APPAREL FIRMS INVEST IN TECHNOLOGIES TO PREPARE FOR TPP

Saigon Garment Manufacturing Trading Joint Stock Company (Garmex Saigon) has recently spent much on purchasing automated machines to replace outdated equipment which is mainly operated manually and requires much labor.

According to Nguyen An, general director of Garmex Saigon, machines are now cheaper than earlier and many textile and garment companies are purchasing new machines with high technology. For instance, a Juki one-needle sewing machine was sold at US$600 some 20 years ago but a programmable sewing machine of Juki is priced US$580 now.

Complex details of old machines require workers with good skills while unskilled workers can sew well with new machines. Besides, cloth cutting machines that Garmex Saigon has recently bought have helped reduce the number of workers at this stage by 80% in comparison to old machines.

An said investing in modern machines, organizing production activities systematically and improving management are necessary for textile and garment enterprises due to increasing competition in terms of product price and labor.

According to An, the world economy has yet to fully recover and producing countries are competing intensely in terms of price. As a result, using advanced machines can help the company increase productivity and reduce material losses in order to offer competitive prices.

In addition, with Vietnam’s participation in the TPP, there will be more foreign enterprises coming to Vietnam to invest in the textile-garment sector to get tariff incentives when exporting products to TPP states like the U.S. Therefore, Vietnamese enterprises will face tough competition regarding labor as foreign direct investment (FDI) enterprises have special policies to attract workers.

Without investments in technologies and modern machines from now on, textile and garment enterprises would face stronger competition from FDI enterprises, An added.

According to Pham Xuan Hong, chairman of Saigon 3 Garment Joint Stock Company and chairman of the Association of Garments, Textiles, Embroidery and Knitting (AGTEK), the textile-garment sector is not attractive to workers, making enterprises active in the field lose staff easily.

When skilled workers quit their jobs, enterprises normally have to employ unskilled ones and train them. Therefore, to ensure productivity and quality, enterprises need to invest in new technologies and equipment.

Hong said textile and garment enterprises cared about exhibitions on machines used in the sector like the 15th Vietnam International Textile and Garment Industry Exhibition (VTG 2015) set to open on Wednesday in HCMC. The four-day expo will take place at Tan Binh Exhibition and Convention Center (TBECC) in Tan Binh District.

There are real demands, which require exhibitors at the expo to provide useful information for textile and garment enterprises, according to Pham Quynh Giang, deputy general director of Vietnam National Trade Fair and Advertising Joint Stock Company (VINEXAD).

VTG 2015 is organized by VINEXAD in coordination with Taiwan’s Chan Chao International Co., Ltd, Hong Kong’s Yorkers Trade and Marketing Service Co., Ltd, Hong Kong’s Paper Communication Exhibition Services, AGTEK and the Vietnam Cotton and Spinning Association (VCOSA).

More than 125 local and foreign enterprises with nearly 300 booths will showcase their innovative products and technologies. Exhibitors are from 12 countries and territories, including Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Germany, Turkey, South Korea, India, Taiwan, Malaysia and China.

Source: The Saigon Times