Sportswear shows evolution in three directions: (1) the challenge to records and the limits of the self; (2) health-oriented sports; and (3) self-expression by sports mix. As for the "challenge to records and the limits of the self," a shift to high functions as competition wear and moves to pursue "upper functions" are also visible.
In the case of short-distance races and swimming as well, a high degree of functions have become imperative for sportswear in order to shorten 0.01 second. As for "health-oriented sports," people consider sports as the means to attain satisfaction in the aspect of mentality. This is where people call the "wellness market." As for the "self-expression by sports mix," lifestyle product groups have expanded and they have taken firm hold. People request sportswear as wear to express their lifestyle rather than as sports-oriented wear.
Sports have spread deeply into the living scene of a wide spectrum of people and each individual has a unique way to enjoy sports in the region of "an individual." The product planning of sportswear takes two directions: the pursuit of "functional properties" and the pursuit of "sensitivity." The combination and fusion of these two directions are most like to become visible from now on.
Ichiro Yoshii, General Manager, Polyester Filament Division, Asahi Kasei Fibers Corporation has defined "fusion and cross conditioning" as the theme of the development of active wear materials for the spring/summer 2006 season.
This definition refers to four sets of crossings: (1) dry � cool, (2) soft � airy, (3) fit � support and (4) wind � rain. (1) refers to comfort materials with perspiration-absorbing / quick drying and UV (ultraviolet rays)-cut properties, which the company's sophisticated polyester yarn "Technofine" can achieve. The combination of "Technofine" and "Cupro" further enhances moisture-absorbing/releasing property and comfortability.
(2) refers to the pursuit of lightweight, compactness and comfortability, which the company's lightweight woven fabric "Impact" can achieve. (3) refers to high function stretch made of the company's spandex "Roica" and PTT (polytrimethylene terephthalate) fiber "Solotex". PTT fiber is a variation of polyester, but offers form stability surpassing polyester, softness like nylon plus stretchability. It is dyeable under normal and high pressures and the option has expanded in the aspect of dyeing.
This is the way of manufacturing athletic wear, swimwear and fitness wear at Asahikasei, but the company is also developing a new application called "lifestyle casualwear."
(4) refers to weather control materials that fuse windproof, moisture permeable and water repellent functions. The company's fabric that utilizes 66-nylon brand "Leona" has expanded variations.
Concrete and Understandable Functions
Yasunari Hotani, Team Leader, Sports Fabrics Team, Sports & Intimate & Lining Textiles Sales Department, Teijin Fibers Limited will review the past trend of the sportswear market and propose "concrete and understandable functions" and "designable functions."
Hotani says he wants to use the power of textile materials to show the direction (vector) of new sports and lifestyles. It has become important to have sportswear that people can choose freely to match individual lifestyles and feelings to satisfy the way of enjoying sports deeply rooted in the living environment, an orientation toward health, healing-oriented mentality and the way of wearing sportswear with a sense of street wear.
Teijin has chosen a highly breathable woven fabric as its priority promotion material. This fabrics offers a higher degree of breathability than conventional woven fabrics and shows excellent perspiration-absorbing property. Some knits appealed to high breathability, but a woven fabric appealing to breathability gives fresh impression. This fabrics called "AirImpression" offers high breathability of 150 cc/cm^sup 2^ just like cotton polo shirts, even though this is polyester. Even so, the texture is not coarsewoven. This fabric offers high breathability with a sufficient density of woven fabrics. Teijin has acquired the process patent for this fabric.
Naoto Yoshida, Manager, Apparel Textiles Department, Toyobo Co., Ltd. has carried out the development of products by extensively utilizing varied cooling theory based on an axis of sports comfort science theory. It takes three directions: (1) to release body heat effectively; (2) to lower the feel of the skin temperature; and (3) to shut the heat from the outside. (1) refers to "water-absorbing/releasing and heat releasing" functions to accelerate the heat of vaporization, "breathable / heat-releasing" functions obtainable by materials with less fluffs, "ventilating/heat-releasing" functions by means of the fluttering effect of wear and "heatconductive / heat-releasing" functions by means of materials with a high degree of heat flow. (2) refers to the function to "lower the humidity within clothing" to reduce the humidity inside clothing by absorbing "perspiration in the gaseous phase." (3) refers to the function to cut heat radiation (infrared rays) by means of materials to cut infrared rays.
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