Technical designers are a connecting thread in the product development process. They spend their days communicating designs to factories and making sure the designers vision is carried out. So what happens to their role as technology allows faster and easier visual communication?
I've heard some thought provoking questions lately around what skills are needed for those looking to start careers in pattern-making or technical design today. ⦁ Are companies looking for individuals with digital pattern-making and 3D design experience? ⦁ How do you identify if someone has the skills to work in Technical Design? What skills are needed for 3D pattern-making or prototyping? The beginning Let's take a step back. Technical design as a career path took hold in the nineties. As companies off-shored garment production, they realized pattern-making could also move overseas. To effectively communicate with overseas pattern-makers a new role emerged. Someone who was responsible for technical communication between US designers and the overseas technical staff. Some pattern-makers moved into these roles, but also individuals with design backgrounds who were comfortable with fit and garment construction. At the same time, the industry was beginning to take advantage of digital communication. Product specifications could be sent via e-mail in seconds instead of faxed page by page. Those with years of experience hand sketching learned to sketch with Adobe Illustrator. Digital cameras allowed images of fittings and products to be captured and transmitted quickly. Today Technical designers today range in responsibilities and skills. Some companies require adept pattern-makers capable of correcting patterns and evaluating grading. Other companies expect technical designers to communicate issues to the factories and allow the factories to determine how to correct the fit problems. Some technical designers work on only fit while others may need a strong knowledge of garment construction, manufacturing methods, quality testing, labeling regulations, color, fabric, and trims. The technology at each company ranges from creating specifications in Excel to highly customized Product Lifecyle Management (PLM) systems and 3D pattern-making. PLM software has been in wide use for many years. However, many companies have only recently began to leverage the ability to manage tasks or utilize the systems to directly communicate with suppliers. Task notifications can be sent to factories and factories can enter information directly into PLM systems. A few leading retailers have already learned the advantages of 3D design or pattern-making systems, while others are beginning to pilot systems. WhichPLM has done a great job of recapping excitement around 3D at the recent PI Apparel conference. A few roles as virtual technical designer have emerged, both within corporations and individual firms like Fireflyline. Generally, technical designers and pattern-makers are asked to learn 3D while maintaining their other duties. The future Technical design five to ten years from now will look very different from today. The development specification including measurements, construction information, and images will be gone. All this information can be condensed into a 3D file. The desired stitching can be communicated via the 3D image. The measurements, fabric, and color information can be included in the file or integrated with a PLM system. 3D software providers are beginning to form strategic partnerships with PLM providers to accomplish this integration. Currently, 3D is primarily used as a prototyping tool, but the advantages of designing directly in the system will quickly be learned. Software will evolve to make it easier for designers and pattern-makers to collaborate. Browzwear has two separate systems; V-stitcher to create the 3D prototype from the 2D pattern and Lotta for designers to review stitch details, prints, and embellishments. The role of designer and technical designer may merge. Designers will desire to use 3D modeling tools so they can adjust proportion and scale of style lines, pockets, and prints or graphics directly. Why wait to see a sample and then need to communicate to shift a yoke seam or change a pocket size? Will a production measurement specification be needed? Perhaps not. Someone may develop an app allowing depth sensing cameras or scanners to measure production garments compared to development garments or specifications. The best technical designers will be those who find new ways to use the technology available to them. Companies utilizing 3D are investing time in training staff. They are also beginning to partner with colleges to ask that 2D and 3D pattern-making be implemented into the curriculum. Individuals are realizing the breadth of tools available are not only those created for the industry but also the everyday tools they use to communicate. Smart phones, tablets, Skype, and other communication applications allow us to visually communicate with the other side of the world easier than ever. The next post will focus on training and development of apparel professionals and students to prepare them for this exciting future.
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Sally, one of your best customers called this morning and said the buttondown shirt she ordered doesn’t fit the same as the previous styles she bought from you. You start investigating and find the latest item Sally purchased was made at a new factory. You have fit every style on the same fit model. You reviewed the patterns from the new factory with each fit sample. The pattern shapes are consistent with the blouses Sally has previously purchased. Sally is a size 16, so you check your graded measurement specification. The size 16 measurements matches your previous styles. You measure a size 16 shirt and it measures correctly. What could be wrong? Grading The final step in fit consistency is the grading. A graded measurement set is only one step in validating the grading is consistent. The other step, is checking a nested graded pattern. A nested graded pattern shows the patterns for each size stacked together. Each point on the pattern has an X and Y axis. Uh, Oh! Flashbacks of high school geometry! The image below shows the grade for the shoulder of the shirt for sizes 4-16. In this case the grade is half of the across shoulder measurement on the measurement specification. Remember, you are looking at half the pattern. Problems found in graded patterns usually don’t come from the points that match up to the graded measurements. The most frequent issues are when proportions are not maintained. For instance, the image to the right shows a pattern with a shoulder slope that decreases and increases by size. You could give a shoulder slope measurement on your graded specs, but it is a difficult measurement for quality auditors to check. The shape along the lower armhole curve is also flatter, which can’t be controlled on a measurement specification. How do you prevent these problems?
If you don’t understand grading well enough to review the pattern, find someone who does. And don’t feel that you need to be an expert. Graders can make errors like everyone else. The best novelists still need copy editors to catch basic grammar errors. Do you need technology? No, you can check a paper version of a nested grade. You’ll need a clear plastic ruler and extra time to ship patterns back and forth. The advantage to electronic patterns is speed. Grading is faster. Grading from whole sections can be copied. For instance, once the front pattern piece is graded, the points can be copied to the back. Patterns can be passed back and forth via e-mail for review. Nested graded patterns can easily be separated into separate sizes for use in making a marker. Many brands and factories will make the first patterns by hand on paper. Once the style is fit approved, they will digitize the pattern to create an electronic file. Electronic systems can then be used for grading and marker making. Even if the pattern is graded electronically, they can still print a copy and send to you for review. The process for creating a well fitting garment can be difficult to explain. There is a lot more to the process than assigning a set of measurements. A nice fitting garment needs to make the wearer look great, not simply fit around the body and stay put. Even those in the industry struggle to understand the nuances. Common questions: ⦁ Why doesn't it fit, we sent the factory measurements? ⦁ Why do samples from two factories fit different? ⦁ Why do some customers love our fit and others are completely disappointed? If these problems were easy to solve, technical designers would be out of work. Assigning garment measurements is not enough to create a well fitting garment. A square table and a round table can measure the same dimension across, but they don't fit in the same space or convey the same aesthetic. What makes a garment fit well? ⦁ Balance. Horizontal seams should be parallel to the floor. Vertical seams should be perpendicular to the floor. ⦁ No drag lines. Those puckery areas that point to a problem. ⦁ Comfort. Garments should allow movement for the end use they are designed. ⦁ Fit preference. Not everyone wants their clothes to fit the same. Yes, designers ask to break the above rules sometimes to push the boundaries of style. Pattern shapes are as important as measurements. Two garment patterns can have the same measurements and fit differently. The pattern shape can be the difference between a garment that appears dated or one that feels contemporary and stylish. The tee shirts in the below images share the same measurements that would be included in a basic measurement specification. The first has hip shape in the side seam. The sleeve is straight, allowing ease at the elbow. The second has less room at the hip. You can see the pant is bleeding through in the 3D render. The sweep and hip could both be eased out to maintain the same shape and aesthetic. The elbow has also been shaped to give a slimmer effect. Both of these garments would be acceptable fits. But you probably wouldn't find a single brand running both. For consistency one pattern shape should be followed consistently. The below garment follows the same measurement specification. But it does not fit well. The shoulder slope is too flat (angle of the shoulder seam). This is causing the garment to hike (CF is pulling up). The armhole shape forms a V where the side seams meet. The sleeve cap shape is also different. This is causing excess fabric along the armhole. These are the types of issues technical designers and pattern-makers spend time correcting in live fit sessions and communicating to factories. Communicating the pattern shapes to the factory along with measurements creates a better fitting initial prototype. Vital time and effort are saved for both the factory and the retailer.
Ways to communicate pattern shapes to manufacturers: ⦁ Send a block pattern. Allow the factory to adjust to match the new design. ⦁ Send the pattern from a previous style that sold well. ⦁ Create a pattern for the new style to send to the factory. Why is creating the pattern for the new style listed last? Most large retail brands do not dedicate in house resources to this effort. Pattern makers located at the factory can often create the pattern cheaper. They also can work directly with engineers to make sure the pattern is efficient to sew, fits the marker well, and is adjusted for fabric shrinkage. Designers who want a high degree of control over garment fit and drape may employ an in-house pattern-maker. The second step is to make sure the factory followed direction. Manufacturers should always send a copy of the pattern with the fit sample for evaluation. Electronic pattern-making can save valuable time. Even if you are not creating patterns in-house, a system can be used for receiving and reviewing patterns created by manufacturers. The pattern you sent to the factory to follow can be overlayed with the newly created pattern for comparison. Consistency Consistency is key. Your customers need to feel like your tee shirts feel similar to your sweaters. If your marketing materials show a sweater layered over a button-down shirt, can the customer achieve that look purchasing the same size of sweater and shirt? Consistency requires communication and management. The leaders of technical design and design are charged with the responsibility to maintain fit consistency and provide direction. Verbal or written communication is not enough. Technical designers and designers need to visualize the intended fit. Invite designers and technical designers to join fittings for other product categories. You can also hold a show and tell with staff from multiple product categories to discuss the fit. Document the fittings with photos or video that can be shared. The right fit So all your garments fit consistently. But is it the right fit? If you are a mass market retailer how do you decide how your garment should fit in the first place? Pop quiz: 1. Ask a designer to dictate the ease over body and pick a fit model they think looks good in their designs. 2. Compare your fit to your competitors. 3. Analyze the body shapes of your target market. The answer is really a bit of all three. Design should help guide the brand aesthetic, so they should be involved but the fit process is not a dictatorship. You need know what competitors are doing, but be aware that competitors product may not fit better. Body scan data can give you insight to the body shape of your target market. Organizations such as TC2 or Alvanon can advise how to interpret the data. ASTM provides standardized body measurements for infants and children. The goal should be to please majority of your customers, not everyone. |