Saratoga News

Photograph by Robert Scheer

Sally Aitken, chairwoman of WVC's fashion design and technology department, checks out the Samplemaker that recently arrived on the campus.

Samplemaker completes automating of department

By Michelle Alaimo

West Valley College's Technology Center recently took the final step in completely automating the fashion design department with the purchase of the Samplemaker from Gerber Garment Technology Inc. (GGT).

The Samplemaker allows students in the fashion department to never have to leave their computers when designing a garment, but to instead download the design directly to the Samplemaker, said Gladys De Luca, director of instructional computing technology. The large machine then programs the design into its memory bank and cuts out a prototype on a single layer of fabric, without ever using a paper pattern.

WVC has a partnership with GGT which allows the school to purchase high- technology machines through grants from GGT at an extremely affordable price, said Sally Aitken, WVC fashion design and apparel technology chairwoman. In addition to the Samplemaker, the Technology Center also features a digitizing table, which programs a hard copy of a pattern into the computer; a silhouette system, which is an electronic drafting board; and a plotter--all from GGT--along with 34 computer workstations for students to use as part of their two-year program.

Now with the addition of the Samplemaker, students have a complete hands-on approach to the same machines and technology used throughout the soft-goods product industry--anything made out of fabric--by companies such as Mattel Toys, Walt Disney Studios and even United Airlines, which uses the Samplemaker to cut out carpet pieces.

The machine allows students to save time and energy in two ways. First, a pattern no longer needs to be traced out on to paper. The pattern is automatically stored in the Samplemaker's memory. Students also save energy and hand strength by not physically cutting the pattern pieces out of fabric, Aitken said.

Instructors will be trained in how to use the machine within the next few weeks and will then begin training students.

Built three years ago, the Technology Center has been scrambling to keep up with constantly changing technology, Aitken said. She noted that fashion technology changes so often that classroom manuals must be updated every semester.

According to Aitken, the fashion department at WVC has become well-known for its having students "on the cutting edge."

"Industry people are calling us for positions at a rate greater than we can provide," she said.

WVC is the largest educational facility in North America offering classes using the GGT computer system, Aitken said. The department is also linked to GGT's Web site and, because of this, is seeing a surge in applications from international students. The department currently has 275 students enrolled.

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