Lectra Picked for Sizing Survey in China
Technology provider Lectra is about to launch an ambitious endeavor: taking the body measurements of 20,000 Chinese citizens.
The Paris-based company has been has been selected by the China National Institute of Standardization for its first major sizing survey.
Lectra and affiliate Human Solutions, which will provide body scanners, will take 3-D measurements of children and young adults ages 4 to 17 from 10 Chinese provinces as a means to formulate various national policies and to provide statistical support for the Chinese apparel industry, as well as other areas such as home furnishings and transportation.
“The scale of the Chinese study is the biggest of its kind in the world up to this point,” said Jean-Louis Heyd, Lectra’s worldwide project manager for 3-D measurement campaigns.
Lectra’s equipment consists of body scanners outfitted with four columns, two highspeed cameras and a single eye-safe laser, which are used to scan the body to provide digital measurements in seconds.
Lectra participated in a similar project in France between 2003 and 2005, measuring about 12,000 subjects. The research determined that the average French woman was 5 feet 3 1/2 inches tall and weighed 137 pounds; the average man was 5-foot-8 and weighed 170 pounds. Those results are being used to update sizes and patterns for the ready-to-wear industry.
The Chinese project is expected to take several months. For more information, visit www.lectra.com. —Robert McAllister
