Ramkumar: Indian Technical Textiles Cozy Up to Cotton
August 17, 2026 On August 13, 2026, Coimbatore, India-based Kumaraguru College of Technology [KCT], as part of the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists’ (AATCC) Student Chapter inauguration, organized a technical event to interact with students on the applications of cotton and nonwovens in technical textiles. I was delighted to address students and faculty via an online connection, although it was late at night for me in Lubbock, Texas, on August 12, 2026.
While welcoming students and other participants, Dr. M. Saravanan, Head, Department of Textile Technology, KCT mentioned that the student chapter is the first of its kind at KCT, which emphasizes the need for international collaboration as India is implementing free trade agreements with many countries around the world, like the United Kingdom.
In talking about the need for sustainable technical textiles, Professor A. Pavendhan, Associate Dean-Textile Cluster at KCT stated, “In the textile sector, for growth, it is vitally important to develop sustainable technical textiles using cotton and other fibers such as milkweed and innovative nonwoven technologies.” The KCT-AATCC collaborative platform will play a pivotal role in strengthening the global academic network, empowering our engineering students with advanced industry exposure and practical research insights.
The technical presentation involved a live demonstration of industrial products from cotton as well as showcasing nonwoven wipes. Such efforts are aimed at not only enhancing technical knowledge but also at increasing interest in textiles among high school and college students. The presentation began with an understanding of sustainability, which is built on four legs [4 ‘E’s]: 1) Environmental; 2) Energy; 3) Economic; 4) Elemental (Material and Manufacturing). The highlight of the talk was that there are opportunities for textiles in developing smart materials, defense textiles, and high-tech medical textiles. A good example is University-Industry collaboration that led to the commercialization of a wipe developed at Texas Tech University. USA-based First Line Technology diversified the application of FiberTect wipe beyond decontamination to be part of a standard dry wipe procedure, including wiping toxic particles like Fentanyl.
Students were able to visualize oil absorption by raw cotton-based needlepunched fabric. A welcoming aspect of the presentation was interaction by students on technical aspects like what the oil absorption value is for different cottons. An interesting question has been how Kapok is different from cotton in absorption. These interactions show that undergraduate students are interested in developing functional textiles from alternative fibers.
Leading organizations like USA-based Cotton Incorporated and National Cotton Council are involved in efforts to find alternative applications for cotton and, more importantly, engage with Gen Z and new consumers. The event focused on such efforts by addressing students in a textile manufacturing region in India.
Commenting on the program, Professor Pavendhan stated, “The live virtual demonstration of cotton-oil absorbency, alongside the showcasing of developed prototypes like cotton face masks, brought abstract concepts into clear focus. It was inspiring to see how established, scalable technologies—specifically needlepunching—can be repurposed to engineer innovative, value-added products for filtration, healthcare, and protective textiles.”
The talk endeavored to reach out to young students who are from the textile belt in India, such as Coimbatore, and kindled interest among them to think about technical textiles from cotton wherever applicable. In addition, the talk highlighted the different supportive schemes AATCC can offer to enhance their research experience and global engagement.
Highlighting the collaboration with AATCC, Professor M. Saravan pointed out, “KCT-AATCC collaboration focuses on professional engagement through technical learning and promoting innovation among students. The event embodied this vision by providing our final-year students with direct exposure to global research standards, bridging foundational academia with cutting-edge industry practices.”
The event can be viewed at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnX6voR7MdU
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