TEXTILES.ORG
Automation can compensate for staffing shortages
June 1st, 2023
A worker at Ehmke Manufacturing using a continuous feed laser cutter. Photo: Ehmke Manufacturing Making textile products has transitioned from a manual job to one that is largely automated, in part because of a worker shortage. The offshoring of jobs reduced the U.S. textile industry workforce from 3.8 million in 1975 to only 500,000 workers […]
Pvilion and Rensselaer developing robotics to manufacture rapidly deployable structures
March 1st, 2021
A project to develop robotics for the manufacturing of emergency shelters such as Pvilion’s rapidly deployable structures answers “a timely challenge in both manufacturing and health care,” according to senior research engineer Glenn Saunders. Illustrations: Pvilion. When tents are needed immediately—for disaster response, a public health crisis or a military action—time is of the essence. […]
Robotically woven shoe delivers exact specifications
February 1st, 2021
German sportswear brand adidas® has introduced a robotically woven shoe named STRUNG that can match the exact specifications required by athletes. The adidas team worked with design studio Kram/Weisshaar, based in Munich, Germany, and Stockholm, Sweden, to create what adidas calls “the industry’s first entirely data-driven footwear for a specific runner profile.” The concept shoe […]
Industry 4.0: the new manufacturing
November 1st, 2017
Automation in the textile industry has brought with it an increasing need for better communication within the manufacturing plant, as well as between manufacturers at different stages of the supply chain. Dialogue between people is one thing, but getting machines to speak to one another is a whole new challenge—a digital Tower of Babel that […]
Better together
May 1st, 2017
Collaborative efforts support growth in the smart textiles industry. The more high tech an industry is, the greater the range of expertise it may need. Advanced textiles, particularly smart materials, are a prime example of this. Textiles often undergo a variety of processes requiring specialized skills and equipment, so collaboration is essential to the industry. […]
Robotics, biomimicry and museums
October 1st, 2016
Inspiration for design can easily be found in nature. Take the wing of a beetle: It has an outer shell called an elytra that is both protective and lightweight. Those construction principles are the basis of a striking new exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, celebrating the institution’s annual Engineering Season. The […]