Dheeraj Talreja – Commercial Director, South Asia, Middle East and Africa – Huntsman Textile Division Huntsman Singapore PTE Ltd.
Huntsman Textile Effects is the leader in global textile chemicals, dyes and ink business. The company offers end-to-end solutions across the entire textile value chain, from processing chemicals, dyes, inks and finishing chemicals to textile solutions. Huntsman has been doing business in the Indian sub-continent for more than 25 years now. India is a very important market for Huntsman Textile Effects and is among the top five fastest growing markets. In an interview to The Textile Magazine, Mr. Dheeraj Talreja Commercial Director, South Asia, Middle East and Africa – Huntsman Textile Division Huntsman Singapore PTE Ltd., spoke in detail about the company’s presence globally, the solution it offers for the textile industry and its plans for the Indian market.
Can you give us a brief outline of Huntsman’s global level activities along with the products and solutions you offer?
Huntsman Textile Effects is the leader in global textile chemicals, dyes and ink business with revenue of $0.8 billion in more than 90 countries. Huntsman has six primary manufacturing units and twelve formulation system centers, in addition to 4 global Research and Technology centers and 12 technical service labs worldwide offering best-in-class innovation.
Innovation has always been critical to Huntsman’s growth and sustainability. Today, it holds around 800 patents, and the 200 products launched in the last five years contribute to 15% of its revenue.
Essentially, we believe in delivering innovation with a purpose. Our key products include AVITERA SE dyes that save energy and water. The first para-chloro-aniline (PCA) free reactive dye range, AVITERA SE dyes ensure rapid and very high exhaustion for cotton and other cellulosic fibers and their blends. More of the dye is absorbed by the fabric, using less salt with less than 7% of the absorbed dye remaining unfixed compared to the 15% and 30% of conventional reactive dyes.
- Current detection limit 5ppm: Huntsman Textile Effects introduced PHOBOTEX RSY non-fluorinated durable water repellent, developed to specifically meet extreme protection, comfort and durability requirements for both synthetic and cellulosic fibers, delivering an enhanced environmental profile for brands.
This is part of its comprehensive range of non-fluorinated durable water repellents with High IQ Repel products that offer solutions for every performance need:
- Everyday: Smart and economical eco-friendly protection against everyday stains for school, casual, athleisure and business wear.
- Outdoor: Durable and eco-friendly protection for outdoor clothing that excels in all weather.
- Extreme: Extreme protection so that mountaineers, skiers and other adventurers stay warm, dry and comfortable, even in the most severe environments.
Products under the HIGH IQ Repel performance assurance scheme help mills, brands and retailers meet the global demand for eco-friendly apparel with rain and stain protection.
Huntsman Textile Effects also has a suite of digital ink solutions to meet the growing demand for fast fashion. Our digital printing technologies allow mills to print an almost unlimited array of colors and complex patterns in short runs through a very clean process that minimizes waste and substantially reduces water and energy consumption.
What are the solutions offered by Huntsman specific to the textile industry?
Huntsman offers end-to-end solutions across the entire textile value chain, from processing chemicals, dyes, inks and finishing chemicals to textile solutions to meet the evolving needs of our customers.
We draw on our core pillars of Sustainability, Innovation and Collaboration, working with all sections of the textile value chain in product development and processes to drive the industry towards a more sustainable future.
Which are the major global markets for the Huntsman Textile Division?
Huntsman Textile Effects business unit caters to markets across apparels, home textiles, protective fabrics, technical fabrics, protective fabrics, transportation and carpets. We serve customers across all regions – the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Can you elaborate on Huntsman’s presence in India?
Huntsman has been doing business in the Indian sub-continent for more than 25 years and has a legacy and tradition of supporting the industry to move from handloom to the current state-of-the-art-facility in the sub-continent. The textile business, acquired by Huntsman from Ciba in 2006, is headquartered in Mumbai with regional offices in all major textile clusters. We have a strong technical service team based in all these areas who work at customer locations to support them in different areas focusing on productivity improvement, cost optimization, new product development, trouble shooting, joint discussion with customer’s customers which are brands and retailer helping them address the current industry challenges and prepare them for seizing future opportunities.
How important is the textile industry vertical in India and what is the level of engagement for Huntsman?
India is a very important market in the textile industry and is one of the largest fiber producers, particularly cotton. India has developed into a large market for textile chemicals owing to the domestic production and export of cotton and synthetic fibers. Apparel and home textiles are our main verticals in India.
We see the emergence of new attractive sectors as digital printing and automotive textile and we have a strong presence in both of them.
India is a very important market for Huntsman Textile Effects and is among the top five fastest growing markets. We are confident about long-term views about the Indian sub-continent and continue witnessing new investments for technological upgrades and new areas of effects and application as digital printing. We also see the industry focused on investing in new technologies as digital printing for home textiles, apparels, etc., and also on upgrading of production technologies and green technologies to set up green factories.
We also see high growth rates in the domestic market and the shift in the fiber trend from 100% cotton to synthetic blends which will create opportunities for the industry.
The athleisure category is growing, and Huntsman is in a leading position to support the industry to meet the standard needed in that segment with its innovation and flawless technical support.
Has there been any specific innovation by Huntsman to offer products and solutions specifically suited for Indian textile manufacturing?
Huntsman has introduced AVITERA SE reactive dyes that significantly save energy and water in the cotton dyeing.
Huntsman Textile Effects introduced AVITERA SE to help the industry address its most pressing sustainability challenges and textile mills and brands to achieve cost-effective production, improved textile products and minimal environmental impact. AVITERA SE poly-reactive dyes ensure rapid and very high exhaustion for cotton and other cellulosic fibers and their blends. More of the dye is absorbed by the fabric, using less salt and lower temperatures, with less than 5% of the absorbed dye remaining unfixed compared to 5% and 30% of conventional reactive dyes. The dye is also easier to remove at low temperatures.
AVITERA SE dyes are also offered under Huntsman’s High IQ Lasting Color Eco performance assurance program, the world’s only color retention program that delivers value through color performance with reduced environmental footprint. Partners that qualify for the performance assurance program use High IQ hangtags that stand for quality and confidence – products that deliver performance, protection and comfort and meet the textile industry’s strict environmental regulations.
Can you name some of the major projects executed by Huntsman in the Indian market?
Huntsman has a history of supporting and working on key projects in the continent, ranging from PIP (Productivity Improvement programme) resulting into total cost savings to improvement in productivity, new product development and co-branding with mills, domestic and international brands.
Huntsman is committed to work at zero distance with customers to support them in addressing the current challenges and preparing them for future opportunities and landscapes. The key ethos driving every Huntsmanite are Sustainability, Innovation and Collaboration.
What are your expectation on the future growth of the Indian textile industry?
Huntsman has been active on the Indian sub-continent for more than 25 years. We have more than 2,500 associates in the region, and Textile Effects has a plant at Baroda in Gujarat.
We have offices all over India and headquarters for the India sub-continent in Mumbai, which houses four Huntsman divisions under one roof to help drive creativity, collaboration and growth in the Indian subcontinent.
The textile effects team has a staff of 183 employees in a state-of-the-art laboratory out of which 35 belong to the R&T wing. Many of the products and innovations here are quite unique.
Our strategy for growth in India and the wider Asia Pacific is to focus on sustainability, innovation and collaboration. We are currently realigning our regional operations to bring decision-making closer to the customer and improve cross-functional synergy to react more quickly to the evolving customer and market requirements.
Can you elaborate on Huntsman’s manufacturing, sales and service infrastructure across India?
Huntsman Textile Effects has a manufacturing facility at Baroda in Gujarat and has formulated a chemical plant in Pondicherry via its partner. The headquarters is in Mumbai with regional offices in all major textile clusters. We also have strong technical service teams based in all textile clusters.
Huntsman has a dedicated strong commercial team (Sales, TR & Marketing) across India for supporting customer needs. We believe in ZERO DISTANCE to the customer, thereby creating a value in the products/services that we offer and are often seen as differentiated solution provider in this market.
In Mumbai we have a Technical Resource Centre (TRC) application lab out of very few TRC centers for TE business which can handle the customer (Internal & External) developments right from the fiber to fabric in textile wet processing, thereby providing end-to-end solutions with a dedicated team of technical experts.
The Mumbai office is also one of global R&T centers out of 4 R&T centers for TE business. The office has an in-house technical service lab which has state-of-the-art equipments and can address all the requirements from application as dyeing, finishing and testing.
Dheeraj Talreja’s professional achievements
Mr. Dheeraj Talreja is the Commercial Director – South Asia, Middle East and Africa, at Huntsman Singapore. He is also the Regional Chairman for the cross-functional business team which comprises sales, technical, product management, supply chain, manufacturing, finance and human resources.
In his current role, Mr. Talreja manages the sales revenue and margin responsibility for business. His other assignments include developing and executing commercial strategy for the region, overseeing commercial activities and technical support operations, and identifying new market opportunities.
Mr. Talreja joined Huntsman in 2002 as an Account Manager and has risen up the ranks through a number of commercial and marketing leadership positions. He has over 15 years of valuable textile industry experience and has spearheaded various innovative initiatives in line with market attractiveness and needs. He has also orchestrated product launches across the globe.
Prior to joining Huntsman, Mr. Talreja worked with Ciba Specialty Chemicals (I) Ltd. and M.K. Wears Ltd. His academic achievements include a Master’s Degree in Fiber Science & Technology from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and B.E. Textiles from the University of Rajasthan.
He has won several Awards such as the Innovation Leader 2007 from Huntsman International India Pvt. Ltd. and the Best Zonal Head 2006 from Ciba Specialty Chemicals (I) Ltd.