Apparel Online Bangladesh Magazine April Issue 2019 | Page 24

COVER STORY 2 APPAREL RESOURCES NEWSLETTERS FACEBOOK FRIENDS To subscribe, send us an email at [email protected] Join more than 10,000 people who are already fans of Apparel Resources on facebook. Search for Apparel Resources at https://www.facebook.com/apparelresources/ Ruwan Kumara Jayasinghe, Head of Wash, Mahmud Fashions Limited Susanth, on the other hand as the maintenance head, apart from optimising production procedures, is working hard on energy cutback. “Cost and availability of electricity are two concern areas in the current scenario. Thus saving energy has become vital, both from the sustainability aspect as well as to reduce the production cost… When I joined here, there was no switching system, so when one opened the main panel, lights in all production lines were automatically switched on. But now we’ve introduced remote controls to minimise power wastage. I am also planning to set up control boxes at the starting of each line where remote controls will be kept so that even if the electricians are not around, anyone can switch the lights on or off. What’s more, by doing so, lighting of the entire floor will not be affected, rather it could be done in a phased manner, line by line,” explained Susanth underlining that the same could be replicated for fans in the production floor too. By introducing this system, Susanth has reportedly been able to cut down power consumption for every two lines from 800 amperes to 250 amperes. Considering that the unit would have 78 lines when fully operational, Shamim, DGM – Admin, HR & Compliance, Mahmud Fashions Limited Susanth Ranjith Ekanayaka, GM – Maintenance, Mahmud Fashions Limited the total energy saving from the production floor will be noteworthy to say the least. “Cost and availability of electricity are two concern areas in the current scenario. Thus saving energy has become vital, both from the sustainability aspect as well as to reduce the production cost… – Susanth Ranjith Ekanayaka With focus on sustainable and eco- friendly approach gaining popularity across the supply chain, fabric manufacturers are also showing keen interest in implementing green techniques and processes. “Whether it is about trying innovative new techniques or discovering cutting edge technology to lead the industry into a more sustainable future, Tosrifa Industries Limited (TIL) is always at the forefront…,” maintained Mohim Hassan, CEO, Northern Tosrifa Group, the recent addition to which has been the TIL Fabric Division. As per the company’s website, TIL has been able to save around 14 million litres of water and cut down wastage by 50 per cent using environment- friendly techniques. Tosrifa Industries’ garment unit is LEED Gold certified, and for its new dyeing facility for the fabric division, the Group has applied for LEED certification, which would make it the first knit dyeing unit in Bangladesh to be LEED certified. “In textile division (dyeing), getting green certification is easier said than done. But, when we planned the 24 Apparel Online Bangladesh | APRIL 2019 | www.apparelresources.com project (fabric unit), our target from the very beginning was to go for green. Keeping that in mind, machines were selected accordingly so that fabric could be dyed using Cold Pad-Batch (CPB) process. In this procedure, water requirement is very less vis-à- vis the conventional methods. If we use 80-90 litres of water to dye one kilogram of fabric in usual process, CPB cuts down water requirement to 25-26 litres/kilogram of fabric,” briefed Mohim, who has been able to reduce energy consumption by almost 35 per cent, thanks to CPB. The CPB method is more environment- friendly due to high dye fixation and non-requirement of thermal energy. The ETP plant for TIL’s new dyeing unit has also been designed keeping future in perspective. “We are using the latest Japanese technology for biological treatment of water… Our objective is to achieve ZDHC (Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals) status by 2020,” said Mohim, indicating without a doubt that Bangladesh garment and textile manufacturers are unwilling to leave any stone unturned for giving shape to their green aspirations.