httpv://youtu.be/vzsOf5oRD1o
What might be better reserved for a segment on the Science Channel’s show How It’s Made, MACPI spa is an Italian industrial machinery company that produces the equipment used by appeal companies to make your favorite athletic clothing. You may never even see any of their equipment in person, but you probably have a garment that has been assembled using one of their machines.
MACPI is at Interbike this year to showcase their equipment to other manufacturers with an emphasis on adhesive and tape laying machines. These machines are used in the production of athletic apparel by manufactures who want to avoid using sewn seams in all or part of a particular garment. Take a skin suit for instance, the goal of wearing a skin suit is to reduce drag, but a normal sewn seam is slightly raised where as a taped seam is virtually flat. Another area where a taped seam is nice is in an area where a normal flat-lock seam can cause irritation through chaffing.
If you have ever picked up a pair of cycling shorts, a sports bra or a jersey and wondered how it was assembled without a sewn seam, it might have been done by an individual using a MACPI taping and bonding machine. Take a look at their video to see the 337.30 taping machine in action; and just like most episodes of How It’s Made, make sure you have a double espresso before clicking ’play’.