Kuala Terengganu - The batik industry may fall behind if traditional methods like hand-drawing and stamp-printing continue to be used as these are time-consuming.
Noor Arfa Batik executive officer, Wan Mohd Ariffin Wan Long, said the traditional methods were not suitable for current times, so batik producers needed to change to a faster and more profitable printing method.
"If we use the old ways, a worker can only produce 200 metres of batik a day but the printing machine can produce 1,000 metres a day," he told Bernama when met here Tuesday.
Wan Mohd Ariffin said customers were particular about delivery time and by printing batik, producers could meet customers` needs.
"The printing method saves time to meet the high demand, especially from government agencies. Batik producers should pay heed to this matter," he said.
Besides being cheaper by 30 percent compared to block-printing, he said the quality of printed batik was guaranteed as it had uniformity.
"Only by printing, can the batik industry be competitive with other producers like Indonesia and Thailand," Wan Mohd Ariffin said.
However, he said, the starting capital for printing was high, in the region of RM1 million.
"So far, only one batik producer in Terengganu and two in Kelantan use the printing method," he added.
Source: www.bernama.com.my (16 April 2008)
