A total of 16 European companies from the textile and advanced manufacturing sectors participated in the mission and six representatives of the clusters that are part of the project consortium.
The mission took place in San Francisco and Los Angeles with the aim of exploring their innovation ecosystem.
On the first day, the ADMANTEX2i delegation visited the companies Balanced Body, the major manufacturer of pilates equipment in the USA, and Tri Tool Technologies, a global leader in the design of high-performance machine tools. The day ended with a meeting at the facilities of the California Manufacturers and Technology Association (CMTA).
The second day started with a networking session, to foster interactions among the members of the delegation, followed by a visit to Autodesk, a leader in CAD software development, and ended with a visit to Circuit Launch, an incubator and co-working space for IOT, VR, AR, and other electronic hardware startups.
The following day, the delegation travelled to Silicon Valley, to visit the research institutes SRI International and Palo Alto Research Center.
On the fourth day, visits took place in Los Angeles, to the California Market Center, a West Coast’s premier fashion wholesale building with event venues and creative office spaces for fashion brands, designers, artists, and creatives, and to the company Los Angeles Apparel, a basics apparel manufacturer and distributor founded by Dov Charney, a long-standing leader in American garment manufacturing.
On the last day of the mission, the delegation participated in a tour to the NASA Jet Propulsory Laboratory facilities.
AEI Tèxtils and its members rate the mission as successful which has enabled the participating companies the exploration of the Californian innovation system.