Efficient supply chain management is crucial for timely delivery
Eastman Exports is a leading knitwear manufacturer based in Tiruppur, India. With a strong focus on product development and a creative design team, the company produces quality garments that guarantee customer satisfaction. In a chat with Fibre2Fashion, Chairman N Chandran talks about his company’s operations, sustainability practices, supply chain management, use of technology, design team, and the challenges faced by the Indian textile and apparel industry, along with the government’s efforts to support the industry.
What inspired you to start Eastman Exports, and what has been your greatest achievement so far?
Tiruppur has a semi-arid climate, which makes it extremely conducive to store cotton. Hence, before Tiruppur became popular as one of India’s largest knitwear exporters, it was a warehouse hub for cotton farmers and yarn makers.
In the late 1900s, it was one of the biggest white fabric producers but did not have proper modern dye houses to meet the export demand. After my graduation, I decided to bridge this gap. I began with a small home-based process system. From there to now having turnover of around ₹2,000 crore, we have come a long way with state-of-the-art fabric processing unit and yarn manufacturing capacities.
Presently, we are manufacturing apparel across our 30 factories to serve more than 50 customers across the world. About 60 per cent of the revenue comes from the US market, 25 per cent from Europe, and the remaining from other countries including Australia, Canada, and others. Our backward integration into yarn and fabric processing enables us to compete in the global market.
What are some of the key trends shaping the textile and apparel industry today, and how is your company positioning itself to capitalise on these trends?
Sustainability, traceability, and circularity are among the buzzwords now, and it is a good development. Garment manufacturing requires natural resources in considerable quantities, and it is important that manufacturers focus on minimising their carbon footprint.
The new and advanced technologies in material science have steadily contributed to the adoption of ethical practices by industry leaders. To reduce environmental degradation and extend traditional functionality, they have helped to create modern, eco-friendly, light, resilient, and easy-to-process fabrics. This will help in sustaining the growing demand for natural fibres.
I am happy to share that Eastman Exports’ production processes and practices are already in line with industry trends. We were one of the pioneers in using Zero Liquid Discharge technology to treat industrial wastewater in the 2000s.
To highlight a few of our measures, we recycle around 70 per cent of overall wastewater. We aim to become water positive by 2030. Moreover, organic cotton, regenerative organic cotton, recycled cotton, and sustainable fibres like linen, hemp, bamboo etc are often used in our products.
What steps have you taken to ensure sustainable and ethical practices throughout the supply chain, from sourcing to manufacturing to distribution?
Eastman Exports is a member of the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), which developed the Higg Index, a suite of tools for the standardised measurement of value chain sustainability. In addition to some of the measures that I have already mentioned, we at Eastman Exports have also converted 41 per cent of our coal-based energy sources to biomass, which has immensely contributed to lowering greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
We also plan to switch to renewable energy sources for 80 per cent of our electrical energy requirement by 2025. It will help in reducing around 44 per cent of GHG emissions. In addition to our energy initiatives, we are also committed to sourcing our cotton responsibly. We only use BCI, Fairtrade, and GOTS cotton, which helps to support farmers.
We also recycle PET bottles and sea waste into fabrics, as recommended by our clients. Overall, we are constantly looking for ways to improve our sustainability practices and reduce our environmental impact. We are committed to being a responsible and sustainable business.
How has the demand for textiles and apparel evolved over the years, and what changes do you foresee in the coming years?
Constant innovation has taken the industry to the next level. Industry players adopting data analytics, AI, Internet of Things (IoT), and 3D technologies have redefined clothing production. For example, 3D printing technology is becoming quite popular to minimise waste and improve sustainability metrics. Along with sustainability, customers are also focusing on digitisation at points in manufacturing and merchandising.
The skyrocketing demand for low-cost but sustainable clothing has prompted brands to inject funds into research and technology. Also, people are now inclined towards minimal living. It has led to a steep rise in demand for temperature-sensitive clothes, which will boost sustainability in the apparel sector. Moreover, the widespread adoption of the internet and the growth of e-commerce platforms have significantly contributed to the increase in consumerism.
The challenge is to meet the ever-evolving consumer demand with a fine balance between price and quality. Many high street fashion retailers have started procuring for more than 40 seasons a year, compared to 4-8 seasons earlier. We can successfully meet our customer demand as we are backward integrated and have an in-house design team and studio.
How do you differentiate your company from its competitors in terms of product quality, design, and customer service?
The biggest difference between Eastman Exports and its competitors is our ability to deliver customised products in a short time to our clients. The vertical integration of the manufacturing process helps us to do so.
At the same time, we have India’s only DSIR-approved research centre for the knitwear industry that is consistently filing patents with IPR India. The integrated R&D labs, equipped with the latest testing equipment and technologies, help us to develop quality and cost-effective garments.
Nevertheless, our diverse team is a brilliant mix of the best in technology, design and manufacturing, which has always helped us to be a step ahead of our competitors.
What steps have you taken to streamline the supply chain and ensure timely delivery of orders?
Efficient supply chain management is crucial for timely delivery to our customers worldwide. Our supply chain benefits significantly from backward integration into yarn and fabric processing. We manufacture more than 70 per cent of the required yarn type and quality in-house, while we procure specialty melange yarns and other yarn types promptly based on received orders, ensuring a smooth production flow. Processing, the core of the entire value chain, is also done in-house, which helps our company deliver quality products on time. Without exaggeration, we can confidently say that Eastman has the fastest product turnaround time of approximately ten days, compared to the industry standard of over 25 days.
What role do emerging technologies, such as automation and AI, play in your operations, and how do you see them shaping the industry in the future?
I have always believed that technology is an essential component of business growth and success. We continually upgrade our technologies and machinery to streamline our supply chain. Emerging technologies like automation and AI have helped us enhance our production, distribution, and supply chain efficiency while also pushing us to become compliant with Industry 4.0 standards.
Eastman has successfully automated several key processes, reducing human error and waste, and improving productivity with the help of advanced technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, and the IoT. As a result, we can now collect and analyse real-time data to make informed decisions and optimise our operational capacities.
DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.
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