Entry level CNC fabric cutter
Hi all,
I am new to CLO but from what I have experienced so far it seems like a highly affordable and intuitive piece of software. I am actually studying an MA in innovation in fashion at LCF, specifically looking at how supply chains can become leaner and more agile using available technology. I had a brief course on Gerber and Optitex systems which seem to be industry standard (along with a few others) and was amazed at how dated, expensive and limited to PC systems they were. However, one reason that Gerber has a dominant position in the industry is possibly their software is designed for their own machinery.
With that in mind does anyone in this community have any knowledge or experience of cheaper fabric cutters that could be linked with CLO, or that work well with CLO? An entry-level machine for a small designer.
Thanks,
N
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Hi N,
I'm a recent grad from FIT's new Fashion MFA. I worked with inflatable garments that i modeled in CLO, and heat sealed through a CNC machine. The CNC was purchased through Inventables (https://www.inventables.com/), which is an open source machining platform. I modified the machine to work with a custom heat sealed head. It's very possible to do the same with a cutting function, I looked into this, and there are some threads on the inventables community forum that go into this (links below). You just have to purchase a drag knife and construct a holder for the vise in the CNC machine. Clo can export to a DXF or PDF which can be modified in Illustrator and exported as an SVG file for a CNC machine.
I'm sure there is some type of way to modify the output potential of Clo for use with other systems. I've found it depends a lot on the file extension/type in terms of exporting and importing into other programs/systems. i'm still learning myself. But happy to talk more if you want a more extensive answer to this.
Some things to check out:
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Also take a look at my post about Internal cut lines in the forum. There are some enlightening responses to exporting for athletic/heat/cutting applications.
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Hey Eliza,
Thank you for your response! This is really interesting, and your project looks amazing.
It's really great to see people mixing technology with fashion. Here in the UK it feels like there is a division between people studying creative subjects and STEM subjects. Many of the designers seem to come out of university without any practical skills or technical knowledge that could help them develop a business. The way you have combined the 2 is great!!
Thank you for all of the links. I love the inventables CNC machine. It might be little complicated for the purpose I'm suggesting, which would be a micro-facility for designers. But I would really love to get one of these and play around with it myself. If it came with a bigger bed size similar to the Gerber systems that could be a bit of a game changer. The professional CNC's start around 30k+ it's amazing they have created this for only 2K! There definitely seems to be a gap in the market for more accessible equipment for SME's in fashion.....and even just machinery that works on Mac rather than PC.
How long have you been using Clo for? Do you use it for designing everything now or switch between methods/software?
Thanks!
Nick
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Hi Nick,
Yeah I have noticed this divide in fashion. Part of my theory around this is that there often isn't a good reason for using 'tech' in fashion, what I mean is that without a defined goal, fashion tech becomes gimmicky. This is my opinion at least. Where I have seen the most logical and strongest overlaps between the two are either in medical applications or in athletic apparel (which can still feel a bit gimmicky to me at times). That being said, there is absolutely room to re-work parts of the manufacturing process to be more streamlined etc. But you will inevitably run into both the issue of the industry being dominated by systems like Gerber, as well as push back to designers using tech in their design process.
I am unusual in the regard that my designs are primarily driven by technical knowledge and expertise, but I have found I usually get split into the camp of being a 'tech designer' because of this. Even though I also have gotten the feedback that my work is very aesthetically well designed outside of the tech. So I'm now post grad finding myself looking for work in the athletic industry, which has the best marriage of form and function that I've seen thus far. My thesis work (Which it seems you may have looked at) was very much about the psychology of how we relate to clothing visually and about providing an aesthetically pleasing alternative to the ugly compression vests on the market (within this lies a missive about advocacy as well).
Anyways, I typically use Clo pretty exclusively now for pattern making. I took a short intro class last September in NY and then figured it out on my own with some support from classmates. I originally approached it as a pattern maker and did not use the 3d rendering side so much, now I find I am going back and using the 3d component more as I get more comfortable with it. I'm also playing around with rendering and animation now. I still do most of my design development by hand even though I have some digital methods for quick visuals. I found with my thesis that I could make one garment sample from my 3d pattern in Clo, and then move into real fabric (admittedly this is also do to time restraints in grad programs and if I were taking something to market I would want to perfect it much more). But it massively cut down on both time and resources (sustainability). This is another reason why the Inventibles machine worked for me, I use the largest size, and can get about a 28.5 inch square panel, which is enough to construct a body and sleeve shape in an inflatable.
I'm happy to chat more if you have more questions. You're also welcome to drop me a line at elizabethfishera@gmail.com
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Take a watch at this threezzz
It will give a comprehensive breakdown of what each machine will do. Basic first, then after- more advanced. My input is buy the best you can afford as to not limit yourself in any way. The MH some have used with great success. Others prefer the SC or TC cutters, just depends what ALL you plan on doing.
If you wish to perform contour cutting, for printed materials such as inkjet transfers, t-shirt heat press transfers as well as dye sublimation then you will definitely want to shake your wallet in the direction of a basic MH or SC like Slice uses. If you'd like to eventually venture into the unknown and new stuff then go for a Laserpoint. Again, buy the best you can afford. I started with a Laserpoint 1 even though I thought I wasn't sure I would need it and ended up using that feature to pay for it even faster (2 weeks) and in 8 months I was buying a graphtec instead that is run daily. Now I have 3. Just my 2 cents.
In addition I willing to share this guide for those who loves to read online reviews!
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Hi Nick,
Stumbled upon this as I was looking for the exact same thing.
I'm currently looking over Eliza's links which are very interesting.I'm UK based as well, starting a small clothing manufacturing line in East London (as soon as the lockdown finally ends). Many of the machines are limiting because of the reasons you mentioned and Gerber and the likes are out of reach for small to medium workshops (plus very bulky if you ask me). I'm pretty sure there's a way to circumvent much of what's available on the market and get a decent machine with fabric suction and a wider (>1.6m) span to fit fabric right off the roll.
If you'd want to get in touch send me an email at ste [] lootforever [] com. I'm looking to connect with LCF to see if they have any specialists or students interested in this and also https://www.cncrobotics.co.uk for guidance.
I'm a designer and have mild coding skills so I can understand your frustration. There needs to be a Tesla-level event in garment manufacturing and nobody but a few people are looking at how to do it.
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