Dhaka expo shortlists 18 research projects from 60 nationwide applications

Eighteen research projects made the cut at the Open Innovation Zone by Centro, staged on 12 November at the Textile Innovation Expo 2026 in Dhaka — a shortlist drawn from roughly 60 applications collected nationwide. The event ran at Hall 8 of the Expo Village, International Convention City Bashundhara (ICCB), under the organization of Textile Innovation Exchange and the Institution of Textile Engineers and Technologists (ITET).

For Bangladesh's suppliers, the significance sits in the pipeline on show: research, prototypes and technological solutions brought forward by academic innovators and vetted by working industry judges. After a nationwide call for proposals, a judging panel evaluated and mentored applicants over several months before settling on the final 18.

Who ran the evaluation?

Tareq Amin, Member Secretary of Textile Innovation Exchange, opened the ceremony by outlining the initiative's background. He said the roughly 60 innovation proposals were gathered from across the country, with a dedicated panel of judges working closely with participants to mentor, develop and shortlist the final 18. He also thanked the judging panel for its extensive work evaluating the projects and selecting the expo's best innovation.

The judging panel itself came straight from the supply chain and its training grounds:

• Prof. Dr. Md. Reajul Islam, Department of Yarn Engineering, Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX)
• Jaidur Rahman, Assistant General Manager, Centro Tex Limited
• Abdullah Al Mahmud, General Manager, Dysin Group

Distinguished guests included Fazlee Shamim Ehsan, President of the Bangladesh Employers' Federation (BEF); Nafis-Ud-Doula, Director of BGMEA and Director of Impress-Newtex Composite Textiles Ltd.; and Engr. Abdus Sobhan, Managing Director of Aukotex Group and Member of ITET's Advisory Committee.

What did the buyers hear?

Nicolas Anton, Chief Operating Officer of Centro Tex Limited, told the audience that scale alone no longer suffices as market demands evolve, and that the future belongs to those who embrace innovation. He framed innovation as part of Centro's DNA — not merely a new machine or technology, but a mindset and a daily commitment to continuous improvement across resource efficiency, sustainability, cleaner production and higher-value products.

"True progress does not happen in isolation," Anton said. "It happens right here when creators, manufacturers, and visionaries come together to learn from one another and build partnerships that will carry our industry into the next great chapter."

Judge Abdullah Al Mahmud of Dysin Group highlighted the diversity of the shortlisted entries, which spanned wearable textiles, alternative yarns designed to replace cotton, and industrial automation machines. Bangladesh has produced conventional textiles for a long time, he argued, and it is now crucial to make a technical shift toward value-added products and technical textiles.

"Those who emerge as top winners should receive funding and sponsorships," Al Mahmud said. "I hope the industry comes forward to sponsor these initiatives and make them industrially viable, as several of these projects have strong potential to advance as technical textiles in the market."

Who took the top award?

The programme announced a Best Innovation Award for the expo, recognising Dr. Md. Sham Alam of Southeast University for three showcased innovations:

• ThermoTex — a self-charging smart heating textile
• FeMats — a fetal monitoring and smart textile system
• FLUOROVA — a sustainable fluorine-free waterproof and breathable textile

The FLUOROVA entry carries particular compliance weight: fluorine-free durable water repellency is the direction European PFAS restrictions are already forcing on finishing chemistry, so a domestic research route to it matters for exporters.

The event closed with the distinguished guests presenting certificates of participation to all 18 innovators — a marker, the organisers said, of strengthening industry-academia collaboration and advancing research-driven solutions for Bangladesh's textile and apparel sector.

For sourcing executives, Al Mahmud's call sets the decision: which of these 18 projects — cotton-replacement yarns, wearables, automation — get industrial sponsorship, and which of Bangladesh's supplier groups move first to bring them to commercial scale.