Fashion & technology research Marina Toeters_20070807 master_thesis Fashion Design_MAHKU
	Intro	History	Field research	Experiments	Conclusion
	Summary: conclusion What are the conditions to implement more techno garments and processes on the commercial fashion market? Collaboration between fashion designers and technicians is needed for more fashionable technology on the commercial market. Before successful collaboration can be achieved, some pitfalls need to be solved. This can be done with a collaboration platform. by-wire.net continues the research and collaboration projects by creating a virtual place where technicians and designers liquidly fuse together and start truly interdisciplinary projects with added benefits to society. Make fashion innovative again and take responsibility in environmental issues by the implementation of fashionable technology on the commercial market.
1 Watanabe 2006 p233 citated by: Ginger Gregg Duggan 2006	History Technical innovations influenced fashion in history, especially in the production processes and, with that, textiles. But implementation of technical improvements takes much time since the 70’s. Watanabe memorize the fact that ‘in the 40 years after the invention of polyester, the audiovisual technology developed extremely, but fashion delivered nothing new.’1 It is likely that the next innovation wave will include synergy between all different branches and developments. I like to call it the wave of connections. This will influence the fashion world yet again.
	Future potentials There are major opportunities for technology in fashion for environmental issues, re-think fashion as communication tool and improved human protection. But there are some pitfalls that need to be cleared out before big-scale-implementation in the consumer world is possible.
	Pitfalls for the implementation of technology in the fashion market Technical and economical problems need to be solved by technicians and their managements. The uninteresting aesthetics and a lack of social relevant design concept in techno garments are also problematic. These two pitfalls together create the main pitfall: social acceptance. Fashion designers are educated from social perspective. Fashion designers think from the consumer’s point of view. How mankind emotionally adapts things through positive aesthetics, interesting design and placing it in a surrounding that fits in this time. The fashion branch has a tradition of stretching people’s minds to look more than up-to-date by consuming ‘newness’. That’s why they can create a much wider social acceptance. So, collaboration between the fields of fashion and technology can solve the pitfalls.
2 Matthijs Vertooren 2007 3 Ed van Hinte 2006 p246 4 Joke Robaard 2004 p10	Pitfalls in collaboration between fashion & technology Collaboration is difficult. Some experiments identify problems that appear along the way. Communication is hard. ‘For a successful collaboration you have to speak the same language.’2 This can be created by shared experiences and references or learned by education, but ‘understanding of technology is rapidly disappearing at design training institutions,’3 said Ed van Hinte. ‘Fashionable clothing hyperventilates.’4 Technical companies produce slower. They experience time completely different. Knowledge about this is essential without ending in a disappointment. Technical companies don’t like to work with several partners. Secrecy is everything! Last pitfall is that most companies focus either on (fashion) design or technical developments. It is difficult to create a collaborative design if you don’t physically work together. A collaboration platform can solve some pitfalls. by-wire want to create a place where technicians and designers fuse together and start truly interdisciplinary projects with added benefits to society.