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With the proliferation of smart textiles and their new technologies and applications, one finds it relatively easy to pair almost any other topic we discuss in this publication with smart textiles in general, or e-textiles in particular. In this case, our feature, “Wearables lead protective market advances” by Dr. Marie O’Mahony, ties in with our focus on niche markets in the protective garment space.
E-textiles are making protective clothing smarter, with the market taking full advantage of new technologies in health, environmental and location monitoring in hazardous locations. But we’re not talking more gear for the wearer to have to lug around. Oh, no. We’re looking at a pair of boots with integrated smart technology, or even gloves with advanced capabilities. And it isn’t enough to be smart boots, or gloves, or a jacket; those garments need to be comfortable, too.
This same highly protective clothing will eventually also be PFAS-free, so the gear itself is not a health hazard for the wearer. Conveniently, a story appeared recently about the San Francisco Fire Department’s adoption of non-PFAS firefighter gear. This development, though not the particular fire department, was also mentioned in our previous feature this month, “Niche markets: the most challenging hazards require specialized solutions,” by Cheryl Gomes.
Again, without difficulty I found recent stories about other breakthrough technologies or novel uses of smart technologies or materials—also in niche markets, as it turns out. Researchers have developed a smart device applied like a band-aid to the finger to offer the wearer a means to “feel” digitally. Smart wound dressings are expected to replace more traditionally used wound dressings because of their ability to provide medical care-givers critical information quickly and less invasively. It’s just the beginning, folks!
We’ve spoken in the past about the early adopters of smart textile technologies—generally, athletics and fitness, as well as medical uses. Success in these market areas has spurred expansion into protective garments for many of the same reasons the earliest adopters found them useful. The ability to monitor vital signs for those in dangerous occupations (such as firefighters or warfighters) means these protectors are better protected, too.
Janet Preus is senior editor of Textile Technology Source. She can be reached at janet.preus@textiles.org.