Shima Seiki, together with its Hong Kong subsidiary, Shima Seiki Hong Kong, is set to participate in the 36th Session of Spinexpo in Shanghai, China, in booth O, 02, from April 1-3, 2021. Shima Seiki is a computerised knitting machine manufacturer from Japan. Spinexpo is the industry sourcing expo, dedicated to innovation in yarns, fibres, and knitwear.
At the expo, Shima Seiki will introduce its new ‘APEXFiz’ subscription-based design software. APEXFiz is the latest addition to Shima Seiki’s proven SDS-onE APEX series design system line-up, but with an unprecedented twist.
Whereas previous APEX-series design systems were offered as an all-in-one proprietary hardware/software package, for the first time in its nearly 40 years of design system development, Shima Seiki has released its new APEXFiz as subscription-based design software that can be installed on customers’ individual computers.
Maintaining proven functions that have made the APEX series so popular with fashion designers, with APEXFiz those strengths are now enhanced with the added versatility to adapt to different work styles and business environments of the ‘new normal’, including teleworking and telecommuting, according to Shima Seiki.
APEXFiz software supports the creative side of fashion from planning and design to colourway evaluation, realistic fabric simulation, and 3D virtual sampling. Otherwise known as ‘digital twins’, virtual samples are a digitised version of sample making that are accurate enough to be used effectively as prototypes, replacing physical sampling, and consequently reducing time, cost and material that otherwise go to waste. APEXFiz, thereby, helps to realise sustainability and digitally transform the fashion supply chain, the company said in a media statement.
Shima Seiki’s new yarnbank, the world’s first online web service for searching and viewing the latest yarns, developed with cooperation from yarn companies from around the world, will also be displayed. Registered users can download yarn data for free, for use in fabric simulation and virtual sampling on APEXFiz, avoiding the need to scan yarn on their own. By using yarn that is used in actual production, designers and apparel companies can furthermore rest assured that the simulations created using yarn from yarnbank are not merely realistic images but accurate representations using yarn that can actually be purchased and used in production. With yarnbank, the entire supply chain from yarn companies and apparel companies to knit manufacturers can be connected digitally, Shima Seiki said.
Also on display will be the latest collection of knit samples, including Wholegarment knitwear that is knit in its entirety on the machine without the need for linking or sewing afterward. Without seams, Wholegarment knitwear features superior fit, comfort, and draping characteristics. Together with virtual sampling performed on APEXFiz, Wholegarment offers smart production for realising a sustainable fashion supply chain.
