Northern Tosrifa Group’s unit Tosrifa Industries, a garment exporter located in Tongi in Gazipur, produces knitwear such as polo shirts, T-shirts and tank-tops plans to set up an eco-friendly dyeing unit by raising capital from the public, to become self-sufficient in fabric colouring and boost profitability.

The company also plans to expand its sewing capacity by adding some 500 sewing machines.

The total investment of the projects is estimated to the tune of Tk 163.2 crore, of which Tk 152 crore will be utilized to establish dyeing unit with the daily capacity of 15 tonnes of fabric.

The dyeing unit, which will be located at Sreepur in Gazipur, will be equipped with energy-efficient machinery, which will reduce its carbon footprints, said Mohim Hassan, managing director of Tosrifa Industries.

Tosrifa will also use a 'cold pad batch' dyeing mechanism that will consume 45 percent less power than conventional dyeing systems. The unit will also use much less water than other traditional systems, Hassan said.

When the dyeing unit will become fully operational, their reliance on subcontracting will be dismissed and lead-time reduced, resulting in greater value addition, lower expenses and higher profit margins.

The company needs a strong backward linkage to take advantage of the export growth, as the overall export of garments from Bangladesh is expected to increase in the next decade.

The project will enable them to get a strong foothold for expansion in the knit garment sector. The investment will also help the company maintain better social and environmental standards, which will benefit the company in the long run.

Of the Tk 163.2 crore, Tosrifa has already managed to raise Tk 6 crore through a pre-IPO placement and Tk 61.88 crore will be raised through an initial public offering, which was approved by Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission on February 10.

The remaining Tk 95.32 crore will be sourced from debt financing or retained earnings. The company is set to float 2.46 crore ordinary shares worth Tk 10 each for Tk 26, with Tk 16 as premium.

The IPO subscription that is being managed by IDLC Investments will begin tomorrow and end on March 31 for the public and April 9 for non-resident Bangladeshis.

The company employs some 1,350 workers, supplies to international apparel brands such as Juritex Import-Export, Delta-Sport Handelskontor, ZXY International, El Corte Ingles, Gina Tricot and MQ Retail.

In 2012 and 2013, Tosrifa exported merchandise worth Tk 79.94 crore and Tk 94.16 crore respectively.