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Introduction
Before a few years there was no concept of ready-made garments, there were only made-to-measure clothes. In economically backward families, the women in the family usually sew the garments, and upper-class families have the garments sewn by tailors. The professional fit of the garment suggests class differentiation.
But nowadays, sewing clothes at home has become more of a hobby and leisure activity and people prefer ready-made garments and custom-made clothes. Buying ready-to-wear garments has become cheaper than getting your clothes sewn to measure. Since specially made clothing requires more money and time as the tailor has to individually measure, design and sew the garments.
The greatest advance in clothing manufacturing occurred in the early 20th century. The tailors, instead of making personalized clothes for their clients, began to graduate the sizes, that is, a set of standard sizes that would fit the maximum number of people. However, due to industrialization and the invention of power looms, the costs of ready-made garments were reduced to a minimum.
The advent of ready-made clothing diminished the class differentiation that prevailed due to the dress of the masses. Although these ready-to-wear garments fit better than custom-made clothing. When tape measures weren’t invented, tailors used to take the body measurements of individual customers via strips of parchment. This was a very time consuming procedure and was also difficult to maintain.
E fit
In today’s world of technological advances, apparel companies rely on various computer programs to provide the perfect fit and appropriate designs for individual garments, so they can be customized easily and inexpensively.
The process of getting the clothes that fit us well by entering body measurement details into the computer, which would allow us to know which clothes from the entire store could fit us perfectly, is known as ‘E-fit’. There are different types of electronic fitting methods used by different clothing companies to offer custom fit and designs to their customers. At some brand-name jean stores, customers can choose styles, finishes, fabrics, seam lengths, and leg opening sizes; additional individual measurements are entered into the computer along with these details. The computer then reflects the jeans from the entire store’s stock that would fit the customer. Therefore, one can find jeans that exactly fit their choice. This data is stored in computer records so that next time it can be retrieved without wasting time.
The latest innovation in e-fit is to offer personalized clothing through 3D body scanning. Here, the 3D body scanner takes the customer’s body measurements, this detail is entered into the computer, with the help of a trained salesperson, allowing the style, design, fabrics and fit styles to be selected. Thus, the customer gets perfect fitting garments. Scan data and other information is stored on the computer for future orders.
The technology behind it
Many technologies such as body scanning, barcodes, laser cutters and various web applications are used by retailers for mass customization of garments. CAD/CAM and body scanning technologies make it easy to deliver garments of the desired fit and pattern to the customer. The advent of this innovative e-fit technology helps to get clothes accurately and quickly.
Self-measurement done for internet shopping is usually not perfect, therefore 3D body scan solves the drawbacks of self-measurement. The result of this technology is precise and impeccable. The body scan procedure is very quick, taking around twelve seconds. It is then moved to the computer where the software generates the body measurements. The entire procedure takes just one minute.
CAD/CAM technology involves pre-production design functions. From surface design to pattern making, it does all the processes. The type of information used here is digital in nature. It offers the possibility to create, change, archive, save and reuse patterns and measurements. However, the data is stored in a particular format in this technology.
A 3D body scanner consists of several components, such as 3D body measurement software, a custom garment design system, and virtual mirror software. This system performs the entire body scanning process to virtually fit the selected garment into the 3D image that is created on the computer. The customer information is then stored on the computer in an organized manner.
Process
To obtain the e-fit measurement, the client enters the body scanner, removes their clothing and wears disposable underwear. The light rays then fall on the client’s body, which in turn creates a 3D image with all possible body measurements from all angles. This procedure takes only a few seconds. Also, the customer changes back to their normal clothing and purchases the desirable garments, then the chosen garment is virtually fitted on the 3D image where the customer can see if it would fit or not and could also check the fit. The 3D body scan image data is stored in the computer database so that it can be used for reordering.
The rise of e-fit technology has made it possible to get custom fitted and patterned garments even though there are a myriad of combinations of body types and measurements. The pattern developed through automated pattern development software can be combined with the body measurement generated by 3D body scanning software. However, proper adjustment of the human body in a complicated way through e-fit is also a somewhat difficult task.
conclusion
The concept of e-fit is new to the field of apparel retailing and merchandising. This technology is in its primitive stage but has started to show positive results. In the coming years, e-fit technology is expected to completely change the landscape of the personalized shopping experience for customers. Save time and waste of resources as there are no unnecessary tests and returns of garments.