We plan to put up a Greenfield plant in 2022

Sanrhea
Technical Textiles is a stock listed and an ISO 9001:2008 approved firm that set
up its facility to manufacture industrial fabrics in 1997 as a small convertor
and has grown over the years to become one of the largest and most reputed
manufacturers of RFL – dipped fabrics for conveyor belts, tyres and other
rubber products. Today, the company has an installed capacity of 160 tonnes per
month. Tushar Patel, Managing Director, Sanrhea Technical Textiles speaks
regarding the scope for technical textile in India and the future plans of the
company.

The technical textiles industry
in India is still at a nascent stage. Do you agree with this statement? What
are your thoughts about the industry in India?

Not
Nascent. I’d say in an adolescent stage. There’s a growing demand from all the
sectors, whether you talk of auto industry, rubber industry, infrastructure
& engineering sector, defence, mining, cement & steel and marine
industry. The issue is that there is unawareness in the business community of
the scope therein. Also the government has done little to bring this awareness.

What is the market size of
technical textiles in India? What is your market share in this pie?

The
industrial textile Industry has a very wide segment – from mobitech to meditech,
and from infrastructure to construction industry fabrics, there is a lot of
scope. So the pie has many segments, which are all growing. We are in the
Mobitech sector where the volume is tyre-cord fabrics. We are concentrating on specialised
fabrics within this segment and that though a rather small portion of the whole
industry, is niche and has a great opportunity.

Has the market grown post
pandemic? What kind of impact did COVID have on it?

Post-
pandemic, things have been astonishing. Growth has been like never before. To
the extent that capacities are overloaded and raw material availability has
become a problem. I feel the major thrust by the government on infrastructure
projects as well as the increased purchases by defence have propelled this
robust growth.

Can the PLI scheme provide this
niche the push that was required?

As
far as my knowledge goes, there is no PLI Scheme covering the segment we fall
in. But I feel government support in giving incentives on exports, like China
does, would greatly help Indian manufacturers get a greater share of the global
pie.

What are some of the issue that
clog the growth of this industry?

Lack
of knowledge both on part of the business community as well as the government, about
the scope for technical textile and the hurdles being faced. Also the fact that
the basic raw materials for bulk of the industry still come from China. Indian
government must incentivise as well as majorly support the industry in getting
into the production of the core raw materials in India itself. This will
enhance the Industry to become a global supplier and leader.

Which segments within technical
textiles are fastest growing? Which are your major markets in India and abroad?

I
feel it’s the Mobitech segment. Our major markets are tyre, auto component,
marine inflatables, and conveyor belts.

Did COVID open up new markets and
opportunities? Please share a few details.

Yes.
It changed the mindset of a lot of segments to look into new developments,
which they have now come to the realisation are better products vis-à-vis the
conventional fabrics they had been using over the ages with a very conservative
outlook.

What new technologies do you plan
to introduce in the coming years?

Our
strength has always been R&D on redesigning the conservatively used fabric
by our customer to a more specialised and specific fabric that is apt for their
said application. Technology is the same, endeavour is different!

What are the long-term plans at
SANRHEA? Any expansions in the pipeline?

We
just finished a capacity expansion days before COVID set in. But we are already
in another round of capacity expansion. We do see ourselves putting up a Greenfield
plant somewhere into 2022 to cater to some of the new developments we are
currently working on and see stabilising over the next 6 months.