The Canada-based CTT Group, Center Collégial de Transfert de Technologie du Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe, a non-profit organisation specialising in applied research, development and analysis in the field of technical textiles, geosynthetics and advanced materials based on textile is showcasing at ITMA.
Alongside it, the Montréal Fashion Cluster, a non-profit that contributes to the growth, the outreach and the competitiveness of Quebec’s fashion industry.
Valerio Izquierdo, vice-president, business development and partnerships, of CTT Group said: “We are a research centre for the textile industry. We provide help to industry manufacturers and we also have a lab to support any company that wants to qualify the performance of their textile products.”
Mathieu St-Arnaud Lavoie, executive director, Montréal Fashion Cluster, said: “We work mainly on the four main task forces: innovation, export, labour and the image of the industry. We’re here at ITMA with a lot of our members to buy equipment for any step in the supply chain – from fibre and yarn, to producing the raw materials, the cutting and the sewing of the fabric.”
There are around 40 companies who are visiting ITMA from Canada with the CTT Group. Izquierdo said: “They’re looking for new technologies, most of them want automation of their products. They want new equipment for productivity and efficiency.”
Some of the companies are looking to move from gas powered to electric powered as 94% of Québec’s electricity generation comes from hydroelectric resources. Québec’s electricity rates are among the lowest in North America, said Izquierdo.
St-Arnaud Lavoie continued: “Energy where we are from is five to six times lower compared to the cost of energy, for example, in California. It makes it more efficient to produce garments in our region.”
One of the key points that St-Arnaud Lavoie said has appeared in the last few years is the reshoring of garment production from Asia to North America. He said there were three identifiers that the Montréal Fashion Cluster as to why it was happening.
Firstly, the pandemic caused consumers to be more aware of the type of garment they are buying, causing a knock-on effect of local buying and supporting more local businesses. The second, local domestic manufacturing produced protective equipment during the pandemic. Lastly, the logistical issues, “with transport and cargo, in custom and duties.”
In Montréal, St-Arnaud Lavoie said there is a very strong and diversified supply chain where companies can “produce whatever they want when it comes to textiles.”
He continued: “We have research labs, like CTT, that all have certain specifications. There are universities, research facilities, manufacturing of all types of textiles and all types of garments. It’s a strong ecosystem. We are the third largest textile & apparel city in North America after New York and Los Angeles when it comes to production.”
The CCT is exhibiting Hall 9, Booth E104.
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