The Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH) and the Viet Nam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) on Thurday held a conference to promote smart manufacturing for Viet Nam’s textile industry.

Truong Van Cam, VITAS’ vice chairman, said that it was critical for Vietnamese textile firms to renovate their manufacturing systems toward smart production amid the industrial revolution 4.0.

The industrial revolution 4.0 will bring significant changes and moving towards smart manufacturing is necessary for labour-intensive industries like textiles in which labour can easily be replaced by machines, Cam said.

Cam said opportunities would be there for those who took action to move towards smart manufacturing.

Smart manufacturing would bring a number of benefits such as increasing productivity, output, reducing costs, enhancing management efficiency and improving the working environment.

At the conference, Vietnamese firms learned about smart manufacturing trends from leading Korean experts in dying, smart fabric management and 3D design, to improve competitiveness of Vietnamese firms.

According to Vu Duc Giang, VITAS’ chairman, South Korea was the fourth largest garment and textile importer of Viet Nam with import revenue jumping from US$979 million in 2011 to $2.28 billion in 2016. — VNS