Boosted by this success, the company is now increasing its Vector range 
to address a wider market

Paris, February 11, 2008 – Lectra, the world leader in integrated technology solutions dedicated to the soft goods industries, announces a record number of sales for its new generation of Vector automated cutting systems.
Sales of the new generation of Vector automatic cutting systems, launched last February, are up 43% compared to sales of its predecessor in 2006.
« We are particularly proud of the strong growth in the number of Vectors ordered, in all markets. Totally renewing our range of automatic cutting systems was a real technological challenge for Lectra. The results achieved by our new Vector range demonstrate the superiority of our new automated cutting systems, and prove that the massive investment by the company – more than 15 million Euros to date – was a challenge that has paid off” says Daniel Harari, CEO Lectra.

Lectra’s new generation of Vector, unrivaled technology!
With its new Vector range, combining power with intelligence, Lectra has taken an unprecedented technological leap forward. Combining speed with unbeaten cutting quality, manufacturers can brush off previous limitations on use that they had to deal with and at the same time to achieve exceptional productivity gains, with absolutely no compromise on quality and reliability.

Dedicated to the fashion, automotive, industrial fabrics and furniture industries, the new generation of Vector is today enjoying a well-deserved success. A real competitive advantage, they ensure productivity measured at 2 or 3 times that of the standard models on the market and enable material savings of 5% or even more. The cost per article produced is between 20 and 30% lower than the competition, with outstanding cut quality from the first to last ply. It is a unique solution on the market in that it allows manufacturers to recoup their investment in generally less than a year, and to satisfy up to 50% more orders, using a reliable solution, integrated preventive maintenance, with operating costs reduced by up to 20% (energy saver, increased lifespan for consumables and spare parts).

Start of 2008: Two new Vector lines and a new VectorLingerie are born.
Buoyed up by the success of their new range in 2007, Lectra today announces the launch of 2 new Vector lines: The VectorM88 and the  VectorM55 lines – at the entry level of the Lectra range – as well as a new VectorLingerie, the VectorLingerieFX dedicated to top of the range lingerie.
With these new Vectors, Lectra is today expanding its range of solutions to address a wider market and win over new clients.

New Vector lines
Designed for the fashion, automotive, industrial fabrics and furniture industries who produce in large runs and need to be highly productive to maintain their competitive edge, the VectorM88 line — available as VectorFashionM88, VectorAutoM88, VectorTexTechM88 and VectorFurnitureM88 — and the VectorM55 line — comprising the VectorFashionM55, VectorAutoM55 and VectorTexTechM55 — are adapted to each production type and the particular constraints of each business (fabric, market-related constraints…). They represent an excellent investment for companies looking to take their first steps in digitally-controlled cutting, and so are particularly suitable for developing countries — China, India and Eastern Europe — thanks to their ease of use, operating costs among the lowest on the market, at the same time with no compromise on cutting quality. 
The VectorM88 and VectorM55 lines can handle very long spreads, with optimum precision. Markers can therefore be produced with pieces nested at a tangent, offering significant material savings. With its 8cm operational cutting height, the VectorM88 line is specifically designed for thick, compressible materials such as jersey (fashion) or foam-backed (automotive).  The VectorM55 line, with an operational cutting height of 5cm, is the ideal solution for compact materials, such as woven and coated materials or vinyl. 

The VectorLingerieFX
Following the success of the VectorLingerieMX specifically designed for very high volume lingerie production, Lectra is today launching the  VectorLingerieFX designed to meet the most stringent requirements of luxury lingerie producers, who are looking for a particularly flexible and reactive tool for just-in-time production of small to medium quantities of highly-sophisticated pieces.
The VectorLingerieFX is controlled by a new generation of software which allows optimum cutting of markers containing pieces at a tangent or with minimum buffer spacing. Fabric consumption is thus reduced to a minimum. Able to cut a whole range of delicate fabrics, it is fitted as standard with a variable vacuum system to give better fabric hold. Its preventive maintenance system limits unexpected downtime and guarantees its reliability and stability over the long term.

(* Important: Only the VectorM88 line is dedicated to the furniture market)

 
APPENDIX: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Main technical specifications 
VectorFashionM88, VectorAutoM88, VectorTexTechM88 and VectorFurnitureM88 
and VectorFashionM55, VectorAutoM55 and VectorTextechM55:
- Operational cutting height VectorM88 line : 8 cm / VectorM55 line : 5cm,
- Simple and easy-to-use piloting software, specific to each market, with monitoring of the work process, contextual on-line help and personalized access rights,
- Conveyor cutters,
- Preprogrammed cutting parameters,
- Display of markers and shapes to be cut, cutting simulation, permanent display of production data and performance,
- Optimized cutting of tangent pieces, automatic deletion of lines in common,
- Secure connection to Lectra Call Centers, non-invasive to IT networks, for remote diagnostics and personalized assistance,
- Warning messages for preventive maintenance and electronic maintenance logbook,
- « Energy Saver » and « Blade Saver »,
- Synchronization of conveyor tables with spreading tables,
- Lectra’s experts will integrate the cutter into its production environment, as well as provide training and support.

VectorLingerieFX – main technical specifications:
- Operational cutting height 2.5 cm,
- Sophisticated piloting system especially developed for lingerie,
- Conveyor cutters,
- Preprogrammed cutting parameters
- Display of markers and shapes to be cut, cutting simulation, permanent display of production data and performance
- Optimized cutting of tangent pieces, automatic deletion of lines in common,
- Secure connection to Lectra Call Centers, non-invasive to IT networks, for remote diagnostics and personalized assistance.
- Warning messages for preventive maintenance and electronic maintenance logbook,
- High performance cutting head with specific blade profile for lingerie,
- « Energy Saver » and « Blade Saver » 
- Unique« Eclipse » system allows continuous cutting during conveyor advance with additional productivity savings of 10%
-  Synchronization of cutting conveyor tables with spreading conveyor tables,
- Automatic adjustment of vacuum level for optimum fabric hold,
- Lectra’s experts will integrate the cutter into its production environment, as well as provide training and support.