Workshop on Inspection and testing

Apex Cluster Development services Pvt Ltd under SIDBI support organized a workshop for export houses and buying agencies on Inspection and Testing services available in Ludhiana on 24 Dec 2010. The workshop covered the basic of inspection and the correct method of garment and fabric inspection. Mr. Parag gave details of the common knitting defects and demonstrated processing and finishing defects. The inspection loop was explained in detail and different stages of inspection i.e., raw material, in process and final inspection were advised to the participants. The point system for fabric inspection and AQL system for final inspection was also advised to the participants. The representatives from buying agencies were specially interested in AQL and point systems.

Dr Sandeep Bains explained the machinery used and techniques as per international standards for testing purpose. She also advised about the details of machinery available with PAU and the advantage of using the tests prior to starting production so that quality goods are produced in the cluster.



Seminar on Government Schemes for MSMEs in Agribusiness and Agro Processing

A Seminar was held in Pune BDS on 3rd December on Government Scheme which so as to create a need base to avail benefit of scheme along with support of BDSP in turn ultimately benefiting to Processing Industry with and additional financial support provision.

Shri Anant Sardeshmukh (EDG, MCCIA) inaugurated program mentioning some of the important activities of MCCIA. Shri Uday Borawake , (chairman Agribusiness, MCCIA) addressed participants with Agribusiness and its facts. Mr. Ashoo Tewari, DGM, SIDBI presented financial products/ schemes for MSME for cluster. Mr. Pradeep Gangrediwar, Manger- Project MAIDC communicated brief information on MoFPI schemes for Cluster. Mr. Abhay Daptardar, Astt. Director, MSME – DI, introducing MSME DI activities also communicated on Cluster Development activities, MSME Schemes for cluster. Mr. Sunil Kumar Verma, Astt Director, MSME DI communicated some additional schemes for Cluster from Ministry of MSME. Mr. Janrao, Technical Officer, NHM, presented different schemes of NMM for Cold storage, infrastructure dev, Ripening centers, Tissue culture etc. Mr. Suravse, GM DIC, presented various schemes for MSME. Mr. Bhaskar Patil, Manager, MSAMB & Principal Horticulture Training Centre communicated with participants on schemes from MSMAB for Marketing of Agri produce. Program concluded with presentation “ Punefoohub.com a portal for Food Industry “by Mr. Vyomkesh, CITI IT Solutions.



Clusterkraft participated in TCI Annual Global Conference at MDI

Gurgaon Management Development Institute in collaboration with Institute for Competitiveness India hosted the 13th TCI Annual Global Conference at its campus in Gurgaon from 29 Nov to 3rd December. The conference gathered practitioners from Indian and global clusters to create a discussion forum for the future of clusters. Mr. Rajveer Singh, MD, ACDS gave a presentation on cluster development which included significance and geographical distribution of Indian clusters, their characteristics and competitiveness.

The full presentation can be viewed through the Link below.

http://www.tci-network.org/media/asset_publics/resources/000/003/608/original/Delhi2010_Day_1_5_Indian_Clusters_Rajveer_Singh.pdf

To know more about the conference click the link below.

http://indianclusters.org/more/TCI_Delhi_minutes.doc



Workshop with firms on Marketing and Branding Strategy

A workshop to identify possibility of consortia formation for common brand for Ludhiana knitwear cluster was organized at Knitwear club on 6th Dec 2010. The meeting was attended by Industrialists and knitwear club office bearers.The objectives and purpose of having a common brand for cluster products was presented in detail by Dr. M.A. Zahir from Synetic Business School.Dr. Zahir also presented 5 possible working models for common branding. After detailed discussion, it was finalized that the best working model will be a development of a trademark based on certain international quality parameters and inviting firms who fulfill these quality standards to become its members by paying a predetermined fee and use the trademark

for domestic purpose. A detailed presentation on Knit Mark was given by Mr Charanjiv Singh ,He advised that the Knit mark can either be granted to an organization as a whole or to a specific department or business unit of an existing organization. Knit mark will help to increase the sales of firms as it will be an important quality endorsement . Knitmark will also offer testing services to its member firms . The knitmark quality system will be based on a TQM approach using self assessment, benchmarking reports and site visits. It will also help firms to measure the quality of products being delivered to their customers. Mr J.N. Vohra shared his experiences of woolmark and the work already done in starting the Knitmark for knitwear industry of Ludhiana and provided very beneficial inputs for the success of the program.



Seminar on "Ethical Management"

A seminar on "Ethical Management" as a part of Training program on personnel management and H.R was held at NIFT TEA on 19 Nov 2010. The speaker was Mrs. Doris Gerber who has a wide range of experience in the industry across the globe in serving the business as a sourcing and production advisor, social auditor, consultant trainer etc. Mr. Gokarnesan, Principal of NIFT TEA in his welcome explained the importance of ethical values and told the audience about the hostility around, which is a result of lack of ethics. ACDS C.D.M. Mr. Shabeer Ahammed briefed on Apex Cluster Development Services and the B.D.S. development project funded by World bank, DFID U.K.

Mrs. Doris Gerber explained the humanitarian idealism to operational reality. She explained about Free trade system and reminded that norms and standards had become powerful tool to protect the market. She gave a small introduction on the subject and provided data about labor laws Conclusion of the seminar was CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) or Social and Environmental Compliance, a sustainable issue which must be first applied internally, was explained.

Valuable suggestions, advises, examples etc. were given and finally she requested the participants to follow the rules and regulations by state/local government which will cover almost all norms of these international standard compliances. Hence the seminar was useful for the managers, entrepreneurs and other participants for inculcating ethical values and recognizing their Corporate Social Responsibility.

Seminar on "Schemes available for development of MSMEs in India"

A days seminar on schemes available for development of MSMEs was organised on 20 October 2010 by Apex Cluster Development Services in association with TEA-ERC in Tirupur. In the seminar The Speakers had presented various schemes available for the development of MSMEs in India. Different credit schemes and capital subsidies were discussed in detail and the procedures to avail the same will were also presented. The members were briefed on various schemes of SIDBI and Ministry of MSME. Assistant managers from SIDBI had an interactive session with the participants. One to one interactions were also arranged. Later Assistant Director from MSMEDI explained various schemes available for the entrepreneurs and the process to avail them. The members fond the session very informative and knowledgeable.



Seminar on Solid Waste Management

MCCIA announced a half day seminar on Solid Waste Management and Waste Water Recycling in Processed Food Industry on 7th September 2010 in Pune. Shri. Anant Sardeshmukh (EDG – MCCIA) inaugurated the program. Shri M. A. Tejani (M.D, Gits Food Products Pvt Ltd) started program with mentioning the need of this program and discussing the practical issues related to waste water recycling and solid waste management. Dr. Ojha continued session on waste water recycling presenting factors to be considered while water treatment, BOD, COD and also presented some of the inputs based on logics for Aerobic - Anaerobic fermentation. Skill fully utilised methodology along with phytoremediation was elaborated. He concluded the session with presentation topic on solid waste management. Shri Rairikar showed gratitude by presenting vote of thanks.



Workshop on Quality Management Systems

A workshop was organised by ACDS on Quality Management Systems in collaboration with SGS on 11th Sep. 2010 in Ludhiana. The objective of the workshop was to find solutions to problems faced by exporters and buying agencies in testing, inspection certification and QMS.

Mr Amit Saluja, Technical Manager, SGS India Pvt ltd, gave a detailed presentation on the Quality fundamentals for knitwear industry. The presentation started with a brief detail of the classification of fibre, types of weaves and warp and weft knitted fabrics. He advised of the role of testing as a one stop solution for quality assurance .He informed that the major role of testing is to set minimum level of performance , ensure consistency of product, identify the potential problems and control input and output of production. He gave the list of International standards for testing and the various stages of testing a knitted garment. He also gave a detailed description of each and every test, the basis of evaluation and the minimum specimen size for the benefit of firms sending specimen for testing. Mr Vinod Kumar, also from SGS India advised about the interpretation of grades or understanding of test reports .He informed about the failures and improvements possible in each textile property. A special attention was given to a common problem faced by the manufacturers on seam slippage and pilling. Details of flammability tests and its application and standard norms for kids wear and sleep wear were discussed in detail by the presenter. Mr Parag Dutt Kaushik, Center Head, SGS Ludhiana had a detailed discussion and interactive session followed in which various queries were put up by representatives of various export houses and buying agencies. Ms Alka Chopra and Ms Bindu from Bhandari exports asked a lot of questions on the pilling test and the variation found in pilling test reports by simply changing the colour of a garment A lot of questions were asked by representatives of buying agencies like cos India , SD apparel , Axiom enterprises and Cascade.



Seminar on Methods of Pesticide Residue Analysis, traceability and recall to improve quality of production
in Fresh and Processed Fruits and vegetables

One-Day Seminar on Methods of Pesticide Residue Analysis, traceability and recall to improve quality of production in fresh and processed fruits and vegetables was organised by AFSTI under the support of SIDBI & Apex Cluster Development Services Pvt Ltd, in Pune cluster on 18th September 2010. The participants invited for the seminar were from the fruit and vegetable processing field namely farmers, entrepreneurs, AFTS(I) Members,‘ Bachat Gat’ (urban and rural). The objective of the seminar was to provide training on critical issues for growers & exporters to increase Importance to avail training on traceability & critical issues along with pesticide residue analysis to create need base to avail respective services from BDS market.

The programme inaugurated by Dr. Adsule, director, NRC Grapes by Lighting lamp so as to celebrate founder day in memory of late Dr. C Subramanyam (Founder AFSTI). Dr S.M. Naikare (President, AFSTI) felicitated dignitaries and faculties. Presenting achievements did by Dr. C Subramanyam for AFSTI, Dr. Naikare also introduced Dr. Adsule for next session. Dr. Adsule shared his knowledge on pesticide residue analysis, need for analysis, and influence of pesticide in Food Industry. Dr. Kaushik Banerjee explained various methods of pesticide residue analysis along with innovative method developed by NRC and some key finding of ranked research papers were shared. Demonstrative workshop guidance in Referral laboratory of APEAD at NRC was conducted. Dr. Naikare guided participants on different types of contaminants present in foods and beverages and also estimation of residues need type and application of pesticides. Ms. Minal Rajkarne presented a brief of ACDS project. Dr. Satyanarayan, (Vice President, AFSTI) concluded program by showing gratitude along with vote of thanks.



Work Shop on carbon credits

A workshop on clean development mechanism and carbon credits was organized in the Ludhiana cluster on 23rd September 2010 , to spread awareness of the threat of climate change due to use of fossil fuels in the industries and impact on human civilization of the green house gases .

Mr Suvra Sengupta, Project manager at Thermax, enlighted the importance of Clean Development Mechanism as per the Kyoto Protocol which promotes usage of non fossil fuel to generate heat in the process industry and earn certified emission reduction which is an established tradable commodity in the carbon exchange, through a presentation. The presentation covered the following points

The Reason of Global warming

Green House gases and effect of Global warming

Per Capita annual emission of carbon –di- oxide in various countries.

Action by world community – Kyoto Protocol to check global warming

CDM and the projects which can qualify under CDM

Insights on CDM Projects

The main goal achieved through CDM which are a) Reduction in Emission of GHG’s b) Incentives for reduction of GHG’s

A sample calculation to calculate incentives can be 8 TPH boilers operating for 6000 hours per annum on Biomass

Steps Involved with CDM Project

Standard Transaction cost for individual projects.

Mr Ajay Goyal, Manager, Thermax gave a presentation on Automation on Fluidized Bed Boiler for efficient use and saving the fuel cost thus reducing the carbon emission at factory level. He highlighted the major factors for efficient combustion in a bed boiler. After the presentation, one exporter of the cluster, Nagesh Knitwear was so impressed that he persuaded Thermax representatives to cancel their flight to Pune and organized a factory visit and discussed ways to participate in the Clean Development Mechanism or Carbon Credit Trading.



Workshop on upgrading skills of freelance designers

A workshop for upgrading the skills of freelance designers of Ludhiana knitwear cluster was organized at E Resource center on 24th Sep 2010. Fashion design is both an art and a science. By fusing art with textile, designers use their knowledge of various fabrics, style and color to create clothing which people want to wear. This was emphasized by Mr. Praveen Juthania, Head Designer at a major export and domestic manufacturing unit at Ludhiana.

Mr. Juthania advised the young participants about the prerequisites of being a successful designer in the industry and to adopt the designs according to the customer profile of each manufacturer. Mr Juthania advised the participants to utilize cultural influences and a creative mind to create contemporary designs which are suitable for the domestic market. Excellent problem solving skills, communication skills and computer literacy are a must for a successful designer. A basic theme and mood board need to be created prior to designing a collection and this was highly emphasized by Mr Juthania.

Fashion Designers use various software while designing a collection. Some details about the websites available and some basic software and tools available to assist the designers in creating bestselling designs were highlighted by Mr. Nirbhay Kumar. The information related to Websites like Promostyle, Pantone, which provides useful inputs to the designers about the upcoming trends and fashion forecasts for the coming season were also given. The designers appreciated the content of the workshop and they were advised that they can use the infrastructure at ERC for designing and related purpose for the benefit of the industry.



Workshop on MSME schemes

A workshop on MSME schemes was organized on 28th Sept 2010 at Hotel Friends regency in Ludhiana. The workshop was attended by industry associations and firm representatives. Mr. S.S. Bains, Director, Industries and Commerce, Government of Punjab, was the chief guest of the event. A special address was given by the Guest of Honour, Mr. Vishwabandhu, GM, DIC.

The first presentation was on MSME Act 2006 and other government schemes. The presenter gave details about the need for formulating separate law to tackle an all prevalent problem of MSMEs, the delayed payment from vendors. He advised about the salient features of this act and the procedure for filling the memoranda by the MSMEs. He informed the MSMEs that this act strengthens the provisions related to delayed payments to micro & small enterprises (MSMEs). The other MSME schemes were also discussed in detail by the deputy Director, MSME –DI. Mr. Vinod Thapar ,

Chairman, Knitwear club lauded the efforts of SIDBI in selecting the Ludhiana knitwear cluster for its Cluster Development program and Mr Jitender Agarwal was invited to provide information about the schemes of SIDBI for MSMEs. Mr Agarwal gave a detailed presentation on SIDBI’s schemes of assistance. He gave a brief profile of SIDBI and advised of the sphere of activities under SIDBI umbrella. He informed about the direct credit and retail credit schemes. He also emphasized on the newly launched schemes on assistance for cleaner production options in MSMEs. Other schemes which he covered were working capital scheme and MSME receivable finance scheme. To provide risk capital to well performing MSME units having high potential for growth; a new scheme for risk capital is launched.

Mr. Agarwal emphasized on the present provisions for MSMEs with SIDBI and its aim to become a one stop shop for their financial requirements. He invited the industries to come forward and avail all the benefits provided by government of India under various developmental schemes. Another presentation was given by the District Industry Center. They advised about the online facilities and Suvidha center launched in local DIC office and the procedure for filing EM 1 and EM2 numbers online. They also advised that the entire industry detail will soon be available on their website along with the details of proposed units in each sector. Mr Bains appreciated the enterprising spirit of Ludhiana industry and promised to open a bench in Ludhiana to resolve the payment issues for MSMEs. He also shared that the department has achieved 100 % success in the cases of pending payments registered with them and assured the industry of full support on these issues.



B2B meeting and Training programme with “Strawberry Growers Association”

For Capacity building of raw material suppliers and it’s tie – ups with processing firms, a B2B meeting and training programme was organised under the SIDBI’s Cluster Development Program “Implementing BDS for MSMEs” on February 20, 2010 at Pune Fruit and Vegetable Processing Cluster.

Training programme was organised so that, raw material suppliers will get to know the requirements of processing firms – in terms of quality and quantity; get to know about post harvest and processing technology, etc.

The areas covered were Marketing tie – ups / contract farming, Quality requirements for procurement of raw material from processing firms, Post harvest technology, value added products for commercial application, linkages with cold storages, and Marketing potential and scope for strawberry cultivation in India. Experts who shared information during the event were Dr. Naikare, Shri Bipin Rewankar, Eco fresh cold storage, representatives from processing industry.

M/S Media Cura was involved in organising the event and participants were Representatives of All India Strawberry Growers Association, Representatives of micro, small and medium scale industries in the cluster, as well as BDS providers.



Seminar on “Export marketing”

With the objective to promote export at Pune Fruit and Vegetable Processing Cluster, a seminar on Export Marketing was organised under the SIDBI’s Cluster Development Program “Implementing BDS for MSMEs” on March 20, 2010.
The seminar was organised in collaboration with Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA). The major areas covered were Present status of Processed Food Export and Introduction to HACCP & SPS Standards, Export marketing research, Export marketing entry, Getting ready for Exports and international trade procedures (regulatory frame work, documentation, incentives available for exports of processed

food), Opportunities for innovation in Processed Fruits and Vegetables Products for exports, Export Opportunities and New markets for Food Products, etc.
Experts who provided information were Ms. Tamanna Chaturvedi, IIFT, Shri R. G. Vaidya, Director, Synergy Research, Shri Vaibhav Nagarkar, Director, Generation Next Business Consulting, Mr. Amendra Mahamuni, Private Consultant & Mr. Vinay Oswal, Director, NAFARI. Around 50 participants attended the seminar and it was followed with question answer session.



Interactive awareness meet with ministry / directorate of MSME officials

An interactive workshop was held at Hotel “Friends regency“ on February 19, 2010 to impart information about the schemes of ministry of MSME and SIDBI to the industry stakeholders of Ludhiana. The workshop was held under the SIDBI’s Cluster Development Program “Implementing BDS for MSMEs in Ludhiana knitwear cluster. This initiative is a part of World Bank led Umbrella project “SME Financing and Development project. The main objective of the project is to make the Ludhiana Knitwear cluster more competitive by strengthening the support of Business Development Services to the MSMEs. The program started with a brief review of the activities being undertaken in the ongoing cluster development program.

It was advised that in order to tackle the problem of shortage of labor in the industry , the project has started training of females as stitching machine operators to increase their participation in the industry workforce. This training is presently running in two modules. Under the first module, the training is going on at a training center opened in the village and the girls are provided training as well as employment in the industry. The project has received immense support from FEKTAA and Bahadur Ke knitters association and they have also provided machineries to run the training center. In the second module, girls are brought to the factories and provided training on the industrial sewing machines in the firm premises and afterwards absorbed in the same factory.

The project has also done considerable work in the field of energy efficiency. Energy audits have been undertaken in some units and efforts have been made to spread awareness about energy conservation in order to increase cost competitiveness of the knitwear industry. Various workshops and training programs have also been organized to increase awareness about regulations imposed by importing countries.

Taking the program further, Mr. Nagi from MSME gave a brief outline of the program and invited the dignitaries for sharing their views. Mr. S.S. Bedi from MSME gave details of the various schemes of the ministry and how industry can take advantage of the schemes for the benefit of the industry.

Mr. Vinod Thapar, President, FEKTAAA gave a special address and appraised the industry about the skill development programs running in the cluster. He informed that the female training programs undertaken by Apex Cluster Development services are getting very good response in the industry. He has also shared the information with the Chief Minister Mr. Prakash Singh Badal and the CM has also shown interest in replicating these models.

A presentation was given by Mr. S. B. Singh on concepts of lean manufacturing in a cluster. He advised how adoption of the principles of 5 S and 3 M can benefit the industry.

The schemes of SIDBI for the knitwear industry were presented by Mr. S Sreepathy, AGM, SIDBI.

Mr. Tarun Jain , President , Bahadur Ke Knitters association advised that they have purchased land for making the office of the association and will look for a possibility of opening a common facility center at the association office. He also thanked Mr. Ashok Jain for his continuous support in the activities of the association.

Mr. Vishwabandhu, GM, District Industry Center gave an option of using government land for making a common facility center for the benefit of the industry.

The program was attended by various dignitaries and famous industrialist including Mr. Dinesh Lakra and Mr. Narinder Miglani. A special address was given by the Guest of Honor, Mr. R.C. Chopra Director MSME, Ludhiana.



Workshop on Fashion Forecast

Workshop on fashion Forecast was held at Ludhiana on March 23, 2010,. The event was attended by freelance designers and some participants from the local firms of the cluster.
The Seminar was held to make the local designers aware of the latest fashion forecast for the season Autumn Winter 2010-11. The designers from various domestic knitwear manufacturing companies participated in the program. The presentation covered the details on how forecasting is done and also on how the international fashion forecasts can be adapted by the designers creatively to adapt them to suit the local demand.

It also emphasized the importance of designing as per the latest silhouettes in vogue so that a contemporary collection can be accomplished depending on the target buyers of each manufacturing organization.

The seminar covered the various prominent agencies and websites where experienced fashion analysts scrutinize past buying patterns signs for current market dynamics and project these into the future. Activities of forecast agencies include collection of facts pertaining to consumer buying patterns, activities and occasions for which clothes are needed, their priorities, reading habits etc. This is done through liaison with stores, retailers and wholesalers and fashion professionals who also rely on information sources such as design, color and video services, newsletters, books, magazines and websites.

The expert advised that the latest materials which are going to dominate the markets this winter will be Shetland, alpaca, lambswool, cotton blends, brushed cottons, washes in various forms for upper and lower garments, basic checks, silk mixtures etc. The emphasis will be on layering of the garments as a style statement. The silhouettes will be varied from body fit to super straight leggings and fantasy inspired printed shirts will be seen. The designers working on their collections were asked to increasingly use their creativity instead of copying the designs from various websites and magazines to make their collection more effective.



Workshop on Energy Conservation Potential

A workshop was held at Hotel Friends Regency, Ludhiana on February 17, 2010 to discuss the results of the implementation of energy audits in the cluster. The workshop started with a brief review of the ongoing activities by the Mrs. Sanjeev Chaudhay, CDM. Mr Sanjiv Kale, Business Manager, Energy Audits and Utility Consultancy Division, Forbes Marshall, gave presentation on the results of the energy audits conducted in four dyeing units of the cluster. The major highlights of his presentation are as follows:

  • Cost of fuel has increased considerably even if the consumption in units is same.
  • Potential of saving in fuel cost for all units in cluster is in double digits.
  • Average saving potential in the units in which audits have been done is 27 %.
  • Discussion on ways to achieve and sustain savings and return on investment.
  • Steam accounts for 20 % of the operating cost in a dyeing unit.
  • Discussed ways and means of reducing steam cost in dyeing units.
  • Discussion on factors impacting fuel bill.
  • Findings in the cluster on boiler efficiency, feed water temperature and manual blow down.
  • Methods to improve boiler efficiency with existing equipments.
  • Impact on fuel bill by improving steam fuel ratio.
  • Average reduction of 8% in the total processing cost after implementation of recommendations.
  • Savings across other clusters were discussed.
  • Heat balance across dyeing machinery.
It was followed by an exhaustive interactive session, and queries of the industry stakeholders were answered. The program ended with a vote of thanks by Mr. Sanjeev Chaudhay, CDM.



Awareness workshop on institutionalization of Quality Management Systems

A half day awareness workshop on Institutionalization of Quality Management Systems was organized at Hotel Friends Regency in association with SGS India Ltd. on December 12, 2009. The Program started with a brief introduction about the SGS and its Consumer Testing Services Division.

The first session of the program was presented by Mr. Vinod Kumar, National sales Manager. He gave in depth information about CPSIA (Consumer Product Safety Improvement act), especially for children products specifically textiles. The trainer gave details about

1. Ban on Lead and phthalates in children products for below 12 yrs of age
2. Mandatory third party testing and certification and new safety standards
3. Lead in soft as well as hard components of products
4. Details of material specific exemptions like natural fibers, Synthetic fibers
5. Responsibility of manufacturer to comply with the guidelines
6. Limit for lead and phthalates in various products
7. Requirement of certificate of compliance for shipment to U.S.
8. Highlights in sampling for CPSIA (sample size)
9. Latest recalls from companies like Timberland and Lee.

The second session was presented by Mr Dileep Singh. He gave the details of REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals). The presentation included details on
1. Prelude to REACH Regulations, evolution and the new phase
2. REACH impact on Textile industry
3. SGS Solution to the challenges ahead.
4. Case sharing and Compliance requirement
5. Restricted substance list



Energy Audits

Complete Energy audits were conducted in various firms under voucher cost Scheme of SIDBI’s Cluster Development Program “Implementing BDS for MSMEs in Ludhiana knitwear cluster. This initiative is a part of World Bank led Umbrella project “SME Financing and Development project”. These audits were done within time period of four months i.e. November 2009 to February 2010. Apex Cluster Development Services Pvt. Ltd. coordinated Energy audits in the cluster and Forbes marshall carried out these audits in dyeing firms and the results have been eye-opening for the manufacturing firms. The detailed energy audit at dyeing units and stitching units was aimed at savings of energy in various forms i.e., fuel, steam, light, heat etc. In some dyeing units it was found that condensate recovery factor (CRF) was as low as 43% where as it can go up to 90%. So a huge scope of savings was found in this field. Pet coke is the main fuel used in most of the dyeing units. During audit it was found that oxygen percent in stack is high by 2-2.5% in pet coke fired boiler. Most of the units are using old machines and outdated technology and are not sure about cost of steam & energy consumption under various heads & categories. Cost of steam, energy was shown & discussed with them through energy audits and workshops.



Seminar on " Waste Minimisation in Wet Processing and Production"

A seminar was organized on "Waste Minimisation in Wet Processing and Production" at TEA E-readiness center on January 27, 2010. Main objective of seminar was to provide knowledge about the scientific tools & techniques for improvement of Quality and Minimisation of the wastages in Cutting ,Processing, Sewing and Finishing Departments and maximum utilization of the resources for achieving the higher profit for the organization.

The Seminar was successful in providing broad overview among the firms participated about the cause of waste in different departments and methods of avoiding unnecessary wastages by proper inventory planning and Statistical tools to be applied in the shop floor level to control the repair and rework of operational process.



"Use of ICT to improve Organisational Efficiency"

A seminar was organized on “Use of ICT to improve Organisational Efficiency” at NIFT TEA College Seminar Hall on January 31 , 2010. The seminar focused on providing awareness about the availability of the new technological tools, which will help the garment units at Tirupur to reduce the cost and time involved in production and to improve their competitiveness.

Areas covered by experts

1.Technological advancement in Colour Communication, which will reduce the time involved in sending physical sample for approval from the buyers

2.Technological tool for developing collaborative design / product development, which will help the local designers to work with international designers to make the sample developed by the exporters are acceptable by the overseas buyers.

3.Cost effective Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution for the garment industry which are suitable even to small and medium scale enterprises in the cluster, to help them to make right decision at right time and to establish effective organizational control.

The need for accuracy and speed in the highly competitive modern environment was elaborated to make the participants understand the importance of technical advancements in the industry. The usage of Information Communication Technology (ICT) was explained and clearly demonstrated in decision making as well as achieving functional competency. Live cases from the industry especially in dying, were discussed to help the firms avoid rejections, save time and reduce cost and wastages using ICT.



Seminar on "Productivity Improvement"

With the objective to provide information about Productivity Improvement for Tirupur Knitwear Cluster a seminar was organized at TEA ERC Hall on February 2, 2010. Mr. Venkat Ramani, Method Improvement consultant, delivered tools and techniques for arriving Standard Time for the Garment operations by effective time study and developed the suitable methods and tools in the Industrial Engineering techniques for the productivity improvement adhered with Work aids and ergonomics to reduce operational time / garment.

Seminar has given a brief idea about the latest tools and techniques for the productivity improvement by adopting industrial engineering concept in the garment industry. Also briefed the logic of arriving the standard time for the operation for achieving the target within the lead-time and preparation of operation bulletin for the effective control in the production.



Seminar on "Lean and Six Sigma Manufacturing Principles"

A seminar was organized to provide information to Tirupur Knitwear Cluster regarding Lean and Six Sigma Principles at TEA ERC Hall on March 2, 2010. These are modern production techniques adopted by various multinational companies all over the world to improve quality and to reduce cost, to stay competitive in today’s highly competitive market environment. The seminar highlighted the following areas:

  • Doing right things at the first time without rework and rejection
  • Exactly delivering the goods to customers’ specification with least stock without too much of logistics and handling.
  • Reducing the variation within the specification
  • Analysing the past performance and fixing the target for further improvement.
Prof. A Rajagopal, Executive In-charge for SQC & OR Unit of Indian Statistical Institute, Coimbatore, introduced various tools in Lean and Six Sigma Principles as "Keys" towards achieving better control over production to ensure quality and profitability by reducing - Reworks, Repair, Rejection etc.



Workshop for “Productivity Improvement in Garment industry”

Improving the productivity and minimizing the cost are the only ways to survive in today’s global competition. Therefore, ‘Workshop on Productivity improvement in Garment Industry’ was organized at TEA ERC, Tirupur on November 11, 2009 to sensitize the methods and tools that are available for improving the productivity in garment industry.

Mr. M. A. Sanjeevi, Ex-General Manager, Gokuldas Images Pvt. Ltd and an industrial engineer who worked in garment industry for nearly two decades, and has on hand experience in setting up number of state of art garment making units for them including one at Bangladesh, conducted the programme. In continuation of the workshop, it has also been proposed to ‘implement’ those productivity improvement tools and methods in the units, who are willing to take these principles as ‘pilots’. This programme is organized under the support of MSMEFD Project of World Bank. Considerable financial support will be extended under the project in the consultancy fees to the firms who are willing to implement those tools and techniques in their units.

The seminar has created the impact of the importance of Industrial Engineering and the application of Tools & Techniques used in the Method improvement for achieving the higher productivity. BDS have also demonstrated the case studies for the effective method of Time and Motion study. 30 Middle level Managers from various export houses have been benefited by attending the workshop and also requested to conduct the same type of workshop on periodic intervals for the benefit of the industry.



Seminar on "Personnel Effectiveness, Productivity & Success"

Seminar on "Personnel Effectiveness, Productivity & Success" was organized at TEA E-Readiness centre on December 23 – 24, 2009. Seminar created awareness about the importance of the Human Resource and the need of Training in the work place for the improvement of the systems in the organization by better Planning, Scheduling and controlling the activities effectively.

Linkages have been established with participant units to implement methods and tools for improving the effectiveness of the middle level managers and entrepreneurs in handling their subordinates to improve the productivity and to achieve the desired goal.



Seminar on "Opportunities for Product Diversification"

Even after decades of existence Tirupur Knitwear Cluster is concentrating mainly on high volume, standard cotton garments, which has low unit value realisation (UVR), even though opportunities exists to diversify its products like sportswear, swim wear and other functional textiles.
Reasons for the situation are many, like lack of awareness about the existence of market potential for such products, non availability information and technical support etc. Therefore, efforts were taken under the Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises Finance and Development Project (MSMEFD Project) of World Bank, to sensitise the opportunities that are existing for the exporters

and the sources for getting technical support to manufacture such value added garment through a seminar on ‘Opportunities for Product Diversification’ at NIFT –TEA College of Knitwear Fashion between on February 21, 2010.

Dr. Mike G Bartle, President of Society for Dyer’s and Colourists, the U.K., an international expert in manufacturing sportswear and performance wear; and is associated with manufacturing sportswear for leading international brands in the category, delivered lecture on the opportunities that exists for the knitwear manufacturers in Tirupur to diversify their product. He also illustrated, how a small organization started with 6 knitting machines in the UK have grown as an organization of international repute in sportswear, by integrating all the required facilities, gradually over period. He explained that product diversification need not be on larger scale, as any one presumes; it can be started with moderate investment and by utilizing the surplus capacity that are available locally. He also informed that it was not necessary to start the business only by associating with big brands, one can work with even with smaller brands, or they can have their own brand too, considering the size of the market countries like India has.

However, he emphasized the technology involved; and the chemicals and process to be applied should be of world standard. But for that, it would be difficult to survive in the market, as it requires considering various functional aspects like moisture absorption, anti microbial, anti static aspects in the garments.

Mr. C. N. Sivaramakrishnan, Consultant for specialized finishing in Mumbai and Honorary Secretary of Society for Dyers and Colourists, India, explained various types of finishing that could be given on the garments like water repellant, fire retardant, insect repellant etc. to make them most profitable one for the entrepreneurs in the retail market.

Mr. Parvez Koatadia, Country Manager, Society of Dyers and Colourists (SDC), India explained the activities that are taken by the Society for propagating professional knowledge in colour and the efforts taken by them to support the students, institutions and the professionals to enhance their knowledge in colour; and the benefits that may accrue for the members of the Society.

Mr. S. Samiappan, President, Dyers Association of Tirupur inaugurated the seminar and explained the need for organizing such seminar to enrich the knowledge of the entrepreneurs in the knitwear cluster.

Mr. Raja M. Shunmugam, Chairman, NIFT-TEA College of Knitwear Fashion emphasized the need for inculcating such knowledge to the managers and to the students of NIFT-TEA College of Knitwear Fashion to empower them to serve to the industry better. He also advised to conduct more prgorammes in areas like Lean Manufacturing to reduce the cost of operation in the industry and to make them more competitive under the project.

Mr. S. Periyasamy, Deputy Director, Textiles Committee delivered key note address and explained the need for the industry to transform itself by adopting technological changes in every functional aspects to survive in the competition.

Mr. S. S. Sankaramoorthi, Senior Technical Advisor, Apex Cluster Development Services Pvt. Ltd welcomed the dignitaries and the participants of the seminar; and assured to incorporate the suggestions that were put forth by the Chairman of NIFT-TEA College of Knitwear Fashion in the action plan of the project for the coming years to ensure that human resources skills in the cluster become pillar stones for the growth of the Tirupur Knitwear cluster.



Workshop on condition and maintenance of garment machinery

With the objective to increase awareness among technical staff & mechanics about latest sewing machines, repair of stitching machines, reducing breakdown time & increasing production efficiency, a workshop was organized on November 21, 2009 at Hotel Friends Regency under Project “Implementing BDS for MSMEs”. The workshop was attended by 40 machine mechanics. The program started with brief overview of the project by Mr. Sanjeev Chaudhary.

Mr. Amit, Pegasus, started the presentation with a brief detail of the company and its products. Mr. Piyara Singh, Pegasus, explained about the latest attachments that stop oil leakage in sewing machines and for better needle thread loop adjustment according to fabric requirement and the thread used for stitching. Guidelines for adjusting top cover thread were displayed and explained. Also the latest models were shown where all the attachments were being used. Needle plates that provide different stitches, decorative and functional were also displayed. Also special workstation for each operation for increased productivity and uniform production were displayed e.g., special workstation for bottom hemming with specific attachments for this operation.

Mr. Manpreet Singh, Brother, gave a brief profile of the company and its products and explained about basic functioning of the sewing machine. He also explained about various machines with minimum lubrication requirement like complete dry type and semi dry type machines. Also attachments for embroidered logo attachment and placket making were shown and working of the same were explained.

Mr Supreet Singh, Jay cee Enterprises, gave tips for maintenance of machines and explained working and repair mechanism of the latest machinery. He gave a motivating presentation to the workers and explained the machinery in detail.

The program concluded with vote of thanks by Mr Harvir Singh.



Workshop on Energy Efficiency Awareness

Under Project Implementing BDS for MSMEs “Workshop on Energy Efficiency Awareness” was organized at Hotel Gulmor, Ludhiana on November 6, 2009. Mr. J. P. Thukral gave comprehensive details on the subject focusing on the several method and ways to save energy during various manufacturing processes in any industry. He advised that the emerging & rapidly expanding industrial infrastructure has ample opportunities to increase their competitiveness by applying energy efficient based practices from the outset in new industrial facilities.

The common perception holds that energy efficiency of the industrial sector is too complex to be addressed through public policy whereas it is the other way round. Of late, it has been accepted that industrial energy efficiency is dependent on operational practices, which changes in response to variations in production volumes & product types.

The topics of discussion were Energy Conservation Act 2001, Benefits Of Energy Efficiency to industry, at Country and Global level. He also provided tips for energy efficiency and electricity in maintaining electric motors, fans and blowers, compressors, pumps and boilers, light system in buildings, insulation and D. G. sets. Duties of energy manager and need for management skills in energy management were also discussed.

For benefit of firms he shared strategies and aim of energy security, energy efficiency systems like principles and objectives of energy management, energy performance assessment, types of energy audits, pillars of successful energy management and futuristic energy approach.

The event was adjudged as a good platform for resolving Queries of the participant firms regarding Energy Conservation Act. It was also an informative and motivating session for energy efficiency and energy assessment for firms.