Chemical Countermeasures
And Advanced Materials Laboratory
December, 2021
Dec 6
Dec 17
Dec 29
Dec 29
Cotton Price May Remain at Current Level
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, December 6, 2021)—Strong cotton demand is driving the price.
The 79th plenary session, “Fortifying the Cotton Supply Chain: New Approaches to New Challenges,” of the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) began today.
Cotton prices at the current level may last during the 2021/22 season, but chances of going beyond the current higher levels are not there, stated Mr. Matthew Looney, Data Scientist, ICAC.
With production higher in the United States and Brazil, going into the 2021/22, stocks are available to satisfy the demand.
With holiday season ahead, there will be demand enhancement for cotton and textile products. But factors such as supply chain bottlenecks, the emergence of Omicron variant, may affect consumer buying.
“If we have demand increase, stocks will be there,” added Mr. Looney. In talking recently to a veteran cotton purchaser for a major textile mill in India, mills are expecting leveling of cotton price. Mills are cautiously buying cotton say for 10-day production needs and hoping that new arrivals will bring down the price in India.
“Prices cannot remain high,” stated Lorena Ruiz, Economist at ICAC. When prices crossed 90 cents range in previous seasons, prices came down in the following seasons added Ruiz.
Countries like Vietnam, Bangladesh have increased textile manufacturing and hence demand for cotton.
While demand is still driving the price, given the stock levels, price levels may remain at current level but hoping for higher level may not be feasible. However, it is not precisely possible to predict how prices may trend given the supply-demand situation.
What is Sustainable Cotton?
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, December 17, 2021)—Sustainable products are the focus these days and industries must do a better job in research and communication with customers.
The 79th plenary meeting of the International Cotton Advisory Committee dedicated good amount of time in discussing this important topic.
A recent discussion with Dr. Kater Hake, Vice President for Agricultural and Environmental research at Cary-based Cotton Incorporated provided good insights on sustainability.
To a question on “What is Sustainable Cotton,” Dr. Hake aptly answered, any sustainable product has to meet the needs of human globally without sacrificing the wants of the future generation.” Cotton sector from fiber to fashion supply chain is working hard towards this goal.
Cotton is tolerant to drought and salts and is grown in rainfall deficient regions like West Texas and Africa. Growers are adopting many sustainable practices such as no or reduce till, reduced fertilizer inputs, while aligning sustainability with profitability stated Dr. Hake.
I have articulated sustainability as a System with 3Es: 1) Environmental; 2) Energy and 3) Economical in an article, ”Sustainability in the industry: where do we go next?,” [https://advancedtextilessource.com/2018/12/10/sustainability-in-the-industry-where-do-we-go-next/].
Cotton crop provides job for many farmers in countries like India where a farmer may own one hectare or less. This helps with social sustainability giving opportunities for farmers in developing regions of the world.
While there is no doubt that sustainable products come with cost, but over a period and life cycle of the products, the cost gets absorbed. As the cotton prices are riding above one dollar per pound now, with inflation high in four decades in the United States, how such increased cost would be received by consumers is interesting to observe.
One solution to tackle this price issue with natural fibers is to increase global production to reduce the price, stated Cairo-based Professor Mohamed Negm, Chairman of International Cotton Researchers’ Association. Perhaps, the global cotton production should increase to 35 million metric tons/year from the current level of about 25 million tons/year, added Professor Negm.
While technical textiles sector is dominated by synthetics, there is growing interest and push to go plastic free. “Sustainability can mean different things to different people, so there are a wide variety of sustainability claims made to get on this bandwagon, using terms like “natural” and “free from” and adding small percentages cotton, hemp, wood-based fibers and others. There is a push for a “plastic-free” wipes substrate by 2025, and a lot of material science activity to achieve this,” stated Dave Rousse, President of Cary-based Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry (INDA).
Climate change issue has heightened the need to go sustainable in all sectors. Immediate need is to engage in dialogue with all stakeholders, particularly with consumers by improved communication strategy.
More importantly, immediate research investments need to be made by both private and public entities. Benefits to such investments are huge, stated Dr. Hake by highlighting few developments that have happened in the cotton sector like increased fiber strength, which has led to reduction in the weight of cotton garments and the amount of fiber needed to make durable products.
Plastic pollution is small water systems and large marine environments is attracting due attention, which drives the sustainable development of biodegradable products.
Value-added Textiles will be Growth Engine
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, December 29, 2021)--Value-addition in textiles will be the driver.
Coimbatore, India-based The South India Textile Research Association (SITRA) today is conducting its 33rd Technological Conference after a hiatus of two years in hybrid mode. The need to grow the textile industry beyond its established strengths such as spinning and knitting is being discussed.
Dr. Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu, noted industrialist and the Chairman of Council of Administration of SITRA made a clarion call to the industry to actively participate in the research institute’s project. Noting that capacity addition is happening not only in spinning, but also in other areas such as home textiles, made-up garments, collaborative efforts are needed, added Dr. Jayavarthanavelu.
SITRA has been playing a vital role in helping the Indian textile sector enhance its knowledge base and manufacturing capability in medical textiles.
Excellence in cotton R & D has to be translated into value-added textiles, stated Dr. S. K. Sundararaman, Vice-Chair of The Southern India Mills’ Association.
Dr. Prakash Vasudevan, Director of SITRA in his welcome address made a call for greater interaction of industry personnel with other institutes to translate technologies to commercial scale.
Industry-academia participation is vital in moving the textiles sector to the next level. In this aspect, a collaboration between this scribe and Aruppukottai-based Jayalakshmi Textiles, 73,000 spindles cotton spinning mill has resulted in a sustainable industrial textile product. Texas Tech University has been collaborating with this textile mill in developing value-added cotton products that have applications beyond the regular fiber to fashion supply chair.
Translation of research to reality is need of the hour. Such technological conferences provide much needed support to grow the industry.
Opportunities for Textiles Sector in 2022 and Beyond
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, December 29, 2021)—Enhancing product basket, creating new applications and value-addition will prove beneficial for the global textiles sector.
Today, albeit 6.30AM U.S. CST for me, it was such a relish to join for a discussion on the status of the textiles industry hosted by Coimbatore-based Indian Texpreneurs Federation (ITF).
As the cotton price is trending around US$1.10, obviously discussion centered around the price of raw materials. Having asked to talk about what is on the horizon for the sector, I placed my views on mid to long-term understanding of the textiles landscape.
In planning ahead for any sector, it is important to focus on “4S” which is the concept adopted by U.S. Department of Defense: 1) Sense; 2) Shape; 3) Shield and 4) Sustain (and Grow). This planning pyramid fits well for the textiles sector, as we plan on stocking raw materials and focus on growth.
Good planning on stocking raw materials is the key. Exploring different blend options will help with cost balancing as well as finding new applications. Indian textiles sector should look for product enhancement stated Mr. Dinakaran, noted textile industrialist and former Chairman of Coimbatore-based The Southern India Mills’ Association (SIMA). He explained how China utilized new fibers such as Modal, etc., and offered new blends to the world market.
While sustainability is keenly looked at by the world markets, incremental developments such as the use of recycled materials will be a step in the right direction.
Countries like India, which once used to enjoy labor cost advantages must go for lean manufacturing and value-addition as the competitive advantage is eroding.
Although there is no crystal ball answer on what’s on the horizon, I feel, one should look at the sector as a four-legged table and all the four legs should be balanced to put the table to use. These are: 1) Technology; 2) Cost; 3) Marketing and 4) Messaging.
Looking at 50 or so industrial leaders who participated in the 2-hour discussion coordinated by ITF, it is pleasing to report enthusiasm is high to take the industry forward with innovation 360 degrees in 2022 and beyond.
November, 2021
Nov 8
Nov 17
Textile Sector on a Roller Coaster Ride
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, November 08, 2021)—Natural calamities and manmade actions are having negative impact on the textile sector.
With cotton prices trading high probably due to speculation, downstream textile processing units are under stress.
Raw materials cost, supply chain issues, power situation in India, pandemic effect are all contributing to the current roller coaster situation.
“There is no need to go into panic mood and stockpile cotton,” stated Mr. Velmurugan Shanmugam, General Manager of Aruppukkottai, India-based Jayalakshmi Textiles. Jayalakshmi Textiles is a leading cotton spinning mill with 70,000 ring spindles with an average yarn count of 75s Ne. Mills in India start buying the new crop during November and January months. Mills are waiting and watching and opting for short term stocking cotton. “Right now, we are stocking 10 days’ worth of cotton need only,” added Velmurugan Shanmugam.
Globally, there is demand for cotton due to tight supply and lack of last year’s crop of good quality. As the world is moving away from severe COVID-19 situation, stimulus monies provided by governments like the United States is helping with consumer demand.
The price hike is not limited to cotton alone, polyester prices are increasing. “Polyester price has increased by about 35%, due to hike in crude’s price and supply chain issues,” stated Mr. Krishnasamy Pothiraj, Coimbatore, India-based textile consultant. The power shortage in India, especially coal shortage is affecting manufacturing sector such as cotton ginning. Petroleum based products are having price increases, resulting in price enhancements in fertilizers, etc. All these factors are having compounding effect on raw materials’ price.
With the major “Diwali,” festival season nearly over in India, how will consumer react to price increases is interesting to watch.
Textile industry must carefully watch the market and pay attention to consumer sentiments before going for stockpiling of raw materials.
While the raw material price increase is being absorbed currently by the downstream processors, it may not be sustainable. Going on panic buying will lead to a situation as witnessed in 2011, which will not work, agrees Velmurugan Shanmugam.
Industry is under watch and wait situation—a right plan at the present scenario.
Cotton Production vis-à-vis Price
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, November 17, 2021)—Demand, speculation and consumer awareness on natural fibers are all driving the cotton price, while new crop situation is healthy.
Recently, India’s largest textile mills federation, The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI) has made clarion call to bring stability to cotton and yarn prices, by avoiding panic buying and having minimal stock. Mr. T. Rajkumar, Chairman of CITI in communication to members has brought attention to the fact that there has been record crop in India and the new season has started with an opening stock of 7.5 million bales (170 Kgs/bale).
According to United States Department of Agriculture, global production, and consumption in 2021/22 will be higher with ending stocks lower than the previous year. This is indeed a positive news for the cotton textile sector in terms of demand for cotton products.
Global textile industry is hoping that with healthy cotton crops in India and United States this year, the market will cool down by the beginning of December. Textile industry leaders are advising against stockpiling, as expressed by Mr. Velmurugan Shanmugam, General Manager of 70,000 spindles cotton yarn mill in Arruppukkottai, India, a few days ago.
United States’ production this marketing year (2021/22) is expected to be 18.2 million bales (480 lbs. each) and the export is projected to be 15.50 million bales. Cotton exports from the United States is strong with good demand from Pakistan, Vietnam, and Turkey. China is still the number one importer of U. S. cotton.
High Plains of Texas is having good crop this year. 3.5 million bales (480 lbs. per bale) are expected in the area serviced by Lubbock Classing Office, which is substantially higher than last year’s production. “It is a big crop and the quality is good,” stated Danny Martinez, Area Director, USDA Cotton Classing Office, Lubbock. With the data available from Lubbock Classing Office, based on 700,000 bales classed so far this season, average strength has been around 30.53 g/tex, staple length of about 36.18 mm, with 48% of micronaire in the premium range.
In India, while production is slightly higher than domestic consumption, supply is expected to be tight with exports pegged at 5.80 million bales. According to USDA, India’s domestic consumption will be about 25.8 million bales (480 lbs. each), showing strong demand.
Arrivals have been picking up in India and spinning mills’ associations are encouraging cautious handling of the situation so that unwarranted hike in prices can be softened. As is slowly happening and expected by end-users, prices will soften by December, which is eagerly awaited by manufactures and consumers.
Recent happenings in the cotton textile supply chain have shown that the demand for cotton products is real and growing—encouraging trend for farmers and the manufacturing sector. Having just come out of the United Nations’ COP 26 Summit, the need for sustainable products will be growing, which is a positive sign towards sustainable world and hence the consumption of natural products.
October 4, 2021
October 4
October 7
October 13
Nobel Prize, Touch and Textiles
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, October 4, 2021)— 2021 Nobel Prize in Medicine reveals interesting connection with textiles.
Today, Stockholm-based The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute announced the coveted prize for the discoveries on receptors related to touch and temperature.
Dr. David Julius of the University of California, San Francisco, and Dr. Ardem Patapoutian of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Scripps Research, La Jolla, USA have been jointly awarded the Nobel prize.
Responses to stimuli such as warmth or cold, friction and outside pressure play important role in the consumer acceptance of textile and other products. The basic work undertaken by the Nobel laureates will give us a better understanding on the sensory perception at molecular level.
This year’s recognition has a personal touch with this scribe as I am involved with the understanding of the touch of fabrics and undertook doctoral dissertation research on the hand of fabrics at the University of Leeds, U.K during 1994-1998.
Cotton is presold based on its comfort and its next to skin friendliness and wool is preferred for its thermal comfort, which depend on the neural responses based on external stimuli such as smooth or rough, hot or cold, etc. In fact, the hot chemical compound in capsicum chili played its part in this year’s Nobel.
Textile scientists for decades have worked to better simulate the feel or touch of fabrics. A major field known as “Hand,” evolved during the 1970s due to the pioneering efforts of Japanese scientists Professor Sueo Kawabata, Professor Niwa and Dr. Matsuo, that led to a standardized evaluation method.
My research interest on the touch or feel of fabrics was kindled due to the research efforts of Professor Venkatraman Subramaniam of Chennai-based A. C. Tech., Anna University. In the 1980s and 90s, Professor Subramaniam, supported many doctoral research in India and the field of hand evaluation blossomed there.
The field of touch or haptics is multidisciplinary in nature involving tribology, mechanics, materials science, neuroscience, etc. The work at Leeds during 1994-98 led to the development of artificial human finger to evaluate the feel of fabrics using polymethyl siloxane to mimic human finger.
With more emphasis on sustainable materials, how these materials appeal to consumers matter and hence both basic and applied level research is needed in the textile sector on the feel of fabrics.
This year’s Nobel prize reiterates the importance of sensory science in textiles and allied fields.
Indian Cotton Production to Enhance this Decade
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, October 7, 2021)—India’s cotton production might reach 43 million bales (170 Kgs each) by 2030.
The Confederation of Indian Textile Industry, as part of Global Cotton Day celebration organized an informative virtual event on Indian cotton sector, today.
Productivity, quality and contamination issues occupied the center stage of discussion.
Indian cotton production is expected to be about 42-43 million bales (170 Kgs/bale) by the end of this decade, stated Mr. G. Chandrasekar, senior journalist who has been covering the Indian cotton sector for many decades. Indian consumption may reach 40 million bales and the demand may see increase, added Chandrasekar.
Stakeholders emphasized the importance of quality both in terms of contamination as well as adulteration. Awareness of contamination has been increasing at farm level and the issue at gin level needs addressing, stated Atul Ganatra, President of Cotton Association of India.
The event was graced by Mr. Piyush Goyal, Honorable Union Minister of Textiles, Government of India, who emphasized the importance of enhancing the yield and paying attention to quality. He highlighted the importance of research translation, “lab to farm,” and nudged the stakeholders to work on the “culture of quality.”
The minister encouraged the Indian textile sector to be a global player pointing out to the yield per hectare issue in India, which is at 457 Kg/hectare that is far behind the global average of 757 Kg/hectare.
While yield and quality issues are getting the right focus, there is a timely need to enhance the market for cotton both in terms of geographical outreach and products. In this regard, possibility of collaborations to enable cotton as a sustainable candidate in the technical textiles sector has to be given serious discussion.
An ongoing collaboration between Texas Tech University, USA and Aruppukkotai, India-based Jayalakshmi Textiles has resulted in cotton-based oil absorbent. Jayalakshmi Textiles has been a leading cotton spinner and its efforts to venture into technical textiles products is a positive direction towards diversification.
Nobel Economics and the Textiles Sector
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, October 12, 2021)—Big day plays important role in making interventions and policy decisions.
Yesterday (October 11), the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences while announcing the Economic Prize in Memory of Alfred Nobel recognized the power of real-world data.
Professors David Card, Joshua Angrist and Guido Imbens were awarded the economics prize for their work related to natural experiments involving empirical data in analyzing markets such as labor.
Natural experiments are those that happen due to policy interventions such as those by imposing minimum wage, tariffs, etc. and can serve as useful alternatives to randomized trials to analyze cause and effects such as the growth of industrial sectors. This field came to prominence in the early 1990s due to the efforts of economists Alan Krueger and David Card.
Sectors like textiles, agriculture, food service, domestic service, which are labor intensive can benefit from empirical and behavioral economics. Analyzing empirical data rather than theoretical modeling will be more ideal in suggesting changes to grow the sectors, as was the case of the Nobel winning work of this year’s laureates.
Textile sector is dependent on the discretionary spending power, socio-economic conditions and cultural preferences. Therefore, analysis of big data on the spending pattern will help the industry to plan its growth. Particularly now when raw material prices are high and the growing power crisis in China and India, which are major textile manufacturing hubs, planning based on big data will be helpful.
In recent years, the use of data and empirical modeling have been helpful in predicting the growth of the Indian technical textiles sector. In 2008, I predicted the growth of this industry to be in double digits based on GDF growth rate and per capita income in India comparing with the United States. The work resulted in the report,” India Rising: Opportunities in Nonwovens and Technical Textiles,” [https://today.ttu.edu/posts/2021/06/Images/IndiaRising.pdf]. The empirical modeling as advocated by this year’s Nobel work showcased the growth pattern of India’s technical textiles sector, which was later validated by actual data for the following years.
Interestingly, this year’s Nobel prizes in Medicine, Physics and Economics provide ample clues for the textile and allied sectors in terms of planning and developing new products such as sustainable and green textiles.
Textiles sector will benefit from the gathering of reliable data and undertaking credible analysis such as price, consumer trends, manufacturing costs with and without policy interventions to chart its next course.
Nobel in economics underscores the necessity of empirical and behavioral analysis.
August, 2021
Aug 3
Aug 9
Aug 25
Changing Virus War and Face Masks
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, August 3, 2021)—Delta variant has shifted the war on the viral pandemic reopening the use and debate on face masks.
On July 30th, United States saw a single day infection increase of 103,366 cases, highest daily increase since February 2021, which is attributed to the high transmissible Delta variant.
Recent information from the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that in rare situations, fully vaccinated people get infected with Delta variant, which may not be severe to the infected. However, because of the amount of viral loads in infected people in nasal pharynx and throat, they can be carriers and can infect others—particularly unvaccinated people.
It is clear from the recent findings that the coronavirus is airborne and hence apart from vaccines, non-medical countermeasures like face masks are life savers.
On July 27, 2021, CDC has recommended the use of face masks in indoor public spaces where Delta variant surge is high and breakthrough infections are emerging. CDC has also recommended the use of face masks in schools in the United States as the new school season begins soon.
Face masks that have filtering ability, provide tight fit and give good form or comfort will find applications as barrier materials to counter infections.
Ongoing research on cotton and blends-based face coverings in the Nonwovens & Advanced Materials Laboratory at Texas Tech University has found that surgical 3-ply surgical face masks can have 60-80 % filtration capability of fine particles ranging from 30 nm to 150 nm, which is normally the size range of corona virus.
While N95 filters are the gold standard, continuous usage of them may not be possible due to comfort issue. In speaking to this scribe, an internal medicine expert from Toronto, Canada stated that N95 masks can be worn continuously for a period up to 60 minutes. In isolation wards where acute COVID-19 patients are treated, such N95 masks, medical gowns and other precautions are necessary.
Surgical masks and enhanced face covers can provide some barrier efficiency against virus and are highly recommended in areas where there are high and substantial infections due to Delta variant.
Public must be informed about different face masks and their filtration and protection capabilities to make informed judgement.
Face masks are life savers and will find its place until the whole world is vaccinated.
Skill Sets for the Textile Sector
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, August 7, 2021)—Skill set enhancement, product enhancements and new ideas are the way forward for the textile sector.
Today, as a way of celebrating National Handloom Day in India, stakeholders gathered via virtual platform in an event organized by Coimbatore-based Kumaraguru College of Technology (KCT) in collaboration with Textile Sector Skill Council (TSSC).
Enhancing manpower skills and developing new products were suggested as necessities for the textile sector. Supporting skilled handloom and other technical associates of the textile industry to grow the industry is important, as we come out of COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. T. Rajkumar, Chairman of India’s TSSC, highlighting how the handloom sector is flexible in handling different fibers and designs, emphasized the need to develop new and sustainable textile products. He highlighted that continuous skill development will enhance the industry’s sustainability as is evident with development of new textile products from exotic fibers such as kenaf, organic cotton, etc.
While it was 4.30AM (US CST) for me, it was such a relish to attend the virtual event as I have just recently articulated the importance of professional, practical and soft skill enhancements in an article, “Surviving Skills in a Complex World,” Pallikkutam Magazine, August 2021.
Professor J. V. Rao, CEO of TSSC, while briefing about skill councils, emphasized the importance of training modules developed and taught by professional and practitioners of the trade. Training needs to imparted not only on the technical aspects but also on marketing and trading added, Professor Rao. With over 5 decades of contribution to the textile sector, Professor Rao stated institutes can collaborate with industry and industry bodies like skill development councils to bridge skill gaps. Such continuous training is not only necessary for technical personnel but also for non-production floor personnel. Schemes such as Recognition of Prior Learning give credit to the skills acquired through nonformal routes, which will serve as motivation for youngsters to enter the industry such as the handloom sector as well as utilize opportunities to improve their career through formal routes.
It is my view that in addition to technical and professional skill development, soft skills like flexibility, adaptability, managing critical situations, cost controlling, etc., aspects need to be imparted on a regular basis.
Need to focus on heritage (specialty) and common products as a way of growing the industry was stressed by Dr. P. Thennarasu, Director of Indian Institute of Handloom Technology, Varanasi, India.
The need to utilize online tools such as e-commerce platform was urged by Professor G Ramakrishnan, Department of Fashion Technology, KCT. To effectively utilize e-commerce, the industry needs to focus on enhancing the product basket and practice collective approach by enlisting support from Government agencies, stated Dr. Thennarasu.
As is a mandatory requirement in the medical profession, having continuous professional development programs, such as those provided by skill development councils and other educational institutions will be beneficial to those employed in textile and manufacturing sectors.
While efforts are ongoing on imparting training in various fields within the textile industry, concerted effort is needed to disseminate both academic and practical knowledge in the technical textile sector. The need has heightened with the current pandemic situation where face masks and other personnel protective equipment are life savers.
Face Masks for KidsBy Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, August 25, 2021)—With the new academic year just started in the United States, what type of face masks are needed?
There is debate and discussion going on regarding the use of face masks for school children who cannot be vaccinated yet and the necessity of these masks as an important countermeasure.
Ongoing research in our laboratory has shown that layered masks are better compared to single layer masks. As comfort is a factor, in addition to filtration, next-to-skin comfort can be provided using a cotton layer and additional layers can be used to enhance filtration. While N95 masks are the gold standard, 3-ply face masks can provide filtration of small particles with a filtration efficiency in the range of 80-90 percent, proving multilayered masks are needed.
Dr. Harvinder Gill, a vaccine researcher and professor of chemical engineering at Texas Tech University stated, “PPEs are the first line of safety for researchers working for treatments and cures against infectious diseases and for the frontline responder working during times of crisis to help the affected people.” He added, “While vaccination can protect people, the virus can still infect the vaccinated folks, and without them even knowing could be the carriers of virus in the community. By wearing face masks, this vicious cycle of transmission can be stopped, and the pandemic can see its end.”
Since July, there is rise of COVID-19 cases due to the emergent Delta variant, which has genuinely heightened the need for vaccinations and other protective measures. On July 27th, United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended the use of face masks in indoor public settings, as this variant has been found to be more contagious.
Face masks have shown to reduce the transmission and with the unavailability of vaccines for kids under the age of 12, with schools resuming in person teaching after a one full year, parents are genuinely concerned about safety. Even with the full approval of one COVID-19 vaccine on August 23rd, it is unlikely that vaccines will be available for kids below the age of 12 by the end of this year. This view was expressed by Dr. Francis Collins, Directed of the United States’ National Institutes of Health in a recent radio interview.
Dr. Srinivasan Narasimhan, Managing Director of Chennai-based Asthagiri Herbal Research Foundation, who carried out research under Nobel laureate Herbert Brown stated, “In countries where vaccines are not yet available for large population, and in those regions where population density is high, other countermeasures such as face masks are needed.” He added, “With schools resuming in person tutoring from this Fall, it is important to consider safety measures like wearing face masks and practicing hygiene.” His organization is working on natural herbs based antimicrobial formulations for impregnating cotton and other materials.
Face masks that have multiple layers are needed, which will serve as barrier to the transmission of microbes. Commercially available masks have two to four layers made using knitted and woven fabric structures. Further research is needed to determine the material type, construction details of masks and comfort factors that will lead to greater acceptability of PPEs in the future.
July, 2021
July 13
July 23
COVID-19 Era and Material Advancements
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, July 13, 2021)-Functional and advanced materials are shining in the wake of COVID-19, as they are recognized as important live saving materials.
As COVID-19 starts to slowly fade away with full vaccination, economic activities will rise with enhanced consumer spending. Awareness has risen on the need and use of earth friendly materials like cotton and the need for advanced materials to cater to needs of citizens for all walks of life from medicine to infrastructure.
Coimbatore, India-based Kumaraguru College of Technology (KCT) has realized the timely need to disseminate information on ongoing research in materials science to wider audience. KCT is organizing a three-day virtual event, “International Conference on Materials Research in Science and Engineering,” (July 23-25, 2021). Leading experts representing academia, industry, and research organizations such as India’s Defense Research and Development Organization are participating in the event. In speaking about the conference, Dr. D. Saravanan, Principal of the college stated, “It is an opportunity during this pandemic to exchange thoughts and research ideas for a safe and healthy world. Carefully selected themes such as sustainable materials, PPE and functional materials will help the researchers to collaborate and propose novel solutions to the problems”.
Professor Eric Hequet, a leading expert in cotton quality who is the Associate Vice President for Research at Texas Tech University will provide a keynote on the importance of cotton fiber quality. With the textile industry’s growing interest in sustainable materials, it is important that good quality cotton fibers are used by the industry. “Sustainability is essential to the long-term success of the textile industry. We need to reduce the environmental impact of our industry from the fiber production to consumer, including the final disposal of textile products. In addition, the economic and social impacts must be considered,” opined Professor Hequet.
Professor Gang Sun of University of California, Davis will address a timely topic on the development of antiviral and antibacterial masks. “It is evident from the ongoing pandemic that the current PPEs for protecting both professionals and publics may not be perfect. Development of functional textiles that can meet new challenges are urgently needed. Antiviral and antibacterial functions on textiles could eliminate pathogens deposited on external surfaces, and reduce potential transmissions of pathogens caused by improper use of face masks,” stated Professor Sun.
Professor Seeram Ramakrishna, who heads the Center for Nanofibers and Nanotechnology at the National University of Singapore will present results from his two decades of research in nanofibers.
Addressing a topical issue, this scribe will talk about, “Advances in Personnel Protective Equipment (PPE).” Ongoing research in the Nonwovens and Advanced Materials Laboratory, Texas Tech University has shown the importance of face masks in curtailing the spread of COVID-19. PPE is important to fight the current and future pandemics.
In addition to these talks, leading experts from India, United States, United Kingdom, Malaysia, Singapore, and Finland are participating to discuss broad based subjects within the domain of advanced and novel materials.
July being a plastic free month, it is no wonder that the virtual event is pitching topics such as cotton, sustainable chemistry, and materials.
“International leading speakers with rich experience in the domains of materials, engineering and technology, are expected to enrich every session with new ideas, enabling the event to be a platform for international collaboration and networking,” stated Saravanan.
Frontier Materials Research: Way ForwardBy Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, July 23, 2021)— With the inauguration of Olympic games today in Tokyo amidst new normalcy, material scientists are enjoying their own virtual Olympiad for three days, staring today.
Coimbatore, India-based Kumaraguru College of Technology is organizing a major virtual conference, “International Conference on Materials Research in Science and Engineering,” from July 23-25, 2021. The conference has attracted participants from six countries such as India, United States, Finland, UK, Malaysia, and Singapore. About 275 papers are being presented over three days, which is a celebration of science and engineering.
“The conference focuses on computational and experimental research on different subfields in materials science discipline such as textiles, composites, coatings, which find applications in varied sectors such as defense, aerospace, etc.,” stated Professor K. Sundararaj, Convenor of the congress.
Cotton quality characteristics like fiber elongation play an important role in the spinning performance and the quality of yarns, stated, world’s leading cotton fiber quality expert, Professor Eric Hequet of Texas Tech University, USA, in a keynote lecture today.
In the COVID-19 era, the importance of materials in countering the infection using face masks is highly felt important by people. Today, in the inaugural function of the conference, this scribe highlighted the importance of materials science in making countries self-reliant, citing the example of how personnel protective equipment saved lives. He highlighted that this decade would see a revival in manufacturing and materials development as was the case in the later part of the 18th century with the beginning of the industrial revolution. It is interesting to note that about every twenty-five years, a new revolution happens, for example, the medical revolution with the discovery of double helix structure of DNA in 1953, followed by PCR in 1985. The eighties and early nineties saw the beginning of IT revolution that metamorphosed into communication and digital revolution. This decade will see the growth in sustainable products from new and novel fibers and developments in advanced manufacturing. The conference is timely and addresses important themes such as nanotechnology, soft and hard composites, protective textiles, cotton, hybrid materials, etc.
“Research is important not only to solve existing problems, but also to foresee what is needed and what is on the horizon,” stated, Professor Sib Krishna Ghoshal of Universiti Teknologi, Malaysia. Research on hybrid materials involving organic and inorganic materials to understand the interaction of these materials and develop advanced products that find applications enabling sustainability and improving health care was emphasized by Professor Ghoshal. Developments in nanofibers in the past two decades was presented by Professor Seeram Ramakrishna of the National University of Singapore.
Materials science will be a key research area and new materials that help with building energy harvesters, health care products and infrastructure will boost the economies of nation. Agreeing to the importance of advanced and agile manufacturing, Professor D. Saravanan, Principal of Kumaraguru College of Technology stated, ”Quest for new materials has been there since stone ages.”
Who would thought that an unassuming material, “face mask,” would come to prominence and save so many lives?
Countries now realize the importance of manufacturing and developing new and sustainable materials.
Address delivered by this scribe is available at this YT link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl9-I-UtgpM
Cotton Field in Lubbock, TX
June, 2021
June 9
June 19
June 29
VSF-A Necessary Toolbox to Combat COVID-19
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, June 9, 2021)—Vaccines, social distancing, and face masks (VSF) are important tools in the toolkit to wage the war against COVID-19.
Face masks are indeed one of the best precursors to nation-wide vaccination programs.
In the United States, while the vaccination program was progressing, until reaching a manageable number of daily COVID-19 cases, mask mandates and other restrictions were in place in different States. According to the United States’ CDC, 140.4 million people have been fully vaccinated. As 53% of population aged 18 and above have been fully vaccinated in the United States, States have been relaxing restrictions. However, in countries, where vaccination levels are low and new variants are emerging, COVID-19 protocols are needed. Localized restrictions are proving to be effective in lowering the daily increase in cases.
As India is facing a severe second wave of COVID-19, while vaccines are panacea, until huge populace is vaccinated, protective measures are needed. On June 7th, Indian Prime Minister Honorable Narendra Modi addressed the nation highlighting the steps towards vaccination, while advising people to wear masks and follow the protocols. Indian government will be handling the vaccination program centrally and would distribute vaccines to States for immunizing people aged 18 years and above, free of cost. Such central procurement and distribution by local authorities have worked well in the United States.
In regions where population density is high, use of face masks and other protocols help until vaccination level reaches about 60-70 percent. Reaching such a threshold will enable the risk to be manageable, stated Dr. Craig Barker, MD., Corporate Medical Director, UMC Physicians, Lubbock, USA.
As there are reports of the emergence of the delta variant in India, which is known to be more contagious, use of face masks, physical distancing and avoiding gatherings will limit the spread. Using face masks and practicing hygiene will help with borrowing time to gear-up vaccination.
India’s PPE sector is well positioned to develop necessary protective equipment as this Industry has been building its base in the past two decades (https://today.ttu.edu/posts/2021/06/Stories/saving-lives-indias-technical-textile-revolution-paved-way-for-covid-19-response).
Particularly regarding India, as major cities like Mumbai and New Delhi are opening-up their economy, until there is wide availability of vaccines, countermeasures such as face masks are important. Face masks limit the number of microbes leaving the body and help with preventing the spread, stated Dr. Barker.
Our recent research has shown that countermeasures like using face masks reduced the number of COVID-19 cases (https://today.ttu.edu/posts/2021/04/Stories/mask-mandates-reduced-covid19-in-states).
Following hygiene protocols will limit the spread of the corona virus and will play a major role in saving lives.
Infectious Successes-Lessons for Textile Industry and Beyond
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, June 19, 2021)—As the COVID-19 pandemic ravages India, this infectious disease situation will lead to infectious successes.
In an event organized by the Textile Association (India)-South India Unit, today, on a summer Saturday afternoon, textile industry’s stakeholders gathered via Zoom to listen to a speech on how the lessons from the pandemic could lead us to positive opportunities socially, morally and economically. Textile industry veteran from Coimbatore, Mr. Iakoka N Subramaniam provided pearls of wisdom to about a hundred textile industry professional.
Textile products that save lives such as medical textiles have been elevated to important status and have become items, which the general public can understand. This will lead to new opportunities for the sector, according to Mr. Subramaniam. Collective support and contribution to uplift an industry and a society have become necessities, which will lead to growth opportunities for varied industries, added Mr. Subramaniam. Tracing the recent history in the past few decades on how the rural area surrounding Dindigul in South India has become a spinning hub, due to a spark from one industry leading to multiple investments and successes, he emphasized the infectious nature of success stories.
COVID-19 has brought out social commitments and entrepreneurial spirits in people, which should be continued, and the chain should not be broken.
In a question from this scribe on how the industry should use lessons from the pandemic towards translating research into useful products and enhancing risk taking attitude among industry people, Mr. Subramaniam, pointed out how Coimbatore, the industrial town in South India has been a pioneer in building machinery and textile industry. He added that there needs to be supporting mechanisms from the Government to enable risk aversion, which is practiced in developed nations such as the United States.
The talk was timely as it provided motivation for the industry and the public in general.
Face Mask Necessity Amidst Delta Variant Surges
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, June 29, 2021)—Delta variant is a mutant of concern.
Double vaccination is shown to have efficacy against multiple variants, but in the case of unvaccinated people, countermeasures such as wearing face masks, hand hygiene are important.
In a recent press conference, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of World Health Organization (WHO) stated, “Delta is the most transmissible of the variants identified so far. It has been identified in at least 85 countries and is spreading rapidly among unvaccinated populations.”
This Delta variant is recognized as the cause of recent surge in COVID-19 cases in Sydney- Australia, Bangladesh, and South Africa. Starting on July 1, Bangladesh will be in a strict lockdown under the watchful eyes of its military. Bangladesh just recorded over 8000 cases in a single day making it a record since the pandemic started last year. Sydney is under two-week lockdown to stop the spread of this variant.
While vaccination is the solution, until countries such as South Africa, Bangladesh, and India to name a few have enough vaccines to immunize the population, COVID-19 restrictions such as face covers, physical distancing are needed. In densely populated areas, it may not be perfectly feasible to maintain physical distancing, but for the complete stay at home orders. In such cases, face masks are an important protective measure. A street scene in Uttara area in Dhaka, Bangladesh reinforces the need for face covers. Due to the increasing number of cases, Israel last Friday reinstated mask mandate in indoor settings and in large outdoor gatherings.
As the Delta variant is known to be highly contagious and is airborne, for unvaccinated people following COVID-19 safety protocols can save lives. Ongoing research in the Nonwovens and Advanced Materials Laboratory at Texas Tech University has shown that multilayered nonwoven mats with layers made from cotton and sorbent fibers are able to exhibit over 90% filtration efficiency in trapping 30 nm sized aerosols. Corona virus particle normally range between 100-150 nm in diameter and hence nonwoven materials will be able to trap them and can destabilize them depending on the material of the filters. Reports show that cellulosic materials can quickly destabilize Corona virus compared to hard materials such as steel or plastic.
On June 25th, an official from WHO stated, “Vaccine alone won’t stop the community transmission. People need to continue to use masks consistently, be in ventilated spaces, hand hygiene, respiratory etiquette, the physical distance, avoid crowding.”
Masks are important tools in the tool kit to protect people, importantly for those who are unvaccinated and who are immunocompromised.
May, 2021
May 24
Agility is the Way Forward for the Textile Industry
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, May 24, 2021)-Being nimble and technology adoption are timely needs for the global textile industry.
Today, as a mark of celebrating the 33rd foundation day of the North India Section of The Textile Institute (UK), industry stakeholders joined via Zoom to discuss the way forward for the textile industry and in particular, the Indian sector.
Mr. T. Rajkumar, Chairman of the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry provided detailed account on the Indian industry and outlined schemes for the growth. Value-addition and skill development across the value-chain are needed. Technical textiles is a sunrise sector and emphasized the need for some mandatory usage of products such as airbags, quality enhancements and standardization. Highlighting how the Indian textile sector geared-up during the current COVID-19 pandemic to make India self-reliant on PPE, he stated the growth of the sector is about 13 percent.
India’s technical textiles sector offers opportunities for growth in double digits. This scribe predicted the growth of this sector, based on empirical modeling using GDP numbers in 2008. The report, “India Rising: Opportunities in Nonwovens and Technical Textiles,” [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228470939_India_Rising_opportunities_in_nonwovens_and_technical_textiles] estimated the growth till the year 2050, with an annual growth around 13 percent. Today’s statement by Mr. Rajkumar proves the growth numbers predicted in the 2008 report. Government of India has to be greatly acknowledged for seeing the potential of this field, with investments such as National Mission on Technical Textiles and the establishment of Centers of Excellence in different fields of the technical textiles sector all over the country. The current Indian government is investing about US$211.7 million for a period of four years till 2024 for this important mission.
Mr. Shirshir Jaipuria, Chairman and Managing Director of Ginni Filaments emphasized the need for agility, speed, and technology in the textile industry. He highlighted four trends, which will impact the Indian sector: 1) Technology; 2) Development of sustainable products; 3) Marketing strategy and 4) Understanding of consumers. Industry should be data driven and should focus on open and better exchange of ideas, added Mr. Jaipuria. Stating how the IT sector is agile in coming-up with new products, Mr. Jaipuria encouraged the industry to be nimble and adapt to the requirements.
Professor Vijay Kothari emphasized the need for better coordination among academia, research organization and industry. He added, working in silos need to be overcome and integrated approach is needed.
In my view, cost effective new products which consumers need and focusing on products that cater to health care, environment and industrial applications are needed. Having said that efficiencies must be achieved in the commodity fiber-to-fashion supply chain as this sector is an important bread winner.
April, 2021
April 27
Face Masks Critical till Herd ImmunityBy Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, April 27, 2021)—Vaccinations and other countermeasures such as face masks, physical distancing, etc., are critical to conquer the pandemic.
A second pandemic wave is ravaging India with a recent single day rise of 352,991 cases, making it a global record since the beginning of the pandemic. As it is a global crisis and affects the entire world, it is a noble responsibility for countries to support India in its war against the pandemic.
Global infectious disease experts emphasize the importance of swift vaccination and mass vaccination of about 70-80% to reach herd immunity. While it may take a few months to achieve this level of vaccination, it is important that people use face masks and practice maximum safety. “Right now, virus is still winning and hence public health measures such as hygiene, face coverings are important,” stated Dr. Manickavasagam Sundaram, MD, PhD, Department of Medicine, Lakeridge Health, Oshawa, Canada. Even with the availability of vaccines in some nations, there is an issue with vaccine hesitancy, emergence of new variants, that emphasize the importance of safety precautions, added Dr. Sundaram.
Recently, research carried out in the Nonwovens and Advanced Materials Laboratory at Texas Tech
University showed that face masks helped to curtail the COVID-19 spread in the United States, when
face mask mandate was in effect in different states. Results showed that 63% of the states saw a
decrease in daily and cumulative cases 21 days after the mandates began, and 66% saw a reduction after 28 days. “I believe proper wearing of face coverings, in addition to other mitigation measures, can help reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2. Additionally, the fit of the face coverings is important,” stated James Ayodeji, researcher involved in the face mask project.
Fiber scientists and textile chemists have a greater role to play in developing highly efficient personnel protective equipment. Much research is needed to understand the effect of fibers such as cotton and blends as well as the structure of masks on viral barrier and protection capabilities.
“It is incumbent upon every individual to conduct themselves in a responsible way with appropriate behavior such as the use of face coverings and practicing physical distancing,” stated Pune-based Amarashish Phanse, a COVID-19 survivor, who lost his wife due to COVID complications.
It is clear from those who have been victims of the pandemic that responsibility rests with the public to get properly vaccinated and to avoid transmission. Recent safety lax in India has been widely recognized as the reason for the surge. “Given the large population to be vaccinated in India, social distancing and correct use of masks need to be strictly enforced. This will help while the nation is gearing up the vaccination,” stated Mumbai-based Dilip Raghavan, Editor of Colourage. As a person who is in the epicenter of the pandemic in India, Raghavan added a sense of complacency kicked in between the end of the first surge and the beginning of the current one, whose results are being witnessed now. “A protection strategy would be to distribute reusable face masks and other hygiene products instead of spending huge amounts on hospital infrastructure,” stated Kochi-based Sreekumar Raghavan, Editor, Pallikkutam, The Education Observer.
We have a collective responsibility to conquer the virus by following recommended safety measures, and with mass vaccination.
Face mask requirement in Loblaws store, Toronto, Canada. Courtesy of Dr. M. Sundaram
March, 2021
March 31
Nonwoven Innovations to Shine
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, March 31, 2021)-COVID-19 has highlighted the importance and need of life saving soft materials.
Nonwoven textiles are integral components of surgical masks, N95 face masks and different PPEs, which have saved lives. The state of the nonwovens sector during the current pandemic, innovations in this sector and its contributions to counter future pandemics will be discussed in a forthcoming virtual conference.
As part of TAPPICON 2021 event of the Technical Association of Pulp and Paper Association (TAPPI), a nonwovens conference will be held virtually between May 4-5, 2021. The event will kick start with a keynote presentation on the industry’s response to COVID-19 by Dave Rousse, President, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry Association (INDA). The highlight of the program is a power packed panel session on “Preparing for Future Pandemics and PPE.” Panel involves key leaders in the industry including Karen Bitz-McIntyre, Editor Nonwovens Industry magazine.
The event will bring leading organizations such as TAPPI and INDA to discuss the state of the sector and innovations in nonwovens and technical textiles. Speaking about the nonwovens field, Larry Montague, TAPPI President & CEO stated, “While the pandemic has taught us many things over the last year, one of the most significant has been the sizeable role nonwovens played in ‘stopping the spread,’ both in the healthcare community and beyond. Whether we’re talking about face masks, filters, various Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), or wipes, the industry was, and still is, on the frontline of this fight providing lifesaving protection.”
Dave Rousse, President of INDA, stated, “The nonwovens industry really stepped up in a responsible way to rapidly fill the need for facemasks, disinfectant wipes, flushable wipes, and medical gowns, booties and nets needed to push back against COVID-19. We are now essentially self-sufficient in these areas after being reliant on imports as the pandemic started, with much new capacity added that will serve these needs as well as emerging needs in indoor air quality.”
For newcomers to the field and due to the need to create more awareness on nonwovens, a session will be dedicated as a mini tutorial on technical textiles and nonwovens. A few key themes of the conference include medical applications of nonwovens, novel materials for PPE, functionalization of nonwovens and textiles, etc.
The conference features presentations from leading industry and academic leaders. A timely presentation on the recent advances in spunmelt nonwovens will be delivered by an industry expert. Novel solutions to microbial problems will be dealt in a presentation by ViaClean Technologies. International speakers from India, United Kingdom, Turkey, and United States will deal with topics like design aspects of coveralls, nanofiber filters, to name a few.
In talking about the importance of creating more awareness on nonwovens in fight against infectious diseases, Gaurav Pranami, Chairman of the Nonwovens Division of TAPPI stated, “Other than social distancing, perhaps the single most important precaution one could take to protect themselves and others was to wear a mask. However, it’s the masks made from nonwovens that provide meaningful protection because of their high filtration efficiency. With the experience of COVID-19, the nonwovens industry must innovate to make more comfortable, effective and easily accessible masks for future preparedness.”
New developments from the cotton industry such as cellulosic films and day light induced antiviral coatings will be discussed. The event will end with a presentation on state of the wipes sector from Euromonitor.
Virtual event details can be found at:
https://tappicon.org/virtual-program/virtual-program-tracks/nonwovens/
February, 2021
Feb 2
India to Impose Duty on Cotton Imports
By Seshadri Ramkumar, Texas Tech University
(Lubbock, USA, February 2, 2021)—Indian government to impose custom duty on raw cotton imports.
On February 1, Honorable Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Finance Minister of India introduced the Indian budget for the financial year 2021-22.
The budget is built on six pillars that focus on: 1) Health and Wellbeing; 2) Physical & Financial Capital, and Infrastructure; 3) Inclusive Development for Aspirational India; 4) Reinvigorating Human Capital; 5) Innovation and R&D and 6) Minimum Government and Maximum Governance.
As a move to support farmers, Government will impose a 10% custom duty on cotton imports, which has been nil at present. While the budget has received positive feedback from the textile sector, spinning sector is feeling the pinch due to the duty on imported cotton.
The budget supports boosting the textile sector and enhancing its global competitiveness with investments for Mega Investment Textile Parks. Seven textile parks will be established within three years. To enhance the manmade fiber sector, import duties on raw materials like nylon fiber and yarns, nylon chips and caprolactam have been reduced from 7.5% to 5 percent. This duty structure is similar to polyester and other manmade fibers. Duty on raw silk and silk yarns will be increased from 10 to 15 percent.
India’s textile sector for fine count spinning has been importing cotton from countries like Egypt and imposing duty may affect the competitiveness of the spinning sector. Countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh have been doing well in garments exports to United States and Europe, and this duty may negatively impact the Indian spinning sector and the value chain.
“Overall, the budget has positive aspects but for the custom duty on cotton imports,” stated, Gandhiraj Krishnasamy, General Manager of Coimbatore-based Lakshmi Card Clothing, 40 years veteran in the textile sector. “Indian industry needs scale to compete against other countries,” added Gandhiraj Krishnasamy.
Jayalakshmi Textiles, which has about 70,000 ring spindles and spinning fine count yarns has started recently importing Egyptian Giza cotton as its price was competitive against Indian DCH-32. In fine count yarns, customers are demanding the use of imported cotton and hence this industry has recently purchased about 500 tons of Giza cotton. “Custom duty on cotton may add pressure to the Indian spinning sector,” stated Velmurugan Shanmugam, General Manager of Aruppukkottai-based spinning mill, whose average yarn count is about 70s Ne.
The budget is in the right tract with enhancing the domestic sector in terms of value-addition, agriculture, and innovation. The custom structure on cotton puts emphasis on the Indian cotton sector to focus on research, quality enhancement, contamination reduction and build the overall infrastructure.
January, 2021
Jan 5
Jan 15
Cotton Aides with the Start-up Culture
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, January 5, 2021)- New Year is providing an optimistic picture for cotton and textiles sectors.
“Yarn prices have hiked about 30-40% in 3-months,” stated Velmurugan Shanmugam, general manager of Aruppukottai, India-based Jayalakshmi Textiles. Yarn demand is high due to lack of fabric stocks and hence processors are in urgent need of yarns, added Velmurugan Shanmugam.
While cotton and textiles sectors are witnessing growing demand, it is also important to focus on new developments. “In the mid to long term basis, development of value-added products is important,” stated Velmurugan Shanmugam.
Cotton and textile sectors have an opportunity to create start-ups to enhance demand and create jobs. The importance of entrepreneurship and the need to infuse start-up culture was stressed by India’s Prime Minister, Honorable Narendra Modi in his December 2020 “Maa Ki Baat, [Speech from the Heart]” address to the nation.
Jayalakshmi Textiles, with 70,000 ring spindles produces cotton yarns ranging from 60s Ne to 140s Ne, with an average count of 67s Ne. Recently, I had the opportunity to collaborate with Jayalakshmi Textiles to develop cotton based nonwoven filters and oil absorbent wipes. The collaboration has led to the translation of my idea to useful cotton-based value-added products.
An international collaboration involving this scribe has resulted in the creation of a start-up, WellGro United in Chennai, India to market cotton industrial products. Cotton processing expertise of Jayalakshmi Textiles has played a crucial role in transferring idea to marketplace.
WellGro United has been marketing products that enhance human lives and protect the environment. Recently, India’s oil exploration company, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Ltd., has been using cotton-based oil absorbent to counter oil spills in its Rajahmundry site on the banks of India’s second largest river, Godavari.
Jayalakshmi Textiles, which is a major cotton yarn spinner is taking little steps to develop novel cotton products which have found inroads in the oil sector. Cotton-based mats are being exported to Nigeria and Poland for evaluation by industrial sectors.
With the increasing trend in demand and prices for cotton and textile products, there is optimism among cotton textile sectors to look for opportunities beyond commodity products.
Demand enhancement by developing functional and industrial products will be the next phase of the cotton textiles sector.
TexSnips’ publisher wishes a healthy, safe and prosperous 2021!
Manufacturing Revival and Economic Recovery
By: Seshadri Ramkumar, Professor, Texas Tech University, USA
(Lubbock, USA, January 15, 2021)-Manufacturing boost will play a vital role in the building of global economy.
Yesterday, United States’ President-elect Joseph R. Biden, Jr., unveiled Rescue and Recovery plan to counter the pandemic and grow the economy. The stimulus plan of US$ 1.9 trillion focuses on priority items such as vaccines, COVID-19 testing, economic plans such as direct payments and unemployment support, to name a few.
The rescue plan is a prelude to a broader growth agenda, where emphasis is placed on manufacturing among other items such as infrastructure investment, etc. In the speech, President-elect Biden stated, “We will buy American products and support millions of American manufacturing jobs.” The plan also calls for investments in research and development enabling innovation and creating new opportunities.
PPEs such as masks have come to prominence as life savers due to the nature of the transmission of the corona virus. World governments will pay attention to boosting their respective advanced manufacturing sectors such as technical textiles, sustainable production, logistics and distribution, as is evident from President-elect Biden’s speech.
The need to have manufacturing resources and supplies such as PPEs within their borders will strengthen manufacturing and allied sectors of nations. Initiatives such as Made in America and India’s Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-reliant India) will shine new light on manufacturing. Other fields that have direct and indirect influence on manufacturing such as technical education, R & D will also play vital roles towards recovery and growth.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi in last month’s Mann Ki Batt (Speech from Heart) talk to the nation emphasized the importance of curiosity for personal growth and highlighted the need for innovation and start-ups to grow the economy. Again, a clear indication that sectors such as manufacturing, and research are attracting high level attentions.
There needs to be a focused attention on developing manufacturing and allied fields, which needs cooperative efforts among stakeholders such as the industry, government, and academia. In this regard, it is good to highlight the efforts, India has been doing for over two decades in promoting the technical textiles sectors. I was personally involved in the effort creating awareness on the nonwovens field, which has enabled India to be self-reliant in PPEs as a countermeasure in the COVID-19 times.
In a recent interview with National Public Radio, United States’ Vice President-elect Kamala Harris highlighted the need to boost the supply of PPEs and the availability of Defense Production Act to gear up resources if necessary. PPE manufacturing, which is a technical textiles sector is garnering attention at the highest levels of governments.
Developed economies will surely take steps in growing high-end manufacturing--a positive revival indeed!
2021
Dr. Seshadri Ramkumar, Ph.D. • Texas Tech University • Department of Environmental Toxicology
Box 41163 • Lubbock, TX 79409-1163 • 806.885.4567 • s.ramkumar@ttu.edu