STVgoDigital Project: The contribution of industry and scientific and technological system for fashion ecosystem digitalization

Abstract

Digitalization is the act of deploying digital technologies to transform available business models and generate new revenue and value-producing opportunities (Gartner 2018). Digitalization is also called Industry 4.0. Several projects have emerged to respond to the challenges of Industry 4.0 and that, in some way, can respond to questions and problems found in an era of sustainability in the TCI (textile and clothing industry) supply chain, namely new business models for value creation. The STVgoDigital project, with the leadership of the “Têxtil Manuel Gonçalves” company, developed in partnership between the Portuguese textile and clothing industry and organizations of the scientific and technological system, allowing the development of advanced technology and market solutions applied to the fashion ecosystem. Thus, the objective of this project is to develop a digital platform (B2B and B2C) that contributes to the digitalization of processes from design to production and consumer with a horizontal and vertical integration system and allows responding to the problems of the new generations of fashion designers. For its development, a multidisciplinary team was formed (engineers, designers, informatics, managers, among others) to formulate the digital platform and interconnection with micro-factories production for a specific business model in the textile and clothing industry. It is concluded that the STVgoDigital project can contribute to a global level in this new digital and sustainable era: create value in the Portuguese textile and clothing industry and include more significant participation of designers and artists in the sector’s value chains, both nationally and internationally.Keywords: Industry 4.0, Fashion Ecosystem, Portuguese Textile, and Clothing Industry