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Oliver Kazunga Senior Business Reporter
ONE of Bulawayo’s oldest textile firms, Security Mills has ventured into producing polycotton to keep abreast with innovation and global developments in the textile industry. The company, which was placed under judicial management in 2010 by the High Court in Bulawayo, secured a $200,000 loan facility from the government’s Distressed Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund (Dimaf) after accruing debts of close to $5 million.

Security Mills judicial manager Tapiwa Chizana told Business Chronicle that this was the first time polycotton was produced by one of the oldest companies in Bulawayo.

“Having secured the $200,000 Dimaf funding sometime this year, we’ve now become innovative for the first time in the history of the company to produce polycotton, a long lasting fabric used in most cases to produce corporate wear such as golf T-shirts.
“We’ve become innovative as we try to keep abreast with technological developments,” he said.

Part of the $200,000 Dimaf funding was used to import a special yarn from India, which Security Mills was using to produce polycotton.
Chizana said polycotton was on high demand adding that the switch has seen the firm securing large volumes of orders from local companies such as Edgars.

He said the textile company had begun posting some profits for the first time in five years.
The company has also used some of the Dimaf cash to buy fabric locally, pay wages and meet other operational costs.

In the past, Chizana said, Security Mills produced single jersey cotton fabric, fabrics for socks and blankets and plain cotton.
Although the company is still operating at below 30 percent capacity, Chizana said the Dimaf funding had significantly changed the face of the company as it increased its workforce from 30 early last year to 90 at present.

At its peak, the textile company employed over 1,000 workers.