The world of news of Japanese Shima Seiki
Japanese Shima Seiki celebrated 2012 its 50 years of existence (February 4) and in November the company held a gala celebration with over 1400 customers and 1300 employees and over a three day period
The focus of the gala has been a fashion show featuring intriguing examples of WHOLEGARMENT and new integral knitwear. Complementing there was an extensive exhibit of over 5600 knitted items, including samples from over 30 international apparel brands making use of WHOLEGARMENT knitwear in their line-up, as well as students’ works from a dozen schools worldwide that currently use SDS-ONE APEX3 and related design systems. The latest line of WHOLEGARMENT machines was also exhibited, and several rooms were prepared for demonstrations on SDS-ONE APEX3 design systems.
Other highlights of the celebration year were the construction of a new factory for WHOLEGARMENT knitting machine assembly, the introduction of five new machines, as well as five new variations on existing machines, further the launch of WHOLEGARMENT knitwear brands, KOTOBA in the U.S. and SAMAND’0R in Japan.
Also to be mentioned is the sponsorship of a new advanced textile research laboratory at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA) with the donation of USD one million from Shima Seiki. The state-of-the-art laboratory will conduct research for the development of new smart textiles and wearable technologies, and to explore new methods of production for commercialisation of those technologies. The multidisciplinary research initiative involves member from Drexel’s Colleges of Nursing and Health Professionesw, Engineering, Information Science & Technology, Medicine and Biomedical Engineering. Shima Seiki is contributing to that research with their donation of 116 SDS-ONE APEX3 3 D design workstations and three WHOLEGARMENT knitting machines, as well as R&D support through its U.S. subsidiary Shima Seiki U.S.A. Inc.
On September 10, 2012, Dr. Masahiro Shima, president and founder of Shima Seiki was inducted into the American Textile Hall of Fame, located within the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts and affiliated with the Smithsonian institute. The Hall of Fame honours individuals, corporations and institutions that have made significant contributions to the American textile industry. Dr. Shima was selected for being a pioneer in knitting technology, inventing knitting machinery as an adolescent and having founded Shima Seiki by the age 24 to develop the world’s fully automated glove knitting machine. He is also recognised for his pioneering role in the development of the world’s first WHOLEGARMENT knitting machine, as well as his role in Shima Seiki’s continued leadership in the industry through ongoing innovation of both computerised knitting machines and computer graphic design systems. Further he is acknowledged for opening Shima Seiki U.S.A. and Shima Seiki Design Centre of New York as a full service knit consultation and production business catering to the North American apparel industry. Previously reserved for Americans, the Hall of Fame now recognises that innovation in the industry has no boundaries and therefore, Dr. Shima became the very first international recipient of this honour.