Industry experts will lead informative “Expert Talks” series, October 22-23
NORWALK, Conn. (Sept. 25, 2019) – Complimentary educational programming was announced for the 2019 Functional Fabric Fair Portland powered by PERFORMANCE DAYS®, Oct. 22-23, at the Oregon Convention Center.
The “Expert Talks” series of complimentary educational programming features industry experts from the Hohenstein Institute and faculty presenters from Utah State University, Portland Fashion Institute and University of Oregon. Topics cover a wide range of industry subjects including color trends, performance technology, fabric sourcing and sustainability initiatives.
“We are especially pleased to work with a ‘Who’s Who’ of industry experts to lead the ‘Expert Talks’ series of presentations,” said Steve McCullough of Reed Exhibitions. “While the speakers represent the best in our industry, the topics also are timely to help attending industry professionals learn the latest information to grow their business, enhance their career and address textile industry initiatives.”
The inaugural event’s sold-out exhibit hall will showcase more than 130 hand-selected textile manufacturers, suppliers and service providers presenting their functional fabrics, branded technologies, treatments, laminates, paddings, finishes, and accessories such as yarns, tapes, prints, buttons and zippers. Currently, more than 1,000 top designers and influential product, purchasing and material managers for outdoor, sportswear, workwear, sportive fashion and athleisure apparel companies are registered to attend the fair.
Functional Fabric Fair Portland powered by PERFORMANCE DAYS® also features multiple professional networking and matchmaking programs and the PERFORMANCE FORUM – a platform unique to PERFORMANCE DAYS / Functional Fabric Fair spotlighting some 300 best textile and accessory innovations, as selected by an independent jury of sourcing experts.
Complimentary industry registration and detailed event information remain available at FunctionalFabricFair.com.
“Expert Talks” – 2019 Complimentary Education Conference Schedule
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22
10:30 AM PERFORMANCE FORUM Intro
Alexa Dehmel, Active Sports Designer & Consultant
11:00 AM Color Trends for Winter 2021
Nora Kühner, Independent Fashion & Design Consultant
12:00 PM Odor Management – Choosing the Right Technology
John Frazier, Senior Technical Director for Hohenstein Institute of America
12:45 PM Expert Panel, moderated by Emily Walzer (Textile Insight)
1:45 PM Distractions Hurt Performance – The Science Behind Skin Sensorial Comfort
Ben Mead, Managing Director for Hohenstein Institute of America
2:30 PM Four sides and a zipper? How Performance Sport Bag Design can be Revolutionized through Intersectional Creative Thinking
Susan Sokolowski, PHD, Director & Associate Professor, Sports Product Design, University of Oregon Portland
3:30 PM Formafit: An Automated Process for Apparel Manufacturing
Brett Stern, Industrial Designer and the Inventor of the Formafit Technology
4:00 PM Compression and Fit for Sportswear
Ben Mead, Managing Director for Hohenstein Institute of America
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23
10:30 AM Biomimicry, the Future of Sustainable Fabrics in Fashion
Tricia Langman, Portland Fashion Institute
11:30 AM Color Trends for Winter 2021
Nora Kühner, Independent Fashion & Design Consultant
12:30 PM Digital Fabric Sourcing is Responsible Fabric Sourcing
Bob Ryan, Senior Vice President of Frontier.cool
1:15 PM Staying Warm in Portland – Thermal Regulation in Performance Gear
Ben Mead, Managing Director for Hohenstein Institute of America
2:00 PM Putting Innovation Back in the Designer's Hands: Positive Impacts on Product, People and Planet
Andrea Olsen, Assistant Professor, Utah State University
3:00 PM Chemical Management – From RSLs to Innovation
John Frazier, Senior Technical Director for Hohenstein Institute of America
About Functional Fabric Fair Portland—powered by PERFORMANCE DAYS®
Functional Fabric Fair Portland powered by PERFORMANCE DAYS® is produced in partnership by Reed Exhibitions and Design & Development GmbH Textile Consult (Germany), and in collaboration with Concept III Textiles. The Fair is open 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 22, and 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 23.
Event organizers are committed to minimizing the fair’s carbon footprint. All exhibits are constructed of bio-degradable, recycled and reusable materials and each supplier is carefully vetted to meet social and environmental certifications, such as Bluesign, to ensure responsibly manufactured products. The Oregon Convention Center, a LEED Platinum Certified facility, is the most sustainable meeting center in America.
The West Coast edition follows Functional Fabric Fair New York powered by PERFORMANCE DAYS®, in July, which doubled in size from its 2018 launch and hosted 1,866 apparel industry professionals from 22 countries in the sold-out River Pavilion of the Javits Center in New York.
Visit www.FunctionalFabricFair.com for more information. Contact organizers at [email protected]. Engage at #FunctionalFabricFair on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Contacts:
Media: Sherry Major, [email protected] or 716-662-3855
Exhibitors: Steve McCullough, [email protected] or 203-840-5953
Marketing, Education, Partnership: Chadae Bowler, [email protected] or 203-840-5845
PERFORMANCE DAYS®: [email protected] or +49 89 93946060