ITMF Closes Successful Annual Conference
October 4, 2011 Editor’s Note: We have been notified that the conference presentations are available only to conference participants. Cotton International apologizes for the confusion.
The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) recently completed its Annual Conference in Barcelona, held Sept. 19-21, guided by the theme, “New Paradigms in the Global Textile Industry.” According to ITMF President Bashir Ali Momhammad, the event — which was co-located with the International Textile Machinery Association and featured a one-day World Textile Summit on Sept. 21 — achieved the association’s goals, and more importantly, presented a well-rounded view of the entire textile value chain for the 140+ attendees who traveled to Spain from 25 countries around the globe.
“This year’s ITMF Annual Conference in Barcelona, which took place in conjunction with ITMA 2011, was received very well by the delegates,” Muhammad tells Cotton International. “Especially in times of volatile markets and extreme insecurity about the economic and financial future, it is extremely useful to meet colleagues from around the world to discuss the current situation and to exchange information and experiences. I have attended ITMF Annual Conferences on a regular basis for more than 20 years because the presentations and discussions with experts and colleagues help tremendously to develop a long-term strategy for your business. For that reason ITMF together with ITMA, MPI and WTiN teamed up to organize for the first time the World Textile Summit. As our industry is truly global and it is important to look at it from different angles.
“It was important to us that the 23 presentations covered the entire textile value chain from fibers to retail. The various speakers did a wonderful job by presenting informative contents and stimulating the delegates to think differently and to take a different perspective on certain topics,” he says.
The World Textile Summit was a unique, one-day event that brought together textile-industry leaders and some of the world’s most influential thinkers and policymakers in strategically important fields such as economics, trade, technology and sustainability.
The presentations made at the Conference included:
- “Where Will Cotton be in 10 Years Time? (A Vision for the Future),” Nicholas Earlam, chairman, Plexus Cotton Limited
- “Biotechnology and Cotton Supply: Today and Tomorrow,” Michel Tahar, cotton product manager, Bayer CropScience
- “Manmade Fibre Markets – Dealing with Volatility,” David Hart, senior associate, PCI Fibres
- “Development of China’s National Chemical Fiber Industry and R&D of New Products during the 12th five-year Plan Period,” Duan Xiaoping, chairman, China Chemical Fibres Association
- “The Cellulose Gap (The Future of Cellulose Fibres),” Franz Martin Hämmerle, textile consultant
- Welcome Address, Bashir H. Ali Mohammad, president, ITMF
- “25 Predictable Trends and Potential Implications for the Textile Industry,” Marc Lakner, principal, A.T. Kearney
- “The Global Textile Industry – Beyond 2011,” Jerry Cook, vice president, Government and Trade Relations, Hanesbrands Inc.
- “Respect & Transparency,” Robin Cornelius, executive chairman, Switcher
According to ITMF Director General Christian Schindler, next year’s conference will be held in Hanoi, Vietnam, Nov. 4-6, 2012. For more information, please click here.
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