SILVER LINE GROUP is the largest conglomerate in the textile and apparel sector in Bangladesh. The quest for excellence in services and capacity expansions for meeting global needs and competitiveness is as fresh and dynamic as ever. Their focus also remains on social & environmental commitments to have green project status. They have 4 subsidiaries (Yarn, Fabric, Apparel, and Dyeing & Printing) with the most prominent one being SILVER COMPOSITE TEXTILES MILLS Ltd. With the latest printing technology, digitalization is the foremost effort to upgrade the printing section in the SLG. along with the latest digital printing machine. the group aims to increase its order volume. Recently the visionary person and technically expert Mr. Umrao Sher Singh Uppal, COO of Silver Line Group, talked with team Textile Focus. He talked about digitalization progress and getting updated on Silver Line Composite Textile Mills.
Q. What is the scenario of the Printing segment of Silver Line Group?
Umrao Sher Singh Uppal: We are a one-stop solution for all our buyers in apparel as we are very good at yarn-dyed, solid-dyed & Prints. It’s a pleasure for us to say that our products are getting wider reach, meaning we are exporting fabrics to India, Latin America & parts of Europe which in itself is an achievement for being known as fabric exporter out of Bangladesh. It gives us pride when the world’s best-known mills in this sub-continent replicate our fabrics to their buyer’s demand. It is an achievement in itself for us and Bangladesh that we are producing fabric not only to meet the demand of our Brand factories in Bangladesh but also are exporting fabric to other factories outside of Bangladesh. We have state-of-the-art world-class Rotary printing technology of 16 colors from Reggiani ITALY with which we can print 1 million yards of fabric per month. Recently we have introduced a new Digital printing machine from Reggiani family as part of the consolidation process on the Printing side and to give a one-stop solution to our customers in all formats of woven format.
Q. Why did you choose Italian technology for Printing?
Umrao Sher Singh Uppal: When we talk about printing, we talk about fashion. We checked all the lead brands currently on market and narrowed it down to REGGIANI as we have already tested the quality and service of this brand. Handling 16 colors impeccably with crystal clarity and service back made us look towards this brand on a more serious note. We are happy with the outcome. In Digital when the pictures and portraits come to life on the fabric, it makes you feel that the investment done is worth it. In order to bring consistency, we have signed the MOU with the supplier to supply the same brand of ink for the next two years. We believe in quality & consistency over quantity deliverance. We invite all prospective and existing buyers to visit our facility where they will find the world-class layout with no Dyes/chemical/water spillover in the assigned area of printing. This will give them confidence in how we handle their product with us.
Q. What is the future plan in terms of Printing and knitting?
Umrao Sher Singh Uppal: Currently, my printing production capacity is 12 million yards per year which is roughly 30% of my total available capacity. Plans are to enhance production capacity by another 7 million yards which proportionally will help us enhance our printing capabilities, Prints are gaining popularity in the entire range of fabric value chains. This is the area of more experimentation with less cost involved but adding more fashion elements to the basic form of fabric, we bet strongly in this area and that is the reason the investments have been planned with the best technology available. Knit has a very strong future and SLG has already planned a big investment in this area which our readers will surely read in detail in the coming articles of TEXTILE FOCUS.
Q. Any message to the industry?
Umrao Sher Singh Uppal: BELIEF & IMPLEMENTATION are the two keywords that keep you moving very strong. We had and have a belief that Bangladesh will be the next big destination for a complete vertical solution on quantity and quality deliverance and today we are going strong in this area. Importing fiber to yarn and converting the same into fabric and garment and then becoming the no 2 in the world is in itself is an achievement for the Industry as a large. Exporting fabric to other countries required your strong willpower to beat the competition when the major part of your cost structure is dependent on the outsourcing model. You are able to convert the challenge to your strength, you end up being the winner. Come out of the comfort zone of doing basic and fight for something really challenging and you will there where you wish to be in the future.
