PTRI-DOST's Philippine Tropical Fabrics:  A Catalyst for the Ailing Textile Industry

The entire bureaucracy, composed of about 1.4M officials and employees, will soon be wearing office uniforms made from Philippine tropical fibers. This was disclosed by the Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI) Director, Dr. Carlos C. Tomboc, in light of the approval of the bills prescribing the use of Philippine tropical fabrics as uniforms of government officials and employees and for other purposes" by the Bicameral Committee on October 22, 2003.

Once signed into law by the President, all government employees will be required to wear Philippine tropical fabrics or those containing natural fibers produced, spun, woven or knitted and finished in the Philippines. These fabrics are composed of either pineapple, banana or abaca fibers blended with polyester staples, the technologies of which were developed by the Research and Development Division of the PTRI, an agency of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

Contrary to the traditional process of handweaving popularly noted for piña and abaca cloths, these Philippine tropical fabrics are developed by the Institute using the industrial conventional process of textile manufacture. The fibers pass through chemical and mechanical pretreatments that render them supple and wool-like, prior to blending with polyester or other textile fibers during the process of manufacture into yarns, and eventually woven in the powerloom as fabrics. The resultant fabrics have an entirely differently character and properties from the traditional piña and abaca barong. These fabrics are notably fashionable, functional, comfortable, easy-care and most importantly, competitively priced.

PTRI has long been assisted by other government agencies, primarily DOST's Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development (PCIERD) and the Garments and Textile Export Board of the Department of Trade and Industry (GTEB-DTI) in this research undertaking. Very recently, the Uniform Manufacturers Organization and Designers Association (UNIMODA) has prototyped corporate wears from these fabrics which they have exhibited to as far as London and Paris with much success, so much so that initial production for 1,000m fabric will soon be underway. PTRI-DOST, being the generator of the technology, is now proposing to initiate the use of these fabrics by incorporating them in the department's office uniform for 2004.

With the legislative intervention turning into policy, PTRI sees a brighter future for the ailing local fiber and textile industries who will benefit from the production and manufacture of these fibers and wonder fabrics which are distinctly Filipino. More importantly, the extraction of fibers from plantation wastes like pineapple leaves and banana trunks after fruit harvests will redound to additional employment and income for the grassroot level, the farmers and daily laborers. The utilization of plantation wastes for high value fibers will likewise eliminate burning of waste products and is therefore in consonance with Clean Air Act in the aspect of reducing the production of greenhouse gases or (GHGs).