WOOL RESEARCH ASSOCIATION, THANE

AN OVERVIEW OF WOOL INDUSTRY

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Indian Wool Industry & Business Scenario

(Domestic & Global)
(Tables I, II & III)
Table I - Estimated Production & Exports of Woolen Items
Item Production (Quantity) 105 29 84 12 13 25 8 mil kg mil kg mil mt mil pcs mil kg mil pcs mil sq.mt Exports (Value Cr.) 329 107 301 54 886 402 2556

Yarn (Woolen /Worsted/Shoddy) Wool Tops

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Fabric (Woolen/Worsted/Shoddy) Blankets (shoddy /worsted) Knitwears /RMG Shawls/Scarves/Stoles & Mufflers Handmade carpets

Machine made carpets

Miscellaneous Total - Rs. In crores

0.50 mil sq.mt

-

1
9.00 4645 2/19

Table II - Indian Wool Business Scenario

Total Indian Textiles & Clothing, Exports Size : $ 36 billion. Contribution of Wool Textiles & Clothing to this : 7% Wool Fibre Consumption as % of Total Textile Fibre : 2% Global Share of Indian Textile & Clothing Exports Global Share of Wool Textiles & Clothing : : 3 % (value) 1 % (value)

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Indian Textile Sector hands employed Indian Wool Sector - - do -

: :

82 million 1.5 million

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Table III - Share of Wool Exports from India in various important sectors :
Indian share of world figures* Wool Top Exports 1.0 % Worsted Wool Yarn Exports 3.16% Woolen Yam Exports 1.5 % Wool Worsted Fabric Exports 2.23% Wool Knitwear Exports 4.34% Wool Menswear Exports 9.56% Wool Womenswear Exports 4.86% Wool Blankets Exports 27.0 % % by weight of above catgs. (by value 1%) 3.6 %
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Infrastructure for Technical Upgradation

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a. Professionally Competent Manpower Quote by Christiansen : A country that trains its engineers and technologists well, then rewards them both with real and psychic income should have little trouble competing in a world economy that thrives on trading high quality hi tech products over international boundaries.

b. Availability of Development
c.

Resources

and

Integrated

Latest Machinery & Technology

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Technological Upgradation Status & Challenges

Indian Wool Fibre

Breeding Classification Marketing Speciality Firbes Pashmina & Angora

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Technological Upgradation Status & Challenges

R& D Programme under IWIP through
: (Shoddy, Woolen, Worsted, Knitwear & Carpets sections) Ministry of Textiles, Ministry of Agriculture & Animal Husbandry & Central Wool Development Board with the mission : Special emphasis relating to sheep breeding and sheep well being to improve Wool Quality & meat Quantity.

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Improvement of the woolen yarn industry and pre & post loom processing.
Support to the cottage industry for product development, design and R&D inputs, etc. Widening the market for Indian wool beyond the Indian carpet industry Development of Cashmere & Angora fibre quality ,yield and processing.
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On-going Technological Upgradation (Global)

(Slides 8 14)

On the farms Wool Fibre / ESP

Plasma treated Wool & Angora Optim Wool Fibre

- modify surface characteristics

Organic Wool for wellness & healthy ecology.

Chlorinated wool (Hercoset) Superwash, Polymer for Handle Carpet wools are specially treated by New Zealanders called Aurora. To reconceive wool as source of unique protein capable of forming the base of new biopolymer products supplying radically new value chain from cosmetic to adhesive. Wool fibre in Building structures, Medical pads.

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Team 3 formula for Global Benchmarking for Top makers.

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Yarn & Fabric Formation

No revolutionary change in the basic technology has taken place, but automation, precision setting and monitoring systems, providing linkages between processes (also resulting in rationalisation). Among basic methods of yarn formation Ring Spinning still commands the fort after introductions of Airjet Spinning, Friction Spinning, Rotar Spinning.

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New attachments on Ring - for compact yarn (others - Siro, Solo, Bicomponent, Stretch yarns, etc).
On the fabric weaving side, with the advent of new fibres and different technologies product designing has played the major role alongwith productivity improvements of the fabric forming machines (for woven, knitted and non-woven fabrics), eg Shuttleless loom with different weft insertion techniques, adding electronics for sophistication and quality upgradation.

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Dyeing
Challenging research in the field of examples. new dyes and auxiliaries - Some

Reactive Dyes for Black shade in tone, depth and fastness is being developed. Eg. Cibas Lanosol Black PV for wool Work for achieving high light fastness on wool to compete with fastness of pigment dyed synthetics. Adoption of polyurethane elastane in wool and polywool fabrics posed problem of colour bleeding, which was due to superficial staining of elastane by disperse colours. Specific auxiliaries and methods need to be employed in dyeing of Superwash wool. Anti-setting chemicals used during Wool Dyeing to achieve desired fabric properties.

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Fabric Finishes
Concept of WELLNESS is no more a fashionable term for textile consumers. Most of the innovations are directed towards providing protection to the life style by providing protective clothing, functional finishes and smart textiles. It has become possible to provide Vitamin C & E through stockings, telephones in jackets, musical clothings responding to body comfort requirements.

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To produce total easy care i.e. machine washability, luxurious soft handle, lustrous sheen is being imparted by treatments like Basolan process The Stone Wash Denim is now being produced by enzymes Lot of R&D has taken place in perfecting wool bleaching, but still it continues UV Absorbers for wool against harmful effects of light and heat radiations e.g. Cibafast W which could be applied in the dye bath or directly to be fabric. These cannot be used with fluorescent brighteners.

Contd.

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Fabric Finishes
Bio-polishing of wool is again name given to controlled enzyme antifelting treatment to get reduced prickle, reduced pilling, better handle, increase softness, cleaner appearance and improved drape. Mechanical /chemical stretch, also called natural stretch in wool fabrics. This is a effect of controlled chemical treatment, one such commercial process being Aro-Stretch (Italy) developed in collaboration with IWS. Anti- soil and anti-static finishes are being tried to improve wear performance. Composite (multi layer fabric) clothing example High Altitude Clothing light, protecting cold, wind and rain- middle layer of wool fleece (quick wicking ability with insulator, retain 30% moisture before feeling wet). Smart Textiles & Intelligent textiles. Bleeping bikini for sun seekers to prevent them falling asleep. Inbuilt sensing and reacting electrical, thermal, magnetic and chemical STIMULI . For scores of uses. Health and Defence .
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Machinery & Equipment

Customized machine lines are being manufactured under license from Process Developers /Upgradation of machines taking place in consultation with new technologies e.g. Wool Scouring Machine by Andars, New Zealand and Sirolan CF by CSIRO, Australia.
Super wash Wool Production by Kroy, Kroy Shrink-proofing Plant for wool top. This is being developed by Kroy, Canada and CMT, Italy. For Wool Top making many innovations have taken place in the offering of combing machines Era by NSC, France and Millennium by St. Andrea. Suzuki Automatic Sample Warper, controlling upto 8 warp yarns.

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Contd

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Machinery & Equipment

- Electronically controlled automatic Drawing-in machines, Electronic Dobby, Electronic Jacquard has simplified earlier complicated processes. - Revolutionary changes are taking place in the upgradation and designing of finishing machines for different operations, with automation, process control & converting batch into continuous process.

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Developing innovative attachments for ring frame to produce yarn with difference in quality, latest example being Compact Spinning.

Fully Automatic Dye House from dye to dyed material.

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Priority Areas for Technological Upgradation

(Slides 15-19)

Fibre Chemical Technology & Processing Machinery & Equipment Technological Dissemination

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Fibre

- Improving Quality and Yield of good Carpet wools from sheep. - Wool Shearing, Grading and Certification

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- Centralised Marketing domestic & exports.

ESP for modification of fibre properties Chemical modification / Scouring process upgradation. (Indian & Imported wool ).

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Chemical Technology & Processing

Dyeing, Bleaching & Printing Technology for wool.

- M/c washable, Shrink proofing, wrinkle free, minimum iron finish Carpet finishes, electrostatic charge dissipation, soil release (Exterior), soil attraction (Interior). - Exotic blend products Wool Viscose, Wool Silk, Wool Polyamide etc for comforts and cost. Wool with Angora and Cashmere for luxurious products. - Memory suits & garments, high altitude wears, bullet-proof wears, etc import substitution Improve fine Indian wool products by finishing.

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- Special effect fabrics with special finishing techniques- for comfort and aesthetics. - Mfg. & Dev. Of Special chemicals and auxiliaries 17/19

Machinery & Equipment Indigenisation & Upgrading Existing - At par

- Wool fibre scouring upgradation ( fine fibres , grease recovery etc ) - Carding (woolen and worsted )

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Dehairing for Pashmina & Angora fibres.

Sample looms with electronic Jacquard Fabric scouring cum milling , Dyeing fibre and fabric . Testing equipments.

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Technological Dissemination

To Decentralised Sector R & D outcome by Projects & Workshops in clusters. By Establishing Wool Technology Parks in three main clusters and establishing common facility centres. Upgrading R&D facilities at suitable institutions. By exclusive publications of R&D activities (wool)..

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THANKS !
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