1.0            SCOPE & PURPOSE

2.0            DEFINITIONS

3.0 ADMINISTRATIVE ARRANGEMENTS

4.0            ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE

5.0            COMPILATION

6.0            ASSIGNING OF RATING

7.0        EXECUTION OF AGREEMENT

8.0        CERTIFICATE OF RATING

9.0        USE OF RATING

10.0        VALIDITY OF RATING AND ANNUAL VISITS

11.0        DOWN GRADING OF ASSIGNED RATING

12.0        RENEWAL OF RATING

13.0        ASSESSMENT FOR HIGHER RATING

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An Overview:

1.0            SCOPE & PURPOSE  

1.1      This scheme specifies the requirements for assessment & rating of modernized ginning & pressing factories in India by Textiles Committee to facilitate

a) Ginning & pressing factories to know their present status and identify the scope
for improvement.
b) Ginning & pressing factories to boost the credibility of their factory and use the
rating as an effective marketing tool.
c) Cotton traders to select ginning & pressing factories for processing their cotton
to their quality requirements.
d) Spinning mills to select appropriate ginning & pressing factories for sourcing
cotton to their requirements.
e) Creation of a brand for clean cotton

1.2      Assessment & rating under the scheme is voluntary.  

2.0            DEFINITIONS

2.1            Assessment

Evaluation of infrastructural facilities, management practices and quality of ginned cotton in a modernized ginning & pressing factory on the basis of the criterion given in this scheme.

2.2            Ginning & pressing factory

A factory, having legal identity, engaged in ginning of kapas into cotton (lint) and pressing the cotton (lint) in the form of bales.

Note: When a ginning & pressing factory has oil extraction facility from cottonseed in the same premises, the scope of assessment is limited to ginning & pressing activities only.

2.3            Modernized ginning & pressing factory

A ginning & pressing factory meeting minimum prescribed criteria listed in Annexure–I.

2.4            Infrastructural parameters

Infrastructural components of a modernized ginning & pressing factory comprising machinery, civil & other infrastructures considered in this scheme for assessment.

2.5            Management parameters

Management systems and work practices of a modernized ginning & pressing factory considered in this scheme for assessment.

2.6            Quality parameters

Quality components of ginned cotton comprising trash content and contamination

2.7            Rating

2.7.1       Rating is the process of placing modernized ginning & pressing factories in to different classes based on the assessment of infrastructural parameters, management parameters, quality parameters and the criteria for rating given in this scheme.

2.7.2       The rating of ginning & pressing factory is a factory assessment to indicate its capability in producing quality ginned cotton and shall not be construed as product certification.

2.8             Hybrid factory

A ginning & pressing factory with modernized ginning facility and conventional/unmodernized ginning facility in the same premises, sharing any of the common manufacturing facilities.

3.0            ADMINISTRATIVE ARRANGEMENTS

3.1            Assessment & Rating Cell (ARC)

Textiles Committee shall constitute a separate Cell that will be involved in the processing of applications and documents pertaining to assessment and rating of ginning & pressing factories.  The main functions of the Assessment and Rating Cell will be receiving applications from aspiring ginning & pressing factories, organizing to depute 2-member teams to visit factories for assessment and compiling the assessment report of the team for submission to the Technical Rating Award Committee for its consideration / approval.

3.2            Technical Rating Award Committee (TRAC)

This Committee is entrusted with the task of formally assigning ratings to assessed ginning & pressing factories. Documents forwarded by the Assessment and Rating Cell such as report from the visiting team and compilation by the Assessment & Rating Cell will be examined by the TRAC to arrive at the appropriate rating.  Technical Rating Award Committee is headed by the Secretary, Textiles Committee, Mumbai and includes the following members:

(i)      Joint Textile Commissioner or his representative not below the rank of Deputy Director.

(ii)        GM (TMC) or his representative.

(iii)         Two Directors or their representatives not below the rank of Deputy Director from Textiles Committee.

(iv)     Officer/s who has visited the ginning & pressing factory as Invitee, if necessary.

The Technical Rating Award Committee is empowered to invite more persons of their choice to attend the meetings.  The Technical Rating Award Committee shall meet as often as required to perform the task of assigning ratings.

3.3            Panel of experts

Textiles Committee shall constitute a panel of experts based on relevant qualification, knowledge, experience, training etc. The members of the panel of experts will visit ginning & pressing factories for on-the-spot assessment.

4.0            ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE

4.1            Visit of assessment team to ginning & pressing factories

The Assessment & Rating Cell shall organize to depute a two-member team of officers selected from the panel of experts to the ginning & pressing factory to be assessed. The team shall ensure that the unit is operational at the time of assessment and the parameters considered for assessment are put in use or in practice. The team shall inspect each item of the infrastructure including machinery & civil items; examine the management practices adopted including working conditions in the unit at the time of visit; and visually examine sample of cotton processed for contamination.  The details of infrastructural, management & quality parameters to be assessed are provided in the Assessment Format (Annexure – III). The visiting team shall assign marks for each infrastructural parameter, management parameter and contamination. Marking scheme for infrastructure, management and contamination is given in Tables I, II & III of Annexure - IV.  The team shall prepare the assessment report (Annexure III) and submit the same to the Assessment & Rating Cell.

4 .2            Visual examination for contamination and drawing of sample for lab testing

The assessment team shall randomly select and open one bale for assessment of contamination and drawing of sample for lab testing. The selected bale should have been processed from kapas stage to bale stage on the day of assessment. About 25 kgs of ginned cotton from the bale so opened shall be spread in the presence of the team on a platform so as to get a complete view of contaminants. The assessment team shall visually examine the contaminants in the cotton, analyze and assign marks as per the marking scheme (Annexure – IV).

The assessment team shall randomly draw a sample of about 500 gms of cotton from the bale so opened for testing of trash content in the laboratory. The sample so drawn shall be duly sealed, identified and submitted to the Assessment & Rating Cell along with the assessment report.

4.3            Photographs

The Assessment Team may take photographs of infrastructural components, as necessary, that will supplement and strengthen the written reports. The team may also take additional photographs of the components of management parameters as deemed fit. The photographs shall be submitted to the Assessment & Rating Cell along with the report.

4.4            Lab Testing

On receipt of the assessment report along with the sample duly sealed and identified from the visiting team, the Assessment & Rating Cell shall forward the sample to Textiles Committee’s laboratory for Testing. The laboratory shall test the sample for staple length & trash content and forward the test report to the Assessment & Rating Cell.

5.0            COMPILATION

Assessment and Rating Cell shall scrutinize the assessment report of the team. On receipt of the test report from the laboratory, the Assessment & Rating Cell shall record the mark for trash content in the assessment report. Marking scheme for trash content is given in Table III of Annexure – IV. The Assessment & Rating Cell shall compile the % mark scored for infrastructural parameters; % mark scored for management Parameters; % mark scored for quality Parameters; and the overall %. If a factory has scored 80% or above for infrastructural parameters; Management Paramaters; qulity parameters abd overall 0f 90 % or above then the Assesment and Rqating cell shall also compile the complinace level to additional fulfilling requirements prescribed for four star & Five star ratings The assessment & Rating Cell shall forward the compilation report with its recommendation (Annexure – V) to the Technical Rating Award Committee.

6.0            ASSIGNING OF RATING

6.1             The Technical Rating Award Committee will review the assessment report of the visiting team, compilation report & recommendations of the Assessment & Rating Cell and award the appropriate rating or otherwise in accordance with the qualifying criteria given in Annexure – I.

6.2             The Assessment & Rating Cell shall confidentially communicate the rating accorded by the Technical Rating Award Committee alongwith the Assesment Status Report (ASR) to the concerned ginning & pressing factory for its acceptance.  In case, the rating assigned by the Textiles Committee is not acceptable to the factory, the factory is free to refuse the same and can seek fresh assessment after making necessary improvements. The factory shall have to pay fresh rating fee, as applicable, for the re-assessment.

6.3             If the assessed ginning & pressing factory does not qualify for any rating as per the qualifying criteria given in Annexure – I, a letter to this effect with reasons shall be issued to the factory under the signature of Secretary or Director, Textiles Committee. The factory can seek fresh assessment after making necessary improvements and paying fresh rating fee, as applicable, for the re-assessment.

7.0        EXECUTION OF AGREEMENT

On receipt of acceptance from the ginning & pressing factory for the assigned rating, Textiles Committee shall enter into an agreement with the factory.

8.0        CERTIFICATE OF RATING

A Certificate shall be issued to the ginning & pressing factory which shall include the rating awarded, date of issue and validity period. Information on the rating thus assigned will also be placed on the Textiles Committee’s website for the information of all intrested parties such as spinning mills , cotton merchants/traders, ginning factories etc

9.0        USE OF RATING

The rating assigned to a ginning & pressing factory is intended for use as recognition & marketing tool for its capability in producing quality ginned cotton and not for use on the bale as product certification.

10.0        VALIDITY OF RATING AND ANNUAL VISITS

Rating once assigned is valid for 3 years subject to the payment of applicable annual rating fee.  The Assessment and Rating Cell shall organize two compulsory annual visits of the assessment team within in the validity period to the ginning & pressing factory to ensure that the machinery, civil infrastructure and management practices continue to be in place.  However, additional visits may be organized, if necessary.

11.0        DOWN GRADING OF ASSIGNED RATING

If during interim visits a factory is found to have gone down in quality in terms of infrastructure and management practices as compared to the initial assessment, the factory can be “downgraded”.  The Assessment & Rating Cell shall forward its recommendation in respect of downgrading the assigned rating of the factory to Technical Rating Award Committee for further action in the matter.  The Technical Rating Award Committee will take appropriate decision on downgrading and assigning a lower rating or withdrawing the assigned rating, as the case may be.  A letter under the signature of Secretary or Director, Textiles Committee to this effect shall be issued to the factory and the information shall be updated on Textiles Committee website also.

12.0        RENEWAL OF RATING

Certified ginning & pressing factories can apply for renewal of rating before expiry, preferably 90 days in advance.  Rating fee, as applicable at that time, shall be payable by the factory. The assessment & rating shall be carried out by the same procedure as in the initial assessment.

13.0        ASSESSMENT FOR HIGHER RATING

Certified ginning & pressing factories aspiring for higher rating based on further improvements made in infrastructural facilities and management practices are free to apply for upgradation of rating on payment of rating fee as applicable. Fresh assessment will be carried out and the rating will be awarded as per the assessment and rating criteria.