Impact of Design and Innovation in Pakistan Textile Industry - Term Paper Example

The textile industry in Pakistan has a long history dating back around 3000BC when cotton was grown and woven around the Indus River, throughout successive historical regimes cotton and textile production continued and flourished (Sheikh 2005). Following its independence in 1947, Pakistan which had for the retrospectively been producing cotton for British markets as a apart of India was able to substantially expand production as the new government promoted the industry by funding the irrigation and supplying farm input to farmers at subsidized prices (Gillson, et al, 2004). Today, the textile industry is without question the most important segment of the country’s industrial sector with millions employed in it and earning the country significant amounts in foreign exchange (Khan, 1999). Approximately 38 % of all Pakistanis are employed in the textile sector and 58 % of the GDP, which accounts for more than the other sectors put together, is from textiles (Shahzad, Shaikh and Mahmood, 2010). Today, Pakistan imports textile good valued at over US $ 10 billion annually inclusive of yarn and other value added goods such as hand made. Given the magnitude of value attached to the textile industry, the country has put in a significant investment in its promotion by ensuring that there are enough technicians and other professionals to work in it. This has primarily being achieved through partnering with public and private leaning institutions which provide courses that include textile engineering or exclusively dedicate to the field. Despite the nation’s apparent success in the industry, there have been a myriad of challenges many related to technological change and global economic, ergo the universities and college are tasked with the job of providing workable technical and managerial solutions to ensure that despite the rugged market conditions the country main industry remains profitable and globally relevant. This is being done through a variety of means such as technical research, and the unveiling of new courses related to the textile disciplines among other concerted efforts. Earlier in 2013 for example the, Zakariya University presented new findings in the field of fiber technology that are expected to have far reaching effects on how cotton firms world over (Fiber technology, 2013). In textile vision 2005, which was meant to give direction to the industry, several issue were suggested, among them had to do with human resource development and this is one of the critical areas where universities needs must come to bear. Owing to the rapid technological changes in contemporary times as well as the bitter rivalries on the global market, Pakistan must ensure it can produce as much cotton as possible for less so as to keep up. Nonetheless, this will only be achieved if they have sufficient and qualified labor as well as improved production technology. To this end several leaning institutions have taken it upon themselves to offer course in disciplines such as fabric manufacturing, however they take this as step further by providing alongside this a sound working knowledge of the latest electronic gadgets such as Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAM). This way, when graduates leave the school for the job market, they will be better placed to use computer based systems so as to improve the rate of production and the quality of textiles (Bari, 2003). The commitment of Pakistan’s higher education system to developing the textile industry is enhanced by the fact that they are one of the few countries in the world with a textile university, the National textile university offers among other the following course. Yarn, fabric, and garment manufacturing, in addition it has department of polymer and textile testing. This is without doubt one of the universities that will lead Pakistan’s future generations in the textile industry and help the country maximize it productivity and potential. Another prominent institution of higher learning dedicated to textiles is the TIP (Textile Institute of Pakistan) this collage is a nonprofit making organization that awards degrees in textile specialties. It legitimacy is underscored by the fact that it was formed by one of the leading cotton means in the country the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA). This implies that its existence was necessitated by a need for the textile industry to diversify and develop theories so that it could progress in posterity through liaising with an educational body. In addition, the school that teach textile manufacture should ensure that graduates have the necessary skills in merchandising and marketing of textile which as matters stand currently there is an acute shortage of. One of the challenges facing the industry is that although there are a variety of products, there aren’t enough people with the professional skills to merchandise them for maximum profit and therefore high volumes of productivity do not always translate into high sales (Lakhani et al, 2012). Therefore, universities need to diversify their training such that it does not only focus on just the production but also taking to account all the stages of the chain such that there are trained professionals right from the panting harvesting to the final stages of sale as marketing. Shifting the textile curriculum from a stereotype based to a diverse and practical one is one of the most profound steps that some universities such as Faisal Textile University is taking to maximize of the education input into the industry. The traditional curriculum in majority of universities was outdated and largely based on stereotypes, however the modern techniques are not theory but practice centered, retrospectively, universities would teach their students vague and abstract content which they would struggle to contextualize when the graduated and enter the industry. Nevertheless, the new model is radially different, the courses offered at several of the progressive universities are based on the current industry and thus they derive material from the situation on the ground. Ergo, when a student is in class they are learning current matter and using day to day industry examples so when they enter the market they will find an over correlation between whet they studied and what they are expected to do. Universities are currently offering course like textile microencapsulation nanotechnology nonwovens and many contemporary methods of production, this way they are priming their graduates to be effective and progressive so that when they become a party of the industry they will apply their technological acumen to project the growth of the industry. Another emerging issue that has been crying to be addressed over the years pertain the ecological ramifications of the production process, owing to few course in colleges about the impacts of cotton farming and production in the environment (Banuri, 1998). Ethical issue have in the past being raised especially because of the pollutant nature of the industry process since it result in air and water pollution exposing the inhabitant of areas near the factories to health risks. However colleges have introduced course to address this so as to minimize the previously unchecked ecological and social accountability issues. Every industry should have a feedback system and taking cognizance of this, Pakistan universities have worked towards developing a system where they can gather information from customers both local and international through research studies. This way they generate curriculum and theories that are customer specific and centric, at the end of the day, no matter how much technology and innovation is put into a product the key determinant of its success is the customers’ acceptance, ergo it is critical that they discover the various attitudes towards the textiles and work from there. Apart from using the research for pedagogical purposes alone universities share their research and recommendations with the industry player, this way they can implement it by applying relevant production techniques to suit diverse customers’ needs References Banuri, T., 1998. Pakistan: Environmental Impact of Cotton Production and Trade International Institute for Sustainable Development.. Winnipeg, Canada: Bari, K. 2003, The Competitive Advantage of Pakistan – Empirical Analysis of the Textile/Apparel Industry, PhD Thesis, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, U.K. Fiber Technology; 2013. New Data from Bahauddin Zakariya University Illuminate Findings in Fiber Technology. Technology & Business Journal, , pp. 703. Gillson, I., C. Poulton, K. Balcombe, and S. Page. 2004. Understanding the Impact of Cotton Subsidies on Developing Countries. London: Overseas Development Institute. Khan, S. R.., 1999, Fifty Years of Pakistan Economy: Traditional Topic and Contemporary Concerns, Oxford University Press, Karachi, Pakistan. Lakhani, F.A., Syed, A.A.S.G., Shaikh, N. and Shaikh, F.M., 2012. Impact of WTO Reforms on Trade Agreements on Cotton and Clothing in Pakistan. Modern Applied Science, 6(12), pp. 27-36. Shahzad M, I., Shaikh F. M. – Mahmood,. B. Dr..2010. Empirical Analysis of Textile Clusters In Pakistan. International Conference On Applied Economics – ICOAE 2010. Sheikh, H. R., 2005, Growth and BMR Requirements of the Textile Industry – Problems and Prospects, Textile Institute of Pakistan Read More