Taming of animals opened a new chapter in the history of civilization. Apart from meat and milk, animals gave fur and leather, which man used for clothing. Animal skin had to be processed for texture and durability. Scientific processing of leather came much later. Strong leather found several uses for footwear, body armour, saddles, hunting accessories, vessels, writing surface, roofing material, and even weapons.
Modern technology brought about great refinement in treatment, techniques and processes. Design of tanneries calls for the services of competent professionals. New styles of processing and uses of leather emerge regularly.
Most leather is made of cattle skin, but many exceptions exist. Research in leather gives rewarding results with diverse industrial applications. We have in India a prestigious institution that is perhaps the world's biggest in the field of leather research — Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI), Adyar, Chennai- 600020; phone: 044 24416889; e-mail: chord@clri.res.in; Web: www.clri.nic.in. It was founded in 1948.
CLRI
CLRI is the prime hub in Indian leather sector. It has direct roles in education, research, training, designing, testing, forecasting, planning, and leading in science and technology relating to leather. It has five Regional Centres – Kolkata, Kanpur, Jalandhar, Ahmedabad, and Mumbai.
At the dawn of Independence, we were exporting raw hides and skins. The processes of value addition to the raw material demanded the application of technology that was scarce. Though there were institutes of Leather Technology in Kolkata, Kanpur, and Chennai, they could hardly meet the needs of research.
The vacuum was filled by CLRI. The institute has rendered remarkable service to the country through new leather products, employment generation, enhanced export earnings, and consequent economic development. It has also evolved new innovative technologies in the leather sector.
Research and development forms the core of activities in CLRI. Natural leather has unique features which man is yet to match through innovation.
Natural skin remains unmatched in its architecture. But it has to be supplemented through artificial products, since the demand for leather is well ahead of its supply. Non-leather materials have a complementary role in providing durable products.
CLRI serves as the national apex body in leather, whether for training, new technologies, planning and direction, or consultancy. It maintains close links with industry.
It is only through the yeoman services of CLRI that India has been able to make the lion's share of leather exports in the form of finished products.
The Institute helps the industry in areas such as leather process technology, leather chemicals, effluent treatment, product design, and training of personnel. The five regional centres of CLRI work as nodal centres in transferring technologies to the local industries. The feed back from the industry offers crucial inputs for planning and organising R&D.
Activities like Tanners' Get-Together, International Leather Fair, and Fashion Parade have enriched the data for innovative research. Institute – Industry – Interaction is a key factor behind quality research. The links are being strengthened incessantly, for ensuring a practical approach in development. R&D in CLRI is never a pure academic exercise. It has an inherent dynamism in tuning the curriculum according to changing needs of the industry. It has succeeded in producing high quality minds that have contributed greatly to leather. The laboratories keep global standards.
CLRI has association with Indian organisations like the Council for Leather Exports (CLE), the Indian Finished Leather Manufacturers & Exporters Association (IFLMEA), the Leather Chemical Manufacturers Association (LCMA), the Footwear Design and Development Institute (FDDI), and the Indian Leather Technologists Association (ILTA). International links connect CLRI with organisations such as UNIDO, FAO, UNDP, TNO (The Netherlands), the British Leather Confederation (BLC), CTC France, CESECA Italy; IRDLAI Indonesia, SATRA of UK, and IDRC Canada. There are interactions with the International Union of Leather Technologists and Chemists Societies (IULTCS) as well. All these point to the great opportunities awaiting those who pursue leather research in CLRI.
Research
This institute with its strong foundation in both basic and applied research in leather and allied sciences, has at any point of time many research students working for Ph D. Scientists from CLRI have won prestigious awards like the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar prize.
There are several contributions of the institute in various areas including analytical testing for eco-sensitive chemicals; animal and tannery byproducts utilisation; aqueous chemistry of chromium; assembly and organisation of small to macro molecules; biotechnology for leather processing; chrome recovery and reuse
controlled drug delivery systems; development of nuclear magnetic resonance techniques; environment-friendly synthetic tanning agents; interpenetrating polymeric networks; modernisation of tannery wet operations
molecular understanding of chrome tanning; nutritional disorders relating to collagen (fibrous proteins found in animals); structural aspects of collagen; structural stability of chrome-collagen compounds; tannery waste water treatment; technologies for manufacture of chemical auxiliaries; thermodynamics of self-assemblies and micellar formation; upgradation of low grade materials; vegetable tannin resources
Numerous research products in technology have been transferred to the industry.
The Tannery division that deals with diverse aspects of leather process technology plays a key role in the growth of the tanning industry in the country, by providing trained manpower as well as appropriate technologies for the production of varieties of finished leathers. Pollution loads in tannery effluents assumed great significance when the Supreme Court once went to the extent of closing hundreds of tanneries. CLRI provided many options for the reduction of pollution and saved the industry from a disaster type of situation. The division is engaged in focused research on different technical aspects of tannery.
However, studies are held in different subjects such as Inorganic / Physical / Computational / Environmental Chemistry, Surface Science, and Leather Science as well.
Apart from regular Bachelor's and Master's programs, CLRI conducts the following programmes focusing on research.
M.S. (by Research)
Ph.D. in leather technology
Ph.D. in footwear science and engineering
Ph.D. in different streams of science and chemical engineering
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