Design for sustainable fashion: 3D weaving for denim jeans production

Abstract

The fashion industry is facing complex environmental challenges, and a need for change is prevalent for the industry to move towards circular economies. 3D weaving emerges as an innovative approach to garment design and production, allowing for novel processes that capture the opportunities missed by current linear systems. 3D weaving of integrated multilayer Jacquard fabrics for denim garments shows potential for increased efficiency, reduced environmental impact, new design avenues and unprecedented levels of automation in future processes.

This project sets out to research the practical application of 3D weaving for the sustainable design and production of denim garments. It explores the opportunities, limitations and execution of 3D weaving for creating a pair of 5-pocket denim jeans in existing supply chains (production samples provided by Diamond Denim). This report of the process acts as a practical guide for further adoption of 3D woven denim in academia and the industry. A production prototype is developed to showcase the benefits of 3D weaving for denim design and production, while also evaluating the implications of this particular zero waste design for 3D weaving and the industry as a whole.

Evaluation of the design results suggest that this application of 3D weaving could potentially: Reduce stitch length by 40%, reduce pre-consumer waste by 20%, reduce water usage by 25%, eliminate use of micro plastics and become 100% recyclable. Further improvements are expected when the technology finds further adoption in the industry. A majority of industry respondents (n16) expressed interest in the technology, estimating that commercial application is feasible within the next 3-5 years with a production price increase that does not exceed 25% compared to conventional denim jeans. Further potential lies in tackling online returns, overstockage, made on demand systems, user customization and further optimization of the technology for increased efficiency and reduced cost.

Overall, 3D weaving presents itself as a new fundamental tool in sustainable fashion design, one that requires new levels of expertise and industry alignment. Further, while future research and development helps to overcome limitations in the process of 3D weaving, the proof of concept presented in this report concludes that this process can already be done with existing machinery.

Innovations such as 3D weaving may find resistance while gaining wider adoption as their implications require a major shift in current processes, often straying away from common practices that feel safer from an economic perspective. Mitigating some of the risk through development in academic settings may help to persuade businesses to adapt pivotal methods like 3D weaving sooner, as the groundwork has already been done. This underscores the need for academic research through projects focussing on sustainable design and innovation.