite materials. Technical textile products can be used in various industries such as automobile advertising, agriculture, civil construction, environmental protection, chemical electronics, geo textile and industrial covering. In many cases, it has been replacing conventional material with low cost high efficiency along with many features. World market size of technical textile is increasing globally.
The major future growth areas of technical textiles can be identified:
-- Alternative and transportation media
-- Medical hygiene and healthcare
-- Geo textile, civil engineering, building construction, sports and leisure
-- Environmental protection, filtration and cleaning
-- Safety protection
Application of technical textiles
There are 12 main application areas for textiles have been explained below:- In which Mobil Tec's Automotive Textile sector is the largest single consumer technical textile having essential component of more functional parts of all road vehicles in addition to provision of area of decoration and warm soft touch. Mobiltec market share is 25% polyester remains the principal fibre worldwide for seating fabrics, the manmade fibre for tufted carpet, wrap knitted fabric which include tricot poll double needle bar are most widely used. Increasing use of printed fabric particularly in Asia is likely to share of knitted fabric both in flut and velour forms. Whereas, Geotech are mainly applied for earth related underground work, road construction, ground stabilization, erosion control during 2000 to 2005 Geo tech showed largest growth with meditec.
Protec: Protective textiles encompass those used both for clothing with relevant protective properties. Such as protection from fire heat, weather, radiation and those relevant protective properties used in structures tents and roof etc. Defence sector is the largest consumer of protect followed by forensic Police and Parliamentary force.
Spotec: There is extra ordinary growth in active wear and sportswear sector, worldwide consumer demand high level of comfort, design and easy care. Increasing cultural importance of sportswear market sale touch more than 10 billion Ponds.
Meditec: an import-growing sector of textile industry medical and related healthcare which requires strength and flexibility non-carcinogenic material used for production of medical textile and hygiene non woven. For product medical Textile hygiene non woven fabric for personal health care and cosmetic sector mainly cotton rayon wood pulp cotton linters synthetic fibre and blared of various fibres are used.
From the above study it transpire that there is significant increase in consumption of technical textile globally. In which mobi tec, medi tec along with pro tec, geo tec and spo tec contribute major share in market.
In Pakistan, there is huge scope of the expansion of functional textile in different segments of textile industries such as home tech, mobi tech. medi tech, geo tech and spo tech, for example, home tech includes thread yarn and textile beneficent it has got certain advantages, being a 4th largest producer of cotton, having strong inference with cheap labour force already enjoys a significant precise in the conventional textile, enjoying GSP plus status, Pakistan can make significant contribution in this technical textile field which will be helpful in maximising our exports.
Pakistan's share in technical textile is too little because of a lack of technological advancement which restricted cotton's presence in home textiles where textile fibrous materials are becoming basic component in bridges, architecture, combat vehicles, automotive aeroplanes, medical implant protective wear against bullet shock radiation. The world consumption of this sector is increasing rapidly. In Pakistan, there is a need to work on Mobi tec, Home tech, Medi tec and protective tec through this priority list can enhance export potential while reducing the imports in bulks. Further development of technical textile market will be centered on new material, new process and new application with economic liberalization and globalization there is a dire need for improving technical know-how because all economy is knowledge based. There is an urgent need to invest on research and development.
In Textile Policy 2014-19, the government decided to develop a proper strategy for the promotion of technical textiles in the country. For this purpose, an exclusive centre of excellence to impart training, develop skills and targeted to share relevant information about world trends in the fields such as geotech, meditec, spotec will be established.
The government is also pursuing the KOICA who has shown interest in establishing a research facility for technical textiles university Faisalabad. The non-woven sector is one of the emerging sub-sector having considerable share in value-added products to encourage this sector. Ministry of Textile Industry developing a model and sharing knowledge for skill development as well as human resource development as there is an urgent need towards promoting innovation and advancement in technology. This package for academia is need of the time.
In the current textile policy, the government has taken special initiatives for institutional restructuring and human resource working under the ministry in the field of research, textile engineering, international trade matters, negotiation project development, project monitoring, tariff rationalization and other related matters for enhancing the capacity-building of the ministry and its organisations as well.
In this context, National Textile University will continue to provide higher education and would fulfil the gap in research and development. The university will support and help establish department for technical textile in collaboration with the foreign donor agencies and to set up a department for textile dyes, pigments finishing to support and chemical manufacturing in the country. Since the promotion of technical textiles requires huge amount of finance in implementation mechanism, the Ministry is approaching for allocation of funds from Export Development Fund, PSDP through PC-I, while donors are also requested to assess the financing.
The textile policy initiatives will strive to compliment strengthen support relevant initiatives taken by other federal Ministries, provincial government or donors will also strive to avoid any duplication.
For human resource development, Ministry of Textile Industry will provide technical support for upgradation of EDF-funded textile training institutes to meet the international requirements and eliminate skill gap for manufacturing high value-added textile and technical textile products besides hiring of foreign trainers and designing of courses for training of master trainers in collaboration with foreign donors.
By taking all these steps, the sector of technical textile will be in a position to contribute significantly.
(The writer is Sr. Joint Secretary/Chairperson ICAC, 2016, Ministry of Textile Industry)
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