Coats celebrates 25 years in Bangladesh
Coats plc, a globally renowned industrial thread and zip maker, celebrated 25 years of its operations in Bangladesh, at a programme at Radisson Hotel in Dhaka on Sunday.
The British company marked the occasion with the announcement of opening up a new zip factory in Chittagong, at the gala event.
Over 400 customers and suppliers of Coats attended the event, where the company also recognised its joint venture with AK Khan Group in Bangladesh, the company said in a statement yesterday. The joint venture between the two started in October 1989, it said.
Coats has world-class manufacturing sites in Chittagong and Gazipur, which operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to the statement.
“The new zip factory will be opened in the early part of 2015 and is being established in response to the growing demand from global brands manufacturing apparel and footwear in Bangladesh.”
The new factory will create over 100 new jobs locally and over time will manufacture the full offering of zips, the company said.
“Coats is extremely proud of our world-class operation in Bangladesh and the support and relationship with our joint venture partner,” the company quoted Paul Forman, group CEO of Coats, as saying in the statement.
“Our business has seen significant growth and development, particularly in the last few years, and the opening of our new world class zip factory is a demonstration of our commitment to an ever growing presence here.”
He also discussed the market dynamics driven by the growth trend of the Asian middle class, as the Asia-Pacific region moves from being primarily a manufacturing base to the world's largest consumer market.
Coats particularly focuses on the influential and informed customer base in Bangladesh to test and launch new products and services.
In April 2012, Bangladesh was one of seven countries where Coats Colour Express, the world's first fully digitised web-based colour matching service, was previewed, according to the statement.
“We have a very strong, talented and dedicated team here which has helped make Bangladesh one of the flagship businesses of Coats. We have built a strong foundation for the next 25 years,” said Ranjan Chakhaiyar, managing director of Coats Bangladesh, in his opening speech.
The Bangladesh business has gone from strength to strength in recent years, Chakhaiyar said.
Coats conducts an annual global employee engagement survey and Bangladesh has experienced the most significant improvement; in the 2013 survey the engagement score was 87 percent, up from 46 percent in 2010.
“Earlier this year, it was awarded Coats Business of the Year and also received the inaugural CEO award for health and safety excellence, having reached over five million accident free hours,” the company said in the statement.
Coats Bangladesh opened its first factory in 1990 in Chittagong and the second one in Gazipur in 2000.
Coats Bangladesh produces many of Coats newest and most innovative products, including flame retardant threads, adhesive thread for hems, thread with high extension properties and water soluble thread for temporary stitching applications.
In November 2014, Coats will be celebrating another corporate milestone in the region as it marks the 25th anniversary of its highly successful joint venture with Phong Phu in Vietnam.
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