eMode, the essential laboratory for patterns and materials

At the heart of Cholet's Lycée de la Mode, the Plateforme eMode stands out for its unique hybrid positioning. Part project incubator, part training center and part textile fablab, it embodies a place for exchange, applied research and textile design, where the languages of design, art, craft and industry intersect. Since its creation in 2004, on the initiative of the Groupement Professionnel Mode Grand Ouest, the University of Angers and the Lycée de la Mode, Carole Coutand, textile engineer and founding director, has been driving a cross-disciplinary vision of patterns and materials.

Advanced equipment at the service of textile intelligence

The structure, which has held the Plateforme Technologique (PFT) label since its inception, is organized into three laboratories offering students, professionals from all sectors and even private individuals unique access to a high-level machine park.

In the first "Colors & Patterns" space, digital design tools enable designs to be conceived and adjusted in virtual reality, 3D modeling or textile simulation. Here, patterns come to life on screen, before unfolding in volume. The second laboratory, "Matières & Tests", is the heart of the finishing department, where digital printing, sublimation, embroidery and silk-screening are tested, as are techniques such as laser cutting and engraving on flexible or rigid materials. "We can work just as well on textiles as on wood, leather, or surfaces intended for interior architecture", expresses Quentin Pérès, also a textile engineer and technical manager. Finally, in the "special machine room" dedicated to material prototyping, you'll find some of the company's most high-performance machines: ultrasonic assembly and marking machines, digitizing tables with Modaris, embroidery machines, manual presses, oven for 3D sublimation, the famous "duo of Jacquard weaving and knitting machines, accessible even to private individuals, unique in France and therefore much sought-after" and more recently, a latex printer capable of printing on coated materials, wallpapers or window films.

This infrastructure enables us to support a textile decor project from A to Z, from idea to industrialization test, often completed thanks to a strong link with regional partners. "When the project requires hundreds of meters, we work with trusted local material printing or decoration workshops", explains Carole Coutand. This flexibility also enables us to take on demanding artistic challenges, such as collaborations with Makiko Furuichi and Hélène Delpra for Le Voyage à Nantes, or for Villa Laurens, for which eMode reproduced old decorative friezes from scans, recolored and printed on sheers.

A place of experimentation for innovation in textile decor

Since 2010, eMode has operated as an association, supported by some fifty active members from industry or training who are "involved in the life of the structure, but who also benefit from services such as autonomous access to equipment, and have their projects given priority treatment by us. We can assist with sampling, produce the first lengths of a collection for shootings, develop totally new materials for a one-off project, or test surface effects. We're there to do research, to test, prototype and refine a process", explains the director. eMode plays a key role in supporting creative and technical textile projects, far beyond the world of fashion alone:"We work with visual artists, photographers as well as young designers, craftsmen in interior design, often furniture, accessories... Our daily routine is the variety of projects we deal with", expresses Carole Coutand.

The Platform is regularly open to experimentation. Carole Coutand and Quentin Pérès manage access to the platforms and accompany the eclectic profiles who rub shoulders and share their research. This is the case of a student who came to make his first prototypes with a view to a final printing of over 100m²: "I work in black and white, in very small lines. I need a fabric that gives a beautiful black, that enhances the details, while remaining within an affordable budget. I experiment with different materials, testing light, front and back, playing with intensity, transparency... It's a real fine-tuning process", testifies Pierre Delestre, in his 2nd year at the École supérieure d'art et de design (TALM), who benefited from an introduction to digital textile printing and support in testing, with a view to an exhibition. Also, textile artist Rosanna Lefeuvre recently experimented with digital jacquard weaving on the TC2 Loom, transposing her photographic research into complex textile compositions.

Training, transmitting, connecting: a 360° mission

The anchoring of eMode within the walls of Cholet's Lycée de la Mode and its partnership with GRETA CFA 49 reinforces this link with pedagogy. Qaliopi-certified, the structure offers a wide range of continuing training courses for textile professionals, teachers, technicians, designers or artists wishing to perfect their skills or integrate new tools into their practices. Topics range from the basics of computer graphics to mastering prototyping machines, from digital printing processes to textile fundamentals. "We can support an artist who wants to understand sublimation, as well as an instructor who wants to integrate new techniques into his or her teaching program (...) this can take the form of creative workshops!", explains the director. The aim is to enable "professionals to acquire the skills and vocabulary of new technologies to work with printers and/or with us", she expresses.

"We have all the advantages of being close to a training establishment because we share technical platforms, notably via the pooling of equipment", Carole Coutand emphasizes. "We also run projects that involve students, while meeting the needs of companies. For example, for a sneaker project for the Sessile brand, the students came up with the graphics. We did the technical development on leathers and fabrics, then the printing for the prototypes. We did the same for the new scarves for the town of Cholet, right up to batches produced with our partners. It's a win-win situation," she exclaims.

Staying abreast and participating in the digital and ecological transition

In order to stay at the heart of the latest advances and pass them on to as many people as possible, the eMode director participates in numerous sector-specific reflections, linked to the savoir-faire, ecological and digital transition of the textile industry. "We always make sure to explain and show the artisanal/arts professions aspect of a technique, while zooming in on technological innovations", explains Carole Coutand. A member of the Responsible Fashion Committee run by SAMOA in Nantes, she is a regular speaker at roundtables, conferences and research programs, notably on the implementation of sustainable alternatives in finishing or the contributions of new technologies to eco-design approaches."At eMode, like other national structures, we are one of the links accompanying the technological and environmental transition", explains the director.

Finally, eMode acts as a bridge between worlds. Its technothèque and matériauthèque offer a library of samples, textures and processes that feed visitors' imaginations, while promoting the region's savoir-faire. "We show both what can be done at eMode, but also what can be achieved by partner companies. If a designer wants to go further, we show, guide and recommend. We connect! Our role is to open up the field of possibilities", concludes Carole Coutand.

To find out more, discover the fiche entreprise de la Plateforme eMode.