Indian Technical Textiles Business Shows Sustained Growth

Economy

Indian Technical Textiles Business Shows Sustained Growth

The Textile Commissioner's Office has estimated that the Indian technical textiles industry can grow 20% annually. The growth potential of this sector is obviously much higher, as usage of technical textiles in the country remains limited. This is inspite of the fact that the textiles ministry continues its efforts to promote the use of these products.

Some technical textile products - disposable diapers, feminine hygiene products, automotive textiles, among others have grown in market size. But there still remains huge market potential. The evidence of the growing market for feminine hygiene products is that Gujarat based MD Hygiene is setting up a factory in Nandurbar, Maharashtra, to manufacture 7.25 billion pieces of sanitary napkins per year. This could be one of the largest such facilities in the country. And could cater to around 12-15% of the total requirement of sanitary napkins in the country.

The Indian sanitary napkin market reached a value of nearly US$ 414 million in 2016, the market is expected to reach a value of around US$ 596 million by 2022, growing at a CAGR of more than 6% during 2017-2022. The total market size for sanitary napkins in India is around Rs 347 billion.

India has 196312 hospitals, and a large number of nursing homes. Medical tourism is on the rise. These statistics reveal the size of the Meditech sector in India. The Indian automotive industry produced a total of 29,075,605 vehicles including passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, three wheelers, two wheelers and quadricycle in FY 2017-18, registering a growth of 14.78% over the previous year. The automotive industry plans to invest Rs 58000 crore for capacity expansions and product development over the next two years. It is easy to estimate the size and growth potential of India's Mobiltech segment. However, the Indian automotive textiles industry caters to less than 20% of the domestic demand. Several states in India are seeking a ban on PVC flex for campaigns. Currently, the market size for PVC flex banners is estimated at 18000 tonnes per month. Companies such as Arvind, Strata Geosystems, and others will fare well in this market, as they offer greener substitutes for PVC.

Arvind Ltd. bets big on technical textiles

Arvind's Advanced Materials Division launched No-Flex last October, which the company claims is a sustainable alternative to PVC. Meanwhile, Arvind Ltd. is witnessing strong growth in its technical textiles business. The company plans to invest Rs 100 crore, further expanding production capacities in its techtex portfolios. Arvind has identified Arvind Materials Division (AMD) as a high growth business. The company hopes to improve revenues from Rs 505 crore in FY 2018, to Rs 1600 crore by 2023, a 26% growth.

The company is investing in creating certain different kinds of fabrics which are based on differentiated fibres. The company also plans to manufacture active wear and performance wear, targeting customers such as Nike, Adidas, ASICS, etc. This segment's revenue grew 10% YoY in Q1 FY19. Arvind's management anticipates sales to grow by at least 20% every year and also foresees margins improving through operational efficiencies. Through continued investments at periodic intervals, the intent is to achieve a top-line of Rs 100 crore by FY20 end.

SRF techtex revenue dips marginally in Q1FY19

Another important player in India's technical textiles sector is SRF Limited. The company's technical textiles business reported a marginal dip of 1% in revenues to Rs 501 crore in the first quarter of FY19, while the operating profit rose 22% to Rs 72 crore. This business continued to maintain its market leadership position on account of better volumes and operational cost savings.

SRF Limited's revenue from technical textile business was up 3.48% for the year ended March 2018. Revenue was Rs 2080.99 crore during the financial year 2017-18. Profit before tax at Rs 1557.600 crore, was 5.31% lower than in FY 2016-17. The company is optimistic about the Indian technical textiles market.

Garware Wall Ropes Rebrands as Garware Technical Fibres

Mumbai- based Garware-Wall Ropes Ltd (GWRL), a leading manufacturer of technical textiles for the Indian and global markets, announced change in its corporate brand name and identity to Garware Technical Fibres Ltd (GTFL). According to the company, the rebranding is a part of a focused vision to double its profit over the next five to seven years and be amongst the top two players globally in each of its major operating verticals.

"Over the past four decades, we've built a strong reputation for quality, value addition, application focused innovation and we wanted this to reflect in our name and brand," said Vayu Garware, Chairman & Managing Director, Garware Technical Fibres Ltd. "The next five to seven years will be very important for us as we look forward to double our profits and this we will achieve by being among the top two in each of our major verticals," he added.