Jute History
The people of India used jute in small quantities to make rope,
paper, and coarse hand woven fabrics for matting and bedding.
Noting
these products, English traders early saw the potential of jute
as a substitute of hemp and flax. In 1793, the East India Company
exported the first consignment of jute. This first shipment,
100 tons, was followed by additional shipments at irregular
intervals. Eventually, a consignment found its way to Dundee,
Scotland where the flax spinners were anxious to learn whether
jute could be processed mechanically.
Success
was not immediate and, until the 1860's, only hand woven jute
goods found their way into world markets. Starting in the 1830's,
however, the Dundee spinners learned how to spin jute yarn by
modifying their power-driven flax machinery and, before long,
they were producing jute goods in large quantities.
The
rise of the jute industry in Dundee saw a corresponding increase
in the production and export of raw jute from the Indian sub-continent
which was then, as it is now, virtually the sole supplier of
this primary commodity.
Cultivation
of Jute
Jute is an annual plant of the genus Corchorus, grown entirely
for its fiber. It is a rainy season crop, sown from March to
May according to rainfall and type of land, and harvested from
June to September depending on whether the sowings are early
or late. It thrives best in damp heat, and the climatic conditions
obtained in West Bengal in India and Bengaldesh. The other Indian
States of Bihar, Assam, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh are also ideally
suitable for the cultivation of jute.
Mesta,
or Kenif, botanically known as Hibiscus Cannabinus, is also
grown in these areas as a textile fiber. Mesta is a coarser,
more brittle fiber, and is used by the jute mills in admixture
with jute to obtain certain desired properties.
Jute
plants are ordinarily ready for harvesting about four months
after sowing. The plants, from 8 to 12 feet high, are cut with
sickles close to the ground, normally after the plants have
shed their leaves. The stems are then made up into bundles for
steeping.
The
jute fiber is in the outer layer of the stem, between the wood
on the inside, and the cortex on the outside, surrounded by
soft tissues. During retting, these tissues are softened with
the results that the fiber can be separated readily in the subsequent
process of stripping. The quality of the fiber depends greatly
on the care exercised in retting.
When
retting is complete, the bundles are taken out of the water
and the stripping process ensues. The stripped fiber is then
made up into small bundles which are washed in clean running
water. The bundles are then dried in the sun for two or three
days. When dry, the fiber is tied up in bundles known locally
as morahs.
The
Manufacture of Jute Products
In
jute manufacturing phraseology, the steps involved in the manufacture
of the yarns are carried out in the "mill," those
of weaving and finishing in the "factory." The word
"mill," however, is also commonly used to denote the
manufacturing establishment as a whole.
As
jute grown in different areas varies in strength, color and
fineness, the first step in preparing the fiber is "batching,"
consisting of blending the various fibers to obtain uniformity
in strength and color to give the precise quality of yarn
for spinning.
In
the first mechanical operation in the mill, the jute is fed
into a softener in which the jute, treated with an emulsion
oil and water, passes between sets of heavy spiral fluted
rollers. This process renders the fiber thoroughly pliant
and removes any barky portions adhering to the fiber.
The
fibers are then carded in machines, known as breaker cards
and finisher cards, which reduce the average length of the
fibers by teasing and combing, and deliver them in the form
of a long continuous ribbon, 5" or 6" in width,
called sliver.
The
carded jute is next fed into drawing machines which draw out
and attenuate the sliver, parallelize the fibers, and by means
of a doubling process, produce a smoother, more even sliver.
The
last operation in the preparing department is roving, a process
which imparts a slight twist to the sliver and delivers the
material on to bobbins in the form of rove, a loose yarn ready
for spinning. Other spinning machinery known as sliver spinning,
an extra drawing operation is substituted for the roving step.
This machine delivers a crimped sliver which can be fed direct
to the sliver spinning form.
Spinning
frames convert the rove to finished yarn. After spinning,
the yarns are wound into the form required - spools for warp
yarn and cops for weft yarn - for subsequent processing. Jute
yarn is processed much like other textile fibers, the yarn
itself being dressed (i.e. sized or starched), before being
passed on to the warp beam ready for weaving.
Jute
fabrics are of simple construction and are woven on a variety
of looms. Woven fabrics are inspected, damped and calendered
to produce the desired smoothness of finish.
Burlap
is then folded in the desired length, packed in bales by hydraulic
press, covered with gunny cloth for protection and stored
in godowns (warehouses) to await shipment.
Eco-Frinedly
Jute is an eco-friendly, biodegradable annually replenish
able cash crop. It is grown mainly in Eastern India &
Bangladesh. Four million farmers in India are involved in
jute cultivation.
Jute
passes through various processes of assorting, softening &
drawing for preparing it for spinning into yarn. It is spun
into various thicknesses at very high speed in modern spinning
frames.
Spun
yarn is converted into spools & cops and starched before
weaving into fabrics on most modern looms. Various weaving
designs and patterns can be developed as required.
Woven
fabrics pass through various operations like calendaring,
chemical processes for bleaching and dyeing by using jiggers
and dryers & eco-friendly chemicals & zero shrinkage
treatment to get consistency.
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