Executive Q&A with Rajat Kumar Kedia, Managing Director, Manjushree Spntek Pvt. Ltd., India
To survive intense competition due to overcapacity in the Indian as well as the global nonwovens fabrics market, India-based Manjushree Spntek Pvt. Ltd. has forayed into value addition products. The company is now offering disposable printed hospitality textiles for applications in tablecloths, bedsheets and aprons. To offer these value-added products, the company has invested in a state-of-the-art printing technology, which combines the advantages of both digital and screen printing. This printing technology has been attempted for the first time in the world and these disposable hospitality textiles will help in eliminating water consumption, which otherwise would have been used to wash similar products made from traditional textiles.
Among other value-added products, the company’s R&D department has developed a chemotherapy gown, developing a fabric which has higher barrier resistance to the chemotherapy drug.
Manjushree has also launched what it calls a “Smart Fabric,” which is a combination of the fabric that comes out of a production line which is called “Smart” and the second depends on the recipe which is customized and tailored.
International Fiber Journal: Please provide a history about your company, such as its beginnings and founder.
Rajat Kumar Kedia: Our first group company was started in 1982 founded by my father, Vimal Kedia, and manufactured flexible and HD films for packaging in the East Indian state of Assam under the name of Manjushree Technopak. Our progress continued when we shifted base to the south Indian city of Bengaluru in 1994, where we started production of rigid packaging.
The packaging business had a very good organic and inorganic growth and we reached a turnover of US $143 million. In 2018, we sold the whole company to a global private equity company named Advent International.
Post selling of the business, we were looking for other opportunities for investment. With the start of COVID-19 pandemic, we got into the business of nonwovens fabrics since the basic technology of nonwovens is similar to plastics extrusion technology. We ordered our first production line from Reifenhäuser Recofil in the peak period of COVID-19. We have a large parcel of land of which 20,000 sq. metres is a built-up area. The built-up area is adequate to install one more nonwovens production line.
Before purchasing, we evaluated the various Recofil technologies available and went in for the Smart Recofil machine. This machine gave us the capability to produce both hygiene and medical textiles. It is a spunmelt technology and is a four beam SMMS line with a 3.2 metre width and has a production speed of 600 metres per minute. Depending on the fabric GSM, our average production is around 15-20 tons per day. We have 100 plus employees and our primary raw material is polypropylene.
Since we produce hygiene fabrics, we have an ultra clean production zone. We have positive air pressure across the factory. Positive pressure is created by mechanically pushing fresh and clean air into the factory, which is also being constantly pushed out of the factory. This system does not allow any dust borne particle or bacteria to enter the factory. This positive air pressure system is considered a good manufacturing practice.
IFJ: Which are the core company products and solutions you offer for the market? Please share more details on bedding and home décor applications as this is very interesting.
Kedia: We have an eclectic mix of products and are able to produce fabrics as low as 9 GSM and also 120 GSM. Hygiene products are primarily produced from fabrics between 9 and 25 GSM and applications include baby, adult diapers and femcare products. Applications for fabrics between 25 and 60 GSM includes the medical industry primarily for infection control and there are around 100 applications in medical textiles.
We also have a fabric finishing machine in which we coat the fabric with various chemicals and provide various finishes to the fabric. For example, there is a lot of blood spurting during an orthopedic operation. To avoid contamination to the doctors, nurses, the patient as equipment, it is necessary to protect them. One of our products is an alcohol repellent anti-static fabric (ARAS).
It is a known fact that alcohol has lesser density than water and blood and so when a fabric is treated with alcohol, any spurt of blood will not penetrate the ARAS fabric gown worn by the operating team. This ARAS fabric made gown gives the operating team the utmost level of safety. Additionally, nowadays there is lot of electronic equipment in the operation theatre. So, to avoid any static electricity, it is important for the operating team to also wear anti-static gowns.
From 60 to 80 GSM, the applications include industrial fabrics like fire retardant fabrics, pharmaceutical product cover-all, etc. From 80 to 120 GSM, the applications are more specialized. These include industrial coveralls, cubicle curtains, FR protective apparel, geotextile, bedding, etc.
To provide value-addition to our fabrics, we have recently added a printing line. Traditionally nonwovens are printed on digital printing machines, but production is very low. The second option is screen printing which has higher productivity, but the registration of the print is not very high nor is it possible to print multi-color fabrics. We have purchased a state-of-the-art printing technology, which combines the advantages of both digital and screen printing and at an economical cost. This printing technology has been attempted for the first time in the world and we have a set of markets which we want to target with our printed fabrics. Applications include tablecloth, bedsheets and aprons.
A normal tablecloth made from either cotton or polyester in a restaurant is replaced after each meal and this means washing the tablecloth every time which uses 20-30 liters of water. Our product is primarily trying to address and reduce water usage in the same way as disposable medical gowns. Similarly, bedsheets and aprons need to be washed after every use in a hotel or restaurant. Our disposable tablecloths, bedsheets and aprons will go a long way in reducing water consumption.
We are trying to position our products where durability is not a priority, but bacteria fungus and virus are a matter of concern. This is a new concept that we have introduced and we call it fast fashion and could be a game changer for the hospitality industry. We have begun commercial sales of these fabrics.
IFJ: You have a R&D department. What has been its role in the development of products offered by your company?
Kedia: We are in a B2B business and our success is dependent on the success of our customers. So, we have set up a R&D department to make our customers succeed in their goals. We have two approaches in our R&D. The first is where our customer gives suggestions to design and develop a product. We call this customer led approach. In the second approach, we ourselves look for trends in the market and develop and design products for our customers which will serve a purpose. These may also include sustainable and environmentally friendly products.
The R&D department acts like a chef to tweak a process or anything else to develop a product. One of the latest products developed by our R&D team is a chemotherapy gown. The doctors, nurses and caregivers for cancer patients are always exposed to the hazardous cancer liquid drugs day in and day out, due to which they could develop side effects from these drugs. Sometimes these drugs are mixed with other drugs which can create a potent drug and becomes hazardous if it spills. A regular nonwoven fabric does not offer that protection.
We studied the composition of a cancer drug and then developed a fabric which has higher barrier resistance to the chemotherapy drug. The fabric has also been successfully tested as per ASTMF 3267-22 & ASTM D6978 and we can now commercially sell it in the market.
IFJ: Your website mentions “Smart Fabric Tailored Treatments Endless Applications.” What is the meaning of this?
Kedia: The smart fabric is a combination of two words. One of which is that the fabric comes out of a production line which is called “Smart” and the second depends on the recipe which is customized and is tailored. We are now working on applications of our nonwoven fabrics for the armed forces like camouflage fabrics for humans and tents, heat sensitive fabrics and more.
For example, a conventional tarpaulin would weigh around 200 kilograms, however a disposable tarpaulin made from our fabrics would weigh just six kilograms. It would be more convenient for the armed forces to abandon the disposable tarpaulins rather than carry a 200 kg tarpaulin tent everywhere.
IFJ: Do you have any compliance certificates to share?
Kedia: We sell our fabrics to heavily regulated industries so we need several compliance certifications for our fabrics. We have ISO 9000 and ISO 14385, which is a medical devices certification. Currently we are in the process of getting an environmental certification named ISO 42000. We also have other certifications like Oeko-Tex 100 certificate. A lot of our fabrics are also bio-compatible. We also have certifications to prove that our materials are phthalates free. All of these certifications are approved globally.
IFJ: Please share details of your presence in the Indian and export markets and your distribution or sales channels?
Kedia: We are a relatively young company but still our exports now make up for 15% of our revenues. At the same time, we are also trying to generate more revenues from the Indian market by educating surgeons in India to wear certified products while doing operations. We do not have distribution channels or agents and deal directly with the converter, who in turn directly deals with the end users. As of now we do not have plans for converting our fabrics.
IFJ: How important is sustainability for your company? What sustainable offerings do you supply to your customers?
Kedia: Sustainability is the number one focus area for us. We are carbon neutral as well as water positive and we do this out of respect for the environment. Our products may not be sustainable and raw materials may not be environmentally friendly, but since there are no viable alternatives to plastics, we try to optimize consumption of plastics. We are also trying to seek diaper which goes into a landfill, and decomposes in 200 days. We are in the process of developing sustainable raw materials which will decompose when sent to landfills by partnering up with various other research organizations. We also have invested in three start-ups who are concentrating on developing bio-material products.
IFJ: What are the key trends in consumer demand and the growth trajectory of India, as well global nonwovens industry?
Kedia: During COVID-19, getting into or expanding nonwovens capacity was considered a good opportunity. However, currently the global supply of nonwoven fabrics is 2.5 times over and above the demand. We however cannot comment on the situation in China. So, this is driving down prices to ridiculous levels. Currently prices are at rock bottom for nonwoven fabrics, which has also led to margins being hit. This is a worrying trend going forward. Our customers tell us to optimize cost and that can be done only by compromising on quality of products, which ultimately impacts the safety of end users. Nonwoven producers in a west Asian country are supplying at ridiculous low prices. This pricing is impossible if one were to supply a fabric which meets the highest quality and safety standards.
IFJ: What other initiatives are important to your company and culture?
Kedia: We are trying to create very high-tech environment, work force and products. We take care of our employees in the best possible ways. We are in the same industrial zone where the plant of Toyota Motors is located, which follows world class production systems. We are trying to follow same principles as followed in Toyota. We recruit our workforce from those trained in the Toyota training schools and so they come equipped with an understanding of the production system and also have good analytical skills to resolve the challenges they face on the shop floor. We also put efforts into provide them additional training to ensure they turn in to excellent operators or engineers.
IFJ: Your expectations on future growth and opportunities for nonwoven fabrics in all the applications that Manjushree offers in the Indian as well as overseas markets?
Kedia: There are plenty of opportunities in the market if a company is innovative. But growth is currently stalled due to over capacity. So, if we do not earn from our current investments, there will be no money to spend in the future on new investments. In the next five years, we expect sustainable products to be a driver of growth. We are a young company, so we have everything to learn, perform and deliver and nor have we reached a saturation point. We see a good future for infection control medical products. The current penetration of these products is only 25% in the Indian market. So, there is a huge opportunity if the medical community is educated on these products. The Indian government also has a role to play in regulating these products and ensure they meet the needed parameters.
