A technology adoption programme is urging fashion and textile manufacturers in Preston to adopt digitalisation to help drive sustainability and growth.

With over 1,000 manufacturers in the North West, the industry employs around 15,000 people. Digital advice organisation Made Smarter believes the sector and region synonymous with the ‘first’ Industrial Revolution has a golden opportunity to lead the ‘fourth’.

To help textile businesses embrace the opportunities, Made Smarter has created a free guide, “Textile Manufacturing: How digital transformation is securing a sustainable future”.

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The downloadable PDF explores the environmental impact of waste, the role of digital technologies in solving some of the sector’s main challenges, and details some real-world use cases.

Alain Dilworth, North West Adoption Programme Manager at Made Smarter, said: “The textile industry in the North West was at the centre of the first industrial revolution with technological advances enabling cottons, wools, silks and dyestuffs to be produced at unprecedented rates for export around the globe.

“It is fitting that Made Smarter is now offering its support and expertise to help the same industry embrace the opportunity to lead the fourth industrial revolution.

“Our ambition now is to reach out to the hundreds of others across the region to support them to take their first steps to future-proof their business.”

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