Textile industry needs revamped machinery

Textile industry needs revamped machinery

JAKARTA (JP): Textile industry analyst Chamroel Djafri urged
textile and garment companies yesterday to upgrade old plant
equipment and machinery to remain internationally competitive.

Djafri said technology enabled textile companies in developed
countries to compete in developing countries despite higher labor
costs.

Djafri, who is also an advisor to the Indonesian Textile
Association, said Indonesian textile makers should shift to
higher value-added products to stay competitive.

API chairman Bambang Riyadi Soegama earlier said 60 percent of
textile machines in Bandung, West Java, which accounts for more
than 40 percent of national textile output, were made in the
1970s.

"The government should encourage textile firms to modernize by
giving them tax incentives," Djafri said while promoting the
Bandung Tex '97 textile exhibition and the Indo Textile '97
textile product exhibition.

PT Peraga Nusantara Jaya Sakti is organizing the exhibitions
which will be from July 3 to July 7 at Bandung's Husein
Sastranegara Airport.

About 500 companies from 26 countries, including Italy,
Switzerland, Korea, Japan, China, Taiwan, Slovenia, Ukraine, will
take part.

The Italian Embassy's trade commissioner, Michele Branca, said
about 50 Italian textile machine makers would display their
products.

"Italy manufactures machines designed to produce high quality
textiles," he said. (jsk)