The New Jersey-based company, the U.S. subsidiary of the Japanese knitting machine maker, brought its team and invited a number of customers and guests to its inaugural 3D Knitting Seminar and Workshop to the West Coast earlier this month. Here, at its new showroom in the heart of the LA Fashion District, Shima Seiki reps demonstrated the company’s innovative WHOLEGARMENT technology; hosted presentations from customers, designers, associations, academia, company officials and suppliers; and offered plenty of time for networking during the five-day event.
“We’ve never done this anywhere in the world,” said Matt Llewellyn, vice president, Shima Seiki USA. “The LA market is a little segregated from the rest of the textile arena, so we thought this was a great locale to connect people and learn from each other.”
While machine demos were an important part of the activities, the networking aspect was critical to the event’s success, he added.
“The entire industry is hungry for networking and learning how other people are finding success,” he said. “The industry feels the excitement of reshoring America. Everybody has that feeling that it is happening and people are looking for domestic, sustainable apparel and textiles.”
And WHOLEGARMENT (or “3D”) technology, in particular, offers opportunities to return manufacturing to this country, according to Seiichi “Senna” Nakaya, Shima Seiki USA president. The technology, which debuted at ITMA in Milan in 1995, can knit a garment as one piece, thus creating a number of plusses, he added.
“This cutting-edge technology is not a labor-intensive process, which is an advantage in and of itself,” Nakaya said. “Our customers are looking for something unique, something appealing, something attractive. Our machines’ capabilities meet those needs. What’s beautiful about flatbed knitting is small lot production, mass customization and sustainability.”
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Posted March 23, 2016
By Devin Steele (DSteele@eTextileCommunications.com)
LOS ANGELES – With the reshoring effort gaining tremendous steam, Shima Seiki USA has made a wholehearted leap onto the made-in-America train. Or make that, a “WHOLEGARMENT” leap.
Shima Seiki USA 3D Knitting Seminar & Workshop
Helping keep ‘made in America’ on track
“The industry feels the excitement of reshoring America. Everybody has that feeling that it is happening and people are looking for domestic, sustainable apparel and textiles.”
Matt Llewellyn
Vice president, Shima Seiki USA
Other benefits of WHOLEGARMENT technology, he added, are:
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cost efficiency and eco-friendliness– raw material usage is efficiently maximized, with minimal yarn consumption, less waste and 30 percent cut loss saved;
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better quality control – with integrated knit programs and machines, there are fewer variables leading to errors;
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more efficient manufacturing – fewer production processes streamline the manufacturing cycle;
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more customer satisfaction – the 3D knitting method allows for shaping and can achieve consistent adherence to customer specifications.
Through its technologies, Shima Seiki is leading the way in revitalizing the knitting industry, Nakaya said, and events such as this only helps in that effort, he added.
Imperial Stock Ranch
Jeanne Carver, who manages Imperial Stock Ranch with her husband Dan, presented a fascinating overview of the operation and its relationship with Shima Seiki. Sheep have been raised on the ranch since 1852, and Imperial has supplied wool to the machinery maker and its customers for several years, she said.
She told the story of how sheep ranching in the U.S. was decimated in the late 1990s and how, through the “creative lessons” the Carvers learned, figured out how to reinvent the business by finding area women to knit and process wool and working diligently to find buyers at trade shows and elsewhere, even though they knew little about marketing or textiles.
Carver said the ranch was “discovered” by Ralph Lauren, which was making an American-made push, to provide wool yarn that would be knitted for Team USA sweaters during the Opening Ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
“Today, that has evolved into a much greater win,” she said, noting that they have now partnered with a company to brand its wool.
Other speakers
Other presentations were made by:
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Michelle Letendre, a consultant who works closely with Shima Seiki, who spoke on engineered textiles and performance yarns;
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Dr. Susan Sokolowski, associate professor at the University of Oregon, who covered design innovation;
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Dr. Lisa Parrillo Chapman, associate professor in textiles and apparel technology and management at N.C. State’s College of Textiles, who talked about knitting and printing prototyping;
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Dr. Andrew West, assistant professor at N.C. State’s College of Textiles, who discussed spacer fabrics for apparel activewear and medical uses;
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Genevieve Dion, assistant professor at Drexel University and director of the Shima Seiki Haute Technology Lab, who went over the intersection of design technology and entrepreneurship; and
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Nakaya, Keo Nishikawa and Akira Tsono of Shima Seiki, who discussed the company and its machine capabilities.
“We wanted to organize an event that gathers key players from different industries across the globe, in one room, to express what we believe, and to listen to what people have to say and understand where we can aim for a common vision in the near future,” he said. “WHOLEGARMENT enables the development of a new R&D flow by collaborating with yarn mills, apparel brands and knitting manufacturers. We call it a triangle model and, when involving us, we call it a square model. By creating these models, the team understands deeper the needs from clients to develop and are better able to guide them through production to create a groundbreaking supply chain model.”
Asked in the latter part of the week what feedback he had received about the workshop and seminar, Llewellyn answered, “What I’ve heard the most is, ‘when is the next one?’ ”
Following are highlights of a presentations attended by eTC.
Target Corp.
Andrew Danal, senior designer of knitwear at Target Corp., discussed his retailer’s partnership with the machinery maker. After a pilot program last year, the company evaluated how it would benefit from using Shima Seiki’s machines in conjunction with its own tools. The Target team discovered they save time, offer better communication and cut down on sampling and the guesswork involved.
“Sweaters are labor intensive to make and have been made by hand,” he said. “With Shima, we are able to bypass the handmade sample room, if needed, and go straight to production.”
Ministry of Supply
Gihan Amarasiriwardena, executive chairman, chief design officer and co-founder of Ministry of Supply (MoS), apprised attendees of his company’s performance menswear. Based in Boston, MOS created a new approach to creating garments using engineering and human-centered design.
One of the challenges the company has undertaken to solve is perspiration stains on shirts, which he called a “known but ignored problem” in everyday apparel, he said. He then delved into how the company is solving this problem through the use of body mapping, phase-change materials and digital fabrication.
“We’re working on a project with Shima Seiki on creating a blazer that moves the way your body moves,” Amarasiriwardena said. “We bring it to life in a way that’s very aesthetically pleasing.”
PDR Knitting
Evita Chu, founder of LA-based PDR Knitting, LLC, presented “The Importance of Technical Knowledge and Material Compatibility in Knitting.” The combination of both of those elements in her title defines the design process, she said.
She covered various technical specifications, the sweater-making process, the correct methods for different types of yarns, yarn size vs. gauge and the misconception of intarsia knitting method and its alternatives.
Supreme Corp.
Matthew Colmes, vice president at Supreme Corp., Conover, N.C., talked about the advantages of composite yarns in high-performance applications. His firm manufactures and supplies stock and custom developed, dyed and finished spun and filament yarns for knitting, weaving and craft application.
He went over three projects that all use composite yarns, have a novel finish and possess a synergy between the composite yarns, knitting techniques and finish to create a new standard of performance. The projects: flame-resistant (FR) sewing thread; diabetic compression socks with a durable FR topical; and shark-protective apparel.
“We aim to make the impossible possible,” Colmes said. “I can think of only two times in the last 10 years when we went back to the customer and said ‘we can’t do it.’ ”
Expand Systems
Mark Sawchak is managing partner and owner of Expand Systems, LLC, Roswell, Ga., which offers digital printers, finishers and ink supplies for a variety of fabrics. He said U.S. companies desire to produce locally and his company has a passion for bringing direct digital fabric printing to the U.S.
He discussed various markets for digital printing, including apparel (direct to garment and cut and sew) and home and commercial furnishings, and delved into digital textile inks characteristics.
Cotton Incorporated
Carrie Yates, manager of product development at Cotton Incorporated, Cary, N.C., shared innovative fabric developments created by the organization and passed around samples.
Among the technologies: StormCotton™, a water-repellant finish for cotton that offers protection from rain and snow while maintaining the natural comfort of cotton; TransDRY®, a high-performance moisture management technology for cotton that wicks and spreads moisture and dries in up to half the time of untreated cotton; and Wicking Windows™ technology, a unique moisture management application for cotton that transfers moisture away from the skin.
Center for Sustainable Design Studies
Deb Johnson, executive director of the Center for Sustainable Design Studies (CSDS) at Pratt Institute, NYC, said she “helps designers realize their dreams.” In 2002, she founded the Pratt Design Incubator for Sustainable Innovation, which has since transformed into the Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelorator (BF+DA), a hub for ethical design, production and technology for NYC designers.
She provided information about the entity, which mentors emerging design-based ventures into triple-bottom-line businesses. It uses Shima Seiki machines in its technology lab. She added that BF+DA is reshoring production, before covering success stories by several students.
Premiere Fibers
Vijay Amirtharaj is project engineer at Premiere Fibers, Inc., Ansonville, N.C., which supplies fibers for various Shima Seiki projects and customers. The company is a continuous filament producer of nylon 6,6, nylon 6, polyester and specialty, bio and recycled polymers. The fibers are used in many applications, including performance apparel, industrial yarns, military (parachutes, in particular) and medical.
Amirtharaj gave an interesting primer on synthetic fiber, complete with a pop quiz at the end of his presentation. He also covered some of the development work Premiere has undertaken for customers, underscoring the point by noting that the company invests heavily in innovation.
Shima Seiki USA
Tracey Abrams, sales manager at Shima Seiki USA, presented an interesting overview about product differentiation within merchandising and product development. Asking “What is merchandising?” to open her discussion, she defined it as an art and a science.
Merchandising, she said, involves knowing your company’s financial, product costing structure and retail price point strategy; understanding the competitive landscape; understanding product materials that are worthy of commanding higher or lower prices at retail; and understanding consumers’ perceived value of different piece types/silhouettes.
Abrams added that merchandising is analyzing retail sales results and overall trends to provide guidance to designers and product developers for upcoming seasons. She also provided examples of how brands differentiate their lines.
In addition, she touted the benefits of WHOLEGARMENT vs. traditional cut and sew. “With WHOLEGARMENT, you’re knitting, finishing and shipping from one spot, so the selling points for the manufacturer and the consumer are it is eco-friendly and cost-efficient.”
Thursday Finest
Michael Carlson, who co-founded Brooklyn-based Thursday Finest with his wife Veronika, gave an insightful presentation about his foray into 3D custom apparel – which, given the fact that his background is in technology and not textiles/apparel, is noteworthy.
“Nika and I fell in love with this little guy,” he said, showing a photo of Shima Seiki’s SWG-N2 series compact knitting machine. “So we threw our hat into the ring to create Thursday Finest (in 2014).”
The company, which specializes in custom neckties, has since been featured in various news outlets, including Vogue magazine.
“Customers can choose our ties or create their own on our website,” he said.
St. John’s Knits
Dario Fedele, director of knit development and costing at St. John Knits, presented highlights of the company that calls itself “the American luxury brand.” He noted that 80 percent of its production, including dyeing, is done in the U.S., at its Irvine, Calif., facilities.
“Hitting the right landing price can be a challenge,” he said. “So, with the help of Shima Seiki, we developed software that helps us determine the price of square yard per fabric. This way, we know the maximum price per square yard and go from there.”
Unifi, Inc.
Edmir Silva, technical manager at Unifi, Inc., Yadkinville, N.C., briefed attendees on the company, a diversified manufacturer of polyester and nylon textile filament yarns. He discussed its various market segments and brands/technologies, including its well-known REPREVE® recycled brand, along with reflexx™, Augusta™, Sorbtek®, WaterWise™ and more.
The company owns a Shima Seiki machine that is uses to show its yarns on fabric, he added.