Presentation On Textile Testing By Dr. Md. Saifur Rahman

Testing and QC in Textiles Dr Engr Md Saifur Rahman National Expert, Testing and QC BQSP (Textile/RMG Component)

Role of Textile Industry on Bangladesh Economy    

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Provides 4.7 million jobs of which 70% are women 78% of nation’s total export earnings (~USD 9 billion) Contributes 10.5% to GDP Creates 1 million indirect employment in related areas 9,800 PT and RMG companies Faces challenge from big competitors Quality and productivity improvement key to survival

Jan 2008, TSMU, MOT&J

State of PT and RMG Industries 

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54% companies want to expand in export market, 13% want to be the market leader 21% practice systematic QC & 2% practice compliance (ISO series, labor safeguard etc.) very efficiently 31% newer spinning mills have latest testing equipments, 8% RMG factories have good testing facility, 7-18% have labs without skilled personnel 49% neither have labs nor proper knowledge of QC standards; only go to SGS, BV, ITS etc. under pressure from buyers

UNIDO-sponsored Survey, May 2006

Quality Means Profit and Growth    

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Quality and productivity are closely related Undetected defects cost money and time Essential to quickly identify a defect and its causes and eradicate it in shortest time Consistency in quality should be maintained by testing raw materials, intermediates and final products regularly Online process control to achieve premium quality Final products must conform to international standards and should be globally competitive in price

Quality Key Issue in Export  

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Bigger competitors with no restrictions TBT, new regulations on textile imports by importing countries (e.g. REACH, Organotins, Phthalates) More than 100,000 international standards, thousand new more introduced each year Environmental and social compliance major issues for Bangladesh textile export Awareness needed among suppliers about newer standards and to share responsibility with the buyers in the serviceability and safety of end product

Testing and QC Scenario at Present I 

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Surveyed 10 top and medium-ranking textile companies as well as commercial testing facilities and a few educational institutions Except commercial service providers, none maintain standard testing atmosphere (Temp & RH) Some PT companies have latest costly machines but need more trained & qualified personnel, companies face difficulty to keep such persons in job after providing foreign training and better salary Textile graduates, diploma holders and science graduates working in labs know very little about ISO standards, new regulations, necessity of daily calibration and high level of accuracy required in testing

Testing and QC Scenario at Present II 

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Nearly all of the test sample pass the harmful azo test, but frequently fail in toxic metals and harmful chemical tests Small & medium-scale companies cannot afford to buy costly testing equipments and to have highly paid qualified personnel and need support in testing and QC at a minimum cost Some companies need their personnel to undergo training and skill development in various standards and how to operate and maintain sophisticated machines

Conclusion An accredited and fully equipped laboratory in NITTRAD could provide necessary support to the most of the PT and RMG companies in terms of training, skill development, testing services etc.  Improvement in quality will increase competitiveness of Bangladesh textile exports and ensure sustainable growth 