Hirdaramani’s Mihila factory in Agalawatta wins World Textile Award

The Hirdaramani Knit Mihila factory management team with General Manager Chamara de Silva

The Hirdaramani Group’s Mihila factory in Agalawatta recently won a prestigious World Textile Award in the ‘Garment Maker of the Year 2014’ category. 

The awards provide a global platform that recognises, encourages and rewards excellence across all levels of the textile industry. Mihila, which translates to Earth, is part of the Hirdaramani Group and has been in operation since 2009. With a revolutionary new environmental design, Mihila is the world’s very first custom-built green apparel factory and has received several local and international accolades. 

In light of this notable achievement, Hirdaramani Knit Cluster Chief Executive Officer Indrajith Kumarasiri commented: “From its inception, Mihila has innovated and led the way in sustainable manufacturing. This is yet another milestone in the factory’s commitment to excellence. I am proud of the team members for their continuous dedication which has played a crucial role in the factory’s success.” 

The Mihila factory has not only won numerous local awards for sustainable manufacturing and industry excellence, it also holds the distinction of being Asia’s first CarbonNeutral apparel factory, certified by the Carbon Neutral Company which is accredited by the Carbon Trust – the UK Government’s carbon standards body. Mihila has also received Gold Certification in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) by the US Green Building Council. The factory incorporates several unique technologies, ensuring lower energy consumption including a state-of-the-art evaporative cooling system, prismatic skylights system and an architecturally textured solar panel system that provides a part of the factory’s power requirements. At Hirdaramani sustainability is not only about being green, it is an all encompassing goal that also focuses on leaner operations and sustainability in the community – it is this overall commitment that has made Mihila a model factory which has set the precedent for factories across the group. This is highlighted in Mihila’s latest accolade as the Textile Awards takes into account all aspects of the operations of the factory and recognises the facilities that are setting and changing industry standards.

Hirdaramani Group Director Siddarth Hirdaramani said: “Hirdaramani’s sustainability journey began with the simple idea – the building of a green factory. Mihila set the benchmark in this endeavour and seeing the potential of such factories has led to a change in our philosophy, sustainability is now the standard and foundation of our operation. We congratulate the Mihila team as they continue to push new boundaries in the rapidly evolving manufacturing industry.” 

A pioneer in the garments industry, the Hirdaramani Group, through constant product innovation and the adherence to stringent quality standards has set the benchmark in the apparel industry and has moved continuously from strength to strength. In line with the Hirdaramani Group’s overall objectives, the Mihila factory will continue to promote environmental sustainability as a vital facet of its business operations for years to come.