In 2005, the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) established three
new labs — located in Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar — to provide training and technical support for
textile and apparel manufacturers in Pakistan.
PCSIR selected equipment from England-based SDL Atlas to equip the new labs, which included
fabric-, yarn- and fiber-testing instruments such as the Wascator washer-extractors and driers,
RotaWash unit, Martindale (M235) abrasion and pilling tester, and Auto Burst (M229) digital
bursting strength tester.
An Atlas Ci3000+ Weather-Ometer® (M237U) was installed at the Karachi and Lahore facilities.
In addition, the Karachi location also received a computerized M223/3 standardized dry-cleaning
machine, which is the only one of its kind in use in Pakistan. All equipment was purchased through
NAZ International, SDL Atlas’ agent in Pakistan.
“We are pleased to be associated with these major installations, as well as many other
textile testing laboratories,” said Simon Dakin, sales manager, SDL Atlas. “Pakistan is a very
important market for [SDL Atlas] testing equipment. We have seen a greater emphasis on the
importance of testing and quality control in the textile industry [in Pakistan] in recent times.”
Pakistan Textile Testing Foundation’s new testing lab
In related SDL news, the new Pakistan Textile Testing Foundation (PTTF) also furnished its
laboratory with testing equipment from SDL Atlas. The foundation was formed as a non-governmental
organization whose members comprise textile companies in and around Faisalabad. In addition to a
lab conditioning system for sample preparation, PTTF selected RotaWash and QuickWash® units, a
Wascator washer-extractor, a pilling and abrasion tester, tensile and burst strength testing units,
and an Atlas Universal Wear Tester. Atlas Material Testing Tech also supplied a Ci3000
Weather-Ometer.
January/February 2006