title: Meena Jutla

text: In February 2022, Sandhu confirmed that she had commenced filming for Meena's final scenes. She told the "Daily Mirror" that the ending the writers had devised for Meena was better than she could have imagined and that it had made her cry. Whilst in custody, scenes see Meena manipulate Charles, who visits her regularly in an attempt to get her to confess her crimes in time for her hearing. One scene sees Meena break the fourth wall in an "Emmerdale" first, with her reciting bible verses to Charles. When it comes to her trial, Meena tries to fool the jury into believing that she was acting in self-defence when killing Ben, and that Leanna and Andrea's deaths are not connected to her. However, they decide that she is guilty for all three murders. After the verdict is announced, Meena has a meltdown, screaming at the jury and the judge. Carol points out that she killed her sister too and Meena responds by stating that Nadine was too irrelevant to even be mentioned, which leads to Carol stabbing Meena. Pretending to be injured so Manpreet will tend to her, she jumps up and takes both her and the courtroom hostage. Sandhu said that it was important for Meena to have "one last hurrah" in taking them hostage and enjoyed that viewers did not know what could happen. During the scenes, a fifth murder victim was revealed when she takes Manpreet aside and confesses she killed their own dying father before Manpreet could visit him at his deathbed.


title: Meena Jutla

text: Hinting at Meena's sentence, Sandhu said that the result is "worse than death" for Meena and that it would be satisfying for people who were not fans of the character. As she arrives at her sentencing, she is shocked to see that nobody is attending. She asks the court to wait until people have arrived and Sandhu said that Meena is "delusional" in the sense that she expects people to come, as well as only expecting to go to jail for a few years. Meena is sentenced to 75 years in prison for the three murders she committed, and despite her character "losing it", Sandhu was pleased with the conclusion for her character as she convinced herself that Meena would be killed off. In a goodbye message for "Emmerdale"s social media platforms, Sandhu said: "She's finally gone down. Who knew? I just want to say thank you all for all of your support. Thank you to everyone at "Emmerdale" and ITV and all my beautiful actors and the crew. You're all amazing — you've made this experience just the best of my life, and I will treasure these moments forever." She also thanked Sarker for the friendship they had formed whilst on the soap together. Brooks admitted that the production team were tempted on numerous occasions to keep Meena on the show instead of writing her out, but felt a responsibility to "give people a sense of justice". In October 2022, after receiving months of calls to return to the role as well as winning a Best Villain award, Sandhu confirmed that she had no plans to return. She was thankful for fans of the character to want more and did not rule out a return in the future, but felt that a return so soon would be "over-egging the story".


title: Meena Jutla

text: Prior to her scenes airing, Sandhu felt that Meena would cause division between viewers of the soap. She admitted that if she was a viewer, she would dislike Meena, adding that many viewers were likely to be annoyed by her. Sandhu was correct in her presumptions, with What to Watch's Claire Crick writing that viewers were indeed divided on the character following her first appearance. Crick noted that Meena arrived "with a bang", and that viewers were either supporting Meena or Dawn in their rivalry. Some viewers were irritated by Meena, while others were enjoying her presence on the soap. After scenes of Meena locking Princess in a hot car aired, it prompted viewer complaints to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Viewers were angry over Meena's treatment of Princess, as well as "Emmerdale" for showing the scenes. When asked to comment, a spokesperson for the soap stated that Meena's actions were "extremely cruel" and hoped the scenes would act as a reminder to not lock dogs in cars, especially in warm weather.


title: Meena Jutla

text: Moments after killing Leanna, a scene of Meena dancing to "Toxic" by Britney Spears aired. The scene went viral on Twitter and Meena was branded a dame. Many viewers loved the scene, found it "iconic" and appreciated her "getting lit to "Toxic" by Britney after she killed a whole person". However, some viewers were "unnerved" by her behaviour. After Meena's murder of Leanna, Yasmine Yeung "HITC" noted that she has "left quite the impression on viewers". Leung noticed that fans of the soap had praised Sandhu for her portrayal of Meena and that they had become invested in the storyline due to her acting skills. Despite some viewers wanting Meena gone from the soap due to disagreeing with her actions, Leung herself admitted that she loves Meena and enjoys seeing her "psycho, unpredictable nature" as it incites drama on the soap.


title: Meena Jutla

text: Following Meena murdering Andrea, the "Daily Mirror" wrote that viewers were "traumatised and horrified by Meena’s vicious and violent treatment of Andrea" and that they found the scenes to be brutal and vicious. Similar attitudes were shown following her murder of Ben, with Ofcom reporting that 74 viewer complaints had been made about the violence shown in the scene of his murder. The "Daily Mirror" commentated on fan reaction once again in December 2021 when it was revealed that Meena would kidnap Manpreet. They found that viewers of the soap were divided on the twist, with some enjoying the drama and others wanting the storyline to end. As the kidnap storyline progressed, the divide continued, with some wanting Meena killed off and others being "onboard with the dark plot and psychotic Meena". Meena mentions that after killing Manpreet, she plans to kill Andrea's former dog Princess, which some viewers found to be "too far". Ofcom reported that another 63 complaints were made after the scenes of her kidnapping Manpreet and Vinny.


title: Meena Jutla

text: Despite viewer complaints, Meena's storyline proved to be popular when she was accredited with increasing "Emmerdale"s ratings to the point where it became the most watched soap opera in the United Kingdom. After her initial escape from the police, Calli Kitson of the "Metro" wrote that fans of the soap "are already missing singing, dancing, murdering Meena Jutla" and were demanding her back on the soap. She wrote that fans were paying tribute to Meena and that the soap would be boring without Meena and many viewers stated that Sandhu deserves a BAFTA Award for her role as Meena. Kitson also noted that since Meena trended on Twitter following each appearance, the character is a "definite job well done for "Emmerdale"". Charlotte Rodrigues found the same reaction with fans on Twitter, noting that many of them wanted her to return to kill Al Chapman (Michael Wildman). Sandhu also received messages on social media from fans who awaited her return, with many fans of the character nicknaming the soap 'Meenadale'.


title: Meena Jutla

text: After her return to the village for revenge on Billy and Dawn, the scenes attracted some criticism from viewers who felt that the premise of her return was unrealistic, feeling that she would have been noticed by villagers. However, other viewers were "thrilled" by the scenes and appreciated the dramatic nature of the scenes due to "Emmerdale" being a soap opera. Due to the violent scenes, Ofcom received 76 complaints. In the scenes where Liam is chasing Meena, the writers implemented some of the criticism from viewers into the script. Some viewers had expressed their annoyance with her victims poor attempts at running from her, and as a response, "Emmerdale" gave "a cheeky shout-out to fans who pointed out problems with Meena Jutla's murder scenes" by having Meena realise she had ran in the wrong direction, leading to Liam being able to corner her. Following Liam pushing Meena from the bridge, viewers automatically did not believe that Meena had died. They felt that her sudden death would be too quick of an ending for her character due to her unpredictable ways and that there would be further twists to her storyline.


title: Meena Jutla

text: After Meena is imprisoned, viewers launched a petition for ITV to commission a spin-off series based around her due to her popularity online and offline. Sandhu agreed with the movement. With fans not "ready to say goodbye to her", they said that Meena had been the most interesting part of "Emmerdale" during her tenure and that a spin-off could explore her life in more brutal detail than a soap could. Some viewers were happy to see the conclusion of her time on "Emmerdale" as they felt that the storyline had lasted too long. However, a wide part of the audience felt that the show would not be the same without her. Fans of Meena, the 'Meeniacs', "mourned the loss" of the character and emotions ran high throughout the fanbase after her exit.


title: Meena Jutla

text: When Meena confronts Leanna, Kitson ("Metro") wrote that Meena is "evil and manipulative". "Metro"s David Brown opined that Meena could become a "top soap serial killer" and "could go down in the soap history books". Brown joked that there is no character "meaner than Meena" and voiced his excitement to see more of her villainous behaviour. Brown's colleague, Duncan Lindsay, listed Meena amongst various "Emmerdale" women that he felt were responsible for the soap being at "the top of its game". Lindsay opined that Meena was setting herself up to be "one of soap's all time memorable serial killers" due to her "chilling cold heartedness combined with that fantastic element of silliness". Sandhu received praise from the viewers for her part in Leanna's "chilling" murder, with them noting her "incredible acting skills as the deranged killer".


title: Meena Jutla

text: Lindsay ("Metro") wrote another column on Meena, describing her as "the most unique and entertaining soap villain ever". He branded Meena a legend and stated that she has "broken the mould and the tropes of a murderer" due to taking pleasure and finding humour in her murdering spree. Lindsay compared Meena to Villainelle and commended her "own playlist of murder karaoke", a nod to her "Toxic" scene. In the past, Lindsay has advocated against soaps doing serial killer storylines due to overuse and unbelievability. However, he commended the soap for making Meena "unapologetically camp" and praised Sandhu for portraying Meena as "almost ludicrous, totally camp and with the funniest one liners". Lindsay concluded his column by stating that he roots for Meena to continue getting away with her crimes due to making "Emmerdale" more interesting. After Sandhu confirmed that she had begun filming her final scenes, Craig Jones from "Leeds Live" wrote that her time on "Emmerdale" would be remenbered for several years to come and felt that she had left a memorable legacy.


title: Meena Jutla

text: Media news website Entertainment Daily published an article in January 2022 after Sandhu confirmed her exit from the soap, pleading for the soap to keep Meena onscreen. They felt that Meena had excelled in comparison to "Emmerdale"s villains prior to her, writing that she could kill Lachlan White (Thomas Atkinson) "while painting her nails". They appreciated her culling nature and especially liked that she did not mess around when she wanted to kill someone. They also that felt that "Emmerdale" had "deadwood" in the cast and that having Meena kill them would be ideal for story progression. Following her exit scenes, "Metro"s Laura Denby wrote that across her tenure, Meena had achieved supervillain status. Denby added that due to her huge impact on the series, she had gone down as one of the best soap villains ever. Digital Spy's Kilkelly chose to wrote a piece analysing her time on the soap, in which he detailed what he thought worked and what did not. Kilkelly's strengths included liking that Meena is a camp femme fatale, which he felt was uncommon for soap villains. He noted that Meena's plot had added a sense of momentum for viewers when the other soaps were experiencing a dry spell caused by their "filler plots". Kilkelly also appreciated that "Emmerdale" had allowed for Sandhu to become a "breakout star", as he felt that the soap often prioritised the Dingle family. He wrote: "With ratings at their highest whenever Meena took centre stage over the past few months, it showed that not every story needs to be dominated by a Dingle." However, Kilkelly believed that "Emmerdale" should have known when to rest her story. He felt that Meena being brought onscreen at times was unnecessary and was caused by the "bosses clearly loving having Meena on screen" and opined that her not being shown for periods of time would add to the momentum of her story. He also thought that producers should have kept more details of Meena's murders out of spoiler articles so that viewers could have been more shocked about the scenes and wished that she had killed a big name such as Kim Tate (Claire King) or Cain Dingle (Jeff Hordley) for "a jaw-dropping moment". Kilkelly concluded his piece by admitting his hopes for Meena to return to the soap in future, when viewers least expect it.


title: Meena Jutla

text: In September 2021, it was announced that Sandhu had been nominated for Best Newcomer and Best Villain at the 2021 "Inside Soap" Awards. Meena murdering Leanna was also nominated for Best Show-Stopper. Sandhu went on to win the award for Best Villain. Meena also received a nomination for Best TV Character at the 2021 Asian Media Awards. In June 2022, Sandhu was awarded Best Leading Performer at the British Soap Awards. She was also nominated for Villain of the Year and Meena's murders were nominated for Best Storyline. Sandhu then received a nomination for Best Soap Actor at the TRIC Awards, Serial Drama Performance at the 27th National Television Awards and Best Soap Actress at the "TV Choice" Awards. She also won the Best Villain at the 2022 "Inside Soap" Awards for a second consecutive year, as well as a nomination for Best Actress. Finally, Sandhu received a nomination for Favourite Soap Star at the "TVTimes" Awards.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: Lordstown Motors Corporation (LMC) is an American electric vehicle automaker located in Lordstown, Ohio. The company is based at the Lordstown Assembly plant which previously belonged to General Motors.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: Lordstown Motors was founded in 2018 by Steve Burns, former CEO of Workhorse Group. On November 7, 2019, Lordstown Motors became the owner of the former GM Lordstown plant, after signing a sales agreement with automaker General Motors in May 2019. GM loaned Lordstown Motors in order to underwrite a substantial part of the plant purchase.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In March 2020, Lordstown Motors paid Workhorse Group US$12 million dollars for the licensing rights to the intellectual property of the Workhorse W-15 pickup truck. Lordstown Motors intends on developing its own electric pickup truck based upon Workhorse's preexisting design. As part of the business deal, Workhorse Group was given a 10% equity stake in Lordstown Motors.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In October 23, 2020, Lordstown reverse merged with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) named DiamondPeak Holdings and became listed on the NASDAQ. The merger gives Lordstown Motors an estimated equity value of US$1.6 billion. On the same day, GM released Lordstown Motors from its mortgage obligations related to the purchase of the Lordstown factory.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In January 2021, the company announced the opening of a vehicle service center in Irvine, California to support customers in the Southern California region. It is Lordstown's first service center outside of Ohio, with California chosen due to "the favorable regulatory backdrop in the state, which is aggressively promoting more widespread adoption of electric vehicles", according to the company.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In March 2021, the investment research firm Hindenburg Research that specializes in short-selling published a lengthy report about Lordstown supporting its short position in the stock. In the report, Hindenburg presented evidence that it said demonstrated a history of fraud at Lordstown, with the company misleading investors by exaggerating demand and orders for its trucks, as well as Lordstown's ability to build these trucks. Hindenburg's report showed that thousands of Lordstown's claimed orders were non-binding, no-deposit indications of interest by companies without the apparent financial strength to support the size of the orders. The report also claimed significant production delays beyond Lordstown's claimed timeline with trucks three to four years away from production, stock sales by insiders amidst vehicle testing problems, and irregularities in the background of Lordstown's founder, Steve Burns. Lordstown's stock dropped 17% on the day of the news. The company responded with a statement saying, “We will be sharing a full and thorough statement in the coming days, and when we do we will absolutely be refuting the Hindenburg Research report.” The Hindenburg Research report led to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting information from Lordstown Motors regarding the short-seller's claims of misleading investors.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: It was also revealed in March 2021 that one of Lordstown's prototypes caught on fire, with the company claiming the fire was caused by "human error" and that the issue had been solved by Lordstown now automating the manufacturing of its vehicles.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: On June 8, 2021, Lordstown Motors amended its annual report with the SEC and said that the company did not have enough money to begin commercial production of its vehicle, and that Lordstown Motors is at risk of bankruptcy. Subsequently, both the CEO Steve Burns and CFO Julio Rodriguez resigned from their positions on June 14. While the official press release states this is in anticipation of changing from R&D to Production, the non-binding nature of the pre-sale agreements has been brought into question after revelations that the largest three purchasers were not committed to acquiring the Lordstown production vehicle (and most did not have the means to even do so if they wanted to). An independent investigation commissioned by the board found that the pre-order agreements were overstated in number and in seriousness in order to generate press.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In August 2021, veteran automobile executive Daniel Ninivaggi, former CEO of Icahn Enterprises, was named as the new CEO.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In October 2021, Lordstown Motors announced a $230 million deal to sell the former GM plant to Foxconn Technology Group, which would become a contract assembler for the company's Endurance pickup truck. It was announced Foxconn would also invest $50 million into the company through a purchase of common stock.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: The Foxconn deal was finalized in May 2022, and Foxconn and Lordstown Motors created a new joint-venture, MIH EV Design LLC, to develop and produce a lineup of EV vehicles. In addition to selling the factory to Foxconn, Foxconn will become the contract manufacturer for Lordstown Motors’ first vehicle, the all-battery Endurance pickup truck. Foxconn will also use the factory as the production hub for the Fisker PEAR electric vehicle.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: Although at one time, GM had invested US$75 million in Lordstown Motors, and obtained a seat on Lordstown Motors' board of directors, and listed Lordstown Motors in its Tier 1 supply chain, in March 2022, GM released public information that they had sold off their "small investment" in Lordstown Motors at the end of 2021.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In July 2022, automotive industry veteran Edward Hightower was named the new CEO. In November 2022, FoxConn invested another $170m (£147.8m) on shares, in an effort to ramp up the production of the company's debut model.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: The Lordstown Endurance is an in-development all-wheel-drive (AWD), electric pickup truck. Its design includes independent wheel hub motors on all four wheels. The AWD hub motor system aims to reduce the amount of moving parts with no wheel axles or a transmission. In 2019, the truck was expected to be released in the US market by late 2020, at a price of . In November 2020, the release date was delayed, pushing the first deliveries back to September 2021, with production ramping up through 2022.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: By October 2021, the announced production date for the Endurance had been delayed until no earlier than April 2022, following the September news that the Lordstown auto plant would be sold to Foxconn and that Foxconn would become the contract manufacturer of the Endurance.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: In October 2021, Foxconn unveiled three new prototype vehicles: the model 3 SUV scheduled to go on sale in 2023 in Taiwan, an electric bus that is planned to be tested in select cities in 2022, and a new electric sedan.


title: Lordstown Motors

text: On August 4, 2022, the company admitted to further production delays for the Endurance, citing they would need to raise ""substantially more capital"" to produce the initial goal of 500 vehicles, and is now expecting to start delivery of vehicles to customers by the end of the year.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The textile and clothing industries provide a single source of growth in Bangladesh's rapidly developing economy. Exports of textiles and garments are the principal source of foreign exchange earnings. By 2002 exports of textiles, clothing, and ready-made garments (RMG) accounted for 77% of Bangladesh's total merchandise exports.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In 1972, the World Bank approximated the gross domestic product (GDP) of Bangladesh at US$6.29 billion, and it grew to $368 billion by 2021, with $46 billion of that generated by exports, 82% of which was ready-made garments. As of 2016 Bangladesh held the 2nd place in producing garments just after China. Bangladesh is the world's second-largest apparel exporter of western fast fashion brands. Sixty percent of the export contracts of western brands are with European buyers and about thirty percent with American buyers and ten percent to others. Only 5% of textile factories are owned by foreign investors, with most of the production being controlled by local investors. In the financial year 2016-2017 the RMG industry generated US$28.14 billion, which was 80.7% of the total export earnings in exports and 12.36% of the GDP; the industry was also taking on green manufacturing practices.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh's textile industry has been part of the trade versus aid debate. The encouragement of the garment industry of Bangladesh as an open trade regime is argued to be a much more effective form of assistance than foreign aid. Tools such as quotas through the WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC) and Everything but Arms (EBA) and the US 2009 Tariff Relief Assistance in the global clothing market have benefited entrepreneurs in Bangladesh's ready-made garments (RMG) industry. In 2012 the textile industry accounted for 45% of all industrial employment in the country yet only contributed 5% of the Bangladesh's total national income.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: After several building fires and collapses, resulting in the deaths of thousands of workers, the Bangladeshi textile industry and its buyers have faced criticism. Many are concerned with possible worker safety violations and are working to have the government increase safety standards. The role of women is important in the debate as some argue that the textile industry has been an important means of economic security for women while others focus on the fact that women are disproportionately textile workers and thus are disproportionately victims of such accidents. Measures have been taken to ensure better working conditions, but many still argue that more can be done. Despite the hurdles, riding the growth wave, Bangladesh apparel making sector could reach 60 percent value addition threshold relying on the strong backwardly linked yarn-fabric making factories directly from imported raw cotton, reaching a new height of exports worth of US$30.61 billion in the fiscal year 2018.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Under Mughal rule, Bengal Subah was a midpoint of the worldwide muslin and silk trades during the 16th to 18th centuries. During the Mughal era, the most important center of cotton production was Bengal, particularly around its capital city of Dhaka, leading to muslin being called "daka" in distant markets such as Central Asia. Bengal also exported cotton and silk textiles to markets such as Europe, Indonesia and Japan. Bengal produced more than 50% of textiles and around 80% of silks imported by the Dutch from Asia, for example.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Bengal was conquered by the British East India Company after the Battle of Plassey in 1757 and the Bengal Presidency was founded in 1765. British colonization forced open the Bengali market to British goods, while at the same time Britain implemented protectionist policies such as bans and high tariffs that restricted Bengali imports to Britain. Raw cotton was also imported without taxes or tariffs to British factories, which used them to manufacture textiles, many of which were exported back to Bengal. British economic policies led to deindustrialization in Bengal.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: From 1947 to 1971 the textile industry, like most industries in East Pakistan, were largely owned by West Pakistanis. During that period, in the 1960s, local Bengali entrepreneurs had set up their own large textile and jute factories. Following its separation from West Pakistan, the newly formed Bangladesh lost access to both capital and technical expertise.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Until the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971, the textile sector was primarily part of the process of import substitution industrialization (ISI) to replace imports. After the liberation, Bangladesh adopted export-oriented industrialization (EOI) by focusing on the textile and clothing industry, particularly the readymade garment (RMG) sector. Immediately after the founding of Bangladesh (1971), tea and jute were the most export-oriented sectors. But with the constant threat of flooding, declining jute fiber prices and a significant decrease in world demand, the contribution of the jute sector to the country's economy deteriorated.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In 1972 the newly formed government of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who was also the head of the Awami League, enacted the Bangladesh Industrial Enterprises (Nationalization) Order, taking over privately owned textile factories and creating a state-owned enterprise (SOE) called Bangladesh Textile Mills Corporation (BTMC). President Rahman promoted democracy and a socialist form of capitalism. The BTMC never managed to match the pre-1971 output and in every year after the 1975–1976 fiscal year, lost money. Until the early 1980s the state owned almost all spinning mills in Bangladesh and 85 percent the textile industry's assets (not including small businesses). Under the 1982 New Industrial Policy (NPI) a large number of these assets including jute mills and textile mills were privatized and returned to their original owners.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In the devastating famine in 1974, one million people died, mainly of starvation caused in part by the flooding of the Brahmaputra river in 1974, and a steep rise in the price of rice. Partly in response to the economic and political repercussions of the famine, the Bangladeshi government shifted public policy away from its concentration on a socialist economy, and began to denationalize, disinvest and reduce the role of the public sector in the textile industry while encouraging private sector participation. The 1974 New Investment Policy restored the rights to both private and foreign investors. Bangladesh's development model switched from a state-sponsored capitalist mode of industrial development with mainly state-owned enterprises (SOE) to private sector-led industrial growth.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Post-liberation war, Bangladesh continued to focus on the agricultural sector to feed its rural and poor masses. Even in 1978, there were only nine "export-oriented" garment manufacturing units. That same year the first direct export of garments, 10,000 shirts to a Parisian firm, was shipped from a Bangladeshi firm. The Bangladeshi government began to realize potential for the industry to flourish and offered development stimulus such as "duty-free import machinery and raw materials, bonded warehouse facilities and cash incentives."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: RMGs are the finished textile product from clothing factories and the Bangladeshi RMG Sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in the Bangladeshi economy, with a growth rate of 55% from 2002 to 2012. Exports of textiles, clothing, and ready-made garments (RMG) accounted for 77% of Bangladesh's total merchandise exports in 2002.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: By 2005 the (RMG) industry was the only multibillion-dollar manufacturing and export industry in Bangladesh, accounting for 75 per cent of the country's earnings in that year. Bangladesh's export trade is now dominated by the ready-made garments (RMG) industry. In 2012 Bangladesh's garment exports – mainly to the US and Europe – made up nearly 80% of the country's export income. By 2014 the RMG industry represented 81.13 percent of Bangladesh's total export. Much of the tremendous growth of the sector and its role as an economic powerhouse for the country is attributed to the availability of "cheap" labor. Of the four million workers employed by the RMG industry, 85% are illiterate women from rural villages. The working environments and conditions of the factories that produce ready-made garments has undergone criticism in recent years concerning worker safety and fair wages.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Subcontracting is a major component of the RMG industry in Bangladesh. Many Western companies contract different factories, only requesting that certain quotas be met at certain times. Companies prefer subcontracting because the degree of separation presumably removes them of liability of wage and labor violations. It also makes it easier to distribute production across a variety of sources.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: As of 2011 Bangladesh was second largest ready-made garments (RMG) manufacturer after China, by the next five years Bangladesh will become the largest ready-made garments manufacturer. Bangladesh was the sixth largest exporter of apparel in the world after China, the EU, Hong Kong, Turkey and India in 2006. In 2006 Bangladesh's share in the world apparel exports was 2.8%. The US was the largest single market with US$3.23 billion in exports, a 30% share in 2007. Today, the US remains the largest market for Bangladesh's woven garments taking US$2.42 billion, a 47% share of Bangladesh's total woven exports. The European Union remains the largest regional destination - Bangladesh exported US$5.36 billion in apparel; 50% of their total apparel exports. The EU took a 61% share of Bangladeshi knitwear with US$3.36 billion exports.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: According to a 2011 report by international consulting firm McKinsey & Company, 80 percent of American and European clothing companies planned to move their outsourcing from China, where wages had risen, and were considering Bangladesh as the "next hot spot" making it the "next China" offering 'the lowest price possible' known as the China Price, the hallmark of China's incredibly cheap, ubiquitous manufacturers, much "dreaded by competitors."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Starting in 1974 the Multi Fibre Arrangement (MFA) in the North American market ensured that trade in textiles and garments remained the most regulated in the world. Among other things the MFA set quotas on garments exports from the newly industrialising countries of Asia, but had exceptions, most notably the state of Bangladesh. Entrepreneurs from quota-restricted countries like South Korea began "quota hopping" seeking quota-free countries that could become quota-free manufacturing sites. The export-oriented readymade garment industry emerged at this time. Daewoo of South Korea was an early entrant in Bangladesh, when it established a joint venture on 27 December 1977 with Desh Garments Ltd. making it the first export oriented ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh. After only one year in which 130 Desh supervisors and managers received free training from Daewoo in production and marketing at Daewoo's state-of-the-art ready-made garment plant in Korea, 115 of the 130 left Desh Garments Ltd. and set up separate private garment export firms or began working for other newly formed export-oriented RMG companies with new garment factories in Bangladesh for much higher salaries than Desh Garments Ltd offered.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Global restructuring processes, including two non-market factors, such as quotas under Multi Fibre Arrangement (MFA) (1974–2005) in the North American market and preferential market access to European markets, led to the "emergence of an export-oriented garment industry in Bangladesh in the late 1970s." It was uncertain what the phase out of the MFA meant for the Bangladeshi RMG industry. However, surpassing all doubts, the industry continued to succeed and dominate on a global level.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The garment industry in Bangladesh became the main export sector and a major source of foreign exchange starting in 1980, and exported about US$5 billion in 2002. In 1980 an export processing zone was officially established in at the port of Chittagong.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: By 1981, 300 textile companies, many small ones had been denationalized often returned to their original owners. In 1982, shortly after coming to power following a bloodless coup, President Hussain Muhammad Ershad introduced the New Industrial Policy (NPI), most significant move in the privatization process, which denationalized much of the textile industry, created export processing zones (EPZs) and encouraged direct foreign investment. Under the New Industrial Policy (NPI) 33 jute mills and 27 textile mills were returned to their original owners.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In 1985 the US and Canada actually imposed import quotas of their own, with no international agreement, on Bangladeshi textiles. However, Bangladesh was able to meet demand for every quota each year and was able to successfully negotiate for higher quotas for subsequent years.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The export of ready-made garments (RMG) increased from US$3.5 million in 1981 to $10.7 billion in 2007. Apparel exports grew, but initially, the ready-made garments RMG industry was not adequately supported by the growth up and down the domestic supply chain (e.g., spinning, weaving, knitting, fabric processing, and the accessories industries).


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: From 1995 to 2005 the WTO Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC) was in effect, wherein more industrialized countries consented to export fewer textiles while less industrialized countries enjoyed increased quotas for exporting their textiles. Throughout the 10-year agreement, Bangladesh's economy benefited from quota-free access to European markets and desirable quotas for the American and Canadian markets.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: As the above table shows, the market shares for Bangladeshi textiles in the US and both textiles and clothing in the European Union have changed during the time period of the ATC.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Until FY 1994, Bangladesh's ready-made garments (RMG) industry was mostly dependent on imported fabrics - the Primary Textile Sector (PTS) was not producing the necessary fabrics and yarn.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Since the early 1990s, the knit section expanded mainly producing and exporting shirts, T-shirts, trousers, sweaters and jackets. In 2006, 90 percent of Bangladesh's total earnings from garment exports came from its exports to the United States and Europe.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Although there was concern, noted in an IMF report, that the WTO's Multi Fibre Arrangement, the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC), phase-out would shut down the textile and clothing (T&C) industry, the Bangladesh textile sector actually grew tremendously after 2004 and reached an export turnover of US$10.7 billion in FY 2007. Bangladesh was expected to suffer the most from the ending of the MFA, as it was expected to face more competition, particularly from China. However, this was not the case. It turns out that even in the face of other economic giants, Bangladesh's labor is "cheaper than anywhere else in the world." While some smaller factories were documented making pay cuts and layoffs, most downsizing was essentially speculative – the orders for goods kept coming even after the MFA expired. In fact, Bangladesh's exports increased in value by about $500 million in 2006.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The United States introduced the Tariff Relief Assistance for Developing Economies Act of 2009 designated Bangladesh as one of the 14 least developed countries (LDC), as defined by the United Nations and the US State Department, eligible for "duty-free access for apparel assembled in those countries and exported to the U.S." from 2009 through 2019. The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), an industry lobby group, claimed that in 2008 alone Bangladesh paid US$576 million as duty against its export of nearly $3 billion, mainly consisting of woven and knitwear. However, this act was temporarily suspended for Bangladesh by President Obama after the Rana Plaza collapse in 2013.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Md. Samsul Alam and Kaoru Natsuda's survey of Bangladeshi garment firms, conducted in 2012, found that they almost unanimously credited the low cost of labor as the main contributor to the industry's growth in Bangladesh. Some Bangladeshi companies have purchased machinery and technology to increase efficiency, such as computerized cutting and spreading machinery, sewing machines, and barcode-enable inventory management systems. Market access and trade policy also have played a role in the growth of the Bangladeshi garment industry, as the country's garment exports are mainly concentrated in the United States and the European Union. Alam and Natsuda found that during the Multi-Fibre Arrangement (MFA) period, only 21 out of 52 firms exported to a third market, but post-MFA, 66 out of 69 have exported to a third market, which indicates a diversification in the Bangladeshi garment industry. Bangladesh ranked as the second leading exporter in the world after China in 2015 according to an estimate by Khurram Shahzad who applied data derived from the World Trade Organization to Balassa's revealed comparative advantages (RCA) index. Shazad found that Bangladesh fell between Pakistan and India in regards to comparative advantages in textiles, but held the highest RCA for clothing. Private actors maintain a positive outlook on the industry, as the clothing sector has seen a positive growth in terms of RCA. Despite rating highly, Bangladesh's textile and clothing industries face several challenges that make access to their textile and clothing products unstable, such as a weak government and political turmoil.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Of the millions of wage earning children in Bangladesh in 1990, almost all of them worked in the ready-made garment industry. Based on the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics Labor Force Survey estimated there were about 5.7 million 10- to 14-year-old children engaged in child labor. This number may have been as high as 15 million children. In 1993 employers in Bangladesh' ready-made garment (RMG) industry dismissed 50,000 children (c. 75 percent of child workers in the textile industry) out of fear of economic reprisals of the imminent passage of the Child Labor Deterrence Act (the Harkin Bill after Senator Tom Harkin, one of the US Senators who proposed the bill). The act which banned "importation to the United States of products which are manufactured or mined in whole or in part by children" would have resulted in the loss of lucrative American contracts. Its impact on Bangladesh's economy would have been significant as the export-oriented ready-made garment industry represents most of the country's exports.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The results of surveys varied on the demographics and size of the ready-made garments industry at the time of the Harkin Bill. One study estimated that there were 600,000 workers in the industry., BGMEA estimate was c. 800,000. The Asian-American Free Labor Institute (AAFLI) reported that in 1994 females constituted about "90 percent of all adult workers, and roughly 60 percent of all child workers."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: According to a New York Times journalist by August 2012 the garment or textile industry which exports worth $18 billion a year, accounted for "80 percent of manufacturing exports and more than three million jobs". According to the 2014 Bureau of International Labor Affairs's "List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor", the Bangladeshi garments and textile industry still employs underage children as effective governmental measures are taking considerable time to be implemented.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The structure of gender participation in the economy underwent a major shift with the rise of the ready-made garment industry in Bangladesh. Estimates from the World Bank put the number of female workers in the industry in the 1980s at 50,000; that number was brought up to 2.85 million by 2008 and now probably lies over the 3 million mark. Traditionally the participation of women in Bangladesh's formal economy was minimal. Bangladesh's flagship export-oriented ready-made garment industry, however, with female labor accounting for 90 percent of the work force, was "built to a large extent, on the supply of cheap and flexible female labor in the country."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: By 2001 the textile industry employed about 3 million workers of whom 90% were women. In 2004 garment sector remained the largest employer of women in Bangladesh. By 2013, there were approximately 5,000 garment factories, employing about 4 million people, mostly women.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The garment sector has provided employment opportunities to women from the rural areas that previously did not have any opportunity to be part of the formal workforce. This has given women the chance to be financially independent and have a voice in the family because now they contribute financially.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: However, women workers face problems. Most women come from low income families. Low wage of women workers and their compliance have enabled the industry to compete with the world market. Women are paid far less than men mainly due to their lack of education. Women are reluctant to unionize because factory owners threaten to fire them. Even though trade unionization is banned inside the "Export processing Zones (EPZ)", the working environment is better than that of the majority of garment factories that operate outside the EPZs. But, pressure from buyers to abide by labor codes has enabled factories to maintain satisfactory working conditions.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Garment workers have protested against their low wages. The first protests broke out in 2006, and since then, there have been periodic protests by the workers. This has forced the government to increase minimum wages of workers.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Many textile factories in Bangladesh often compromise worker health and safety because of the tough pressure from the ordering companies to make tight deadlines. Management will often push workers in order to ensure that an order is fulfilled. This poses a problem as workers have almost no avenues with which to file a complaint. Almost none of the factories have any sort of human resources department and local officials often turn a blind eye to violations. Moreover, most of these workers are poor women. Without any structure like a formalized union, many lack the ability to speak of injustices either from lack of knowledge or fear of losing economic security.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The lackluster enforcement of any safety mechanisms creates hazardous working conditions and negligible workers' rights even though Bangladesh has been a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO) since 1972 and the ILO been operating a Bangladeshi office since 1973. In that time Bangladesh has ratified 33 ILO agreements and eight "fundamental conventions," but there are still glaring gaps in protecting worker safety. Many experts then call on corporate organizations to take responsibility and place pressure on the government and factory owners to treat workers fairly.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: After more than a century of industrial experience and development of national regulation and international conventions, workers in Bangladesh continue to lose their health and lives while contributing in the national enrichment. The scenario becomes worse when it comes to women workers. The female workers are exposed to different occupational health hazards such as work environment hazards, physical hazards and mental hazards. The work environment hazards include long working hours, absence of leave facilities, congested and overcrowded working conditions, absence of health facilities and safety measures, absence of staff amenities, lack of safe drinking water. On the other hand, the physical hazards include exposures to toxic agents, awkward postures and repetitive motion. Exposure to sexual, verbal and psychological harassment and violence at their work places are the some of the common mental health hazards. These hazards not only affect the female workers’ mental and physical being but also the quality of work and productivity of workforce nationwide.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Musculoskeletal disorders have been identified as an important concern among textile workers. These complaints are related to highly repetitive movements, awkward postures in seated positions, repetitive hand and arm movements, prolonged working hours without adequate breaks and poorly designed work stations. These risk factors result in adverse health outcomes of the workers such as musculoskeletal complaints of neck, back, hands, shoulders and lower limbs.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Most of the female workers in garments factories work as sewing operators, sewing operator helper, cutting personnel and finishing personnel. Sewing machines operators usually work in seated postures with forward flexion of the head, neck, and torso for long periods of time. This results in strain on the neck and back, and eventually to pain. A case study conducted by Habib M. among sewing machines operators in Bangladesh, found that the high risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders was related to working in a sitting position bending the neck more than 30° for more than 6 to 7 hours. Additionally, sitting in a forward flexed posture causes the lumbar spine to flatten that leads to an imbalanced disc pressure and a static contraction of the extensor muscles of the back. The flattened lumbar spine may cause back fatigue, disc degeneration and back injuries. But it is not only related to posture, design of the workstation can also worsen the problem. Sarder and colleagues found that seats in garment factories were devoid of a backrest, which would allow intermittent short breaks for resting the upper body from bending. Also, many seats are hard and wooden, without the cushion to prevent compression at the area of the ischial tuberosities. Even though some factories have sewing machines tables with height adjustability options 70 – 80 cm, workers rarely or never adjusted them because it takes between 10 and 15 minutes to adjust them.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Moreover, workers experience excessive hand work that involves gripping and pinching with the arm in constrained postures which causes wrist pain. Sewing machine operators are involve in highly repetitive movements of the elbows and wrists. Researchers have found that doing activities for stitching that involves wrist flexion of more than 45° wrist extension 10-12 times per minute, put the worker at higher risk of developing wrist and elbow problems.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: These risk factors have a negative impact not only on the musculoskeletal health, but also on the medical cost, efficiency, and optimal performance on activities of daily living. Minimizing ergonomic risk factors through ergonomic intervention for workers is often neglected in many of the countries. The reasons may be the scarcity of relevant professionals and additional cost for implementations on which majority of the owners are less interested. Thus, there are high rate of musculoskeletal symptoms in different body parts among sewing machine operators which points out for proper interventions. To reduce awkward posture for the neck, back and shoulders, the sewing machine table, chair and paddle positions should be adjusted considering the worker's body height in a sitting position. The workers should be educated about the significance of postures on their health so that they do not neglect the instructions.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Up to the mid-1990s there was little evidence available that suggested that improvement involving ergonomics principles have been implemented in garment factories in South East Asia. Even though, solutions such as work surface modification and the adoption of adjustable chairs have been well documented, anecdotal information shows that there has been no improvement. The following recommendations can be implemented as solutions to reduce burden of musculoskeletal disorders among worker in the garment industries:


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: There are a wide range of chemicals utilized in textile production for dyeing and printing, which these workers can be exposed to. These chemicals include but are not limited to bleaching agents and azo dyes. Azo dyes, such as aniline and benzadine, accounting for over 50% of dyes produced annually as of 2006. This was due to their high stability in light and washing as well as resistance to microbial activity. The toxic effects of these dyes include hypersensitivity and irritant effects such as contact dermatitis and asthma, as well as exposure related concerns for such malignancies as bladder, nasal, esophagus, stomach, colon, rectal, nasopharyngeal and lung cancers. Studies have postulated that hypersensitivity effects may be due to alterations in neutrophil function and sensitization, contributing to chronic inflammatory diseases of the skin and respiratory tract. Once this sensitization has occurred, an individual becomes more susceptible to developing allergic disease on subsequent contact with the offending agent. Exposure from these chemicals typically occurs via direct contact with the skin or inhalation of dye particles. While as of 2006 there was no evidence to suggest that most dyestuffs then in use in these industries were harmful at the levels workers were generally exposed to, there was concern with long term or accidental over-exposure. This long term or excessive exposure can sensitize the worker's immune system, leading to hypersensitivity reactions such as asthma and atopic dermatitis on subsequent exposure as mentioned above. Additionally, studies have demonstrated concerns regarding exposure to textile dyes and occupational bladder cancer due to aniline dye intermediates such as beta-naphthylamine and benzidine, which has long been identified as a human urinary carcinogen. The latency period between exposure and diagnosis has been estimated at up to 23 years. As of 2006, screening recommendations for detection of long-term health effects from dye exposure included hematologic testing to look for microcytic anemia and leukopenia. However, many females working in this industry did not have access to such screening and surveillance due to lack of quality medical care.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Sandblasting is a technique used on denim to give the garment a worn look. The sand that is used is often composed of 95% quartz and 15% feldspar. Silicosis is an often-fatal lung disease caused by the exposure to respirable silica dust. Silicosis often leads to more severe lung diseases such as; lung cancer, Bronchitis, and Tuberculosis. In 2003, Turkish investigators performed and published a case study in the "Journal of Occupational Health" on five sandblasting factories. They found workers inside poorly ventilated factories being exposed to respirable silica dust 20 times that of the recommended safety levels. This case study followed a sample of sandblasters from these factories, with a mean age of 23, and an employment duration of three years. When the study concluded, over one third of the sandblasters had lab-confirmed silicosis and two workers had died during the study.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Exposing the dangers of sandblasting has forced government agencies to step in and attempt to contain and control the amount of dust exposure. One method of containing the silica dust is the addition of water. Average respirable particulate levels drastically declined after water spray controls were installed in a stone crusher mill in India. This measure brought to light the effectiveness of reducing silica exposure through relatively inexpensive modifications. It may take time to get these factories to comply with the Permissible Exposure Limit for silica but at least some measures are being implicated, or suggested, to have a positive health impact for the sandblasting workers.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Another popular chemical involved in an alternate sandblasting technique is Potassium Permanganate or KMnO. It is an odorless, dark purple, sand-like oxidizing agent. It is used to lighten the color of denim in specific areas. In the process of sand blasting, a worker sprays the potassium permanganate on a specific area on the denim garment with a hose or a brush. It is then washed off, leaving the chemical treated area a lighter color than the surrounding untreated area. When the potassium permanganate dries, bleach is sprayed on top of the previously treated area to neutralize potassium permanganate and is then washed a second time. There are multiple exposure routes for potassium permanganate to cause serious adverse reactions to the worker, these are: dermal contact, contact with the eye, inhalation and ingestion. When potassium permanganate comes in contact with the skin, it can cause irritation, deep burns, rashes and even dying of the skin. If potassium permanganate is exposed to the eye, severe irritation as well as permanent eye damage is possible. Inhalation of potassium permanganate can irritate the respiratory tract and can even lead to chronic lung diseases such as asthma, silicosis, and pulmonary edema. Ingestion of potassium permanganate causes severe nausea and diarrhea and lastly, some rare cases, chronic exposure to potassium permanganate could adversely affect the liver and kidneys and may even decrease fertility.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: One work environment health risk that often gets overlooked is noise induced hearing loss (NIHL). NIHL has recently become one of the biggest occupational disease risks with occupational NIHL contributing to 16% of global deafness. Chronic exposure to high decibels can lead to the development of NIHL among manufacturing workers by damaging sensory hair cells in the inner ear. These two points illustrate how NIHL is a significant occupational health risk. Asia has, over the last 50 years, seen a significant growth in the manufacturing of both primary products and finished products. The increase in manufacturing has led to an increased exposure to high levels of noise and has contributed to increased NIHL among workers. In Bangladesh, occupations which have the greatest exposure to noisy work environments are automobile drivers, traffic police, shopkeepers, road-side hawkers, and garment workers. Garment workers in Bangladesh face noise levels of 96-100 Decibels Adjusted (dBA), which is a significant contributor to NIHL among women textile workers in Bangladesh. There are options available to protect workers from chronic exposure to high noise levels in the textile industry. Some simple measures which could be implemented on machinery would include such actions as decreasing noise and creating noise barriers. For workers, the use of personal protective equipment, as well as the establishing maximum daily exposures, can go a long way to mitigate worker exposures to chronic noise.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: As of 2000, garment entrepreneurs had a reputation for bribery, shirking custom duties, evading corporate taxes, making inadequate long-term investments in the industry, and avoiding social projects such as education, healthcare, and disaster relief that would benefit their workers and the communities in which they operate. Despite these failings, authors Quddus and Salim argue that the success of the industry is largely attributable to these entrepreneurs. Bangladesh successfully competes in the manufacturing industry by maintaining "lowest labor costs in the world." Garment workers' minimum wage was set at roughly $37 a month in 2012 but since 2010 Bangladesh's double-digit inflation with no corresponding rise in minimum wage and labor rights, has led to protests. Following labour disputes in 2013, the minimum wage was raised to the equivalent of $68 a month. Many workers profited from the increase, but it was also expected to attract more young girls to factories.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Other major fires in 1990 and 2012, resulting in hundreds of accidental deaths, included those at That's It Sportswear Limited and the fire at Tazreen Fashions Ltd. Spectrum Sweater Industries, Phoenix Garments, Smart Export Garments, Garib and Garib, Matrix Sweater, KTS Composite Textile Mills and Sun Knitting. Major foreign buyers looking for outsourcing demand compliance-related norms and standards regarding a safe and healthy work environment which includes fire-fighting equipment, evacuation protocols and mechanisms and appropriate installation of machines in the whole supply-chain. RMG insiders in Bangladesh complain about the pressure to comply and argue that RMG factory owners are hampered by a shortage of space in their rental units. In spite of this the industry exports totaled $19 billion in 2011–2012. They expected export earnings to increase to $23 billion in 2012–2013.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In an effort to eliminate underlying problems and avoid further deadly tragedies in the RMG factories in 2010 Clean Clothes Campaign CCC, the International Labour Rights Forum (ILRF), the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC), and the Maquila Solidarity Network (MSN) contacted many of the RMG international buyers and offered a set of recommendations regarding measures that should be taken.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In 2012 the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association announced plans to expel 850 factories from its membership due to noncompliance with safety and labor standards. Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have also urged the U.S. Trade Representative's office to complete its review of Bangladesh's compliance with eligibility requirements for the Generalized System of Preferences.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Five deadly incidents from November 2012 through May 2013 brought worker safety and labor violations in Bangladesh to world attention putting pressure on big global clothing brands such as Primark, Loblaw, Joe Fresh, Gap, Walmart, Nike, Tchibo, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, and retailers to respond by using their economic weight to enact change. No factory owner had ever been prosecuted over the deaths of workers. This changed with 41 murder charges filed relating to the 1,129 deaths which occurred during the 2013 Savar building collapse.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Scott Nova of the Worker Rights Consortium, a rights advocacy group, claimed that auditors, some of whom were paid by the factories they inspect, sometimes investigated workers right issues such as hours or child labor but did not properly inspect factories’ structural soundness or fire safety violations. Nova argued that the cost of compliance to safety standards in all 5,000 clothing factories in Bangladesh is about $3 billion (2013).


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Immediately following 24 April deadly industrial accident, Mahbub Ahmed, the top civil servant in Bangladesh's Commerce Ministry, fearing the loss of contracts that represent 60 per cent of their textile industry exports, pleaded with the EU to not take tough, punitive measures or "impose any harsh trade conditions" on Bangladesh to "improve worker safety standards" that would hurt the "economically crucial textile industry" and lead to the loss of millions of jobs.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: On 14 December 2010 thirty people died and another 200 were seriously injured in a fire at the garment factory, "That's It Sportswear Ltd", owned by Hameem Group. International buyers of this factories products included "American Eagle, GAP/Old Navy, JC Penney, Kohl’s, Squeeze, Sears, VF Asia, Target Store, Charming Shoppes, Wal-Mart in USA market and H & M, Carrefour, Zara, HEMA, M & S Mode, ETAM, Western Store, Migros, Celio and PNC in Europe market." In February 2010 a deadly fire at the "Garib and Garib" factory killed 22.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: A fire broke out on 24 November 2012, in the Tazreen Fashion factory in Dhaka killing 117 people and injuring 200. It was the deadliest factory fire in the history of Bangladesh. According to "The New York Times", Walmart played a significant role in blocking reforms to have retailers pay more for apparel in order to help Bangladesh factories improve safety standards. Walmart director of ethical sourcing, Sridevi Kalavakolanu, asserted that the company would not agree to pay the higher cost, as such improvements in electrical and fire safety in the 4,500 factories would be a "very extensive and costly modification" and that "it is not financially feasible for the brands to make such investments." As well, Walmart was the client for five of Tazreen apparel factory's 14 production lines. In response Walmart donated over a million dollars to the North South University, Environment, Health and Safety Academy (EHS+) to improve fire safety in RMG factories in Bangladesh by the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC), a U.S.-based nonprofit. In December 2013, factory owner Delwar Hossain and 12 other factory officials were charged with "culpable homicide" for the deaths in the factory fire. It was likely the first time any garment factory owner in Bangladesh had been charged.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: On 24 April 2013 over 1045 textile workers factories making clothes for Western brands were killed when a garment factory collapsed. The 2013 Savar building collapse was in the Rana Plaza complex, in Savar, an industrial corner northwest of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. It was the "world's deadliest industrial accident" since the Bhopal disaster in India in 1984. While some 2,500 were rescued from the rubble including many who were injured, the total number of those missing remained unknown weeks later. The building owner, Sohel Rana, built an additional two floors beyond his approved permit for a six-floor building. Rana, associated with the ruling Awami League, used "shoddy building materials, including substandard rods, bricks and cement, and did not obtaining the necessary clearances" and constructed the building on a "pond filled with sand". An engineer raised safety concerns after noticing cracks in the Rana Plaza complex the day before its collapse. In spite of this factories stayed open to fill overdue orders. When generators were restarted after a power blackout the building caved in. Six garment factories also in Rana Plaza were cleared to re-open on 9 May 2013 after inspectors allegedly issued safety certificates. Nine people were arrested including four factory owners, the owner of the complex and the engineer who warned of the crack in the building. Several prominent transnational companies had their products linked to the factories within the Rana Plaza building including retail giants "Wal-Mart, Mango, Dutch retailer C & A, Benetton Fashions, Cato Fashions, and the popular British chain Primark." While the incident raised international concern about the structural integrity and safety of many Bangladeshi textile factors, the industry actually saw a significant rise. Over the time from the collapse to March 2014, exports increased by over 16% resulting in $23.9 billion US dollars.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In June 2015 after a two-year investigation homicide charges were filed against 42 people in the 2013 collapse of a factory Rana Plaza that killed more than 1,136 people in April 2013. Sohel Rana, the building owner, Refat Ullah, mayor at the time of the incident along with owners of five garment factories located in the Rana Plaza, and "dozens of local council officials and engineers" were charged with culpable homicide, "which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison under Bangladeshi law."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) is a recognised trade body that represents export-oriented garment manufacturers and garment exporters of the country. The fundamental objective of BGMEA is to establish a healthy business environment for a close and mutually beneficial relationship between manufacturers, exporters and importers, thereby ensuring steady growth in the foreign exchange earnings of the country. After the Savar collapse, the BGMEA assembled an 11-member committee to investigate the causes of the tragedy. In its final report BGMEA pinned the blame on inspection officials who granted permits to factory owners to install heavy machinery on the two floors not authorized to exist in the first place and on local officials for neglecting to ensure proper oversight of building plans. The report also indicated that building owner Sohel Rana may have been able to corrupt municipal officials by offering bribes.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: On 9 May 2013 eight people were killed when a fire broke out at a textile factory in an eleven-story building in the Mirpur industrial district owned by Tung Hai Group, a large garment exporter. The president of the politically powerful textile industry lobby group, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), told Reuters that "the Bangladeshi managing director of the company and a senior police officer were among the dead."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: , efforts to improve safety were being coordinated under "an unprecedented comprehensive "Accord on Fire and Building Safety" ... Around 180 companies - mostly from Europe - international and local trade unions, Bangladeshi employers, exporters and government are part of this agreement." In addition, an "Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety - an association of 26 American companies including CAP and Wal-Mart" seeks to address these issues from an entrepreneurial standpoint, without participation of trade unions. Together the two groups "are responsible for inspecting around 2,100 factories over a period of five years." , progress had been made in inspecting about 600 factories. A spokesman stated that "Ten factories have been submitted to the Government Established Review Panel and most have been either closed completely or partially."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In June 2013 President Barack Obama announced that U.S. trade privileges for Bangladesh, the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), were suspended following the deadly 24 April 2013 collapse of Rana Plaza, considered to be the global garment industry's worst accident. In 2007, the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) had submitted a petition under the GSP benefits to the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) "alleging a number of worker rights issues in export processing zones, the ready-made garments (RMG) sector, and the seafood processing sector." This investigated was expedited as concerns over labour rights and RMG factory safety concerns increased in 2012 with more deadly accidents and the unsolved killing in 2012 of prominent trade unionist Aminul Islam.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In addition, international pressure from human rights organizations, labor organizations, NGOs, and consumers from Western nations pushed corporate retailers to play a larger role in protecting worker safety. The Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh, a legally binding document, obligates retailers to cooperate with safety inspections and provide financial assistance to building owners in order to ensure that the standards of such inspections are met. The national Bangladeshi government also updated is own legislation by adding stipulations to the 2006 Bangladesh Labor Act. Employers will now set aside 5% of their funds for an "employee welfare fund" and will no longer be able to prevent the formation of worker unions.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In October 2013, the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the "Improving Working Conditions in the Ready-Made Garment Sector" (RMGP) Program, a US$24.21 million, three-and-a-half year initiative. The United Kingdom and the Netherlands jointly contributed US$15 million. "Rana Plaza and Tazreen became the symbols of what is wrong in the RMG sector." Ms. Sarah Cook, UK's Department for International Development (DFID) Head in Bangladesh said that the RMGP was a "key part of the UK's approach to help ensure safe working conditions and improved productivity" in the RMG sector and that the "sustainability of the ready-made garment industry has a pivotal role to play in Bangladesh's continued social and economic development."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety officially began operations in Dhaka on 9 December 2013. It is a five-year independent and legally binding agreement between 26 North American companies that is still being enforced. So far, at least 25 cases have been brought to the alliance for review and four factories have officially been closed.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: One of the main concerns after the crises is the structural integrity of RMG and textile factories. The Government of Bangladesh has made changes in this regard. Working with the ILO, the government has upgraded the Chief Inspector of Factories and associated Establishment office to a "department", hired additional labor, fire, and building inspectors, implemented additional training programs for inspectors, and created a database of all factories to facilitate inspections. Many factories have been inspected since these changes were made, but there are still about 1,000 factories that have not been checked either because they are not registered with any organization or they have listed the wrong address which takes time away from inspectors. Pointing to the slow development of the regulation of this industry particularly after such a major human disaster, Dr Mia Rahim opines that Bangladesh should more focus on the challenges and opportunities of local regulation of this industry. He suggests that the RMG manufacturing and supply industry should not only depend on the prescriptions of the global buyers but also adopt a 'new governance' approach in the local regulation framework of this industry.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In March 2021, 10 years after their report "Bangladesh's ready-made garments landscape: the challenge of growth" McKinsey & Company reflected on the country’s development, with the article "What’s next for Bangladesh’s garment industry, after a decade of growth?". The consulting firm affirms Bangladesh's textile sector will need to innovate, upgrade, and diversify, investing in flexibility, worker welfare, infrastructure and sustainability.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Bangladesh, like many other textile hubs worldwide, needs to make a fundamental shift toward a demand-driven and more sustainable sourcing model. There is an increasing consumer demand for environmentally friendly products, and concerns about climate change are shedding a light on the country manufacturing processes.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: In 2021, Bangladesh ranked 97 out of 115 countries in the World Economic Forum's Energy Transition Index. Like other emerging and developing Asian countries, Bangladesh has a fast transition rate compared to other regions but still needs to improve, and it will require strong investments in infrastructure and renewable energy.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The sector’s participation in new industry initiatives regarding climate change and circularity has advanced the "sustainability" agenda, for example through the Circular Fashion Partnership. The Circular Fashion Partnership is a cross-sectorial project to support the development of the textile recycling industry in Bangladesh by capturing and directing post-production fashion waste back into the production of new fashion products. The initiative is led by Global Fashion Agenda, with the participation of brands and retailers such as Primark or C&A, and global and local producers such as Recover Textile Systems or Cyclo®.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Furthermore, more than 1,500 Bangladeshi companies are certified by the Global Organic Textile Standard, the second highest number in any country in the world.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: Mohammad Yunus and Tatsufumi Yamagata, researchers in international development, state that "the garment industry was the main driver of the globalization of Bangladesh". Throughout the 1980s and continuing into modern day, the increase in total exports matched the increase in garment exports, indicating that this sector is responsible for a significant portion of Bangladesh's economic growth. The European Union and the United States are the biggest importers of Bangladeshi garments, making up 88.6% of export destinations.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The garment industry has been praised by many as a major contributor to poverty reduction in Bangladesh. Proponents of this view argue that entry-level wages were enough to keep workers above the local poverty line, even if they were paid much less than other textile and garment factory workers comparatively.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: The overwhelming majority of workers, about two-thirds, in the textile and garment industries of Bangladesh are women. In fact, the birth of the industry essentially created the entryway for a "whole generation of young, unmarried females, mainly from rural areas, into the industrial labor force." Approximately 29.3% of women in this sector are illiterate and many suggest that this is a better alternative to other options they may have. However, use of these women is seen as a justification for low wages (the national minimum was $37 a month before the Rana Plaza collapse).


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: A limitation on poverty reduction effects provided by the textile industry is the obvious work hazards associated with working in a factory. Welfare of garment workers is compromised by "long working hours, insufficient sanitation and medical facilities, dust and heat, as well as abuse and discrimination."


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: As of 2017 the industry was adopting greening standards. As of that time, according to US Green Building Council (USGBC) project in Bangladesh, there were 20 Gold, 13 Platinum, and 5 (five) Silver-certified RMG factories while around 78 factories were in the certification process.


title: Textile industry in Bangladesh

text: There are government and private textile engineering colleges under universities that offer B.Sc. in Textile Engineering courses including specialization in yarn manufacturing, fabric manufacturing, wet processing, garments manufacturing and fashion design. The institutions are as below:


title: UAB Blazers football

text: The UAB Blazers football team represents the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in the sport of American football. The Blazers compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and Conference USA (CUSA) through the 2022 season, after which UAB will join the American Athletic Conference. The team is led by interim head coach Bryant Vincent, who has held the position since 2022. Home games were previously held at Legion Field in Birmingham from the 1991 season to the 2020 season. A new stadium, Protective Stadium, has been the home of the Blazers starting from the 2021 season. The new stadium's capacity is over 47,000.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: The UAB football program was terminated after the 2014 season but was reinstated shortly thereafter. The team went on hiatus for two seasons before returning in 2017. UAB won both its first conference championship and bowl game in program history in 2018.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: UAB football began with the play of an organized club football team in 1989. After two years competing as a club football team, on March 13, 1991, UAB President Charles McCallum and athletic director Gene Bartow announced that the university would compete in football as an NCAA Division III team beginning in the fall of 1991, with Jim Hilyer serving as the first head coach.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: From 1991 to 1992, UAB competed as a Division III Independent, and during this period, the Blazers compiled an 11–6–2 overall record. During this period, the Blazers played their first all-time game on September 7, 1991, a 28–0 loss at Millsaps, and notched their first all-time win on September 21, 1991, a 34–21 victory at Washington & Lee. After only a pair of seasons at the Division III level, an NCAA ruling resulted in the Blazers being reclassified as a I-AA team for the 1993 season. The reclassification was a result of the NCAA prohibiting a school's athletic program from being multi-divisional, and since UAB already competed in Division I in other sports, the move became necessary. In their first game as a I-AA team, the Blazers would lose to Troy State 37–3 before a home crowd on September 6, 1993. By 1994, the Blazers would play their first I-A opponent against Kansas. Following the 1994 season, coach Hilyer would resign with Watson Brown being announced as the program's second ever coach on January 2, 1995.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: During the 1995 season, the Blazers would notch their first ever victory over a I-A opponent on the road against North Texas by a score of 19–14. From 1993 to 1995, UAB competed as a Division I-AA Independent, and during this period compiled a 21–12 overall record before making the jump to Division I-A for the 1996 season.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: Watson Brown came to UAB from Oklahoma, where he served as offensive coordinator. On November 9, 1995, UAB was officially informed by the NCAA that the school had met all requirements for reclassification, and as such the Blazers would enter the 1996 season as an I-A Independent. In their first I-A game, UAB was defeated by in-state rival Auburn 29–0, and would finish their first I-A season with a 5–6 overall record. Already a participating member in other sports, on November 13, 1996, Conference USA commissioner Michael Slive announced that UAB would be admitted to the league as a football playing member for the 1999 season.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: Following the transition to I-A, UAB often played a couple of out-of-conference games with college football's traditional powers every year. In 2000, UAB achieved a monumental victory by beating the SEC's LSU Tigers in Baton Rouge. In 2004, UAB reached yet another milestone earning its first bowl trip in school history, to the Hawaii Bowl.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: After being the face of the program for 12 years, on December 9, 2006, Watson Brown resigned as UAB's head coach to take the head coaching position at Tennessee Tech.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: Following Brown's resignation, UAB first intended to promote assistant Pat Sullivan, but the University of Alabama system board of trustees blocked the promotion. UAB then had a deal in place with Jimbo Fisher, then offensive coordinator at LSU, who would eventually go on to be the head coach at Florida State. The trustees again denied UAB its desired hire. Following the scuttling of the deal with Fisher, some sportswriters, including "CBSSports.com" reporter Gregg Doyel, noted that Alabama was also looking for a new head coach at the time, adding that Fisher had served as offensive coordinator when Alabama's top candidate Nick Saban had been head coach at LSU. Doyel postulated that because of this familiarity, Alabama may have looked to hire Fisher and thus the trustees did not want UAB interfering with the potential hire and consequently impeded their coaching search.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: After exhausting many options, UAB finally turned to former Alabama player and Georgia offensive coordinator Neil Callaway, who was named head coach on December 17, 2006. The hire was strongly questioned by some, as Callaway did not exactly have a history of success. In his first season, Callaway led the Blazers to the school's worst record (2–10), dropping the program's all-time record under .500 for the first time in school history.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On November 27, 2011, Callaway was fired as UAB's head coach having compiled a record of 18 wins and 42 losses (18–42) during his five years with the Blazers.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On December 4, 2011, UAB officials announced they had hired Garrick McGee to serve as the fourth head coach in the history of the program. McGee was the only African American to ever be football head coach at UAB. The Blazers posted a 3–9 record in McGee's first season as head coach and a 2–10 record in his second.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On January 9, 2014, it was announced that McGee would resign as UAB head coach to join Bobby Petrino as offensive coordinator at Louisville.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: In January 2014, former Jacksonville State head coach Bill Clark was hired to serve as the next head coach at UAB. In his first season as head coach of the Blazers, the team composed a 6–6 record, its best since 2004.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On November 30, 2014, a day after the Blazers had become bowl eligible for the first time since 2004, "Sports Illustrated" reported that UAB was planning to fire athletic director Brian Mackin and end the football program. On December 2, UAB president Ray Watts officially announced that, after commissioning an in-depth inspection of UAB's athletic budget and revenue and how the elimination of football from the athletic program would affect those, UAB had decided to close down the football program, along with the rifle and bowling programs, in order to save money. The decision was met with great outrage and criticism of Watts as well as the University of Alabama Board of Trustees. According to Watts, projected costs of a credible football program would cost the school $49 million over the next five years, over the $20 million a year already spent on the program, and that after five years this cost would likely continue to rise. An independent task force was formed to evaluate this decision and the findings of the report on which the decision was based.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On June 1, 2015, Watts announced that due to the public opinion and the fundraising of more than $27 million towards the program, the UAB Blazers football program would be reinstated to begin play as early as the 2016 season. On July 21, UAB stated their intention to resume football in time for the 2017 season, while the bowling and rifle programs would be immediately reinstated. Athletic Director Mark Ingram indicated that 2017 was a more reasonable timeline to field a football team, due to the number of players who transferred away from the program following the termination and the NCAA's recruiting rules. On June 4, Conference USA announced it would not take any action against UAB now that it has reinstated football, and the school would, in effect, remain in the conference. On July 21, the NCAA cleared UAB to resume playing football in 2017, and to continue competing in FBS. On January 16, 2016, the UAB football team announced its slate of non-conference opponents for when it returned to play in the 2017 season.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On August 29, 2016, UAB broke ground on a $22.5-million football operations center including a $4.2-million covered pavilion practice field with an anticipated completion date of summer 2017. The center was opened to the public on August 18, 2017.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On November 4, 2017, in its first year back from a 2-year hiatus, UAB became bowl eligible after defeating Rice 52–21 at Legion Field. The following week, UAB defeated UTSA on the road to win their seventh game of the season, tying the school's record for wins since becoming an FBS program.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On December 1, 2018, UAB defeated Middle Tennessee to win its first conference championship in program history.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On December 18, 2018 UAB defeated Northern Illinois in the Cheribundi Boca Raton Bowl 37–13 for their first bowl win.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: Clark resigned on June 24, 2022 after seven seasons, citing back problems. Offensive coordinator Bryant Vincent was named interim head coach for the 2022 season.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: On November 30, 2022, Trent Dilfer, who played for 13 years in the NFL, was announced to be the Blazers' new head coach.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: The Blazers have been members of Conference USA since 1999. The conference split into two divisions in 2005, with UAB competing in the East Division until 2014. In 2017, UAB was moved into the West Division, where the Blazers won three division titles. C-USA eliminated its divisions after losing three of its previous 14 members after the 2021 season.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: UAB and Southern Miss have met 18 times with the 1st matchup being in 2000 where Southern Miss won 33-30. The Blazers and Golden Eagles have met every season since, other than 2015 and 2016 when UAB did not field a team. Southern Miss won the first 9 meetings but UAB has won 7 out of the last 9 to bring the record to 11-7 in favor of The Golden Eagles. UAB and USM are the only two original members of CUSA to still be in the conference.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: Troy and UAB have met a total of 12 times. Both teams met fairly consistently until 2014. The teams are scheduled to renew their rivalry in 2028. Troy holds the series lead, 7-5.


title: UAB Blazers football

text: UAB and Memphis annually played a Rivalry Game called “The Battle of the Bones” with the winning team getting a 100 lb bronze statue of a rack of ribs. This pays homage to both school’s cities prominence in BBQ. The rivalry ended when Memphis moved to the American Athletic Conference after the 2012 season. UAB leads the all-time record 10-5, but Memphis won the last matchup which allowed the Tigers to keep the Bones Trophy.


title: CommScope

text: CommScope is an American network infrastructure provider based in Hickory, North Carolina. CommScope employs over 30,000 employees. The company joined the NASDAQ stock exchange on October 25, 2013.


title: CommScope

text: CommScope designs and manufactures network infrastructure products. It has four business segments: home networks, broadband networks, venue and campus Networks, and outdoor wireless networks.


title: CommScope

text: CommScope was originally a product line of Superior Continental Cable, which was founded in 1953 in Hickory, North Carolina. In 1961, Superior created a division called Comm/Scope, which developed CATV systems and sold a coaxial cable named CommScope. In 1967, Superior was acquired by Continental Telephone Company, with CommScope becoming a division of Continental. In 1975, Frank Drendel headed a team charged with selling the product line. Drendel and Jearld Leonhardt founded CommScope in August 1976 after raising $5.1 million to purchase the CommScope product line. Two years later, CommScope and Valtech merged under the Valtech name. In 1979 Valtech donated fiber optics line and equipment to link the U.S. House of Representatives to the C-SPAN studios, enabling live broadcasting of U.S. Congressional proceedings for the first time.


title: CommScope

text: In the 1980s, Valtech sold to M/A-COM. and CommScope became part of the Cable Home Group for M/A-COM. In 1983, CommScope formed the Network Cable division for the local area network, data communications, television-receive only, and specialized wire markets. In 1986 M/A-COM, sold the Cable Home Group to General Instrument Corporation, and CommScope became a division of General Instrument.


title: CommScope

text: In 1997, General Instrument split into three independent, publicly traded companies, with its cable operation spun off as CommScope. At the time, CommScope had annual revenues of $560 million and was the largest provider of coaxial cable to cable TV operators.


title: CommScope

text: In 2000, CommScope opened its new global headquarters in Hickory, North Carolina. In 2004, CommScope acquired Avaya's Connectivity Solutions cabling unit and inherited the SYSTIMAX brand, a company perhaps best known for its enterprise cabling systems. Avaya's Carrier Solutions, which offered products designed for switching and transmission applications in telephone central offices and secure environmental enclosures, also became part of CommScope. This acquisition doubled CommScope's size. In 2007, CommScope acquired the global wireless infrastructure provider Andrew Corporation, which would help CommScope meet demand from mobile phone companies.


title: CommScope

text: In 2008, CommScope was chosen to provide the Dallas Cowboys with the connectivity for their new stadium starting with the 2009 NFL season, using over 5 million feet of copper and fiber-optic cabling.


title: CommScope

text: In 2011, The Carlyle Group acquired CommScope. This acquisition made CommScope privately owned by The Carlyle Group and removed it from the New York Stock Exchange. Eddie Edwards was appointed president and chief executive officer, succeeding Frank Drendel, who had served as CommScope's CEO since the company's founding in 1976. Drendel continued as the chairman of the board.


title: CommScope

text: In February 2016, it was announced that the Daytona International Speedway had a new wiring infrastructure from CommScope. In June 2016, CommScope was signed by the Carolina Panthers to upgrade the wireless and wired communications at the team's Bank of America Stadium.


title: CommScope

text: In 2019, for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, a 55 kilometer bridge-tunnel system, CommScope supplied over 110 multiband antennas supporting 2G, 3G, and 4G network bands.


title: CommScope

text: On April 4, 2019, CommScope completed the acquisition of Arris International, a telecommunications equipment manufacturing company and owner of Ruckus Networks. Both Arris and Ruckus were made brands of CommScope.


title: CommScope

text: On October 1, 2020, CommScope announced that Charles Treadway would succeed Eddie Edwards as the company's new president and CEO. The company also announced that Bud Watts would replace Frank Drendel as chairman, with Drendel being named chairman emeritus.


title: CommScope

text: In October 2020, CommScope acquired the patent portfolio for virtual radio access networks (vRAN) from Phluido, a company specializing in RAN virtualization and disaggregation.


title: CommScope

text: On March 2, 2021, CommScope appointed company veteran Praveen Jonnala as chief information officer (CIO). Jonnala replaced Karen Renner, CommScope's senior vice president and CIO, who left the company in November. Jonnala was previously global vice president of digital transformation and business solutions.


title: CommScope

text: In 2004, the company acquired Avaya's connectivity business, including the legacy intellectual property and patents from Western Electric, AT&T, Lucent Technologies, and Avaya.


title: CommScope

text: In June 2007, CommScope acquired Andrew Corporation for $2.6 billion. Andrew's products included antennas, cables, amplifiers, repeaters, transceivers, as well as software and training for the broadband and cellular industries.


title: CommScope

text: In 2015, CommScope acquired TE Connectivity's Broadband Network Solutions (BNS) division. Later in 2015 CommScope acquired Airvana, a privately held company specializing in small cell solutions for wireless networks.


title: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

text: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is a 2018 platform game developed and published by Inti Creates. It is a companion title to developer ArtPlay's 2019 game "" and was conceived to fulfill the promise for a retro-style accompaniment to "Ritual of the Night" after its Kickstarter campaign exceeded crowdfunding goals. "Curse of the Moon" follows Zangetsu, a cursed swordsman hunting down demons for revenge, as well as three other playable characters named Miriam, Alfred and Gebel. It features an 8-bit aesthetic and gameplay style similar to "Castlevania" games on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), particularly "" (1989).


title: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

text: The game was developed in six months, revealed at a Japanese indie game festival, and released two weeks later. Critics found the game a satisfying homage to "Castlevania III". Some felt the game adhered too closely to its inspiration, while others praised new options and game modes for adding a modern feel. The game was found to be short albeit fulfilling for its purpose as a prelude to "Ritual of the Night". A sequel, "", featuring Zangetsu and three new additional characters, was released in July 2020.


title: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

text: "Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon" is a 2D side-scrolling platformer that plays and looks similar to "Castlevania" games on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), most notably "" (1989). Like "Castlevania III", the game features stages with branching paths that lead to a single boss, and multiple playable characters. The player starts as swordsman Zangetsu, and may recruit up to three other characters as they progress including the whip-wielding Miriam, a magician named Alfred, and the vampire-like Gebel. Each character has different weapons, skills, health points, and attack styles that make them more appropriate for different situations. The player may switch between these characters instantly at any time. If a character dies, they become unavailable for the rest of the level, which may limit the player's ability to explore the remainder of the stage. In such instances, the player can restart the level with all characters again. The player has the ability to enable and disable unlimited lives and the player character is knocked back when hit by an enemy, characteristic of classic "Castlevania" gameplay. There is also a boss rush mode, and other options to increase game difficulty.


title: Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

text: The story follows Zangetsu, a swordsman searching for revenge upon the demons who magically cursed him. He feels the presence of a great demon, and swears to kill all demons he can find as he quests across the areas of "Curse of the Moon". During his search he encounters Miriam, Alfred, and Gebel. Based on how the protagonist treats the other travelers, the ending changes. In all paths, he fights the archdemon Gremory in the final stage. If Zangetsu allies with all three potential party members, Gremory's final attack on the party is blocked by him, who absorbs the dark power and becomes corrupted. Miriam, Alfred, and Gebel manage to escape the castle, but are not able to forget about Zangetsu who was left behind. If the protagonist ignores all three potential party members and travels alone, then the three of them arrive to block Gremory's final attack, sacrificing themselves and saving the main character. If Zangetsu mixes recruiting, ignoring, and killing the others, then he (and any allies) will leave the castle and watch as it crumbles with the sunrise, but the swordsman is not freed from his curse. If Zangetsu chooses to kill the other three and absorb their power he will absorb Gremory's dark energy attack and become the new dark emperor.