Three US companies aiming to make smart fabric products a reality reveal to John McCurry the reasons that their sector has yet to exploit its full potential despite the continued interest shown by consumers and apparel manufacturers.

Mass customization, direct-to-consumer sales models, drastically reduced delivery times and the strong influence of social media on buying decisions are all contributing to the continued rise of digital textile printing, according to Adrian Wilson.

In their attempts to conquer space travel, today’s private companies backed by entrepreneurs have a rich legacy of development work from the USA’s National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to draw on, writes Adrian Wilson