The India International Textile Machinery Exhibition (ITME) 2022, a leading textile engineering and technology B2B exhibition hosted at India Expo Centre and Mart in Greater Noida, UP, showcased over 1,600 machines and unveiled 69 new products with participation from 68 countries. Around 87,400 unique visitors, totalling 1,10,000 footfalls over six days, enjoyed an array of activities at the venue.

Concurrent programmes included technical discussions, CEO conclaves, industry awards, a wildlife photo gallery, alumni meetings, and government-industry interactions, which enhanced the experience of participants, according to a press release by India ITME.

The India ITME 2022, a leading textile engineering and technology B2B exhibition hosted at India Expo Centre and Mart in UP, showcased over 1,600 machines and unveiled 69 new products with participation from 68 countries. Around 87,400 unique visitors totalling to 1,10,000 footfalls over six days enjoyed an array of activities at the venue.

After a gap of six years, the event recorded a high flow of quality visitors which included industry members, technocrats, academicians, students, and government officials apart from delegations from 13 countries led by senior officials who are looking to engage with India as a sourcing and trade partner for developing their textile industry.

The event was inaugurated on December 8, 2022, with a traditional Indian lamp lighting ceremony as well as Ganesh Vandhana and singing of the national anthem attended by S Hari Shankar, chairman, India ITME Society; Ketan Sanghvi, honorary treasurer; Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu, chairman and managing director, Lakshmi Machine Works Ltd, and past chairman; Sanjiv Lathia, past chairman; Anuj Bhagwati, chairman and managing director, ATE; and Rakesh Kumar, chairman, India Exposition Mart Ltd along with other dignitaries.

The high-profile technology and engineering exhibition for textiles witnessed participation from leading Indian institutes for textile engineering such as the Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI) Mumbai and DKTE Ichalkaranji where Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) were signed for knowledge exchange with the Swiss Textile Machinery Association and Italian Textile Machinery Association, paving the way for collaboration not only in business but also in technical education.

Eminent panellists from Aachen University, Germany, professor Thomas Gries, chairman, ITA, RWTH; Philipp Huber, RWTH Aachen; Kumar Jois, RWTH Aachen; Shantanu Bhat, RWTH Aachen; Gözdem Dittel, RWTH Aachen; and Justin Kühn, RWTH Aachen, flew down to speak on the latest technology topics.

Other renowned speakers included Uday Gill, CSO, Indorama; Dr. PKC Bose, MD, Enercon Braz Costa, CITEVE, Portugal; Gurudas Aras, strategic consultant; Ranjit Sasi, India head, Reverse Resources; Khusbhu Maheshwari; Anurag Gupta, MD, Usha Yarns; Dr. Asim Tewari, IIT B; Dr. Rajalakshmi Natarajan, IIT Dharwad, Saatchi Doshi, Programme; Devyani Hari, director of the Centre for Responsible Business (CRB); Dr. Mohit Raina, Raina Industries Pvt Ltd; Dr. Asim Tewari, IIT Bombay; and Prashant Agrawal, Wazir Advisors.

The topics discussed by the speakers included Transformation through Collaboration to Achieve Sustainability; Hydrogen Storage Systems–Trends in Europe and India; Role of Carbon in Fuel Cell Technology and Energy Conversion Devices; Fibre-based Materials for Future Energy Applications; From Fibres to Component: What Hydrogen Storage Technology has to do with Textile Technology?; Composites and Technical Textiles for Energy Efficient Building; Multifunctional Textile Reinforced Concrete Structures for Building Applications; Strategic Innovation in Textile Value Chain; Need of Composites in the Energy Sector; Learnings from the Transformation in the Apparel and Textile Industry in Portugal; and Accelerating Innovations for Circular Textiles.

India ITME Society facilitated an interaction between industry and policy makers through the CEO Conclave coordinated by Avinash Mayekar, Suvin. This session was attended by Rohit Kansal, IAS, additional secretary, ministry of textiles, government of India (GoI); P Sathasivam, ex-chief justice of India and former governor of Kerala; Prajakta L Verma, IAS, joint secretary, ministry of textiles, GoI; Rajeev Saxena, joint secretary, ministry of textiles, GoI; and Roop Rashi Mahapatra, textile commissioner, GoI. The industry sectors were represented by T Rajkumar, chairman, Confederation of Indian Textile Industry; M Sankar, president of textile machinery division (TMD) (operations), Lakshmi Machine Works Limited; and Arun Kumar Garodia, chairman of the Engineering Export Promotion Council of India (EEPC).

The six-day event carried forward its theme ‘Empowering Textile Through Technology’ by encouraging indigenously developed innovations and research by Indian companies. ‘Appreciating the Best of the Industry’, which is the second edition of ITME awards, felicitated companies like Lakshmi Machine Works Ltd (LMW), Rabatex Industries, Texfab Engineers (India) Pvt Ltd, ColorJet India Ltd, Lakshmi Card Clothing Manufacturing Company Private Limited, and SA Pharmachem Pvt Ltd for their quality products.

Giving importance to gender equality, women entrepreneurs were also lauded for their success in an industry dominated by men. Deepa A Kumar, founder and managing director, Yashram Lifestyle Brands Pvt Ltd and Neha Jhunjhunwala, director, Sarla Performance Fibers Ltd, were selected for the women entrepreneurship award. Proving to be a responsible industry body, India ITME Society not only encouraged modern innovations and technology but also provided inspiration for the traditionally skilled artisans of the nation.

Santoshi Kewat, master weaver, Maheshwari Creations, Madhya Pradesh, and Kumari Raita, Soura Development Agency, Odisha, were felicitated for the categories of the Best Master Weaver and Restoring Traditional Skills, respectively. Dr. Rekha Ramakrishnan of the Sasmira Institute was felicitated under the category of Research Excellence.

The jury panel consisted of stalwarts of the Indian industry—Uday Gill, group chief strategy officer, Indorama Ventures Ltd; Updeep Singh, president and CEO, Sutlej Textiles and Industries Ltd; Manohar Samuel, advisor, R&D, Reliance Retail; Gurudas V Aras, India consultant to the ITA group, Germany; R Anand, partner, Eastern Engineering Company; Dr. Manisha Mathur, joint director, Sasmira; Sanjiv Lathia, past chairman of India ITME Society; Ketan Sanghvi, honorary treasurer; and Hari Shankar, chairman, unanimously recommended SP Oswal for the honour of the ‘Textile Maestro of Industry’.

A technical symposium by VJTI, Mumbai on the theme of ‘Reduce-Reuse-Recycle: State of the Art in Textile Sector’ was well appreciated and received by officials as well as the industry.

ITME 2022 offered a platform for showcasing pan-India culture, including North Eastern folk art music and dance performances combined with a live music event and fashion show displaying Maheshwari sarees created using traditional handlooms by women master weavers of Madhya Pradesh. The platform gave global exposure to Indian handicrafts and traditional rural artisans. The work of well-known wildlife photographer Hari Santharam was also on display at the exhibition, added the release.

The six-day marathon event has set the foundation for the upgradation and modernisation of the textile industry of India, which is the second largest employment generation sector after agriculture. It also has motivated and enhanced the confidence of the Indian textile engineering industry to cater to the demands of the domestic as well as global market.

Showcasing the digital prowess of India, this edition of India ITME digitalised all its services and provided event catalogues, visitor guides, help desk assistance, the exhibitor manual, etc digitally to reduce paper usage due to printing.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)