Smart Textiles (english)

SMART TEXTILES

THE IMPOSSIBLE IS ONLY A CHALLENGEWITH THE HELP OF SMART TEXTILES, RENATA CHLUMSKA WILL BE THE FIRST SWEDISH WOMAN IN SPACE

KNITTED BLOOD VESSELSTextiles that save lives

SHIRT RECHARGES YOUR CELLSoon you will be able to take a walk and recharge your cellphone at the same time

METAL ON THE CATWALK Nhu Duong uses one of five machines in the world

SMART TEXTILES IS A PART OF:

EDITORIAL STAFFSusanne Nejderås and Therese Rosenblad Ericsson, Smart Textiles, University of Borås.Elof Ivarsson and Pia Silver, PWR Communication.LAYOUT & PRODUCTIONPWR Communication. www.pwr.seCOVER PHOTOIda Lindström.

PUBLISHER:Erik Bresky, University of Borås.

THE IMPOSSIBLE IS ONLY A CHALLENGE

WITH THE HELP OF SMART TEXTILES, RENATA CHLUMSKA WILL BE THE FIRST SWEDISH WOMAN IN SPACE

SPACE: THE FINAL FRONTIER...

Fabrics that purify water using nothing but the sun as an energy source. Clothes that can take an EKG or become cool at extreme temperatures.The textiles of the future will improve people’s everyday lives and benefit the industry, the health care sector and the environment. The textile industry is about to takea giant step from being a supplier of fabrics to become a positive force in the development of society. Smart Textiles is the place where textile innovations are created

in Northern Europe, from experimental research to company driven projects. With over 350 research and company driven projects since its foundation in 2006,Smart Textiles has not only established itself as a motor in the Swedish textile industry but also as an important international player.

EDITORIAL STAFFSusanne Nejderås and Therese Rosenblad Ericsson, Smart Textiles, University of Borås.Elof Ivarsson and Pia Silver, PWR Communication.LAYOUT & PRODUCTIONPWR Communication. www.pwr.seCOVER PHOTOIda Lindström.

PUBLISHER:Erik Bresky, University of Borås.

”Research& development of smart textiles create unique opportunities for Sweden.”

From a global perspective, the textile industry and the trade with textile and fashion products is one of the largest and most diverse businesses.

Today, the textile field is so much more than just fabrics and clothes. Textiles are used for applications ranging from e.g. reinforcement materials in composite materials used in air-planes and sound absorbing walls to advanced textile blood vessels (more about this on page 68). Quality requirements increase constantly, new materials are developed all the time and new applications are continuously identified, not least by the Smart Textiles Initiative.

Despite harsh international competition, Sweden is still home to world-leading research and businesses in textile and fa-shion. The textile materials also bring new, exciting business ventures to life. The ability to find products aimed at speci-fic market niches and being unique is crucial to success. High technology and world-leading quality awareness makes the Swedish textile industry an industry for the future.

Smart Textiles is a unique research environment, offering eve-rything from research on fiber technology to aesthetics: a re-search area that has no peer in the Nordic countries. Smart Textiles creates opportunities for the industry to develop new materials, fibers and processes that can be used to meet futu-re demands for new solutions and green products.

What characterizes the success of the Smart Textiles Ini-tiative is a clear view of the objective, namely promoting the creation of new businesses, new jobs and new, innovative textile products. In order to succeed, businesses, research-ers and other players have to dedicate themselves to working together. Research and development of smart textiles create unique opportunities for Sweden. Today, 60,000 people work in the Swedish textile industry and Swedish textile busines-ses employ many more in other parts of the world. The export value of the Swedish textile industry amounted to around 19 billion SEK in 2012.

In this magazine you are given the opportunity to read more about the exciting journey of Smart Textiles, its projects and co-workers. Smart Textiles know no boundaries!

Ola Toftegaard, Chairman of the Smart Textiles Steering Group.

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CONTENTS

LIGHTER THAN AIR, STRONGER THAN KRYPTONITE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9

BORÅS STUDENT IN ITALIAN VOGUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

MEJT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

OLA SALO IN KNITTED COPPER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

KNIGHT OF TRUE RESEARCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-15

SMART TEXTILES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-17

CLOTHING FOR EXTREME CONDITIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

TEXTILE REINFORCEMENT LIGHTENS THE WORK LOAD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

A SMARTER CATWALK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-23

SMART TEXTILES TECHNOLOGY LABElectrically conductive fibers, interactive textiles, textile integrated medical electronics, textile acoustics, phase-change fibers, textile photonics. Taste the words; these are some of the research areas . . . . . . . . . 24-28

FEWER VISITS FOR HEART PATIENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

SHIRT RECHARGES YOUR CELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

INVISIBLE HELMET SOON TO BE SMART TEXTILE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

SMART TEXTILES PROTOTYPE FACTORYFull-scale labs with top competence, creativity and networking in an open, innovative environment. This is center is the obvious place to go to realize ideas and for development through prototype construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30-35

THE RELUCTANT BORÅSER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36-39

QUALITY OF LIFE IN A DRESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

THE FEELING OF NOT HAVING TO BE EMBARRASSED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

WOVEN ELECTRODES PROTECT PRETERM BABIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

CLONED FROGS ON GALA-DRESS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

LADY GAGA IN IRONIC FURS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

MODEINK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

RECURRING PATTERNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44-45

THE IMPOSSIBLE IS ONLY A CHALLENGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46-49

SMART TEXTILES DESIGN LABSmart Textiles Design Lab turns textile traditions and concepts upside down through experimental research on new, expressive materials and construc-tion methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50-55

MISSION POSSIBLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56-59

SMART TEXTILES SHOWROOM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60-61

HIDDEN SMART TEXTILES ON THE CATWALK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62-63

EXPLORER OF TEXTILE INNOVATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64-67

KNITTED BLOOD VESSEL TAKES SHAPE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

TEXTILE DISK WILL INCREASE MOBILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

A TEXTILE THAT EXPANDS BLOOD VESSELS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

MANY WHO VISITED BORÅS WERE NEVER HERE . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70-75

THE DUTCH CONNECTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76-79

RECYCLED WASTE BECOMES NEW TEXTILE MATERIALS . . . . . . 81

IKEA BELIEVES IN THE POWER OF INNOVATION . . . . . . . 80-81

TEXTILE FASHION CENTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82-85

SMART TEXTILES PROJECTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86-89

SMART TEXTILES STEERING GROUP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90-91


– I want to be the first! Mons Huygens is 5,500 meters

high and the tallest mountain on the Moon. It is only a

matter of time until someone climbs it and puts up a flag on

the summit, says Renata Chlumska. It would be marvelous

if I was that someone. PAGES 46-49

LIGTHER THAN AIR, STRONGER THAN KRYPTONITE

Race bikes, golf clubs, F1 cars, airplanes, car bumpers,

snowboards, sailboat masts or hockey sticks. The echoes

of the creation of an exciting innovation for carbon fiber

materials will resound in many places. PAGES 8-9

SMART TEXTILES HIDDEN ON THE CATWALK

Designer Nhu Duong always strives to explore new

materials. Together with Smart Textiles, she developed

trailblazing creations for the catwalk at Stockholm Fashion

Week 2012. PAGES 62-63

KNITTED BLOOD VESSEL TAKES SHAPE

Within a year after having had bypass surgery, one third of

the patients suffer another blockage of the blood vessel. It

is hoped that Ygraft, a uniquely designed textile blood vessel,

will solve this problem. PAGE 68

KNIGHT OF TRUE RESEARCH

– I’m proud of the fact that there’s no use at all for the

things we do, Lars Hallnäs says with an unexpected,

mischievous smile. Lars is a Professor in Design at The

Swedish School of Textiles and although the School itself

does not require research to be useful, he is also the Head

of the Smart Textiles Design Lab and initiator of the entire

Smart Textiles Initiative, the main idea of which is to

work with applied design research. PAGES 12-15

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Race bikes, golf clubs, F1 cars, airplanes, car bumpers, snowboards,sailboat masts or hockey sticks.

Lighter than air stronger than Kryptonite

The echoes of the creation of an exciting innovation for carbon fiber materials will resound in many places. This is no secret to Nandan Khokar, who is a Professor in Textile Technology for Composite Materials at The Swedish School of Textiles but who has his roots in India. He is an internationally renowned pioneer in 3D Weaving, Tape Weaving and Noobing processes, which are used in the manufacturing of advanced carbon fiber reinforcements by the companies Biteam och Oxeon.

Dr Nandan Khokar’s research was eventually developed into a business concept and in 2003 laid the foundation for the Borås-based company Oxeon, which since has become a lea-ding player in the industry. Despite the financial crisis, the business has grown rapidly over the past few years and in 2010, Oxeon received the DI Gasell Award as the fastest growing business in Sweden.

One cannot complain Oxeon’s customers fail to distinguish themselves. All of the teams who have won in F1 over the past few years use Oxeon’s materials, which have become all but standard materials today because they are ultralight and super strong. The reigning America’s Cup champion Oracle is a satisfied customer. As is the winning team of the Tour de France.

The list of collaborations around extreme requirements on strength and low weight is long and customers are found all over the globe, in North America, Asia and Europe. Oxeon continues to expand into new business areas, including e.g. the space, automotive and aviation industries, as well as the marine world.

PHOTO: OXEON.

The list of collaborations around extreme requirements on strength and low weight is long and customers are found

all over the globe, in North America, Asia and Europe.

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1 BORÅS STUDENT IN ITALIAN VOUGE Ida Klamborn has received a lot of attention

for her all red graduation collection. She won

the ”Italian Fabric Award” in the Italian fashion

competition MittelModa and her design has

been displayed in both Vogue and Elle.

PHOTO: Isa Jacob.

2 MEjT Did she come up with the idea of hidden

pockets on the island in Survivor? Susanne

Rittedal Söderblom has designed a belt with

a holder for the cellphone in a material that

protects the body from radiation. The result of

her collaboration with Smart Textiles has now

been marketed and allows you to carry your

cellphone both neatly and safely.

www.mejt.se PHOTO: Henrik Bengtsson.

3 OLA SALO IN KNITTED COPPER For the recording of the Swedish version of

The Voice, the stylist borrowed garments from

Josefin Strid, a former student at The Swedish

School of Textiles. And among the borrowed

garments, her knitted copper pants. Ola Salo,

who was one of the participants in the show,

fell in love with them and wore them during his

appearance. Here, shown during the Stockholm

Fashion Week. PHOTO: Kristian Loveborg.

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KNIGHT OF TRUE RESEARCH

TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PHOTO: IDA LINDSTRÖM. MATHEMATICAL FORMULA AND MUSIC: LARS HALLNÄS.

It is not true and you must not write that in the article, he insists. However, the statement speaks of his attitude, his strong opinions and the burning passion he harbors under-neath a calm, intellectual surface. Basic research and edu-cation must be defended with tooth and nail and prevented from being watered down by compromises and commercial concerns.

Lars is a Professor in Design at The Swedish School of Texti-les and although the School itself does not require research to be useful, he is also the head of the Smart Textiles Design Lab and initiator of the entire Smart Textiles Initiative, the main idea of which is to work with applied design research. Contrary to his ambivalence towards utilitarian research, which may appear somewhat odd in this light, Lars is convin-ced the professional role of the textile designer is about to face a radical change.– With changes on our doorstep, depth of knowledge is more important than ever. There are so many things the textile designers of the future will have to learn and that is the re-ason the education needs to be continuously updated, says Lars Hallnäs. For us to be able to do so in a sensible way, the research organization of the department must function properly.

He thinks the most important channels between the busi-ness community and academia are the obvious ones, e.g.

that’s is only natural for design students with positive ex-periences from the University to return to it to make use of the resources and knowledge available there. The field of smart textiles draws a lot of attention today. A double- edged sword in Lars’s opinion.– It is very difficult to make predictions about the future and we should not do so lightly. Right now, many things revolve around technology, but the consequences of this development on the field of textile design has yet to be determined, Lars says.

– We must allow this to take time, results do not always arrive overnight. And not always from where we expect them to. The three branches of research in logics I found le-ast useful for practical purposes twenty years ago are all of them used in Wall Street today to control stock trade robots, Lars continues.

It is possible to draw a parallel to the artificial intelligen-ce hype of the mid-1980s. Vast amounts of money and ex-pectations were invested in AI, but when the results did not arrive as quickly as they had been promised, investors ran out of steam. Despite this, we see the results of that rese-arch in iPads and advanced cellphones. It may take some time, why all involved parties must be patient and conti-nue to make investments in order to see progress, is Lars’s message. »

– I’m proud of the fact that there’s no use at all for the things we do, Lars Hallnäs says with an unexpected,

mischievous smile. Then he flushes and takes it all back.

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Anyone who imagined a Professor to be vain, dressing in black and with that avant-garde look, will surely be surprised when meeting Lars in person. He looks more like a typical professor and his personality is very far from the stereoty-pes we face in e.g. Project Runway. But then, his background is quite unexpected, as well. Lars hasn’t designed a single garment or textile in his life.

He started his artistic career in the late 1960s by composing music at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm and the Malmö Academy of Music. Since then, Lars has been active as a composer of artistic music. The sound of this genre lies far from that of popular music. He sees himself more as a free artist than a musician. However, Lars’s career chang-ed direction abruptly as he began studying theoretical phi-losophy at Stockholm University. When he was awarded a Doctor’s Degree in Mathematical Logics in 1983, few be-lieved that knowledge would be of any practical use.– A few of my colleagues laughed and asked me what I would do for a living, Lars reminisces. When I returned to the department of philosophy a year later, I was the one laughing.

The fifth generation of computers had just arrived and mathematical logics happens to be the foundation of compu-ter science. All of a sudden, people with expertise in this ob-scure subject were sought after high and low. Lars ended up at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, where he worked with computer science for eighteen years. The

connection to textile design is not exactly crystal clear from a layman’s perspective.– It’s not all that strange. Developing a computer language is primarily about design, says Lars Hallnäs.

He explains that mathematics is largely about creating worlds of ideas for the mathematician to explore. Thus, ha-ving an ability to visualize ideas is extremely important when working with higher mathematics. The ability to write for-mulas that can carry the visualization across time and space is mainly about graphic design and good aesthetics.– If you talk to a mathematician, you will often hear him say that although a specific formula may be valid, he doesn’t care for it because it’s so ugly, Lars says.

At the turn of the millennium, a wave of exciting research in interaction design reached the world from the new Me-dia Lab at the prestigious American university MIT. The point was that design and art had become increasingly important as commercial factors and Apple was only one example of this. Once again, Lars was in the right place, with the right knowledge profile, at the right time when the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research started the PLAY studio in Gothenburg. At the studio, he worked with all things digital that were considered play and games rather than ”IT at work”. After two years it was time to move on. At the PLAY studio, Lars had met a textile desig-ner from The Swedish School of Textiles, Linda Worbin. Lars wanted to move to a more artistic field of work, closer to

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where he had began his career at the Malmö Academy of Mu-sic, why he found The Swedish School of Textiles appealing.– My family didn’t exactly love the idea! My wife, who does a lot of weaving herself, found it difficult to see of what use I would be at the School, Lars says. In my view, all artistic work requires design. And vice versa. Also, I brought with me my conviction to prepare students for a professional career. As a composer, I have learned that you can’t fake a single thing if you expect an orchestra to play your music. Professionalism is about knowing the ropes well.

Lars came to The Swedish School of Textiles with new eyes and identified two areas he wanted to focus on – smart textiles and fashion design. How would he be able to de-velop the approach to design and see the future in broader terms? The goal was to find solutions that would last for generations. Since 2002, when Lars Hallnäs was appointed Professor, the expansion of design research in Borås has been explosive: from zero to fourteen doctoral students. It was Lars’s idea to have the Smart Textiles project become an innovation environment. He had the vision, he wrote the application for research grants, and the rewards were not long in coming: attention at the European level was not the least of them. In Europe, the name Borås is recognized and held in high regard. One example of that is ArcInTex, an in-ternational network for architecture, interaction design and textiles that was initiated by the Smart Textiles Initiative in Borås.– Ten years ago, we wouldn’t have stood a chance to have all the major players join in on this kind of project, says Lars Hallnäs. Today, it’s the most natural thing in the world. A change of immense proportions, naturally. Lars thinks this change will be even more pronounced as the Smart Textiles Initiative goes on to the next level through the creation of the Textile Fashion Center. It is a groundbreaking effort to promote development of the next generation of smart texti-

les and it is important to have several different perspectives for every idea. The new buildings and arenas will bring a con-centration of thoughts and meetings.– With so many talented co-workers and doctoral students, I can’t but see the potential and I want to take it all as far as I possibly can, Lars says. At present there are unique pos-sibilities to initiate exciting projects. The pioneering spirit of the Wild West comes to mind – just pick a piece of uncharted land and set to exploring it.

Smart Textiles is incredibly important for the textile deve-lopment of the entire Västra Götaland region, Lars says with complete conviction. There are many important connections to Gothenburg: through the health care sector, the automo-tive industry and in many other areas. In twenty years time much good will come to the region, which is to become a textile cluster. Although we have already put Borås on the international map, the future will be even better.– One important factor of success is a supply of well-trained people and we promote that fact at the moment. If there’s anything I’m extra proud of, it’s all the competent research-ers and doctoral students, says Lars Hallnäs. However, we must continue investing in them, otherwise it will be difficult to remain successful and competitive in the future.

Lars sighs and looks genuinely worried despite the fact that everything points to a bright future for the Smart Textiles Initiative. He is not called the Pessimist by his colleagues for nothing! ■

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”If you talk to a mathematician,you will often hear him say that although a specific formula may be valid, he does not care for it because it is so ugly.”

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SMART TEXTILESFabrics that purify water using nothing but the sun as energy source. Clothes that can take an EKG or become cool at extreme temperatures. Smart textiles that revolutionizes our lives.

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Licentiate/Doctor’s degrees 22

Products 36

Prototypes 83

Businesses 29

MADE, CREATED AND INITIATED WITHIN SMART TEXTILES

The textile industry is about to take a giant step from being a supplier of fabrics to become a positive force in the de-velopment of society. Textile innovations improve people’s everyday lives and benefit the industry, the health care se-ctor and the environment.

However, innovations do not spring from nothing. It takes an open environment where people from many different backgrounds are allowed to meet and involve in open-en-ded communication to find both sought-after and unexpec-ted solutions. Smart Textiles is that innovation environ-ment in Northern Europe. Today, the research community,

the business community, institutions and the public sector come together to find the solutions of the future. As the Smart Textiles Initiative offers a complete solution inclu-ding everything from basic research to prototype develop-ment, it is the natural partner for realizing textile ideas or meeting a need with textile technology.

With over 350 research and company driven projects since the foundation of the Initative in 2006, Smart Textiles has not only become a motor for the textile industry in Sweden but an important player on the international arena.

105Architecture & Interior Design144

OpenApplications

37 Sports& PPE

72Medical& Health

DISTRIBUTION OF PROjECTS

DESIGN LAB

BuSINESS INNOvAtION

tECHNOLOGY LAB

PrOtOtYPEfACtOrY

1717

358 RESEARCH AND COMPANY DRIVEN PROJECTS

38 RESEARCHERS

3 850 SQUARE METERS OF LABS

181 PARTNERS

= SMART TEXTILES

Smart Textiles is the natural partner for realizing textile ideas or meeting a need with textile technology. Over 350 research and company driven projects have been carried since the Smart Textiles Initative was founded in 2006.

THE SMART TEXTILES INITIATIVE is an environment built up around

close collaborations between the University of Borås, SP

Technical Research Institute of Sweden, Swerea IVF and the

Inkubator in Borås. Its main financiers are Vinnova, Region

Västra Götaland and the Sjuhärad Association of Local Autho-

rities. Smart Textiles is also funded by Sparbanksstiftelsen

Sjuhärad and other research financiers.

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Clothesfor extreme conditions A textile protective suit that is comfortable to wear and able to withstand water jets strong enough to cut through concrete. A cooling vest for extreme temperatures that has become a sales success for all kinds of professio-nals, from smoke divers and topathletes to musical artists.

Textile innovations by the small product development com-pany TST in Kinna, have achieved major international succes-ses. With the help of Smart Textiles, where Swerea IVF is a major partner.– We don’t think it’s necessary to keep all knowledge in-hou-se. Instead, we find partners and experts. From that point of view, Smart Textiles has been extremely important to the success of the projects, says Jörgen Lillieroth, CEO at TST Sweden.

Together, they have developed a protective suit that is com-fortable and easy to put on, unlike the suits in the market, and one that doesn’t compromise safety. Hydroblasting is a common method of removing rust from e.g. oil platforms and ships. The jets are so strong that they can cut through con-crete, why the safety precautions around this kind of work is often extensive.– If one doesn’t wear sufficient protection, the jets will do devastating damage, most often to arms and legs, Jörgen Lillieroth says.

Another success is TEMPTECH, cooling and heating elements made in a Phase Change Material (PCM), which have been developed to meet the widely varying needs of e.g. a surgeon who operates for six hours and a skier who plods through

snow in -10 ∞C. The key to success is that the PCM mate-rials and garments have been developed for optimal func-tion in a variety of situations. The products have found a

large international market. The customers come mainly from Northern Europe, but Japanese industries and

the US military can also be found on the list. Owing to the international success, the company has hired several new co-workersand the future looks bright.– Ideas for new ways of using TEMPTECH pop up all the time. Recently, someone suggested using it for blankets used to help horses cool off, says Jörgen Lillieroth.

PHOTO: www.tst-sweden.se

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Today, concrete reinforced with textile materials is a quite uncommon building material in Sweden. Designer johan Forsberg has taken this type of reinforcement one step closer to reality.

Many people in Sweden are probably familiar with his design: his grandfather’s clock ”Urbild” is one of the props of the TV4 program Nyhetsmorgon and is often visible in the background behind the show hosts. However, concrete is a difficult mate-rial to work with, mostly because it is so heavy. This is partly due to the material in itself, but also because holding it to-gether requires steel reinforcement.– I contacted Smart Textiles a few years ago because I wan-ted to access all knowledge there was about textile reinfor-cement. As it turned out, almost no research had been done

on the subject in Sweden and all of a sudden we had started a project together with SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden and CBI Swedish Cement and Concrete Research Institute, Johan Forsberg says.

According to the CBI, chances are good this research can be used in different areas of the construction industry. Practical uses of textile reinforcement include all the non-load bearing parts of a house. Johan Forsberg already uses the innovation for his designs. – I needed textile reinforcement to be able to introduce a slimmer design for my products and today I have it. We use the material for one of our tables and we have been able to reduce the thickness of the table top considerably. Now, it weighs about half as much as it did originally.

Textile reinforcement lightens the work load PHOTO: Henrik Bengtsson.

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In the making of the collection Ateljé SS13, the Ann-Sofie Back brand made use of the Knitting Lab at The Swedish School of Textiles as part of a collaboration with the Smart Textiles Prototype Factory.

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Various kinds of advanced knitting techniques were used to develop materials inspired by sports tube socks.

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Electrically conductive fibers, interactive textiles, textile integrated medicalelectronics, textile acoustics, phase-change fibers, textile photonics. Taste the words; these are some of the research areas at Technology Lab.

TECHNOLOGY LAB

PHOTO: Henrik Bengtsson.

Electrically conductive fibersIn creating smartness, electronics is perhaps the best tool. Electronics require electrically conductive materials. Mas-tery of the manufacturing process of such materials is the essence of all research in smart textiles. At Tech Lab, manu-facturing electrically conductive fibers is a major research area in which several different groups of researchers work and several technologies are applied. Common to them all is the creation of polymer-based or carbon-based materials, i.e. not the traditional, metal-based ones. The focus of the research is melt-spinning, where conductive polymers or carbon is mixed and melted together with fiber-forming poly-mers such as polyester and then fed at high speed through a spinneret with microscopic holes. The fiber strands solidifies rapidly and are simultaneously drawn out to become a con-ductive yarn that can be used for weaving or knitting.

Smart Textiles Technology Lab Within Smart Textiles, it is at the affectionately nicknamed Tech Lab that innovative, technolo-gical progress is made, owing to an open and inspiring academic environment. The lab aims to become the natural hub for development of technical textiles in the Nordic countries.

The research carried out is characterized by collaborations across disciplines and companies and also by the clear objec-tive of creating new generations of textile products. In turn, technological development through experimental research will be driven by experimental product design, where product ideas become tools for asking questions, creating solutions and finding applications.

Technology Lab was established in collaboration with a large number of national and international partners in order to maximize the supply of possible solutions and new perspecti-ves. At Tech Lab, the University of Borås collaborates through The Swedish School of Textiles and the School of Engineering, Swerea IVF through the department Textiles and Plastics, the SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden and Chalmers University of Technology through the Department of Materi-als and Manufacturing Technology, research profile Polymer Materials and Composites.

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Textile acoustics Today, it is highly interesting to be able to utilize the sound-affecting properties of textile materials in order to create comfortable acoustic conditions in-doors. Textiles allow development of more flexible solutions for sound absorption.

Current research focuses on what happens at the acoustic level when textiles are brought into a room. Where should textile sound-absorbing elements be placed for a teacher to be heard? Which fibers to use? How thin can one make the textile and still maintain comfortable sound levels? How does one construct such textiles? The research at Tech Lab focuses on creating better environments using textiles with sound-affecting properties. Here, the current paradigm is abandoned, i.e that sound absorbing properties alone are enough. Instead, other parameters that describe sound quality are studied. For example, it is important for a teacher to be heard all the way to the students at the back of the classroom. Many Swedish companies work with textile acoustics today, why the research is highly relevant.

Water purificationTextiles are large, two-dimensional, inexpensive, soft, flexible and fluffy. What can those properties be used for? For one thing, a system for purifying water. Photocatalysis is a process in which chemical reactions that are harmful to microorganisms occur when certain substances, such as tita-nium dioxide, are exposed to light. The organisms are broken down and become harmless. A textile is coated with titanium dioxide and then put in water. If one allows it to be exposed to sunlight, the system is run entirely on solar energy. At Tech Lab, the design of these water purification systems and the rational creation of a functioning product for manufacture are researched. Today, one of the greatest global issuesconcerns access to clean water. This research was initiated

not least with low income countries in mind.


Fiber optics The principle is really simple: a pulse of light is sent through one end and arrives at the other, virtually unaffected by the distance in between. Modern broadband communication is built on fiber optics. However, fiber optics can also be used to take readings of the surrounding world. A change in tem-perature, pH value, pressure or strain along the optical fiber will change the signal and a sensor can gauge that change. Textiles are per definition constructed of fibers, why the

idea to combine textiles with fiber optics readily suggested itself. At Tech Lab, work is done to create two-dimensional, flexible sensors for measuring temperatures or pressure for a large surface. Sensors are created through weaving, embroidery and lamination and for use in industrial heat monitoring, chemical discharge monitoring, wound care, vibration monitoring in buildings, etc.

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TECHNOLOGY LAB

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Shirt recharges your cellTake a walk and let your shirt recharge your cell-phone. This scenario may soon become a reality as Smart Textiles researcher Anja Lund has created a fiber that produces electricity when it is exposed to movement.

The phenomenon is called piezoelectricity and simply put means that mechanical movements are converted into electricity. Although various materials possess this pro-perty naturally, e.g. quartz and various ceramic materials, Anja Lund wanted to find out if it was possible to apply this principle on textile materials when she started her research a few years ago together with the Fiber Technology team at Swerea IVF.

Anja sees future uses in e.g. the health care sector, where the fibers could easily be integrated in clothes and used to monitor heartbeats.

Fewer visits for heart patientsTextile electrodes embedded in clothes are as accurate as traditional electrodes when monitoring the heart

and for measuring body composition, e.g. weight, body fat, muscle mass and hydration level. This is shown by research conducted by Smart Textiles at the University of Borås and the KTH Royal

Institute of Technology. Traditional electrodes need the attention of trained medical staff to be attached correctly using a conductive gel, which is sometimes allergenic.

Garments with embedded electrodes that are easily used by the patient him/herself and that can be worn for long periods of time are beneficial

both for the patient and the health care institution. And decrease the costs of health care.


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INVISIBLE HELMETSOON TO BE SMART TEXTILE

When news of the Hövding helmet was

released in the fall of 2010, the world

reeled. Media from all over the world

wanted to know if it was true – had a

Swedish company really developed an

”invisible” helmet? The success was a

fact and version 2.0 of the helmet, in

which smart textiles will be included,

is already being planned.

The Hövding helmet is called invisible

because it is only a helmet when it needs

to. Normally, it is worn as a collar and

when an accident occurs, it reacts much

like an airbag and becomes a helmet.

Behind the innovation and the company

named Hövding, we find Anna Haupt and

Terese Alstin.

During the development of the helmet

they came in contact with Smart Textiles.

They began as a business driven project

aimed at integrating the electronics used

in the helmet through textiles.

– The process were too far gone to in-

corporate it in the first version. However,

in Hövding 2.0 we will exchange the

electrical components for cloth with

silver threads to increase the flexibility

of the helmet, says Anna Haupt.

PHOTO: www.hovding.se

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SMART TEXTILES

PROTOTYPE FACTORYFull-scale labs with top competence, creativity and networking

in an open, innovative environment. This is center is the obvious

place to go to realize ideas and for development through prototype

construction. In the labs at The Swedish School of Textiles,

research experience is combined with familiarity with the demands

of productization and manufacturing solutions. Potential partners

apply and the most exciting projects are selected for realization.

DESIGNLAB

BUSINESS INNOVATION

TECHNOLOGYLAB

PROTOTYPEFACTORY

PHOTO: Ida Lindström.

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THE KNITTING LAB

This is the place for developing elas-

tic materials on both circular knitting

machines and flat knitting machines.

Owing to our dedicated technicians,

there is no need to be an expert in

tricot to be able to realize your ideas.

Fabrics are made in circular knitting

machines and in the Knitting Lab, you

are able to make double/interlock

jersey with large and small patterns

and also rib, plush and single jersey of

varying thickness. There is also the

option to work in stiff materials, such

as metals, in a special machine of

which there are only five in the world.

The Weaving Lab also has hand knit-

ting machines for flat knitting, al-

lowing you to test different construc-

tions. Fully fashioned prototypes of

sweaters, gloves, blood vessels and

other items are made in flat knitting

machines. The construction is first

designed in a computer program and

then transferred to the machine,

which is able to knit three-dimensi-

onal shapes in both stiff and elastic

yarns.

Examples of developed materials and applications

Synthetic blood vessels, metal cloth-

ing, technical materials used in

medical measurement

devices.

PROTOTYPE FACTORY OUR LABS

THE WEAVING LAB

In this lab, new construction ideas

are tested using both computer gui-

ded and manual looms, but also in the

many types of weaving machines in

our machine park. Several construc-

tion and pattern-making possibilities

are available, such as mechanical

and electronic Jacquard and dob-

by machines. It is possible to make

anything from terrycloth and carpets

to technical textiles and our skilled

technicians will guide you in choice

of materials and construction techni-

ques. The lab gives you the opportuni-

ty to weave in almost any yarn on the

market, from cotton to optical fibers.


Medical applications made in heavy

materials, materials that glow in the

dark. Phase-Change Materials (PCM).

DESIGNLAB

BUSINESS INNOVATION

TECHNOLOGYLAB

PROTOTYPEFACTORY

PROTOTYPE FACTORYPrototype Factory is the heart of the Smart Textiles Initiative. Here, all the parts of and competences of the Initia-tive come together. Researchers, desig-ners and the business community are all able to test and realize their dreams according to their own requirements. The full-scale laboratory is also what distinguishes and makes Smart Textiles unique in an international perspective: it provides the opportunity to take an idea all the way from vision to reality. Mem-bers of the business community come here if they don’t know how to realize their product ideas, if they lack the ne-cessary equipment, or if they want to perform tests without interrupting re-gular production. The most exciting pro-jects are selected and realized with the aim to create marketable innovations. Here, the experimental research condu-cted within Smart Textiles is also tested and students from The Swedish School of Textiles are given relevant and advan-ced training that will prove to be very important to their future professional careers. The technical staff possesses absolute top competence and together, the fourteen staff members represent a total of 351 years’ experience in the textile trade. A world-class offer, indeed.

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PHOTO: Ida Lindström.

THE PRINTING LABIn this lab, developing a print is done either by screen printing, transfer printing or digital printing. Digital printers use reactive inks for prints on cellulose-based fibers and on silk and wool. Transfer prints are made by printing the pattern in a printer using sublimation inks. The color is then transferred using a heat press. In screen printing, a screen is made from a sketch. Long printing tables enable flat bed prin-ting of textiles up to ten meters in length. There are a number of dif-ferent printing techniques available such as devore, resist and dischar-ge. If you are looking to develop pleated materials, there is a plea-ting cabinet that can be heated to 140°C. After printing you will able to fix the prints in a large oven whe-re materials can either be hung on a rack or fixed in a steam tube dryer.


Materials that change colors and patterns at different temperatures.

THE SEWING LABThe Sewing Lab is a sewing factory in miniature. It has machines for all kinds of seams and materials such as knitted, woven, leather, fur, underwear, swimwear. There are also ultrasonic welders, taping machines and sewing machines for double lock-stitch, overlock, over- edge stitch, covering chain-stitch, buttonholes, lap-seam, flat-seam and safety stitch. The latest ac-quisition is an ultra-sonic welder, which joins materials by melting the different layers of materials using ultrasound, i.e. not by needle and thread. This causes the weld to become completely water-proof and so smooth it does not irritate the skin. Technicians with back-grounds in production instruct and

offer smart solutions.


Custom production of various ma-terials for the health care sector

and the world of sports.

THE FINISHING LABIf you are looking to develop pro-ducts and ideas within textile che-mistry, the Finishing Lab presents you with unique opportunities. Among other things, you will be able to perform pilot studies in a 25-55 cm wide stenter with two heaters, which is adapted to industrial pro-duction. The stenter is equipped to be able to coat materials using different techniques such as knife- coating with paste or foam. It is possible to print a single-color pat-tern through rotary screen printing. The stenter is also equipped with a padder, which means impregnation of textiles. There is also a dyeing machine for dyeing, pre-treatment and finishing of fabrics and garments of smaller sizes and in the small dy-eing machines in our lab it is possible to do the same treatments for tex-tiles up to ten grams. There is also the option of impregnating small material samples in a padder and fix them in the stenter. Skilled and en-gaged technicians will help you find solutions and handle the machines.


Materials that change colors and patterns at different temperatures

and lighting conditions.

PROTOTYPE FACTORY OUR LABS

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PROTOTYPE FACTORY 4 OUT OF 86 PROJECTS

THE T-SHIRT SENSES YOUR MOTIONS The sensor t-shirts have been developed as

medical aids, primarily to be used for diagnosing neurological disorders such as epilepsy

or Parkinson’s disease. The motion sensing system, which has been developed by Acreo

Sensor Systems, registers the wearer’s motions and the information helps the doctor

decide on the correct treatment of the patient. Photo: Henrik Bengtsson.

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WATER-PROOF AND HARMLESS? In order to make clothing water-repellent, producers

today often use environmentally harmful fluorocarbons as components in the finishing. In order

to avoid using substances that are harmful to the environment, Smart Textiles and the company

OrganoClick, which has an environmentally friendly profile, and the retailers Klättermusen, Haglöfs,

Houdini, Norröna and Bergans develop alternative treatments. By collaborating with suppliers,

other members of the industry and Swerea IVF, the project will create alternatives that are both

competitive and meet high demands on function, safety and environmental friendliness.

jACKET THAT CHANGES COLORS The jacket is designed by Jesper Danielsson

and made in a Gore Tex material coated with a mix of thermochromic (heat sensitive)

and fluorescent pigments. At temperatures above 27°C, the fabric changes color. In

addition, the jacket is not been sewn but welded together with an ultrasonic welder.

PHOTO: Håkan Lindgren.

PROTOTYPE FACTORY 4 OUT OF 86 PROJECTS

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PROjECT 1609

by Textile Design student

Linnea Nilsson. A lamp consisting

of 1609 knitted metal fingers,

shaped and sewn together

by hand.

THE KNITTING LAB

Lars Brandin 36 years

Continued development of skills and experience in using and experimenting with new materials.

Kristian Rödby 29 years

Every project is exciting and challenging.

Tommy Martinsson 44 years

He who will not try, will never know.

A total of 109 years’ experience

THE WEAVING LAB

Roger Högberg 41 years

Fredrik Wennersten 24 years

We have woven in materials not even the manufacturer of the machine had thought of or would think possible to weave in.

Hanna Lindholm 10 years

A chance to test new materials such as fiber optics, glass fibers and composites and an opportunity to gain insight into research areas I didn’t even know existed.


THE FINISHING LAB

Catrin Tammjärv 20 years

Maria Björklund 12 years

A chance to stay updated through contacts with people outside academia.


THE PRINTING LAB

Maria Stawåsen 32 years

Sometimes things do not turn out quite as one expected them to; they become even better.

Sara Wikman 12 years

Emilia Jensen 9 years

Helena Engarås 13 years


THE SEWING LAB

Elsa Lindahl 43 years

Jasna Caktas 26 years

Fun, exciting and inspiring as it is not all about clothesbut also about techniques and quality.


two quick questions to the experts at Prototype Factory

1. How long have you been working with textiles?2. What does Prototype Factory and contact with the business community mean to you?

Smart Textiles Prototype Factory

is an amazing opportunity for a company

such as ours because we have in-depth expertise

in green fiber chemistry, but limited access to the

kind of production equipment used in the textile

industry. We have made use of the pilot stenter on

several occasions in order to adapt and evaluate

chemistry we have developed for the processes

used by textile industries.

ROBIN GRANKVISTBUSINESS DEVELOPER

ORGANOCLICK AB

THIS IS WHAT TWO OF OUR BUSINESS PARTNERS THINK

To us, it is

important that we can have

access to equipment for test runs

with short notice. It helps our product

development. Only a couple of weeks ago,

we made use of the facilities at Prototype

Factory to develop a material using a

technology that was entirely new to us.

PATRIK jOHANSSONCEO ENGTEX AB

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THE RELUCTANT BORÅSER

TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PORTRAITIST: IDA LINDSTRÖM. PHOTO: MATTON.

Her marriage ceremony was an African ritual performed on a beach in Zanzibar, she prefers costume balls and loves Latin American music with an intensity that has her con-vinced that she was a calypso musician in an earlier life. One may begin suspect that we are dealing with a hippie. A free spirit who lets matters rest. Someone with a bit of a mañana mentality. Nothing could be further from the truth.

She is ten minutes early for the interview at the café in central Gothenburg. She returns my greeting, orders bre-akfast and sits down. We start the interview on time. Ex-actly.

Susanne Nejderås is a doer. She makes things happen. And just because you know that visions and grand ideas are ne-cessary does not mean you have to love them. Most often she is irritated with, even allergic to people who do nothing but talk. Her mind goes straight to how the fancy words the piece of paper can be turned into reality. Funnel down,

concretize and realize – that is Susanne in a nutshell. A mentality that has helped Smart Textiles realize more than a hundred projects and gain a lot of respect from the bu-siness community. Her colleague Erik Bresky, on the other hand, is fond of visions. He has nicknamed her ”the Funnel” because she always asks the same question: how do we funnel this down to something realizable? One can almost hear the echoes of lively discussions where two essenti-ally different personalities meet, both going for the same objective but with somewhat differing points of departure.

After all she has done in her life, her practical view on what is important may not be all that surprising. Most of her pro-fessional life has been spent working for a textile business supplying the automotive industry.– Working in the automotive business is an extremely good learning experience. Prices are under a tremendous press-ure and the demands on design, quality and delivery relia-bility are very high, says Susanne Nejderås. »

– I’m here because of my bad karma, she laughs. I’ve had to take many tough decisions about lay-offs and other things over the years. Smart Textiles is good for my karma because we create jobs.

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We created fantastic interior design solutions that were to be sold to the departments at the automotive corporation, without any form of remuneration. After that, they held Internet auctions that we had to win in order to be granted the benefit of supplying the company a product we had de-signed ourselves. That forced prices down to incredibly low levels while maintaining all of the tough requirements on the suppliers. In that kind of world, you either give up or roll up your sleeves and make sure everything works out. That’s the kind of thing that gets me involved.

She is not exactly lacking in enthusiasm. Just over twenty years ago Susanne moved from Vellinge in Skåne to Borås to study for a Textile Engineering degree. She was going to stay for two years, maybe three. Despite several attempts at moving, she is still here.– But I’m not done with Skåne yet! I miss the sea, she says in that charming Southern Swedish dialect. At the same time, we like it here and we have good friends and an active life, so it’s my own inner struggle, haha.

It is not because of a shortage of opportunities to leave Sjuhärad behind that she is still here, though. During her time at Borgstena Textile, she was stationed in Germany for a time and later she spent a year building a new department at the company’s factory in Portugal. Once she was on the verge of moving to Brasil. However, it seems Borås has always found a way to make her come back. Nevertheless, she will always have her experiences from her time abroad.– The contrasts! It was a complete cliché. In Germany everything was extremely rigid: if I needed help from the IT department you had to be there exactly on time, otherwise the door would be closed. And then, all I could do was wait even though it was an entire weekend in between. In Portugal, on the other hand, complete chaos and cigarette breaks were never far away.

Culture shocks occurred on a daily basis. I learned that one must approach different people in different ways. However, if one only finds a way to communicate, many problems will be solved. One has to focus on the results and stay flexible.

Smart Textiles is largely about having people with widely varying perspectives get along: the time frame of the re-gion may span half a century, when a business executive worries about the next quarterly report. On the whole, dea-

ling with this kind of problems is interesting and the atmosphere is positive. Regarding her role at Smart Textiles and Business Innovation, she enjoys participating in an effort to strengthen the textile industry in Sweden and create new jobs. That was not always the case.– There were people who made jokes about me sweeping employees out of the workplace until it was empty. Not all that fun. At times I’ve had to take tough decisions, deci-sions on lay-offs and outsourcing of textile production, why it is wonderful to contribute to a development that’s purely positive. What I do here is both enjoyable and inspiring.

It seems to Susanne that many companies have learned that outsourcing textile production to other countries in-volves so many problems that it may be easier to consider domestic solutions today. It is a lot easier to control quality, delivery reliability, communication and a number of other success factors if one can be on site on a regular basis and is familiar with the conditions, as one is on one’s home ground.

So, how come she decided to work for the University? A world in which the rules are entirely different to the ones she is used to. It was not a matter of course; Susanne may just as well have been living in Småland today. When the new factory in Portugal burned to the ground and brand new machines were purchased, it was the final nail in the coffin for the Swedish factory. The entire production line was moved and most of the staff was laid off. Susanne’s position as CEO of Borgstena Textile Sweden ended shortly after that. She tried another position for a year, but then two interesting openings presented themselves.

She could have moved to Älmhult and taken up a position as range manager for textiles at IKEA. A business area with an annual turnover of about 20 billion SEK.

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”Working in the automotive business was

an extremely good learning experience.

Prices are under a tremendous pressure

and demands on design, quality and the

delivery reliability are very high.”

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A decent job. But then, there was the house she and her fa-mily had just moved in to. Susanne had passed by the white, wooden 1920s house by the lake Öresjö almost every day for several years. Although it looked a little like a summer house, she was unable to let it go and one day she turned off the road and drove up to it. When she stepped out of the car, the smell of water reminded her of the sea breeze from Öresund. She had come home. Since then, the house is renovated and added to with the same focus on results she displays at work.

And then there was this other job offer. About the same time as Joachim Lindqvist at IKEA contacted Susanne in 2009, she found out that Smart Textiles was looking to hire someone with a background in the business community. She knew all about Smart Textiles and she had even been a member of the Smart Textiles Steering Group for several years. This was something she wanted to do.– I knew this would be an exciting position and I wanted to contribute to new products reaching the market becau-se it would create jobs when Swedish businesses grew and prospered, Susanne says. I chose to jump on board and in the end I was the one who recruited Joachim from IKEA instead of the other way around. Today, he is a valuable member of the Smart Textiles Steering Group.

Joining Smart Textiles is a choice she has never had to re-gret. There is no telling what exciting projects or people she may encounter tomorrow. Every day has the potential to lead to something unexpected. The ideas and people cros-sing her doorstep are so different from one another that she is always enjoying herself and every day is a new challenge.– So much has happened since I began my studies in 1992. Today, we have extensive research and an amazing dialog with an enthusiastic business community, she says. In that respect, we’re lucky. On the other hand, luck is earned.

She thinks specifically of the person who thought they were lucky to be given an opportunity to work with an idea for a pajamas for children with a bed-wetting problem. It’s in the market today and has attracted a lot of positive attention. To Susanne, that has nothing to with fate.– A positive attitude creates positive energy and that will make good things happen, she says. It may be perceived as luck, but the young men with the idea for the pajama

contacted us because of our many years of hard work in reaching the market.

In 2016, it is ten years since she and her husband stood with their feet in the sand on Zanzibar and they plan to take both daughters there to relive the magic. Otherwise, she can be found at Smart Textiles where she practically and methodically funnels down fancy words to successful re-alizations and bridges the gap between academia and the business community. If she’s not busy renovating her house on the shores of Öresjö. Or dancing calypso at a costume ball.

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Quality of life in a dress

One hour every day, while you are at home doing whatever you feel like. Elektrodress enhances the

quality of life for many who suffer from neurological disorders. Although it is well-known that electricity can

help stimulate muscular activity, the treatment is difficult to perform and demands regular visits to the hospital.

Elektrodress consists of a pair of pants and a shirt and thus reaches the whole body, with no loose cords. The patient will in most cases experience a relaxing effect almost immediately an effect that normally lasts for at least one and up to three days. The garments have been developed in collaboration with Smart Textiles.

www.elektrodress.se


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Woven electrodes protect preterm babiesWho does not secretly harbor a wish to achieve some-thing that really matters? Such as protecting the delicate head of a baby from treatment injuries. Smart Textiles doctoral student Siw Eriksson researches a cap with built-in gauging functions that will protect preterm babies from pressure injuries to the head, which is a common effect of the time-consuming EEG recordings performed today.

The prototype is woven in electrodes and conductive silver yarns using an advanced process and a 3D-loom which has been developed especially for this purpose by Smart Textiles. Everything has been carefully calculated in order for the electrodes to find the correct locations

on the baby’s head.


The feeling not having to be embarrassedThe outward appearance of Pjama is that of a pair of ordinary pajama pants. However, a child suffering from bed-wetting may see in them the difference between going to e.g. soccer camp or a sleep-over at a friend’s house, or not. The pants absorbs and keep moisture in, leaving no stains.

The alternative for bed-wetting children are diapers, protective sheets or medicines with the risk of secondary effects. With Pjama, children need not worry. Smart Textiles has participated in the entire development process.PHOTO: Henrik Bengtsson.

www.pjama.se

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Cloned frogs on Gala-dress

The wedding gift for Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel from Borås Stad was a fantastic sculpture by William Sweetlove.

What better gift from the proud textile city than a gigantic red dress with frogs strewn all over it? The fact that the sculpture came with the condition that it is to remain in Borås is a stroke

of genius for the people of the city. The happy couple has a

miniature of the sculpture to keep on their night table.

PHOTO: gkm.

modeinkModeinkubatorn was created in 2006 within the frame-work of Smart Textiles and has since developed into a unique institution in Sweden. Then and now, the goal is to create opportunities for entrepreneurs in textiles and fashion to enter the market. New and established micro-enterprises and small businesses from all over the nation is supported in their efforts to develop concepts, business ideas and operations. In a dynamic process, the businesses receive active and customized production support, mana-gement support, commercial networks and a creative growth environment complete with office support, studios and machinery.

www.modeink.se

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Lady Gaga in ironic fursWhen Lady Gaga visited Stockholm in August 2012, she appeared in an outfit designed by Daniel Bendzovski, student in Fashion Design at The Swedish School of Textiles.

Daniel’s degree collection was exhibited as part of the EXIT show of The Swedish School of Textiles at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Stockholm and is ironic towards trends in general and the use of furs in particular.

Through his collection, Daniel wants to question the current fur trend and raise awareness of the problems related to consumption.

Here, Lady Gaga is seen leaving her hotel wearing the outfit

made by Daniel Bendzovski. PHOTO: ISOIMAGES.

Recurring Patterns. RESEARCHERS: Linnéa Nilsson, Mika Satomi, Anna Vallgårda, and Linda Worbin. PHOTO: Jan Berg.

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TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PHOTO: FREDRIK BLOMqVIST, KRISTOFFER STENFELDT OCH VIRGIN GALACTIC.

She fixes me with an intensive stare and I squirm, mum-bling something about nonsense. Climbing mountains on the Moon? Even NASA has not managed more than a few steps. Is she serious? However, Renata Chlumska is not one to think in negative terms. What you and I would dis-miss as impossible is only a challenge, nothing more.– Impossible? That’s what they said about Mount Everest, until sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay climbed it, she says. When everyone thinks something is impossible, it provokes people like me and perhaps that’s a good thing: how far would mankind have come without us?

With self-assurance and a disarming charm she describes her previous expeditions without being theatrical or re-sorting to exaggerations. Renata gives me the impression she is a very relaxed person. She has just held a lecture in front of 200 people. Dressed in a blouse, cardigan and scarf, she doesn’t look like someone who has the need to prove how tough she is.

– Sometimes older men come up to me, feel my biceps and tell me they are too small, she laughs. When they say they can’t understand how I managed to climb Mount Everest, I tell them the most important muscle is the brain.

No, Renata does not seem to have time to be distracted from doing the things she finds important. Such as the fact that the commercialization of space flights is the beginning of something new and that the next step will come quick-ly. She argues that a hundred years ago, no one imagined Swedish people would go to Thailand on vacation. Flying was new, expensive and only available to a select crowd. Today, practically everyone has been there. In the same way, space tourism will make the Moon a more accessible destination. There will be no lack of interest.– Imagine seeing the world from the outside, Renata Chlumska muses. I’m convinced that view will change people forever, seeing the fragile atmosphere of the earth and realizing how small we really are compared to the Universe. Amazing. »

– I want to be the first! Mons Huygens is 5,500 meters high and the tallest mountain on the Moon. It is only a matter of time until someone climbs it and puts up a flag on the summit, says Renata Chlumska. It would be marvelous if I was that someone.

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Renata is looking to make the most of this experience. She studies flight theory, puts herself through g-force testing, runs flight simulations and does lots of other training together with e.g. Qinetiq in Linköping.

Space: the final frontier was the fateful phrase introdu-cing each episode of the tv-series Star Trek: The Next Ge-neration. To Renata, it has always been important to push back the borders for what she can and will do and space is the ultimate frontier. When she looks back at everything she has accomplished as an adventurer, this step is com-pletely logical.– Physically, I’ve nothing left to prove to myself. This is more of a mental challenge, she says. There’s so much to learn and I’m 100% motivated.

It is plain that Renata is looking to make the most of this experience. She studies flight theory, puts herself through g-force testing, runs flight simulations and does lots of other training together with e.g. Qinetiq in Linköping. In connection with the preparations, she has discovered a new demand.– I’m used to testing outdoor equipment in extreme con-ditions and harsh climates, but when I decided to go into space I noticed the clothes I have don’t have what it takes. The market segment doesn’t even exist and had to be in-vented, why I turned to Smart Textiles.

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Clothes will have to be developed that are able to withstand various forms of stress during the training and the space flight. It is equally important for the design of the clothes she wears to lectures and appearances in the media to sig-nal ”space flight”. The challenge lies in finding new ways of achieving what governments have spent billions to do and to do so in a way that is environmentally sustainable.– It was important for me to find a partner with the right competence and solid experience of advanced and com-plex projects. In my wildest dreams I couldn’t have ima-ged that Smart Textiles really would have all it takes and that it was so close to me. It’s perfect!

However, does she not find it stressing to have to rely on other people’s skills, which is an inevitable consequence of a space flight? Well, Renata says she has complete confi-dence in all the partners she works with and the concern for safety is very high, why there is nothing to worry about. However, a slight frustration will at times brush the surfa-ce at the mention of the fact that Virgin has postponed the departure date several times. The final departure date has not been set yet, but with her usual enthusiasm she says it gives her time to become even better prepared. Her mental strength is indeed monumental.

Renata says Mount Everest changed her as a person. In 1999, she stood at the summit as the first Swedish woman ever to look out from the roof of the world. The moment she came down from the summit it all felt unreal. She was exhausted but filled with happiness and pride. She had reached the grand objective. Now, there were no limits to what she could achieve. She is more than willing to share that feeling with others.

She says successful adventurers are not body-builders but people who have an indomitable will. When about to step out of a tent into hard winds and -45°C at Mount Everest, looking like a young Arnold Schwarzenegger will not help you in any way. Because then, attitude is everything that counts. In Renata’s opinion, it is possible to transfer that mentality to one’s working life, studies and most other parts of life.– During our lifetimes, we all have our Mount Everests to climb and the experiences I have brought down from mine may be able to help others, Renata says. You can practice never giving up. If you didn’t learn it as a child, it’s not too

late to do so later in life. It’s about learning to like detours in life, taking short steps when the road climbs steeper –but never give up!

She learned much of this from her parents, who loved out-door life and traveled Europe by car in the summers. They slept in a tent and did not care overly much for comfort: if a problem occurred, they solved it with a positive attitude. After all, it was nothing compared to the hardships they had endured in Czechoslovakia. Renata remembers how her parents always believed in her and how they encoura-ged her all the time, regardless of if it concerned sports, school or something else. That attitude gifted her with high self-esteem and a strong drive in life. Her parents probably could not have guessed that their view on life, via the high-est mountain on Earth, would one day take their daughter into space. And who knows, perhaps one day all the way to Mons Huygens, the highest mountain on the Moon? ■

VIRGIN GALACTIC SPACESHIP TWOThe spaceship is constructed in a carbon fiber composi-

te and carries six passengers and two pilots. The ship is

18.3 meters in length and its measurements roughly cor-

responds to a Falcon 900 Executive jet plane, although

the cockpit has no floor in order to allow the astronauts

maximum freedom of movement during weightlessness in

space. All passengers have two windows, one on the side

and one above their seats, to allow them the best possible

view. Renata hopes to launch from Spaceport Sweden

in Kiruna, which is a partner of Virgin Galactic and on its

way to becoming Europe’s first commercial space port.

She has ticket number 192 and although Virgin Galactic

has not set an exact date for when they will take her into

space, it is likely to be in 2014.

SMART TEXTILESDESIGN LAB

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CHAIR OF PARADISE:

A second-hand chair that has been

modified to imitate the bird of paradise.

The technology the chair has been equipped

with allows it to go through the same color

changes and emit the same sounds the bird

does when it tries to attract a potential

partner. This function is triggered when-

ever someone comes close to the chair.

RESEARCHER: Mika Satomi.

PHOTO: Håkan Lindgren.

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Smart Textiles Design Lab turns textile traditions and concepts upside down through experimental research on new, expressive materials and construction methods. Design Lab also works to redefine textile design and the design role in itself by opening up for new design variables and new dimensions of expressions.

Research tries to emphasize and critically review visions of where we are going, the way in which the new textiles and textile expressions are to change our way of working and living.

Design Lab explores currently available technology and also asks for new technology. As a driving force, design provides direction and meaning to technological deve-lopment. Technology as a driving force also provides the technical prerequisites and possibilities for development in design. This mutual relationship between technology and design is also foundamental to the collaboration between Smart Textiles Design Lab and Smart Textiles

Technology Lab.

MISSING CALLS WHEN KEEPING THE CELL IS IN YOUR BAG?

No longer a problem with Fabrication bag. The printed dots change

color when the cellphone rings. Hanna Landin and Linda Worbin’s pro-

ject from 2006 was created before Smart Textiles Design Lab existed.PHOTO: Jan Berg.

DARK FUTURE FOR TOUR ROADIES?

Clothes that can play music is no longer a vision of the future. They

exist and were created for the exhibition ”Power of Fashion – 300

years” of clothing at Nordiska Museet, where Smart Textiles was

invited to display the textiles of the future. The costume is made in

a material with integrated sensors that react to touch.

– It sound like a harp and our next step is finding a more precise way of

controlling the music, says design student Jeannine Han, who started

the project. PHOTO: Daniel Riley.

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DESIGNING WITH HEAT: Designing with Heat is a collection of

three knitted, interactive textile constructions that were developed

to explore the possibility to shape materials with heat. By adding

electricity through conductive yarns integrated in the knitted

construction, the materials change by breaking down or shrinking.

RESEARCHERS: Delia Dumitrescu och Anna Persson.

DESIGN LAB


TEXTILE RESISTANCE: This project is a collaboration

with Syntjuntan and examines how textiles in conductive

materials can be used as musical instruments.

RESEARCHERS: Mika Satomi, Linda Worbin, Barbro Scholz.

TAPESTRY: Tapestry is a project that examines how the expressions

of different interactive textiles affect the room. Also, programmed

motors have been connected to the textiles to add another dimension

of change to the expression. RESEARCHERS: Delia Dumitrescu , Hanna Landin,

Anna Persson, Anna Vallgårda.

RYTHM EXERCISE_ 13IN1 is a braided object based on thirteen

optical fibers which are illuminated by LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes).

The object is programmed to create a light in motion and provide a 3D

feeling. RESEARCHER: Barbara Jansen.

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DIGITAL TRANSLATIONS: FORM ACTIVE TRANSLATION

TEXTILES, 2012. Felecia Davis from the American univer-

sity MIT held a workshop that focused on translating textile

structures through digital tools. ORGANIZED BY: Delia Dumitrescu.

THERMAL PRINTING WORKSHOP, AALTO UNIVERSITY,

FINLAND, 2013. Marjan Kooroshnia and Linda Worbin held a work-

shop at the ArcInTex network meeting. Participants worked with

screen printing with thermochromic prints to design dynamic

patterns with both integrated and external heating elements.

EXISTENTIAL DESIGN: In the fall of 2011, doctoral student Anne

Britt Torkildsby was on tour with her workshop at design schools in

among other places Umeå, Oslo and Copenhagen. Her design method

makes students see the design process from an existential

perspective.

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ANIMATED TEXTILES WORKSHOP,THE SWEDISH SCHOOL

OF TEXTILES, 2012. Manuel Kretzer held a workshop that examined

how to combine soft, electroactive polymers with textiles to create

moving surfaces or structures. ORGANIZED BY: Delia Dumitrescu.

DESIGN LAB

MISSION POSSIBLE

TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PORTRAITIST: IDA LINDSTRÖM. PHOTO: ROSTISLAV GLINSKY.

His hair has clearly fended off all attempts at styling and he sits reminiscing over a cup of black coffee. The year was 1992 and Erik was an outsider, an academic and a young-ster. No wonder they were all so skeptical. As he did not have any connection to the long tradition of family businesses that dominates the area, it was difficult to understand the special kind of atmosphere in Gällstad at times. People were happy to lend him a ball of yarn, but they were just as happy to spy on their competitors to find out which pat-terns they worked with. Although it was a tough time, Erik managed to gain respect through hard work and a humble attitude. It was in Gällstad he discovered the importance of cultivating relationships.

– I’d invited Martin Göthager over to the factory; he’d own-ed Ivanhoe since its foundation in 1946 and had spent his entire life a stone’s throw away from our factory. When he crossed the threshold, he hesitated and then told me it was the first time he’d ever been to Bolanders, says Erik Bresky. I couldn’t believe my ears and that was when I understood there was much to be done on the networking front.

It is obvious that cultivating relationships is as natural to Erik as breathing. He is used to having one foot in each camp

and has the special kind of charm needed to fit in. Being in-terviewed is no bother when one has much to talk about. Such as what he felt when Bolanders moved to Ulricehamn.

In the middle of the 1990s, many believed the textile in-dustry in Gällstad was on its way to extinction, much like a dinosaur unable to keep up with a changing world. Since then, the area has reinvented itself by nurturing its text-ile heritage and successfully adapting it to the demands of today. That attitudes are different today is symptomatic of that change. Martin Göthager’s son Göran maintains close relations with Erik, among other things in order to stay up-dated on the latest in textile research. Today, Ivanhoe is developing Knit on demand, a shop where customers can use a computer to choose the design of the garment and in 45 minutes, the machine delivers a product knitted to the customer’s specifications. Twenty years ago, no one would have believed it was possible.

Erik finds his experiences to be important. Trust and re-lationships are the keys to creating innovation systems. This was very useful when he after ten years in the indu-stry wanted to do more in life and found his way back to The Swedish School of Textiles. As the Head of School, »

– People in the village wagered on how long would last in the business. I was 25 years old and newly appointed CEO of Bolanders in Gällstad, Erik Bresky says with a smile.

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he was involved in the founding of Smart Textiles. However, in the beginning he was once again faced with the skepti-cism of the industry.– People laughed when we said that Smart Textiles would become a leading international player. A few years later, the same business representatives came back to ask per-mission to put our logo on their presentations. Our name had already begun opening doors abroad.

Erik’s role is to create understanding between the different parts of Smart Textiles – the University, the business com-munity and the region – which is not always an easy task. Their perspectives differ so widely that they sometimes have great difficulties understanding one another and Erik Bresky is the person who has to take care of and relieve all that frustration. It is worth it, though.– I am driven by my desire to contribute to a better and sustainable world with different consumption patterns, Erik says. Less of a throwaway mentality, where new ma-terials and how they are used drive development.

Ambitious plans require an ability to take action that will help achieve the goals. By relocating to the Textile Fashion Center in what used to be the industrial park Simonsland in Borås, Smart Textiles has come a long way towards securing that exciting future. 60,000 square meters of space that will be rented by e.g. The Swedish School of Textiles, the Munici-pality of Borås and several other organizations such as the Museum of Textile History, Marketplace Borås, Proteko, the Inkubator in Borås, Drivhuset and the textile educations at Almåsgymnasiet and the Higher Vocational Education (Yr-keshögskolan). It is an impressive mobilization of the enti-re region for the textile cluster and an astonishing develop-ment for a city of entrepreneurs that was earlier known to have little but disdain for academic educations. The future is full of synergies and thrilling collaborations.– It’s a unique venture. We are already at the front lines internationally and now we will have full-scale environments where we can do everything we have only talked

about before. Then, there will be more than just fancy words, says Erik Bresky. Our goal is to have people with ideas related to textiles come to us as a natural part of their development processes. To be the place where it all happens, where people meet across boundaries and where unexpected results occur.

Building the Textile Fashion Center is important not only to Borås but to the entire region, in Erik’s opinion. As little as five-six years ago, no one took pride in our textile heritage. Today, the situation is quite different and the older gene-ration is the only people who still think the 1970s saw the end of the textile industry in Sweden. To young people, fa-shion is a business of the future and The Swedish School of Textiles has always had a large number of applicants to its educations. The problem used to be the people in charge, who belong to the older generation, why the launching of this venture is extra positive.

The future of textiles holds so much more than just pat-terned fabrics. Erik thinks that when we look back at textile history in 2050, the crisis of the 1970s will be viewed as a parenthesis and our times as a turning point. The textile industry is about to take a giant step from being a supplier of fabrics to become a positive force in the development of society by contributing to innovations for sus-tainable solutions that will improve people’s everyday lives and the health care sector. In short, supplying smart ma-terials. This far into the interview Erik has really picked up steam and leans over the table to put weight behind his words.– Textile construction materials is the future. Earlier, the forest and mining industries used to be our basic industries and they inspired innovations such as ball bearings, which

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”I love outdoor living and nature experiences. Exercise isn’t some-thing one struggles to find energy for, it’s something one does to find energy to take on the struggles of life. And to take one’s mind off work for a while.”

formed the foundation of Sweden as an industrial nation, Erik says. Today, we see that nanotechnology, chemistry, polymer materials and also the forest industry will, through textile processes, create new innovations that will be just as important as bearings.

Erik thinks that in the future it will be even more impor-tant for smaller towns in Sweden to have clear profiles. If Borås is to be the center of an expanding region in 40-50 years time, the textile cluster has to continue to be the motor of that development.

As Erik is a Boråser with an interest in sports, he jumps at the opportunity to take the local soccer team, Elfsborg, as an example and he says the strong sides of Borås can be traced in the successes of the club. Entrepreneurship, visions, good organization and skilled businessmen who keep their heads cool and separate sports from busi-ness – that is the formula for success. If Elfsborg were to snatch the championship title of the Swedish First Division from under the noses of the big city clubs, the

very same spirit may take the city of Borås to the next level.– It’s all about creating win-win situations in the future and at the same time make Borås important enough to maintain its role as a natural part of Metropolitan Gothenburg, Erik says. The financial future of Sweden lies in the three met-ropolitan areas and we can either become the first small town east of Metropolitan Gothenburg or we can step up and leave that title to Ulricehamn. To ensure that we are included in that development, our offer needs to be a strong one. The answer to that is the textile industry.

However, financial development is not the only topic that drives Erik Bresky. Other cultures is one of his passions. In his opinion, the best education in life is spending one’s twenties backpacking around the world. Apart from me-mories for life from Australia, Thailand, Burma, Tibet and Nepal, these places gave him his first contact with Eva, who is the mother of his two daughters. Later, he has conducted studies on the textile industries of Africa and Asia on behalf of The Swedish School of Textiles in places such as Ethio-pia, Laos, Uganda and Vietnam and he thinks there is much for us to learn there.– The challenge for Westerners is to understand that we’re not at the forefront in every field and to be more open for innovations from other parts of the world, says Erik. Our colonial heritage is problematic. We always think we know best, but in order to come to terms with the danger to the environment and hysterical consumerism, I think respect and humility are the best guiding principles for contacts with other cultures.

That the environment is important to him is natural consi-dering he is passionate about outdoor living and nature experiences. The family enjoys kayaking and spends their summers going back and forth between Lerkil on the West coast and the St. Anna Archipelago in the Baltic Sea. In the winter, he likes to participate in Vasaloppet. Exercise isn’t something one struggles to find energy for, it’s something one does to find energy to take on the struggles of life. And to take one’s mind off work for a while.

The interview has come to an end and Erik has to run to his next appointment. He is going to have lunch with Göran Göthager, who has come to Borås from the Ivanhoe office in Gällstad. They will perhaps discuss some problem or just chat to stay in touch. This symbolizes what may possibly be the most important change in and around the textile city of Borås recently. ■

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PHOTO: Jan Berg.

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Smart Textiles showroomYou put your hand on the fabric and when you re-move it, the gray area underneath it has suddenly become turquoise.

Textiles can be many things and they are not always what you expect. Materials inspire and often lead the way to new ideas. That is why it is important for both researchers and companies to have access to materials from the front end of development.

In the textile material library, businesses, product de-velopers, designers and, last but not least, students and researchers are able to meet across boundaries. A natural resource and sounding board for product development issues, from ideas to products.

Here, one can find materials, prototypes and also some of the products that have been developed through a Smart Textiles Company Driven Project or at the Smart Textiles Prototype Factory. There are also samples of materials made in the machines at The Swedish School of Textiles and other interesting materials purchased from external manufacturers.

Designing with Heat is a collection of three knitted, interactive

textile constructions that have been designed to explore the

possibility to shape materials with heat. PHOTO: Henrik Bengtsson.

An example of the textile materials of the future: a pouffe that

has a colorful pattern that gradually becomes visible when some-

one sits on it and becomes invisible when it is no longer used.

A prototype developed by Smart Textiles Design Lab and the

furniture company IRE. PHOTO: Jan Berg.

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HIDDEN SMART TEXTILESON THE CATWALK

PHOTO: Kristian Löveborg.

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Designer Nhu Duong ever strives to explore new materials. Together with Smart Textiles, she developed trailblazing creations for the catwalk at Stockholm Fashion Week 2012.

Ever since Nhu Duong visited The Swedish School of Textiles a few years ago – where she was overwhelmed by the multitude of opportunities offered by the machine park – the University has remained in the back of her mind. In the spring of 2012, she contacted the Smart Textiles Prototype Factory concerning one of her ideas.

– I wanted to develop a composite material containing me-tal for my collection. The Swedish School of Textiles is in possession of one of only five knitting machines in the world capable of knitting in metal.

Today, Nhu Duong has made a name for herself in the bu-siness. She was the first to win the Mercedes-Benz Young Fashion Awards in 2008 and in 2010 she was awarded New-comer of the Year by the fashion magazine Elle. Her compo-site materials are often highly praised.– It’s important to me that I always develop my own mate-rials. I work with two different systems: one for materials and techniques and one conceptual. Printing has also become something of a characteristic because it is an easy way for me to leave my mark on the garments.

Together with the technicians at the Knitting Lab at The Swedish School of Textiles she developed composites that look like ordinary materials. She had earlier done much work in metals and admit she has a fetish for shiny materials.– In that collection, the presence of metals was subtle, like a secret. I like it better when things are not too obvious and people are left to find out for themselves, says Nhu Duong.

EXPLORER OF TEXTILE INNOVATION

TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PORTRAITIST: IDA LINDSTRÖM.

Although he may be the Head of the Smart Textiles Tech-nology Lab today, it was pure annoyance with smart tex-tiles that made him take the first steps on this path five years ago.– I thought all the talk of smart textiles was just so many words and decided to go to a seminar to find out if there was any substance to the hype, Nils-Krister says. After that I was hooked, I just had to see where it would all lead to.

With his skeptical background, he is well aware that it may be difficult to grasp exactly what the Smart Textiles In-itiative does: its scope is so broad it may be perceived as vague. The common denominator is the use of textile pro-cesses, that is combining fibers through weaving, knitting, felting, embroidery, sewing, melting or braiding. It may not even involve fabrics. It is definitely more than just clothes and fashion. It may just as well involve foldable antennas or flexible Jumbotron screens displaying video content during sports events.– I visited Ericson Cable in Hudiksvall a while ago and they were surprised to find out that they’d worked with textile

processes without knowing about it, Nils-Krister laughs. A major part of my job is to bring promising research into the world of textiles. We’ve come a long way in that res-pect. Today, Smart Textiles has definitely left its mark on the academic map. We receive more inquiries from other academic fields than we are able to realize as projects.

He enjoys being the spider in the web and acting matchma-ker between academia, research institutions and the bu-siness community. It creates exciting new prospects. For example, when a research partner was needed for a degree work on screening of electromagnetic currents and noise in electrical appliances at The Swedish School of Textiles. Nils-Krister knew immediately who to call at the SP Tech-nical Research Institute of Sweden. The beauty of it all is that meetings and cross-fertilizations are just as likely to create international successes as to come to nothing at all. Outcomes are impossible to predict.

Today, Technology Lab is less about visions than the rest of Smart Textiles and the work done in the Lab is more concrete and, possibly, less exciting than before, »

At work, he creates the high technological textiles of the future. Outside work, he holds survival courses in the open. In the paradox of Nils-Krister Persson, science fiction and the stone age come together.

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Nils-Krister says. He approves of this development as it results in an increasing number of prototypes rolling out of the workshops.– Now it’s more ”roll up your sleeves and get to work”. Creating things that are useful to society such as innova-tions, sustainable solutions and, in the end, more jobs, says Nils-Krister. I find it really exciting.

As he has now picked up some steam, he follows up that last statement by listing examples of concrete, important research. It is not difficult to image that preaching smart textiles to all the universities, institutions and businesses out there takes up a considerable portion of his time. That his work may become just a little too important. However, Nils-Krister is happy.

He points to how different kinds of advanced filters is a niche of the textile industry where Sweden is a the front end of the development. It may involve anything from what we normally think of as filters to something as unexpec-ted as water purification adapted to the conditions in deve-loping countries. In developing countries, electricity is of-ten in short supply while there is an abundance of sunshine. The solution is at the same time simple, advanced and bril-liant. As polluted water is allowed to pass through gigan-

tic textiles coated with photocatalytic titanium dioxide, the sun starts a chemical process that breaks down microor-ganisms. Textiles are often extremely fluffy materials that have large contact surfaces and thus perfect for the purpo-se. Voilà, drinkable water! More than two million people in the world die every year as a result of a lack of clean water and sanitation. The same technique can be used to filter the air in car tunnels if one adds UV-light to the formula. There is no question about this being important research.

It is obvious that the environment and nature is important to Nils-Krister Persson, not only because he has a Doctor’s degree in Biomolecular and Organic Electronics; in his spa-re time, it’s all about back to nature. He’s not a man who does things half-heartedly. No one will become a survival instructor for civilians and ranger units at the Life Regiment Hussars in Karlsborg if he or she is only mildly interested in the outdoors. Despite the fact that he himself goes all in, he is not of the opinion everyone should do so.– I love the outdoors and try to spend as much time there as I can, but I have noticed that finding the time is difficult for many people. Maybe we shouldn’t make such a big deal out of it, says Nils-Krister. Perhaps it’s better to take a Saturday morning stroll in a nearby recreational area such as Rya åsar than saving it all for the annual hiking-trip in the mountains?

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”In developing countries, electricity is often in short supply while there is an abundance of sunshine. The solution is at the same time simple, advanced and brilliant. As polluted water is allowed to pass through gigantic textiles coated with photocatalytic titanium dioxide, the sun starts a chemical purification process. Voilà, drinkable water!”

Simply put, he is ecologically involved, as is the people in Matupproret (the Food Rising), a consumer-based grass-roots movement working to maintain open landscapes and ecological, locally produced food in e.g school dining halls in Sweden. There is clear connection between smart textiles and his interest in nature. Smart Textiles has a an impor-tant task: transforming the textile industry from what has traditionally been a heavily polluting industry branch into an ecologically more sustainable one. He also sees connec-tions to his earlier experiences as a researcher specializing in polymer materials and solar cells for production of green energy. What is new is the collaboration between so many different categories of professionals.– I’ve been exploring a new world for the past five years and I’ve learned incredibly much. I’ve gained a new and greater respect for all the various professional roles of the textile world, says Nils-Krister Persson. They are all crucial to our success, as in many of the projects the professional know-how of our technicians plays the heroic part. The future of the textile industry in Sweden depends on if we continue to generate world-leading experts to fill all kinds of positions. Competence transfer is also an important task for Smart Textiles to work with.

Swedish companies have also shown a tendency to have their textile production return home again, which is only possible if they specialize in knowledge-intensive niches. Nils-Krister presents the old curtain factory Ludvig Svens-son in Kinna as a good example. Profits were miserable and the company faced a grim future, at least until they changed their production strategy and began making ad-vanced ceilings for greenhouses. The ceilings are made in textile materials and control a number of important growth factors such as humidity and light intake. Today, the compa-ny is world-leading in their market segment and a financial success story. Nils-Krister thinks new application areas for the products of the textile industry is the future.– I’m more of a generalist than a nerd for details and prefer to see the whole picture, he says. I really like it when I can bring different perspectives and interests together. Hope-fully, it will contribute to create exciting, creative business ventures and not least tomorrow’s jobs in Sweden. ■

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Knitted blood vessel takes shape

One year after coronary bypass surgery, one third of the patients have suffered another blockage of the blood vessel. It is hoped that Ygraft, a uniquely de-signed textile blood vessel, will solve this problem.

– The formation of extra scar tissue in the new blood ves-sel decreases the blood flow, causes the blood to clot and the bypass is blocked. This may cause a heart attack or the patient may have to amputate a leg, says vascular surgeon Erney Mattsson – one of the originators of Ygraft.

Earlier, researchers have tried to solve the problem with various kinds of pharmaceuticals, but without success.– Using computer simulations and calculations, we have found a suitable shape for a human blood vessel that is as close to a natural one as possible, which was not the case with the ”old” bypass vessels, says biomathematician Torbjörn Lundh.

In the construction of the prototype, they used a thorough-ly tested polyester material and received much help from people with special competences at Smart Textiles.

– We’re very impressed with the help we’ve received from the innovative and skilled technicians at The Swedish School of Textiles. We would never have come this far without their technical support, says Erney Mattsson.

In the Smart Textiles project ”Ygraft in Humanly Adjusted Textiles”, development has progressed to the point whe-re the innovators Erney Mattsson and Torbjörn Lundh has started performing tests. In the future, a vast market awaits the patented blood vessel.

FACTS: BYPASS SURGERY

• Every year, 1.3 million people undergo bypass surgery worldwide.

• 30 % of these, appr. 400 000 people, will have problems with formation of scar tissue within a year.

• Ygraft is patented in Sweden, Japan, China and Europe.

• The largest market is in the USA, where appr. 800 000 bypass operations are performed annually.


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A textile thatexpands blood vesselsTogether with innovators Erney Mattsson and Torbjörn Lundh, Smart Textiles has developed a unique solution that will prevent formation of scar tissue in constricted blood vessels. Today, doctors normally insert stents into constric-ted blood vessels and leave them there. When a foreign object stays in the body, scar tissue is formed. Because of this, 30 % of the patients who have undergone bypass surgery to open constricted blood vessels will suffer from blockage again within a year. Erney Mattsson and Tor-björn Lundh’s solution with knitted stents will follow the previous surgical procedure but they will also be able to be undone – that is, pulled out and removed after the stent has served its purpose. The prototype has been knitted in the Knitting Lab at The Swedish School of Textiles with a special kind of metal thread and the innovators are just about to try a smoother thread that will be easier to undo.


Textile disk will increase mobilityPeople who suffer from chronic pain in the lower back often suffer from misaligned vertebrae in the spine. The most common solution is arthrodesis, the consequence of which is decreased mobility. In collaboration with Smart Textiles, the medical technology company Ortoma is now conducting re-search to create soft, artificial disk prostheses which will be partly adjusted to fit the individual patient and manu-factured in a biological, textile material.ILLUSTRATION: Perssons Pixlar.

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Many who visited Borås were never

here. For real.

PHOTO: Emil Dahlquist.

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Because a few hours is not enough and going past on the highway does not even

count. It takes days, for some people their entire lives. You have to talk to the people

here. Draw a deep breath and feel oxygen-saturated air reach your lungs. Be there when

the championship cup is raised at Borås Arena. Experience the textiles, the design, the

culture. The International Sculpture Biennale. The seasons. Sommartorsdagarna. The

entrepreneurs. Sip a drink down by Viskan. Be surprised by the architecture. The green

oases. How close to nature it all is. Only then, you will know. Welcome. For real.

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The city continues to grow, breadthwise, lengthwise and heigth-wise, and 105,000Boråsers grow with it.

PHOTO: Emil Dahlquist.

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There is water, there are palm trees, restaurants, cafés and shopping, but it is the fact that everything is nearby that everyone talks about.

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A FEW TEXTILE COMPANIES IN, FROM AND AROUND BORÅS

8848 Altitude, Blåkläder, Londre-Hatten, Ludvig Svensson, Svenskt

Konstsilke, Abecita, Almedahls, Bola, BOLON, Bubbleroom, Cavaliere,

Cellbes, Craft, Cross, Didriksons, Ellos, Eton, FOV Fabrics, Gina Tricot,

Halens, Hemtex, Ivanhoe, Josefssons, Kasthall, La Redoute, Morris,

Nowali, Nelly.com, Newhouse, Oscar Jacobson, Oxeon, Pret a Porter,

Swea, Seger, Stenströms, Swegmark of Sweden, Sätila of Sweden.

DESIGN: Greta Gram. PHOTO: Anna Sigge.

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Although nothing happened, everything is different from what it used to be. The textile center of the Nordic countries is still here.

DESIGN: Linnéa Bågander. PHOTO: Anna Sigge.

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THE DUTCH CONNECTION

TEXT: ELOF IVARSSON. PORTRAITIST: IDA LINDSTRÖM. PHOTO: JAN NIELSEN.

Ghent is an idyllic town with picturesque medieval buil-dings and beautiful canals. The weather is agreeable and in 2012 the esteemed British newspaper The Guardian wrote that Ghent is Belgium’s best city for food. The university is respected all over Europe. Borås, on the other hand, is known as the rain capital of Sweden. Who is stupid enough to move from lovely Ghent to the wet outskirts of Europe? The answer is Vincent Nierstrasz, the professor who took his family, belongings and everything with him and moved here.– You have no idea how good you are. People always think their everyday lives are trivial, but what Borås has to offer is actually something out of the ordinary, Vincent says in perfect English and laughs. The research here offers such an incredible breadth: it spans everything from manage-ment, design and fashion to technical solutions and proto-type production. It’s unique. Other universities are often specialized in one or two of these things. Here, you have it all and at a very high level at that.

He already knew Smart Textiles well, because of its Euro- pean collaborations in the textile field. Vincent did not hesi- tate when an opportunity presented itself to put together and lead his own research team at the well-known and exciting School.– As it is never far between textile universities in Europe, there is a risk that all of the activities at all the univer-sities are watered down as an effect, Vincent says. The Swedish School of Textiles is the only one in Sweden, and as a consequence the quality of the School is high.

In his opinion it is also important that there is a vigorous textile industry in the region. An industry willing to develop. It was the innovative companies that survived the crisis of the textile industry in the 1970s. They know that mass production is not the future and instead invest in knowledge-intensive products. There is also an intriguing potential in a cross-fertilization involving another traditional industry. »

– You have no idea how good you are. People always think their everyday lives are trivial, but what Borås has to offer is actually something out of the ordinary, Vincent says in perfect English and laughs.

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– The forest industry needs to find new ways of marketing their products in the face of the fierce competition from other parts of the world today. At the same time, there’s an urgent need to find recyclable alternatives to the ever de-creasing supply of cotton, says Vincent Nierstrasz. Sweden has the required expertise in cellulose through the forest industry and the pulp and paper industries and wood fibers can be made into excellent textile materials.

He thinks cellulose-based textiles will become a very im-portant field in the future, a development that has attrac-ted a lot of attention in Europe. Primarily because recycling needs to be included already in the first steps of the manu-facturing process. A field where Sweden is at the forefront – smart solutions for smart textiles. And Vincent would very much like to help develop these smart solutions.– We like it here and it’s a great place to live for a family with small children. My boys already speak Swedish. We live close to nature and in a beautiful spot. My wife has a job interview today. If she lands the job, everything will be perfect. In fact, it was bigger change to move to

Belgium from my homeland of the Netherlands than it was moving to Borås. The culture in Belgium is different, Vincent laughs. His voice betrays that he is teasing his old neighboring country, but he is too diplomatic and professional to do more than hint at it.

Vincent is specialized in biotechnology and has a Doctor’s degree in Physical Chemistry. He worked for more than ten years with textile technology at the Univeristy of Twente, inspired by nature’s own solutions, biomimetics. He carried his fascination with the field with him both to Ghent Uni-versity and now all the way to his professor’s chair at The Swedish School of Textiles and Smart Textiles.– In textile contexts, Velcro straps are perhaps the first and most widely known example of technology that we have copied from nature, says Vincent. They were intro- duced already in 1949 and are still extremely useful.

His most recently published research is about bio-based, mosquito repellent textiles. Clothes in that material can be used effectively to fight malaria and dengue fever without

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”Cellulose-based textiles will become a very important field in the future, a development that has attracted a lot of atten-tion in Europe. A field where Sweden is at the forefront.”

being as harmful to people and the environment as the ol-der, synthetic substances were. There are lots of inspiring research areas for Smart Textiles, in his opinion. Although both long-term and short-term topics are interesting, it is important that applications for the research is developed quickly.– There are some good examples. Digital ink-jet printers that make patterns for textiles is new technology that will be very important and already exists today, says Vincent Nierstratz. It may not sound very impressive, but it’s very precise, economical and sustainable. The ecological foot-prints will be significantly lighter.

Another topic of great importance to him is how innova-tions and inventions can find practical uses. The problems that have to be solved before they can become reality are often related to ensuring the new solutions withstand eve-ryday usage such as washing, wear and aging. Or how to use the advanced invention without access to electricity. There is much to gain from bio-inspired research, textiles that react to stimuli from the environment.

– We sometimes forget that research must lead to indu-strial production and be ecologically sustainable, Vincent says. That’s why the Smart Textiles Prototype Factory is one of our greatest advantages. At the Prototype Factory we’re able to develop full-scale examples and see for our-selves how well they work and which problems we have to solve for the prototypes to stand a chance to make it to mass production in, say, five years.

With all the advantages offered by Smart Textiles, Vincent thinks it is even more important to expand its already strong presence in Europe. To become the natural part-ner not only of Swedish businesses but also of the textile industry of continental Europe. He hopes to be able to contribute to the continued establishment with his expe-rience and network of contacts. And after two years in Borås he does not regret moving here at all. Despite the rain. ■

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PHOTO: IKEA.

Recycled waste becomes new textile materials Researchers are trying to develop new polymer materials for use in plastic products, composites and textile fibers. This also includes developing functional fibers which among other things can be used in smart textiles.

– We also study recycling of plastic materials and com-posites and the possibility of producing polymer products from bio-based raw materials, says Mikael Skrifvars, Professor in Fiber Technology.

One project examines if it is possible to use a modified form of poly(lactic acid or PLA) to make scaffolds on which cells can be grown and used to create new textile implants that will replace damaged bone tissue in human patients. Attempts are made to recycle discarded rotor blades from wind turbines through microwave pyrolysis, which may be a new way of recycling composites. Another project, which is conducted in close collaboration with a university in Nigeria, studies the possibility of making ther-

mosetting plastics from the seeds of the rubber tree.

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Today, society consumes resources at a rate that will take one and a half planet to recreate. Over the coming fifteen years, there will be another three billion consumers in the world.

People rise from poverty, live longer and improve the lives of their families, which is an amazing development. At the same time, we have to solve the challenge of how to create a sustainable world. We will have to develop new solutions if resources are to sustain us all.– It’s a myth that products manufactured in a sustainable way are expensive and boring. New materials, new techni-ques and constructions containing fewer and better che-micals are often less expensive when it comes to textiles.Tomorrow’s textiles will be almost perpetually recycla-ble, leave minimal ecological footprints, and less harmful

chemicals will be used to make them. They will contribute to making the world a better place, says Jeanette Skjel- mose, Sustainability Manager at IKEA.

In her opinion, we have to continue to research and develop innovative solutions which are good for both people and the environment, while at the same time keeping costs down in order for the products to be available for most of the people in the world. This is a development IKEA wants to contribu-te to through e.g. Better Cotton, which in 2015 will be the only cotton the company uses in its products.– Sustainability mustn’t be a luxury, it has to be for everyone. If we can’t solve that problem, less good alternati-ves will be the cheapest and will outsell sustainable ones. Our planet won’t be able to cope with that, says Jeanette. Most of the work is still ahead of us. Wonderful future!

IKEA believes in the power of innovation

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TEXTILE FASHION CENTER A meeting place for creative people in fashion, textiles and design.

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A new city district is emerging in Borås. The old industrial site Simonsland in central Borås is gradually becoming the new meeting place for creative people in fashion, textiles and design: the Textile Fashion Center.

Under serrated roofs where in the past threads were spun for anything from French gala crea-tions to textiles for the offshore industry, Smart Textiles, The Swedish School of Textiles, the Museum of Textile History, Marketplace Borås, the Inkubator in Borås, Drivhuset, Proteko and others will now find a new home.

The textile cluster will promote collaborations and show the strength the region possesses in the textile field. It is a collaboration between com-panies, research institutes, organizations working with innovations and business development, and

the University.

ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS: Sweco and DTH-arkitekter.

TEXTILE FASHION CENTER A meeting place for creative people in fashion, textiles and design.

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1 800 rolls of tar paper has been used during the construction.

7 soccer fields – that is the size of the reconstruction site.

270,000 cubic meters air/hour is the capacity of the air ventilation system.

3.5 tons of liquid filler in 5 000 square meters. Holder of the Swedish record in the amount of floor leveled in a single day!

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One of Sweden’s largest solar cell installations

Did you know that one of the largest solar cell installations in the country was opened in September 2012?

It is 770 square meters in size and placed on the roof of the main building. The energy generated is already used

for the construction project and, in time, will fill part of the energy demand of the building.

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PR

OJ

EC

TS

SMART TEXTILES DESIGN LAB° Costumes and Wallhanging (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° Costumes and Wallhanging (Material Sense)

° Textile dimensions – an expressive textile interface

° Disseminating knowledge of electronic textiles at art schools and universities

° Designing with Heat (Autex)

° Touching Loops (Futuro Textiel)

° Interactive Textile Expressions in Spatial Design: Architecture as Synesthetci Expressions

° Knitted Light

° Relational Textiles for Space Design (2012)

° Dual-textures: textiles in between function and ornamentation

° Touching Loops (”It is possible”)

° Touching Loops (Exhibited at Responsive)

° Designing with heat (”It is possible”)

° Designing with Heat (Cesme)

° An Interactive Textile Hanging: Textile, Context, and Interaction

° An Interactive Textile Hanging: Textiles, Spaces and Interaction

° Repetition: interactive expressions of pattern translation

° Heat as Interactive Expressions for Knitted Structures

° Interactive Textile Expressions in Architectural Design: Architecture as Synesthetic Expression

° DualTextures: textiles in between function and onamentation

° Knitted Light – Space and Emotion

° Smart Textiles – strategic issues and the role of experimental design

° (Eds.), Ambience´11 Proceedings

° Textile Interaction Design

° Smart Textiles (Science for the profession 2)

° Smart Textiles – Technology and Design (Ambience ´08)

° On the Foundations of Interaction Design Aesthetics: Revisiting the Notions of Form and Expression

° Interaction Design – Foundations, Experiments

° (Eds.), Ambience´11 Exhibition

° Culture Club

° Interweaving Art and Fashion

° Fashioning the Future

° Well Done Daphne

° The Textile

° Textile Light Design

° Textile Light Design (Proceedings of Cumulus 38degrees South)

° Weaving and knitting experiments with optical fibers

° rhythm exercise_13 IN 1

° Light and Shadow Play – The Sun as an Aesthetic Trigger for Urban Textiles

° Upholstery concepts for automotives using smart textiles

° Mask

° Mask In (Ambience´11 Exhibition)

° Lab, Field, Gallery, and Beyond

° Anxiety, Trust and other Expressions of Interaction (2009)

° The burning tablecloth (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° The burning tablecloth (Material Sense)

° A wall hanging as an organic interface (OUI´11): Second International Workshop on Organic User Interfaces)

° A Wall Hanging as an Organic Interface

° Saturday Light Fever

° Chromatic chlorophyll – Conceptual hospital textiles with chromatic Smart Materials

° Ocean and Sea – Design with Chromatic Smart Materials,

° Aperitivo (HappyHour)

° Switch! Designing for Everyday Awarness

° Switch! Energy Ecologies in Everyday Life

° Switch! Energy Ecologies in Everyday Life (International Journal of Design, Vol.2, No.3)

° Criticality meets sustainability: constructing critical practices in design research for sustainability

° Luminous Textiles

° Understanding the complexity of designing dynamic textile patterns.

° Designing with Smart Textiles: A New Research Program

° Electrical Burn-outs – a Technique to Design Knitted Dynamic Textile Patterns

° Exploring Designing Dynamic and Irreversible Textile Patterns, using a non-chemical Design Technique

° Knitted Circuits for Visual and Tactile Interactive Expressions

° Knitted Circuits for Visual and Tactile Interactive Expressions (2009)

° Costumes and Wallhanging

° A design technique for irreversible patterns (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° A design technique for irreversible patterns (Material Sense)

° Functional Styling – Exploring a Textiles Design Space

° Material Innovation

° Tangled Interaction: On the Expressiveness of Tangible User Interfaces. ACM ToCHI

° Disruptions

° Design Research

° Chair of Paradise

° Textile resistance

° Repetition

° Future master craftsmanship: where we want electronic textile crafts to go

° Neocraft: Exploring Smart Textiles in the Light of Traditional Textiles Crafts

° The ”dark side” of design thinking (2012)

° Existential Design – The dark side of design

° Finding the Frontiers

° VGR in Bangalore

° Designing dynamic textile patterns (2010)

° Dynamic Textiles Patterns: Designing with Smart Textiles (2006)


° Dynamic Textiles Patterns (Future Textiles, Centre for Textile Research, University of Copenhagen)

° Textile Sound Design (2008)


COMPLETED

& ONGOING

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SMART TEXTILES PROTOTYPE FACTORY° Kristine Bjaadal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The cloth ”Underfull”

° HE design studio, Oslo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The textile/chair ”Between”

° Mika Mårtensson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Two lengths knitted in monofilament yarn

° OY B Huhta AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloves automation of production

° Pjama AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Functional pajama

° Ygraft AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ygraft

° Graduation project Chalmers/VTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Biotextiles in PLA

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lengths printed with thermochromic pigments for workshops

° Gabriel A/S, Ålborg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Warping of high tensity yarn and monofil in the weft. Mesh structure

° Kinna Automatic AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Information about spinning mills for their new textile fibers

° School of Engineering, University of Borås . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Knitting a prototype in fibers Scaffold.

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Moisture measuring reinforcement cloth

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fiber optical sensor carpet with Acreo

° Chalmers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Soft, weight-bearing materials for implants in the human body

° Danmarks designskole . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Knit Shell Chair

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile resistance

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Smart textiles as innovative interface for commercial vehicles

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Graduation project – Weave in fiber optics

° Isabel Cabral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Black thermochromic pigment

° Graft Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CStretch

° Ortoma AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Soft, weight-bearing materials for implants in the human body

° Hilleberg AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Signature coating

° VGR / Smart Textiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Giveaways to the Region Västra Götaland for the ICSB conference

° Umeå Institute of Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Belt with integrated LED lighting

° Graft Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RipUpStent

° Bostads AB Mimer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apartment of the future

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Smart garment for total body composition monitor

° Teknologiska Lab Stockholm AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cleancloth

° Stockholm school of entrepreneurship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iSGloves, gloves with touch capacitative function

° Linköping University . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Woven fabric for solar cells

° Tommy Martinsson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shielding, circular knitted fabric

° Medfield Diagnostics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Medfield Cap

° Inerventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elektrodress

° Sort of design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Circular knitted piece goods

° Tina Frausin art & glass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Knitted metal sculptures

° Jesper Danielsson, The Swedish School of Textiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Seebright Thermo Waterproof Jacket

° Marjan Kooroshnia, Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CO2 detector

° Trelleborg museum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The salt project, thermochromic fabrics

° Christina Edursdotter AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Circular knitted fabric

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Designing with heat and shrinkage

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Electro kit

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Low temp thermocromic pigment

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Designing with heat, melting monofilament

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Designing with heat, melting wool

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile resistance

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Piezoelectric weave

° OrganoClick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OrganoTex

° Shings AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shings hoof boot. Make a knitted prototype in a material chosen by Swerea

° Swerea IVF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sew three different seams, Swerea project. no. 5120261

° Ann-Sofie Back Atelje . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Showpieces

° Swerea IVF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hydrophobing

° Engtex AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Circular knit

° Swerea IVF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of 4-5 materials with different yarns for the safe@sea project

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Woven lengths with heating elements

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Registering motions of epilepsy patients

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Optical textiler

° Swerea IVF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PCM + Safe protex

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rythms (Bonad)

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile window

° Fibre Optics Valley . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Making of a ribbon weave in fiber optics

° Nhu Duong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Circular knitted pieces of art

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fiber optic material

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bio imp sock glove

° Farmhouse Norwegian Creative Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reflective material implemented in fashion textiles

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Sound Lab

° Physical Illusion AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . G-stopper back protector

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Water purification with Mucor indicus

° Pockin AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Knitted handkerchiefs

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ATREC

° Marappo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Environmentally friendly bleaching

° Stefan Liner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . NapTime

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile surfaces on furniture, molded textiles

° Linnea Nilsson, The Swedish School of Textiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Project 1609

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Photocromic print

° Gapwaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pilot study of an active electromagnetic shielding of high frequency electronics

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rhythms

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile and glass. Light and color

° Smart Textiles Design Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Changing patterns (analog)

° Ten Medical Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10MD

° Abinitio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cullus

° ACG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of a system for labels with smart properties

° Green-Tex A/S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dyeing in stenter

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile electronics using intarsia knitting

° Tina Frausin art & glass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Knitted metal sculptures

° Swerea IVF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Monitors for assessment of lint

° OrganoClick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fluorocarbon-free functional textile

° SCA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Odor inhibiting wipe

SMART TEXTILES DESIGN LAB° Costumes and Wallhanging (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° Costumes and Wallhanging (Material Sense)

° Textile dimensions – an expressive textile interface

° Disseminating knowledge of electronic textiles at art schools and universities

° Designing with Heat (Autex)

° Touching Loops (Futuro Textiel)

° Interactive Textile Expressions in Spatial Design: Architecture as Synesthetci Expressions

° Knitted Light

° Relational Textiles for Space Design (2012)

° Dual-textures: textiles in between function and ornamentation

° Touching Loops (”It is possible”)

° Touching Loops (Exhibited at Responsive)

° Designing with heat (”It is possible”)

° Designing with Heat (Cesme)

° An Interactive Textile Hanging: Textile, Context, and Interaction

° An Interactive Textile Hanging: Textiles, Spaces and Interaction

° Repetition: interactive expressions of pattern translation

° Heat as Interactive Expressions for Knitted Structures

° Interactive Textile Expressions in Architectural Design: Architecture as Synesthetic Expression

° DualTextures: textiles in between function and onamentation

° Knitted Light – Space and Emotion

° Smart Textiles – strategic issues and the role of experimental design

° (Eds.), Ambience´11 Proceedings

° Textile Interaction Design

° Smart Textiles (Science for the profession 2)

° Smart Textiles – Technology and Design (Ambience ´08)

° On the Foundations of Interaction Design Aesthetics: Revisiting the Notions of Form and Expression

° Interaction Design – Foundations, Experiments

° (Eds.), Ambience´11 Exhibition

° Culture Club

° Interweaving Art and Fashion

° Fashioning the Future

° Well Done Daphne

° The Textile

° Textile Light Design

° Textile Light Design (Proceedings of Cumulus 38degrees South)

° Weaving and knitting experiments with optical fibers

° rhythm exercise_13 IN 1

° Light and Shadow Play – The Sun as an Aesthetic Trigger for Urban Textiles

° Upholstery concepts for automotives using smart textiles

° Mask

° Mask In (Ambience´11 Exhibition)

° Lab, Field, Gallery, and Beyond

° Anxiety, Trust and other Expressions of Interaction (2009)

° The burning tablecloth (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° The burning tablecloth (Material Sense)

° A wall hanging as an organic interface (OUI´11): Second International Workshop on Organic User Interfaces)

° A Wall Hanging as an Organic Interface

° Saturday Light Fever

° Chromatic chlorophyll – Conceptual hospital textiles with chromatic Smart Materials

° Ocean and Sea – Design with Chromatic Smart Materials,

° Aperitivo (HappyHour)

° Switch! Designing for Everyday Awarness

° Switch! Energy Ecologies in Everyday Life

° Switch! Energy Ecologies in Everyday Life (International Journal of Design, Vol.2, No.3)

° Criticality meets sustainability: constructing critical practices in design research for sustainability

° Luminous Textiles

° Understanding the complexity of designing dynamic textile patterns.

° Designing with Smart Textiles: A New Research Program

° Electrical Burn-outs – a Technique to Design Knitted Dynamic Textile Patterns

° Exploring Designing Dynamic and Irreversible Textile Patterns, using a non-chemical Design Technique

° Knitted Circuits for Visual and Tactile Interactive Expressions

° Knitted Circuits for Visual and Tactile Interactive Expressions (2009)

° Costumes and Wallhanging

° A design technique for irreversible patterns (”It is possible”, Avantex)

° A design technique for irreversible patterns (Material Sense)

° Functional Styling – Exploring a Textiles Design Space

° Material Innovation

° Tangled Interaction: On the Expressiveness of Tangible User Interfaces. ACM ToCHI

° Disruptions

° Design Research

° Chair of Paradise

° Textile resistance

° Repetition

° Future master craftsmanship: where we want electronic textile crafts to go

° Neocraft: Exploring Smart Textiles in the Light of Traditional Textiles Crafts

° The ”dark side” of design thinking (2012)

° Existential Design – The dark side of design

° Finding the Frontiers

° VGR in Bangalore

° Designing dynamic textile patterns (2010)



° Dynamic Textiles Patterns (Future Textiles, Centre for Textile Research, University of Copenhagen)



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SMART TEXTILES TECHNOLOGY LAB° Modeling carbon nanotubes and their polymer composites for textile applications

° Computational modeling of carbon nanotube growth and carbon nanotube-based polymer composites

° Calculation model for nanoparticle-based polymer fibers

° Textile Sensors Enabling e-Health Applications

° Melt-spinning of conductive fibers

° Textile concrete – self cleaning properties

° Studies of electrically conductive textile coatings with PEDOT:PSS

° The use of Textiles in an Acoustic Context

° Evaluation of EEG monitoring with electrode cap

° Artifact removal from Textile-enable Electrical bioimpedence measurments

° Characterization of Textrodes for Electrical Bioimpedance measurements

° Performance evaluation of woven textile electrodes for EGC biopotentials

° Development of a wireless battery-driven textile sensor stretch

° Textrodes for EEG

° Conductive Polymer Films

° Three-dimensional multilayer structures for interactive textiles

° Dyeing of Wool and Silk Fibers with Conductive Polyelectrolytes and Comparing Their Conductance

° Improvement of electro-mechanical properties of strain sensors made of elastic-conductive hybrid yarns

° Optimization of oCVD Process for the Production of Conductive Fibers

° Production of highly conductive textile viscose yarns by chemical vapor deposition technique. A route to continuous process

° Stretch Sensing Properties of PEDOT Coated Conductive Yarns Produced by OCVD Process

° Surface modification of conductive PEDOT coated textile yarns with silicone resin

° 3D Weaving Technique Applied in Long Term Monitoring of Brain Activity

° A Novel Approach for Removing the Hook Effect Artifact from Electrical Bioimpedance Spectroscopy Measurements

° Adaptive spatio-temporal filtering of disturbed ECGs: a multi-channel approach to heartbeat detection in smart clothing

° Carbon Black-Filled Silicone Rubber based Strain Sensor – Experiment, Modeling and Simulation

° Classification of Burst and Suppression in the Neonatal EEG

° Comparison of Dry-Textile Electrodes for Electrical Bioimpedance Spectroscopy Measurements

° Computational studies of Poly(vinyliden fluoride)and Poly(vinyliden fluoride) – Single Wall Carbon Nanotube Composites

° Computational studies of single wall carbon nanotube and graphene growth

° Computational studies on enhancing fl-phase poly (vinylidene fluoride)

° Conducting bicomponent fibers obtained by melt spinning of PA6 and polyolefins containing high amounts of carbonaceous fillers.

° Conductive polyblend fibers made of polyamide-6/polypropylene/polyaniline for smart textile applications: electrical and mechanical properties

° Conductive Coated Force Sensor in cargo Transportation Security System

° Conductive polyblend fibers made of polyamide-6/polypropylene/polyaniline for smart textiles applications: electrical and mechanical properties

° Contact Resistance Measurements on multifilament silver yarn

° Design of a Garment-Based Sensing System for Breathing Monitoring

° Designing for Extreme Conditions

° Disappearing Sensor – Textile based Sensor for Monitoring Breathing

° EEG Measurements Using Textile Electrodes.

° Effects of surface structure and substrate color differences in textile coatings containing interference special effect pigments – a multi-angle study

° Electrical bioimpedance Cerebral Monitoring

° Electrical Bioimpedance Cerebral Monitoring. A Study of the Current Density Distribution and Impedance Sensitivity Maps on a 3D Realistic Head Model

° Electrical resistance measurement methods and electrical characterization of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) coated conductive fibers

° Electrically conductive textile coating with a PEDOT-PSS dispersion and a polyurethane binder

° Electrically conductive textile fibers with hybridized graphite nanoplatelets and carbon black filler

° Electro-conductiver polyblend fibers of Polyamide-6/polypropylene/polyanilline: electrical, morphological and mechanical characteristics

° Enhancement of a voltage controlled current source for wideband electrical bioimpedance spectroscopy

° Extraction of structural information from impedance spectrum data. A step towards the identification of cellular edema

° Fabrication of melt spun electroconductive fibers using multiwalled carbon nanotubes, polypropylene and compatibilizer

° Fiber-based single-wire keyboard – The Integration of a Flexible Tactile sensor into E-textiles.

° First principles and molecular mechanics studies of carbon nanotubes – polyvinylidene systems

° Functionalization of textile yarns by coating with conjugated polymer (PEDOT) for smart textile applications

° Improvement of melt spinning properties and conductivity of immiscible PP/PS blends containing carbon black by addition of SEBS

° Influence of coating parameters on the textile and electrical properties of a PEDOT:PSS/PU coated textile

° Influence of electrode mismatch on Cole parameter estimation from Total Right Side Electrical Bioimpedance Spectroscopy measurements

° Interactive Textile Structures; Creating Multifunctional Textiles based on Smart Materials

° Capacitive measurement of ECG in equine medicine – new technology for measurement of ECG for horses with the purpose of increasing the well-being of the animal

° Knitted Textile Strain Sensor for Respiration measurement

° Long-term monitoring of the heart, brain and muscles using textile-based sensors.

° Medical applications of smart textiles – Triple Helix collaboration between Smart Textiles and MedTech West

° Melt blending of carbon nanotubes/poly-aniline/polypropylene compounds and their meltspinning to conductive fibres

° Melt spinning of b-phase poly(vinylidene fluoride) yarns with and without a conductive core

° Melt spinning of carbon nanotube modified polypropylene conducting nanocomposite fibers

° Melt spinning of carbon nanotube modified polypropylene for electrically conducting nanocomosite fibers

° Melt spinning of conducting polymeric composites containing carbonaceous fillers.

° Melt spinning of conductive textile fibers with hybridized graphite nanoplatelets and carbon black filler,

° Melt spinning of poly(vinylidene fluoride) fibers and their influence of spinning parameters on b-phase crystallinity

° Melt spinning of poly(vinylidene fluoride) mono- and bi-component fibers and yarns – The formation of piezoelectric b-phase crystallinity

° Melt spinning of potentially electroactive textile fibers

° Melt spinning of PVDF fibers with enhanced fl phase structure

° Melt Spun Electro-Conductive Polymer Composite Fibers

° Melt-spinning of fl-phase Poly(Vinylidene Fluoride) yarns with and without a conductive core

° Model Based Enhancement of Bioimpedance Spectroscopy Analysis: Towards Textile Enabled

° Molecular Dynamics Studies of the Influence of Single Wall Carbon Nanotubes on the Mechanical Properties of Poly(vinylidene fluoride)

° Molecular level simulations of nanoscale and polymer systems

° Monitoring of Brain Activity Using Textile Electrodes

° NO BUG: Biobased mosquitoes repellent personal protective equipment (PPE)

° Novel Temperature Regulating Fibers and Garments

° On the development of novel piezoelectric fibre sensor

° On the production of polyethylene dielectrics and conductive polymer composite fibers

° Optimization of oCVD Process for the Production of Conductive Fibers

° Oxidative chemical vapor deposition polymerization of poly 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene on Viscose yarns – a route to conductive textile structures

° PEDOT Coated Viscose Fibers by Optimized OCVD Process: Washing and Stretch Sensing Properties

° Piezoelectric polymeric bicomponent fibers produced by melt spinning

° Poling and characterization of piezoelectric bi-component fibers

° Polyaniline-polypropylene melt-spun fiber filaments: the collaborative effects of blending conditions and fiber draw ratios on the electrical properties of fiber filaments

° Preparation of conducting fibers by melt spinning of polyaniline-polypropylene blends modified with carbon nanotubes

° Preparation of conductive textiles fibers by melt spinning and coating methods by utilizing carbon nanotubes and conjugated polymers

° Preparation of conductive viscose fibers by vapor deposition polymerization of poluthiophene

° Preparation of melt spun conductive polypropylene/polyaniline fibers for smart textile applications

° Production of conductive yarns by chemical vapor deposition technique of PEDOT viscose fibers

° Production of highly conductive textile viscose yarns by chemical vapor deposition technique. A route to continuous process

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SMART TEXTILES COMPANY DRIVEN PROjECTS° Kasthall Mattor & Golv AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Functional styling, Smart Styling

° EngTex, FOV, Industritextil Job, Jirotex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile Mikrophone Elements

° Almedahl-Kinna, Albany, FOV Fabrics AB, Scandfilter AB (now Vokes Air AB) . . . . . . . . . . Coating of Textile Material with Conductive Polymers

° Scandfilter AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Surface Modification of Polymer Fiber with Plasma Technology

° Facilette AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-study Geotechnic weave

° Ludvig Svensson AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Water Steaming Greenhouse Woven Permeable

° Saab Barracuda AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Adhesion Between Advanced Functional Layers

° Mölnlycke Health Care AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nano Fiber for Wound Care Products

° AB Initi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-treatment device

° Kwintet Fristads AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Smart Clean Room Seams Performed with smart Technologies

° TST Sweden AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Material Development of Protective Clothing UHP (Ultra High Pressure)

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Breating Alarm for Infants

° Hedareds Sand & Betong AB, Nordifa, Teknitex, FOV Fabrics AB and Almedahl-Kinna AB . . . CONTEXTILE – Textile in Concrete for Better Surface qualities

° Acqwool Development AB, AB Ludvig Svensson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Room Acoustic Measurements in a Full-scale Environment

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Optical films in textile applications

° Scandfilter (now Vokes Air AB), FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Static Electricity Charged Filter for Ozone Reduction

° Lars Brandin (Smart Textiles Prototype Factory) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Geotechnic weave

° Mejt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cellphone bag with radiation shielding

° AB Initio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cullus. Industrial Knitted Sound Absorbents

° TST Sweden AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Smart Textiles’ Influence on the Human Body

° Smart Textiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-Study of Manufacture of Conductive Fibers

° Jaba Group AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile Furniture

° Forsberg Form AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reinforced Textile Concrete for Construction and Art

° Smart Textiles Technology Lab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile Photonic Gap

° Ludvig Svensson AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Test Method for Moisture Evaporation

° Woolpower AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of Reinforcement Materials for Climate Comfort

° Navic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ship’s hawser

° Hövding Sverige AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bicycle helmet

° Saab Barracuda AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Adhesion Between Advanced Functional Layers

° Magnus Stenberg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alarm-Tape

° AB Svenskt Konstsilke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-Study of Manufacture of Conductive Fibers Jaba Group AB .

° Epical Innovation AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Electrically conductive filters

° Ludvig Svensson AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textiles with Integrated LED-Lamps

° Trisquel Medical AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Z-Health

° Forsberg Form AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reinforced Textile Concrete for Construction and Art

° AB Svenskt Konstsilke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Yarn Treatment for PUR Composites

° AB Svenskt Konstsilke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Method for Coating of Conductive Fibres

° Pjama AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pajama of Functional Textiles

° In Life Design AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industrial verification of EKG measurement

° Z-health Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . EBI-sock for domestic care

° Nike Tech Mariestad AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Heat transfer using conductive textile fibers

° Smart Textiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-Study Generic Technology Platform Textile Furniture

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile facade elements

° Ygraft AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ygraft in Humanly Adjusted Textiles

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Relining-System for Moisture Tracking

° Scandfilter AB (now Vokes Air AB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conductive Filtration System

° AB Texrep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Light-emitting opto-components in textiles

° Mejt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MEJT - Screening Belt for Your Mobile Phone

° GraftCraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PressCise (Cstretch)

° Ortoma AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Soft, weight-bearing materials for implants in the human body

° Inerventions AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elektrodress – Garment for the Inervention method

° Svenska quinTex AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Industrial verification of new a hightech weaving process

° ACG Accent AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of a system for labels with smart properties

° Nordiska Etikettbolaget AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Superweave label with built-in traceability

° Almedahl-Kinna AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Light controlling curtain

° Engtex AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textiles as surface reinforcement of concrete facades

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile heating elements

° AB Svenskt Konstsilke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Melt-spinning in Borås: build-up, start-up and melt-spinning of specialized fibers

° Torbjörn Ödman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Portable radar textile

° Ivanoff Hovercraft AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hovertex – abrasion resistant textiles for hovercrafts

° FOV Fabrics AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Textile biogas reactor

° Vokes Air AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Modification of the surface of textile filter material for effective particle separation

° TST Sweden AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Development of heat reflecting textile

° Gapwaves AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pre-study of active electromagnetic shielding of high frequency electronics

° OrganoClick AB, Norrona Sport AS, Bergans Fritid AS, Houdini Sportswear AB, Klättermusen AB, Haglöfs Scandinavia AB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fluorocarbon-free functional textile

° Progress in understanding controlled single-wall carbon nanotube growth from computer simulations.

° Slowly Altering Electrical Potentials over the Head During Hypoxia and LPS Exposure

° Smart textiles for knitted products – Prototype factory

° Smart Textiles in Neonatal Monitoring: Enabling Unobtrusive Monitoring at the NICU

° Soft Textile Electrodes for EEG Monitoring

° Spectroscopy study of the dynamics of the transencephalic electrical impedance in the perinatal brain during hypoxia

° Strategies for the preparation of conductive textile fibers for smart and functional textiles

° Stretchable Circuit Board technology enabling Seamless Textile-Electronic Integration for Electrical Muscle Stimulation Therapy

° Studies of electrically conductive textile coatings with PEDOT:PSS

° Syntheses of High Performance, Conductive PEDOT-coated Polyester Yarns by OCVD Technique.

° Ternary composites made of carbon nanotubes/polypropylene/Polyaniline and melt spinning to conductive fibers

° Testing and evaluation of textile based stretch sensor

° Textrode functional straps for bioimpedance measurements. Experimental results for Body Composition Analysis

° Textile Electrodes for EEG Recording ó A Pilot Study

° Textile Sound Structures

° Textile Strain Sensors Characterization - Sensitivity, Linearity, Stability and Hysteresis

° Textiles Microphone Elements

° Textrode Functional Straps for Bioimpedance Measurements-Experimental Results for Body composition Analysis.

° The Challenge of the Skin-Electrode Contact in Textile-enabled Electrical Bioimpedance Measurements for Personalized Healthcare Monitoring Applications

° The influence of matrix viscosity on properties of polypropylene/polyaniline composite fibers – rheological, electrical and mechanical characteristics

° The use of Textiles in an Acoustic Context

° Three-dimensional multilayer fabric structures for interactive textiles

° Three-dimensional weaving technique with possible applications in medical technology

° Use of Technical Textiles to achieve Bio-Inspired Self-Cleaning Concrete Facades

° Use of technical textiles to obtain self-cleaning buildning surfaces

Ola Toftegaard CHAIRMAN OF THE STEERING GROUP

I’ve been with Smart Textiles since the beginning and it is a very

important and exciting research area for the textile industry. The time

has come to make new international contacts, create new collabora-

tions and secure funding from the EU to ensure long-term success.

Smart Textiles know no boundaries!

Björn Brorström VICE-CHANCELLOR, UNIVERISITY OF BORÅS

Smart Textiles is science for the professions and innovation at its

best. As a member of the Steering Group, I have an opportunity to

follow the development and contribute to discussions on objectives,

strategies and results.

Helena L Nilsson HEAD OF THE UNIT FOR RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT,

REGION VÄSTRA GÖTALAND

Smart Textiles is an initiative of national and international radiance

and potential. As a representative of Region Västra Götaland, I want

to contribute to making sure Smart Textiles is equipped to create

value for and ideas among entrepreneurs, researchers and players in

the public sector.

Lena Brännmar CEO, THE SjUHÄRAD ASSOCIATION OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES

In several ways, Smart Textiles is an important field of development

for the Borås area. It helps maintain and develop the textile heritage

and contributes to the financial growth of the Borås area. Finding new

ways of using textiles is not only beneficial to the Borås area but will

also result in contributions at the national and international levels.

Thomas Wallén CEO, SÖDRA ÄLVSBORG HOSPITAL

There are innumerable applications for the innovations of Smart Tex-

tiles in the health care sector, where we haven’t yet understood the

magnitude of them. Being part of this development is a rare luxury.

Per-Erik Petersson CTO, DEPUTY CEO, SP TECHNICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE OF SWEDEN

Smart Textiles is an incredibly exciting project that brings together

top competence and practical applications in an area of importance to

Sjuhärad (and Sweden). The recipe for success is based on close col-

laborations between The Swedish School of Textiles and the business

community with the SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden as

an important catalyst. I’m happy to be a participant and to be able to

influence and contribute to the continuation of a successful process.

Pernilla Walkenström DEPUTY CEO, DEPARTMENT MANAGER TEXTILES AND PLASTICS, SWEREA IVF

Smart Textiles is a very exciting environment and contributes greatly

to the development of the textile field. I want to help promote rese-

arch, development and innovation and create favorable conditions for

using research results in product development.

Mats Lundgren MANAGING DIRECTOR, FOV FABRICS

Developing a new, exciting area of expertise that can potentially help

our textile and fashion industry become even more competitive and

develop new innovative products is important to us.

Joachim Lindqvist BUSINESS AREA MANAGER TEXTILES, IKEA OF SWEDEN AB

I want my contribution to strengthen textile innovations and to make

them become reality as they are presented to consumers and users. I

want to make the connections between ideas, research and produc-

tion stronger.

Magnus Berggren CEO, 8848 ALTITUDE

As the CEO of a business that is in the process of building a global

brand with core values such as design, innovation and function, it

is important to be part of the development of Smart Textiles and

represent our industry – the sports business – not least from a

commercial point of view.

90

Why is it important to you to be a member of the

Smart Textiles Steering Group?

FORMER MEMBERS OF THE SMART TEXTILES STEERING GROUP

Lars Karlsson FORMER CHAIRMAN OF THE SMART TEXTILES STEERING GROUP

I was asked by TEKO to take part in Smart Textiles (ST) in order to

create a balance between the interests of academia and the business

community. The connection to the resources at the University and the

needs of the business community has been the motivation behind my

involvement in ST. The power of the cluster opens great opportunities

for the industry if the resources of the cluster are used in a wise way.

ST has so far generated both new products and businesses and the

work of ST can yield even better results if academia, the business

community and the region put the power of the cluster to good use.

Anne Ludvigson CEO, LUDVIG SVENSSON

It was important for me to become a member of the Smart Textiles

Steering Group in order to influence and contribute to future research

in the textile field at the University of Borås. As the fourth genera-

tion running a family business, we at Ludvig Svensson rely heavily on

competencies in textile materials, processes and people. In the long

run, we will be successful if we create a dynamic cluster for textiles

where knowledge is generated across boundaries.

Urban Olsson CEO, SVENSKT KONSTSILKE

International business thinking is important in the development of the

smart textiles of the future. The composition of the Steering Group

with members from the business community, academia and public

functions resulted in creative discussions, which I think inspired and

guided the management at Smart Textiles.

Roland Ohlander VOKES AIR

As a former member of the Steering Group, I know for a fact that

Smart Textiles works with many exciting projects. I have a back-

ground in the filter business and I know there are useful examples

from that business. Smart Textiles has worked with conductive fibers

which makes air filters both more energy efficient and less expensive.

I’m convinced more companies would benefit greatly from entering

into development projects together with Smart Textiles.

THE SMART TEXTILES INITIATIVE is an environment

built up around close collaborations between the

University of Borås, SP Technical Research Insti-

tute of Sweden, Swerea IVF and the Inkubator

in Borås. Its main financiers are Vinnova, Region

Västra Götaland and the Sjuhärad Association of

Local Authorities. Smart Textiles is also funded

by Sparbanksstiftelsen Sjuhärad and other rese-

arch financiers.

Fabrics that purify water using nothing but the sun as energy source. Clothes that can take an EKG or become cool at extreme temperatures. Smart textiles that revolutionizes our lives.

The textile industry is about to take a giant step from being a supplier of fabrics to become a positive force in the development of society. Textile innovations improve people’s everyday lives and benefit the industry, the health care sector and the environment.

However, innovations do not spring from nothing. It takes an open environment where people from many different backgrounds are allowed to meet and in-volve in open-ended communication to find both sought-after and unexpected solutions. Smart Textiles is that innovation environment in Northern Europe. Today, the research community, the business community, institutions and the public sector come together to find the solutions of the future. As the Smart Textiles Initiative offers a complete solution including everything from basic research to prototype development, it is the natural partner for realizing textile ideas or meeting a need with textile technology.

With over 350 research and company driven projects since the foundation of the Initative in 2006, Smart Textiles has not only become a motor for the textile industry in Sweden but an important player on the international arena.

www.smarttextiles.se

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