Academic report on

Advanced Textiles
Matteo Carbone
Louise Guiot
Gaia Salizzoni
 Agenda
History and
01 evolution
Definition and
applications
02
Ecosystem &
03 innovation process
Industry 04
characteristics
Focus:
05 MedTech
01 History and evolution
 History of the industry
Ancient
Felt and linen as very first textiles used for clothing Stone Age
times and other implements

The silk Produced in ancient China, silk soon led to the Middle Ages
greatest trade network in the world
road

The cottage Textiles were produced by hand on a domestic

Renaissance
basis, utilizing animal and plant fibers
stage
 • Production moved from home to factories
• Mass consumption Industrial Revolution
Automatization • New inventions
• Emergence of the British textile industry (25% of
the total exports)

Synthetic Natural fibers replaced by petroleum-based

synthetic fibers. 20th Century
Fabric Developed by Wallace Carothers in the 1930s

Textile Rise of active textiles thanks to Contemporary era

nanotechnology and miniaturization of
revolution computers
 (R)evolution of the textile industry
Conventional textiles Advanced textiles
Main uses: protection, Main uses: specifics scopes and
comfort, decoration functional properties

Labor-intensive
Low automatization
Low R&D investments
Few categories of application
(low flexibility)
Capital-intensive
High automatization
Massive R&D investments
Plenty of categories of
applications (high flexibility)
02 Definition and
applications
 Definition of
advanced textile

“ Textile materials and products

manufactured primarily for
their technical and
performance properties
rather than their aesthetic or
decorative characteristics

The Textile Institute

 Different perspectives

By Material
Cheap stretch fibres; synthetic polymers; regenerated fibers;
mineral metal; nano-technology

By Process
Woven; knitted; non-woven; multi-layer lamination

By Application
Plenty of applications
Applications

Source: Techtextil and Ossoka (2018)

InduTech ClothTech ProTech

MobilTech SportTech MedTech

GeoTech PackTech HomeTech

AgroTech BuildTech Oekotech

 Application area trends
40% PackTech
SportTech (7%), BuildTech (4%),
MedTech (4%), ProTech
(3%), AgroTech, GeoTech, OekoTech 15% ClothTech

13% HomeTech
MobilTech 8%

Source: Textiles for Industrial Applications;

R. Senthil Kumar (2014)
E-Textile
Refers to the use of electronics in
textiles products to add functional or
decorative effects.

They are sometimes called smart

textiles and wearable electronics.

“ The 4th industrial revolution for the

textiles and fashion industry

Research&Markets
 E-textile growth
140
130

120

42% growth of
100 European
Global market from
80 18% CAGR 2014 to 2019
Billion dollar

increase
60
from 2013 to
2018
40

20 14
4
0
2012 2018 2025

Source: European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and

Clothing (2016), RnRMarketResearch (2018)
Characteristics of E-Textile

High concentration
market

High production
costs
03 Ecosystem and
innovation process
 Main stakeholders
Academia and research centers
Crucial role in the process of discovery
Companies
Manufacturers;
importers and exporters;
traders; distributors;
row material suppliers;
consultants
Regulatory bodies Intellectual property issues
Developing standards
Evaluating safety
End-users
Most demand comes
Governments from end‐use industries;
problem of
Research grants; tax relief and incentives;
non-commercialization
vocational education programs;
network and knowledge transfer
 Technical textile end-users
Lancaster Space

Individuals

B2B
Cheapness

rather than B2C

Big firms transactions
Minimum
thresholds

Performance
 Innovation process
Material innovation: Process innovation:
specific requirements of combination of technologies
some market segments with textiles in response to
emerging needs

Science-based R&D-based
innovation innovation
Academia, research R&D departments of
centers, etc. firms
 Innovation in collaborative networks

Interconnected globalized economies

Technological
Increasingly complex innovative dynamics
networks
Accelerated process of technological obsolescence

“ Our organization could definitely break into several new markets by

working with a strategic partner
Trelleborg AB survey
Advantages of strategic partnership

New and shared skills

30%
Sharing costs and risks 38%

Reach new markets

32%

Source: Trelleborg AB survey

 Types of partnership

• Acquisition of technology license

• Sharing R&D laboratories
• Joint exploitation of innovation
• Technology clusters
• Division from parent company
04 Industrial characteristics
Total market 300

size 250 244

200

The global demand 160

Billion dollar
158
for technical textiles 150
125
134
has increased
as a result of their 100

rising base of applications in 60

end‐use industries 50

0
1997 2007 2012 2015 2018 2022

Sources: Handbook of technical textiles (2018)

 World exports

Europe
28%
USA +1%
13%
-5%

China
India 37%
16% -3%
-6% Share of world exports
Annual percentage change from 2015 to 2016
Source: Gherzi (2016)
 Value of the leading exporters
Billion dollar, 2017

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

China 110
European Union 69
India 17
United States 14
Turkey 11
Republic of Korea 10
Chinese Taipei 9
Pakistan 8
Honk Kong 8
Vietnam 7
Source: Statista (2018)
 Import-export in EU
Extra-EU imports of Textile products, Extra-EU exports of Textile products,
2017 2017
1 1
5 4 Natural fibers 5 4 4 Natural fibers
21 Man-made fibers
5 Man-made fibers
8
14 Yarns & Threads Yarns & Threads
Woven fabrics Woven fabrics
5 Knitted fabrics Knitted fabrics
Techical textiles 28 Techical textiles
20 Carpets 27 Carpets
Home textiles Home textiles
24 5 Other textile 7 Other textile

Source : CITH, EUROSTAT (2017)

China, India and Vietnam USA, Mexico and Honduras, Brazil Germany as Europe’s
will grow due to strong Canada’s markets (despite recession) will market leader in technical
industrial base and depend heavily on new experience an textiles
significant rise in demand technologies exponential growth
05 Focus:
MedTech
“ The need for long-term,
unobtrusive monitoring of patients
at home will stimulate quick
development (of the industry).

In five years' time, I believe we'll

get to see many innovative textile
solutions in healthcare.

Luciano Boesel, Empa (2018)

 Innovation process

Driving forces • Lack of willingness to inve

• Demographic factors
• Increase in chronic
diseases
• Environmental factors
• Construction of new
medical facilities
• Increasing customer
expectations
st in research projects (wait-
and-see approach)
• Few successes for private
use products
• Collaboration required
Limitations
 Non-
implantable Implantable

Applications
Hygienic Extra-
Material properties
products corporeal • Softness
• Lightness
• Flexibility
• Absorption
• Filtering
 MedTech market value

20BN $ in
Non- 2026
implantable Implantable CAGR 4,9%

Applications
Hygienic Extra-
products corporeal
12BN $ in
2016

Source : FMI (2017)

Case study:
Reflective heartbeat
sensor based on
polymer optical fibres
Empa (Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials
Science and Technology)

Zurich University Hospital

 Customer Problem Solution
• Hospitals • No capacity to monitor patients Flexible, individualized,
at all times and wearable sensors
for long-term measurement
• Current monitoring systems of heart rate.
• Patients with complex that detect developing wounds
health conditions are often obtrusive and can
lead to additional injuries
(pressure ulcer)
 How does it work?
Prototype of sensing hat
Sensing technique

Sensor while illuminated

(emission: red, detection: blue)
Back to Advanced Textiles
 What to expect in the nearest future?

• Global market from 160$ billion

today to 244$ billion in 2022
• MedTech and SportTech
lead the growth
• Catch-up by
developing countries
• Increasing certification issues
Thank you
for your attention!