Page 38 - Sustainability report 2018 Ratti Group

CHAPTER 3 | Material becomes creation
request that may be entirely based on a colleague’s “imprint”, whether this be a direct request or a specific request from an external customer. In
the latter case the customer interfaces with the product manager, who gathers all information necessary and transmits it to the design team.
In this phase a first step is taken by researching material in the archive, which contains references to everything that has been produced since 1945, and is supplemented by further archives acquired over time.
From this and from other sources of inspiration, which vary according to the type of project, a series of prototypes are created. These either propose a new edition of a previous project or a brand new design inspired by the selected sample.
This is a road which is paved with perseverance, flexibility and innumerable attempts, before satisfaction is achieved with regard to the desired product.
Ideas born out of internal proposals are developed most of all for international trade shows, which take place at pre-decided times for the summer and the winter collection, and during which Ratti is invited to present its proposals. The customers in these cases are from the luxury sector, with “tailored” proposals demonstrating Ratti’s savoir faire and using special printing techniques. Alongside the high fashion sector, Ratti also presents to the fast fashion sector, with a rich collection of 150 proposals in addition to its shirt collection, which includes over 300 ideas.
Once one of the designs presented has been assigned to a customer, out of ethics and respect for intellectual property the design is not shared with other customers.
Within Ratti there is a team of six people dedicated to the world of shirts and ties, while there are 22 designers working on women’s accessories and clothing, furnishings and bathing suits. Every designer has his or her own characteristic style, maybe more rigorous or more extrovert, which is made available to the team, turning their creative ability into a concrete solution.
Although it is good practice to rotate designers to guarantee new stimuli, it may also happen that special relations may be established between some designers and customers, which consolidates their cooperation over time.
The textile cycle: from yarn to fabric
Once the design has been stipulated, for
the weaving cycle the yarn is then selected
from the warehouse and sent to the various phases of the actual weaving process.
In a dedicated area, compliance with the sample
is checked, residues from manufacturing
are removed, and any imperfections in the resulting fabric are noted.
After this first check, the fabric is sent to
the Finishing department for the necessary
Creativity at the click of a button
This project derives its origins from the need to move from physical to digital management of the creative archive, improving both effectiveness and efficien- cy, integrating it with design and production processes, and making it easier to safeguard the intellectual property (designs and images) of customers and other third parties. Ratti makes use of an API (Application Program Interface) for image recognition, classification and research (a cognitive computing system)
WARPING
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The phases of the fabric
SPINNING
The yarn used to produce the fabric may already be dyed or it may be in its raw form. To ensure the yarn complies with specific requests, various additives are used to dye it.
WINDING
In order to carry out subsequent operations, the yarn is wound onto cones.