Informatization boosts textile sector competitiveness

By Huang Xin


Since listed in the pilot industries for informatization application by governments, the informatization construction of China's textile industry has achieved a leap-forward progress, prominently embodied in the great enhancement in terms of the industrial public information services and enterprises' informatization application. As the giant ranking No. 1 of textile production, consumption and export in the world, China's textile industry is expected to accelerate the pace of structural adjustment and industrial upgrade under the background of international financial crisis. In order to adapt to the industrial characters of "small batches, multiple breeds, and fast transformation" in China's textile industry, applying informatization technologies is a key means.


'In the informatization construction of textile industry, industrial public information service platform construction, promotion of enterprises' informatization application and research on industrial informatization standards are three keystones.' Zhai Yanju, Deputy Director of Information Department of China National Textile And Apparel Council expressed, 'Such three aspects will be the main orientation of the informatization construction in textile industry in 2009.'


Establish a public platform, achieve information share


The character of "numerous mid-and-small enterprises and industrial centralization" in textile industry determines that establishing a public information service platform is an inevitable choice to elevate industrial informatization level and promote industrial upgrade.


There exist numerous enterprises in China's textile industry, and most of them are mid-and-small ones. During the past few years' development, industrial clusters have been shaped up gradually, in which the mid-and-small enterprises are main forces. Each textile industrial cluster houses various enterprises ranging from 100-200 to 1,000-2,000. Restricted by such factors as capital, talents and technologies, most mid-and-small enterprises are difficult to rapidly enhance the informatization application level if only depending on their own strength. Therefore, relying on the public information service platform established by governments and industrial authorities is a better choice. And the significance of establishing a public information service platform in textile industry can be seen from it.


For this point, Zhai Yanju stated, 'We have been boosting the establishment of industrial network union in China's textile industry to realize effective integration and information share of industrial information resources and fulfill the information services oriented to the whole textile industrial chain.' 'Industrial network union' system is a cluster-type application of the main websites in textile industry, takes the official website of China National Textile And Apparel Council named 'China Textile Economic Information Network' as a core, and takes such specialty websites as textile industrial clusters, specialty markets, key enterprises, scientific research institutes, textile colleges and industrial associations as their member units. At present, 'China Textile Economic Information Network' has realized the link with 25 member node networks, the design and development of main application system has been fulfilled, information resources have been developed and information share has been achieved. In the future, the number of network node used for linking systems will be increased further to extend the coverage, the construction of information resources will be reinforced successively, the industrial information resources will be integrated continuously, and the content of information service will be expanded and consummated.



'Integration is the biggest challenge in the construction of industrial public information service platform' Zhai Yanju points out that many local independent public information service platforms are restricted by zones and industrial coverage. If a united platform can be taken as a guiding to shape up a huge network covering upstream and downstream industrial chains and various zones, the charge of information collection and operation cost will be reduced greatly, then the service problem troubling the industrial platform will be solved.


Elevate competitiveness and reinforce internal strength of enterprises


The industrial characters of "multiple breeds, many orders, small batches, long production flow and successive production process in China's textile industry determines the informatization construction for enterprises is an important means to elevate enterprises' competitiveness.


In the informatization application for textile enterprises, ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software is one of the industrialized products that developed and consummated with the most obvious industrial character. According to the random survey by China National Textile and Apparel Council in 2007, at present, such textile enterprises applying ERP system only took up around 7 percent, while the management of most enterprises still in the laggard manual management phase. Thus the market demand on ERP software is huge, but due to the maturity level of the ERP software suitable for the application of textile enterprises is lower, and the demand of enterprises is still difficult to meet, it is very significant to develop ERP system in textile industry.


The enterprise informatization application represented by ERP has brought favorable economic benefit for textile enterprises, especially in such aspects as reducing storage, enhancing productivity, decreasing production cost, expediting enterprises' response capability, shortening delivery time, improving products' quality and optimizing production technics, a bigger breakthrough has been achieved, and the growth of enterprises' economic benefit has been promoted efficiently. For instance, after using the informatization system, Guangdong Esquel Textile Co., Ltd has obviously improved its response capability to the market with the delivery time reduction from original 40 days in average to 25-30 days currently; and Erdos Group has reduced the manufacture cost and management stuff member by around 10 percent and 10 percent respectively while enhanced the throughput and work efficiency by 10-15 percent and 10-20 percent respectively.


Zhai Yanju expressed that, 'In 2009, we will continuously promote the demonstration project of textile enterprises' informatization application that taking ERP system construction as a core in textile industry, and drive the enterprises' informatization construction in the industry via establishing sample projects and demonstration projects.' For example, such companies as U-sun Textile Co., Ltd, Ningbo Youngor Worsted Spinning Weaving & Dyeing Co., Ltd, and Beijing Topnew Knitting Group Co., Ltd are recognized as the demonstration enterprises of informatization application in cotton textile, wool textile and weaving industries respectively, which has boosted the confidence and established samples for driving the innovative management in textile enterprises and implementing enterprises' informatization construction in the whole industry.


Meanwhile, many textile enterprises can also make use of such intangible benefits as management, service and quality represented by informatization technologies and market brands to elevate the brand effect of brand companies. For instance, Beijing Topnew Knitting Group Co., Ltd and Erdos Group have greatly enhanced their brand effect due to the implementation of informatization management on marketing network system nationwide.





Source:CE.cn