How many times have we visited patients in a hospital and returned home with an infection caused by a rather unhygienic hospital environment? This uncomfortable scenario is slated to undergo a hygiene upgrade, thanks to a technological innovation called INVINSIL. Simply put, hospital linen, gowns, aprons, curtains, etc., treated with INVINSIL provide long-lasting protection from germs, keeping textiles hygienic and odour free. This technology is from Resil Chemicals Private Ltd., a Bangalore-based manufacturer of silver and silicone-based specialty products. This is the company’s latest creation for the hygiene and wellness segment, which it entered through a silver technology.
“INVINSIL is in the validation stage in many hospitals and hotel management groups. The product is suited for the laundry section of hospitals and hotels,” said Mr. Ganesh Srinivasan, Chief Technology Officer, Resil Chemicals.
Silver quotient
Proverbially one is born with a silver spoon, but for Resil the white metal provided inspiration for expanding its portfolio. Upon research silver’s antimicrobial qualities have been leveraged into a functional textile finish. The silver particle has the highest surface to volume ratio, thereby delivering maximum efficacy in controlling bacterial growth on textiles and apparels. This results in high safety to the user and makes it an environment friendly and sustainable product.
“Essentially, we are weaving hygiene into clothes through a non-leaching silver-based antimicrobial. It’s been found that jeans are worn multiple times and are rarely washed. We arrived at N9 Pure Silver, a non-leaching and particulate silver-based technology to address hygiene and wellness,” added Mr. Srinivasan, pointing to a pair of jeans that have been treated with the finish.
After jeans, socks and inner wear have been treated with this finish. Resil’s new line of products such as “Coolit” and “Hi-Dry” will complement its silver technology to offer the anti-odour function to active wear.
Resil’s strength lies in its expertise of formulation technology and application research. The thought process behind N9 Pure Silver began five years ago. With this innovative antibacterial product, the company forayed into the hygiene and wellness segment three years ago and patented this technology.
It’s been a good starting point, and since then Resil has been creating niche functional finishes for the hygiene and wellness segment. “The hand sanitizer market is among the first indicators of the development of the hygiene segment in India. Sanitizers are presently used by a small percentage of the population. Only when the market for hygiene products grows will awareness and demand increase, and we can expect to generate huge revenues,” he reasoned.
Of course, all this is possible due to a full-fledged R&D team, 18 chemical R&D professionals and 15 application R&D members, to be specific. It’s no surprise therefore that a significant portion of the annual revenue goes towards R&D. As of now, three facilities with a total production capacity of around 20,000 metric tonnes per annum execute the R&D formulations. A new plant is being established at Malur, 46 km from Bangalore. It will be operational in April 2016 with a production capacity of 10,000 tons per annum of specialty chemicals.
Resil is a private limited company in the specialty chemical SME segment with double-digit growth year on year. It was presented the Innovation Award at the Bangalore India Nano – 2013 for its pioneering work in the development of novel solutions for textile applications.
Collaboration corner
The company has by now had established itself as a manufacturer of products that conform to global standards like GOTS and OEKOTEX Standard 100 in its commitment to sustainable development. This inspired many collaborators to join hands with Resil. Gradually these collaborations have helped the company forge ahead as one of the largest formulators of customized formulations for textile and non-textile applications.
A case in point is the Department of Science and Technology (DST), which has chosen Resil as an industrial partner for textile finishing under the Nano Mission program in collaboration with research institutes. This led to the development of the N9 Pure Silver particulate technology which is easy to apply by padding and exhaustion processes and a non-leaching, sustainable antibacterial and anti-odour solution for textiles, ensuring long-lasting freshness even after 50 washes.
Green Road to innovation
Come January 2016, the company plans to launch Xpellent: “This is a green mosquito repellent that is applied to textiles to keep mosquitos away,” said Mr. Srinivasan.
The green factor stems from the fact that the repellent contains biodegradable ingredients that help firmly bind the insect repellent to the fabric, thereby providing all-round protection even while one walks around.
The company followed the eco-friendly trail till it hit upon the idea of using solar energy for textile cleaning applications. The outcome is SOLADEL a Titania Microsphere-based self-cleaning technology that uses sunlight to clean white clothes, denims and other textiles.
Mr. Srinivasan further observed: “The Titania Microspheres act in a manner similar to photosynthesis. It uses sunlight to produce reactive oxygen that helps break down organic dirt molecules, thereby weakening the bond between the textile and the dirt.”
The technology doesn’t fully clean clothes, but helps to dislodge organic dirt, thereby enabling easy cleaning during the regular washing cycle. Cleaning, however, depends on the intensity and type of dirt and the amount of sunlight available in that particular region.
As a strong contender in the value-add space, Resil has created a cooling technology for innerwear and formal wear that helps to keep fabrics cool up to 3°C when in contact with sweat or moisture. This technology which is known as COOLIT will be launched through multiple brands in the summer of 2016. The country’s hot and humid weather conditions have urged the R&D professionals to arrive at this technology.
The team draws inspiration from the chemistry of materials, and the products have reached the masses through basic materials like cotton and polyester too. Functions like odour and heat resistance, which were once considered overwhelming, seem quite acceptable now. This, coupled with the industry demand, has led them on. Presently the market is driven by specialities such as antimicrobials, natural water repellents, mosquito repellents, cooling and heating technologies, encapsulated fragrances, quick drying technologies and self sun-cleaning products.
Resil continues innovating and growing as a manufacturer and marketer of specialty finishing products to meet the expanding textile industry demand.