Taiwanese firms woo India with eco concerns & high-tech

Taiwanese textile companies swear by 2 Fs – Fashion & Function. Today, in high-end fibres—yarns and fabrics—the Taiwanese companies have successfully brought together these two values to the same table in the market. For most of them, India is a virgin market, but they are not averse to make their best efforts to tap this market. "New materials are important today because of functional values and we have come for the first time to showcase to the Indian textile industry what we have. It is this high-tech, functional values that have brought success to Taiwanese products," said Sean Tsai, Head of Overseas Marketing Section of Taiwan Textile Federation. There were nine Taiwanese companies, who were displaying some of their products at the recently concluded Technotex 2014 in Mumbai.

Coated fabrics, combinations of woven & nonwoven, protective textiles, geo-textiles, outdoor fabrics, fire-retardant materials; you name it, the Taiwanese have it. "The strength of the Taiwanese companies come from many factors. One of the chief reason is that Taiwan has a very strong petrochemical industry, and most of the companies have a strong raw material base. This combined with deep R&D drive have helped them produce new materials with novel properties," said Tsai.

Even though most of the companies deal with synthetic fibres, yarns and other products, it is the eco-friendliness that makes their products stand out in the global market. Tsai said: "The concept of eco-friendliness has taken off in Taiwan. Nonwoven also has a strong base in Taiwan. Some of the companies are in fibres as well as in fabrics."

Tsai admitted that there is a great potential for technical textiles in India. "But we are not sure which direction it will go. Till today, we are uncertain about the market."

China is still the biggest market for the Taiwanese companies. "Our yarns, fibres and fabrics are modern, high-end products, but at the same time eco-friendly. Besides, our nonwoven innovations are cost-effective compared to our competitors products. Eco concerns of Taiwanese companies have made them invest heavily in R&D. And ultimately, backed by a strong petrochemical base, our focus on quality starts right from the first stage itself. This is the best asset we have," said Tsai.

Advance Hitech Textile International Corporation, located in Taichung City, is engaged in weaving, dyeing and coating and produces polyester and nylon fabrics of all thicknesses (from 20D to 3000D), with coating as well as lamination. Said Evan Chen from Adavance Hitech: "The company has a capacity of 20 lakh yards per month, and 40 per cent of the fabrics are meant for industrial textiles."

Alex Yu, President of Chiefwell Engineering Co Ltd, is based in New Taipei City in Taiwan, said his company is a specialist in high quality rolls and precision calenders for textile, nonwoven and composite industries.

Everest Textile Co Ltd, established in 1988, makes eco-friendly materials for fashion and casual garments. It has production bases in China and Thailand also. Far Eastern New Century, another Taipei-based company, has built a wide range of filaments: Topgreen® is PET recycled filament; TopCool® is a quick-dry filament; FITA® is a flame-retardant filament; Solarfree® is advanced UV-cutting filament; TopHeat® is moisture absorbing heat filament; OutlastPCM® is phase change filament.

Other companies include: Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation, Hsieh Hua Hsing Enterprise Co Ltd, Namliong Enterprise, and Sheng Hung Industrial Co, etc.