Brandix India Apparel City
Brandix India Apparel City (BIAC), a 1,000 acre integrated textile and apparel park, is a SEZ. The park, which opened in May 2010, is located at Achutapuram-Rambilli Mandals, about 50 kilometres south of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
BIAC was developed with the active support of the state government of Andhra Pradesh. It aims to bring large-scale employment opportunities to rural people, mostly women, in a nascent, but strategically important apparel exports segment. The park leverages Andhra’s availability of raw cotton, abundant water from the Godavari River, power availability and access to a container port. The Government of India extended financial support under its STIP.
The state government actively involved Brandix Lanka, Sri Lanka’s largest integrated apparel exporter, to conceive and manage BIAC. Other global apparel supply chain partners supporting this venture are Brandot, United States; Pioneer Elastics, Hong Kong SAR; CMT, Mauritius; and Quantum Clothing, United Kingdom.
A foreign direct investment showcase
BIAC has become an important example of successful foreign investment in a sector with high growth potential. The project attracted finance from Sri Lanka and has become a showcase for investment cooperation between India and its South Asian partners. Through this project, Brandix Lanka has organized a consortium of firms leveraging on its strong presence in Sri Lanka.
Established in the early 1980s, Brandix Lanka employs over 25,000 people in more than 27 manufacturing facilities in Sri Lanka and its strategically located international sourcing offices. Brandix’s business model encompasses vertical integration and specialization in key product categories in both woven and knit apparel. Backward integration into both woven and knit fabrics complements its product specialization in trims and washing/finishing, thus enabling Brandix to provide a unique total solution to its global branded clothing retailers.
BIAC is based on the fibre-to-store concept, underpinned by scale advantages and strong apparel business fundamentals. It seeks to leverage global expertise offering total solutions within its 1,000 acre park – a first in South Asia and perhaps in the world, thus advancing BIAC’s vision to be the ‘preferred global sourcing hub for apparel’.
To achieve its vision, BIAC has created a vertically integrated apparel value chain ready to support large-scale spinning, knitting, garmenting, finishing, printing, embellishments and packaging. Its operations are supported by the park’s centralized infrastructure and common services and facilities.
Government infrastructure
The state government has created the much-needed external infrastructure critical for an integrated park of this size to succeed. It constructed a 200 MW substation with two feeders from three separate grid-sources for reliable power supply. Water connections have been provided. BIAC has assured supplies of 60 million litres per day of raw water through a 26 kilometre long, 1,000 millimetre diameter pipeline from pumping stations at Parvada supplying Godavari river water to the city of Vizag. To sustain this kind of water supply the Government is setting up a 4,000 million litre capacity summer reservoir.
Transportation is a huge issue in developing countries such as India when large-scale projects are built near large cities. The state government has built a four-lane road network four kilometres long from Atchutapuram Junction to BIAC. A nine-kilometre connection to national highways in the vicinity is planned.
Park infrastructure
BIAC, an SPV, operates the park and has built the internal infrastructure. The project is a Special Economic Zone and large investments have been made. Security is provided by a 9.5 kilometre perimeter boundary wall coupled with 7.2 kilometres of inner security patrol roads suitable for containers with avenue walkways and storm water drains.
The park has a 33 KW power distribution system, street lighting and perimeter security lights. Because the water from the state government is untreated, BIAC is constructing a 60 million litres per day water treatment facility, of which 20 million litres per day has been commissioned. BIAC has also constructed a rainwater-harvesting pond as an integral part of its commitment to environmental sustainability. Other infrastructure includes a 56 million litres per day effluent treatment facility, 250 million litres per day guard ponds or reservoirs for the collection of effluents, a 9 kilometre pipeline to carry treated effluent and a facility for solid waste management.
BIAC has constructed a 35,000 square foot factory complex, a 3,500 square foot fire services centre and a 6,000 square foot main reception entrance for park security, logistics support and customs services. A 155,000 square foot centralized services complex encompassing commercial services and administrative buildings, a restaurant, a food court, and residences (including hostels) have been built. For strong connectivity with global markets, BIAC provides voice, data connectivity and WiMax facilities for business units in the complex.
Conclusion
Large-scale industrial parks are best achieved through a joint venture of government clusters that have financial stake in the clusters. This public-private partnership model proved sustainable because responsibility for maintaining common facilities rests with the enterprises themselves through the payment of user charges.
A replicable model
The clusters set up under the SITP are noteworthy because both public and private actors worked together to provide world-class facilities for the textiles sector. The initiative for developing the SITP came from the federal government. The roles of all participants were clearly spelled out and the public-private partnership produced the desired results.
The basic steps for replicating this model are as follows.
The central government creates the initial plan for developing the textile parks with clear policies for implementation and funding.
The central government identifies a project management consultant to execute the project under the Government’s supervision with clear terms of reference.
State or provincial governments should be fully involved because their residents will be the main beneficiaries. State or provincial governments should invest in developing the land and improving transportation connectivity.
Involve private sector companies that are investing in the project and the artisans as partners. This will then ensure active participation in lawmaking, enforcement and commercial in the park.
Connect the park to global markets to drive expansion.
India’s integrated textile parks have only been in operation for a few years. However, given the response from industry and governments participating in these ventures, the sustainability of the parks look certain.
Related articles:
- Creating integrated textile parks in India - Public-private partnership drive world-class facilities: Part 1
- Creating integrated textile parks in India - Public-private partnership drive world-class facilities: Part 2
- Creating integrated textiles parks in India - Public-private partnership drive world-class facilities: Part 3