Advanced Textiles, an emerging business of Welspun India Limited, has strived to lead the way in product innovation with customer being at the core. It houses diverse range of products under its portfolio using three major technologies – Spunlace, Needlepunch and Thermobond. Each of them has in-house downstream conversion unit to manufacture value added products as per customer requirements. Application of products range from medical disposables, hygiene, cosmetic, coating substrate applications to various kinds of filtrations.
Welspun India Ltd (WIL), part of $2.7 Bn Welspun Group, is a global leader in Home textiles. With a distribution network in more than 50 countries and world class manufacturing facilities in India, Welspun is strategic partners with top global retailers. WIL is driven by its differentiation strategy based on Branding, Innovation and Sustainability.
Welspun has forayed into ‘Health & Hygiene’ business vertical in shortest possible time, with focus on health and hygiene related products such as masks, coverall, medical gowns, disposable bed linen/towel, disinfectant wipes etc. for front line workers and consumers. This was possible by leveraging the company’s vertically integrated woven and non-woven capabilities. Welspun has a complete clean room set up for manufacturing these products and a fully equipped BIS accredited lab.
Advanced Textiles, which is into making of disposable towels and wet wipes out of non-woven textiles launched a range at the Ardh Kumbh Mela in Allahabad. Welspun also forayed into manufacturing of disinfectant wipes and surgical masks. The other applications of non-woven textiles that the company is addressing is in automobiles and aviation industry. The business achieved annual revenues of Rs. 250 crores in FY20.
Spunlace technology
Building on the company’s existing integrated woven and non-woven capabilities, Welspun has launched an array of innovative hygiene products for medical professionals, institutional use as well as personal care products ranging from masks, wipes, medical gowns, disposable linen, coveralls, hand sanitizing wipes, surface disinfectant wipes and other relevant lifestyle products.
Welspun has invested in Spunlace technology. The company has launched PuroKott range of wipes, developed using waste fibers from the company’s home textile plant. It is chemical free and has improved functional properties. The company has entered into strategic partnership with customers such as P&G & J&J for its health and hygiene products.
Needlepunch
Welspun has launched Turboelectric media for residential & commercial HVAC segment. The company has successfully validated quilted product for Arc flash liner application and have become approved partners of Honeywell for Firefighting product.
Considering the current COVID situation, key focus areas in the new normal world would be sustainability and hygiene led products with digital and automated manufacturing. Welspun’s Advanced Textiles stood up for the cause and created the supporting ecosystem in the pandemic to manufacture and supply high-quality face masks and PPE products for doctors, medical staff, pharma companies, etc.
Welspun’s unit has been set up with multiple clean rooms, making them the only manufacturer producing/offering a wide range of personal care products in a class 100,000 environment. Their in-house laboratory makes the company self-reliant to conduct advanced tests and provide quality assurance levels that are unequalled at each stage of production. These advanced product performance tests, including tests for Bacterial Filtration Efficiency, Particle Filtration Efficiency, Synthetic Blood Penetration Factor, Flammability Tester and Respirator Résistance give the opportunity to design and build products that are safe for consumers.
Advanced textile market
Technical textile is a sub-set of the much larger textile sector which is gaining prominence only recently with evolving technology providing the means to enhance the functionality of textile products. With improved functionalities, these products have found applications across end user industries such as defence, railways, automobiles, healthcare, etc. Technical textile products are increasingly being used across the globe owing to these advantages. Adoption of technical textile products has been higher for economically developed countries like USA, EU, Japan, South Korea, etc. while usage of these products in industrialised countries such as China and India is consistently increasing.
Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, has been actively working towards development of technical textiles in India. The Government has launched several programmes for supporting the sector with creation of manufacturing, testing and research infrastructure, besides providing capital and interest subsidies for setting up technical textile plants.
Global technical textiles market (USD Bn)
Technical textile global market is anticipated to grow from USD 177 billion in 2018 to reach USD 220 billion by 2022 with a CAGR of 5.9 per cent. Some of the factors influencing the growth of the market are :
l Rising demand from new application areas l Varying consumer preferences l Useful physical properties of technical textiles l Innovation and R&D l Government regulations l Climate change and global warming
Technical textile industry in India is import dependent. Many products like speciality fibres/yarns, medical implants, sanitary products, protective textiles, webbings for seat belts, etc. are mostly imported. However, technical textiles sector has registered impressive growth in the recent years.
