28 May 2025
This semester, the IND206 module “Industry Collaboration” of XJTLU Design School’s Department of Industrial Design, partnered with Dainese, the global leader in motorcycle apparel, for an inspiring journey of creativity and innovation. The module was led by Ivan Parati, an Associate Professor from the Department.
In this module, the students tackled three exciting product categories: Road & Track (Ivan Parati), Off-road & Adventure (Hui Jin), and Beyond (Nuno Bernardo).
The results included groundbreaking concepts that blend Chinese motorcycle and traditional culture, safety, comfort, ergonomics, fashion, wearable tech, VR/AR, sustainable manufacturing, and customisation.
Matteo Bertele, General Manager in Shanghai for Dainese, says: “Several student projects have great potential to be implemented at a commercial level, and I’m planning to send some project details to our R&D lab to be further developed and tested. It will take some time, but it is worth investigating further.”
Ivan Parati says: “We tackle business from a customer- and environmentally-centric perspective. During product development, we carefully consider the local cultural background, tastes, needs, and preferences.
“Additionally, the local industrial and technological environment plays a crucial role. In China, the adoption and acceptance of innovative solutions are often higher than in Western countries. Environmental challenges are also more pronounced, making sustainable manufacturing a priority.
“This is not the end, but only the beginning of a long-term partnership that promises to drive research, innovation, employment, and market growth for both XJTLU and Dainese in China.”
The initial exploration was a collaborative effort, examining several market segments and projecting their near-future developments. This approach helped the students understand competitors, challenges, and opportunities, and anticipate emerging trends in user needs and demand.
During the learning process, students engaged directly in the labs with a wide range of manufacturing methodologies. Tutors taught sewing, embroidery, lamination, embossing, welding, and other traditional garment-forming techniques. Some students went further by exploring the integration of technologies such as flexible circuits, 3D printing, and inflatables to create wearables actuated through devices triggered by sensors and electronics.
The teaching team includes the teaching assistants, Yubin Guo and Lei Mao, lab technician, and Zhe Zhang from Airsketch, who provided the equipment to prototype the pneumatic inflatables. Airsketch is a pioneering inflatable design & manufacturing brand that leverages seamlessly integrated hardware and software to enable rapid, digital manufacturing of advanced inflatable structures.
“We would like to express our gratitude to Dainese Shanghai: Matteo Vittorio Bertelé, Ben Zhang, and Yunyi Ma, for opening the doors of the brand, supporting students learning and attending presentations with passion and curiosity,” Parati adds.
Story and photos provided by Ivan Parati
Edited by Yi Qian
28 May 2025