Improving and completing the production line is our first priority
Interview with: Mehdi Akhbari; Managing Director of Kashan Velvet and Silk Company
By: Kohan Textile Journal
* First and foremost, before discussing the textile industry and machine-made carpets, we ask you to explain to the audience of the old magazine about the latest situation of Kashan Velvet and Silk Factory.
Kashan Velvet and Silk Company has been one of the main and most productive industries of Kashan city in the textile sector. This factory has been world-famous in the past decades and has boosted the economy of Kashan city and has provided employment for thousands of people. With the start of the imposed war, these factories have been among the biggest supporters of the war fronts.
Unfortunately, this huge company in the late 70’s for various reasons, including incorrect and unkind management of previous years as well as frazzle of machines, inability to produce competitive products, excess manpower, postponement of labour rights and large debts to offices and organizations, was in a critical situation.
Since 2010, the decision to move some machinery to the factory’s abandoned warehouses has dealt a severe blow to the building, and the company’s grounds in the best part of the city have been sold one after the other, but the smallest renovation has not been done.
Thus, the cessation of several years of production and sometimes the small and poor production of products also destroyed the company’s brand.
But the company, despite enduring many setbacks, has been able to restart the car since last year, with the intentions of the leader and the current importance of production and employment in the country, and with the positive opinion of the major shareholder and employee compassion.
Its high-quality, sometimes exclusive, equipment has returned to the production cycle, employing more than 80 people in recent months. Now, the amount of production of the company compared to before, confirms its significant quantitative growth and revival of Kashan velvet and silk brand in the market, indicating the qualitative growth of products.
From today and after the launch of the current worn-out machines, the company’s management is looking to improve and complete the production line and is preparing development plans.
* Who were the founders and organizations of the re-launch of this great old collection? Who are the main shareholders of this collection at the moment?
The company’s major shareholders are Bank Melli Iran and SATA. Other shareholders have less than 5 percent of the total.
* How many people are currently working in this collection and what is the daily production?
Currently, 120 people are working within the complex, and their salaries and benefits have been paid on time and fully by the end of last year.
The monthly production of knitting machines in this factory is over 50,000 meters of all kinds of fabrics and velvet, and the output of its completion and dyeing, including wage work, is over 400,000.meters per month, increased.
* What products will be produced in this factory and what needs will be eliminated from the country by the factory’s products?
At present, the production of knitting machines in these factories is a variety of fabrics and velvet. The fabrics produced are mainly of the tetron and clothing type, and the velvet produced is of various types of furniture and chiffon. Chiffon velvet has been produced and the furniture velvet structure of these factories is currently exclusive in all of Iran.
These factories are currently contracting with major tailors, specializing in the garment industry of a large number of Iranian factories using their products and the ability to meet some domestic needs, by the Deputy Minister of Industry to various organizations, including Iran customs.
* What are the plans and objectives of Kashan Velvet and Silk Complex according to the situation of the global and domestic market? Now, with the launch of existing machinery and the provision of the necessary raw materials for the coming months, the necessary permits for the improvement of the current production line have been obtained from major shareholders and the necessary feasibility studies for several development projects are being developed.
These development projects are now being developed with the participation of the bank and some interested organizations.
The company will also be able to provide new sites for its development projects by reviving the land leased in previous years. It should be noted that with the help of relevant organizations, the walls of these lands are currently under construction.
The company’s registered property has also been fully identified and the necessary measures have been taken to eliminate the company’s attacks and complete possession.
* In fact, give your own general analysis of the country’s economic situation and the textile industry.
What is certain is that, in addition to the impact of past sanctions and poor domestic management, the new textile industry sanctions will also do a lot of damage to the industry. Most likely, these injuries will manifest themselves in the problems of textile factories to supply raw materials and machine parts.
* Do you see the current situation as an opportunity for relatively small textile collections to take advantage of great opportunities and growth? Do you see an opportunity for textile units?
Basically, the overall goal is to turn challenges into opportunities. Although the devaluation of the national currency and the rise in the price of foreign currencies are not a good sign for the country’s economy, they can cause serious problems for imports and create a good opportunity for domestic producers.
Production of products that were previously monopolized by profiteering importers can now be on the agenda of textile factories.
These opportunities can be better exploited by small collections due to the agility of these production complexes.
* In general, in difficult economic conditions, do small collections have more opportunity to take risks or large collections?
In such a situation, the minimum government assistance is the general or temporary elimination of various legal, tax and insurance pressures from the producers. Processes can be done faster and the producers can provide the necessary forecasts by the government.
Preventing the smuggling of goods and full and healthy supervision of customs can also be considered as government assistance. In general, the government’s hostile view of industry and artisans must change.
* As a person who has been teaching at the university for many years, how do you assess the relationship between industry and academia?
How can university professors and experts help the textile industry this year? Without compliments, I must say that for years, despite the results of research and conferences on the relationship between industry and academia, neither industry trusts the university nor does the university need its industry.
In my opinion, there is no missing link. The employment of professors in universities should be stopped in its current form. The continuity of teachers’ cooperation with universities should be measured every two or three years based on the professor’s ability to solve industry problems.
In this way, student projects and theses and even student recruitment will be based on solving the problem of a particular industry. In other words, in my opinion, the reason for this anger between industry and academia is some professors.
Professors who have no worries other than extracting an article to promote themselves. Articles that are researched with domestic capital and the lives of our students, and are again provided to foreigners at a cost.
At the same time, some of these less used articles have caused a sharp decrease in the penetration and reputation of Iranian science, so that at present this coefficient is lower for our ancient and civilized country of Iran than neighbouring Arab countries. has taken. Countries that once were not included in these rankings at all.
However, the sharp increase in the number of articles in terms of quality and the number of references to them has reduced the penetration rate of Iranian science in the world by tens of ranks compared to the previous one. This catastrophe is progressing sharply inside and outside the country.
I wish the media would explain to the people that Iran’s scientific growth in recent years, which is constantly being expressed for them, is based solely on the number of articles and not on their use and the extent to which they and the world use them. I wish we were at least honest with ourselves.
do you plan to produce double velvet?