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The Textile Magazine
JUNE 2012
parameters for a flawless
and efficient production
start-up. Close co-oper-
ation with machine and
thread suppliers has also
paid off in this “first time
right” approach. GBA
regularly organizes joint
seminars on process de-
sign, and we’ve had good
feedback here – in many
cases also being able to
recommend the use of our
SAN®10 needle.
Q: In Europe and
North America, sustain-
able action is stead-
ily developing into a
cross-sector trend. What
role does it play in Asia,
especially where your
regionally-based com-
pany is concerned?
A:
Overall, the aware-
ness that we have to pro-
tect our environment on
a long-term basis has still
not developed in a sat-
isfactory way on the In-
dian subcontinent. Large
companies have made
sustainability an integral
part of Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR) in
their mission statements
and are taking measures
to save on energy or wa-
ter, or to treat wastewater.
And for some time now,
companies intending to
export to Europe or the
US, for instance, have had
to undergo a certification
process with a focus on
sustainable environmen-
tal protection.
In 2011, in Tirupur,
one
of the textile centers in
southern India, all the tex-
tile industry operations,
unable to prove that they
had effective wastewater
treatment in place, were
forced to close. This was
the first radical step by
the region’s local govern-
ment. Similar measures
are expected in other
parts of India as well. At
GBA, sustainability is
a key component of our
activities. We’re happy
to fulfill even stringent
requirements, such as
those relating to waste-
water treatment. We’ve
also introduced systems
for tapping the wealth of
solar energy in the region
for heating water. All our
employees go
concrete bridge, in
Albstadt-Lautlingen,
Germany, is a landmark
project where technical
textiles are concerned.
Groz-Beckert helped to
realize this project. Are
there any similar exam-
ples of this spectacular
and highly effective
material substitution in
India?
A:
There are no spec-
tacular examples in
India as yet. The techni-
cal textile market is at
a low level, compared
with Western markets,
of roughly $10 billion
annually. High growth
potential is evident,
however – currently 11.25
per cent per annum. In
its 12th Five-Year Plan
the Indian Government is
subsidizing the produc-
tion of geotextiles, which
is mainly concentrated in
north-eastern India, with
programs of over $100
million. In the current
fiscal year (2012/2013),
around $1 billion are
planned as part of a
venture capital program
to support small and
medium-sized enterprises.
The special focus here is
on production of higher-
quality textiles and also
technical textiles. In ad-
dition to these programs,
lower customs duties and
tax breaks are aimed at
facilitating investment
through an introductory
program informing them
of our mission and our ac-
tions where sustainability
is concerned, and provid-
ing examples.
Q: The world’s long-
est textile-reinforced-
exclusive