Robotising Your Worn (Project F.L.X) Levi's Jeans
You might not know this but that 30-years torn look that you always get with Levi's jeans purchases (even if it's less than a week ago) really isn't as authentic as you might imagine. Levi's are proud of its department that it calls Eureka Lab and the latest invention to come out from its experimental whiz kid department is a robot laser capable of digitising one step of Levi's jeans production chain. In their eyes "...making manufacturing jeans easier, more efficient and safer", but in many customer's eyes 'taking away jobs and making every single pair of Levi's jeans that less authentic', this new technology can create its signature distressed/worn denim style instead of using human employee interactions. SATORI & SCOUT (without adding more fuel to the debate) can really see both sides of the story, we mean it is the digital robot age after all, we just didn't think that any company would be so openly proud about such endeavours when their entire marketing and brand appeal is about authenticism.
Named F.L.X for 'Future-Led Execution', the technology is part of Levi's commitment towards the company reducing the amount of chemical waste that it takes to create that oh-so-perfect distressed look. Creating a safer production environment for its workers that are exposed to the most harmful of substances that Levi's use, SATORI & SCOUT cannot help but look past this marketing jargon and feel slightly nervy about Levi's general ethics let alone their proposed 'new future'. Effectively reducing the finishing time in making a pair of jeans down to just 90 seconds, there are certainly bottom-line incentives at play. With the technology able to recreate tears, details and patterns, will we start to see all sorts of fanciful patterns on Levi's from here-on? Okay, applying smiley-face emojis is definitely not authentic, but kudos to Levi's if they do actually manage to reduce their chemical waste, a point SATORI & SCOUT really cannot complain about. What's your thoughts?
Discover more about the brand and technology online at: LeviStrauss.com
Photography credit : Levi Strauss