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The Transformation Stages of Phuong La Village Weaving


Table 2.1: Stages of transformation of Phuong La village weaving


Time to replace

change

Major changes in weaving

Tools

Ingredient

Production organization

Product

Consume

1957-

1972

Phoenix frame, 3-tiered holder

Cotton, silk

Household

family

Flared fabric, mosquito net, silk, canvas

narrow

Free market - mainly village markets

1973-

1975

Phoenix hand frame

labour

Cotton, sedge

Household

family

Economical fabrics;

mat weaving

Free market

1976-

1985

Foot pedal loom (improved phoenix frame)

Chemical fiber

Household

family, group

Mosquito nets

According to the order of Nam Dinh Textile Factory and the market

freedom school

1986-

1989

Foot pedal loom

Cotton, silk

Household

family, group

Square silk fabric, satin, frill, curtain fabric, brocade fabric, face towel

slippery

By order and market

free school

1990-

1995

Foot pedal loom, improved loom with electric motor

Natural cotton fiber, synthetic cotton fiber

Household

family, corporate group,

Enterprise

Face towel

Plain and patterned towels

Free market

1996-

2014

Improved, semi-modern loom; machine

industrial textile; modern machine

Natural cotton, synthetic cotton

Household

family, corporate group,

enterprise

Face towels, napkins, bath towels of all kinds

Market

domestic and international

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The Transformation Stages of Phuong La Village Weaving

[ Source: NCS survey results (2013)].

2.1.1. Use and purchase of textile materials

Since ancient times, Phuong La people have known how to create side jobs to earn extra income during the off-season, to cover their living expenses. Because production has not yet developed, the demand for raw materials is not high, so production households have to take care of themselves and find their own products; there is no market yet.


The market provides unstable input materials, raw materials, prices are sometimes high, sometimes low, directly affecting the profession; at the same time, making workers passive, dependent "when there is work, when there is none, then play".

Nowadays, with dynamism, creativity, and quick economic thinking, Phuong La people have innovated production materials to meet market demand. The materials are now very rich and diverse, not only silk but mainly cotton fibers which are very popular, can be purchased from Nam Dinh, Hai Phong, the southern provinces or imported from China. Cotton is taken from the fruit of natural cotton plants but can also be artificial cotton - this material is light and porous.

Raw materials are also imported from Dai Cuong, Nam Long, Dam San, Dong Phong yarn factories... all in Nguyen Duc Canh industrial park, Thai Binh city. These types of yarn include nylon blend yarn and cotton yarn. Using nylon blend yarn or cotton yarn depends on many factors, it can be due to the requirements of the place of order, or it can be determined by the product price. Cotton yarn is cool in the summer, warm in the winter so the price is usually higher.

Market economy so company and factory owners are completely proactive in choosing raw materials for their production facilities.

Box 2.1. : Opinions on input materials of companies and enterprises


Mr. Tran Van Dung - Director of Thao Nguyen Company Limited: "Nowadays, we are very happy, we have a lot of choice when it comes to raw materials. We take any business that is serious, and most of our business partners are serious. If you have money, you pay immediately, if not, you can pay later. As for the raw materials, you don't have to worry about weighing and measuring, we work directly with the company director, and the contract is long-term."

[ Source: NCS Interview (2014)].


Small producers, mostly buy yarn from traders, who are yarn agents in the village, so it is very convenient, they do not have to worry about running for raw materials like in the past. Thus, raw material services have appeared to meet the needs of small-scale producers in the village.


In fact, in the two craft communes of Minh Tan and Nam Cao, we know that there is still no market for raw materials in the village or commune; most households mainly weave for hire for a few businesses and the businesses mostly go to get the yarn and rarely contract with yarn factories to bring it back because the quantity taken is not much.

Box 2.2 : Opinions on input materials of small producers


Mr. Nguyen Van Thang, a family that does textile processing: “ Apart from dozens of companies and businesses, the rest are mostly families that do textile processing for companies to export to foreign countries (Korea, Taiwan, Japan, etc.), so the raw materials are provided by the owners. Now, the whole village has only about 20 households, including my family, who import raw materials, weave and consume products themselves. We buy raw materials right at the agent in the village, which is very convenient, we have all kinds.”

[ Source: NCS Interview (2014)].

Thus, a raw material market for supplying yarn for Phuong La has been formed, not only in the village but also in other localities and regions under legal, stable and sustainable contracts. Phuong La people now do not have to worry about input materials or raw material prices, but they have the right to choose raw materials, prices and reputable suppliers to buy from.

2.1.2. About weaving tools

Because it was considered a side job, done during the off-season, the weaving tools of the old Meo village were very simple, the craftsmen had to use muscle strength, and labor productivity was low. Most people paid little attention to improving the tools, for many years the weaving tool was still the phoenix frame (also known as the stork frame ).

Nowadays, the concept of weaving is the main profession that brings high income, so Phuong La people are interested in innovating and improving weaving tools. They go to places like Van Phuc (Ha Dong district, Hanoi city), Nam Dinh... to study and improve their village's weaving tools. Therefore, Phuong La village's weaving tools have been improved through each stage, from the phoenix manual loom to the improved loom, then the semi-modern loom (semi-automatic loom), then the industrial loom and then the modern loom.


Thanks to this, weavers have freed up their labor, no longer having to pedal and shuttle like before, and weaving productivity has increased many times over. The improved electric weaving machine can run 2-3 shifts per day, the products are more beautiful and can weave patterns on towels, bath towels, etc. according to customer requirements.

With a weaving machine, the worker’s main job is to join the thread when it breaks. Joining the thread while the machine is running requires speed, precision, and decisiveness. Detecting a broken thread and joining it quickly or slowly is a decisive factor for productivity and product quality. Therefore, the worker must have an industrial style.

Industrial weaving machines, the weaving process is completely automatic after the worker hangs the cotton ball on the machine rack, starts the machine. The machine automatically draws the yarn and weaves it into a towel. Industrial machines have much higher labor productivity than previous manual machines and current semi-automatic machines. The products are beautiful, smooth, flat, meeting the needs and tastes of customers. On average, an industrial weaving machine brings in an income of 12 - 15 million VND per month; an improved weaving machine brings in an average income of 4 - 5 million VND per month (that is, the owner owns the machine and receives the goods to make). To build an improved machine, it costs an average of 20 million VND. An improved yarn reel costs from 15 - 20 million VND. An industrial weaving machine costs 220 million VND or more. At the end of 2014, a village enterprise imported 30 modern weaving machines, each costing 3 billion VND" [ Source: NCS interview results].

Not only developing the weaving profession in Phuong La village, enterprises have also proactively mobilized thousands of households in villages and communes in the district to organize the construction of weaving frames for their enterprises and groups; at the same time, building textile factories and companies in localities in Thai Binh province and city. As of 2013, the whole Hung Ha district had 5,376 improved weaving frames and industrial weaving machines, while in Thai Phuong commune there were 2,842 improved weaving machines and 42 industrial weaving machines. Phuong La village alone had 2,069 weaving machines that could weave scarves with widths from 80cm - 1.2m for export [ Source: Thai Phuong Commune People's Committee]. Meanwhile, the whole Minh Tan scarf weaving commune only had over 1,000 weaving machines.


Thus, thanks to creativity and continuous improvement of production tools, Phuong La people have shifted from mainly manual and muscular labor to industrial labor, mainly by machines, which frees up muscles. However, industrial weaving machines require workers to be quick, timely, and highly focused to handle and solve problems that arise (connecting broken threads, operating machines to work continuously, etc.). That helps workers also change from a "slow, leisurely, seasonal" mindset and style to a "proactive, timely, industrial" mindset.

2.1.3. About production organization


In the past, due to the concept of "self-sufficiency", handicraft products were mainly made for family consumption, and surpluses were traded. The products produced were few, and even if sold, the profit was very low. Therefore, the production organization of Meo villagers was based on the scale of the household. Each household was a weaving facility, taking full control of all stages from purchasing raw materials, weaving, to consuming products; mobilizing the maximum labor and free time of family members.

Since 1986, the market mechanism has formed new forms of ownership and management methods to adapt to the integration and development process. In particular, thanks to the adaptability, dynamism, and daring to think of Phuong La people, they have quickly innovated their production organization. With the concept that the household production form can hardly help them get rich, to become bosses, in addition to innovating production tools, they must also innovate in production organization to contribute to improving labor productivity, reducing product costs, and gaining high profits. Therefore, new production forms quickly emerged in Phuong La craft village. Up to now, the village's production organization forms include:

1/Household production; 2/Group production;

3/ Production by company, factory and concentrated industrial zones have been formed.


- Household production organization : the previous small-scale household production organization is no longer suitable for market economic conditions, revealing many disadvantages, due to the low capital for investment in production and business, small labor force, not being able to guarantee large orders; technical improvements are not timely, difficult to meet high technology. However, the household production form still has advantages such as being proactive in terms of labor, working time, capital, production space, etc. Therefore, household production still operates well and develops in parallel with other forms of production organization.

This production model is closed from the stage of importing raw materials to weaving products and self-consumption of products, not depending on any production organization; mainly households weave satellites for companies and production facilities; this production method is shown by Model 2.2 :

Model 2.2: Household production model



Household

self-production, self-consumption

Family labor

hired labor


[ Source: NCS survey results (2013)].

According to our survey, Minh Tan commune is located next to Phuong La village, which was recognized as a craft commune in 2002. Current production organization is mainly in the form of household production (most households here weave satellites for Phuong La village facilities). Large families have 5-6 weaving machines, small families have one machine.

Although labor productivity is low and income is not high, the household production model will still exist for a long time because of its advantages. This model retains for the craft village more or less the traditional seasonal life rhythm, the "heavy on the


'love', multi-generational homes, full family meals... these are traditional cultural features that contribute to the cultural diversity of craft villages that are on the path of innovation under the impact of industrialization and urbanization.

- Production form according to the group: for the profession to survive and develop, from the weaving group in the early years of peace (1954 - 1955) mainly people who loved the profession, determined to preserve the traditional profession, until 1976, the handicraft cooperative of Phuong La village was established on the basis of collectivization of means of production, each weaver was a member. The cooperative is essentially a form of distribution according to labor, not motivating workers, restraining the labor and creativity of craftsmen, so the working day is not high, the income is low. Therefore, in 1980, the production group form in Phuong La was born, the first was Tan Phuong weaving and dyeing group was established. According to data from the Department of Industry and Trade of Hung Ha district, in 1980, Phuong La had three production groups established, many of which were individual production households. This is a mutual support link between households in terms of capital, technology, raw materials, and production processes. Not long after, Rang Dong textile factory and dozens of textile enterprises in Phuong La village were born at the same time.

The form of collective production has created solidarity, support and mutual assistance among people working in the same profession in the village; maintaining solidarity and a strong community spirit - one of the long-standing cultural traditions of the Vietnamese people.

According to our survey, currently, the form of collective production does not exist in the two weaving communes of Nam Cao and Minh Tan, where production is mostly done by households.

- Production by company, factory : due to the growing demand for production, the large amount of consumed products, the model of production by group to the point of no longer meeting the demand, so the model of production by company, factory was born. This form attracts a lot of labor, the products made promptly meet the export demand, bringing great profits to the owners of companies, factories. Therefore, companies, factories in Phuong La were quickly formed. Up to now, the village has 50 operating enterprises, the charter capital of each enterprise is about 10 billion VND and mainly produces towels for export to countries such as the US, Korea, Japan, India ... annual revenue of hundreds of billions of VND. There are 25 enterprises concentrated in the industrial cluster in


village, 20 enterprises located in Phuc Khanh industrial cluster (Hung Ha town) and about ten enterprises in Thai Binh city, dozens of enterprises located across the country, and many small enterprises are still actively producing in the village.

Working with the Party Secretary of Minh Tan craft commune, we learned that the weaving profession has existed here for a long time, however, the whole commune now only has three small businesses, the rest are mainly weaving for hire for Phuong La.

Companies and factories hire workers from villages near Phuong La or other villages in the district. Workers work 10 hours a day and on a piece rate basis. Companies deliver raw materials to team leaders, who convert them into products, and team leaders deliver them to each household or individual. This model helps business owners become self-sufficient in all conditions, forcing them to rush into the market to study economic laws, improve their qualifications, etc. This is the key point for Phuong La village to have many "elite" people, which we will present in Chapter 3 of the thesis.

Model 2.3: Production organization model by company, enterprise



Company

Satellite weaving families (inside and outside the commune)


Hired labor (main force)

Family labor (extra labor)

[ Source: NCS survey results (2013)].

- The formation of concentrated industrial zones

The main raw material for weaving in Phuong La is cotton. The fabric is very bulky, takes up a lot of space and is flammable. Bleaching and dyeing pollute the environment...

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