Posted September 9, 2014

 

“Without change there is no innovation, creativity or incentive for improvement. Those who initiate change will have a better opportunity to manage the change that is inevitable.”
– C. William Pollard

 

Pollard, chairman emeritus of The ServiceMaster Company, imparted these words of wisdom in his 2010 book, The Soul of the Firm. That’s a pretty perceptive pearl to describe the innovators who spur change in our ever- and fast-evolving world. And it absolutely applies to the technological advances being made in the textile and apparel industry.

 

Being on the bleeding edge of technological progress has spelled survival for a number of U.S. players in this manufacturing sector. Thanks in part to forward-thinking leadership, transformative research and development and unprecedented cooperation and collaboration, the industry has lived to fight another day. And fight, you are. Now, the winds of global change are blowing your way and we’re seeing something of a production shift to this hemisphere, of course.

 

In the past few months, I’ve been amazed by many of the new technologies I’ve heard about or saw first hand. In March during a Southern Textile Association meeting, Mike Fralix, president & CEO of [TC]2 (Textile/Clothing Technology Corp.), provided a peek into the future of textile/apparel manufacturing with the latest information on digital product conversion, robotics and 3-D body scanning, knitting and printing. In May, the co-located textile, apparel and composites trade shows in Atlanta were brimming with eye-opening breakthroughs. And in June, members of the Vanguard Pai Lung team enthusiastically introduced me to a company and a concept with which they are excited and are wholeheartedly supporting. That would be Apparel Made For You (AM4U).

 

This week, we are featuring the Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.-based company, which is working on “disruptive technologies” that could change the face of textile/apparel manufacturing and bring more production back to these shores. Through a concept called purchase-activated manufacturing (PAM), the company said it can make apparel close to the consumer at higher profits. The integrated mini-factory is an “enabling technology,” according to Bill Grier, president and founder of AM4U. The PAM process eliminates forecasting and inventory loss as well as toxic pollution, uses virtually no water and reduces transportation costs, he added. “We are bringing manufacturing back home,” concludes a video highlighting the concept.

 

The brainchild of Grier that is two decades in the works, purchase-activated manufacturing is getting close to fruition. AM4U has built a pilot factory and is putting together funding and installation packages. Already, contracts for commercialization have been signed with two large apparel brands, and a third is close to signing. A consortium of equipment and software manufacturers, including Vanguard Pai Lung, comprise AM4U’s Virtual Inventory Manufacturing Alliance (ViMA).

 

Such American ingenuity reminds me of a catchphrase by Soviet-born Yakov Smirnoff, who emigrated to the U.S. and realized his dream of becoming a stand-up comedian. “What a country!” was how we frequently punctuated his delight in American freedom, culture and consumerism. Indeed, AM4U is a change initiator that may have a better opportunity to manage inevitable change. With apologies to Mr. Smirnoff: What a company!