IPC Event Puts Spotlight on E-Textiles

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

On September 13, representatives from the e-textiles ecosystem, including product innovators, material suppliers, electrical engineers and academia, came together for IPC E-Textiles 2018, a first-time e-textiles event for IPC. The workshop was developed by leaders from the e-textiles supply chain, who approached IPC to host a collaborative educational event for two converging industries—textiles and electronics.

“The goal of IPC E-Textiles 2018 was to provide a platform for education and collaboration among a diverse group of professionals interested in producing e-textiles as well as to attract a myriad of market segments, including fashion design, health monitoring, medical, automotive and military/aerospace,” said Chris Jorgensen, IPC director of technology transfer and staff liaison to the IPC D-70 E-Textiles Committee, which is developing IPC international standards for e-textiles.

For an estimated 90% of attendees and speakers, this was their first time attending an IPC event. Leaders from the e-textiles sector led interactive and productive discussions on developing business models for e-textiles, materials characteristics and testing, real-world examples of e-textiles usage, how engineers and customers should work together and assembling effective transdisciplinary teams.

The following are the speakers and topics that were covered:

• Stephanie Rodgers, Apex Mills – Textiles and Testing 101; E-Textiles Creations Speedstorming session
• Dan Ledger, Path Collaborative – Picking a Winning Business Model for Smart Textiles
• Diana Wyman, American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) and Stephanie Rodgers – FYI...Fibers, Yarns, and Inks for E-Textile Products
• Madison Maxey, LOOMIA – Merging Practices, Creating Opportunities
• MaryAlice Gill and Oona Oksjarvi, Jabil Circuit's Nypro Consumer Health Division Clothing+ -- We’re Successful When You’re Successful – How Engineers and Customers Need to Work Together
• Genevieve Dion, Drexel University Center for Functional Fabrics – From Concept to Commercialization: Transdisciplinary Teams for Functional Fabrics
• Milad Alizadeh-Meghrazi, Myant – Healthcare Re-Imagined Through Textiles
  

In addition to the workshop, IPC hosted a brainstorming session for the e-textiles industry to discuss the standards under development by the IPC D-70 E-Textiles Committee, including draft e-textiles standards on knitted and woven e-textiles and designing printed electronics on textiles, as well as to present IPC with industry issues that could be resolved through IPC solutions.

“The energy and excitement at E-Textiles 2018 was inspiring,” said Stephanie Rodgers, chair of IPC’s D-70 E-textiles committee, and director, research and product development, Apex Mills, said. “It was a truly collaborative effort of disparate groups with one goal in mind – developing the best way to produce an entirely new idea.”  

About IPC

IPC is a global industry association based in Bannockburn, Ill., dedicated to the competitive excellence and financial success of its 4,400 member-company sites which represent all facets of the electronics industry, including design, printed board manufacturing, electronics assembly and test. As a member-driven organization and leading source for industry standards, training, market research and public policy advocacy, IPC supports programs to meet the needs of an estimated $2 trillion global electronics industry. IPC maintains additional offices in Taos, N.M.; Washington, D.C.; Atlanta, Ga.; Brussels, Belgium; Stockholm, Sweden; Moscow, Russia; Bangalore and New Delhi, India; Bangkok, Thailand; and Qingdao, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Suzhou and Beijing, China. For more information click here.