Stratasys needs to take shoppers’ used clothes to a different dimension.
The 3D printing firm introduced final week that it had launched a direct-to-garment resolution as an addition to its current TechStyle printer, the J580. The printer will now be capable of apply colourful, 3D-printed designs onto pre-existing clothes, which Stratasys expects will entice shoppers on the lookout for customized experiences and magnificence.
The corporate offered its City Tattoo denim assortment earlier this month at Texprocess in Germany. The gathering is supposed to “promote a deeper emotional connection” with clothes, in the identical means that folks really feel related to tattoos on their our bodies.
Designers like Karim Rashid, Travis Fitch and Zlatko Yanakiev helped develop the City Tattoo assortment, which Stratasys mentioned it believes will “attraction to a number of manufacturers that attain throughout various socio-economic backgrounds.”
Zehavit Reisin, senior vp of economic options for Stratasys, mentioned that stage of customization provides manufacturers the chance to meaningfully apply the 3D printing expertise.
“Many manufacturers are restricted in how a lot they’ll mass produce denim clothes, whereas sustaining a stage of personalization that has which means to the wearer,” Reisin mentioned in a press release. “We’re giving manufacturers the chance to do one thing exceptional, to deliver extra character to their clothes line, whereas pushing a extra sustainable enterprise apply that appeals to a number of audiences throughout the buyer spectrum.”
Stratsys will make the direct-to-garment printing trays in two totally different sizes, which is able to assist keep away from pointless waste and assist a spread of clothes and sizes. The system can be utilized on denim, cotton, polyester and linen, based on the corporate.
The expertise’s multifaceted use instances might assist persuade manufacturers and shoppers alike of the inventive methods they’ll use additive design to upcycle clothes.
In accordance with researchers, the typical American client generates 82 kilos of textile waste yearly. Some manufacturers have already turned to restore and resale applications, whereas others have began take again applications for eventual textile recycling. But when shoppers can repurpose gadgets earlier than finish of life, they might be inclined to buy fewer clothes new.
Naomi Kaempfer, Stratasys’ inventive director, mentioned the expertise goes a step past embellishment—it provides life to clothes, which in flip provides shoppers the liberty to precise themselves by way of their clothes.
“By including layers of tales and symbolism that resonate with the individuality of the wearer, these tattoos assist shoppers promote their id, and have fun their individuality. It’s a testomony to the transformative energy of additive manufacturing expertise in vogue,” she mentioned in a press release.
