Technology advancements in virtual modelling and design have been widely used in high end manufacturing for decades. This technology starts entering into the textile and fashion industry, especially for renowned brands, who adopted this for product design, development and sampling/prototyping.
The 3D virtual modelling technology efficiently shortens the product development process and makes immediate communication possible between customers and service providers. The technology also saves time and money for developing physical prototypes in different sizes and using different fabrics. If cloud service is used, the electronic modelling patterns can be shared within the working group for editing and communicating, which forms a global value chain without location and time limits. This technology is also a useful tool for personalization fashion. Some famous brands, including Under Armour, Coach, Victoria’s Secret, Hugo Boss, Nike, Abercrombie & Fitch and more have already entered the market. At the moment, CLO, OPTITEX and BROWZWEAR are the more commonly adopted software in the field.
A further application for textile virtualization is for functional textile products, such as sportswear, medical and healthcare devices, aerospace and military garments. The advances of simulation can be adapted for material performance and various functions under a selected environment with set temperature and moisture. Intensive research has been conducted for realistic modelling of complex, functional and smart textiles for product development.