The word that comes up frequently in conversations with the project manager of Fuse Form is “denier.” Denier is the thread thickness measurement unit and because this is a cutting edge weaving technology, it is a key terminology. “With denier, the lower the number the finer the thread. A 9000m long thread that is only 1g is 1 denier. The North Face’s lightest down fabric is 7 denier and to the point where it is hard to see with the naked eye. The Fuse Form is thicker and woven with 20 denier threads, but even then the thread is extremely small and hardly has a sense of feel when touched. It took half a year to put the image into form from first hearing the idea of the new fabric. Creating the design specifications took a month alone. That in itself is three times the standard. All of the warp threads are the same, but the weft threads are mixed in both size and material. This is an extremely difficult process as even if the denier is the same, a difference in elasticity will cause wrinkles, and the smaller the threads the easier it is to develop tears. At first, we were unable to utilize our preferred weaving methods with the current machinery, so we came up with an innovative technique that utilized a combination of both the regular warp threads and special warp set threads. For producing differences in fabrics, in addition to thread selection, they had to experiment with weaving various fabrics like satin and twill. The fabrics are produced up until the raw fabric stage at this factory and sent out to a dyer to be colored, thus everything is considered in the beginning process. It was a long continuation of trial and error. But, everything is looking good now and we are excited to be trying even newer things!”
“Fuse Form” is currently only being used for shells. Further revolutionary shells made from a surprising mix of fabrics and new technology will surely be released in the future. Technology innovation helps produce smiles in the outdoor world.