Embroidery Technology Advancements with ZSK Machines

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News

• SGIA has announced Sustainable Business Recognition Award. Marci says, Integrating sustainability into your business practices can involve many steps, but even the smallest act can make a significant impact. (Installing energy efficient lighting and controls saves money and benefits the planet — a clear win-win situation!) 

• Pantone Color Institute named its 2019 Color of the Year, Living Coral. The coral hue features gold undertones that the institute says “energizes and enlivens with a softer edge.” Seeking inspiration for this year’s color, the organization says Living Coral is in reaction to the prominence of digital technology and social media in daily life and the desire for authentic experiences. The institute also states that the shade symbolizes an “innate need for optimism and joyful pursuits” and the “desire for playful expression.” “Color is an equalizing lens through which we experience our natural and digital realities, and this is particularly true for Living Coral,” states Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of Pantone Color Institute. “With consumers craving human interaction and social connection, the humanizing and heartening qualities displayed by the convivial [color] hit a responsive chord.”

Embroidery Technology Advancements

Terry: Give us a little history of ZSK and why they have positioned themselves to get involved with all this innovation?

Erich: I know that I love seeing the out-of-this world tech and manufacturing that embroidery is aiding these days, but before I run us out into arcane processes, why don’t we talk a little bit about where embroidery is going now? What sort of changes have you noticed about the commercial embroidery market’s focus recently and what sort of features or innovations are already in the pipeline that addresses how the market is evolving? (personalization, indiv. Production, head selection, production aids/projection)

Terry: I see Erich reposting lots of your content. Can you tell us more about these ‘embroidery adjacent’ technologies that are coming into use? (Upholstery, Shoe uppers, etc?)

Erich: Alright- we’ve talked about the kinds of embroidery we all know about, let’s get a little further out there into technologies derived from embroidery- tell us a little more about what ‘Technical Embroidery’ means and what is it doing for manufacturing? What kinds of things are you helping companies make that people might not even think of as embroidery?

Terry: What kinds of these high-tech applications are still on the horizon, and what is within our abilities to do right now? How about average decorator? Can they get in on this? (E-textiles, lead into circuits, sequins, etc)

Erich: I know I’m usually the one feeding the geeky stuff, but I’m actually going to bring us down to earth a bit here; as much as I love circuits and blending tech into apparel, we all know it’s still all about decoration; What kinds of embroidery improvements is ZSK working on in the more traditional space, anything fun for those of us still using embroidery just to make stuff look nice? (rhinestone machine etc.) Are there any technologies you folks are keeping an eye on outside of the ZSK space?

Terry: Thanks again for being on the show this week, Andrea and Nick! Where can our listeners find you?

Erich: It was great getting a peek into the future of embroidery like that, really mind-blowing developments on the way.

Andrea is part of the third generation in the family business started by her grandfather in 1955. Growing up in the industry gave her a love of decoration technique and education. Andrea aids in training as well as workflow and production solutions. She loves learning and teaching about embroidery, fostering creativity, and catering to the individual needs of businesses, especially those stretching into non-traditional embroidery markets and is deeply committed to the success of her customers.

Nick has spent 24 years at the company, making Nick the company’s longest full-time employee, with his many roles contributing to award-winning training, service, parts, and sales. He’s worked with the most prominent brands in the industry both domestically and abroad. He enjoys being part of a team with deep roots in the industry and has 2 sons also enjoying learning the business who you may even see attending a trade show as a proud part of the company’s 4th generation.