Chemical fiber industry must shift from volume to quality

In the past 2012, while China's chemical fiber industry maintained rapid growth in output, the market performance was sluggish and the efficiency was significantly reduced. The situation is being forced to accelerate the transformation and upgrading of the chemical fiber industry.

Where is the key to industrial transformation and upgrading? What is the direction of structural optimization of chemical fiber products? How to transform scientific and technological strength into brand value? With these questions, the reporter interviewed Jiang Shicheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and an expert in chemical fiber engineering design and technology management.

The mode of development needs to be transformed

Q: Since last year, the profits of chemical fiber companies have declined significantly and the industry has entered an adjustment period. What do you think is the main problem facing the chemical fiber industry today?

Jiang Shicheng: According to statistics, the annual output of chemical fiber completed 38.11 million tons last year, an increase of 4 million tons year-on-year, still maintaining double-digit growth. At the same time, the performance of domestic and foreign markets was weak, product inventories increased, corporate profits fell significantly, and losses increased.

The main reasons for this situation are as follows: First, the sharp fluctuations in raw material prices. Due to the strong correlation between chemical fiber prices and the crude oil market, the large fluctuations in the crude oil market have caused instability in the chemical fiber market and increased the company’s operating risk. This risk is not only directly reflected in the decline in product prices, but more importantly, the confidence of the industrial chain has been hit, and in the process of rapid price declines, the company’s inventory of raw materials and products has suffered serious price losses. The second is that low-cost excessive competition at the expense of costs has caused an impact on the industry. In recent years, the repeated construction of conventional varieties, the excess production capacity, and the behavior of some companies to sell products at a lower price have triggered market confusion and have affected the healthy development of the industry. In view of this situation, last year China Chemical Fiber Industry Association carried out industry self-discipline work and achieved certain results. The third is the lack of innovation. At present, most chemical fiber companies have insufficient product development capabilities, insufficient investment in science and technology, and insufficient integration of production, education, and research. In addition, innovative talents are also lacking. In my opinion, the main problem facing the chemical fiber industry is that the production capacity of conventional varieties has grown too fast, and the issue of structural overcapacity has become increasingly prominent. In the past two years, the overall operation of the chemical fiber industry was good. The attention of the industry's internal and external capital to the industry continued to increase, leading to a rapid increase in production capacity. Although the growth rate of investment in 2012 has dropped significantly, and some projects have also postponed construction or production, the pressure on new production capacity remains high. Taking the polyester polyester industry as an example, the production capacity of polyester production is about 4 million tons, of which polyester bottle tablets are 1.6 million tons. If the current growth rate continues, the environment and resources will be difficult to bear. At present, the production capacity of chemical fiber is concentrated in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. The local land resources are already very tight, and at the same time, they face many pressures such as environmental protection. In addition, many chemical fiber raw materials are now imported, such as wood pulp, ethylene glycol, and PX. The constraints of resources do not support the excessive growth of production capacity.

Market demand is the direction of development

Q: Transformation and upgrading are the major tasks of the current chemical fiber industry. What do you think are the specific approaches?

Jiang Shicheng: First of all, the development of the chemical fiber industry must shift from the increase in the quantity to the improvement in quality. The chemical fiber industry can no longer blindly expand its capabilities. It should seize opportunities to speed up product structure adjustment and technological innovation, give full play to existing production capacity, rely on technological innovation, develop new products that meet market demands, and provide new impetus for the development of the industry. Last year, many chemical fiber companies suffered losses, but some companies realized profitability under the bad market conditions. These corporate concepts have changed rapidly, relying on innovation-driven, avoiding homogenous competition and forming features. Therefore, chemical fiber companies should calmly think about how to position and how to get out of the new road. Second, the chemical fiber industry should speed up industrial restructuring and form some large enterprise groups. This will be more conducive to integrating various resources, concentrating superior talents, and further promoting industrial upgrading. Third, we must speed up the elimination of backward production capacity, use more advanced technology and equipment to carry out technological transformation and independent innovation of existing production lines, or build more competitive devices, increase production efficiency, and enhance the market's effective supply capacity. In addition, powerful companies can transfer overseas. At present, anti-dumping, technical barriers and other obstacles to China's chemical fiber products into the international market. Power companies can use scale, technology, and quality advantages to build factories in countries with resources and other advantages overseas.

Q: What do you think is the direction of structural optimization of chemical fiber products?

Jiang Shicheng: Fiber-based products currently account for a large proportion of chemical fiber products, accounting for about 85%, while non-fiber products only account for about 15% and need to be further expanded. In this regard, there have been very successful experiences abroad. After nearly 30 years of development, in developed countries such as Europe and the United States, fiber-grade products account for only one-third, non-fiber-use products account for two-thirds, and the added value of non-fiber-use products is also high. Although the consumption level of non-fibre polyester in China is still very low, the application of the product is limited to a few fields such as packaging, electronics, and electrical appliances. However, as China’s economic development and people’s living standards improve, non-fibre polyester will be more Many fields have been applied. In this regard, China’s scientific research and development are still relatively small, technical support is insufficient, products are concentrated at the low end, and are still blank in the high-end fields. Therefore, basic research needs to be strengthened. On the other hand, the application fields of fiber-grade products have expanded from traditional areas such as clothing and home textiles to industrial applications. In the field of industrial use, chemical fiber products have broad prospects for development and require joint development by everyone. For example, high-performance fiber composite materials are widely used in aerospace, energy, construction, environmental protection, and marine industries. However, the high performance fiber industry is technically difficult and has a large professional span. It is a complex system engineering and requires a high level of integrated innovation. In addition, the use of chemical fiber products also needs continuous improvement and optimization, improve the quality of conventional products, and vigorously develop differentiated and functionalized fibers to increase the added value and competitiveness of products. It is also necessary to pay attention to the development of a one-stop application with the downstream industry. For example, polyester filament products should be closely integrated with the market demand in the improvement of the quality and serialization of conventional products, and the combination of multi-functional compounding and blending technologies should be used to combine the fashion trends of diversification, high-grade and multi-functionality of apparel fabrics. Developed high-simulation, super-simulation products.

Soft power construction is a long-term process

Q: What do you think are the weaknesses of the chemical fiber industry in terms of soft power? How can we make breakthroughs in management, branding, etc.?

Jiang Shicheng: Textile products not only have taking functions, but also include culture, brands, and many other factors. Most chemical fiber companies are production-oriented enterprises, and their main concern is production and technology. Therefore, it is necessary to gradually transform and strengthen product marketing and brand building. In this regard, companies should have long-term and thorough planning, because the establishment of a brand requires a long-term process and requires the joint development of the industry chain. In recent years, the quality of chemical fiber products has continuously improved. In terms of management, enterprises also need to improve their modern management level, learn from the advanced experience of modern management, and strengthen the training and knowledge updating of advanced composite talents.

Q: This year's fiber trend will be released again. How do you evaluate this activity and its impact in the industry?

Jiang Shicheng: The release of fiber trends has played a very good guiding role in the development of the industry. In terms of technological innovation and product development, companies should be guided to take into account the needs of the market and avoid disorderly competition, while at the same time bringing the company closer to the downstream. The release of fiber trends also demonstrated the highlights of the chemical fiber industry and expanded the influence of chemical fiber in the entire textile industry. This activity is also promoting the transformation of chemical fiber companies. The development of new chemical fiber products must assemble the power of the entire industry chain. Chemical fiber manufacturers and downstream companies such as weaving, printing, and dyeing are coordinating up and down to develop products that can gradually open up the market. Enterprises must rely closely on scientific and technological progress, accelerate the pace of independent innovation, and promote industrial upgrading and brand building.