Exploring the Implementation of 3-Dimensional (3D) Technologies in Clothing Manufacturing Industries in Zimbabwe

Abstract

With an era of fast fashion evolving, the clothing manufacturing industry in Zimbabwe is facing great challenges to design and produce fashion products within a short time to meet customers’ demands. 3D software technologies have been identified as tools that can make it possible to design and present products virtually without physical samples. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the extent to which clothing manufacturers in Zimbabwe have implemented 3D technology in the manufacturing system. In-depth interviews and observations were used to elicit data from production managers of forty clothing manufacturing companies. Data was presented in narrative form and analysed thematically. The study established that out of the companies that were studied thirty-two companies did not use any form of new technologies like 3D nor 2D in their manufacturing while six of the companies used 2D technologies and two companies employed 3D technologies within their organizations based outside Zimbabwe. The manufacturing practices of the companies tend to differ depending on the type of technology used. The study concluded that clothing manufacturing industries in Zimbabwe had implemented 3D technologies in their manufacturing to a very limited extent. The high cost of purchasing and managing 3D technological equipment was concluded as one of the major barrier that limited majority of the companies in Zimbabwe from implementing 3D technologies. Lack of experts and technicians to maintain the 3D technologies were found to be another challenge in the process of implementing 3D technology in the clothing manufacturing companies. From the findings of the study, it was recommended that the government of Zimbabwe should support the local clothing industries with loans and consider waving import tax for technological equipments so as to enable companies to purchase the technologies needed for manufacturing. Clothing manufacturing companies in Zimbabwe should have a co-operate plan to train experts regionally or even internationally who can operate the CAD systems that are of importance to the clothing manufacturing systems. Universities of science and technologies should train professionals who are innovative to meet current development and technological needs of the clothing industry.