The future of tech lies in textiles, or smart textiles. New technologies allow manufacturers to add extra features to their clothes, curtains and car upholstery. If there’s any secret of success, it lies in the ability to combine functionality with style and comfort.

The global smart textiles market is looking at a CAGR of 33.58 per cent between 2015 and 2020. Growth is mainly driven by the uptrend in wearable devices, increasing demand for sophisticated electronics, miniaturization of electronic components, and a rapid growth of wireless sensor networks.

Smart textiles have numerous applications, such as sports and fitness, defense and military. Currently, the military application of smart textiles is the largest market segment, with a share of around 25.8 per cent of the global smart textiles market. Sports and fitness is the second largest segment in global smart textiles – from smart shirts that record heart rates to intelligent bands that track physical activities. Smart textiles in the form of fitness monitoring devices have a lot of demand from health-conscious people. There is also an increasing demand for smart textiles in the architecture and automotive industries.

Traditional manufacturing industries are turning to highly automated production modes, like intelligent and efficient textile technology, to enhance efficiency.