Intelligent Textiles
Planning, Developing, and Expanding DPC Concepts
By Yvonne Heinen-Foudeh, Senior International Correspondent
Designing an end-to-end holistic transformation process
Digital Product Creation (DPC) forms the technological core of the holistic transformation process - for self-manufacturing apparel companies as well as companies of all sizes that focus on multi-channel distribution and rely partly or completely on partner procurement.
The path to scaling the vision of fully digital product development is challenging. Instead of tech euphoria, a pragmatic approach to new technologies is recommended.
The platform implemented in 2016, continuously developed since supports scalable product development along a clearly defined workflow and via a virtual showroom. © Virtuality.Fashion
What began with the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) concept of industry solution providers is now opening up new worlds on the way to consistently collaborative and holistic working methods across the supply chain. Relieving the burden of complex software and hardware management is a welcome side effect of Internet-based applications.
Cloud platforms map industry requirements from ERP to EQMS to EHS (Environment, Health & Safety) tools in their entirety, thus relieving the user in many cases of the critical integration work with partner software.
Platform technology also opens up the option of making progress at DPC. This includes the process-integrated use of 3D product development, as this is stagnating, to put it mildly, in the clothing sector. It only goes beyond rendering perfect images for e-commerce in exceptional cases. DPC offers much more, and is the basis for cost and returns reduction, fit optimization, repeat accuracy, quality assurance, and process improvement in harmony with suppliers, right through to traceability and transparency along the supply chain.
Outstanding example
The seamless transition from 2D designs to e-commerce-ready images without the need for physical fabric production or time-consuming photo shopping is offered as a service by Virtuality.Fashion, for example. On top of step one, the virtualization of styles for all kinds of marketing processes, the Tel Aviv-based provider enables AI-based personalization and tailoring of virtual models with real human features through selection filters working on their platform. Also here Vizoo's advanced fabric scanning technology applies for realistic fabric representation in digital designs with the users.
Designers Capitol launched: from 3D design to ordering
DC Cloud Services GmbH, based in Alzenau, Bavaria, is now breaking new ground after 18 months of development. Designer Capitol went live in December 2023. The idea: connecting creators and fashion companies - platform-based sharing and marketing of 3D designs to 3D product professionals in the industry - in search of new style inspirations and their production-ready implementation.
Build technology-independent in-house libraries on the new DC platform and easily manage access to resources. The Designer Capitol provides access to a pool of talented 3D designers.
The platform implemented in 2016, continuously developed since supports scalable product development along a clearly defined workflow and via a virtual showroom. © Virtuality.Fashion
The mega benefit
With the help of the open library, the growing number of digital assets can also be used by DC-Tech partners, thus simplifying and accelerating design processes. Brands gain access to a pool of talented designers and can build technology-independent and company-internal libraries and easily manage access to resources.
Founders and managing directors Maximilian Schneider and Timo Bast are also committed to promoting young talent. The start-up works together with fashion schools and universities throughout Germany, to begin with. Students and graduates leverage the support of Designer Capitol in entering the fashion scene and understanding the real world of the industry through further training courses offered by the DC Academy. Early recognition of another crucial need, not to mention a looming bottleneck: As the fashion industry embraces the possibilities and opportunities of DPC, the demand for empowered talent for a completely different way of working, for CGI (Computer Integrated Imagery) experts, is growing.
To what extent the curricula of the relevant textile/clothing educational institutions take this need into account is a topic for separate research. The unique VirLab at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences, headed by Prof. Dr-Ing. Michael Ernst [introduced with The Needle's Eye in 2023, issues #10 and #12], and its associated lecture and practical courses are probably closest to the demand - at least throughout Europe.
To what extent the curricula of the relevant textile/clothing educational institutions take this need into account is a topic for separate research. The unique VirLab at the Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences, headed by Prof. Dr-Ing. Michael Ernst [introduced with The Needle's Eye in 2023, issues #10 and #12], and its associated lecture and practical courses are probably closest to the demand - at least throughout Europe.
"To date, we have around 40 designers and companies in the Designers Capitol," reports Timo Bast, founder and Managing Director of DC Cloud Services GmbH. By the middle of the year, the company is planning for strong growth, especially from designers and universities in the textile/clothing segment". Photo: Martin Kielmann, Hamburg
Music of the future
And what are the further development plans? We want to know from Maximilian Schneider. "Ultimately, complete collections can be developed on the platform with the help of AI by defining and adding attributes to cutting data and color worlds." The corresponding artwork is created using stored standard patterns.
The fact of the matter is… … working in the new era of DPC - characterized by advances in 3D modeling and simulation tools, crowd-sourced testing tools, and AI applications - defines completely new opportunities for the entire transformation process apparel needs to cope with, defines new requirement profiles for the natural intelligence of our employees.
The fact of the matter is… … working in the new era of DPC - characterized by advances in 3D modeling and simulation tools, crowd-sourced testing tools, and AI applications - defines completely new opportunities for the entire transformation process apparel needs to cope with, defines new requirement profiles for the natural intelligence of our employees.