CIRCOT Calibration Cotton

Description and Salient Features  :

This is an in-house technology developed by the institute through a revolving fund project. Since 1997, the institute is producing calibration cotton and supplying it to mills, research institutes and testing instrument manufacturers in the country. CIRCOT is the second institute in the world next to USDA to prepare the calibration cotton for textile testing. The standard reference material developed is used for calibration of the High-Volume Instruments used for fibre testing and is an import substitute for the USDA calibration cotton.

ICAR-CIRCOT is offering indigenously prepared reference material for calibration of HVI machine having quality characteristics similar to those of USDA calibration standards. Calibration cotton is supplied in a packet containing about 200g of fibres, uniquely coded and labelled with various important fibre properties like 2.5% span length, uniformity, micronaire, 3.2 mm gauge tenacity  etc. It is expected that the inter packet variability in fibre properties be as low as possible so that the particular lot of reference material serves the need of many users simultaneously. Further, a user may ask for reference cotton with particular length or micronaire or strength value or their combination and as supplier CIRCOT is able to supply it from its available stock with minimum variation.  

Stakeholders : 

Cotton fibre testing laboratories, Cotton spinning mills, Ginning industries, cotton trading houses and various other research and educational organisations

Benefit to Stakeholders : 

• The standard reference material developed is used for calibration of High-Volume Instruments used for fibre testing
• It is an import substitute for the USDA calibration cotton.
• The cheaper alternative has also resulted in saving of up to 60% for the consumers on expenditure towards calibration cotton. There is ample opportunity to expand the market beyond the domestic customers.
• Increased reliability of test results and confidence in testing. Universally accepted test results and test certificate for trade promotion
• Helps to avoid unnecessary arbitration between buyer and seller as reliable test results are accepted by both

Cost : Rs. 900/- (per container of 200 gm)

Production and Marketing : 

• Developed, Produced and Marketed by ICAR-CIRCOT, Mumbai 
• The institute has more than 300 customers for the product. The institute has sold around 12877 boxes (200g each) of the calibration cotton to the industrial stakeholders since its development. On an average around 515 boxes of calibration cotton is being sold to the customers per annum.
• The economic impact by means of saving of precious foreign exchange amounts to around Rs. 58 lakhs per annum.