As 3D-printing develops, fashion could be the next industry to benefit from this new technology. This will revolutionise fashion design in both a creative and sustainable way.
In modern life, technology is everywhere. Human dependence on it increases every day. 3D-printing is one of many technological innovations that have gained a lot of attention. The techniques are now being used in a variety industries, opening the door to creative possibilities.
The process of 3D printing (also known as additive manufacture) involves creating a physical product from a digital three-dimensional model. This digital model acts as the blueprint. The object’s construction is a layer-bylayer process. It is additive because thin layers of material are slowly built up to form the 3D object.
3D printing is part of a bigger group of digital manufacturing technologies that are powering the fourth industrial revolution – also known as Industry 4.0. Direct digital manufacturing, smart production and newer technologies such as artificial intelligence, advanced robotics and 3D printers are driving the fourth industrial revolution.
The concept of 3D printing was first envisioned in Japan in the 1980s by Dr. Hideo Kodama, who developed a way of ‘rapid prototyping’. He discovered a method of solidifying objects by layering material that was polymerised or solidified using UV light. This was a major breakthrough in product development, and it offered a glimpse of the future.
This technology has been around since the 1990s, but interest in it has only recently begun to increase. This new interest in 3D printing could be due to the advent of new technologies like artificial intelligence and Internet of Things sensors which help improve print speed and quality. The advantages that 3D printing can provide businesses include flexibility, cost-efficiency, quick designing, and minimal waste.
3D-printing is now everywhere. It’s used to make houses, food, and even organs.
The global market for 3D printers is rapidly expanding, with the growth being driven by applications in a wide range of industries including aerospace, healthcare, automotive, and defense.
Fashion and 3D Printing
The fashion industry has experimented with 3D printers for over a decade. Fashion designers strive to be on the cutting edge of innovation, and 3D printing gives them the tools necessary to produce the most innovative designs. Using this technology, many designers and brands are able to design items that may once have been a fantasy.
3D-printing was previously limited to art or haute couture in the fashion industry. Designers and artists created complex, unique and intricate geometric designs, which were restricted to catwalks and art exhibitions. As 3D printers become more accessible and capable, this limitation will change. Designers and inventors are now realising its potential and thinking of ways they can make it work at scale.
The first designer to experiment with 3D printing in fashion is fashion pioneer, researcher and designer, Danit Peleg, who made headlines in 2015 for being “the first designer in the world to create an entire collection using desktop 3D home printers for her graduate project at Shenkar College of Engineering and Design.”1 FilaFlex is a new filament that’s both strong and flexible. This was the breakthrough for her collection. Peleg’s first 3D-printed collection took over 2,000 hours to print and around 400 hours per outfit. Peleg’s passion for 3D printing has been recognised globally as she pushes to revolutionise fashion design and manufacturing and give birth to a new wave of sustainable fashion.
Since Peleg’s discovery, brands and designers globally have been experimenting with 3D printers, with designers now equipped with the tools to create the most challenging design concepts. Fashion designers and architects are collaborating with engineers, researchers and architects to reshape fashion’s future.
Iris Van Herpen from the Netherlands is another pioneer of 3D printing in fashion. Her designs were worn by Teyana Taylor and Winnie Harlow at the Met Gala of 2022. Van Herpen’s 3D printed designs have also been featured on the catwalks for Paris, where she teamed up with premium ice cream brand Magnum to design a vegan-inspired 3D printed haute couture dress. Both Van Herpen and Peleg are pushing the boundaries for 3D printing in fashion and are even looking at smaller printing machines that could be used in people’s homes.
Major fashion brands have also begun to experiment with the 3D-printing technology. In 2018, Nike developed the world’s first running shoe with 3D-printed uppers, worn by athlete Eliud Kipchoge in the London Marathon. Adidas and vegan fashion designer Stella McCartney have also shown interest, having partnered with 3D manufacturing specialist Carbon to produce their limited edition Stella McCartney x Adidas Alphaedge 4D shoe, which featured a 3D printed midsole, printed with Carbon’s Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) 3D printer.
How could 3D-printed fashion look in the future??
Imagine that a guest has been invited to dinner, but they cannot find any suitable clothes to wear. In today’s world, the guest would have to visit a store and purchase the latest trends. But this guest has access to a 3D-printer. They browse the web to find the outfits they want, download patterns, and then print them out at home.
The clothing would be made from raw materials such as ABS, PLA, or TPU, which could be continuously melted after use. The 3D printer would be compact and small enough to fit on a desk. These printers will start out expensive (complex 3D Printers can cost up to $500,000), but they should become cheaper as technology improves and fashion changes.
Fashion, Sustainability, and Benefits of 3D Printers
Fashion industry profits seem to be the primary concern, and fast fashion is the worst offender. Fast fashion brands, retailers and other companies obsessed with mass production produce clothing at an unprecedented pace, with no infrastructure to handle the textile waste generated around the globe. The current fashion model has serious implications for the stability and the future of our planet. This could be changed by 3D printing, which can mitigate some of the polluting practices of industries and allow fashion to coexist with more sustainable methods.
This futuristic 3D printing process would reduce online bulk ordering, textile waste, mass production and consumption. This process could offer a more sustainable alternative to the fashion world and a completely disruptive approach.
Benefits of 3D printing for sustainability
Reduces waste and cut-offs
Around 10-20% of textiles is wasted in garment manufacturing2. This ‘pre-consumer waste’ is generated through painting/ weaving, colour and prototyping errors, cutting room scraps and leftover materials. This is a large amount of waste, particularly when you consider that it can take 2,700 litres or water to produce one T-shirt.3. Due to its precision, 3D printing produces less waste than traditional manufacturing. Clothes can be produced with a certain amount of materials without having to worry about the volume or quantity of resources needed.
Son of a Tailor is a Danish clothing brand that is using 3D technology in order to reduce production waste. The brand created a 3D-knitted made-to order pullover that uses 3D technology. The brand has created a 3D knitted, made-to-order pullover that uses 3D technology to knit the product in one piece.
Promoting Upcycling Material
Currently, technology is not advanced enough to continuously recycle textile fibres, with a 2022 McKinsey Report stating, “less than one per cent of textile waste is fibre-to-fibre recycled due to several barriers to scale that need to be overcome.” One of these barriers surrounds the problem of recycling garments that are made from more than one material source.
Clothes could be 3D printed from materials that are both recyclable and degradable. The material from the clothes could be melted and reused to make the next outfit. Although this futuristic concept is still in its infancy, Julia Koerner from JK Design GmbH (a company specialising in digital design for 3D printing) believes it may be possible within the next few years.4.
Reduces raw Materials
The processes used to obtain raw materials for clothing are harmful to the environment. 3D printing has the potential to save 90 per cent on natural resources5The environment will benefit in an astronomical way. Plastic bottle waste could be used to create materials. For example, the American brand Ministry of Supply converted 1.2 million bottles of water into 3D filaments. This prevented them from being disposed of in landfills and saved 21 tonnes of CO2.2 From being emitted in the atmosphere.
Other Benefits of 3d Printing
Personalisation & Customisation
Customisation is one of the many benefits that 3D printing offers. The fact that each brand uses a different size chart means that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all solution. 3D printing poses the perfect solution for this as clothes can be personalised and designed for each consumer, adapting them to the individual customers’ needs. This would also mean that brands wouldn’t have to mass-produce items, as they could be created as the orders are received. Customers would also not be affected by products running out of stock because they can be produced after an order has been placed.
Creative Exploration & Fabric Innovation
The 3D printer makes the impossible possible. Designers can now create products they thought were too complicated or expensive. The 3D printer allows designers to create clothing with intricate patterns and detailed details.
Challenges Of 3D Printing
3D-printing is not without challenges. One of these problems, with 3D-printing in fashion, is the limited range of materials compatible with 3D Printers. The materials that are compatible with 3D printers include a lot of plastics, which can be toxic to the environment if they’re disposed off incorrectly. They also have an impact on air quality and health when they’re vaporised.
The material used for clothing is not comfortable and flexible, so it’s not suitable to wear casually. But researchers and innovators have been working hard to find comfortable, flexible fabrics that are easy to produce.
For 3D-printed clothing to take off, fashion’s entire paradigm will have to change. Currently, the fashion industry is based on mass-production and mass-consumption. To shift it to include on demand, customisable and recyclable products will take some time.
You can also read our conclusion.
3D printing provides the fashion industry with a feasible, efficient and sustainable way to produce clothes that mitigates many flaws of the industry’s intense production line. 3D-printed clothing is just beginning its journey. As more designers learn about the amazing opportunity 3D printers provide, 3D printed clothes will become more mainstream. As the fashion industry transforms to meet new demands, such as sustainability and circularity in the world, 3D printers could be a crucial part of this transformation.