Chapter 12 defines and elaborates the concept of a ‘better world through socialpreneurship’ and sets out ‘the way forward for businesses.’ What image comes to mind when one hears about an ‘Industrial Corporation’? Pollution-belching smokestacks? Strip-mined landscapes? One company, Masood Textile Mills Ltd (MTM) has built its entire business processes around ‘sustainability’, which the company sums up as ‘Enhancing the culture of responsibility’. This is not a catchphrase for MTM but is embedded at the core of its corporate mission statement. MTM has gone on to create a culture based on a set of supporting principles. The three pillars that support the culture are reduction of carbon emissions, using green energy and taking steps to conserve energy. MTM has used digitization to resolve the crisis of energy. It engages in wastewater management, sustainable dye practices, and has set up an in-house electricity generation system that is energy efficient. It even has an Environment Impact Measurement (EIM) software to assess the environmental impact of the garment finishing process in four key categories. (Dr. Aamir Khan, Case Advisor)
What image comes to your mind when you hear “Industrial Corporation”? Pollution-belching smokestacks? Strip-mined landscapes? Chemicals seeping into water supplies? Now think about “environmental steward.” This label has a positive connotation associated with it. Increased awareness and changes in regulations, combined with pressure from environmental groups and consumer groups have influenced most industrial companies to be socially responsible. One major company has built up sustainability as a core value ever since its inception on October 9th, 1984.
That company is Masood Textile Mills Ltd (MTM). Today, MTM is one of the most sustainable and socially responsible companies not only in Pakistan but also in the world. MTM is one of the largest manufacturers and exporters of textile products in Pakistan with annual revenue of USD 300 million. MTM sells around 8 million garments per month. With its global presence, the company employs 35000+ people, a number that indicates the gigantic scale of MTM’s enviable production and operations.
MTM is more than just a big manufacturing facility. Its capacity to deliver from knitting to pack speaks volumes about its self-sufficiency. That’s one of the reasons for being ranked consistently, as one of the ‘Top Exporters’ by the Government of Pakistan for the last many years. MTM had the privilege of grabbing the number one spot as the top exporter of Pakistan in 2020. This was MTM’s 6th award in a row. The company has not only excelled in Pakistan but also globally. MTM’s design support services are spread across New York, Dallas, Amsterdam, and Hong Kong, with warehouse replenishment facilities in Los Angeles.
The company is among the top 10 textile exporters in Pakistan servicing top brands and retailers all over the world. It has been 38 years since MTM has been leading the industry while being a pioneer and market leader for decades in the field of textile knitwears from a very humble beginning to a top exporter in Pakistan. It partners to produce products for top brands like M&S, Nike, and Gloria Jeans which make a huge part of our daily lives. The company has a diverse capability of producing fashion yarn spinning, knitting, processing, rotary and digital printing, cutting, sewing, laundry, dyeing, placement printing, embroidery, and waistband manufacturing facilities.
MTM generously invests its resources in R&D, design, strategic planning, market intelligence, sales forecasting, and fully vertical production to be able to sustain its leadership position on local as well as international canvas. The company preserves a unique sense of craftsmanship in creating, developing, and manufacturing knitted apparel products from basic to highly fashioned garments designed for everyday life which has always helped it gain its clients’ confidence. MTM is well-focused and aligned with industry standards about sustainable initiatives i.e., green culture, traceability in the supply chain, and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
MTM’s Approach to Sustainability through Responsibility
At the heart of MTM’s admirable strategic intent lies the comprehensive, integrated plan that the company labels as “sustainability.” The company sums up the program with the slogan, “Enhancing the culture of responsibility.” That’s not just a catchphrase for MTM. It is embedded into the core of MTM’s corporate mission statement and subsequently has created a culture based on a set of supporting principles. MTM aims to continuously enhance the culture of responsibility through diverse skills, experiences, partnerships, and collaborations. MTM’s sustainability initiatives are directed towards the reduction of overall environmental footprints to limit climate change. Furthermore, they are also targeted to preserve the environment by inspiring stakeholders to live active and sustainable lifestyles.
According to MTM’s approved sustainability project charter, the Triple Bottom Line approach of 3P’s (People, Planet, Prosperity) is the key to any sustainability initiative for a better future. The company constantly maintains this balance by adhering to three key pillars that transform concepts into actions:
- Reducing carbon emissions
- Using green energy
- Taking steps for energy conservation
The clients always demand good quality products in time at the best price. However, MTM has always made concerted efforts to never compromise on sustainability practices to be a responsible manufacturer and play its part in protecting the planet.
Sustainability through Digitization and Technology
MTM has an edge over its competitors in the textile industry due to its visionary leadership, futuristic approach, hi-tech infrastructure, and focus on people excellence. Sustainability is linked with the raw material used. It is an expensive prospect; however, it is catered for by making use of recycled fabric. Fabric may be pre-consumption recycled or post-consumption recycled. In addition to that, zero waste, recycling waste, and replacing physical product development with certified process are yet another effective solution practiced by the company. MTM does this by regenerating yarn through open-end spinning. This is cost-effective and generates excellence in operation. MTM also makes use of environmentally friendly dyes and chemicals by making use of its fluid treatment plant and chemical cleaning through its state-of-the-art facility.
Currently, Asia is the hub of textile manufacturing operations in the world. Due to the pandemic, the business horizons have changed since the industry is adopting new technology by implementing various practices like LEAN and transforming from old energy sources to green energy sources to be independent of any kind of crisis. Availability of raw materials, and low labor rates by targeting the US and EU markets are key factors of growth in the textile industry.
Digital Transformation
Implementing digital transformation has revolutionized and is considered the future of the fashion and apparel industry. Leading brands like PVH, JCP, Walmart, Target, Jack Jones, and Macy’s have partnered with Masood textile on 3D technology.
MTM has adopted the most advanced systems like browsers & CLO and developed 3D technology along with flipbooks. As a lean process, it has helped the company:
Reduce the lead time from weeks to days,
Save material and garments,
Better garment visualization,
Get direct customer feedback, and
Increase the adoption rate 3x while eliminating the need for excess sample rounds and over-development.
Digitalization at MTM has led to increased efficiency by many folds which has resulted in client convenience. A case in point is the fabric e-catalog which is available online with high-resolution pictures of fabrics enabling clients to see the material in detail at any given location on the globe. It has been revolutionized due to digitization; this has led to lesser manual intervention and a stark improvement in production quality. Client satisfaction is at an all-time high since digitization has enabled on-time delivery. The company has been able to resolve the challenge of the energy crisis by implementing digitization. Digitization has facilitated machine automation at MTM with digital dashboard (SAAS-software as a service) and by digital monitoring of the consumption of resources.
MTM believes the industry must go along with the latest trends and get the utmost benefits from science and technology. Hence, the company has become a pioneer in the industry by adopting the latest technologies that offer innovative ideas and products as per customer needs.
Green Culture at MTM: Reducing the Environmental footprint
The philosophy at MTM is that taking care of the environment and taking care of the business are interdependent concepts. For taking care of the environment, MTM has a system in place to ensure that every phase of its corporate global supply chain—manufacturing, distribution, sales, and recycling—is carried out in a way that safely and responsibly cares for natural resources. The company has been striving to make a positive environmental impact by taking the following steps:
- Adopting more sustainable technologies
- Efficient use of energy
- Waste Management Using green and less hazardous chemicals
- Using environment-friendly raw material
- Science-based target settings
MTM’s Environment Impact Measurement (EIM) software assesses the environmental impact of the garment finishing process in four key categories:
- Water consumption
- From 0 to 35 l/garment
- From 35 to 80 l/garment
- Above 80 l/garment
- Energy consumption
- From 0 to 1Kw.h/garment
- From 1 to 2Kw.h/garment
- Above 2Kw.h/garment
- Chemical product used
- From 0 to 14
- From 14 to 27
- Above 27
- Worker health
- From 0 to 6.5
- From 6.5 to 18
- Above 18
Benchmark and process clarification depending on the EIM score is as follows:
- 0 to 33: Low-impact process
- 34 to 66: Medium impact process
- 67 to 100: High-impact process
MTM also tries to engage in Waste Water Management which involves on-site wastewater treatment plants to treat wastewater according to ZDHC guidelines. Their target for 2016 was complying with Environmental Quality Standards (NEOS). The company’s target in 2020 was per year usage of (m3) is 1,325,920 per usable product unit in (liters/kg) 135 units. MTM’s latest target from 2022-2023 was a 25% reduction of this usage by 2022 with 101 units and in 2023, a 40% reduction with 81 units.
MTM also engages in sustainable dye practices: exhaust with a liquor ratio of 1:5 and continuous with a liquor ratio of 1:1. The organization has become smarter about conserving energy which has contributed to a considerable reduction in the environmental impact. Maintaining the use of cost-efficient energy sources in MTM’s operations has not only helped to improve operational efficiency but has also enabled the company to decrease utility costs. MTM has set up an infrastructure for in-house electricity generation. By investing in natural gas-operated generators, MTM is improving energy efficiency. The organization is also saving time, energy, and cost by recovering waste heat from generators to produce steam.
MTM ensures effective waste management by GMP and 5S implementation, LEAN manufacturing, and eliminating waste by using the following processes:
- Fabric Flakes
- Bleached Fabric
- Shredding machine
- Shredding of cotton Fiber and Addition of Polyester Fiber Mixing (Blow Room)
- Carded Sliver Drawn Sliver Open End Yarn
The company aims to reduce its carbon footprint by complying with bi-annual emission monitoring, with the local PEQS (Punjab Environmental Quality Standards) environmental quality standards. Moreover, using more environmentally friendly fuels and applying recovery technologies for less energy consumption ultimately results in fewer emissions.
MTM: Combining Industry and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
As part of its corporate social responsibility campaign, MTM focuses on three key aspects:
Diversity and Inclusion: Ambitions to evolve the culture of Diversity and Inclusion by:
Ambition no. 1: Raising Awareness Internally
Ambition no. 2: Run Diversity and Inclusion specific recruitment drives.
Ambition no. 3: Career Development Plans
Being respectful of individual differences is at the core of MTM culture. The company has made conscious efforts to celebrate and reflect diversity by aiming to increase female induction growth in the workforce to 21% by 2021.
Healthcare: MTM makes a significant contribution to healthcare by investing US$ 1.3 Million/Infrastructure. The operational cost per year to ensure employee health is US$8,000. It has also taken an initiative to render Health Care facilities FREE of Cost to 50,000 local community members.
Education: MTM understands the importance of education within society. The company has taken the initiative to promote education by nurturing around 70,000 community children by providing affordable quality basic education (with the help of TCF School). It has also invested US$ 300,000/Infrastructure (US$ 33,000 Operational cost/year) to play its part in supporting underprivileged children to gain access to high-quality education.
The company also engages in skilled workforce development through its in-house technical training center. MTM gives back to the community by taking the initiative of training 2000 employees per year in its in-house technical training center. There is an investment of US$ 300,000 operational cost per year to sustain this contribution.
Building Strategic Partnerships and sourcing to clientele committed to sustainability
To carry out its sustainability efforts most efficiently, MTM builds strategic sustainable partnerships with a broad range of government, academic, environmental, and customer organizations. These partnerships are guided by the objectives of making progress in sustainability, providing solutions for clients, making a positive impact on the environment, and supporting social responsibility. Partners include the Business Environmental Performance Initiative, Recycle 100 claimed standard, and the Global organic textile standard.
MTM hasn’t been one of the high-growth juggernauts of the corporate world. Then again, it operates in a very mature industry. MTM makes innovative products that meet the needs of its clients. It employs tens of thousands of people throughout the world, contributing substantially to the communities in which it does business. It has grown to become one of the largest companies in the textile industry. It has been consistently profitable. It does all these things while sustaining the world for future generations. Indeed, MTM proves that good business and corporate citizenship can go hand in hand.
Questions to stimulate conversation on the case
- Give as many examples as you can of how MTM defies the common social criticisms of marketing.
- Why is MTM successful in applying concepts of sustainability?
- How does MTM practice sustainability, green effect, and CSR? Support your answer with as many examples as possible.
- Would MTM be more financially successful if it were not so focused on social responsibility? Explain.
- Enlist a few challenges MTM has faced in going global.
Links and media
Masood Textile Mills. (2022, March 24). Retrieved from www.masoodtextile.com: https://masoodtextile.com/MTM%20Company%20Profile.pdf