Sportswear Pro (24 – 27 March 2020, IFEMA – Feria de Madrid) has published the programme for its seminar feature, the Sportswear Pro Forum. Welcoming a host of speakers focusing on topics of interest in the garment printing and sportswear production industries, each day will be dedicated to a different theme, including customisation, sustainability, digital innovation and on-demand production.

 

Located in hall 3 and seating up to 40, visitors can attend the Sportswear Pro Forum free-of-charge with a valid Sportswear Pro, European Sign Expo or FESPA Global Print Expo 2020 entry ticket. The English-only sessions will begin at 11:00 on the first day of show (Tuesday 24 March) and will take place every half hour throughout the duration of the entire event, until 3:30 on Friday 27 March.

 

Michael Ryan, Event Manager for Sportswear Pro, says: “Sportswear Pro is not just about new technologies and exciting innovations on display – we want to share a wealth of industry knowledge with our visitors that will inspire them to pursue new opportunities to grow their businesses. The Sportswear Pro Forum is a brilliant platform for achieving this and we’re very excited about the speakers we have lined up.”

 

He continues: “We are also very pleased to welcome our Gold Sponsors, HP and Mimaki, who will be running daily sessions throughout the course of the event.”

 

Customisation

 

The ability to print customised garments is a key trend that is currently shaping the sportswear industry. The opening day of the event will see an hour-long round table panel discussion (12:00 – 13:00, Tuesday 24 March) between spokespeople from Roland, Summa, Caldera and Gemini CAD. The focus will be primarily on the possibilities of workflow, production enhancements and the extent to which sportswear can be customised. The panellists will also identify some of the key challenges of customisation and the best ways to overcome them.

 

Special attention will also be given to the disruptive power of digital printing technology in the custom sportswear and apparel markets in a seminar hosted by Caldera (16:00 – 16:30, Tuesday 24 March). The session will provide an overview of the trends (mass customisation, e-commerce, automation, etc.) and the technologies (inkjet, dye-sublimation, web applications) that are currently shaping custom sportswear.

 

Sustainability

 

With environmental responsibility becoming a key talking point across multiple industries in recent years, the Sportswear Pro Forum’s dedicated round table session (12:00 – 13:00, Wednesday 25 March) will explore the sportswear industry’s ambitions for sustainability and what businesses can do to reach them. A selection of panellists featuring Sensient, Berger Textiles and Ashara Lifestyle will take a look at the inks and fabrics being employed in the industry, the impact they are having on the environment and whether alternative solutions can be adopted.

 

Also tying in with the sustainability theme will be a seminar titled ‘The Dos and Don’ts of DTG Printing on Sportswear’ (16:00 – 16:30, Wednesday 25 March). With a focus on the capabilities of Direct-to-Garment printing, the session will give an overview of DTG’s sustainability credentials, such as its ability to reduce textile printing’s environmental footprint, as well as its ability to print on a wide range of fabrics, including polyester and other blends.

 

Digital Innovation

 

The third day of the event will be dedicated to digital innovation and its transformative effect on sportswear production. Alvanon and Under Armour will be teaming up to highlight the advantages of standardising fits across brands by using 3D digital avatars, in a seminar titled ‘Rewriting the Rules of 3D’ (11:30 – 12:00, Thursday 26 March). The session will illustrate how digitising the sizing process is able to save time, increase accuracy and significantly reduce waste, all of which are necessary improvements for today’s sustainable supply chain.

 

The Fashion and Design Masterclass for Sportswear Apparel (16:00 – 16:30, Thursday 26 March) will instead be a hands-on interactive session on how AI-powered design tools empower users to get the very best results from artwork and designs before submitting them to be printed directly onto garments. Hosted by Morning Star Design, the Masterclass will also provide tips and tricks on how to apply designs for screen printing, embroidery and transfer printing.

 

 

 On-demand Production

 

With more customers expecting their items to be personalised and delivered within 24-hour timeframes, more businesses are offering on-demand production and mass customisation as part of their services. The conference on smart manufacturing (11:30 – 12:00, Friday 27 March) will explore the numerous ways in which sportswear production can be streamlined and made more efficient. Production automation, traceability and mass customisation are just a few of the topics to be covered in the session hosted by Sportswear of Tomorrow.

 

One of the final sessions of the Sportswear Pro Forum will be a panel discussion dedicated to on-demand production (12:00 – 13:00, Friday 27 March) featuring expert spokespeople from brands such as Kornit and Gemini CAD. The participants will take a look at on-demand production as a trend that transcends industries, just as relevant to sportswear manufacturers as it is to print service providers, before discussing how it impacts the whole supply chain.

 

For more information on Sportswear Pro and to register to attend visit: https://www.sportswearpro.com/. For free entry, use code SWPM206.

 

ENDS

 

About Sportswear Pro

Launching in 2020, Sportswear Pro is an exhibition dedicated exclusively to sportswear manufacturing, running alongside FESPA Global Print Expo 2020.

With a focus on the latest technologies in on-demand and customised sportswear production, Sportswear Pro brings together suppliers of solutions for three key areas of sportswear manufacture: design (CAD/CAM and 3D body scanning); production (CMT, bonding and knitting) and decoration (printing, engraving, embroidery and laser appliqué systems), as well as developers of accessories, smart textiles and printed electronics.

Sportswear Pro is hosted by FESPA, the organiser of the market leading FESPA Global Print Expo, an annual event attracting over 20,000 visitors from the international screen, digital and textile printing industries.

About FESPA

Founded in 1962, FESPA is a global federation of associations for the screen printing, digital printing and textile printing community. FESPA’s dual aim is to promote screen printing and digital imaging and to share knowledge about screen and digital printing with its members across the world, helping them to grow their businesses and learn about the latest developments in their fast growing industries. 

 

FESPA Profit for Purpose
The shareholders are the industry. FESPA has invested millions of Euros into the global printing community over the last seven years, supporting the growth of the market. For more information visit www.fespa.com

 

FESPA Print Census

The FESPA Print Census is a global research project to understand the wide format, screen and digital print community. It is the largest data gathering project of its kind.

 

Forthcoming FESPA events include:

• FESPA Brasil, 18-20 March 2020, Expo Center Norte, São Paulo, Brasil
• FESPA Global Print Expo, 24-27 March 2020, IFEMA, Madrid, Spain
• European Sign Expo, 24-27 March 2020, IFEMA, Madrid, Spain
• Sportswear Pro, 24-27 March 2020, IFEMA, Madrid, Spain
• FESPA Global Print Expo, 18-21 May 2021, Messe München, Munich, Germany
• European Sign Expo, 18-21 May 2021, Messe München, Munich, Germany

 

 

Issued on behalf of Sportswear Pro by AD Communications

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Michael Grass                                                       Simona Jevdokimovaite

AD Communications                                           FESPA

Tel: + 44 (0) 1372 464470                                  Tel: +44 (0) 1737 228169

Email: mgrass@adcomms.co.uk                       Email: simona.jevdokimovaite@fespa.com

Website: www.adcomms.co.uk                         Website: www.fespa.com