Lectra signs new “Privilege” partnerships with 3 “fashionable” US Universities and schools and announces its new Education space on www.lectra.com

Paris, March 19, 2008 – Lectra, the world's leading provider of integrated technology solutions for the fashion industry, is pleased to announce the signature of new “Privilege” education programs with the two most famous New York Fashion Schools Parsons, FIT and with North Carolina State University, one of the most renowned university in the United States having a dedicated fashion section.
These partnerships demonstrate Lectra’s will to further reinforce the existing links between Lectra and the North American Fashion schools and to strongly support future fashion professionals through its new education program, launched in September 2007: the “Advanced” partnership —  including end-of-studies support and sponsoring — and the “Privilege” partnership — a personalized approach and follow-up, based on a very strong joint commitment, which implies: the support of teachers and instructors to train their students, the development of useful professional skills and tailored follow-up, internships and personalized support for student projects, organization of events with the schools, etc.

“We are very proud to count Parsons, FIT and North Carolina State University among our most valued partners, which demonstrate the value of our “Privilege” partner program and the perfect fit between Lectra solutions and the needs of the Fashion market. We are truly excited working with such renowned schools,” says Veronique Zoccoletto, Chief Human Capital Officer, Lectra. “These partnerships are a good illustration of the high quality of our education program. It is a perfect opportunity for Lectra to move into the next major stage of promoting and supporting Fashion schools, students and courses/education in the United States”.
Present in the United States since 1980, Lectra intends to strengthen its support of the new generation of future stars of American fashion by developing its presence at the heart of North American fashion and design schools and universities.

Lectra strongly supports students and young designers in North America
As part of its strong involvement, Lectra also participated in the 63rd ITAA (International Textile and Apparel Association) annual meeting (November 7-10, 2007, Los Angeles, California) as an exhibitor and sponsor of three awards: the “Lectra Innovation Award for Faculty Research”, the “Lectra Innovation Award for Teaching” and the “Lectra Outstanding Faculty Design Award”. The company also sponsored the Live Gallery Show. Through these actions, Lectra is proud to contribute in identifying and distinguishing deserving current and future professionals of the North American fashion industry.

 
Parsons The New School for Design

Based in New York City, Parsons was founded in 1896 and is today one of the top design schools in the US. In 1970, it became associated with The New School.
Lectra has had a very strong presence in the Parsons program for more than 10 years. Parsons The New School for Design is equipped with Lectra U4ia and will begin to migrate to Kaledo, the new Lectra fashion and textile design solution.

"Lectra has been an unusual partner for more than a decade because of their progressive vision of working with education. They have not viewed us as an opportunity for profit. Rather, they have donated software and support with the understanding that we are training future fashion designers. This has helped enable us to develop the finest digital fashion curriculum," said Maura Jurgau, Coordinator Fashion Digital Design / Professor, Parsons the New School for Design.

FIT

FIT is one of the premier institutions for Fashion in the US. Founded in 1944, FIT is a college of art and design, business, and technology and part of New York State University. The School of Graduate Studies offers programs leading to the Master of Arts or Master of Professional Studies degree. Lectra has a very strong presence in terms of products and courses taught. Today, FIT is equipped with Lectra U4ia and Prima solutions for all its courses linked to fashion and textile design, with Modaris and Diamino Lectra’s benchmark pattern-making and marker-making solutions for their pattern-design, grading and marker-making courses.

“Lectra has been a wonderful educational partner for FIT for more than a decade. We are thrilled that FIT is a part of Lectra’s privilege partnership program,” said Mario Federici, Chairperson, Production Management, Fashion and Related Industries, FIT. “This partnership will reinforce Lectra’s continuing commitment to FIT and the development of outstanding students from our school.”

North Carolina State University (NCSU)

 
North Carolina State University is the largest university-based textile school in the United States. The school is rated 12th among the nation’s colleges and universities in terms of value, according to Kiplinger's Personal Finance and is renowned for its dedicated fashion and textile design courses. It annually awards about half of the country’s bachelor’s degrees and 75 percent of the country’s advanced degrees in textiles. North Carolina State University is equipped with Lectra Kaledo, U4ia, Modaris and Diamino solutions.

“Today, Fashion and Textile Designers and Developers rely on a series of computer design tools and systems to enhance the design process and bring products to the market faster than ever before. These 2D and 3D CAD tools have become an essential part of the professional design process. At NC State we strive to teach the latest design tools and methodologies. This is the reason why we have chosen to sign a privilege partnership with Lectra, which allows our students to benefit from the best technologies and acquire a solid expertise for a successful career.” said Trevor Little, Professor, NC State University - College of Textiles.

These 3 partnerships have been highlighted in the new www.lectra.com education space - launched in January, 2008 -, which also present other very exiting education partnerships around the world.