Textile Design and Engineering of Fibrous Materials: INTEDEC 2003

Citation

Lam Po Tang, S. (2004), "Textile Design and Engineering of Fibrous Materials: INTEDEC 2003", International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology, Vol. 16 No. 1/2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijcst.2004.05816aaa.001

Textile Design and Engineering of Fibrous Materials: INTEDEC 2003

Until recently, design and technology in the textile area have been evolving in parallel with little interaction. Lack of synergy between the two pivotal branches hinders a huge potential for developing new products and processes and for advancing the competitiveness of the industry. The International Textile Design and Engineering Conference, INTEDEC 2003, bridges the gap between aesthetics and technology research and creates a positive synergy between the researchers in these two fields.

The first INTEDEC event, “Fibrous Assemblies at the Design and Engineering Interface”, aimed at exploring and exploiting new scientific and technological developments at the design and engineering interface of the broad textile industry.

The experiment of bringing technologists and designers together has been successful. More than 80 abstracts were received from over 20 countries. The final programme was rich with 59 presentations in 16 sessions, 11 posters and six exhibits. The range of topics covered include traditional and high-tech materials, engineering of aesthetics, digital design, retailing automation, 3D simulation, novel fibres and fabrics, including nanotextiles, 3D fabrics and smart material, technical textiles, structural mechanics, machine automation and robotics. In recognition of the excellence of the contributions, this special edition of IJCST presents 23 papers selected from the proceedings, covering a range of areas related to the clothing industry.

One of the main observations from the papers received is that the textile field is broadening beyond what is originally known as traditional textiles for clothing to many more other end-uses, incorporating many disciplines. We begin to see unique developments such as flexible electronic sensor-based networks and nanofibres, for example. In line with this gradual evolution, the conference has therefore adopted the term fibrous assemblies, which goes beyond the traditional “textile” definition and denotes all fibre-based flexible and non-flexible structures, from fibres to fabrics, garments, composites and other made up articles.

I would like to specially thank our participants, who made this event a great success, as well as the technical and organising committees for their support and also thank our sponsor, the Drapers' Company, and our supporters, without whom it would have been difficult to organise this event.

Sharon Lam Po TangGuest editor