LE LAB by IFTH promotes innovative, eco-responsible fashion manufacturing
IFTH's latest technical platform, based in Paris, is equipped with a full range of equipment and software to help fashion players move towards innovative and sustainable production processes.
This is the latest technical platform from IFTH (Institut Français du Textile et de l'Habillement), which came into being in Paris in February 2022.
Like the large structure that initiated it, LE LAB by IFTH presents a unique technical and service offering, in this case aimed "at fashion professionals wishing to rely on eco-responsible and innovative manufacturing" explains its website.
A major organization in the French textile-clothing industry, "IFTH is a center of expertise with a unique range of skills in textiles, physics and chemistry, recalls Clarisse Reille, its managing director. It has knowledge of the entire value chain, from fiber to garment making, including thread, weaving, knitting, all techniques of finishing, assembly, prototyping and post usages".
Employing 145 people, including 110 engineers and technicians, in its regional centers and platforms, it has four pillars of action: Tests and Trials, Certification and Expertise (issuing CE marking in the field of personal protective equipment, French representation of the OEKO-TEX® label...), R&D (development of new high-tech fibers and materials with special functionalities for numerous industrial outlets, eco-design, recycling...) and finally, Training.
The IFTH thus works for both apparel and technical textiles applied to industrial sectors such as construction, aeronautics, agriculture, automotive, etc.
LE LAB by IFTH: a unique platform in France
As part of its rich range of missions, IFTH has developed LE LAB.
"I don't know of any equivalent in France to the LAB by IFTH, points out Clarisse Reille. It has a whole range of machines and software (notably 3D CAD), enabling us to show how to be more efficient in terms of production and therefore faster between design creation and production launch. This is the key to being more responsive to what's going on in the market".
"This facility has been designed to focus on the product development process, on the customer's side. We have installed a good thirty machines, equipment and software packages to be able to think a product through from A to Z without leaving our 90m² space" points out François Pezeril, a textile engineer trained at Ensait, co-host of the platform with Hafida Boulahoite who brings her background as a technical fashion design-prototypist.
François Pezeril, too, insists on the specificity of the LAB by IFTH. "In France, product development units can digitize cutting for garment making, and 3D product development units are beginning to emerge. But here, we have the entire product development process. When we welcome a brand or a project owner, we can work from their specifications to produce a batches head and a detailed industrial file to enable them to work in the best possible way". By "best way", we mean the use of a vocabulary and technical elements that facilitate exchanges with contract manufacturers.
Eco-design and digital transition
The other virtue of the LAB by IFTH is its eco-responsible approach. Born within the Parisian Caserne, the largest gas pedal of ecological transition dedicated to the Fashion and Luxury industry in Europe, LE LAB by IFTH thus has "two major missions: to promote "eco-design" and "the digital transition of brands", explains François Pezeril.
More concretely, LE LAB by IFTH is organized into "three workshop spaces for designing, prototyping and evaluating collections" explains its website.
Users can hire the equipment by the hour after registering on the dedicated online platform, work solo or be accompanied by the venue's co-hosts and benefit from in situ training courses. "We can also carry out prototyping on behalf of the project owner, as long as they work on a flexible material (fabric, knitwear, leather, etc.)", says François Pezeril.
He lists "three main stages" for the experiments carried out within the LAB by IFTH: the validation of materials, the realization of the digital prototyping (or "digital twin" of the design) and finally, the transition from the virtual to the physical prototype also tested.
For the first stage, LE LAB by IFTH is equipped with machines to perform the usual physical tests, such as abrasion resistance for fabrics or pilling resistance for knitted materials. A dynamometer can also be used to test materials for extension, tension or compression. Seam strength can also be assessed, to make a comparative analysis of different product assembly methods and select the best ones.
After this first, "mechanical" stage, the special feature of the LAB by IFTH is to have "created a whole digital chain with different digital solutions to ensure that the virtual prototype is as optimized as possible", emphasizes François Pezeril, who mentions "virtualization customization possibilities that are unique in France. The transition from 2D to 3D saves an enormous amount of time and material. We're going to do this virtual assembly work on an avatar using a software package like Clo 3D, for example". The LAB has at least 4 3D CAD software packages at its disposal.
Virtualization 3D: as close to the real as possible
It all starts with the creation of a 3D avatar. LE LAB by IFTH is equipped to customize avatars to get as close as possible to the measurements of the brand's targets. To do this, "we bring in two, three models. Our 3D Nettelo-Body Scan installed on a tablet allows us to do their body scanand get their body measurements quickly to make a good avatar", explains François Pezeril.
Then it's a matter of scanning the materials: "we have the tool to create the digital material, a high-performance scanner, because a cotton voile doesn't have the same fall as a denim fabric. When we start scanning, a sophisticated, luminous process hits the material from different angles. The camera is fixed, but the scanner's production software processes the data images to render a realistic rendering of the material", explains François Pezeril.
"With this sophisticated scan, we can reconstruct the behavior, for example, of the fabric when walking or when there's wind", enthuses Clarisse Reille. And this is thanks to characterization, i.e. the in-depth measurement of the physical and mechanical properties of materials (weight per m², thickness, tension that runs through the material in different directions...) thanks to the physical testing equipment previously mentioned (dynamometer, abrasimeter, etc.) "We end up with measurement tables that we enter into the 3D CAD tool. This makes it possible to combine physical data with image data and produce a highly realistic digital twin"explains François Pezeril.
A real difference compared to the approach of "Product development units, generally using existing material libraries, and software with default avatars, which sometimes leads to disappointment" emphasizes François Pezeril."We can then create coloristic variants, thanks to a coloring module. This on-screen eco-design approach virtually eliminates the need for physical samples."
Once the virtual patternmaking elements have been validated, the third step is to go from virtual to physical, using industrial cutting placement software (Lectra, Vetigraph...). On the associated automatic cutting tables, the various patternmaking elements are arranged in such a way as to optimize the consumption of linear meters. In other words, a minimum waste rate in line with an eco-design approach.
Printing machines (sewing machines) are then used to create the first physical prototypes, likely to be, finally, finished (via printing, embroidery, engraving or laser garment washing techniques, ...).
Multiple collaborations
The rich space for creativity and experimentation that is LE LAB by IFTH has won over the industry: 70 fashion and accessories brands are now regular customers.
"In our first year, we had to make ourselves known via trade shows like Première Vision, social networks and, of course, the IFTH sales team. Word-of-mouth also worked a lot", says François Pezeril. "Today, major brands are coming in as industry influencers, to give their subcontractors consulting, and create new reflexes, new best practices. Fashion designers rent the facilities by the hour or half-day to develop their prototypes. And many schools come with their students to understand current garment making", clarifies Clarisse Reille.
Vocational training, and therefore not just initial training, is also a central issue for LE LAB by IFTH . "With the exception of luxury homes, many brands have lost any notion of industrial technique. Yet it's not possible to tackle sustainable fashion if you haven't mastered the knowledge of materials and garment making", asserts Clarisse Reille.
Gaps that LE LAB by IFTH is helping to fill. "Companies send us their teams (product managers, creative teams...) for training, for example, to give them the means to exchange with subcontractors", explains François Pezeril.
Smaller Homes also benefit from the resources of LAB by IFTH.
This is the case of young designer Alphonse Maitrepierre, winner in 2021 of the Emerging Talent prize at the Grands Prix de la Design de la ville de Paris. In collaboration with LE LAB was implemented the prototyping process associated with his "Freya" model, a highly creative but difficult-to-make dress signed to his Maitrepierre brand. "This rather complex dress comprised three layers of materials with different behaviors, explains François Pezeril. The idea was to cut them with a laser, to make floral patterns in order to have a living organic rendering. The challenge was to visualize the design on a 3D avatar to see how it behaved. Alphonse came several times to initiate this design. He explained it to us and we retrieved sourced materials from Nona Source's dead stock to create the virtual and then physical prototype." Mission accomplished: the dress and its digital twin were presented together at the Première Vision show in July 2024.
Another successful partnership, that forged with young leather goods brand Domestique. Bastien Beny, co-founder of the brand with Simon Delacour, came to LE LAB by IFTH with the creative idea of drawing inspiration from everyday items to transform them into leather goods. "The brand works artisanally with French leathers. The designers wanted to make a product on a reasonable budget and save time with new technologies, so as not to have to do everything by hand", explains François Pezeril. Several months were spent on training and technical support. "We supported the brand in experimenting with and digitizing patternmaking, assembly and laser engraving. And we went from the artistic proposal to the production of prototypes of two bags, one inspired by fruit and vegetable crates and the other, shopping baskets". Banco: in September 2023, Domestique won the Grand Prix de la Design de la ville de Paris in the accessories category thanks to this new collection, christened "le marché nouveau".
The LAB by IFTH success story and its positioning give François Pezeril ideas. "We're faced with a lot of requests arising from current regulatory changes such as the Agec law. As we are upstream of the eco-design approach and product development, the idea would be to transform LE LAB into a case demonstrator, as part of a real collective project. The aim would be to produce proofs of concept to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach and quantify the environmental gains achieved".
And to specify "we could work even more synergistically with experts from IFTH". A platform that multiplies the expertise of its parent company, a virtuous dynamic at the service of French design and garment making!
For more information: https://lelab.ifth.org/
