Digital Archive as a Creative Booster. Connecting Design Processes to Logistics and PLM Platforms

The research is based on different projects carried out by Sciences for Made in Italy laboratory and REI Design lab (reverse engineering and interaction design) at the University of Florence, in contact with the high-end manufacturing system of Tuscany (Italy). This relation aims at developing design innovation processes in manufacturing, particularly in fashion and high-end production. The research shows how logistics innovation in supply chain processes involving digital archives of semi-finished products, traceability systems and time to market optimization, may represent a real booster for design culture and trans-disciplinary design actions. The research concerns about collaborations in between University of Florence/REI lab and SMEs, in particular Unomaglia spa leading manufacturer of clothing in jersey fabrics. The company stands as a leader supplier for important Italian and French fashion brands. The research set a digital archive of the manufactured items of clothing based on categories of dress shapes, materials and applied decorations. Digital archiving of items of clothing starts with a photoshooting in a professional photography set, developing 3 several shoots of the item in three different positions. Digital storage system allows to keep under control all the production composition elements, all the different materials and decorations incorporated on the artifact (i.e. embroidery) or applied (i.e. patch systems). Managing these elements we can easily develop design variants, improve the B2B services and product development processes. The project aims at creating an archive system and logistics management of the supply that represent not only an timing improvement for the supply chain, but above all a way to 'suggest' through the archive items design inspirations and guidelines to designers – i.e. to make their variants on existing semi-finished products or having creative ideas from them. Above all, the research aims at structuring an advanced visualization platform of Product Lifecycle Management, making the artifact in its creative and productive path able to interact to different company departments.